Back inside the Pokémon Center, Su Bai had taken his seat once more.
Across from him sat Rock, calmly sipping his tea, the ever-present squint in his eyes giving him a lazy, unbothered look.
Su Bai narrowed his gaze slightly.
"Rock…"
The document Rock had torn earlier was a red-sealed official order—one issued by Kyoto itself.
In every textbook, it was clearly written:
Tampering with such documents was a serious offense.
Even if Rock was a special envoy from Kyoto, destroying that kind of document should have meant major consequences.
Was it possible he'd sensed danger and ripped it up just to save his own skin?
Even for someone from Kyoto, that move was reckless.
And that name—Rock…
Su Bai eyed the tea-drinking squint-eyed envoy and asked slowly:
"That name sounds very familiar… Care to explain what that little stunt was about?"
Rock rubbed his nose and grinned awkwardly.
"Ah, well… First things first. Everything I said earlier—that was just an excuse I used to get here."
He reached out to stroke the majestic Charizard standing nearby, only to be met with a withering glare that froze his hand mid-air.
He quickly withdrew it, embarrassed.
"That document? You really don't need to take it seriously."
"Yes, it had a red seal. But the authority level wasn't as high as you think."
"You destroyed a branch of the Contract Trainer Guild. Obviously, they wouldn't take that lying down."
"You know what those people are like—they've got money, they've got strength. It's not hard for them to conjure up a fake directive with a fancy seal."
"The truth is… Kyoto's actual power center is staying silent on this."
"That order came from the Awakened Management Association. As the official overseers, they still have to give the Contract Trainer Guild some face."
"With the sudden rise of Pokémon—and with Trainers falling outside the awakened management system—they're bound to be nervous. This kind of response isn't surprising."
Su Bai leaned back slightly, finally understanding.
The Contract Trainer Guild had crafted a perfect little trap.
That so-called "punishment order" wasn't really a verdict—it was more like a summons.
In their eyes, Su Bai was just some backwater, small-town upstart with a hidden class.
Young, inexperienced, surely easy to manipulate.
Place an intimidating red-sealed document in front of him, and what would he do?
Panic, submit, and obediently go to Kyoto for "investigation."
And if he didn't?
If he dared to clash with the envoy delivering the order—even better.
Refusing the summons was one thing. But if he assaulted a Kyoto envoy?
Then they'd have an ironclad case for full-scale retaliation.
Su Bai rubbed the bridge of his nose, a little annoyed.
Even after two lifetimes, he'd almost fallen into their trap.
If Rock hadn't known how to read the room, Su Bai might've been on a collision course with Kyoto by now.
"Contract Trainers really are masters of scheming, huh…"
Su Bai shook his head with a quiet curse.
Rock took another sip of tea and gave an exaggerated nod of agreement.
"Right? Right? I told you—they're all slimy!"
Su Bai studied him for a moment, suspicious.
"You warned me… just because you didn't want to get beat up?"
Rock was an envoy from Kyoto—he had to have some skills, right?
Caving this quickly didn't exactly scream "elite agent."
"Yep. Exactly." Rock nodded without shame.
"And honestly, I've always thought those Contract Trainers were brain-dead."
"Who the hell would agree to a punishment order like that? Ridiculous, right?"
Su Bai looked at the man across from him—the sudden shift in demeanor was almost whiplash-inducing.
Then a thought struck him.
"Rock… that name… You sure you have no connection to the Contract Trainer Guild?"
Because the founder of the Guild…
Was also named Locke.
Rock chuckled at that.
"Took you this long to ask? You're more composed than I thought."
Then, with a sheepish grin, he said:
"You guessed right. I'm the one you're thinking of."
"I'm this generation's bearer of the Rock name, from the Rock family. Pleased to make your acquaintance."
"...Huh?"
Su Bai blinked, genuinely confused.
"You're the Rock? This generation's Rock?"
This… felt messy.
As the founder of the Contract Trainer profession, it was only natural that Rock's bloodline had flourished over time.
And with each generation, the family would choose the most outstanding heir to inherit the name "Rock."
Because children of Awakened individuals had a high chance of inheriting the same class, nearly every generation's Rock became a powerful Contract Trainer.
In the world of Contract Trainers, "Rock" was a name that carried immense weight.
"So let me get this straight…" Su Bai said slowly, narrowing his eyes.
"You're this generation's Rock… and you came to deliver a message?"
"And instead of siding with the Guild, you're here… standing with us?"
The Rock family was notoriously mysterious.
Su Bai didn't know much about them—but he knew enough to guess their influence was enormous.
If a member of the Rock family spoke, the entire Contract Trainer profession would listen.
And now this so-called heir, this squinty-eyed man, was here sipping tea?
And even seemed to support the Pokémon Center?
It didn't add up.
"You're not just pretending to be friendly so I'll let you walk out of here alive, are you?" Su Bai asked, eyes narrowing again.
Big families like the Rocks didn't produce pushovers. Su Bai knew that much.
And while not every Rock could command dozens of S-class beasts like the original, having four or five wasn't unusual.
If this man really was a Rock…
Su Bai was struggling to figure him out.
"Of course not!" Rock waved his hands frantically as Su Bai shifted in his seat again.
"Don't get excited! I swear—I don't have a single Contracted Beast!"
"...Not even one?"
Su Bai frowned, doubtful.
He turned toward Diancie, who immediately flew up to Rock.
In his excitement, Rock smiled like a child seeing Santa Claus.
But before he could speak, Diancie pressed a tiny hand to his forehead.
After a few moments, she turned and gave Su Bai a puzzled shake of her head.
"I really don't feel any death aura from him… not even a trace," Diancie said.
"He gives off a feeling kinda like Xiaofei. Not as pure, but very clean."
Su Bai nodded thoughtfully, watching as Rock looked genuinely disappointed that Diancie had moved away.
If Diancie said he didn't have a Death Beast, then he didn't.
Any Contract Trainer bonded to a Death Beast would carry the beast's taint on their body.
And in a place like the Pokémon Center, with Diancie this close, there was no way to hide it—even with special tools.
"So then, what are you doing here?"
"And more importantly—how can you be the Rock family's heir… without a single Death Beast contract?"
Rock opened his mouth, clearly about to dodge the question again.
But Su Bai cut him off with an irritated snort.
"If you keep speaking in riddles, I'm going to tear your bones out and toss you out of the Pokémon Center."
"I don't care if you're Rock. I'm still Su Bai!"