Cain's departure was because the agreed time between him and Number Four had arrived.
The night mist added an air befitting a dark and dangerous night to the whole affair, like those in which one kills without leaving a trace.
"Up ahead should be the place where Number Two lives. Bartram, are you ready? Don't fail at the critical moment. His strength is not inferior to ours, and if he manages to escape, it would be a total disaster for us," said Number Four. At that moment, he and Cain, both dressed in black robes, were standing atop the crown of a large tree.
Looking into the distance at that suitable living environment, Cain could sense in Number Four's voice that restless desire driving him to act, the excitement over what they were about to do, and the slight tremor in his hands.
"Tch, worry about yourself first. Don't soften up at the decisive moment. If you fail to finish off the enemy, even if you try to dump all the blame on me, don't think you'll escape our joint responsibility," Cain laughed softly. At this point, the arrow was already on the string; there was no room for Number Four not to give it his all.
Moreover, Cain had already prepared thoroughly. If he and Number Four could join forces to deal with Number Two, then Number Four could also join with others to attack him. For safety, Cain had summoned Brad and Catherine in advance to stay nearby; the moment he sensed something going wrong, he would immediately have two powerful reinforcements.
"Hmph! Let's go!" Number Four ignored Cain's sarcasm. This kind of exchange between them had already become commonplace.
As soon as he finished speaking, Number Four leapt from the treetop. In the night sky, a huge purple bat with two pairs of wings grabbed his shoulder and carried him flying toward Number Two's residence.
Cain also slowly merged into the night. With Gengar's help, his concealment ability in the wild could be pushed to its limit.
A Honchkrow wearing a large hat on its head, exuding an elegant and chivalrous air, crossed the treetops carrying a dark shadow, closely following Crobat.
Noticing the movement behind him, Number Four glanced back and, as expected, saw Cain following closely. His heart immediately settled.
He himself also maintained a degree of vigilance. If Cain could join him to deal with Number Two, then there was also the possibility that Cain might ally with Number Two himself to set a trap for him.
However, Number Two did not serve the same superior as they did, and moreover, he and Bartram had known each other for a long time. In any case, the degree of mutual trust was far greater than with Number Two.
Upon seeing Honchkrow, Number Four temporarily set aside his suspicions toward Cain.
Both possessed strong psychic abilities. With their entire bodies wrapped in them, if Number Two did not deliberately reinforce his detection or anticipate their arrival, he basically would not be able to discover them.
Before they could clearly see the glow of the campfires, Cain and Number Four chose to descend in advance. From there, they would approach slowly from the ground.
Neither spoke, but there was a certain tacit coordination between them.
Cain's Gengar gradually vanished into the pitch-black night. Weavile stayed very close to Cain, advancing stealthily, protecting his safety while making almost no sound.
It was then that Cain finally saw Number Four's third Pokémon, besides Crobat and Nidoking: an extremely functional Ariados, firmly clinging to his back, firing web threads from its mouth to slowly weave an enormous net.
When the two approached Number Two's residence, he was still resting and had not perceived any anomaly. However, they could no longer continue approaching recklessly, as they had reached the maximum limit.
Advancing any further would undoubtedly trigger the final defensive measures left by Number Two, giving him sufficient time to react.
Thinking from another perspective, at such a critical distance, both Cain and Number Four would have left Pokémon on watch.
The two looked at each other again without a word, but the killing intent emanating from them grew ever sharper. When both murderous auras converged to the limit...
"Now!" Number Four roared in a low voice. His hands moved rapidly as he threw several Poké Balls. One after another, the Pokémon emerged as if everything had already been prepared: instead of charging directly at the enemy's position, they simultaneously expelled a dense purple poisonous fog.
That toxic cloud, with enormous corrosive power, not only contained an extremely concentrated poison, but also considerable destructive force. Cain could clearly sense the nauseating stench emanating from it.
The culprit behind that cloud was an extraordinarily robust-looking Weezing.
"Who goes there!?" an enraged shout rang out from Number Two's residence. Although the fog had not yet reached his position, it had already triggered his final alarm.
"You're seeking death!" Number Two's voice rang out again. One after another, his Pokémon shot out, and soon a somewhat disheveled figure wrapped in a wide black robe appeared.
Seeing the poisonous fog enveloping him along with his Pokémon, it was easy to imagine just how terrible his expression must have been at that moment.
Upon hearing Number Two's voice, Cain heard from ahead a cold, disdainful laugh from Number Four. Then he saw him advance into the toxic fog without any protection at all, while a voice devoid of all emotion echoed in Cain's ears: "Bartram, take care of your part."
Watching Number Four completely disappear into the fog, the corner of Cain's lips, hidden beneath the thin psychic film, curved into a cold smile. Immediately afterward, together with Honchkrow and Weavile, he vanished into the swaying shadows of the night.
It was time to get to work. As the most important link in Cain's plan, Number Two had to die quickly.
After Cain's disappearance, violent sounds of combat began to erupt from within the poisonous cloud. Enormous flames surged into the sky, and several silhouettes could be seen outlined by the fire.
Number Two was a trainer specializing in Fire-type Pokémon; this information had been thoroughly investigated by Cain and Number Four before coming.
One could vaguely make out a huge fox holding a staff wrapped in flames like a torch, defending with all its might.
But that fog had been created by Weezing. Although the intense stench concealed much of it, one could still perceive the highly concentrated gas hidden within. If it were ignited by the flames, the power of the explosion and the resulting roar would be anything but simple.
This showed that, after learning of Number Two's abilities and strength, Number Four had made extremely thorough preparations.
