"Qingfeng." Aoki found Qingfeng, who had left with her one after another, hiding in the passage.
He walked up directly with Slowking, patted Qingfeng on the shoulder, and at the same time hinted at Slowking, asking him to leave psychic coordinates on Qingfeng's shoulder, just in case.
Qingfeng, who was patted on the shoulder, was startled and turned around quickly, holding two Pokeballs tightly in her hands.
After realizing it was Aoki, she let out a long sigh of relief.
"Didn't you leave long ago? Why are you still following?" Qingfeng patted her chest and asked in a low voice.
There was a mocking smile on the corner of Aoki's mouth. "Regis and Drake really think alike—you didn't realize it, did you?"
Hearing this, Qingfeng smiled wryly. "I really didn't notice. The murals in the cave were so distracting. It was my first time inside. When I saw you disappear, I realized something was wrong. I found a place to hide and waited for things to calm down."
In truth, Qingfeng hadn't come to the island intending to compete for relics or treasures. She wanted to find grass-type held items suitable for her Pokemon on Neverland Island, as well as resources from the undeveloped wilderness.
Qingfeng was Athena's direct subordinate, but she wasn't the only one. Athena provided little support, and as her strength grew, she assigned increasingly difficult missions to their group.
This time, securing permission to explore Neverland had required significant effort.
After Athena's battle with Lance at the Lake of Rage, her strength had greatly diminished, and Qingfeng had struggled to contact her. Life had become much harder since then.
Of course, she wouldn't explain this to Aoki—but he had already guessed most of it.
After all, he had witnessed Athena's defeat firsthand.
"Then let's go. Follow them and see—you don't want to leave empty-handed, do you?" Aoki said, stepping out of the side passage to continue forward.
Qingfeng hesitated but ultimately gave in to temptation, jogging to catch up.
Regis and Drake had formed their own group, deliberately excluding her and Aoki.
It made Qingfeng feel a strange kinship with him.
Besides, despite Aoki's withdrawn nature, she found him slightly more trustworthy than Regis.
Following behind him, Qingfeng moved cautiously, light on her feet.
There was another reason she hadn't fully acknowledged—subconsciously, she saw Aoki as weaker than Regis. Working with him meant she'd retain more control.
At the very least, she'd have a voice in their decisions.
Relying on the marks left by Gengar, Aoki trailed Regis' group from a distance.
His disappearance alone might go unnoticed, but if Qingfeng was missing too, Regis would surely realize.
As they advanced through the passage, Aoki caught a faint scent of blood.
Too faint for most to detect—Qingfeng, walking beside him, didn't notice.
But Aoki did. He had always been sensitive to such things.
In a corner of the branching path, he spotted a small, nearly dried bloodstain. Judging by its state, it had been left earlier that day—yet they had only just arrived.
Soon, Matsuda pieced it together.
Regis and Drake were acting. They were deceiving those outside their inner circle—for what purpose, he didn't yet know.
But the two had clearly been inside the ruins before, spending enough time to clear out the wild Pokemon in these tunnels.
As for those who had entered and never returned?
Either Regis and Drake had killed them, or they'd fallen to wild Pokemon during the chaos of battle.
Aoki leaned toward the first option.
The two must have entered the ruins immediately after landing, working together to eliminate untrusted allies.
Earlier, Regis had arrived first, followed shortly by Drake. The timing was too precise—they'd planned this.
No wonder Drake had been so certain when he said, "The remaining people on this island should be dead."
Over thirty had arrived, yet only fifteen remained.
Neverland was dangerous, but these were seasoned travelers. Even if they couldn't defeat wild Pokemon, they knew how to survive.
A few might have been reckless, but not this many.
The answer was obvious—Regis and Drake were responsible.
Noticing the bloodstain, Qingfeng paled but kept following Aoki.
She too wanted to see what Regis was planning.
As they neared the deepest part, Gengar returned through the shadows, stopping before Aoki.
Keeping his back to Qingfeng, Aoki learned what had happened through Telepathy.
At the passage's end stood a massive wall, blocking further progress.
Regis and Drake had urged everyone to summon their Pokemon and attack it together.
Gengar, fearing detection, had retreated without watching further.
But from its description, Aoki's expression darkened.
The bloodstain, the missing trainers—it all fit.
Slowing his pace, he approached the wall Gengar had described.
Soon, the metallic tang of blood filled the air, thick enough for even Qingfeng to notice.
They exchanged glances, tension clear in their eyes.
Qingfeng believed Aoki was weak, giving her leverage in their partnership.
But Aoki had his own reasons for keeping her close.
Both had been recruited by Regis, but Aoki recognized that Qingfeng, like him, was being used.
And her ability to pick up on irregularities proved she wasn't foolish.
He just hoped she wouldn't slow him down when it mattered.
Picking up speed, they pressed forward.
The distant sounds of battle grew clearer.