Pokémon Detective Case Files.

The small white figure broke free from the detective's arms, flicked its tail, and landed lightly on the ground. Then, it swayed from side to side a few times, aimed at a corner where the wall met the ground, and without hesitation, darted inside.

"and many more--"

The handsome man tried to reach out and catch it, but only touched the slippery tip of its tail. The little fish had already disappeared into the crack in the corner of the wall, leaving only a string of static sparks.

“We’ll follow it.” Lian Wu made the decision without any hesitation.

If it weren't for that little fish, they might already be starving and out of supplies in that cave filled with unknown totems. The creature was undoubtedly trying to guide them to something, and it was clearly not on the same path as the Plasma Group, so following it for now shouldn't be a problem.

At the trainer's command, the old craftsman's concrete pillar swung out and smashed into that seemingly ordinary corner of the wall.

The wall was cracked, revealing a narrow gap behind it—a mezzanine left during the construction of the building structure, which is almost unavoidable in large buildings, but Jero had concealed it almost perfectly.

Meanwhile, the figure of Mama Little Fish flashed ahead and continued to venture deeper inside.

He was indeed leading the way.

Seeing this, the group had no choice but to continue following it with trepidation, digging and traversing the area.

Behind the wall lies a more complex mezzanine structure, with crisscrossing pipes and crisscrossing steel beams, clearly a "gray area" between the castle's load-bearing system and the decorative layer.

Mama Fish was even more skilled than the previous Flame Monkey. Like a well-trained gopher, it nimbly navigated the maze-like crevices underground, sometimes turning left, sometimes right, as if it knew every inch of the underground terrain of the castle. It did not hesitate when finding its way.

After digging through what seemed like countless partition walls, the group entered a narrow corridor.

The passage was extremely narrow; even behemoths like the Old Craftsman and the Servant of the Blades couldn't pass through and had to be recalled to their Poké Balls. Raikou could barely squeeze in, but its golden fur would create a trail of sparks as it rubbed against the metal pipes.

"What if Jero suddenly crushes us here? That would be terrible." Lila looked at the space in front of her, hesitating whether she should step in.

“No.” Her handsome subordinate shook his head. “This area should be far from the castle’s deformable range. We might even have shaken off Jero’s surveillance—otherwise, it’s hard to explain why the ‘City Defense Master’ hasn’t changed the terrain to stop us for so long.”

"How about this," Lian Wu suggested, "the old craftsman and I will keep watch outside. If something unexpected happens, we can hold out with brute force for a while."

This was a safe plan, and no one objected. They turned sideways and entered the narrow path.

At the end of the passage, there stood a solitary, cast-iron room.

The room's walls were constructed from thick cast-iron plates, the seams welded together seamlessly. There were no windows, only a single, equally cast-iron door, tightly shut. It must be said that the room's style clashed drastically with the other Gothic structures within the castle.

"Is this a prison cell?" Yueju rubbed her chin in confusion, noticing the ventilation opening on the iron door. Mommy and Little Fish must have already crawled in through there.

The handsome guy next to him waved his hand.

So, the wicked frog sitting on his neck leaped to the door and used a move called "Tile Splitting," which snapped the lock on the iron door.

The moment the door opened, a faint light shone out, and there was indeed a figure inside.

And the little fish that led the way for them was floating beside them.

He was a pale, thin middle-aged man.

He was wearing an old coat that should have been dark but was now unrecognizable, his lips were chapped, and his eyes were sunken, clearly indicating that he had been trapped there for quite some time.

He looked up, squinting at the light outside the door, seemingly struggling to adjust to the sudden situation.

Everyone looked at each other.

"You are..." Yueju cleared her throat, stepped forward, and was about to ask.

But at that moment, Wanlong behind him suddenly narrowed his eyes and blurted out a name—

"Are you... Holt?"

Chapter 478 The Prisoner in a Dilemma

Holt, a former oversight officer of the United States.

Two years ago, during a routine review of the maintenance records of the underground pipeline network at the alliance headquarters, he noticed that the routes of some pipelines deviated from the original design drawings. Although the material replacement records of some load-bearing structures were classified as "routine maintenance," they actually used high-strength alloys that required special approval to be used.

These anomalies were not within his scope of investigation, so Holt did not make a fuss, but instead began to review the materials in private.

After realizing a terrifying possibility, he contacted Soma, the former priest of the Dragon Spiral Tower, and commissioned him to investigate the condition of the ancient ruins near the Alliance headquarters.

He was already being cautious enough.

However, just looking at the size of the Plasma Cluster Castle that has risen from the ruins today is enough to show that conducting the investigation at that time was already an enormous risk.

At that time, the United States Alliance was already under the surveillance of the Plasma Group. Although it hadn't reached the point of being all-pervasive, it had essentially no secrets about any slightly sensitive projects.

Thus, before Soma's investigation results were delivered, Holt himself, whose investigation was unusual, also became part of the unusual situation—he resigned from the Inspectorate without warning and vanished without a trace.

Initially, Hugo's subsequent investigation pointed to a pessimistic conclusion: Holt was likely forcibly controlled and silenced by the Plasma Group using methods such as "hypnosis" because he had discovered something he shouldn't have. Under those circumstances, it was fortunate that he was still alive.

However, judging from Holt's current situation, the plasma cluster's seal seems to have retained a trace of humanity, and has not biologically erased the existence of this Inspectorate official.

Holt's cell was small, but it wasn't as gloomy and terrifying as the stereotypical prison cell.

The walls were covered with dense scratches, dates painstakingly drawn with fingernails or other sharp objects, in groups of five, stretching from Holt's imprisonment to the present day. Aside from that, the bedding, though simple, was clean and tidy, and there were even rudimentary washing facilities in the corner—it resembled a hotel room for house arrest rather than a real prison cell.

Holt, who lived there, was disheveled and unshaven, but his clothes were decent enough—especially considering the long time he had spent in that cell.

The rescue itself went very smoothly. The group brought him out of the prison and reunited him with Lian Wu, who was waiting outside.

Theoretically, leaving him here to await the Alliance's recapture of headquarters wouldn't be a bad idea—the cell seemed safe enough, and the food supply system was still functioning. But Holt himself strongly insisted on traveling with the Elite Four, and his reasons were quite compelling: if Team Plasma were driven into a corner, there was no guarantee they wouldn't resort to hostage-taking.

"This little fish was in this cell a year ago."

After being rescued, Holt's talkativeness was like a floodgate being opened. Perhaps it was because his long period of solitary imprisonment had made his desire to express himself excessive, but after seeing the dense date marks on the wall, no one had the heart to offer any criticism of his rambling.

“Every day, the plasma cluster would deliver the most basic food to me through the pipe in my cell—dry rations, water, and occasionally some canned food. Through the ventilation vent in the cell door, I noticed that Mama Little Fish would occasionally pass by outside the iron gate, so I started using the supplies I had saved to lure it and try to establish a connection with it.”

The former official paused, then gave a wry smile.

"It's not that I wanted this little guy to help me get out of trouble or anything. At first, I just wanted a living thing to keep me company. But later, it became my only companion here. I've been alone for so long, it would be nice to have someone to talk to."

The little fish flicked its tail beside Holt, sending up faint sparks of electricity, as if in response.

"It's a pleasant surprise that it led you here."

Holt took a deep breath and turned his gaze to the depths of the winding passageways.

"This is part of the ancient ruins I investigated back then. It was only after being imprisoned here that I realized that I was on the right track, but I was too slow—so slow that the plasma cluster beat me to it."

He organized his thoughts and continued—

"I suspect they spared my life because of my position as an official in the Inspectorate. They probably wanted to extract some inside information or shady material from me that could help them control the Alliance. So they didn't kill me, but just kept me in solitary confinement here."

"Although the environment was a little better than a regular prison, the loneliness was almost unbearable. From beginning to end, I never saw a single member of the Plasma Group. Only food and supplies were delivered through that pipe day after day, like feeding a pet forced into a cage."

He stopped and turned to look at the several League Kings.

"My Lords, although it is certainly too late to say this now, the Plasma Group has long been taking up residence in the underground of the Alliance headquarters. They have carried out an extremely large project here, far larger than I could have imagined at the time."

"Unfortunately, now virtually the entire United States knows about that project."

Lingju sighed, interrupting Holt's narration, and briefly told him about the current state of the league—

"...As you can see, the Alliance is trying to deal with this troublesome illegal structure. However, they're temporarily stuck—the core area of ​​the castle is occupied by a large group of unknown totems, and we just fought our way out of that hellhole. Mr. Holt, having been here for over a year, do you have any suggestions?"

When she asked that question, Lingju didn't really have much hope.

What valuable intelligence could a former official, imprisoned and isolated for a year, possibly provide? The topographical maps were likely outdated, and the layout of the plasma cluster was far beyond his reach. To put it bluntly, it was merely a polite, casual question to make this newly freed "survivor" feel that he still had value.

However, Holt did not immediately give a negative answer.

He frowned, his gaze fixed on a point in the void, as if deep in thought.

In fact, Holt's cell belongs to an ancient ruin that is many times older than the Plasma Cluster Castle.

While the "city defense master" Gerald utilized most of the ruins' structure and space, there were always some unused corners—overly narrow cracks, poorly supported mezzanines, or abandoned passageways that clashed with the overall layout. Gerald isolated these redundant parts from the main body of the castle, leaving only a few hidden passages that would normally be impassable.

However, this does not mean that these branch areas are completely outside the jurisdiction of the "City Defense Division".

If it weren't for the chaotic battle that just broke out in the core area, if it weren't for the fact that the Heavenly King and the detectives single-handedly reduced the number of Unknown Totems, if it weren't for the fact that Zero was forced to prioritize his limited surveillance resources in important areas—areas that should also be covered with the "invisible eyes" of Unknown Totems, where any disturbance would be detected immediately.

However, at this moment, the basic components that make up the castle's monitoring system are already in short supply. Those unimportant peripheral areas are the parts that Geralt discards first.

Therefore, under the guidance of Mama Xiaoyu, they were able to temporarily escape the omnipresent surveillance of the "City Defense Division".

Holt, who had been imprisoned for two years, was unaware of these subtle coincidences. All he knew was that he had been rescued, and that his rescuers needed an answer.

This is almost another coincidence that makes people laugh out loud, and it might even make people wonder if fate really exists in the world.

Because Holt possessed something in his mind that none of the others present had.

As a former inspector, he had seen original topographical maps of the Alliance's underground territory—and far more than just seen them.

for a long time.

Holt looked up.

The bewilderment and confusion of the initial rescue were gone from those eyes; in their place was a calm yet sharp light—the look that a former inspector would only show when faced with a case that required serious attention.

"Esteemed Heavenly Kings, and two detectives as well."

His voice was steady, each word deliberate and clear.

"Do you want to get out, or do you want to destroy this castle completely?"

"Of course we'll break in—though that's what I really want to say." Lian Wu scratched his cheek, his tone tinged with helplessness. "But we just followed the energy flow into the core of the castle, where we expended most of our strength. Now, if we want to organize another forceful frontal breakthrough like that, I'm afraid our stamina and the medicine we carry might not be up to par."

“I’m not talking about that kind of place.” Holt shook his head, his disheveled hair swaying slightly with the movement. “Do you want to know where the Plasma Team executives who are actually in control of all this are located?”

"Can you take us there?" the handsome guy following behind couldn't help but ask.

“I’m not entirely sure.” Holt scratched his head—a habit he’d developed from years of solitude. “But the exit and the way there overlap for a while, so let’s talk as we go.”

"It seems to be a long story." Wanlong pushed up his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses filled with the curiosity of a novelist.

Holt did not deny it, but simply nodded.

“I have been locked up in this place for two years.”

His voice was calm, as if he were narrating something that had nothing to do with him.

"In the past two years, I have missed my hometown, my family, and my Pokémon partner that I was separated from when I was captured. I am also afraid of death that may come at any time... But these intense emotions eventually faded with time, and in the end, only one thing remained tormenting me - boredom."

"In that cell, I had nothing around me. No watch, no books, no paper or pen, and certainly no electronic devices that modern people rely on for survival. I was like being isolated in a complete void—except for little creatures like Mama and Little Fish who occasionally wandered in, I never saw or heard anyone. There were no guards, no interrogations, and no outside information. They just left me there like a piece of luggage that was no longer of any use."

The group moved slowly and steadily through the narrow passage, passing many intersections along the way. Holt, who was leading the way, did not hesitate at all, as if he had walked this road countless times.

And his voice still echoed through the gaps in the corridor—

“In the beginning, I felt like I was isolated from time and space. I was completely unaware of anything happening in the outside world, and I could do nothing but wander aimlessly in my cell. And the most terrifying thing was—I didn’t know how long this would last. Days? Months? Years? Or even eternity?”

Everyone remained silent, and no one interrupted him.

"Just as I was counting the rust on the iron gate and about to go insane, I suddenly thought of a brilliant way to kill time."

A self-deprecating smile appeared on Holt's lips.

"Taking revenge on the plasma cluster."

"However, although it is called revenge, it is not like the capable trainers who smash through the cell door with a punch and arrest the Team Plasma executives who captured me. My 'revenge' is closer to a kind of self-numbing—a trivial and pathetic fantasy that can be done by just one person sitting in a cell."

"This fantasy is based on the assumption that the reason I am imprisoned by the Plasma Group is because I possess information that is dangerous enough to them—the anomalies beneath the Alliance headquarters. Since this knowledge is something my enemies fear, the more I recall it, memorize it, and even deduce and deduce like a detective based on those clues, revealing everything the enemy is trying to hide in my mind, the more it might come in handy someday."

He paused, then gave a wry smile.

"—At least, out of sheer boredom, I forced myself to accept this theory at the time."

"Fortunately, I did have some knowledge of what the Plasma Group was doing. Before I was taken over by them, I used every means at my disposal, including commissioning professional religious figures, to investigate the conditions beneath the Alliance headquarters. This blatant approach may have backfired in the end, but it was at that time that I carefully examined the detailed blueprints of the Alliance's underground facilities."

"Oh?" Yueju raised her eyebrows slightly.

"I was almost ecstatic when I realized I could kill time this way."

A touch of pathetic warmth surfaced in Holt's voice.

"I first recalled the general outline of the floor plan I had seen from a rough memory, and then began to study the actual use of each space, correcting the errors little by little according to logic and reason. I would correct one place today and add another corner tomorrow—it was like putting together a jigsaw puzzle that could never be finished."

"To have reached the position of an Alliance Inspector, I don't consider myself a dull person, but intelligence doesn't play a significant role in this kind of mental game. In the process, I discovered that human memory is actually much more reliable than we usually realize. Given a sufficiently quiet environment and enough time, we can even recall information that we've only glanced at in the past with astonishing accuracy. Details you thought you had long forgotten, a stain on the corner of a document, the angle of a pipe on a drawing, someone's unintentional quirks... all of them will surface in the silence, as clear as yesterday."

“When everything is perfect, I can build a three-dimensional model of the underground facility in my mind. I can become a worker or a sewer cleaner in it, walk in it, and feel the material of every brick and every pipe. I can even smell the musty smell there and hear the sound of water flowing in the pipes—even though I have never actually been inside.”

Wanlong listened intently, her lips slightly parted, as if she had already sketched out the scene in her mind—a lonely person, in endless silence, rebuilding the entire world brick by brick with her memories.

"The process sounds complicated, but for someone like me who has nothing to do all the time except sleep, it took less than two weeks."

Holt continued—

"But that's still not enough—the design is still imperfect. It was just the Alliance's initial design, and the Plasma Group must have already altered it beyond recognition."

"That evil organization couldn't have been living underground in the Alliance from the beginning. Based on my deduction, they must have first settled in the ancient underground ruins that I commissioned Soma to investigate, and then dug a passage to connect their real headquarters with the Alliance headquarters."

"I have read the Alliance's archaeological report on the nearby ancient ruins. If there were direct map data, it would be clearer and more accurate—unfortunately, before I could receive the report from that Dragon Spiral Tower priest, I was already controlled by the Plasma Group."