Unlike Hideki Kusaka, the police chief of Green Town didn't just toss Ramil's letter aside. Instead, he fell into deep thought.
After a moment's hesitation, he picked up the phone and made a call.
"Check whether anyone has issued a bounty to blow up Green Town."
That was all he said.
For Hideki Kusaka, Green Town was just another mission site. But for the chief, it was his home—he had lived here for over a decade. He'd grown roots. So no matter how slim the chance, he had to take it seriously.
Before long, the phone rang again.
"There is such a bounty," the voice on the other end confirmed.
At that moment, the chief's priorities shifted. Forget the usual paperwork—his top concern now was whether the Ghost Fox really planned to blow up Green Town.
And just like that, his opinion of Ramil quietly rose above Hideki Kusaka's.
Unfortunately, the chief had no real authority to influence Ramil's mission. But unlike Kusaka, he took the threat seriously.
Meanwhile, Hideki Kusaka led a frenzied hunt for the Ghost Fox—turning Green Town inside out.
But what they were chasing was just a decoy: a remote-controlled robot in disguise.
With Jack's current authority, he could recall the robot into his system space as long as it stayed within 300 meters. So no matter how hard Hideki's squad chased it, they were destined to find nothing.
While Jack observed Ramil's recovery, he began preparing for his counterattack.
As a partner, Jack was nothing if not considerate. He wanted Ramil to wake up to some good news.
Thus, Hideki Kusaka's team not only failed to track the Ghost Fox, but also faced the looming threat of retaliation.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
On the fourth day of the hunt, the Ghost Fox finally struck back.
Three simultaneous explosions tore through the town.
Two of them killed members of the Kusaka family.
The third targeted one of Hideki's own teammates—the one who had a Ghost-type Pokémon.
Thanks to Ramil's intel, Jack knew the full capabilities of Hideki's team.
And he wasn't most afraid of Hideki Kusaka, or the elite tracker, or the psychic Pokémon user.
The real threat was the one with the Ghost-type Pokémon.
After all, a Ghost-type could detect other Ghost-types—even if Jack's Haunter was hiding inside his shadow.
That was the biggest risk to his stealth operations.
So Jack planted a proximity bomb, based on the teammate's habits and movement patterns.
It worked perfectly.
With that threat eliminated, Jack moved more freely than ever.
Soon, Green Town—a place once quiet and orderly—was rocked by a series of explosions.
Hideki Kusaka didn't care about the chaos. What truly bothered him was that the Ghost Fox seemed to have supernatural insight—every blast hit Kusaka's people directly.
As the casualties mounted, Hideki could feel it: his every move was being reported to the Kusaka family by Rant. His reputation in his father's eyes was slipping.
The family might not revoke his privileges, but regaining his honor—and his claim to the family leadership—would be harder than ever.
That only deepened his hatred for the Ghost Fox.
While Hideki fumed, the police chief made his move.
As Ramil had warned, he found subtle signs at key locations throughout Green Town—just no actual bombs yet.
"Should we halt Hideki Kusaka's search and report this up the chain?" asked the old captain, standing in the chief's office.
Even though they hadn't found conclusive proof, the Ghost Fox's prolonged presence, Ramil's warning, the unexplained scouting marks, and the prior attacks all pointed in one direction.
The bombs were likely already planted.
The chief nodded. "I know what to do."
He would stake his position to escalate the matter.
At the same time, Ramil finally woke up.
The old captain rushed to the hospital, hoping to gather more intelligence about the Ghost Fox's plan.
But he left disappointed.
According to Ramil, his suspicions came from three factors: the Ghost Fox's odd behavior, the scouting of critical sites in Green Town, and the confirmed existence of a bounty to blow it up.
It was all speculation—nothing concrete.
Still, the old captain reassured Ramil. "You did the right thing. Get some rest. We've already reported this. The operation is being called off."
As soon as the captain left, Jack received the update through his system.
It was time for the final phase of his plan.
"Yes. I understand," Hideki Kusaka said coldly into his phone, suppressing his anger.
The call was from the Alliance.
The order was simple: suspend the current mission and cooperate with the Green Town Police to stop the Ghost Fox from carrying out a bombing.
On the surface, Kusaka's job remained the same—capture or kill the Ghost Fox.
But now the priority was to protect Green Town.
And that meant… Ramil had been right.
Which meant Ramil would share the credit—even if Kusaka was the one who landed the final blow.
How could a nobody, a commoner Kusaka once dismissed, end up as his equal?
Just as Hideki Kusaka began contemplating whether to have Ramil killed in the hospital and blame the Ghost Fox for it—
BOOM!!!
A massive explosion shook the air.
This time, it wasn't like before.
This one was deafening.
It was close.