Master Craftsman of the Pokémon World

[Event For: Warhammer: Starting as a Planetary Governor!!] [200 PS = +1 Extra Chapter!!]

Meanwhile, over at the Azalea Gym. This was Bugsy's first time meeting Steven, and he was quite nervous. When Steven asked how to find that source of Glow Moss, Bugsy could only scratch his head, looking rather helpless:

"I don't know where that person is either. Apparently, they're somewhere near a village in the Johto region, and the package was sent from Blackthorn City."

Steven was a bit speechless. But on second thought, he realized he sometimes acted the same way. For example, not long ago, when someone was trying to deliver a letter to him, they spent ages wandering all over the map trying to find him; meanwhile, he had been in Granite Cave mining stones the entire time, completely unaware of anything going on outside.

Ha, back then he must have caused everyone quite a bit of trouble. And now, he was getting a taste of what it felt like to be looking for someone with no clue where they might be.

Truly, times do change.

"... I can understand that a craftsman might be out in the wild collecting rare materials," Steven said with a smile. "I've done that myself in the past."

Though he didn't manage to get the craftsman's address from Bugsy, at least he gained a new lead: Blackthorn City.

If it was shipped by delivery, it must have been sent out from the Pokémon Center. As long as he could find the correct mail carrier Pokémon or the one responsible for deliveries, he could trace the sender's location.

However, Steven didn't have much time. He had already spent several days investigating in the Johto region; he urgently needed to head to the Kanto region to attend the fossil exhibition at the Pewter City Museum of Science.

At the same time, Steven never mentioned buying the Eviolite from Bugsy; he only held it in his hand and observed it for a moment.

"This really is an amazing and mysterious stone. Even though I'm not a Pokémon, holding it, I can still feel a curious energy."

"Eh, really?" Bugsy was astonished. Steven nodded and smiled at him. "I often excavate various stones in the wild and in caves. Some of my Pokémon are Rock-type, so I'm very sensitive to stones."

Bugsy thought for a moment. "That craftsman told me that after his further polishing, this stone is better than a normal stone of the same kind. It can activate a Pokémon's potential for a longer time. I think that's what he meant."

"Better than the same type of stone?" Steven immediately caught the unusual hint in that statement.

If there's no comparison, you wouldn't say something like that. And if he's comparing them, that means the craftsman has seen a normal stone of this kind somewhere else—an Eviolite that had already been used!

"So that's it! It appears that such stones might exist in other regions as well. And previously, he worked in the Sinnoh region… speaking of Sinnoh's famous excavation site… the Underground!"

Steven mentally pieced things together and concluded that the Sinnoh Underground might contain other Eviolite stones. This realization and speculation made him both excited and happy. But considering he was the Hoenn Champion, if he spent too long in Sinnoh, it could look bad, and he wouldn't be able to handle any issues promptly.

What a headache. Maybe he really should let Wallace take over the championship.

But that guy said he wanted to participate in Contests and didn't have time. Oh right, he also mentioned something about holding a "Wallace Cup" in Sinnoh. Why not just have him look for stones on Steven's behalf while he's there?

Hmm, such a sincere request from a friend—how could Wallace possibly refuse?

Steven decided that before heading off to other regions, he needed to make some proper arrangements for his champion duties. But seeing that the Hoenn Elite Four are all basically free spirits, he couldn't help having a bit of a headache.

"Why doesn't our region have someone who's serious about work—a glasses-wearing type who studies every day and eagerly does overtime?"

"Thank you. I believe I've gained some useful information!"

Steven thanked Bugsy and handed the Eviolite back. Bugsy, a bit puzzled, was just about to speak when Steven abruptly proposed a battle:

"Huh?! A battle with the Champion?!"

Bugsy was stunned. Although he had become the Johto region's Gym Leader at the youngest age ever, battling the Champion was on another level entirely. However, Steven stated:

"I want to witness the power of the Eviolite firsthand. Please, have a Pokémon battle with me!"

At the same time, Steven glanced down at the online shop page displayed on his Pokégear. After a brief moment of thought, he decided to place an order.

Perhaps these sculptures were also made from some special stone with some sort of special effect?

Steven bought the Lairon sculptures and immediately wiped out their entire stock.

As for the shipping address…

"Sorry, Bugsy, but could I have you receive the delivery for me?"

Of course, besides Steven, those professors who had been paying attention to the Traveling Workshop also noticed the new carvings on sale.

However, most of them had no particular interest in sculptures. Stonecraft and woodcraft techniques weren't generally part of their research focus. Yet the item description mentioned these sculptures having special buffs, which did seem to break common sense and made the professors suspicious.

Among them, Professor Elm noticed the Arceus sculpture and read the note about its effects. The stock showed three units available.

"It can make a Pokémon hatched from an egg grow stronger? How could a sculpture…have that kind of ability?"

"By the way, I've never seen the design of this Pokémon before. Is it from some other region? But then why is it labeled as an 'unknown Pokémon'?"

"Ah, it might just be the artist's original creation, right?"

Professor Elm pushed his glasses up. At first, he thought these supposed effects violated common sense and contradicted science.

But soon, he recalled that all over the world, there are ruins where things that defy common sense and modern scientific theory are often unearthed. After all, "common sense" is simply a summary of current phenomena.

Some things you won't believe exist until you see them with your own eyes. Besides, that sculpture's depicted Pokémon was something he had never seen before.

As a researcher specializing in Pokémon eggs, Professor Elm began to consider buying one of these sculptures. But when he saw the price, he couldn't help hesitating.

Even as the leading professor in charge of Johto's research, spending 100,000 wasn't exactly pocket change. Should this count as a personal expense or come out of research funds?

And he also worried that the cost-benefit ratio might not be ideal. The description said the sculpture was only about the size of one's palm.

"Hmm? Hey! Why did the inventory just go down?"

While he was refreshing the page on his computer, Professor Elm suddenly saw the stock drop from 3 to 2!

Someone bought one?

"Ugh… should I risk being cheated and give it a try? If it really has something to do with Pokémon egg groups, it would be extremely valuable research material!"

"Oh! Now it's down to 1! Who's buying these?!"

Gritting his teeth, Professor Elm finally clicked the "purchase" button.

"So this is that workshop, huh? I see something about 'stones related to evolution,' but all I can find in the listings are sculptures."

In the Sinnoh region's Sandgem Town, within Rowan's research lab:

Professor Rowan, who was older in appearance than even Professor Oak—white hair, a bushy white beard, and always wearing a white or brown overcoat over a blue vest and long-sleeve shirt—had just received word from Professor Oak.

Hearing that there might be a strange stone connected to evolution, he paid close attention. After all, such a stone could be a major breakthrough for his research on Pokémon evolution.

But after following the Traveling Workshop for a few days, there was no sign of the so-called "evolution stone" being restocked. Then, suddenly, the new products turned out to be sculptures?

Even so, one particular Pokémon sculpture caught Professor Rowan's eye. He didn't recognize that Pokémon at all, but it felt "very Sinnoh-esque." He could almost glimpse a bit of Dialga or Palkia in it.

The stone carving was labeled: "Unknown Pokémon."

"Just from the photos, it looks like something excavated straight out of ancient ruins. If it's a replica, the craftsmanship is unbelievably good—practically indistinguishable from an authentic relic. Unless… it really is genuine?"

"Could the owner of this shop be a tomb raider?"

Professor Rowan couldn't help letting his imagination run wild. But because this mysterious Pokémon sculpture existed, he became intrigued. The sculpture also had a unique description saying it possessed a special function: it could enable a Pokémon to learn moves normally learned only after evolution. That was indeed strange.

Of course, there are some very gifted Pokémon out there—Professor Rowan had studied them. Certain exceptionally talented Pokémon really can learn moves before they evolve. For instance, Riolu, which sometimes has a tiny chance to learn Aura Sphere even before evolution.

Riolu, which looks like a small blue doglike humanoid, is called the "Emanation Pokémon." As its category suggests, it normally can't harness Aura before evolving; it can only barely sense aura waves. Yet a rare, gifted Riolu can master aura abilities even before evolving.

This phenomenon is one of the many miracles in the Pokémon world.

What, precisely, distinguishes evolving Pokémon from their pre-evolved forms? And those Pokémon that don't evolve—are they perhaps already in a kind of "complete form"?

Still, some Pokémon once believed to have no evolution suddenly got new evolutions when certain items appeared—like Electivire and Magmortar.

That is precisely why Professor Rowan wanted to buy an Arceus sculpture. If its function were real, it would be a special item of great value to the study of evolution. Move-teaching tools have existed since ancient times, so it wouldn't be unheard of. The Technical Machine (TM) we have today is proof enough that technology can do amazing things.

"Hmm? The inventory's down to 1? Who on earth is buying these things? Ah, never mind—they may be expensive, but I'm placing an order!"

"Twenty thousand…!"

"After purchasing, I should inform Cynthia. She's quite knowledgeable about these matters."

(End of Chapter)

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