When the time came, he would polish that key storyline segment several times to make sure the presentation was as good as possible.
Originally, Kairos had planned to add this storyline about the Hoenn trio to the story mode of Pokémon: Emerald.
But strictly speaking, this was already part of the game's main storyline, so he might as well make it first.
Besides, Kairos didn't need to worry that creating the Hoenn trio storyline would leave him with nothing for story mode. On the contrary, the story content of Pokémon: Ultra Emerald was excellent and worth borrowing from.
Of course, this storyline was only meant to cover the early and mid-game.
The late-game story was a bit bloated—mostly just repeatedly running into new legendary Pokémon and collecting various items.
Even so, it was more than enough.
Since Kairos had chosen Ultra Emerald as the blueprint for his game, these elements naturally couldn't be left out.
And just like the key divine battle of the Hoenn trio, he wouldn't completely copy the original. He would add his own ideas and understanding, using those modules' capabilities to make it the best it could be.
Whether it was the unique storyline for each legendary Pokémon,
Team Rainbow Rocket, the Ultra Wormholes,
or even Giratina's Ghost World and Mewtwo's birth—
all the content that had once made his heart race would eventually be brought into this world through his games.
And this Pokémon: Emerald was just the beginning!
Kairos glanced at his emotion point balance on the system panel, took a deep breath, and reopened the game folder.
The storyline near Lavaridge Town could be considered the real starting point for bringing players into the main plot of the game, as well as marking the moment when they officially stepped onto the path of advanced trainers.
From here on, the difficulty of opponent battles would rise sharply. Most importantly, after defeating the Fire-type Gym in Lavaridge Town, players would need to head straight back to Petalburg City to challenge the next Gym.
And the Petalburg City Gym was run by the player's father, Norman!
In the official and standard versions, Norman—ever the loving father—used Pokémon that were strong but not overwhelming, even giving the impression that he was holding back.
But in Ultra Emerald, Norman's battle perfectly redefined the phrase "fatherly love and filial piety."
Well… "fatherly love and filial piety" in quotation marks.
As for why—
Veteran Ultra Emerald players already knew.
For Kairos, it might have seemed like all he needed to do was create the Petalburg Gym battle. But in reality, it was far from that simple. Defeating the Petalburg Gym granted players access to the most crucial HM in the game—Surf.
With Surf, Water-type Pokémon could travel across all the ocean routes on the map, leading to cities and islands players had never visited before.
The Pokémon that appeared on those water routes, the information and layouts of the islands, and the cities that could now be reached early with Surf—all of this would require a massive amount of work to create.
With that thought, Kairos took another deep breath, entered a focused state, and began working on the game.
Time for another big project!
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world—
In the Hoenn region, inside a cave deep in a remote mountain range, a man wearing a red uniform sat cross-legged on a sofa, eyes closed in meditation.
This was clearly a hidden base, with strange machines of unknown purpose scattered around, and many researcher-like figures moving busily back and forth.
If Cynthia were here, her brow would immediately furrow. The reason was simple—this man in red was none other than the Team Magma leader she had recently encountered: Maxie.
And this was the elusive Team Magma headquarters the League had been searching for all along!
Just then, a sudden sound broke the stillness—a communication device on the table beside Maxie began ringing.
He opened his eyes, displeasure flickering across his face at the interruption.
But when he saw the number displayed on the screen, he froze.
The reason was simple—he could recognize that number even if it were reduced to ash. It was the communication number of his arch-nemesis, the leader of Team Aqua—Archie.
Years ago, they had been close friends, practically inseparable in their youth. But over time, their ideals diverged. When they realized their goals were in direct conflict, they parted ways, founding Team Aqua and Team Magma, and becoming bitter rivals.
This situation had persisted for over a decade. In all those years, though they still had each other's numbers, they had never once used them.
And now, that long-forgotten number was ringing.
After a brief hesitation, Maxie took a deep breath and made his decision.
He quickly masked his signal location, and only after confirming everything was secure did he answer.
On the other end, Archie's gruff voice came through.
"Old Pine, I'm calling you for one reason—my plan might have been exposed."
Maxie: ???
"How is that possible? Did you tell someone?!" he demanded instinctively.
To Maxie's mind, this was the only explanation.
After all, whether it was Archie's plan or his own, not a single soul in their respective teams knew the other's goals—only the two of them knew. It was the most tightly guarded secret in the world.
And now Archie was saying the secret had leaked? Staying calm was impossible.
Archie's voice grew more urgent.
"No matter how brainless I am, I wouldn't do something that stupid!
Today, one of my subordinates came to me saying our Team Aqua showed up in some game.
At first, I didn't think much of it—games are just silly entertainment, right?
But then he told me that in this game, the first time I meet the player, I act like a complete idiot and spill my entire plan!
And he knew this because he saw a livestream of Cynthia encountering me in the game. Can you imagine? I even fucking invited Cynthia to join Team Aqua on the spot!"
Maxie froze, then covered his face. A moment later, he couldn't help but laugh.
"Pfft."
But then Archie's next words made him go rigid.
"What are you laughing at? You're not any better!"