"Maggarmrr!"
When Ethan looked at Magmar, Magmar was also watching him. However, from Magmar's sharp gaze, it was clear how shocked it was.
It had survived in this volcanic Secret Kingdom for an extremely long time. Many trainers had tried to capture it, but all of them had been driven back by its immense strength.
Some trainers, even if Magmar could not defeat them, were forced to retreat when it jumped directly into the magma, which prevented them from harming it.
But for someone like Meltan to knock it down almost instantly with a single attack was something it had never seen before!
"What do you think?"
"Do you give up?"
"So, what's your decision?"
Ethan was riding on Charizard, observing Magmar with interest as he waited for its response.
"Maggarmrr!"
Magmar clenched its teeth, clearly showing that it was unwilling to yield.
"I know you can't accept it immediately, so let me ask you this: do you want to become stronger?"
"If you accept becoming my Pokémon, I'll train you until you become a Pokémon as strong as Meltan."
Ethan knew that Magmar would take time to accept, so he immediately offered an incentive for its capture.
As expected, being an extremely competitive Pokémon, upon hearing that it could become stronger, Magmar's eyes shone with a special gleam.
Then it turned its gaze toward Meltan, and with a glint in its eyes, it looked seriously at Ethan, as if asking, "How will you make me stronger?"
"I can allow you to evolve."
Ethan smiled faintly, and Magmar's eyes widened in surprise.
At the same time, it felt curiosity: could its species evolve again?
Not only was Magmar surprised—even Gengar showed an expression of astonishment.
"Gengar, you should know this, right?"
"With my achievements in the field of evolution, if I say it, it means I have a way to allow this Magmar to evolve."
Ethan looked at Gengar, and a flash of determination appeared in his eyes.
"Don't believe me?"
"Maybe you could try trusting me. After all, it won't harm you in any way, right?"
Ethan smiled as he gently shook his head, and Magmar's expression changed repeatedly.
"Then let's make a bet."
"Right now, here, I can let you try to evolve. If you succeed, you'll become my Pokémon. If you fail, I'll set you free. What do you think?"
Ethan took out an empty Poké Ball and looked at Magmar with a smile.
Magmar narrowed its eyes, but understood that there was no disadvantage at all, and that if Ethan truly wanted to capture it, it wouldn't be able to escape.
After a brief moment of hesitation, it nodded, allowing Ethan to capture it in the Poké Ball.
"Come out, Magmar!"
Ethan smiled faintly and released Magmar.
"Shuck!"
The ever-friendly Shuckle quickly appeared, handing a Pokéblock to the newcomer.
"Maggarmrr?"
Magmar curiously took the Pokéblock and examined it. Although it didn't know what it was, it could sense the feeling of comfort emanating from it.
After hesitating for a moment, it swallowed it in one bite.
Immediately, a gentle green glow spread across its body, enveloping it with warmth and relieving its pain.
"First, let's heal your injuries, and then you can try to evolve."
Ethan took more Pokéblocks out of his backpack and gave them all to Magmar.
Its wounds began to heal at a visible speed, and its stamina recovered significantly.
After half a day of rest, Magmar was completely recovered.
"Ready?"
At the mouth of the volcano, Ethan took out the Magmarizer, his expression serious, and spoke to Magmar.
"Maggarmrr!"
Magmar nodded, holding the Magmarizer with curiosity, clearly confused about how this would make it evolve.
Although doubtful, it followed Ethan's instructions and jumped directly into the magma of the crater.
Bubbles emerged on the surface, and the heat rose rapidly. Ethan felt somewhat tense.
The Magmarizer was not a complete item, and he wasn't sure whether the magma could recharge it as he had hoped.
"It should work..."
"Still, evolution won't be easy. Besides the item, stimulation from the magnetic field of space is also required. But if the Magmarizer manages to recharge magma energy, Magmar's evolution will be guaranteed."
Ethan stared intently at the magma, waiting for Magmar to appear.
Boom!
Suddenly, the magma began to churn violently, as if something were happening inside.
Gengar floated in front of Ethan, staring intensely at the magma, with a strange gleam in its eyes upon seeing that Magmar could evolve.
"Maggarmrr!"
A low roar emerged from the magma.
Then, an imposing figure leapt out of it.
"Magmmoorrtt!"
Ethan smiled with happiness. Initially, he thought that even if the Magmarizer worked, Magmar wouldn't evolve immediately, but now everything had happened in a single step, saving a great deal of effort.
The Magmortar was red and yellow, very similar to the original Magmar, but more robust. Its arms had transformed into cannons capable of firing fireballs at 2000 degrees Celsius.
"I didn't lie to you, Magmar... now you should be called Magmortar."
Ethan smiled and looked at the newly evolved Magmortar.
It stared in amazement at its new body, feeling a vast energy surging within it.
Upon hearing Ethan, its gaze became complicated, full of hesitation.
Clearly, it had lost the bet, and according to their agreement, it had to become Ethan's Pokémon and leave the volcanic Secret Kingdom.
However, after sensing the immense energy in its body and seeing Meltan and the other Pokémon by Ethan's side, it finally made its decision. Slowly lowering its proud head, it showed its submission.
(End of chapter)