In the conference room of the Emberfall City Gym.
At that moment, the large screen was playing footage of the previous battle between Charizard and Camerupt, especially the scene where Charizard used its temperature-control ability, which was being replayed over and over again.
"Have you already confirmed the information on that Charizard?"
Brandon Jones's gaze was fixed on the screen, watching the Charizard that had absorbed Camerupt's flames, as he asked the red-robed man standing beside him.
"It's basically confirmed."
"Ethan Black, an Advanced-level Pokémon Researcher and an Advanced-level trainer. In addition, he is the champion of this year's competition for starter Pokémon slots; that Charizard was the starter Pokémon he chose."
"And according to what we've found out, that Charizard is a descendant of Leo Cross's Charizard."
The red-robed man took out Ethan's information and explained it to Brandon in detail.
"Just as I thought, it's connected to that Charizard!"
Seeing this, Brandon's eyes lit up.
Then, he began tapping the table lightly with his fingers, as if he had reached some conclusion. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened and he said, "According to the information we have, Leo Cross's Charizard possesses a mysterious power capable of absorbing and amplifying Fire-type energy."
"And this Charizard of Ethan's clearly possesses the same ability!"
"If this Charizard can absorb and amplify the energy of that legendary Pokémon, then the success rate of our 'Demonic Beasts Awakening Plan' will undoubtedly increase significantly!"
After hearing Brandon's words, the red-robed man's eyes also lit up. In their "Demonic Beasts Awakening" plan, the most difficult problem to solve had always been the issue of energy, and that was precisely the main reason they had set their sights on the legendary Pokémon.
If Charizard really could serve as an energy amplifier, then it would be absolutely crucial to their plan!
"But... that Charizard is connected to Leo Cross. When the time comes..."
Although the temptation of Charizard was immense, the red-robed man still showed some hesitation.
"What is there to be afraid of? If that demon is successfully resurrected, the whole world will be ours! Even if he's a champion, what could he do to us then?"
Brandon thought of the terrifying power of that demon, and his eyes immediately gleamed.
Then he pondered for a moment and added, "Right now, that Charizard's strength is still somewhat weak, and we also haven't captured that legendary Pokémon yet. This matter can be postponed for a while."
"For now, send people to keep an eye on this Ethan. Once we capture that legendary Pokémon, we'll seize that Charizard and, in one fell swoop, resurrect the demon."
After hearing Brandon's arrangements, the red-robed man nodded. Immediately afterward, he took out his phone and made a call, beginning to deploy the next actions.
...
In the mountain forests on the outskirts of Emberfall City.
Ethan, naturally, had no idea that he was already under surveillance.
At that moment, as usual, he was walking among the trees of the forest, with Meltan floating beside him.
However, Meltan's flight at that moment was unstable, swaying from side to side, as if it were drunk.
At the same time, arcs of electricity kept flickering across its body, clearly indicating that it was training its Electric-type energy.
It was precisely those electric currents flowing through its body that interfered with the magnetic field it emitted, causing its flight to become erratic.
This was exactly the training Ethan had assigned to Meltan: learning to control the balance between electric current and magnetic field, so that it could use Electric-type moves without losing its ability of magnetic levitation.
If Meltan truly managed to balance the two, then it would not be far from fully mastering the electromagnetic cannon, and that would also be a huge opportunity for a boost in its strength.
A Meltan capable of freely using the electromagnetic cannon... just imagining it was already terrifying. If he managed to train it successfully, Ethan estimated that Meltan's strength might even enter the Quasi-Elite level, though it would be at the lowest tier. Even within the same Quasi-Elite level, those at the top and those at the bottom of the ranking were not on the same level of power at all.
"My current position is here."
"The Coral City fishing tournament will still take a month to begin. During this time, I can take a detour and go to Ferraria City first, and then head to Coral City."
Ethan slid his finger over the map and once again confirmed his travel route.
Ferraria City was also known as the City of the Forge or the City of Steel, and it was a new city built around a Secret Kingdom.
The Secret Kingdom located at the center of the city was called the Steel Secret Kingdom, which possessed extremely abundant iron ore resources. In the real world, many of the iron materials needed to manufacture Pokémon-related devices were produced precisely in that Secret Kingdom.
According to the information Ethan had obtained, the new model of Poké Ball that the League was currently researching was manufactured by processing iron ore from the Steel Secret Kingdom.
Moreover, in other Leagues, it seemed that modern Poké Balls with completely independent intellectual property rights had already been produced, and were no longer copied through the Poké Ball replication machines of the original Pokémon world.
This type of Poké Ball had no functional difference compared to ordinary Poké Balls, and additionally incorporated an internet interconnection system. Any Pokémon captured with this type of Poké Ball would be automatically registered in the Pokémon Trainers' Guild database.
Furthermore, this type of Poké Ball had another advantage: it directly eliminated the old limitation that trainers could only release six Pokémon at a time. As long as the Pokémon was captured with the new Poké Ball, there was no longer any limit on the number of Pokémon that could be released.
Of course, this type of Poké Ball was still in the early stages of development and required a great deal of improvement, so it was impossible for it to be mass-produced in the short term.
Nevertheless, these Poké Balls were practically bound to the League, and the data of the Pokémon inside them was completely public to it, which to some extent strengthened the League's control over trainers. Their value for widespread adoption remained very high.
"The City of Steel, huh?"
"A place like that should be perfect for Meltan."
Ethan stroked his chin, deep in thought. After all, Meltan was a unique Steel-type Pokémon.
Moreover, its evolved form, Melmetal, was known as the Pokémon that produces steel. If he could enter the Steel Secret Kingdom and absorb the Steel-type energy there, Meltan's increase in power would undoubtedly be enormous.
On the other hand, Ferraria City also had a Steel-type gym, and he could also exchange experiences with the gym leader regarding the training of Steel-type Pokémon.
"Zzzt!"
At that moment, Meltan seemed to sense something. It suddenly raised its head and looked toward the distant horizon, in the direction where Ferraria City lay.
"Riou!"
Riolu, whom Ethan was carrying in his arms, also sniffed the air and directed his gaze toward the direction of Ferraria City.
Riolu's evolved form was Lucario, which also possessed the Steel type. Ferraria City might benefit it as well.
(End of chapter)