"Victory goes to Ethan Black!"
The referee's loud announcement marked the end of the Pokémon World Championship.
In the stadium, the spectators from the Daleron League were the first to react; all of them jumped up from their seats, unable to contain their excitement.
When the World Championship had just begun, no one had bet on the Daleron League.
Especially after the defeat of Adrian Vane, whom they considered the strongest, an enormous oppression had settled in their hearts.
Then came the round of the top eight. Seeing the competitors from the Federal League advance one after another, they felt their hearts tighten. Although Ethan also finally managed to enter the semifinals, no one had considered him a favorite.
Although Ethan was truly outstanding, after all, he was only twenty years old, while his opponents were all among the strongest of their generation.
However, in the following battles, Ethan shattered all doubts with his own strength. Even against Stefan, he showed an overwhelming advantage, allowing the spectators from the Daleron League to harbor hope once again.
But with Darkrai's appearance, everyone's hearts went half-cold. A legendary Pokémon was no joke; when Darkrai entered the scene, almost everyone believed the battle was over!
But who would have imagined that Ethan would obtain the final championship in this way? Not even a legendary Pokémon could stop his advance. This championship, without a doubt, was the most valuable among several recent editions of the World Championship.
Moreover, Ethan was only twenty years old. Winning the title at that age was also a first in the entire history of the Pokémon World Championship, something that left everyone deeply shocked.
...
At the very instant the battle ended,
the news that Ethan had won the Youth World Championship spread throughout the world.
In the Daleron League, news of the championship returned endlessly into the League.
In an instant, the entire League boiled over. Although it was already midnight, countless shouts of "We are the champions!" still resounded throughout the night.
...
The high-ranking officials of the Daleron League naturally received the news first.
However, their first reaction was not joy, but deep confusion.
"Ethan won?"
"If I remember correctly, his final opponent should have been Stefan Levin, right?"
"According to the League's information, Stefan had a Legendary Pokémon in his possession!"
"Could it be that in this battle Stefan did not send out that Legendary Pokémon?"
One of the high-ranking officials of the Daleron League asked, bewildered, before opening the report that had been sent and starting to read it.
"In the battle, Ethan really suppressed Stefan!"
After seeing the records of the first battles, a strange expression appeared in that high-ranking official's eyes.
The Daleron League did not possess very detailed information about Stefan, and even so, Ethan had managed to subdue him. His strength seemed excessively high!
"Wait, Darkrai!"
"The Legendary Pokémon Stefan had was none other than Darkrai!"
"Darkrai, the God of Nightmares! That is an enemy even more difficult to deal with than Moltres!"
Suddenly, the information about Darkrai appeared before that high-ranking official's eyes, making him open his eyes slightly.
Afterward, an even deeper doubt arose in his mind.
With Darkrai in battle, how could Stefan have lost?
Could it be that the information was wrong?
With that enormous doubt, the high-ranking official continued reading.
"Lucario's evolved form!"
"My God, it defeated Darkrai in a frontal battle?!"
Seeing those two key pieces of information, absolute disbelief also appeared in the high-ranking official's eyes.
When he raised his head, he immediately discovered that the other high-ranking officials of the Daleron League had exactly the same expression of disbelief; evidently, they had also seen those two pieces of information.
"That Ethan... isn't he the Pokémon Professor who just applied to the Pokémon Researchers Guild?"
After a brief silence, one of the high-ranking officials suddenly broke the stillness and slowly spoke that sentence.
"That's right. And what's more, he is the only Pokémon Professor specialized in Pokémon evolution!"
Another high-ranking official hurriedly took out Ethan's information, making the people present open their eyes slightly.
"That Ethan... is he really only twenty years old?"
After a long while, a high-ranking official could not help but sigh.
A twenty-year-old Pokémon Professor, a twenty-year-old Quasi-Elite-level trainer, a twenty-year-old world champion...
The achievements Ethan had obtained were so dazzling that everyone suddenly felt they had grown old.
...
At the same time, at the headquarters of the Pokémon Researchers Guild.
Ethan had participated in this Youth World Championship precisely as a representative of the Pokémon Researchers Guild.
At that moment, after his victory, President Beckett naturally received the news immediately.
"Hahahaha, you did wonderfully, Ethan!"
Seeing the news of Ethan's championship, President Beckett let out three loud laughs, clearly showing the excitement he felt in his heart.
Then he opened the report and began reviewing it, and his attention was immediately drawn to Lucario's evolved form.
By the instinct of a Pokémon Professor, he vaguely sensed that Lucario's evolution did not seem so simple.
Not to mention the fact that, after evolving, it could also reverse the evolution, just from the strength Lucario showed after evolving—a strength no inferior to that of a legendary Pokémon—it already seemed to indicate that this evolution was not something ordinary.
"It was undoubtedly an evolution... But it seems it was not a common and ordinary evolution."
President Beckett opened the video attached to the reports and began watching it.
Very soon, he noticed the anomaly in Lucario's evolution: that light that had emanated from Ethan's body.
"Riolu's evolution requires the Pokémon and the trainer to reach a sufficient degree of closeness. And this evolution of Lucario also seems to be related to that kind of closeness..."
"Emotional energy?"
"I remember that this Lucario masters the Return move. And furthermore, Lucario has also mastered the ability to strengthen itself through the Return move."
"Then, could this failed evolution be related to emotional energy?"
"It seems this is another special method of evolution, although for now it still has not been perfected."
"Emotional energy and changes in mental power... It seems this can become the next research topic."
President Beckett began drawing conclusions mentally, grasping the key point of Lucario's evolution with enormous sharpness and starting to reflect.
Of course, he did not think in the direction of Mega Evolution, but simply considered it a normal evolution of Lucario.
After all, Lucario's evolution belonged to a third evolutionary stage, and there were a great many Pokémon with three stages. That was still not enough to arouse suspicion.
If this time the one who had megaevolved had been Charizard, then, with the appearance of a fourth evolutionary stage, his ideas would have been completely different.
When the day comes when it is revealed that Pokémon can megaevolve, the whole world will probably tremble!
(End of chapter)