At this moment, standing to the side and watching Theo and Metagross complete their Mega Evolution, Steven's smile froze instantly. His eyes widened, and his mouth hung slightly open, clearly stunned by the sudden success.
He stood there in a daze for several seconds before finally snapping back to his senses. When he looked at Theo again, his gaze was filled with disbelief.
"You… you actually succeeded on your first try?"
One had to know that back when Gym Leader Winona was learning to master Mega Evolution, she had spent an entire week practicing before she finally succeeded, and that was only after receiving guidance from Elite Drake. As for the other Gym Leaders, even after learning all the key techniques, they still needed quite a bit of trial and error before managing to pull it off.
Yet Theo had done it in one go on his very first attempt. The speed was simply unbelievable.
"Is it… because your bond is just that strong?"
Steven muttered to himself, then shook his head. Although Theo clearly had a very good relationship with his Pokémon, it should not have been enough to surpass all the Gym Leaders to this extent. It was even slightly better than his own. No, not better, about the same as his, that made more sense. As expected of a trainer he had personally taken a liking to, his own judgment truly was exceptional.
Steven could not help but feel a bit pleased with himself.
Of course, he would never know just how tempting those glowing green and white energy orbs Theo regularly fed to his Pokémon were. These were not things ordinary Pokémon could ever enjoy. They were system rewards such as Pokémon energy orbs, Technical machines, and various vitamin items.
With the support of these "miraculous methods," the Pokémon's dependence on and trust in Theo had long surpassed that of ordinary trainer-partner relationships. They were practically devoted to him. On top of that, Metagross itself was a Psychic-type Pokémon with an extremely keen perception of energy flow, making its mental resonance with Theo smooth and natural.
With all these factors combined, succeeding on the first attempt was not strange at all. In fact, it felt entirely natural.
Nearby, Larvesta was staring with reddened eyes. It rolled and scrambled its way between the two Mega Metagross, circling around their eight metallic arms with unrestrained fascination.
Its little mind was filled with only one thought: just how many decorations could be hung on those arms.
The more it looked, the more mesmerized it became, to the point that it almost started drooling.
It had already been thinking earlier, if all eight of those arms were adorned with its treasured little ornaments, how majestic that would look.
After all, the previous Mega Metagross belonged to Steven, not its own partner, so it could not really make any demands. But now, its own "second exclusive mount" had evolved. Naturally, it was beyond excited, itching to rummage through its little stash and try hanging all its treasures onto those arms.
Mega Metagross lowered its head to glance at the Larvesta circling around it. A trace of helplessness flashed in its red eyes, but it still cooperatively remained in place, allowing the little one to examine it as much as it wanted.
Steven looked at Theo and his Mega Metagross, shook his head helplessly, and then smiled.
"You really are full of surprises. I originally planned to guide you properly, but it seems that will not be necessary. You can take your time getting familiar with the power after Mega Evolution. Truly, the younger generation surpasses the older."
After sighing, his tone became more relaxed.
"I can finally take a breather as well. Recently, the League has been dragging me into Mega Evolution experiments. Facing instruments and data every day, I was already getting tired of it. Back when I had just entered the desert to explore ruins and search for Tyranitar's traces, you pulled me over to Meteor Falls. Now I can finally go back and continue my journey."
"Tyranitar?"
Theo was briefly stunned, then suddenly recalled that when he had first contacted Steven at Meteor Falls, Steven's background had indeed been a desert. So that was what he had been doing at the time.
Thinking of this, Theo immediately picked up the two little Vulpix.
"Mr. Steven, do you want to pet these two little Vulpix? These two are lucky stars. Maybe if you touch them, you will absorb some of their good fortune."
Steven rolled his eyes at him, but still reached out to rub the heads of the two Vulpix. At the same time, he also gave Theo's head a casual rub, speaking in an exasperated tone.
"If we are talking about luck, no one has better luck than you. Touching you would be even more effective. Alright, that is enough. I should get going. Enjoy your Mega Evolution properly."
Theo quickly fixed his now-messy hair, then suddenly remembered something and called out to Steven, who was about to leave.
"Oh right, Mr. Steven, about Mega Evolution… can I use it during Gym battles? I mean… can I show it on livestream?"
Steven paused for a moment, then burst out laughing, a look of indulgence appearing on his face.
"Go ahead, go ahead. You and Wallace are truly hopeless. He has already started following your example and gotten hooked on livestreaming. The League is currently mass-producing Mega Stones and Key Stones, and basically all Gym Leaders have already been notified. There are even scattered rumors circulating outside. Once every Gym Leader is fully equipped, the League will make an official announcement. If you use it ahead of time, it does not matter at all. Think of it as building some anticipation."
Theo immediately beamed with joy and hurriedly thanked him.
"Really? That is great! For my next Gym challenge, I will definitely let Mega Metagross put on a spectacular performance!"
If he used Mega Evolution on stream, the viewership of his livestream would absolutely skyrocket.
Just imagining the audience's reaction upon seeing Mega Metagross, Theo could hardly suppress the smile on his face.
Seeing his excited expression, Steven shook his head helplessly.
"You… alright, I should go now. Enjoy yourself."
Steven waved his hand and gave a signal to his Mega Metagross and Claydol.
"It is time to go."
The two Mega Metagross gently bumped their heads together, letting out low humming sounds as if bidding farewell.
After that, Steven's shiny Mega Metagross reverted back to its normal form, while Claydol began gathering energy again, its body glowing with a brilliant blue light.
"We will be off then. Until we meet again."
Steven waved.
"Goodbye, Mr. Steven!"
With a flash of light, space twisted once more.
Steven, his Metagross, and Claydol vanished instantly from the room, leaving behind only faint traces of lingering energy in the air.
The room gradually returned to calm, leaving only Theo and his Pokémon.
At this moment, Larvesta was still circling around Mega Metagross's eight metallic arms, its tiny eyes filled with envy.
It lowered its head to look at its own six small legs, each of which could only hold one or two small colorful ornaments.
Then it raised its head again to look at Mega Metagross's thick, powerful arms, imagining just how many decorations could fit on them.
The more it thought about it, the more it pouted, and suddenly, with a whoosh, it shot straight toward Theo.
"Bang!"
Before Theo could fully savor the shock and excitement brought by Metagross's Mega Evolution, Larvesta slammed straight into him with full force.
The impact was so strong that it knocked him backward, sending him crashing heavily onto the sofa.
The chubby little bug did not care at all that Theo was grimacing in pain. Instead, it immediately threw itself into his arms, rubbing its head vigorously against his chest.
It let out a series of "lar lar lar" cries, its voice filled with grievance, even carrying a hint of sobbing.
Only then did Theo notice that Larvesta's eyes were red, with tears glistening inside. Its pitiful, on-the-verge-of-crying expression made his heart soften instantly.
"What's wrong?"
Ignoring the pain in his body, Theo quickly sat up and pulled Larvesta into his arms, gently stroking its soft body.
"You were fine just now. Why are you suddenly crying?"
Larvesta lifted its head, its small gaze first turning toward the Mega Metagross floating nearby, staring at those eight imposing metallic arms.
Then it looked back at Theo with a wronged expression, chattering away. With Metagross translating, Theo quickly understood what it meant.
Larvesta wanted to evolve too.
From Beldum to Metang, and now to Mega Metagross, Metagross had already evolved twice.
But it still had not evolved at all!
It also wanted to grow eight… no, ten huge arms like Metagross, covered in sparkling decorations!
The more it spoke, the more aggrieved it became. Tears began to drip down one after another, and its cries took on a sobbing tone. Hearing this, even the little Ice Vulpix and Fire Vulpix nearby grew anxious.
The two little ones hurried over, one on each side, nuzzling against Larvesta's body.
Their fluffy tails gently patted its back, as if comforting this sulking "little nanny."
Looking at the pitiful Larvesta in his arms, Theo felt both amused and exasperated.
Of course he understood the little one's thoughts. Ever since following him, Larvesta had often thrown little tantrums over the fact that it had not evolved yet.
This time, after seeing Metagross undergo Mega Evolution again, its suppressed envy had completely overflowed.
"Alright, you silly thing, why are you crying?"
Theo shook his head helplessly, wiping away Larvesta's tears as he spoke in a soft, guiding tone.
"Come on, stop crying. Did you forget what I told you before?
The real ace always comes out last.
The later you evolve, the more energy you have accumulated, and the stronger you will be after evolving.
The later your evolution, the stronger you are. You should be happy. Why are you crying instead?"
In truth, Theo was also somewhat helpless about Larvesta's delayed evolution.
Its evolution was never simple. In the game mechanics of his previous life, Larvesta needed to reach nearly level sixty before it could evolve into Volcarona.
This evolution level was even higher than that of ninety percent of Dragon-type Pokémon, which showed just how difficult its growth was.
On top of that, Larvesta had been enhanced since hatching by the Groudon-marked stone fragment, making it larger than normal individuals and far superior in physical condition.
This meant that it needed to accumulate far more energy to evolve than ordinary Larvesta, like a container with a larger capacity that naturally took longer to fill.
Theo had already been doing his best to feed it more high-grade Pokémon energy clusters these days, yet there were still no clear signs of evolution. It was obvious that more time was needed.
As he spoke, Theo pointed toward Mega Metagross.
"Look at Metagross. It also went through so much training and hardship before reaching today's Mega Evolution.
The more solid your foundation now, the more impressive you will be when you evolve into Volcarona."
Metagross cooperatively nodded, joining Theo in comforting Larvesta. It even deliberately extended one of its metallic arms and waved it slightly, as if hinting at something.
Larvesta froze for a moment, then gradually stopped crying. It chirped at Metagross, and as Metagross extended another arm, Larvesta suddenly broke free from Theo's embrace.
With a whoosh, it dashed to a drawer in the room and began rummaging through its little treasure stash.
Using its tiny claws with great effort, it opened the box, revealing a pile of all kinds of sparkling ornaments inside.
With Metagross's permission, Larvesta immediately got to work. With tears still clinging to the corners of its eyes, it clumsily used its little claws to wrap strings of decorative trinkets around Metagross's metallic arms.
One string, two strings, three strings…
Before long, Metagross's forearms were covered in colorful ornaments, glittering brilliantly under the room's lights.
Looking at its "masterpiece," Larvesta finally smiled happily. It raised its head proudly and circled around Metagross a couple of times, admiring its handiwork.
Seeing this scene, Theo could not help but laugh.
This chubby bug really was an "accessory fanatic," but as long as it was happy, that was what mattered.
Metagross also cooperatively shook its decorated metallic arms, producing faint clinking sounds as it humored Larvesta.
Milotic and the two little Vulpix nodded as well, letting out soft sounds as if praising Larvesta. The little one finally cast aside its earlier grievances and returned to its lively self.
After successfully calming Larvesta, Theo finally had the chance to settle down and continue with the allocation of the system rewards.
With a thought, the system panel opened once more, and the long list of rewards appeared clearly before him.
The distribution of Pokémon energy orbs and technical machines could proceed exactly according to his previous plan, with no need for adjustments.
However, the allocation of the vitamins was slightly different.
Milotic's Calcium (Special Attack vitamins) had already lost their effect, so Theo gave all the remaining ones to Larvesta, allowing that power to be used where it was needed most.
As for Milotic, it only needed to focus on HP Up now, steadily improving its endurance.
Metagross's development direction remained unchanged, continuing to use Iron (Defense) and Zinc (Special Defense) vitamins.
These further reinforced its already incredibly sturdy body, striving to make it as immovable as a fortress against any attack.
Larvesta, on the other hand, steadily grew under the dual support of Calcium and Carbos vitamins.
These would lay the strongest possible foundation for its future evolution into Volcarona, ensuring both explosive offensive power and swift agility.
As for the two little Vulpix, they were currently being raised with high-grade pokéblocks combined with intermediate energy orbs.
Once the intermediate energy orbs could no longer keep up with their growth, they would be replaced with advanced energy orbs, allowing their development to progress step by step.
Theo looked over at his companions, who were still gathered around with great interest, watching Larvesta decorate Metagross's arms.
The little ones chatted among themselves, occasionally reaching out with their tiny paws to poke at the ornaments, creating a lively and warm atmosphere.
He had already finished allocating all the rewards. All that remained was to distribute them one by one, and the day's busy activities would finally come to an end.
(End of Chapter)