When Lucas so shrewdly discerned their thoughts, even though Koraidon and Miraidon didn't really get along or like each other, their satisfied gazes met in midair for a moment.
Koraidon: This human is not bad.
Miraidon: Agreed.
Professor Sada and Professor Turo were also extremely curious about what kind of food Lucas would prepare.
From the perspective of Pokémon professors, Koraidon (from the ancient past) and Miraidon (from the future) would not only have different preferences regarding food, but also vary considerably when it comes to the types of food they eat.
For example, Koraidon might prefer raw meat, while Miraidon would favor energy-based food.
Considering the vast differences between their times and the modern era, there was also the possibility that modern food could be highly toxic to them.
All of these issues required careful examination before answers could be found.
As for things like ancient viruses or future crises—well, this is the Pokémon world, so such things are usually not given much consideration.
After Lucas precisely stated what they were thinking, Koraidon and Miraidon didn't just stand around anymore. Full of energy, they both returned to the Zero Lab.
Meanwhile, Lucas made his way to the lab's "kitchen."
Truthfully, calling this a kitchen was being generous. It was more like a collection of heating appliances, mixed with a storeroom stacked with instant foods.
Lucas could easily imagine the overworked researchers, dying to split themselves into two, dashing into the kitchen, grabbing a cup of instant noodles, adding water, cooking, eating in a hurry, then burying their heads back in research—all within fifteen minutes for a meal.
If it weren't a biological necessity to eat, they'd probably work through meals without pause for the sake of research progress.
Luckily, the Paldea League would periodically deliver fresh supplies. Lucas managed to gather all the ingredients he needed from a few fridges.
Even if most of those ingredients would normally just end up stewed with instant noodles, their freshness was guaranteed.
The lettuce leaves, for instance, were crisp and vibrant, as if freshly harvested—an impressive display of food preservation technology.
No wonder Professor Sada's Herba Mystica seed packets could actually germinate.
Other than some ingredients that needed to be heated, the food Lucas planned to make didn't require complicated preparation; as long as there was a table—or even no table at all—it could be done.
Digging through the piled-up cardboard boxes, Lucas found some fluffy white bread, baguettes, and regular whole wheat bread.
That's right—he intended to make "sandwiches."
In his memory, both Koraidon and Miraidon were quite fond of sandwiches.
Since the Paldea region is inspired by the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal), much of the food here had that style.
Sandwiches made with white bread were quite common where Lucas came from, but less so here, so it was worth a try.
Using the baguette and stick-like whole wheat bread (barra de pan), he planned to make Paldea-style sandwiches (Bocadillo de tortilla), and since the two types had quite different flavors, Lucas decided to try both.
As he was stacking his bread in a box, a voice drifted by.
"So that's it, Brother Lucas—you're making sandwiches?"
Thankfully, Lucas had developed nerves of steel and wasn't startled by the sudden appearance of Arven behind him. Without changing expression, he continued handling the bread.
"Just woke up?"
His calm, even voice rang out.
"Not long ago," Arven replied. "I heard from Mom and Dad that you're preparing food for those two unnamed Paradox Pokémon, so I came to check it out."
Realizing his "surprise attack" failed, Arven regretfully came over to help, lifting another box of ingredients.
"I make sandwiches often at home. Can I help?"
"Sure," Lucas said, indifferent. Steadily lifting the heavy box, perhaps on a whim, he asked, "Do you know how to make a sandwich that tastes like a mother's cooking?"
Arven: "...Huh?"
Arven shot Lucas a surprised look, like he was meeting him for the first time.
Seeing his expression, Lucas realized the misunderstanding, and his face darkened. "Just answer, do you know or not?"
Lucas was confident he could make delicious sandwiches. But as for capturing Koraidon or Miraidon's heart with a "Mom's Special Sandwich" like in the games, he felt a little pessimistic.
That's why he was especially curious: since Arven must have eaten plenty of Professor Sada's cooking, would he know what a "mother's flavor" was?
"Well—"
Arven seemed to recall an indescribable memory, suddenly turning awkward.
He didn't know how to explain: Sada's cooking was terrible. If he hadn't once looked at her through the filter of a devoted son, and if he'd actually cooked for himself more, he would have realized this long ago.
After failing to get a straight answer from Arven, Lucas waved his hand: "Come help me prep the ingredients."
During the process, he even called out Comfey to help make fresh mayo; fortunately, they still had ready-made salad dressing.
Assembling Paldea-style sandwiches was simple: Lucas had Ceruledge slice the sticklike whole wheat bread in half, toasting the surface for a bit of extra flavor and crispiness.
He stacked slices of Iberian ham, bacon, or other aged meats on the bread, drizzled with olive oil, mayonnaise, or tomato sauce as desired—that was it.
For the baguette, he made something tapas-like: skewering meats, scallops, shrimp, sausage, and fresh vegetables with toothpicks and laying them on the cut baguette.
Finally, there was what Lucas considered the "typical sandwich," layering white bread with ingredients, then slicing diagonally—besides the ready-made toppings like corn, he also prepared some pork floss and fried a few eggs.
This last sandwich was paired with salad dressing as the primary condiment.
To Arven, a true Paldean, the first two types were familiar, and he'd made them himself; the third, however, was novel. He asked curiously which region it came from.
Lucas replied that, according to his memory, this was the typical sandwich of regions like Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh.
Once everything was done, the two of them carried several loaded serving trays of sandwiches toward Koraidon and Miraidon's room.
"...Stare."
Professor Sada and Professor Turo watched Lucas carefully, as if trying to read his mind: why make sandwiches for Paradox Pokémon from the ancient past and the future?
Sure, it looked appetizing—so much so that after a month of instant noodles and salads, both professors were practically drooling.
But—
Would this really appeal to Koraidon and Miraidon's prehistoric/futuristic tastes?
They were skeptical.
Playing it safe, Lucas offered the first Paldean-style whole wheat sandwich to Koraidon, holding it up to its large nostrils.
It always had to sniff things first, no matter what—it was already a matter of life and death at this stage.
If Koraidon wasn't interested in the scent, there was no way it would eat it.
Luckily, Koraidon was intrigued. It stared intently at the sandwich, sniffed, and its eyes lit up.
"Food!"
Without any hesitation, Koraidon took a huge chomp—devouring two-thirds of the sandwich at once.
Maybe it was just used to eating that way: taking enormous gulps, as if worried someone would steal it. It didn't even take the time to savor the flavors.
Lucas felt it was a bit of a waste, so he reminded, "Slow down, no one's going to steal your food."
After feeding it the remaining third, Lucas tried the other two sandwiches. Koraidon's reaction remained the same.
In a word: "Eat!"
This took Professor Sada by surprise.
Koraidon was so accepting of modern food!?
She had been considering whether they should urgently develop some sort of nutritional supplement specifically for Koraidon.
But now, seeing its adaptability, she thought: as expected of a Paradox Pokémon. Like its wild relatives, no matter where it finds itself, it will adapt to any environment—if not, it will make the environment adapt to it.
Feeling Lucas was feeding it too slowly, Koraidon simply grabbed the entire tray and started munching through the towering pile of sandwiches itself.
From its contented humming and the way its tail wagged, it was clear Koraidon was in a great mood.
Meanwhile, Miraidon hadn't refused the food either. It ate much more gracefully than Koraidon, like a giant cat, taking small, polite bites—but it didn't fall behind in terms of speed.
Their personalities were really a strong contrast.
Professor Turo squatted nearby, busy to the point of flying around: recording video, scribbling notes, and puzzling over why Miraidon—despite its mechanical appearance—had the digestive abilities to eat real food. Did it contain a "decomposer furnace" module or something?
The two professors realized that just by observing Koraidon and Miraidon, they'd probably be spending most of their future research time.
After the food calmed them down, Koraidon and Miraidon's reactions were equally surprising: regardless of where they were, one immediately sprawled out and fell asleep, while the other seemed to enter sleep mode or simply powered down.
Worried, Professors Sada and Turo performed a comprehensive checkup. Their conclusion: after familiarizing themselves with the environment and completing a meal, the two Paradox Pokémon were synchronously commencing their adaptation to the modern setting.
This adaptation would be accompanied by periods of intense sleepiness.
The solution was simple: just wait.
Once they had adapted, everything would be fine.
Lucas straightforwardly pulled the crystal out of his pocket and asked the professors what he should do with it.
The two exchanged glances and smiled, suggesting, "Why not run some tests?"
Testing was easy enough since there was a dedicated machine for scanning. Unlike Koraidon or Miraidon, the crystal wouldn't move; once the machine was set up, it was just a matter of scanning.
When the scan finished, rows of incomprehensible data and charts popped up on Professor Sada's screen.
Looking over the results, Professors Turo and Sada exchanged another knowing glance.
This crystal, just like the "Zero Treasure" from the Great Crater of Paldea, is a living entity—a Terapagos—from two million years ago, during the tectonic upheaval of that ancient period.
It's just that, in order to protect itself, or perhaps out of necessity, it had turned into this crystal form.
Even more fascinating was the suggestion from the data that this particular Terapagos might have been transported to the present day from two million years ago.
Its energy level was far inferior to that of the "Zero Treasure" in the Great Crater.
There were three possible reasons:
It's weaker than the "Zero Treasure."
It's in a weakened state.
The "Zero Treasure" has grown much stronger over its two-million-year slumber.
The Terapagos in the Great Crater, after all, was believed to rival many legendary Pokémon, and this one was not as impressive in comparison.
There were also subtle differences—such as gender: the "Zero Treasure" Terapagos might be male, and this one clearly female, based on color, size, and crystal appearance.
Since they already planned to entrust the crystal to Lucas, the professors didn't hide anything. They shared their findings and every plausible theory.
Lucas, after listening: (⊙_⊙)
So... this crystal was Terapagos all along?
Lucas's expression shifted as he gazed at the crystal in his palm. His emotions flickered.
So the prototype time machine's first success brought forth a Terapagos—intimately tied to Terastal energy? Although this Terapagos appeared to have exhausted its energy and fallen asleep.
Its possible lower power level, gender, or inferiority to the "Zero Treasure" was not particularly important.
He simply pressed the professors: did they truly wish to entrust Terapagos to him?
Lucas hadn't expected that just by completing a task, he would not only receive a Master Ball as a special reward, but also gain such an extraordinary surprise.
Even if it couldn't match the "Zero Treasure," as a member of the Terapagos species, the source of Terastal energy, it could freely recharge Tera Orbs and provide Terastal energy for cultivating Herba Mysticas!
Falling into slumber was nothing; with Victini on the farm, its infinite energy might come in handy—though this was uncertain, since trying to get Victini to power up Iron Valiant hadn't yielded results.
Could infinite energy be converted to Terastal energy? There was no proof yet, but at least Victini's energy could supplement moves that require light energy like Z-Moves.
After pondering for a while, Lucas solemnly accepted the professors' trust. He promised to take good care of this treasure from two million years ago.
Seeing his determination, Professors Sada and Turo smiled and took the opportunity to extend another invitation.
"In that case, would you like to join us in heading deeper into the Great Crater?"
"The source of Terastal energy that covers the entire Paldea region—the 'Zero Treasure' Terapagos—is sleeping there."
"And, unlike outside, perhaps due to the concentration of Terastal energy, extremely special forms of Terastallization have appeared there."
"Are you interested?"
…
…
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