Just as the three of them were chatting casually, a sharp ringtone echoed through the office.
Steven reached out, picked up the phone on his desk, and answered.
"Hello, this is Steven Stone speaking. How can I help you?"
Whatever was said on the other end made his expression shift slightly in surprise.
"I see. Then give them an elevator card and let them come straight up."
"…Alright. That'll be all."
He hung up and spread his hands with a grin.
"Care to guess who just arrived?"
Chen Shi rolled his eyes, not even bothering to respond.
Cynthia merely lifted her gaze indifferently, pulled out a nail clipper, and began trimming her nails with calm precision.
Steven: "..."
"Hey—aren't you two even a little curious?" he protested.
"There are two people downstairs. You really don't want to know who they are?"
He leaned forward with both hands on the desk, staring hard at the pair.
Their complete lack of reaction made him feel like the only fool in the room.
Chen Shi yawned, pulled Mew into his arms, and casually started massaging it.
"Have you been hanging around Phoebe for too long?" he asked lazily.
"You're starting to act childish too."
"You already told them to come up. I'll know who it is in a minute anyway. Why bother guessing?"
Steven was left speechless.
For a split second, he genuinely wondered—have I really become childish?
Thinking back on what he'd just said… yeah, it did sound a bit silly.
He scratched his head awkwardly, muttered a sentence, and quickly headed for the door.
"Wait here. I'll go greet them."
Chen Shi and Cynthia didn't bother reacting, each continuing with what they were doing.
Lately, Chen Shi had been focused on keeping Mew in a good mood. His goal was simple: bring it along into the secret realm.
He didn't expect Mew to fight for him—he just wanted it to grab him and run if things ever went completely out of control.
That small request shouldn't be too much, right?
After all, Mew kept talking about him "saving the World Tree" someday. Surely it wouldn't let him die that easily.
Before long, the office door opened again.
Steven stepped in first—followed by two familiar figures.
Chen Shi wasn't surprised in the slightest. The moment Steven got that phone call, he'd already guessed who it would be.
The two newcomers were Leon and Diantha.
There were items at the auction that both of them absolutely wanted. Showing up early made perfect sense.
They weren't particularly close, but they had met several times before. After exchanging brief greetings, everyone settled onto the plush, luxurious sofas.
This time, Steven didn't bring out red wine. Instead, he took out tea leaves, boiled water, and began brewing tea.
Chen Shi took a sip—and immediately felt a strange sense of familiarity.
After savoring it carefully, his expression turned odd.
This is my tea.
You little bastard—so you swipe my tea, then use it to entertain me?
Diantha was the first to speak.
"Mr. Chen Shi," she said with a graceful smile,
"last time, you mentioned that Gardevoir isn't purely a Psychic-type Pokémon. Does that mean it has another, previously undiscovered attribute—what you recently published as the Fairy type?"
For the past few days, Diantha's mind had been completely occupied by Mega Stones and Gardevoir's possible new typing.
She wasn't worried about the Mega Stone itself. This time, she'd come fully prepared—the Kalos League had allocated her a massive budget to ensure she could secure Gardevoir's Mega Stone at the auction.
But the Fairy type?
That was driving her mad with curiosity.
After reading Chen Shi's paper, her impatience only grew. According to the research, Fairy-type energy was still scarce in the world, meaning Fairy-type Pokémon could only awaken their attribute through special energy blocks.
And the problem was—those blocks weren't available anywhere.
It was like a Meowth constantly scratching at her heart.
Seeing her barely contained eagerness, Chen Shi didn't tease her and answered directly.
"Gardevoir does indeed possess another attribute—Fairy type."
"Devon Corporation will be releasing Fairy-type energy blocks tomorrow. If you want Gardevoir to awaken its Fairy typing, just get some for her."
"At the current rate, it won't take long."
Diantha's eyes lit up instantly.
So the Fairy-type energy blocks would be on sale tomorrow?
Waiting one more day was nothing.
Mew, resting in Chen Shi's arms, seemed to pause for a moment at the mention of Fairy types. A trace of contemplation flashed through its eyes—though no one noticed.
Diantha pressed her lips together in a soft smile.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Chen Shi. I truly appreciate it."
Chen Shi waved it off.
"It's nothing. Even if you hadn't asked, everyone would've known soon enough."
With her question answered, Leon finally spoke up.
"Mr. Chen Shi," he said,
"in your paper, you mentioned that some Pokémon undergo more than just a physical change after Mega Evolution—their typing and even abilities can change as well."
"I'd like to know what exactly changes for Charizard after Mega Evolution."
This was something Leon had been deeply curious about.
During the World Championships, he'd studied Mega Charizard's battle footage extensively. From what he'd seen, that Mega Charizard hadn't even been performing at its absolute best—its move execution was still a bit rough, and its combos weren't fully refined.
Yet despite that, it had displayed overwhelming power, tearing through Ice spears and Water Cannons with moves that weren't even its original typing.
That didn't make sense unless Mega Charizard itself had undergone a fundamental transformation.
Chen Shi stroked his chin, thought for a moment, then replied:
"Charizard is actually a very special case."
"It has two Mega Evolution forms."
"Two?"
The office fell silent.
According to Chen Shi, only a few dozen Pokémon in the world could Mega Evolve at all. Many didn't even have a single form.
And Charizard had two?
Was it the heavens' chosen child or something?
That thought echoed silently in everyone's mind.
For some reason, Cynthia suddenly thought of Lance's Dragonite—and nearly laughed out loud.
If Lance ever found out about this… would he cough up blood from sheer frustration?
Leon hurriedly asked,
"Then the Mega Charizard you used in the tournament—which form was that?"
Chen Shi smiled.
"The one I showed before is what I call Mega Charizard X."
"In that form, Charizard's physical attack is greatly enhanced. Its typing changes to Fire/Dragon, and its ability becomes Tough Claws."
"There's also another form," he continued.
"I call it Mega Charizard Y."
...
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