Roy reacted instantly, removing the Everstone from Bulbasaur's body.
The moment it was removed, a blinding white light exploded from Bulbasaur.
Bulbasaur's body expanded frantically within the white light.
The body that was originally only knee-high grew to over a meter in the blink of an eye.
Then two meters.
Three meters.
The light continued, showing no signs of dissipating.
The surrounding wild Pokemon were frightened by this light of evolution and fled in all directions.
The Pidgey on the branches flapped their wings and flew away, while the Rattata in the grass scurried into their holes.
Only Pikachu stood its ground, eyes wide, watching its partner undergo a world-shaking transformation.
Roy stood nearby, watching the white light, feeling a bit excited himself.
The white light lasted for about a minute.
Then it slowly faded away.
Roy saw the Pokemon before him clearly, his pupils dilating slightly.
Venusaur.
It had skipped the middle stage entirely, evolving into its final form in one breath.
And this Venusaur was a bit different from ordinary Venusaurs.
It was much larger, standing on all fours like a small mountain.
Its skin color was more vibrant—a deep, dark forest green with a faint luster.
The most eye-catching feature was the flower on its back.
An ordinary Venusaur has a large flower with five petals and a single stamen in the middle.
But this flower had seven petals.
Each petal was as large as a washbasin, with colors so vivid they seemed unreal—red, pink, and white intertwined.
The patterns on the petals were clearly visible, distributed like blood vessels, with a faint green light flowing within them.
The stamen stood upright in the center, golden-yellow, emitting waves of fresh fragrance.
This flower bloomed with extreme vigor, even more beautiful than those carefully cultivated ornamental Venusaurs in the Venusaur Garden.
Roy walked around the Venusaur, becoming more satisfied the more he looked.
"Not bad."
He reached out and patted the Venusaur's thick leg.
"One step and it's done—straight to Venusaur."
Venusaur lowered its head and rubbed it against Roy's shoulder.
Its eyes were brighter than before, reflecting a sense of maturity and confidence.
Most importantly, its flower bud was healed.
Now this flower bloomed passionately and unrestrainedly, every petal declaring the vitality of life.
The condition that had troubled it for so many years was finally completely resolved.
Roy let out a long breath.
A heavy stone had been lifted from his heart.
He had always worried about whether Bulbasaur's bud issue would affect its lifespan or if it would suddenly cause problems during battle.
Now it was fine.
The blooming flower had cleansed all the defects in its body; Venusaur's future path would only get wider.
Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from the distance.
Delia and Misty ran over from the direction of the camp.
The white light just now had been so bright they could see it from far away.
Misty ran in front, with Delia following behind.
When the two reached them and saw the mountain-like Venusaur, they were stunned.
Misty's mouth fell open, her eyes wide and round.
"This, this, this... where did this Venusaur come from?"
Delia was also taken aback, but she quickly reacted and looked around Roy; Bulbasaur was gone.
"Roy, this couldn't be... your Bulbasaur?"
Roy nodded.
"Yeah. It evolved."
Misty's brain hadn't processed it yet.
"Bulbasaur? Turned into Venusaur? What about Ivysaur? Where did the big Ivysaur in the middle go?"
Delia walked up to Venusaur and looked up at the giant flower.
"So beautiful..."
Misty also leaned in, reaching out to touch a petal.
Venusaur lowered its head, proactively bringing the flower closer.
Misty's finger touched the petal; it was soft and had a hint of warmth.
"Wow..."
She couldn't help but touch it again.
"The texture is just too good!"
Then she suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Roy.
"Wait! Didn't you say Bulbasaur's bud had a problem? Didn't you say it would be hard to evolve?"
Delia also realized.
"That's right, didn't you say before that the bud had a natural defect and evolution would be very difficult?"
Roy had already prepared his excuse.
He took out the small porcelain bottle Kiyomi had given him and waved it in front of them.
"The medicine Kiyomi gave me."
"She researched it herself, said it could improve a Pokemon's physical fitness."
"I didn't think much of it and just let Bulbasaur try it."
"I didn't expect the effect to be so strong—it directly repaired the bud's defect."
Roy spoke with a calm face.
"And then it evolved."
Misty took the small porcelain bottle and turned it over to look at it.
"That amazing? Kiyomi is incredible!"
Delia didn't doubt it; she had personally seen Kiyomi's grandmother prepare herbal medicines, and that old lady's skill was indeed high.
"It seems Kiyomi really does have a talent in this area."
Delia nodded with a smile.
"If this medicine could be mass-produced, it could probably apply for patents in all the major leagues."
Roy put the porcelain bottle away, thinking to himself that mass production was impossible because what really worked was the blooming flower; the medicine in the bottle was just a cover.
But he said: "Yeah, I'll ask her for some more when I get the chance."
Misty turned her attention back to Venusaur.
She walked around Venusaur twice, her eyes full of wonder.
"This flower is just too beautiful! It's more beautiful than any flower I've ever seen!"
She reached out to touch the stamen.
"And it smells so good—just smelling it makes me feel like I'm in a good mood."
Delia also nodded beside her.
"This fragrance has a calming effect; it's certainly beneficial to people."
Being stared at and surrounded by the two women, Venusaur felt a bit embarrassed.
But it didn't hide; instead, it raised its head and opened the flower even wider.
Roy smiled seeing Venusaur's proud look.
This fellow—even its personality had changed a bit after evolving, becoming more confident than before.
"Alright, stop showing off."
Roy patted Venusaur's back.
Venusaur gave a low roar, deep and powerful, carrying far into the distance.
Pikachu jumped onto Roy's shoulder, looking at the Venusaur that was several times taller than itself, and also gave a couple of "Pika Pika" cries, as if congratulating its old partner.
...