"Revolutionary research!"
Birch, sitting in the audience, almost rushed onto the stage as he exclaimed, his wide palms clapping the loudest.
If this Pokémon transfer device became available, then in many cases, studying Pokémon would no longer require long and tiring transportation. It would also make it much easier for most trainers to store and retrieve their Pokémon without going through so much trouble.
Sycamore's eyes lit up, and he looked eager, as if he could not wait to study the principle behind it.
Oak remained seated in silence, his clapping slow and measured.
On stage, the researchers had already returned to their seats. Rowan's face was full of joy, and he could not hide it at all. Even his steps grew larger as he walked.
After stepping down, he went straight to Oak in the front row and asked again, "Professor Oak, about what I mentioned before, regarding Shiro's professor title..."
Oak smiled and raised his hand slightly. "I know, I know. As long as he passes the process and gains everyone's approval, there will be no problem."
He then gestured for Rowan to go back to his seat.
At that moment, the two hosts on stage also announced a break.
After several reports, an hour and a half had already passed. Some people were not in the best condition and had been holding it in for a while.
* * *
Meanwhile, Shiro sat in his seat as Sycamore took the chance to walk over.
He was a tall man with a handsome face and noticeable stubble on his chin, wearing a warm smile.
"Corviknight, or rather... Shiro? Nice to meet you. I'm Sycamore."
"Hello, I'm Shiro."
They shook hands, and Sycamore sat down beside him. Shiro had already wanted to find a chance to talk to Sycamore, so this worked out perfectly.
"You're planning to obtain your professor title at this conference?" Sycamore asked first.
"That's right." Shiro nodded. "You're going to say Professor Oak will interfere?"
After hearing from Agatha that Oak might be an obstacle, he had looked into Sycamore's previous attempts at obtaining his title. In both cases, Oak's role seemed suspicious.
"At first, I didn't think it would be Professor Oak either." Sycamore did not seem surprised that Shiro had figured it out and spoke calmly. "After all, he is known for helping ordinary researchers. He's kind, and the most respected."
He paused slightly, lowering his voice. "But it seems he doesn't want rising researchers to become professors too early. As for the exact reason… I think it might be related to his recent research."
"Recent research?"
"He has been working on a project for many years. It's said that it could completely change the current Pokémon world."
Having said that, Sycamore shook his head. "But I don't know the details."
It was probably the Pokédex project that was still under development.
Shiro immediately thought of the Pokédex.
In the special manga, only the main characters had one. Later in the anime, it became a standard device every beginner trainer carried.
Why couldn't this be a gradual transition between the two stages?
In the earlier phase, the Pokédex had just been created. By the time of the anime, it had already become highly refined.
But the impact of the Pokédex on the entire Pokémon world... anyone who obtained one could instantly become something like a transmigrator. Just scan a Pokémon and you would know its species, traits, and even general training directions.
Shiro fell into deep thought.
Sycamore did not rush him and simply waited quietly.
"I understand." Shiro nodded after coming back to his senses and said, "Thank you, Professor."
"Heh." Sycamore smiled. "I actually came to ask you something else."
"Go ahead." Shiro listened carefully.
"I spoke with Professor Rowan. He said you've seen the things I sent over back then… those stones, right?" Sycamore's voice grew softer at the end.
Those Mega Stones were quite confidential, so he did not dare mention them loudly in public.
"I know." Shiro lowered his voice as well. "Mega Stones."
Sycamore glanced around again before asking, "Have you seen them before?"
"I've seen them in Galar." Shiro hesitated briefly, then answered.
"Galar..." Sycamore felt that region was truly remarkable. It seemed to have everything, along with many geniuses. He continued, "Did you discover anything? About how these Mega Stones work…?"
Shiro did not hide anything and explained the conditions for Mega Evolution. "A Key Stone, a Mega Stone, and a bond. Of course, it also consumes the trainer's stamina and mental energy."
Sycamore was stunned and quickly took out a pen and paper to write it down.
Until now, he had only known about the Key Stone and the matching Mega Stone. As for the bond, that was exactly the part he had been researching but could not fully understand.
With the same stones, some people could trigger evolution while others could not. The subtle difference was too hard to identify.
"A bond? Then that means... the friendship you studied before?" Sycamore's tone carried a hint of excitement.
"That's right." Shiro gave a nod.
Then, he took out a notebook and began sketching something.
Sycamore looked closely. It was a drawing of a Mega Stone.
"Professor Sycamore, have you seen this one?" Shiro said after he finished.
The drawing was of Gengar's Mega Stone.
"Gengar's, right?" Sycamore recognized it at once. He had been secretly researching Mega Stones for a long time. While many stones looked similar, their features made them easy to distinguish.
Shiro asked with some anticipation, "Professor, can you obtain this Mega Stone? I'm willing to pay for it."
Sycamore fell silent for a long moment, then replied, "There is indeed a Gengar Mega Stone in my lab. If you want it, you don't need to pay. I can give you one."
"That wouldn't be appropriate..." Shiro was not being polite. He genuinely did not want to accept it for free and worried that Sycamore might attach some condition later. Paying with Pokédollars felt much safer.
"Don't worry. Think of it as making a friend. And what you just said about bonds will also help my research." Sycamore saw through his thoughts. "Besides, these Mega Stones aren't allowed to circulate right now, so they don't really have a market value."
With that, he stood up.
"I'll contact my lab to send it over. It should arrive in about two days."
After Shiro nodded in agreement, Sycamore returned to his seat.
Shiro then stood up and looked around. The place was empty, and Rowan and the other researchers had probably gone out for some air.
Just as he was about to step out as well, his gaze caught a somewhat suspicious figure in a corner of the hall.
**
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