From Cain's hands, Steven obtained two Mega Stones and two Key Stones.
Trying Mega Evolution for the first time, Steven did not hesitate at all and, with an imposing attitude, directly used double Mega Evolution.
Although Cain had already warned him in advance, Steven knew that if he wanted to force Irene back, double Mega Evolution was indispensable.
With an excited roar, an enormous amount of multicolored Mega Evolution energy erupted from Aggron and the Mawile he had captured not long ago, completely enveloping them.
Both Pokémon seemed to feel a mysterious and boundless energy flowing into their bodies, activating every part of them and giving rise to an extremely pleasant sensation.
They were enjoying it, but for Steven it was intense pain.
He had underestimated the impact that double Mega Evolution—as Cain had warned—would have on his body and consciousness. The minds of Aggron and Mawile, two Champion-level Pokémon, violently crashed into his mind. The stabbing pain in his brain nearly made him lose consciousness; if he had not prepared in advance, that sudden impact of double Mega Evolution would have knocked him out.
But even so, he managed to endure it.
Nevertheless, he now understood why Cain had told him not to maintain double Mega Evolution for too long.
When Steven recovered a little and looked at his two Pokémon, he realized that his Mega Aggron was almost identical to the Mega Aggron that Irene had forcibly produced through divine power infusion.
Steven could clearly feel the enormous increase in power his own Aggron had obtained after Mega Evolving.
The other Pokémon, Mawile, had also successfully completed Mega Evolution. Afterward, she seemed more mature, as if she had grown from a small child into a slightly older one.
However, the greatest change was the gigantic mouth on her back. Mega Mawile, with two enormous mouths, emanated an extremely intimidating presence.
Mega Aggron!
Mega Mawile!
Steven endured the pain as his face filled with surprise and joy.
On the other hand, Irene, his opponent, was clearly stunned. She had never seen a genuine Mega Evolution before, and upon seeing Steven's Mega Aggron and Mega Mawile, she was unable to react immediately.
However, as a trainer of such a high level, she almost instantly realized that the power increase Steven had obtained after his Aggron's Mega Evolution far surpassed what her own had achieved.
Her heart wavered for a moment. Could it be that, aside from the church, there were other people capable of mastering that special kind of evolution? And moreover, it seemed even more authentic than the one they used.
Irene was dumbfounded, but Steven had no time for that. The constant pain in his mind reminded him that he had to resolve the battle quickly; otherwise, he would not be able to endure much longer.
Fortunately, Cain had explained the characteristics of Mega Aggron and Mega Mawile to him in advance, preventing a situation where, after Mega Evolution, he would not know how to make use of their advantages.
The pure steel-type Mega Aggron stepped forward, replacing Steelix as Steven's most solid shield. At the same time, Mega Mawile, thanks to her Huge Power ability, became his sharpest spear after using the move Swords Dance. Added to the sudden awakening of Metagross's Shiny trait, Steven's counterattack finally managed to suppress Irene's offensive.
Little by little, they forced her to retreat, driving her out of Tyranitar's red sand inferno and preventing her from interfering with the advantage Cain had gained.
When Steven and Irene withdrew, Tyranitar immediately informed Cain, allowing him to direct the battle with peace of mind.
After receiving Tyranitar's information, a faint smile appeared on Cain's face. After handing the Mega Stones to Steven, he had not paid any further attention to that side of the battle, because he knew Steven would not disappoint him.
As long as he was given the ability to turn the situation around, Steven would give it his all to drive the enemy away.
"Steven has already completed what he needed to do. Then we also need to put in more effort; we can't fail to keep what we promised him," Cain said calmly, as a powerful pressure emanated from his body.
After this brief period of combat, Cain had already largely grasped Jacob's fighting style and methods.
Although his opponent had lived there for twenty-five years and had had plenty of time to grow, that period had been too long and monotonous. He had probably not even had a suitable rival; without proper planning, a large part of that time was inevitably wasted.
Even Cain would not dare take that path. Although at the beginning one might rely on obtaining huge improvements in a short time, in the long run efficiency would inevitably collapse.
That was why, when facing people like Jacob and Brad, Cain felt great caution at first, but after deeper contact he discovered that they were not as difficult to deal with as he had imagined.
Not everyone is like Cain: in addition to possessing great strength as a trainer, he is also an Advanced-level breeder, capable of assessing his own situation, formulating the appropriate strategy, and combining it with the most suitable training method, with extremely clear planning for the future.
Perhaps they too had clear plans at the beginning, with well-defined goals and directions. But twenty-five years is too long; everything can be slowly eroded by the passage of time.
From the moment Cain realized that people like Jacob could not raise a single Pokémon to the Intermediate Champion-level and instead chose to train several Pokémon, his confidence in them had already been practically destroyed.
Moreover, they had been isolated from the League and society at large for far too long, which weakened their control of combat. Even in terms of pure command ability, Jacob did not reach Phoebe's level.
In short, the excessive passage of time had led them into a dead end, both in Pokémon training and in their own growth. If they wanted to improve again, leaving this continent was imperative.
That was why Cain suspected that the first trainer—the one who had the courage to stay—had probably also discovered this flaw and decided to leave.
Otherwise, why not wait until he had trained all his Pokémon and reached a level of power capable of crushing the Pokémon world before departing?
Because he knew that was impossible.
The pressure of surviving on Trial Island, then the pressure of moving within the League as a member of Team Rocket after leaving the island, and later, once a certain level of strength was reached, the contact with people of different strata who once again exerted pressure... all of this had constantly pushed Cain to move forward.
Just like in this current experience: the Sacred Church, with that plan whose objective was still unknown, was pressing Cain to improve at all times.
(End of chapter)