Upon learning of their actions, Brad and Catherine were somewhat surprised. But too many strange things happened in this world; even so, they followed Cain's orders and carefully instructed them, accepting them as disciples with the intention of training two competent fighters to serve Cain.
Brad and Catherine had a good eye. They could see that Jessie and James' potential was not weak at all. The problem was... that suicidal tendency.
With time, they also understood why Regice had frozen them. They were far too troublesome. Every three days they caused a minor problem; every five, a major one. They never stopped.
Just cleaning up the messes they caused already consumed a great deal of time.
Although their current strength was not high —barely at the Advanced level— their ability to get themselves into trouble was something even Brad and Catherine had to acknowledge.
And the worst part was that both of them had remarkable physical resilience. Normally, their recklessness did not kill them; at most, it left them half crippled.
Advanced level?
Cain caught the key word.
In just three months, Jessie and James had reached the Advanced level.
Although for the current Cain the Advanced level was something he could crush with one hand, when he himself finished his final trial and stood out among everyone, he had also been at that level. Their rate of progress was not inferior to his own.
Their potential was truly outstanding.
But upon hearing Jessie list their "glorious achievements" one by one, even Cain had to admit that they were experts at getting into trouble.
Fortunately, Team Heaven had already become a colossal force in Hoenn. With Cain's return, and with Brad and Catherine guarding them, that level of recklessness could still be managed, although it required dedication.
Before Jessie finished speaking, Cain interrupted her: "I more or less understand your situation now. From now on, continue studying with your teachers. Do fewer useless things, and then..."
He wanted to say "stop courting death," but thinking about it, no matter how much they tried, they were never the ones who died. So he decided to let it go.
And there was no "then." He waved his hand, signaling that they could leave.
Jessie, James, and Meowth thought the most important part was coming, but when they saw that Cain was simply dismissing them, it took them a few seconds to react.
Brad, somewhat annoyed, kicked James lightly in the calf, and only then did they understand.
They immediately bowed respectfully:
"Then, sir, we will take our leave! Please rest assured! We promise not to cause trouble recklessly and will help you capture a Pokémon that will shake the world to repay your training!"
After saying that, the two humans and the peculiar Meowth left. Judging by their backs, they seemed to be in good spirits.
Once they left, Cain, Brad, and Catherine remained in brief silence.
"You two... put in a bit more effort," Cain said. It was the first time that speaking to them gave him a slight sense of guilt.
Brad and Catherine showed bitter smiles, but accepted the order.
"Yes."
Under the prolonged influence of the psychic seed, their loyalty toward Cain was sincere. They always acted with Cain's interests as their top priority.
Although Jessie and James were not yet strong and possessed great talent for getting into trouble, their potential was good. If they continued to grow, they would undoubtedly become important support for Cain.
For now, they could only take on more responsibility.
"That is a minor matter. What about the other task I assigned to you?" Cain asked again.
For him, Jessie and James were secondary matters. For them to truly become useful, they would need at least three or four years. And Cain had no intention of waiting that long.
Hearing this, Brad and Catherine adopted serious expressions and cautiously looked around, verifying that no one was observing them.
Cain waved his right hand, creating a barrier similar to the one on the mountain of Dialga and Palkia, enveloping the three of them.
He was confident that even someone at Marcus's level would not be able to detect them.
Then Catherine carefully took out a cloth-wrapped bundle. As she opened it, the dark night was illuminated by a multicolored glow.
If not for the barrier, the entire forest would have been bathed in that light.
Upon seeing the contents, even someone like Cain could not prevent his breathing from quickening.
It was an entire bundle of Mega Stones!
That's right. Those special stones shining with seven colors were numerous Mega Stones belonging to different Pokémon.
Cain had arranged for their collection long ago through Lysandre of Team Flare.
As the region where Mega Evolution would be most common in the future, Kalos possessed the greatest number of these stones.
Lysandre controlled Team Flare, and after so much time developing, his organization had grown tremendously, even infiltrating someone like Malva into the Kalos League.
With no competition, they were able to secretly collect the Mega Stones without attracting attention.
After accumulating them for so long, the quantity was considerable. At a glance, there were nearly a hundred.
They were not worth much now, but in three days, when Cain officially announced Mega Evolution, they would become treasures of astronomical value.
Fortunately, Lysandre's mind was also influenced by Cain's psychic seed, although not in the same way as Brad and the others. It was more like religious faith, and Cain was his absolute belief. Even knowing that Cain was taking the stones, he would only think it was for some special purpose.
Moreover, once Cain identified which Pokémon corresponded to each stone, he would send Lysandre those he could use.
Better a few that could be used than a pile that could not.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Cain carefully took the bundle; even his hands trembled slightly.
It was the first time he had seen so many Mega Stones gathered together. Some were duplicates, but many were new even to him.
As someone who knew the future of Mega Evolution, how could he not reserve advantages for himself? Only he fully understood what it meant.
Even among his own Pokémon, several could not mega evolve simply because he lacked their Mega Stones.
After this, practically all of them would be able to.
Among them were Swampert, Gardevoir, Lucario, Venusaur... and even others he might obtain in the future.
Having this in his hands would never be a loss.
He stored all the stones and said, "I will come back later to identify which Pokémon each corresponds to. When the time comes, you two will not be left out."
Brad and Catherine, as his most capable subordinates, would see their strength increase along with his own. With loyal subordinates, Cain was not stingy.
Upon hearing this, their faces lit up.
"Thank you, sir!"
Even their voices trembled with excitement.
It was genuine excitement.
They had seen Cain use Mega Evolution without hiding it in front of them. Even if they did not say it, they envied him deeply.
When they received that bundle from Lysandre, their eyes had nearly popped out in shock.
Deep down, they had also fantasized about Cain giving each of them one stone. They did not ask for much; as long as each of them received one they could use, that would be enough.
They did not expect that Cain truly had not forgotten them.
The reason he did not give them the stones immediately was twofold: on one hand, it was not easy to identify each type; on the other, Brad and Catherine still did not have a particularly deep bond with their Pokémon.
Cain hoped that they would soon reach sufficient harmony with them.
After storing those extremely important Mega Stones, the great weight in Cain's heart finally relaxed for the moment.
(End of Chapter)