Early the next morning, Steven set off for Sandgem Town.
Since there was no transportation available in Celestic Town, he had to ask Metagross to carry him back to Eterna City to catch a train.
"Be careful on your way, Steven!" Grandma Caroline stood at the door with a warm smile, waving as Steven departed.
"I will, Grandma Caroline ," Steven replied.
A strange feeling stirred in Steven's heart. He suspected that Grandma Caroline's words yesterday had been mostly to test him. Steven didn't believe she hadn't told Cynthia anything about his visit.
Riding on Metagross's back, Steven was once again on his way to Eterna City. He calculated that he should arrive before dark, and from there, the train journey to Sandgem Town would take approximately one day.
His Pokemon had been resting constantly over the past few days, which probably made them restless. Well, except for Lairon—as long as it had metal ore to eat, it was perfectly content.
Steven, who spent the entire day on the train, found himself incredibly bored. Once Skarmory grew stronger, he could ride it and fly freely through the skies. Metagross's flight relied on either Psychic or magnetic levitation, both of which consumed considerable energy and stamina. Meanwhile, Skarmory's flight was a natural ability that only consumed stamina.
Pokemon that couldn't actively train their physical strength practiced Calm Mind inside their Poke Balls instead. This mental training involved imagining potential opponents and planning appropriate responses—a valuable form of preparation. Only Lairon seemed to imagine its opponents as impossibly hard chunks of metal ore...
As for why he took the train instead of flying directly, it was simply because Sandgem Town had no airport, though it did have a train station. This infrastructure was designed primarily for Professor Rowan's research needs. Celestic Town, built atop ancient ruins, had never had train routes constructed to preserve the historical site.
Steven passed the time on the train by watching short videos on his PokeNav and sleeping. Finally, the announcement came that they had arrived at the station.
After disembarking, Steven didn't immediately rush to Professor Rowan's laboratory. Sandgem Town also had a Pokemon Appraisal Center, and to avoid disturbing Professor Rowan at an inconvenient hour, Steven decided to visit the professor the next day.
At the Pokemon Appraisal Center, the assessment results showed:
Metagross: 62.6% Scyther: 58.3% Lairon: 38.2% Skarmory: 38.4%
Steven nearly teared up with joy—Skarmory had finally surpassed Lairon!
Upon seeing these results, Lairon decided to eat two extra pieces of metal ore for dinner.
After the appraisal was complete, Steven found a Pokemon Center to stay the night. Since they had rested all day, Steven took his Pokemon out to the wilderness for late-night training.
The Pokemon, who had been holding back their energy for several days, could finally let loose and train properly.
The next morning, despite training with his Pokemon until dawn, Steven still woke up early thanks to his internal clock. After grabbing a quick breakfast, he set off for Professor Rowan's laboratory. He would prepare breakfast for his Pokemon after they woke up naturally.
Ding-dong—
He pressed the doorbell at Professor Rowan's laboratory. Soon after, an elderly man with a stern expression, wearing a white lab coat, opened the door.
Professor Rowan first glanced at Steven's distinctive silver-blue hair, then looked directly at him.
"Are you Steven?"
"Yes, Professor Rowan," Steven replied with a nod.
Professor Rowan was a renowned researcher who specialized in Pokemon evolution and was also Professor Oak's senior colleague. Steven had seen Professor Rowan's photo in research documents before. His expression in person was exactly as serious as it appeared in the photo.
The public's assessment of this stern but earnest professor was that he had a tough exterior but a kind heart.
"That Pokemon is not in the laboratory right now," Professor Rowan said solemnly. His tone carried a meticulous precision, and his expression was so controlled that Steven thought he might have a permanent poker face.
"If you want to see it now, I can take you to Lake Verity."
Steven asked politely, "Will that disturb your research?"
"No rush—it's still morning. I'll take you to see it first," Professor Rowan replied.
"Then I'll trouble you, Professor." Steven nodded with a slight smile.
Immediately after, Professor Rowan drove an off-road vehicle to pick up Steven. They traveled through Route 201 and arrived at the large lake nestled in the forest.
"This particular Pokemon is quite mischievous," Professor Rowan explained as he gazed at the lake after exiting the vehicle. "It constantly disrupts researchers' work, and no Pokemon Trainer has been able to keep it. Every new Trainer who received it returned within three days, so it's temporarily living here."
Professor Rowan had eventually stopped giving it to new Trainers and instead allowed it to live freely at Lake Verity. He checked on it regularly throughout each day. The surrounding forest contained plenty of Berry trees, and the lake had fish, so survival was never an issue.
"Is it in the lake right now?" Steven walked to the water's edge, crouched down, and looked at his reflection on the surface.
Hmm, so handsome~ he thought to himself.
"Probably—it's the only Pokemon living in the lake," Professor Rowan said calmly.
"Huh? Why is that?" Steven asked, puzzled.
He was quite familiar with the Sinnoh region's legendary Pokemon like Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, and Arceus. However, he knew less about the region's Lake Guardians compared to his knowledge of legendary trios like the Legendary Birds, Beasts, and Golems.
"A legendary Pokemon once resided in this lake," Professor Rowan explained. "Whether it's still here isn't entirely clear, but no other Pokemon will make this lake their home."
"I see," Steven nodded in understanding.
The surface of the lake in front of them began to ripple...
"What's that?"
Splash—
A jet of water suddenly erupted from the lake, hitting Steven directly in the face and drenching half his body.
"Uh..." Steven blinked his dazed eyes, wiped the water from his face, and slicked back his wet hair with his hand.
"Piplup! Piplup!"
The sound of splashing water mixed with what Steven found to be an annoying, shrill laugh.
Steven looked up reluctantly to see a round blue head with flippers slapping the water as it laughed loudly. Looking at its wide-open yellow beak, Steven suddenly felt the urge to punch it flat—though realistically, his fist would probably get pecked through first.
"Piplup!"
Having laughed enough, Piplup flipped over and dove back into the water.
"This is considered mild," Professor Rowan said matter-of-factly, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and handing it to Steven, clearly prepared for such incidents.
"Thank you," Steven accepted the handkerchief, wiping the water droplets from his face and hair. He could change his clothes later.
Splash—
A long object flew out of the water and landed squarely on Steven's face.
Steven looked down at the object that had fallen to the ground—a wriggling Magikarp.
A visible "#" symbol of irritation appeared on Steven's forehead.
Don't you understand the principle of not hitting someone in the face?!
"Piplup! Piplup!"
Piplup surfaced again, holding its belly as it laughed.
Bang!
Metagross emerged from its Poke Ball voluntarily—it could no longer tolerate its Trainer being teased like this.
Professor Rowan glanced at the Shiny Metagross nearby, then suggested, "Perhaps we should return for now."
"No, let's wait a bit longer," Steven said calmly. He wasn't in a hurry to make a final judgment.
This level of mischief was completely within Steven's tolerance. At most, it was just a playful child acting out.
It's still young!
So...
Steven's expression began to shift, his mouth twitching slightly.
Metagross instantly understood. A wave of Psychic energy began to spread outward.
A mischievous child just needs a little discipline!