As everyone departed one after another, the entire campsite was left with only Bai Chen and Serena.
Serena glanced at Bai Chen, who remained standing by the table without sitting down, and felt a little uneasy.
She and Bai Chen had barely exchanged more than a few sentences before.
Trying to be polite, she said,
"Mr. Bai, the chair is over here."
Bai Chen was slightly older than the others, and combined with his overwhelming strength, the group treated him with great respect.
"My armor is very heavy," Bai Chen replied calmly.
"These folding chairs won't be able to handle it."
Only then did Serena remember—Bai Chen had mentioned before that his armor and blade together weighed over a ton.
She genuinely couldn't imagine how someone could even wear such weight, let alone move freely in it.
Serena fell silent.
She sensed the atmosphere becoming awkward.
She wanted to take her Pokémon to train, but leaving now would feel like she was deliberately avoiding Bai Chen, which would be impolite.
So she could only sit there stiffly.
After struggling to find a topic, Serena finally asked—clearly just to ease the silence:
"By the way, Mr. Bai… are you going to Anistar City to participate in the World Championships?"
Bai Chen thought to himself,
So it finally came.
He swept the surroundings with Super Perception, confirmed that all the "actors" were in position, and then spoke.
"My reason for going to Anistar City is to investigate Mega Evolution."
"To Anistar City… to investigate Mega Evolution?"
Serena clearly didn't know about the sundial's special nature.
"That's right," Bai Chen nodded.
"The sundial in Anistar City emits the same kind of ripples as Mega Evolution. If you want to uncover its secrets, studying the sundial is a good starting point."
Serena had only meant to make small talk, but Bai Chen had unexpectedly brought up a topic she found deeply interesting.
"However," Bai Chen continued, changing tone,
"The energy activity within the sundial is extremely low. Using it to uncover the truth behind Mega Evolution is extraordinarily difficult. If possible, I'd much rather study something more directly connected—the Legendary Stone."
Serena looked confused.
She had never heard of the Legendary Stone before.
That was only natural—it was classified intelligence.
Bai Chen gestured for her to come closer.
Serena walked over, and Bai Chen pulled out his phone, showing her a photograph of the Legendary Stone.
In the image were the three Hoenn legends, along with a radiant, multicolored stone.
"This is the Legendary Stone?" Serena asked hesitantly.
"What does it have to do with Mega Evolution?"
"Everything," Bai Chen replied.
"There's a high probability that it's the origin of Mega Evolution. What we can already confirm is that just over ten days ago, the Legendary Stone released Mega Evolution energy and allowed the Legendary Pokémon Rayquaza to Mega Evolve."
Serena was stunned.
She had never imagined that even Legendary Pokémon could undergo Mega Evolution.
"So you're researching Mega Evolution…" she murmured.
"Is the Legendary Stone still in the Hoenn region?"
"It's no longer there," Bai Chen shook his head regretfully.
"That's what troubles me most. During the chaos back then, Team Flare took the Legendary Stone and brought it to the Kalos region."
"Team Flare?"
Another unfamiliar name left Serena completely lost.
"Yes," Bai Chen said.
"It's an organization led by Lysandre. I haven't fully confirmed their objective yet, but I do know this—right now, the Legendary Stone is hidden inside Lysandre Labs in Lumiose City, and the entrance to that lab is concealed within Lysandre Café."
The location of Lysandre Labs was notoriously secretive.
In the games, it was located in Lumiose City.
In the anime, Bai Chen remembered it being near the coast, with maps placing it close to Shalour City, home of the Fighting-type Gym in northwestern Kalos.
This world closely resembled the one Bai Chen knew—but with countless subtle differences.
Whether the lab was near Shalour City or within Lumiose City itself, both locations were worth investigating.
Serena was completely unprepared for this.
No matter how she thought about it, this information was top-secret.
Bai Chen suddenly acted as if he had just realized he'd said too much.
"…Looks like I may have talked a bit too freely," he laughed lightly.
"Well, please help me keep this confidential. Let's treat it as a secret between us."
Serena nodded repeatedly.
Inside, she whispered to herself,
I think I've just learned something absolutely terrifying…
At the same time, she noticed something else.
How did Bai Chen know all of this?
And how could he know it so clearly?
Could it be that Mr. Bai is a knight on the surface… but a detective in secret?
About four hundred meters away, a group of four was hiding in a tree.
Team Rocket.
Jessie, James, and Meowth each held high-tech binoculars, watching Bai Chen and Serena in the distance.
From their angle, they could vaguely make out what was displayed on Bai Chen's phone.
Beside them sat a small square device—Serena and Bai Chen's voices were playing clearly from it.
James frowned.
"Legendary Stone? What's that?"
"I don't know," Jessie snapped,
"But that girl is standing way too close to him!"
Crack.
Jessie crushed her binoculars in her grip.
James was speechless.
Is this the power of handsome men…?
Meowth said,
"Sounds like that Legendary Stone is the source of Mega Evolution—and it even made Rayquaza Mega Evolve, nya."
Jessie and James instantly became interested.
"The source of Mega Evolution? And it can Mega Evolve Rayquaza?" Jessie scoffed.
"That sounds ridiculous."
But James quickly pulled up a search result.
The article included images of the Legendary Stone and Mega Rayquaza.
"…It seems to be real," James muttered.
Meowth immediately identified the critical information.
"That Bai Chen also said Team Flare stole the Legendary Stone, and it's hidden in Lysandre Labs in Lumiose City. And the entrance is inside Lysandre Café, nya."
"Team Flare? Lysandre?" Jessie frowned.
"Never heard of them."
James flipped open a Kalos regional handbook and quickly found the entry.
"Lysandre—famous philanthropist. Dedicated to creating a peaceful and beautiful world. Founder of multiple research institutes."
Jessie curled her lip when she heard peace and beauty.
"Sounds like a bad guy."
Perhaps because they were villains themselves, Jessie saw through the façade instantly.
"Anyone who constantly talks about peace usually isn't a good person."
James and Meowth nodded in agreement.
Wobbuffet: "Sonansu!"
Meowth asked,
"So what do we do now, nya?"
The three exchanged glances.
Their lips curled upward simultaneously into sinister grins.
Jessie declared,
"Isn't it obvious? We steal the Legendary Stone!"
James followed up,
"And present it to the Boss!"
Jessie:
"Promotion!"
Meowth:
"Raise, nya!"
James:
"A glorious future awaits us!"
Wobbuffet:
"Sonansu!"
James hesitated.
"What about that Legendary Pokémon?"
They all understood—he meant Nergigante.
Meowth answered,
"Isn't that obvious? We catch it too, nya! But with our current equipment, we can't. Once we get the Legendary Stone, we'll request better gear from HQ. Then we'll grab Pikachu along with it, nya!"
"Good plan," Jessie and James agreed.
"Then we head for Lumiose City—now!"
The trio quietly retrieved their hidden hot-air balloon and set off.
Bai Chen watched them depart, his mood excellent.
Their entire conversation had reached his ears through Super Perception.
"If nothing goes wrong, they'll reach Lumiose City within three days," he thought.
"At that point, I'll lend them a little… assistance."
If Bai Chen truly wanted to confront Team Flare head-on, he wasn't without options.
He had the Aether Foundation behind him.
Team Flare had combatants.
So did the Foundation.
And in the games, the Aether Foundation had been the true final antagonist of Alola—its strength was unquestionable.
But dragging the Foundation into Kalos would come at a high price.
Their roots in Kalos weren't deep enough to challenge Team Flare on home ground.
Now, however, the situation was different.
Bringing Team Rocket into the mix cost Bai Chen absolutely nothing.
If Team Rocket and Team Flare started fighting, Bai Chen would happily applaud from the sidelines.
"Team Rocket is active worldwide anyway. It makes perfect sense for them to steal the Legendary Stone once they learn of it. They overheard everything on their own—none of this has anything to do with me."
As for whether the trio could actually steal the Legendary Stone—
Bai Chen could only say: never underestimate their talent for chaos.
"They're some of the most absurdly capable troublemakers in Team Rocket."
If you actually pull this off, Bai Chen thought,
even if Giovanni doesn't reward you, I will.
He withdrew his Super Perception and turned back to Serena.
Serena was still deep in thought, wondering how Bai Chen had obtained such classified intelligence.
If she hadn't asked that question, Bai Chen mused,
I wouldn't even know how to leak information to Team Rocket.
I'll just help you a bit with your upcoming contest.
He asked,
"You'll be competing in the Tri-Pokalon in Dendemille Town soon, right? Is your outfit ready?"
Serena snapped out of her thoughts.
"I visited the Laverre Gym's official shop yesterday and bought some nice clothes."
"Nice isn't enough," Bai Chen said flatly.
"For something that important, you should use the best."
Serena thought he misunderstood.
"I didn't mean 'nice' as in bad—"
Bai Chen had already taken out his phone and started a video call.
After two seconds, the call connected.
"Mr. Bai?" came a puzzled voice.
Serena froze.
"M-Miss Valerie?!"
Bai Chen went straight to the point.
"Are you free over the next few days?"
"I'm currently designing outfits based on Kirin," Valerie replied.
"Do you need my help with something?"
"Yes," Bai Chen said, pulling Serena closer.
"My friend here will be participating in the Tri-Pokalon soon, but her competition outfit isn't finalized. Could you design one for her? I'll cover all design and production costs."
Serena's mind went blank.
Valerie was internationally famous.
And Bai Chen was asking her to personally design Serena's outfit.
Stammering, Serena said,
"M-Miss Valerie… I'm your biggest fan. I-I'm so happy to meet you."
Valerie covered her mouth and laughed softly.
"What an adorable girl. Designing an outfit for her is no problem at all~"
Serena stared at the screen in disbelief.
Bai Chen nudged her gently with telekinesis.
"Don't just stand there—tell Miss Valerie what kind of outfit you want."
Valerie added cheerfully,
"If it's for the Tri-Pokalon, I'll also need data on your Pokémon."
"O-Of course!"
Serena summoned her Pokémon and immediately began discussing ideas with Valerie.
After nearly half an hour, the design discussion finally ended.
"I remember the Dendemille Town contest is in ten days, right?" Valerie asked.
"That's right."
"Ten days is plenty. Once the outfit is finished—"
Bai Chen interjected,
"Just message me when it's ready. I'll have Cosmog pick it up."
Valerie nodded.
"That is a very convenient ability."
"Thank you so much, Miss Valerie!" Serena bowed deeply.
"The one you should thank isn't me," Valerie replied.
"I owe Mr. Bai a rather significant favor."
She had borrowed Kirin as a design reference—this was simply repayment.
Serena turned to bow to Bai Chen, but he stopped her with telekinesis.
"No need. Just make sure you win the championship wearing it."
"Yes! I'll do my best!" Serena encouraged herself.
After offering a final word of thanks to Valerie, Bai Chen prepared to end the call.
But Valerie quickly stopped him.
"Mr. Bai, I have a request. Would you be willing to help me with something?"
"What is it?"
"For the Kirin-inspired collection, I plan to design both a men's and women's line. But I haven't found a suitable male model yet. Would you be willing to model for it?"
Serena glanced at Bai Chen.
She didn't know his physique, but just his face alone already surpassed every male model she'd ever seen.
He'll definitely refuse, she thought.
He already said he doesn't want to debut… what a shame.
But Bai Chen answered without hesitation.
"If there's a sales cut involved, I don't mind helping once."
Valerie was overjoyed.
She couldn't imagine anyone more suitable.
"Revenue sharing is absolutely possible!"
"Good. Send me the contract later."
Bai Chen had no intention of letting this consume his time.
But with island construction looming, he was short on funds.
If a small time investment could bring in large returns, he didn't mind "selling his looks."
"Then it's settled! I'll send the contract soon!"
The call ended.
Serena asked in disbelief,
"Mr. Bai… you're really going to be a model?"
"Money is money," Bai Chen replied calmly.
"I don't need to handle marketing—just wear the clothes."
"That's wonderful. I'm sure Miss Valerie's designs will sell incredibly well."
"I can't guarantee that," Bai Chen said wryly.
"That depends on the designs themselves."
"Models are important too," Serena said earnestly.
As they spoke, Clemont and Bonnie finally returned from Lumiose City.
In the distance, Ash came running over, holding a Pokémon Egg.
Clemont asked,
"Ash, where did you get that egg?"
"I found it in the woods where I trained with Mr. Bai!"
"What is it?" Bai Chen stepped forward—
But before he could look, the egg burst into brilliant light.
The light of hatching.
When it faded, the egg was gone, replaced by a small, pale-purple Pokémon in Ash's arms.
Clemont recognized it instantly.
"It's a Noibat egg."
Bai Chen nodded inwardly.
Ash's fourth partner… So even with my interference, he still found it.
And just as everyone's attention focused on Noibat—
Inside Indeedee's backpack, the ancient Valstrax egg let out a sharp crack.
Fletchinder, who was helping incubate it, immediately noticed.
The little dragon was about to hatch.
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed. Claim early access on Patreon: Patreon.com/kazama677
🔓 You hold the keys to bonus chapters:💬 10 reviews ignite 1 bonus chapter🔷 60 Power Stones summon another
🔥 Your power determines how fast the tale unfolds.