Chapter 33

“Stone?”

Professor Oak quickly received a reply from Professor Elm, who suggested that this second-time question should be handed over to Professor Sursol of the Hoenn region.

But Professor Oak was not familiar with Professor Sursol, and Professor Elm was his master, so he naturally turned to Professor Elm first.

After listening to Professor Oak’s recount, Professor Elm also became deeply interested in the item known as the “Evolutionary Stone.”

“There are stones like this? They grant defense to non-evolving Pokémon, bear the name ‘evolution’ yet lack the effect of an Evolution Stone—hmm, this is a completely new type of rock never before discovered!”

“Perhaps it’s a meteorite from outer space. Indeed, we should inform the experts in Hoenn. I’ll also contact my old friend Professor Rowan in Sinnoh, since Pokémon evolution is his primary research focus—he’ll surely find this stone fascinating.”

“By the way, does Ash have any more Evolutionary Stones?”

Professor Oak replied quickly: “No, it seems there aren’t any left. You want to take it for research, right? But according to him, he only bought one, and as for the craftsman who sold it to him… I don’t know.”

“The craftsman apparently came from a very distant place.”

Professor Elm: “I see. An unexplored region and remote wilderness? Such places still hold many secrets—finding unfamiliar magical items is only natural. If we could contact that craftsman… no, better wait until I’ve spoken with them first.”

“Different regions have different terrains, material types, and Pokémon appearances and populations. Undiscovered new things… truly exhilarating!”

Hoenn Region, Leafy Town.

This was a small agricultural town located in the northwestern part of Hoenn, very close to Mount Chimney, so volcanic ash frequently drifted here, causing the local plants to grow exceptionally lush.

Professor Sursol, a well-known professor among researchers for his studies on meteorites and rocks, lived in Leafy Town, as it was near both Mount Chimney and Meteor Falls, making it convenient for meteorite excavation. Occasionally, Professor Sursol would travel to the island city of Slateport in the eastern seas to conduct further meteorite research at the Space Center.

And of course, since Professor Sursol loved studying meteorites and digging for rocks, he naturally had a strange friend who also loved stones.

Professor Sursol looked like a field geologist, wearing an explorer’s work suit, glasses, tall and slender, with sharp, bright eyes.

“Evolutionary Stone? I’ve never heard of such a stone! Where was it excavated?”

Professor Sursol was stunned by the message from Professor Elm—Professor Elm was a research authority in the Pokémon world, and even he didn’t know or have heard of this stone!

A passion for studying this new rock began to surge within Professor Sursol!

Indeed, this unheard-of stone might very well be a new type of meteorite!

But when he learned the stone’s origin was unknown, sold by a distant craftsman to a Gym Leader in the Hoenn region, Professor Sursol’s enthusiasm instantly cooled by half.

A distant craftsman… if that’s how it’s put, then getting there now would be troublesome.

Perhaps it’s a place as far as Kalos or Galar, but how did their logistics reach Hoenn?

It must’ve been a Unova cargo plane!

After hearing Professor Elm’s brief explanation, Professor Sursol felt an itch in his chest. Though his research had nothing to do with evolution, Egg Groups, or weak Pokémon, precious stones and why they possessed such properties were the very essence of his studies!

Just like the various type-specific Evolution Stones that trigger Pokémon evolution!

New Evolution Stones were still being discovered one after another.

Although Professor Sursol himself couldn’t travel to the distant region—he still had unanalyzed meteorites in hand—he thought of one person, someone absolutely trustworthy!

And that person was right here!

“.Doo. Doo.” Professor Sursol dialed a number. After a brief wait, a deep, youthful male voice came through.

“Hello… Professor Sursol? This is Wallace. What’s up?”

“It’s like this,” Professor Sursol passed along the chain of messages to Wallace.

Though this “I don’t know”—“ask an acquaintance”—“chain forwarding” was amusing, if the stone’s uniqueness were confirmed, it would be a groundbreaking milestone discovery for the research community!

After all, if a stone that boosts Defense exists, might stones that boost Attack, Speed, or HP appear next?

Its origin, formation process, geological conditions, environment, and even if it came from outer space—touching on his primary expertise in astronomy and meteorite science—all these were worthy of study!

“You said… what?”

Wallace on the other end sounded equally incredulous.

He had never heard of such a strange, precious gem!

As the most famous and wealthiest stone collector, Wallace’s action level was instantly maxed out!

“Professor Sursol, I can’t explain this over the phone—I’m riding Metagross to Leafy Town right now. Don’t leave! Wait for me!”

——————

Wallace, full name Wallace Zinnia. He was the Hoenn Champion, a well-known wealthy heir, the young master of the prominent corporation Devon Corporation, and also a famous gem collector.

Although his family’s company was located in Carnation City on the western side of the Hoenn continent, he himself resided in the island city of Slateport in the eastern seas.

After contacting Wallace, Professor Sursol resumed his discussion with Professor Elm, and Professor Oak joined the conversation group.

Their discussion was conducted via video call.

Although called a video call, the device was in fact a special multi-functional machine, with video calling merely one ordinary feature. Even in research institutes, these video calls could teleport Pokémon remotely at any time.

Professor Elm’s image appeared on the screen: classic red shirt, white lab coat, gray hair.

“About that stone…” Professor Oak spoke: “I’ve asked the local Gym Leader Ash, and learned the name of the craftsman’s shop that sold the stone.”

“This craftsman seems to have some connection with Mr. Iron. He recently returned from Sinnoh to Hoenn… no, not exactly to Hoenn—he appears to be somewhere in the northern mountain range of Hoenn, as you said, a very remote location, but there seems to be internet there.”

"Steel!" Dr. Oak exclaimed in surprise, but then he voiced his confusion: "That doesn’t make sense! Steel is a craftsman skilled at forging Poké Balls, not at working with stones."

As the pioneer of Pokémon research and an authority in the field, Professor Oak knew and was friends with many prominent figures, and Mr. Iron was one of them.

Professor Kukui adjusted his glasses: “Yes, apparently just an ordinary acquaintance. Apen was a client referred by Mr. Iron, but Mr. Iron didn’t mention much about that craftsman—seemed uninterested, or perhaps thought…”

“That he’d definitely produce something worthy, right?” Professor Oak murmured over the video call. “Does Mr. Iron have great confidence in him?”

“Hmm, then what’s the name of that shop?”

Professor Kukui replied immediately: “Traveler’s Workshop.”

“Traveler’s Workshop? The name isn’t striking—I expected something more flamboyant,” Dr. Solans muttered, then opened a webpage on his computer to search.

“Found it—this one. But there’s nothing here about Evolution Stones.”

Dr. Solans flipped through several pages, then began scratching his head:

“Wait, look at the descriptions of the items in this shop!”

Power Band, Power Headband, Black Band, Cleanse Tag, Curse Tag.

“Ohhh~ Some rare items here!”

Professor Oak, watching over the video call, stroked his chin as he examined the shop’s goods—these unusual items immediately caught his attention.

Besides these, the shop also carried Power Band, Shell Bell, and Fire Stone—rare items all.

“Power Band? I’ve never seen anything like this—looks just like a martial artist’s arm or shoulder band!”

“But Black Band, Cleanse Tag, and Curse Tag are all rare and valuable items!”

Cleanse Tag and Curse Tag are rare treasures—special talismans crafted by mediums, prayer masters, shamans, gravekeepers, and psychics.

In places with many Ghost-type Pokémon, or haunted locations, or areas teeming with weak Pokémon, wearing a Cleanse Tag easily avoids them.

A similar item to this talisman is the Sinnoh Cleanse Incense, made from special herbs that produce an effect nearly identical to the Cleanse Tag—and its appearance is tied to a Pokémon called Chimecho.

In Hoenn, Chimecho is considered a “final form” Pokémon, yet in the distant Sinnoh region, a degraded form of Chimecho—Chingling—was discovered. The key reason for this difference is that when Chimecho breeds while holding Cleanse Incense, its offspring will not be Chimecho but Chingling.

As for the Black Band—it’s just an ordinary martial artist’s belt—but the shop’s listing explicitly states it boosts Fighting-type move power. Yet… why is it red if it’s called Black Band?

Looks like scrap material from the Power Band!

“It says this talisman can remove any single status condition at once—but is destroyed after use.”

“The Curse Tag can inflict a curse—no surprise there.”

“The Power Band lets a Pokémon survive a single hit—even against disadvantageous types, it can still fight back.”

“These special effects seem different from similar items I’ve encountered before.”

“Could this craftsman be a powerful medium? I also found a material called ‘Worn Cloth’ behind his shop. Though the photo looks like ordinary rags, even I can sense something ominous about them—could this be the ‘Spirit World Cloth’ used for evolution?”

The three professors discussed their findings, and Professor Kukui suggested: “I’ll buy some, then give them to someone with the right experience for research and testing!”

(End of Chapter)