Walking down the corridor outside the third-floor lounge, Chen Shi felt a little reflective.
All the world's bustle was driven by profit. That was an eternal truth.
In this tangled, complicated world, people came and went, rushing about in pursuit of gain.
Hadn't this very moment been his reason for collecting Mega Stones in the first place, then revealing them at the Pokémon World Championships?
Yet now that it was all about to happen, he couldn't shake the feeling that none of it was real.
Of the three conditions Professor Oak had proposed, the professorship was hard to say, but the first two would most likely go through.
But had Mega Evolution brought him all of this?
No, it hadn't!
Professor Oak had brought it to him. His grandparents had brought it to him.
Without them, Mega Evolution would have brought him nothing but disaster.
Without their support behind the scenes, would those important figures in the League have sat down with him calmly to negotiate terms?
Of course not!
He wouldn't even have made it past Suzuki Jingming.
Chen Shi sighed softly, his fingers unconsciously brushing over the Poké Balls at his waist.
"Thank goodness I have you all!"
The seven Poké Balls trembled slightly, as though responding to him.
The League actually had a rule that Trainers could only carry six Pokémon. If they exceeded that number, the next Pokémon they caught would be teleported away.
But he didn't want to leave any of them at home, so he used an unregistered black-market ball for Charizard. That let him carry seven Pokémon at once.
Just then, a voice suddenly came from behind him.
"Old Chen, what are you doing out here?"
"Why aren't you going in?"
Chen Shi turned to see Steven stepping out of the elevator, looking