That evening, a paper caused quite a stir on the Researcher Forum.
Its title was "On how Onix evolves into Steelix."
A video had even been attached beneath the paper as evidence.
Although there was only one example, anyone with eyes could tell that Steelix had been confirmed as an evolution of Onix.
"Seriously impressive. Who exactly is this Severe Indecisiveness? He's discovered another new evolution."
"Exactly. I remember him publishing two new Eevee evolutions just a little while ago."
"The younger generation is something else. We're getting old."
Just then, Professor Oak suddenly left a comment below as well.
"What a brilliant idea, using the Link Cable's special magnetic field to stimulate Onix's evolution."
Professor Birch from the Hoenn Region chimed in too.
"It really is a brilliant idea. Perhaps many other Pokémon can evolve through this method as well."
"Isn't the League going to grant him researcher status?"
With the big names speaking up, the League staff could no longer sit idly by.
Soon, a new badge appeared beside Chen Shi's account: Junior Researcher.
Chen Shi did not care about it. He had no interest whatsoever in being a Junior Researcher.
Researchers at that level were hardly useful. They generally just assisted Senior Researchers or Top Researchers.
Given the quality of Chen Shi's three papers, though, he could easily have qualified as an Intermediate Researcher.
But for someone like him, whose real name and identity were unknown, it was already generous of the League to make him a Junior Researcher.
Sinnoh, the Historical Research Institute.
Professor Carolina gazed at the paper before her, full of admiration.
"This Severe Indecisiveness really is a genius. To think he even came up with this."
"I wonder what sort of person he is. Why doesn't he use his real name?"
Cynthia happened to be bringing her grandmother a meal and overheard those words.
Puzzled, she asked, "Grandma, what are you talking about now?"
"What do you mean, not using his real name?"
Professor Carolina turned around, then pointed at the paper on her computer.
"This Severe Indecisiveness, of course. He's published another paper, this time about Steelix."
"And the evolution method is incredibly unusual. He actually thought of using the special magnetic field generated during transfer to trigger evolution."
"He really is an extraordinary genius."
Cynthia's pretty face had already darkened considerably. Of course she knew who Severe Indecisiveness was.
Her own Glaceon had evolved with his help, after all.
And wasn't that username taking a jab at her?
Cynthia snorted inwardly. You'd better not let me catch you.
"What's wrong, Nana?"
Seeing her granddaughter's sour expression, Professor Carolina asked with concern.
Cynthia hesitated, then decided to tell her grandmother. She was bound to find out eventually anyway.
With a dark expression, Cynthia said, "It's Chen Shi."
Professor Carolina froze, then realization dawned on her.
No wonder the girl happened to have a Glaceon, while that boy had a Leafeon.
It certainly added up.
But...
Something seemed to occur to Professor Carolina. If this person was little Shi, then it was perfectly clear who Severe Indecisiveness referred to.
Her granddaughter was wonderful in every way, except for her terrible indecisiveness.
At that thought, Professor Carolina gave Cynthia a teasing look.
"Well, Nana, you've really become famous now."
"I imagine all the leading professors remember that name by now."
Cynthia's ears reddened. She wanted nothing more than to charge straight over to Hoenn and stab Chen Shi.
What a stupid name to pick.
At the farm in Verdanturf Town, Chen Shi suddenly sneezed.
"Who the hell's bad-mouthing me?!"
Pheobe, who was counting money nearby, paused. "Big brother Chen Shi, are you sure you haven't caught a cold?"
The corner of Chen Shi's mouth twitched. "What cold?" he snapped. "I'm perfectly healthy!"
"Toge~"
Togetic suddenly flew over and pointed a little hand at the refrigerator.
She had finished her training for the day. Now it was time to enjoy some ice cream.
Once her trainer agreed, Togetic flew to the refrigerator herself, expertly opened it, and took out an ice cream bar.
"Toge~"
Togetic settled on the sofa and happily savored her treat.
Chen Shi shook his head, wondering how Swampert and Leafeon were doing.
They had come back a few days ago to get a large supply of food from him, but he had heard nothing from them since.
Chen Shi was not worried about their safety. He simply missed them a little.
Since he had caught them, Leafeon and Swampert had never been away from him for this long.
Dreepy was easy enough to find. Chen Shi had seen him just today, though he was still level 56, with no change.
Chen Shi figured Dreepy had been leveling up too quickly, so Salamence was holding him back.
Sometimes, leveling up too quickly was not a good thing. Only by taking one solid step at a time could you go far.
There was also the issue of team composition. Other people had Sandstorm Teams or Rain Teams, while Chen Shi had a whatever-goes team.
That was because Chen Shi never considered those things when catching Pokémon. If they clicked, he caught them; if not, he let it go.
Of course, they also needed talent.
His current lineup was not exactly bad, but getting them to coordinate with one another would be difficult.
If his entire team fought together in the wild, Chen Shi would be at a serious disadvantage.
In an official match, however, he would not be so easy to counter.
Also, after hearing what Pheobe's grandfather had said last time, Chen Shi planned to publish a few more papers to expand his influence and raise his profile.
That way, once he revealed the Fairy type and Mega Evolution, he might really be able to rise straight to the rank of Doctor.
The benefits that would bring Chen Shi were unimaginable.
Ever since Pheobe's grandfather had given him one of Giratina's Outrage scales, Chen Shi had started considering the possibilities.
If even the two elders on Mt. Pyre could produce resources like that, then an organization as vast as the League surely had plenty of legendary-grade resources.
Chen Shi needed enough bargaining chips to obtain those things from the League.
Mega Evolution and the Fairy type were his two biggest cards.
Leafeon and Sylveon
Before you continue