Seeing Jigglypuff looking increasingly uncomfortable, Brock said urgently, "Let's hurry downstairs and have Nurse Joy take a look!"
Xia You nodded. Indeed, this was beyond what he could handle. It was best to leave it to the expert!
Accompanied by the others, Xia You ran downstairs with Jigglypuff in his arms and reached the Pokémon Center's front desk.
Misty rang the bell on the desk. Before long, Nurse Joy came out from the back, yawning.
Before Xia You could explain, Nurse Joy had already noticed something wrong with Jigglypuff. Her expression turned serious, her drowsiness vanished, and she hurried over.
"What happened to it?"
Misty spoke first, telling Nurse Joy everything that had happened. After listening, Nurse Joy nodded in understanding, called out her Pokémon assistant, and had Jigglypuff placed on a stretcher and taken into the emergency room.
The red light indicating treatment was in progress immediately lit up outside the emergency room.
Only then did the group truly relax and sit down on the benches on either side.
Looking at Xia You, Ash asked curiously, "Xia You, why did you have a rock in your backpack?"
Xia You gave a wry smile. "That wasn't an ordinary rock. It was an Everstone."
An Everstone?
"I know!" Max pushed up his glasses. "Unlike all the different Evolution stones, the book says that, just as its name suggests, a Pokémon holding an Everstone can't evolve and will stay in its current form!"
"Huh?" Ash froze. "Does that mean now that Jigglypuff's swallowed an Everstone, it won't be able to evolve for the rest of its life?"
"That's not such a big deal, is it?" Misty didn't seem concerned. "Doesn't your Pikachu keep refusing to evolve into Raichu? Besides, I think Jigglypuff is cuter as it is now than Wigglytuff!"
While they