Cynthia nodded, then turned around and opened a drawer in a nearby cabinet, taking out several golden candy wrappers and placing them in front of Caitlin.
The effect of the Rare Candy had been so astounding at the time that she couldn't bear to throw away even these wrappers.
Actually, under normal circumstances, powerful Ghost-type Pokémon like Spiritomb don't eat or need to consume substantial food.
They mostly absorb energy directly from special items to grow. Compared to other Pokémon, their growth is much more difficult.
But the moment Spiritomb discovered this candy, it immediately swallowed it without hesitation, leaving only these few wrappers behind.
This showed just how attractive the candy was to Spiritomb.
When Caitlin took the wrappers from Cynthia's hands, she immediately felt the special power remaining on the paper.
For a moment, she stood there with an unprecedented expression on her face, as if she didn't know what to say.
After all, as a Champion trainer, hearing about such things was still somewhat difficult to understand and accept.
A moment later, she slightly raised her hand, and the wrappers returned to Cynthia surrounded by pale blue light.
"Let's say everything you've told me is true, Sister Cynthia."
"If that's the case... why didn't you share such a big thing with me when you were playing the game?"
Cynthia paused upon hearing this, then shook her head.
"Actually, when I first encountered this game, it was only because Rayquaza appeared in the game that I became curious about the game creator's identity."
"But when I discovered that this game could actually provide items to reality that could enhance Pokémon strength, I immediately shared this news in the group chat. Didn't you see it?"
Upon hearing this, Caitlin's face immediately showed a playful expression, and she frowned.
"You mean that rabble's group chat?"
Seeing her reaction, Cynthia suddenly remembered something: given Caitlin's personality, even with most Elite Four members and Champions, she might not necessarily be willing to associate with them.
So naturally, Caitlin wasn't in that group chat that gathered Elite Four members and Champions from various regions, and had no idea she had mentioned such things.
To be honest, this was completely her own oversight...
Cynthia was about to say something when Caitlin suddenly closed her eyes, as if sensing something, then looked directly toward the study.
"I want to see what this game you're talking about is really about."
"Wait..."
Cynthia had already realized what she was about to do and had just begun to speak when Caitlin's figure disappeared from where she stood - clearly, she had used Teleport to enter the study.
The next moment, the sound of something heavy hitting the ground came with a "thud" from the study.
This was followed by Cynthia's completion of her sentence:
"The study... isn't fixed yet."
...
Two minutes later, Caitlin emerged covered in dust, shaking her head. Deep blue light gathered and manifested around her body, cleaning her dust-covered, disheveled clothes completely.
But her face was still quite dark.
Who could have expected there to be a hole bigger than the room itself in Cynthia's study...
She hadn't even had time to react before falling straight down to the bottom.
But now there were definitely more important matters at hand.
"This is that game. You can try it out."
Caitlin's gaze fell on the computer screen, on the icon labeled "Pokémon Emerald," and she used psychic powers to control the mouse and click on it.
Meanwhile, standing beside her, Cynthia suddenly thought of another issue:
after receiving the game's reward three days ago, she had immediately shared news about this game in the Elite Four and Champion group chat.
Later, partly due to being busy with completing the game, and partly because problems arose with the archaeological team, plus she had been unconscious for a day, she hadn't checked the group chat situation in a long time.
Just mentioning this to Caitlin reminded her of this matter.
So how many people in the group believed what she had said, and how many had already started playing this game?
With these thoughts, she took out her phone and entered the group chat she hadn't opened in a long time.
The situation inside was completely beyond her expectations.
Cloyster: Where are you all at? I've already cleared the Fighting-type gym
Dragon Supreme: I'm third on the leaderboard now, about to clear the Flying gym, haha!
Training Hard in the Mountains: Honestly, this game makes me not want to go back to training in the mountains. Why is there no internet in the mountains?
This Ninja Isn't Too Cool: (Picture) Has anyone seen this Pokémon?
...
Some of the Elite Four members and Champions that Cynthia knew were already sharing things about "Pokémon Emerald" in the group, even gameplay screenshots.
Obviously, not every Elite Four member and Champion in the group chat had started playing this game.
A small portion who weren't interested in games themselves, and some people Cynthia wasn't familiar with, hadn't participated.
Even with Cynthia's status and familiarity with everyone, her words would undoubtedly be believed to some extent.
Even though what she said sounded so bizarre, some people still chose to play this game.
And once they played, they first experienced the unique aspects of this game, naturally leading to the scene just witnessed.
But regarding the rewards Cynthia had mentioned, everyone didn't seem to take it seriously.
Seeing this situation, Cynthia felt somewhat conflicted.
After discovering she had obtained the Mega Evolution stones, Cynthia's first thought was to immediately share with everyone in the group that "the game can provide this level of rewards to enhance Pokémon strength."
But now she suddenly realized that even with her status, if she didn't demonstrate that evolutionary power in front of everyone, probably no one would believe such an outlandish thing.
And now the problem had become even bigger.
If the previous Rare Candy had only shocked her, then the appearance of Mega Stones and Mega Evolution would cause a sensation throughout society, even completely changing the world and Pokémon League structure!
This was no longer just about herself, or even just about these Elite Four members and Champions... but about the entire world!
While Cynthia was deep in thought, Caitlin beside her moved quickly, having already opened "Pokémon Emerald" and played for a while, then turned to nod at Cynthia.
"Although I don't usually play games much, this game's graphics seem pretty good, but is it really as magical as you say?"
"Hey, I'm asking, you're not worried about the consequences and impact this game will have next, are you?"
Having spent so much time with Cynthia, Caitlin could naturally see at a glance what she was thinking. Cynthia nodded, giving silent confirmation.
But the next moment, Caitlin suddenly let out a derisive laugh.
"After all these years, Sister Cynthia, you're still the same, always considering others' affairs more important than your own."
"Let me ask you, since no matter what you do, when this game's true nature appears before everyone, it will definitely change the world's structure, and this point cannot be changed."
She pointed at the game screen.
"If that's the case, then what you need to do is maintain your advantageous position as much as possible before this game is revealed to everyone.
Isn't that right?"
"Don't forget, we're not the only ones who can play this game."
Her voice suddenly turned cold, and Cynthia seemed to be awakened by a heavy blow, suddenly coming to her senses.
That's right, if this game's rewards could allow every trainer's strength to improve by leaps and bounds, then the most crucial point wasn't the changes this game would bring to the world structure, but those hidden in the darkness.
If they obtained rewards from this game and greatly enhanced their strength, what would happen next?
Her gaze immediately became grave, her mind became incredibly clear, and she understood what she needed to do next.
Just as Caitlin had said, using this game to enhance her own strength as much as possible was more important than any other consideration.
...
Seeing Cynthia suddenly react, Caitlin chuckled again, stood up from the computer desk, and gave her the seat.
"Since you've figured it out, then do your best. I'm heading back first."
"Oh, one more thing." She pointed to the big hole in the floor nearby. "Remember to fix this thing. Don't forget this is my house."
After speaking, accompanied by a flash of light and shadow, Caitlin's figure disappeared directly into thin air, vanishing without a trace.
Only the sound of Cynthia's fingers tapping the mouse and keyboard echoed softly in the room.
She began her conquest of Emerald once again, and this time... it was truly with full effort!
...
However, what Cynthia didn't know was that at the same time, thousands of miles away in the Kanto region, beside a tranquil, clear blue lake, stood a wooden villa cottage.
Inside the cottage, a youth wearing a Poké Ball cap with short black hair stood before a wooden table, handing a bowl of prepared Pokémon food to his Pokémon beside him.
It was a Pokémon with a robust, strong body and a blazing flame on its tail, emanating a powerful aura and pressure.
This was clearly a Charizard.
Moreover, with such presence, it was on par with even Cynthia's Garchomp and Spiritomb after consuming the Rare Candy.
If someone were standing in the wooden house at this moment, they would naturally recognize this youth's identity - he was the legendary Kanto region trainer, the world's youngest official Champion, Red!
From the age of 10 when he began his journey, by 16 he had directly become Champion of the entire Kanto region - a brilliant, irreplaceable chapter in trainer history.
At this moment, he was taking his vacation beside a secluded lake in the Kanto region.
"It's been quite busy lately. Thanks for all your hard work, buddy."
Red said, patting his Charizard beside him. This was clearly his starter Pokémon and the strongest ace of his team.
Charizard didn't make a sound upon hearing this, but nodded, quickly finished the food in front of him, then quietly stood up and flew out of the cottage.
Red watched his partner's retreating figure and sighed softly. He naturally knew his partner was going to train again. Even during vacation time, Charizard never slacked off.
This certainly wasn't a bad thing, but for Red it wasn't entirely positive either.
Because his Charizard had long since reached the top Champion tier, and despite years of training and constantly raising its standards, its strength had shown no significant progress.
Initially, Charizard's training at least had some effect - it could still refine the energy within its body and fully master some less familiar moves.
But as time passed, such training seemed increasingly meaningless, only able to maintain Charizard's current state. But such gains obviously didn't match such effort.
Red saw all of this, but honestly, even as someone called a legendary trainer by the world, he had no solution.
He had tried using resources and many other methods, all failing to achieve a breakthrough to bring it to a higher level... but all had failed without exception.
It seemed that the legendary realm above top Champion level was an insurmountable chasm difficult for ordinary people to touch or reach, a level that mortals and ordinary Pokémon could never attain.
Thinking of this, Red shook his head slightly.
Even recognizing the enormous difficulties, since his partner kept working hard to break through to a new level, he as a trainer naturally had no reason to give up either.
With this thought, he casually broke off a piece of bread and put it in his mouth, leaned back in his reclining chair, took out his laptop and placed it in front of him, continuing today's research.
Previously, Red wasn't actually used to going online.
Playing battle simulations online... was just one of his hobbies, a substitute for when he couldn't engage in real battles.
But later he heard from others that the knowledge on the internet was quite extensive, and he might be able to find some methods to solve problems, even things about the legendary realm.
However, Red's recent discoveries online had indeed disappointed him somewhat.
All those things about the legendary realm really were just rumors and legends, providing no substantial help to him.
Some training methods and content posted by people would make him want to laugh just by looking at them.
So Red today didn't hold much hope either. He didn't think he could find anything good online.
He was almost ready to give up on this approach.
But just then, the content of a message entered his view and caught his attention.
"...Hmm?"
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