"Click~"
Lysandre directly opened the small briefcase in front of him and held it out toward Ash.
"Hmm?!"
The moment Ash saw the apology gift Lysandre had prepared, his eyes widened slightly in surprise.
Inside the briefcase were two large and small stones.
The larger one was about the size of a baby's fist. Inside it was a red-and-blue pattern resembling a genetic double helix intertwined with a double-bladed spiral shuriken. Its overall appearance was somewhat reminiscent of the large glass marbles children used to play with.
The other stone looked very similar to the larger "glass marble," except that it was considerably smaller. If the first one could be called a large glass marble, then this one was a small glass marble.
While the larger marble contained the red-and-blue genetic-helix and double-bladed spiral-shuriken pattern, the smaller one contained only a black, simplified design resembling an abstracted genetic helix and double-bladed spiral shuriken.
Ash was not unfamiliar with these two "glass marbles."
After all, he already had two similar ones in his possession.
They were the Mega Evolution items that allowed certain Pokémon to undergo Mega Evolution—the Key Stone and Mega Stones.
The Key Stone was an artificial item created through technology. It had a standardized design and could resonate with any compatible Mega Stone.
As for Mega Stones, however, modern science had yet to determine exactly how they were created. Even the official information from Ash's previous life had never provided a definitive origin.
Based on what was currently known, there were only two possibilities: they were naturally formed, or they were relics left behind by an ancient civilization.
The Key Stone Ash possessed looked just like the one in the briefcase. The Mega Stone, however, was clearly different.
Obviously, these two Mega Stones did not belong to the same Pokémon. They were Mega Stones corresponding to different Pokémon.
"System, scan and check the detailed information on this Mega Stone."
Ash knew which Pokémon could undergo Mega Evolution, but he did not know what the corresponding Mega Stone for every Pokémon looked like.
Fortunately, although his system was damaged and crude, it could still scan Pokémon and Trainers, as well as inspect the detailed information of certain items.
[Ding! Scan in progress. Please wait…]
[Item]: Mega Stone (Gyarados)?
[Attribute]: A stone containing an unknown power. It allows a Pokémon carrying the corresponding Mega Stone to undergo Mega Evolution.
As the system activated its scanning function, detailed information about the Mega Stone inside the briefcase quickly appeared before Ash's eyes.
"Gasp! It's actually a Gyaradosite!"
Seeing the information displayed by the system, Ash could not help feeling secretly astonished.
Lysandre had brought out an entire set of a Mega Stone and Key Stone as an apology gift, merely for Ash to observe, study, and collect data related to Pidgeot's Mega Evolution.
That alone had already been an extraordinarily generous gesture.
But now, Ash had discovered that the Mega Stone Lysandre had given him was actually a Gyaradosite.
How could he not be shocked?
One had to understand that Mega Stones were already extremely advanced, precious, and rare resources within the professional Pokémon world. They were not something that could simply be purchased with money.
After his Skill Shop began bringing in enormous daily profits, combined with the royalties from Ash's Feebas Beauty Guide and income from patent licensing fees, Ash's personal wealth had already surpassed one billion Poké Dollars.
Once that happened, he had begun using various channels online to search for and purchase Mega Stones.
Yet after more than half a year, he had not managed to buy even a single one.
The Pidgeotite in his possession had originally been a gift from his teacher, Giovanni, given to him as an apology after Team Rocket had attacked him.
But now, after Lysandre and Team Flare had provoked and offended him, Lysandre had actually sent him an entire set consisting of a Key Stone and Mega Stone as an apology.
This gift was simply too valuable.
Ash genuinely loved it.
He had absolutely no reason to refuse.
At present, the Pokémon under Ash's command were:
Pikachu, Greninja, Pidgeot, Fearow, Shiny Gyarados, Shiny Milotic, Venusaur, Shiny Fennekin, and the Beedrill Egg.
Among them, Pidgeot, Shiny Gyarados, Venusaur, and the Pokémon inside the Beedrill Egg all possessed the potential to undergo Mega Evolution.
Pidgeot already had a Mega Stone compatible with it and had mastered the power of Mega Evolution.
However, Shiny Gyarados, Venusaur, and the Pokémon in the Beedrill Egg had yet to obtain Mega Stones that matched them.
Since these Pokémon possessed such potential, then as their Trainer, Ash would undoubtedly do everything in his power in the future to help them obtain their corresponding Mega Stones, unlocking and unleashing this hidden potential.
Of course, Ash had never expected that he would be able to obtain Mega Stones so quickly.
Sometimes, the harder one pursued something, the further away it seemed.
But now that he had stopped desperately searching for Mega Stones and simply let things take their natural course, one had unexpectedly come knocking on his door.
"The Mega Stone was only obtained by our side recently as well, so we haven't yet identified exactly which Pokémon it belongs to."
Lysandre smiled as he observed Ash's reaction.
"However, I believe that someone as renowned and talented as you, Ash, will certainly be able to determine which Pokémon this Mega Stone belongs to in the future. I'm sure that, in your hands, this Mega Stone will shine brilliantly."
Seeing the excitement and delight in Ash's eyes as he stared at the Mega Stone in the briefcase, Lysandre's face also broke into a pleased smile.
Ash liked the gift.
More importantly, he did not reject it.
That meant the unpleasantness between the two sides had successfully been resolved.
"Thank you, Mr. Lysandre. I really like this gift."
Ash's smile became noticeably brighter.
At the same time, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.
Wait a minute…
Lysandre's ace Pokémon is supposedly a red Shiny Gyarados.
And according to the original anime storyline, his Shiny Gyarados even possessed the power of Mega Evolution.
Could it be that the Mega Stone Lysandre just gave me was originally meant for his own Gyarados?
If that's really the case… this is going to be interesting.
Ash could not help thinking this.
And it was not an unreasonable suspicion.
After all, Lysandre himself had just said that his side had only obtained this Mega Stone recently and had not yet identified exactly which Pokémon it belonged to.
Furthermore, just two days ago, when Ash's Pidgeot had demonstrated Mega Evolution, both Professor Sycamore and Lysandre had explicitly stated that Pidgeot was the first known native Kanto Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution.
If that was true…
Then this supposedly unidentified Mega Stone might have a much more interesting story behind it than Lysandre was letting on.