Hearing that Steven was willing to pay attention to collecting similar rare stones, Lionel instantly felt relieved and joyful.
The reason he suggested it indirectly was to get Steven to collect more Mega Stones—if he was lucky enough, he might even find a Mega Stone for Metagross.
By then, Steven might even research and discover Mega Evolution, and Lionel would have indirectly repaid Steven's kindness for giving him the Fossil Pokémon.
In fact, the thought of researching Mega Evolution himself had crossed Lionel's mind, but as soon as the idea surfaced, he immediately suppressed it without a moment's hesitation.
Not only did he currently lack a Pokémon capable of Mega Evolving, but he couldn't even confirm the requirements for using a Mega Stone—
In the games of his previous life, it required pairing with a "Mega Key Stone" to trigger, but whether this world followed the same rules was unknown, making blind attempts pointless.
What made Lionel even more wary was the risk of information leakage; the mere mention of "Mega Evolution," if spread, would be enough to attract countless powers.
Given Lionel's current strength, he couldn't withstand the scrutiny and competition from various factions. A slight misstep could lead to the loss of his secret, and potentially bring huge trouble upon himself and his Pokémon.
After much consideration, Lionel preferred to remind Steven about Mega Evolution indirectly when the time came.
Steven is not only the former Hoenn Champion with peak strength, but he also has the powerful Devon Corporation backing him. Even if he truly uncovers the secrets of Mega Evolution, he has the capacity to withstand the subsequent pressure from various parties and doesn't need to worry about being coerced by other powers.
More crucially, when Mega Evolution officially appears, Lionel will be the one who first guided Steven to collect Mega Stones.
As the guide to this "opportunity," he wouldn't have to bear the research risks and could naturally learn the core information about Mega Evolution from Steven;
He might even have the chance to prioritize obtaining Mega Stones and accompanying items suitable for his future Pokémon, which is far safer than taking the lead himself.
Inside the Collection Room, Steven walked and smiled while introducing Lionel to the mineral collection he had accumulated over the years, his words full of passion for minerals.
After the two turned a corner side by side, the scene before them instantly changed—
A row of custom glass display cases suddenly appeared. Unlike the various minerals displayed outside, these glass cases neatly showcased six Pokémon Fossils of different appearances.
Lionel's gaze swept over the glass display cases, and he was instantly drawn to the six "treasures" on the shelves—
Steven stood sideways beside the glass display cases, pointing at the fossils on the shelves, and patiently introduced them to Lionel one by one:
"The two yellowish-brown ones on the left: the one with the spiral shell imprint can be revived into Omanyte, and the semi-oval shell corresponds to Kabuto;
And these two lighter-colored fossils next to them: the tentacle imprint is Lileep, and the scorpion outline is Anorith. These are the first four types of Fossil Pokémon discovered.
Oh, right, I originally had a Mysterious Amber in my collection, which can revive Aerodactyl. Last year, while mining at Cinnabar Volcano in Kanto, I ran into Elite Lance.
He kept pestering me and asking about Aerodactyl, constantly mumbling that Aerodactyl was especially compatible with him, Lance, the Dragon Elite. He distracted me so much I couldn't concentrate on mining, so I finally had to give the Mysterious Amber to him."
When mentioning Elite Lance, a trace of helplessness appeared on Steven's face, clearly indicating that Elite Lance had pestered him severely back then.
Lionel understood. Given that Aerodactyl, a Flying-type Pokémon, had the character for "dragon" in its name, how could Lance let it go once he knew about it? After all, the nickname "Dodo, the Dragon Elite" wasn't given for nothing.
After finishing the story about Elite Lance, Steven turned back to the Pokémon Fossils in the glass case. He pointed to the two lightest-colored fossils on the far end—
One fossil had the mark of a small feather shape, with clearly discernible patterns, while the other was imprinted with a wide arc, showing the outline of a large, somewhat imposing mouth.
"I accidentally discovered these two fossils while excavating ruins in other regions. There are currently no precedents for their revival, so I don't know which Pokémon they will become."
After explaining the origins of these two unique fossils to Lionel, Steven smiled and looked at Lionel, his tone casual:
"Now it's up to you to choose. Will you pick a fossil that I've already introduced and whose revived Pokémon is clearly known, or do you want to try these two unknown fossils of special origin whose revived species is currently unclear?"
Almost simultaneously with Steven's introduction, the Panel in front of Lionel lit up, clearly displaying the information for these two fossils:
Plume Fossil — (Archen)
Jaw Fossil — (Tyrunt)
If the Mysterious Amber that could revive Aerodactyl had been an option, Lionel would have had to consider it more carefully. But since he could only choose from these six Fossil Pokémon, his answer was instantly clear: his sole target was the Jaw Fossil that could revive Tyrunt.
You must know that Tyrunt is a Dragon-type Fossil Pokémon, and as far as he knew, it was the only Pokémon with the dual attributes of Dragon and Rock.
Such a special Pokémon, such a rare existence—not choosing it would be a missed opportunity.
Thinking of this, Lionel felt a surge of curiosity: if Elite Lance knew about Tyrunt's attributes and had to choose between Aerodactyl and Tyrunt, which Pokémon would he pick?
Suppressing these thoughts, Lionel pointed to the Jaw Fossil and said to Steven:
"I'll choose the fossil with the large mouth imprint. Compared to the familiar ones, I prefer a bit of unknown surprise!"
Lionel's finger rested firmly on the fossil imprinted with the wide arc and the imposing large mouth outline, his tone conveying unmistakable certainty.
Steven followed the direction of his finger, a flash of surprise in his eyes, which quickly turned into a knowing smile:
"Oh? Choosing this fossil? That's more decisive than I expected."
He paused, then added:
"Are you sure? You need to think carefully. This fossil has no revival record. No one can be certain what form they will take after revival, and it might even... not meet your expectations."
"I'm sure," Lionel replied firmly, his gaze fixed on the Jaw Fossil, his eyes shimmering with anticipation.
"Besides, the unknown is where the surprise is. I trust my 'Instincts'."
Seeing this, Steven smiled, opened the glass case, and handed the fossil to Lionel:
"Here you go. This is officially yours now. Next, let's head to the Revival Laboratory and have the professional research team begin the revival process."