Steven Stone! The young master of Devon Corporation and the future hoenn champion!
Looking at the ordinary Stone in his hand, Jiang Han realized that he had just picked up the future hoenn champion!
tms like Protect and Dark Pulse were completely insignificant compared to the massive opportunity right in front of him!
The value of an opportunity to establish a connection with Steven Stone, or even become friends, was immeasurable.
The greatest reward of this mission might not be the compensation promised by Team Rockets at all.
Jiang Han made a decision in an instant.
He retreated silently into the shadows, his movements as light as a Sneasel in the night.
He quickly took off the mask that identified him as a member of Team Rockets and tucked it away carefully.
Then, he grabbed some dust from the ground and smeared it over his body and face without hesitation, making his relatively clean clothes look travel-worn.
He pulled a magnifying glass, usually used for inspecting items, out of his ring and hung it around his neck with an air of importance.
Finally, he adjusted his expression, hiding all the coldness and calculation of a Team Rockets Executive, and replaced it with the slightly simple and enthusiastic look of a Trainer.
Everything was ready.
Jiang Han took a deep breath, held up his flashlight, and walked toward Steven as if he had just happened to be passing by, his footsteps echoing in the empty cave.
"Thump... Thump... Thump..."
The tapping sound stopped.
Steven seemed to have heard the noise as well. He stopped what he was doing and looked warily toward the source of the light. The Beldum beside him also turned its body, its single red eye using Lock-On on Jiang Han.
"Uh... friend, are you looking for something?" Jiang Han spoke in a slightly curious and friendly tone.
Seeing Jiang Han covered in dust with a magnifying glass around his neck, looking like a fellow enthusiast, Steven lowered his guard slightly.
He wiped his face with some frustration, only to smear more dust on it. "Yeah, I accidentally lost a very important Stone just now."
Jiang Han chuckled inwardly; as expected.
He let out an "Oh" of feigned surprise and then fumbled around in his pocket.
"Look... is it this one?"
Jiang Han opened his palm, and the moon-shaped Stone revealed its peculiar silhouette under the flashlight's beam.
The moment he saw the Stone, Steven's eyes lit up so brightly that they almost outshone the flashlight.
"It's it! That's the one!"
He almost lunged forward, carefully taking the Stone from Jiang Han's hand as if it were some peerless treasure. He turned it over and over, his face filled with the pure joy of regaining something lost.
"Thank you so much! Truly, thank you so much!" Steven looked at Jiang Han excitedly, his tone sincere.
Jiang Han waved his hand and gave a hearty smile:
"It's nothing, just a small favor. Seeing you like this, I guess you really like Stones too?"
Like Stones too?
Steven keenly caught that keyword.
The excitement on his face instantly transformed into the fanaticism of finding a kindred spirit, and he grabbed Jiang Han's hand.
"Could it be... you're also a Stone enthusiast?" His voice trembled slightly with excitement.
Jiang Han perfectly acted out a bit of embarrassment at having his secret revealed and scratched his head.
"That's right. Although in other people's eyes, this might seem like neglecting one's proper duties... as a Trainer, my love for Stones hasn't diminished in the slightest."
These words were like an electric current that instantly struck Steven's heart.
Neglecting one's proper duties!
He had heard those four words so many times his ears were practically calloused!
His father, the President of Devon Corporation, always criticized him, saying he should either focus on being a Trainer and challenge the League or come home and inherit the family business instead of spending all day in these broken caves dealing with a bunch of Stones that couldn't talk.
No one around him could understand the passion he held for these creations that had been silent for hundreds of millions of years.
And this young man before him, whom he had met by chance, actually shared similar experiences and feelings!
At this moment, the way Steven looked at Jiang Han completely changed.
It was no longer looking at a stranger, but at a long-lost confidant!
He gripped Jiang Han's hand even tighter, the force so great that Jiang Han felt a bit of pain, but he kept a gentle smile on his face while frantically complaining in his mind.
This guy really changes the moment Stones are mentioned.
"My name is Steven! And you? What's your name?" Steven asked impatiently.
"Jiang Han."
"Good! Jiang Han!" Steven nodded heavily, his eyes sparkling. "I think we must exchange pokédex contact information! We'll definitely become friends who can talk about anything!"
Jiang Han naturally agreed readily.
The two of them took out their Pokédexes and added each other's contact information.
"Ding."
A crisp notification sound rang out, representing a bridge to the future peak of power in the Hoenn region that Jiang Han had easily built.
"Jiang Han, are you also here in Granite Cave to look for rare rocks?" Steven asked enthusiastically after putting away his pokédex, completely treating Jiang Han as one of his own.
"Sort of. I heard there are some unique rock formations here, so I wanted to try my luck."
Jiang Han followed his lead while pretending to casually glance at the Beldum beside him.
"Your pokémon is very special."
"Oh, you mean this one." Steven looked back at the quietly floating Beldum with a proud smile. "This is Beldum, my best partner. Don't let its appearance fool you; it's very strong."
Jiang Han nodded. "I can tell. It has a very strong presence."
Of course, he knew how strong Beldum was; it was a Pseudo-legendary Pokémon that would eventually evolve into Metagross.
To have such a pokémon as a starting partner, he truly was the Crown Prince of Devon.
"By the way, Jiang Han, since we're fellow enthusiasts, why don't I show you something good?" Steven smiled mysteriously and pulled Jiang Han deeper into the cave.
Jiang Han's heart stirred, and he didn't refuse.
He also happened to want to see what this future Champion was so obsessed with.
At the same time, he needed to stall for time to let the Team Rockets exploration squad finish their work and keep Steven away.
Steven led Jiang Han through many twists and turns to a more open cave.
Countless tiny, glittering crystals were embedded in the rock walls here. Under the light of the flashlight, the entire wall shone like a starry sky.
"Look!"
Steven pointed at the rock wall, his voice full of wonder.
"This is a Crystal vein I just discovered that I've never seen before! Their crystallization method and the energy reactions inside are just wonderful!"
Jiang Han looked in the direction he pointed; it was indeed beautiful.
But what he was thinking was: how much could this thing sell for? Would the Team Rockets Research Department be interested in this?
"It really is beautiful," Jiang Han praised sincerely.
"Right? Right!" Steven became even more excited upon receiving agreement. "I'm about to take some samples back for research. Do you want some too?"
With that, he handed over his small pickaxe.
Jiang Han: "..."
I'm a Team Rockets Executive who came here on a secret mission, and I'm being dragged by the future League Champion to dig into a wall?
Isn't this a bit too ridiculous?
He complained wildly in his mind, but still took the pickaxe and tapped on the rock wall a few times, pretending to work.
Jiang Han found that Steven's knowledge of Stones was indeed frighteningly vast; he spoke about everything from the composition of various ores to the characteristics of different geological eras with ease.
Meanwhile, Jiang Han, relying on his scattered memories from his previous life and his experiences as a member of Team Rockets, could occasionally throw out topics that interested him, such as Luminous Moss in certain special caves or minerals rumored to coexist with pokémon.
Their conversation became more and more congenial, and the way Steven looked at Jiang Han was almost like he was looking at a rare human-shaped fossil.
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