Pokémon Detective Case Files.

The usually composed Fire Elite Four member, Carlos, now showed a rare look of embarrassment, turning his face away as he adjusted his sunglasses: "Well... seeing so many densely packed parasitic vines, anyone would instinctively choose to deal with them all at once using an element that is weakest against them..."

"All I had to do was reconnect the corresponding ports; there was absolutely no need to send out a Pokémon!"

Despite exuding a professional aura, Feng Lu unexpectedly managed to overpower King Pachira in terms of presence.

News anchors who are responsible for appearing on television certainly don't need to personally handle the debugging of broadcasting equipment. In fact, even looking at the television media throughout the Carlos region, there are very few professionals who can correctly perform such operations.

However, Miss Pachela seemed to place great importance on the professionalism of her work. Judging from the way she was biting her lower lip right now, she'll probably be secretly brushing up on her technical knowledge when she gets back…

Seeing that the talks were about to veer off in an odd direction, Hugo decisively clapped his hands to interrupt—the crisp applause echoed under the signal tower.

“Now that the device has been repaired, let’s put the specific procedures on hold for now.” He skillfully steered the conversation. “Miss Karuni, how’s your progress?”

"Gardevoir has successfully established a mental link with Agaric."

Champion Carlos nodded gracefully, his calm voice instantly calming the slightly agitated atmosphere.

"As expected, Aurora's consciousness exists in an extremely exaggerated form of fragmentation. According to the mental information shared by Gardevoir, even conservatively estimated, there are at least 700,000 individual consciousnesses within this Pokémon. My partner was already exhausted from just briefly communicating with all of them at the same time."

"Seven hundred thousand...more than seven hundred thousand?"

Upon hearing the number Miss Karuni mentioned, Hugo's brow relaxed.

This unusual reaction did not escape Yueju's notice. A glint of shrewdness flashed in the Gambler King's eyes: "Is there anything strange about this quantity?"

The detective nodded: "Akroma and I described the number of consciousnesses as 'approximately one million,' and I think even a conservative estimate would be over nine hundred thousand. A researcher like him wouldn't exaggerate data in a pointless way."

"That's a difference of a full 20%." Champion Daigo rested his index finger on his chin, looking thoughtful. "Could this be a trap to deliberately mislead us?"

“Possibly, but it’s pointless,” Karuni replied.

"Gardevoir's exhaustion is solely due to the excessive number of consciousnesses communicating simultaneously. In fact, even considering all the individual consciousnesses together, Agaric's personality is very gentle and kind, making it very easy to communicate with. Therefore, even if Gardevoir miscalculated the size of that child's consciousness, those errors will not cause us any harm."

“Hmm… I think I might have some clues about the missing 20% ​​of consciousness.” Hugo suddenly spoke up at this moment, and continued, “The data that Akroma collected is not wrong, but it is outdated. In the two years since he left Team Lava, Ayam lost a part of its split consciousness, which is actually a good thing for the plan we are about to carry out.”

"You mean those spores that were released?" The news anchor keenly sensed the detective's implication.

"Oh dear, the spores of the mushroom can trigger strange dreams and establish connections with trainers thousands of miles away. It would be strange if there were no consciousness inside them."

Hugo raised a finger at King Pachira—

"The Emerald Slate's effect is merely amplification; it doesn't create new life out of thin air—that's the privilege of the slate's original owner. Therefore, since the Awful Mushroom, after its ability reverted to 'Spore,' began continuously spreading its spores into the ocean under the inducement of the Poisonous Slate, the amount of consciousness within its body naturally decreased accordingly—that's the true destination of those 20% of its consciousness."

The Fire-type Elite Four member of the Kalos region frowned unhappily: "Don't tell me you plan to have Agaric continue releasing spores to solve this Pokémon's health problems. Although I'm not an expert in environmental ecology, if this island were to turn into countless spores and completely melt into this sea..."

"Of course not, otherwise I wouldn't have sent you and Miss Fenglu to repair the signal tower."

A subtle smile curved his lips, and his voice suddenly became dramatic—

"There exists a way in this world to completely alter the life form of Pokémon in one breath. Not only their size and appearance, but even their innate attributes and the behavioral habits they have developed to this day can be changed. Under such changes, the weak become strong, the heavy become light, and the dull become intelligent. It's almost like the materialization of the concept of 'realizing a dream.' I won't list more specific examples, but everyone here is either a Champion or an Elite Four member, or a Gym Leader proficient in a specific type. You must already have an extraordinary understanding of this miraculous phenomenon."

"You're planning to... evolve this Awful Shroom into a Mushroom?"

Hearing the detective's bold words, Genji's weathered face twitched involuntarily.

If the already enormous Ayak-shroom, which rivals a city in size, continues to evolve... just how terrifying a sea monster will it become?

Hugo, however, remained unconcerned: "There's always a limit to the energy within a Pokémon—especially since Agaric has lost all its plates. According to Redspine's testimony, Team Magma abandoned their plan to evolve Agaric into Breloom precisely because they were worried that its evolution might interrupt its growth. So let's do the opposite. Even if we don't succeed, at least we won't let the situation worsen."

He paused, then continued—

"In addition, now is the best time to help Aiya Mushroom be reborn. Due to the massive spread of spores, the amount of consciousness in Aiya Mushroom's body is currently at its lowest point in the child's life."

"If my guess is correct, the consciousnesses that left Agaric's body before the spores were mostly the most active and abnormal parts of its split personality. With their departure, the Agaric consciousnesses with more similar thinking patterns were left behind. After a year of selection, Agaric is now more like a unified independent life than ever before—Miss Mia's ability to successfully command it to use moves is the best proof. In other words, if we want to cure this Pokémon's split consciousness problem once and for all, there is no more perfect time than now."

This is the perfect time to "unite as one"—the detective waved his arm and said something that sounded like something the Unified Champion would say.

“But you’ve overlooked one problem.” The news anchor said, raising his neatly trimmed index finger, to the optimistic detective. “Evolution isn’t an easy thing, especially for such a giant mushroom.”

“On the contrary,” Hugo said confidently with a smile. “For Ayam right now, evolution is the easiest thing to do.”

“Indeed, it seems that some media professionals are looking at the issue too superficially.” Blueberry chimed in jokingly, “They only see the limitations imposed by its size, but ignore the enormous energy it draws from the deep sea and the Emerald Slab. Have you ever considered that since even Team Magma has seriously considered evolution plans, it means that the feasibility of this operation is quite high?”

He gave the Fire Elite Four member a meaningful look—

"It would be strange if a Breloom raised to this size didn't evolve. Ms. Pachira, although you are an expert in playing with fire, don't underestimate the power of Grass-type Pokémon that has been accumulating strength for a long time."

"However, even though everything is ready, there's still one final step needed for it to evolve." Hugo changed the subject, looking around at everyone with a profound expression. "Based on your experience, when a Pokémon's training has reached its peak, under what circumstances do they typically complete their final evolution?"

There was no controversy about this answer. The top champions and dojo leaders looked at each other and then spoke in unison—

"A formidable opponent."

“That’s it.” With a snap of his fingers, the detective’s face broke into a wide grin. “To a creature the size of Agaric, a normal-sized Pokémon is nothing more than a speck of dust. To get its attention, you’d need to be at least the size of a Gigantamax Drednaw. So, I’ve prepared the stage for you all.”

The detective raised his left hand, behind him was the Dynamax Device signal tower that had just been repaired by Fenglu and Ms. Pachira.

"I see." A glint flashed in Steven's eyes. "You had Gardevoir communicate with Amoonguss to ignite its fighting spirit? So that it could engage in a real battle with our Dynamaxed Pokémon?"

"I don't intend for your Pokémon to stand there like targets, getting attacked one-sidedly by Agaric. That kind of training probably won't be very effective. So, you can let your Dynamaxed Pokémon run rampant on this island, and Agaric will fight back in its own way. It's going to be quite an interesting free-for-all."

“But wait, won’t the Foamposite become immobilized due to a split personality, like it did with Miss Mia?” Elite Four questioned. “Although it did successfully use the move ‘Cleanse Smoke’ before, that was only possible under the trainer’s explicit command, right? If we let it decide its own battle style, it will definitely fall into the sluggish state caused by the split personality again.”

Daigo and Genji nodded in unison. If their opponents couldn't even move, no matter how high their health bars were, the battle was pointless. Their pride as representatives of the Hoenn League prevented them from deliberately ordering foolish actions that would force their Pokémon to feign defeat in front of their opponent. Such a battle was neither fair nor meaningful.

“Don’t worry about that.” Hugo waved his hand confidently and turned his gaze to Champion Karuni.

The latter nodded slowly: "I will not send my own Pokémon to participate in this Dynamax battle, but Gardevoir and I will stand on the side of Agarodon. Fortunately, my team has Pumpkin, who is good at Grass-type battles, so we are not lacking in experience in this area. I believe that you will not find the battle boring."

The Queen of the Carlos region uttered such terrifying words with a friendly smile on her face.

Steven and his friends are not facing a clumsy giant target, but a colossal beast personally commanded by a champion-level trainer. They have no doubt that once Ms. Karney establishes a connection with Agarde through Gardevoir, this peaceful mushroom island beneath their feet will absolutely transform into a terrifying battlefield—every mycelium will be a deadly weapon, and every spore may harbor deadly intent.

At this moment, Pachira sneered, "So that's how it is. You went to communicate with Agarde alone just to plan this? Aren't you worried that Gardevoir might faint from exhaustion during the battle?"

Karuni smiled nonchalantly, offering no reply, but instead brandishing her crystal-clear Mega Evolution Keystone pendant in front of her Elite Four members.

The Fire-type Elite Four member was speechless. Indeed, even though Gardevoir in its normal state would expend a great deal of energy during the connection, Mega Gardevoir, after unleashing its inner power, could unleash powerful psychic abilities, making it more than capable of sustaining a prolonged battle.

"In addition, there is one more thing I would like to remind everyone."

Detective Hugo then added—

"Because the Dynamax devices on this island have been modified by Team Magma, they can consume geothermal energy from the seabed to maintain Pokémon's Dynamax state indefinitely. However, they are not as fully functional as the ones in the Galar Arena. Therefore, the far-fetched idea of ​​Mega Evolving a Pokémon before Dynamaxing is not feasible here and now. Many of you here are experts in Mega Evolving your partners, and you may be limited by these conditions..."

“There’s no need to use such clumsy provocations against us.” Pachira interrupted impatiently, his sharp gaze behind his glasses sweeping over Hugo. “But you, Detective Hugo, as the champion of the Unova region, seem to have kept yourself out of this battle.”

“It’s actually more reassuring to exclude this champion from the battlefield; it’s better for everyone.” At this moment, Yueju sighed, looking very troubled. “For some reason, this person makes the moves used by the Pokémon around him exhibit certain… uncontrollable and subtle effects. Even Mr. Alder couldn’t stand it. It’s better to keep him away from Agaric when the battle starts.”

"I'm not really interested in Dynamax battles, and Tornado is all repaired, so let me use the plane to send Champion Hugo off the island."

Feng Lu immediately raised her hand, her eyes sparkling. She had long felt that this mushroom island was strangely eerie and couldn't wait to leave this awful place.

“Indeed, although Team Magma’s Dynamax device can support about five Pokémon to become gigantic at the same time, the partners of the Elite Four champions are probably not something that ordinary wild Pokémon like Drednaw can achieve. It would be more appropriate to reserve an extra amount of Dynamax energy.” Hugo thought for a moment, nodded and looked at Fenglu, “Thank you for your help.”

"Then it's settled."

Champion Daigo, standing to the side, was already rubbing his hands together, his blue-green eyes gleaming with eager anticipation.

"I, Elite Four member Genji, Elite Four member Cinnamon, and Elite Four member Pachira will each send out one of our Pokémon best suited for Dynamax battles, and we will engage in an asymmetrical battle against Agaric, the Pokémon under Champion Carrion's command. There will be no time limit for the battle, and the area will be limited to this mushroom island until one side is completely defeated."

Even if it Dynamaxes, the Pokémon's size will only reach the initial form of Gigantamax Drednaw, which is a drop in the ocean compared to Agaric's true form. Considering Agaric's almost limitless stamina and the actual commander, Champion Karene... this is practically a battle with no suspense whatsoever.

However, the four challengers were quite enthusiastic at this moment—

"Having battled the sea all my life, is it finally time to plow the land with anchors?"

Genji Tenno leisurely lit his pipe, and the blood-red wings of the Flying Dragon cast a shadow behind him.

"There's only sea nearby, so there's no need to worry about fire safety."

Elite Four member Pachira chuckled as he tossed out a Poké Ball, and the female Incineroar's mane burned like torches around her.

"A match where we're guaranteed to lose no matter what is really boring. How about we make a bet on who can last the longest?"

The gambler combed his flamboyant hairstyle back, and the hooded thug had appeared in front of him without him noticing.

"No, in any battle, the outcome is unknown until the very last second."

The young master of Devon Corporation stepped forward, and Metagross, launched from its Poké Ball, slammed into its metal forelegs, producing a deafening metallic clang.

"Metamorphoses, it seems we can have a rare chance to cause a ruckus. This might be a rehearsal for the battles in the Galar arena."

On the other side, opposite the four challengers, Karuni showed no signs of nervousness whatsoever.

“Hugo, I think I know what you meant by the journey to broaden the imagination that you mentioned before you set off.”

The champion of the Carlos region ignored the four men making boastful remarks and instead looked at Hugo, saying—

"In future films, filmmakers must learn to accommodate such vast and unconventional imaginations as 'Oh my gosh.' To complement such visual spectacles, the screenwriter's plot structure, the director's on-set direction, the cinematographer's camera work, and the actors' performances must also change or even evolve."

Her voice, as rhythmic as a movie narration, gently echoed in the sea breeze.

"The so-called change does not mean that we should deliberately cater to science fiction or fantasy themes, but that the world itself is becoming more and more like a fantasy story, and film is one of the sources of this trend."

"Since its inception, the film industry has been equipped with a natural 'emerald slab,' and with each new film, the audience's appetite expands a little. So, unknowingly, those of us standing at the top of the pyramid have become an indescribable behemoth of expectations. What we must do is face this fact."

The detective could only manage a wry smile at the actress's insights.

"To be honest, I only have a superficial understanding of the film industry. My knowledge comes from listening to some landlords' complaints, and it's far from being inspiring. The so-called inspiration at the time was just bait to further pique your interest... But there's one thing I'm sure of."

"What is it?" Karuni asked curiously.

“An actress like Ms. Karen, who is constantly and earnestly concerned about the true form of a film, is much less likely to fall into the quagmire of bad films due to a momentary lapse in judgment than the average actor. And even if such a lapse unfortunately occurs one day, I believe it will not have a significant negative impact. The efforts accumulated over time will never be easily betrayed, so you should have more confidence in yourself.”

"That's exactly the kind of comforting advice you give me," Champion Carlos said with a bright smile. "Did you encourage Cynthia like this back in Sinnoh?"

“For a fighting fanatic like that, a strong opponent is more motivating than words of encouragement—you must be that type too, right?” Hugo said noncommittally.

"That's really rude. But it's certainly spot on."

Miss Karune's smile gradually turned dangerous, reminding Hugo of a certain relative. The Carlos regional champion slowly turned to look at Feng Lu—

"Miss Fenglu, how long until your Tornado takes off?"

"The plane is parked on the runway behind us, and it can take off within fifteen minutes if needed," Feng Lu replied confidently.

"Is that so?" Karune nodded, turning back to face Daigo and the others, her smile turning into a chilling glint in her eyes.

“It seems you’re ready too.” Champion Daigo looked at Gardevoir, who had appeared next to Karune, and polished the metal rings on his index and ring fingers with a fierce fighting spirit.

"Therefore, I hereby announce that the battle will begin in fifteen minutes." The world-renowned female star drew out her words, her gaze sweeping over the crowd before her—

"That means you have fifteen minutes... to escape."

.

The Tornado's engines roared deafeningly, and the jets of air from its turbines left long white trails across the sea.

Hugo, carrying his parachute, looked down through the porthole and once again saw the entire Mushroom Island in its entirety—the red and white canopy gleamed strangely in the setting sun, like a Poké Ball magnified a million times and floating on the azure sea.

"We're about to climb, please hold on tight!" Feng Lu's voice came from the cockpit. The fuselage tilted sharply, and the clouds rushed down outside the window.

At that very moment, four dazzling Dynamax beams of light suddenly shot up from the edge of Mushroom Island, turning the entire sky a brilliant purplish-red.

Hugo gripped the armrest of his seat, watching as four enormous figures gradually appeared in the beam of light—Metroidev's metallic shell reflected a chilling light, Salamence's blood-red wings covered half the sky, Max Magmortar's fiery mane resembled flowing lava, and the hooded thug's exaggerated Dynamax form cast an eerie shadow on the sea.

Beneath these four Dynamax Pokémon, the entire Mushroom Island suddenly trembled.

The next moment, tens of thousands of mycelia grew wildly from beneath the sea surface, weaving into a huge network in the air—the "ultimate absorption" of the Ayak-like mushroom.

If Hugo's eyesight were as sharp as a Heartbat sitting in the passenger seat, he could see that Gardevoir was hovering directly above the Dynamax Signal Tower, its psychic field spreading out like ripples, enveloping the entire sea in pink psychic waves.

"This really is... a world straight out of a science fiction movie," Hugo murmured.

He saw Dynamax Metagross launch the first attack, its "Max Steel" slamming into the surface of Mushroom Island with a dazzling tail of light, only to be blocked by a suddenly raised barrier of mycelium just before contact.

Immediately afterwards, dozens of slender fungal cords emerged from beneath the sea surface. As the cords swayed, thousands upon thousands of leaf-shaped spores surged out like a sandstorm, wrapping around the four Dynamax Pokémon above at an astonishing speed.

Is this a "leaf storm"? This scale is outrageous! Can the power of Ayakashi-chan, which mobilizes all its superpowers, really create such a force?

As Hugo pondered, Feng Lu suddenly shoved the joystick: "Watch out!"

A giant beam of light, more than ten meters in diameter, burst out of the water, almost grazing the wing of the Tornado.

"Hey! Watch your moves!"

The Flying-type gym leader yelled into the airplane radio, but all she got in response was the deafening sound of a move colliding. The two moves that collided were Max Infernape's "Max Fire Blast" and Aurafoam's "Solar Beam".

Amidst the violent turbulence, Hugo caught a glimpse of Karune standing on the psychic platform created by Gardevoir, her white dress fluttering in the sea breeze, giving the four Champions a confident smile.

Behind her, the Dynamaxed Salamence is preparing for a new wave of "Dynamax Fly".

"Looks like we'll have to fly higher!" Feng Lu shouted when communication failed, and pushed the throttle valve.

With a piercing whistle from its engines, the Tornado shot like an arrow into the clouds, leaving this epic battle between the sea and sky below.

……