April 7th, Wednesday.
The sun rose from the coastline beyond the harbor, illuminating the white sails.
In the hazy early morning, a crescent moon still hung in the sky. Amidst the gauzy clouds, Cresselia trailed a streak of aurora, scattering faint light particles before gradually disappearing.
If Teacher Lu were here, he would definitely joke that the creature flying across the sky wasn't the official photographer Ho-Oh.
He sat in the hostel's buffet restaurant, drowsily stirring his black coffee.
"Didn't sleep well?" Cynthia wore a black trench coat with luxurious black velvet trim around the neck and a black-gold hair accessory. Sitting across from him, she glanced at Lu Ye.
"I saw Cresselia last night."
Steam rose from the black coffee as Lu Ye propped his chin with one hand, spoon in the other. "Probably the one that inhabits Full Moon Island."
Lu Ye lifted the cup, skipping the battle details as he summarized:
"Recently there have been cases of insomnia and nightmares in Suimài City. Cresselia appeared in Suimài City following its nature. I happened to encounter it."
"And captured precious photos, Rotom!"
The Rotom Pokédex, currently charging with a cable plugged into a corner socket, announced loudly.
"Little Rotom, switch to silent mode," Lu Ye said flatly.
"As long as nothing bad happened."
Cynthia smiled faintly before changing the subject.
"The presentation starts at 1 PM this afternoon. I'll handle the main report - you just need to communicate with Professor Oak and the others."
Teacher Lu asked somewhat sheepishly: "What's the theme?"
Although he attended the Scientific Summit with "Mengmengda" (Cynthia's affectionate nickname), it seemed his only contribution beyond translating literature wasn't particularly substantial.
There was suspicion of being deadweight, but research wasn't his main job anyway. Different professions have different specialties - perfectly understandable.
"Legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh, covering Regigigas, Dialga, Palkia..."
Cynthia listed them one by one, a faint smile forming: "We already have substantial reporting materials, so don't worry."
Aren't these all the bosses I fought one by one?
So not only did Mengmengda come to the rescue, she also took commemorative photos of the legendaries?!
Suddenly, Teacher Lu froze, realizing something odd.
Presenting firsthand data on legendary Pokémon and summarizing their characteristics in the report wouldn't just shock the scientific community - it would have earthshaking impact on the general public too.
Humans inherently possess the instinct to "explore the unknown." Mountains, lakes, ruins...places inhabited by powerful and mysterious "legends."
These "legends" represent the unknown, signifying infinite possibilities in scientific research.
Announcing data on the Temporal-Spatial Twin Dragons and Regigigas at the Scientific Summit; updating the Pokédex version when it seemed complete;
Lifting the veil on "legends," adding another magnificent stroke to humanity's exploration history...
Cold sweat broke out on Lu Ye's back.
If this doesn't win awards, it would be outright rigged!
Cynthia looked out the glass window where spring sunshine graced blossoming branches, then back at Lu Ye:
Lu Ye took a deep breath.
After all, Professor Oak's research capabilities are also bug-tier.
Compared to him, our team is still too young, too simple!
"I'm just excited for Professor Oak," Lu Ye forced a laugh. "His expression will be priceless when he hears the report, haha."
"We might not necessarily win awards."
Cynthia scooped a bite of ice-cream topped cake, smiling slightly: "But I'll do my best."
"Go for it. Even if we don't win, it's fine." Lu Ye's eyes shone with profound sincerity. "I'll always be your strongest supporter."
Cynthia's smile bloomed like spring ice melting, like first cherry blossoms unfolding.
Suimài City, Iron Island Gym.
A burly man with scruffy stubble, wearing a tattered cloak and holding a mining shovel.
Gym Leader Byron pushed open the gym doors, rubbing his stubble.
According to Aogen, Darkrai and Cresselia had simultaneously appeared in Suimài City and engaged in battle.
This made Byron, who had been excavating on Iron Island, rush back to Suimài City in haste.
"What a pity...if I'd dug up something big, even if I couldn't keep it, selling it to Steven would've been nice."
Byron sighed regretfully before muttering to himself:
"Mediating between two legendary Pokémon...Teacher Lu..."
He'd previously heard of Teacher Lu's deeds at White Poplar Town.
Facing the deities of time and space was already an extraordinary feat.
Now, mediating between Darkrai and Cresselia seemed effortless for him...
"I should find an opportunity to thank him in person."
Byron nodded slightly, answering his vibrating phone with a deep voice:
"Professor Oak, you weren't injured, were you?"
"No injuries." Professor Oak asked: "But yesterday's incident must have involved the Pokémon from New Moon Island and Full Moon Island, right?"
"I thought you said there wouldn't be any incidents." Professor Oak sounded helpless.
Byron maintained his silence.
"Well, at least no one was hurt."
Professor Oak pondered: "By the way...which trainer resolved their conflict?"
Byron kept silent...wait, this question he could answer.
Byron relayed what he'd heard:
"He happened to be attending this Scientific Summit as a scholar and stepped in to resolve the incident."
Professor Oak sounded slightly surprised but found it reasonable.
His senior, Professor Rowan, had praised Lu Ye's research capabilities to him before.
Especially his expertise in ancient languages - unparalleled among his peers.
With further study, perhaps under Dr. Shuckle Snorton who first discovered Unown, he could earn the title of "Doctor" before thirty.
In the Pokémon world, the title of Doctor is extremely rare - only a handful exist across the entire League.
The last person to earn "Doctor" before thirty was the mad scientist who experimented on himself, Masaki Sonezaki.
This was already the highest praise the strict Professor Rowan could give.
"That kid's attending the Summit too? Didn't even tell me."
Professor Oak chuckled and shook his head: "I didn't know he was interested in research..."
Gym Leader Byron said: "I'll strengthen security around the library to ensure the conference proceeds smoothly. Please rest assured."
"Don't worry, this old bones can still command Pokémon battles." Professor Oak laughed heartily.
Byron paused briefly.
Right...Professor Oak, the "foremost in scientific research," was even a champion of the Indigo Plateau Conference.
Esteemed and amiable, he devoted his life to research.
Perhaps he abandoned his trainer dreams because scientific research could benefit more people.
"Are you serving as an advisor?" Byron asked curiously. "I didn't see your name in the participant list."
"I'm handling evaluations this year."
Professor Oak smiled: "Last year I focused on developing new Pokédex models. With project priorities, I didn't participate in judging."
For Professor Oak, honors and awards held no meaning anymore.
Stepping aside created opportunities for new talent, preventing academic monopolies.
Of course, this was based on "priority of achievements." With Professor Oak's capabilities and vision, he could undoubtedly identify the most valuable research.
Gym Leader Byron nodded.
Since Teacher Lu was attending the Summit, he'd express his gratitude afterward.
He'd found some nice treasures on Iron Island - he could gift those along with the Mine Badge, saving Teacher Lu a gym visit.
Byron's son Roark had mentioned Teacher Lu's Sylveon that would challenge gyms on its own.
As a father, he couldn't perform worse than his son -
If I give the badge first, I won't get beaten up!
After hanging up, Professor Oak in his white lab coat scanned the list on his desk.
"Masaki's team: Pokémon Storage System improvements. Members: Masaki, Nanami, Mizuki..."
"Rowan's team: Magnetic field differences and move-based evolution. Members: Rowan, Berlitz Plantina..."
"Utsugi's team: Research on shared Egg Group compatibility in breeding. Members: Utsugi, A-Jin..."
"Professor Mustardseed's team: Analysis of Sinnoh folklore and legendary Pokémon. Members: Mustardseed, Cynthia, Lu Ye..."
"That kid A-Jin is doing research too?!"
Professor Oak's eyes widened before he relaxed.
The boy did have talent in "breeding," but given his personality, he wouldn't participate in research projects.
He probably just assisted Utsugi with breeding aspects, hence his name appearing.
This Summit featured many young faces.
Like Sonia from Galar, Plantina from Sinnoh...
Green showed no interest in awards. Since his grandfather wasn't forming a team, he went to Mt. Silver to find Red instead.
What intrigued Professor Oak more was the title "Analysis of Legendary Pokémon."
"Legendary Pokémon..."
Professor Oak stroked his chin, recalling rumors from Snowpoint City and White Poplar Town before having an epiphany.
"No wonder that kid's always on the frontlines - he's gathering firsthand data!"
Remembering Lu Ye facing the Temporal-Spatial Twin Dragons and pacifying Regigigas,
Professor Oak felt genuinely moved.
"Exploring the unknown, pursuing truth, courageously charging ahead..."
"This is the scientific spirit enabling humanity's survival and coexistence with Pokémon."
For a moment, Professor Oak smiled warmly.
"Lu Ye...let me see your performance this afternoon!"