As for the remaining moves that Volcarona had just comprehended, Quiver Dance and Air Slash were abilities that came into being along with the growth of its newly formed wings, so for now they were only at the proficient level.
The final moves it had learned, Psychic, Calm Mind, and Solar Beam, were not of Volcarona's own typing, so they were only at a beginner level for the time being.
However, Theo did not mind this at all. Once Volcarona became fully accustomed to its new body, he could use the Technical Machines stored in his system space to improve its moves.
In particular, he still had quite a few TMs for Psychic in his inventory.
As Volcarona slowly flew closer, the first thing it did was not to greet Theo, its trainer, but instead turn directly toward the recording camera that had been set up.
In front of the lens, it elegantly flapped its wings, displaying the beauty of its three pairs of wings. Crimson scales drifted around its body, presenting its newly reborn form from every possible angle without a single blind spot.
"You really have not changed at all. That love of showing off is still exactly the same."
Theo shook his head, both amused and helpless.
Although he had not started a live broadcast, he had kept the recording function on the entire time, capturing the whole process of Larvesta's evolution.
Larvesta, or rather Volcarona now, had probably been eager for a long time to show off its new body.
Seeing that Volcarona was still busy admiring itself instead of greeting him, Tyrantrum could no longer hold back and moved forward on its own.
Its eyes were fixed intently on Volcarona's three pairs of large and beautiful wings. Unable to resist, it stretched out a claw and gently poked them.
Looking at those wings, Tyrantrum's gaze was filled with envy, mixed with a hint of resentment.
It was one thing for Volcarona to grow wings after evolving, but it had six of them. It would have been nice if it could spare just two. The more Tyrantrum thought about it, the more annoyed it became, and it started poking more enthusiastically.
Only then did Volcarona react. It immediately shot Tyrantrum a glare, clearly worried that this clumsy dragon might accidentally damage its brand new wings.
In an instant, it darted away with agile movements, refusing to let Tyrantrum touch it again no matter what.
Professor Oak and Professor Birch quickly stepped forward as well, carefully observing and recording while taking out measuring instruments.
Volcarona seemed to understand that both professors had played a significant role in its evolution, so it cooperated fully. It obediently descended and lay still on the ground, allowing them to examine it without moving.
"3.3 meters?!"
Professor Birch could not help but exclaim.
"That is incredible. It is more than double the 1.6 meters recorded in the Pokédex. As expected of a specially evolved individual."
Professor Oak stroked his chin and clicked his tongue in admiration.
"The information that Champion Alder provided earlier mentioned that his Volcarona was about 3.1 meters. Yours is even larger. It is almost like the Totem Pokémon from the Alola region."
"Wait… its forehead."
Professor Birch suddenly paused.
Theo followed the direction he was pointing at and finally saw clearly that on Volcarona's pitch black forehead, there was a dark red Omega shaped mark.
If one did not look closely, it would be easy to miss.
Theo had never mentioned this to Professor Birch before, so he took this opportunity to explain.
"When Larvesta was still young, there was a stone with Groudon's mark by its side. Its mother and Victini found it inside Mt. Chimney and left it for it as a gift…"
"No wonder!"
Professor Oak suddenly understood.
"I had always been curious how your Larvesta could undergo a special evolution like the one Champion Alder's Larvesta achieved.
You must know that his Larvesta only managed to evolve in that way with the help of Victini's Victory Flame.
I originally thought it was solely due to your power, but it turns out there was also an item connected to Groudon involved.
That explains everything."
Professor Birch nodded repeatedly.
"There are records showing that Groudon once resided in Mt. Chimney for a very long time.
That stone was likely formed from fragments shed from Groudon's body after it absorbed volcanic energy and underwent metabolic growth.
It was probably also the influence of Groudon's power that allowed your Larvesta to develop that special cocoon of fire evolution."
As soon as he finished speaking, Professor Birch seemed to suddenly think of something. He raised his head abruptly, a trace of anticipation flashing in his eyes.
"Wait… if that is the case, then after your Larvesta evolves into Volcarona, could it be like the legendary Volcanic Descendants, able to sense Groudon's location, or even communicate with it?"
Theo was taken aback. He was not certain.
When Larvesta was younger, it did not possess such an ability. At first, it could only use that stone to enhance the power of its flames.
Even after the stone had merged into its body, it could only passively receive sensory feedback and could not actively control it.
If it truly had the ability to use that power freely, it would not have been so helpless when it sensed Rayquaza's presence at Meteor Falls or when it attracted Kyogre's attention.
Professor Birch let out a soft sigh.
"For nearly a hundred years, there has been no trace of Groudon, and the League has always been concerned about this.
The establishment of the Weather Institute, aside from cultivating Castform and conducting artificial rainfall, has a core mission, which is to monitor climatic anomalies in the Hoenn region.
It is all to see if we can locate Groudon's whereabouts, or at least lock onto its position the moment it appears."
Hearing this, Theo asked in confusion,
"Would it not be better for Groudon to remain asleep? If it awakens, would it not fight with Kyogre? In that case, is it not a good thing that it stays dormant?"
"Hahaha, who told you that Groudon would fight Kyogre the moment it wakes up? Why would the two of them fight without reason?"
"Hmm?"
Theo's eyes widened instantly. Groudon would not fight Kyogre after waking up?
Professor Oak could not help but laugh at his reaction.
"You must have seen those jokes on Pokémon forums, right?
I have read quite a few of those posts myself. They all say that because Groudon cannot fly, it gets angry whenever it sees Kyogre and Rayquaza flying and wants to fight them.
Is that correct?"
Theo nodded. Whether in his previous life or this one, that had always been his impression of Kyogre and Groudon.
Professor Birch continued,
"That is actually incorrect. In modern records that include visual documentation, whenever extremely terrifying earthquakes and tsunamis occur, Groudon and Kyogre both appear to help suppress them.
People saw scenes of Groudon countering tsunamis and imagined that it was battling Kyogre.
But that is not the case.
According to the League's records, the only large scale conflict between Kyogre and Groudon happened a very long time ago, before Rayquaza appeared.
At that time, one sought to expand the oceans while the other sought to expand the land, which led to their conflict.
However, ever since Rayquaza appeared and subdued both sides, bringing balance between them, Kyogre and Groudon each established their own territories and have never fought again."
(End of Chapter)