King's Rock

Once they ensured that Brawly and the others were in good health, they began exploring the ruins.

Volcarona had previously informed Yuga about the burial artifacts' hidden locations. With Yuga's guidance, Brawly and the others easily found the burial treasures.

These artifacts were buried beneath a stone throne that Volcarona had accidentally knocked down.

Beneath the throne was a specially crafted stone chamber. It wasn't deep, and its lid was a beautifully engraved stone slab. Inside the chamber, dozens of wooden boxes were neatly arranged.

However, due to the passage of time, the wooden boxes had rotted, and the carvings on them were damaged, revealing some of the burial items.

Yuga and his team opened each decaying wooden box, revealing various items such as gemstones, artifacts, and antiques. While these items had collector's value, they held limited utility for trainers.

Of course, selling these gemstones, artifacts, and antiques could still fetch a considerable sum, which could be used for Pokémon training.

However, among the treasure boxes, a few contained items useful for trainers.

One box held pitch-black cloth, and Yuga could feel a strong Ghost-type energy emanating from them. Despite being buried for nearly a millennium, these black cloths remained intact and incredibly resilient.

Reaper Cloths were essential items for evolving Dusknoir from Dusclops. The method of creating Reaper Cloths had been lost to time, and the existing ones were valuable relics. Yuga's group might not have Ghost-type Pokémon or use for these cloths, but they could trade or sell them to other trainers for a good profit.

This ruin's owner, the king who had once ruled over this kingdom before its destruction, clearly had an interest in Ghost-type Pokémon, explaining the collection of Reaper Cloths.

However, Yuga suspected that these Reaper Cloths weren't for evolving Dusknoir but rather for conducting resurrection rituals.

When the Shiny Cofagrigus devolved into Yamask, the human bones it dropped showed signs of having been wrapped in cloth. However, that cloth had long decayed into fragments.

At first, Yuga hadn't paid much attention to those fragments, but now he believed they were likely made from Reaper Cloths.

Yuga speculated that before placing his own corpse inside Cofagrigus, the owner might have wrapped it in Reaper Cloths. Over time, the Reaper Cloths would have gradually depleted their Ghost-type energy, eventually decaying.

Another box should have contained paper-based materials, such as books and documents. However, due to their long existence, those materials had turned into black, shapeless masses. They were nearly impossible to identify.

The loss of these books deeply saddened Marlon and the others. Among them could have been valuable Pokémon breeding information, which was now lost forever due to the damage to these documents.

There was also a box containing Dusk Stones of good quality, although Yuga didn't find any Supreme-grade Dusk Stones inside. This was expected; Supreme-grade Evolution Stones were rare treasures, not something one could easily come across.

These Dusk Stones had been sitting in one place for too long, covered in a thick layer of moss, appearing dirty. However, this didn't diminish their value.

The last box contained a variety of items, including dozens of Spell Tags, as well as Mystic Waters, Light Balls, King's Rocks, Hard Stones, and more.

The king who owned these treasures had a particular fascination with Ghost-type Pokémon, so many of the items were related to Ghost-types. There were relatively fewer items unrelated to Ghost-types.

Yuga and his group sorted through these items and began to "divide the loot."

Aside from the gemstones and antiques, they evenly split the Reaper Cloths and Dusk Stones into five shares, with each member receiving one.

As for the miscellaneous items in the final box, Yuga chose three Spell Tags and the King's Rock.

Yuga planned to give one Spell Tag to Gengar, one to Mismagius, one to Chandelure, and the King's Rock to Absol.

Before, Yuga used to think that in the future, Absol could carry a Mega Evolution Stone. Now that Absol has gained the ability to Mega Evolve independently, although it can't do it at will yet, its future potential is promising. Therefore, the Mega Evolution Stone is no longer needed.

Yuga's decision to give Absol the King's Rock wasn't solely based on the item's 10% chance to trigger flinch. It was more about complementing its Pressure ability.

The King's Rock emitted an intimidating aura, similar to Absol's Pressure ability. Both functions aimed to psychologically oppress opponents, increasing their mental strain. Such abilities were commonly found in Legendary and Mythical Pokémon.

The King's Rock, as the name suggested, was believed to carry the aura of royalty, and the evolution of both Slowkong and Politoed while holding it would result in an undeniable regal presence within their respective species.

Yuga hoped that combining Absol's Pressure with the King's Rock's royal aura might enhance its abilities further. It was merely a theory for now, and whether it would work remained uncertain.

Regardless, selecting the King's Rock was a safe choice.

After distributing these trainer items, Yuga's group turned their attention to the gemstones and other valuables.

In the end, Marlon proposed that he would handle the sale of these items and then distribute the profits equally among everyone.

Yuga and the others didn't know Marlon's specific plan for selling these items, but they trusted him not to withhold their shares. This way, they could avoid the hassle of dealing with these valuable items themselves, believing that Marlon wouldn't shortchange them for such a small amount.