The car stopped in the forest. The road ahead had only recently been cleared for traffic, but it was already somewhat crowded, as several trucks that had arrived this morning had yet to finish unloading.
Shiro and the others had no choice but to get out and continue on foot along the lake.
The driver stayed behind to wait. Cairo frowned as he looked ahead and said in a deep voice, "This road should have been widened to twice its current size. How can the road in front of a research institute be this narrow? I'll go push them about it when we get back."
Shiro remembered the small dirt road in front of Oak Research Institute, the one that belonged to Pallet Town alone.
That dirt road was much narrower and harder to travel on than this fresh asphalt road, yet Oak had never shown any intention of widening it. After all, the courtyard in front of his institute had steps paved with bluestone, and there was an iron gate blocking the entrance.
Shiro didn't reply. He simply looked around at the surroundings.
There were faint glimpses of fish Pokémon in the lake. All of them were below Intermediate-level and seemed to be native Pokémon. The lake itself was quite large, which meant there was no need to dig out another area for Water-type Pokémon. The Water-type breeding garden could simply make use of the lake itself.
Further behind them, Sapphire could barely hide her curiosity. She ran at the front of the group and would occasionally lean her body over the edge of the lake.
"That's too dangerous..." Cairo was quite worried, afraid that the little girl might fall in.
The three of them soon reached the end of the road.
Dale was standing diagonally across from them. After the middle-aged man in a suit beside him pointed them out, he noticed Shiro and the others.
Shiro raised his hand and waved from a distance.
Dale froze for a few seconds. He opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound for a moment. It was only after he ran down the small slope that he excitedly called out, "Professor Corviknight! You're here!"
Shiro smiled and nodded.
Dale hurried over, unable to hide his excitement. He quickly began reporting on the progress of the research institute. "Professor Corviknight! Thanks to everyone's help, most of the main research institute has already been completed. We've also basically confirmed the area and divisions for the breeding garden. All that's left is to change the terrain and set up the breeding covers. Once the terrain is ready, the breeding covers can be brought over very quickly..."
The breeding cover was a semi-transparent piece of League high-tech breeding equipment. At first, Shiro had thought it was something similar to a greenhouse, but he later discovered that it was far more advanced.
It had been personally developed by Oak and could alter the surface structure, adjust the intensity of sunlight, regulate temperature, and even provide monitoring and alarm functions.
Aside from wild breeding gardens and farms that relied on their local natural environments, ordinary nurseries and the mixed breeding gardens inside research institutes generally used this material.
Oak had also made a fortune from it.
Shiro had once been rather envious of such a profitable patent, but now he barely felt anything about it.
After making several large sums from both the Hunters Guild and the League, Pokédollars were little more than numbers to him. For a quasi-Champion level trainer, there were plenty of ways to make Pokédollars.
At his current level of strength, money only played a supporting role in his development.
As Agatha had once put it, "Up to Elite-level, you rely on money. Once you surpass Elite-level, it depends on a trainer's talent."
* * *
The northern part of the lake.
Shiro followed Dale around the general area occupied by the research institute. Afterward, he asked, "Are you still short on Pokédollars? I can transfer more to the research institute's account."
Dale hurriedly waved his hands. His face had reddened slightly from excitement as he pushed up his glasses and said, "The people in the Hoenn region are very warm. When I first arrived, people from both the League and Devon Corporation came to visit."
"After confirming that this was your research institute, Professor Corviknight, the Hoenn League gave us a large subsidy, and Devon Corporation also gave us a discount..."
"I calculated everything. Once construction is finished, we'll still have around 300 million Pokédollars left. Bria has the financial statements. I'll have her bring them to you."
Shiro fell silent for a moment.
A subsidy from the Hoenn League? And Devon Corporation had even given them a discount?
He remembered that the construction company was not owned by Devon Corporation. It was possible that Devon Corporation had covered the difference themselves. Of course, it was also possible that they had simply forced the construction company to lower its price.
Shiro then reminded him, "Take some of the money and give everyone involved in building the research institute meal and travel allowances. Give them more rather than less. As for the Hoenn League, forget about that. Return the money saved from Devon Corporation's discount to the construction company. And you should receive a salary too."
Dale was stunned. He looked a little embarrassed when he heard the word "salary" and scratched his head. "Professor Corviknight, I'm an assistant. Technically, I'm only an intern researcher at the research institute right now. Normally, interns are only provided with food and accommodation. You don't need to give me a salary—"
"I'll give you one here." Shiro raised his hand and interrupted him. "Once the research institute is completed, every researcher who passes the assessment and interview will receive a salary, even if they're only an intern researcher."
As Dale had said, intern researchers in normal research institutes didn't receive salaries because it was still uncertain whether they would eventually become full researchers.
The internship period was used to assess a researcher's abilities. Interns generally worked as assistants to full researchers and helped them with their work.
Once they completed the assessment, met the requirements, and received recognition from the full researcher they worked under, they could leave the internship period.
During the internship, the researchers themselves had to cover all expenses other than food and accommodation.
It sounded reasonable, but in reality, they were basically working for free. This was especially true for research institutes with strict assessments. For example, at Oak Research Institute, four out of every five researchers who entered the internship period would be dismissed. After spending several months doing physical work as interns, they would leave in disappointment.
"It's only tens of thousands of Pokédollars a month." Shiro cleared his throat and explained, "Our research institute will be the most equal and open research institute in the entire Pokémon world. Of course, the written test and interview during the early stages will also be more difficult..."
"I'll regularly transfer Pokédollars to the research institute's account."
After all, he was currently loaded with money and had no shortage of it.
Once the Hunters Guild project was put into operation, he would definitely be able to jump into the top ten of the Pokémon world's richest people within a few years.
After hearing this, Dale answered energetically, "Yes! Professor Corviknight!"
Dale's weakness was perhaps that he was not flexible enough, but his strengths were just as obvious. He absolutely supported and followed Shiro's orders and always carried them out diligently.
Before long, Bria came running over and handed Shiro the financial statements for the research institute's construction during this period.
Shiro gave them a quick glance.
There were too many numbers packed together, making his eyes a little sore. He then handed the documents to Cairo, the local Hoenn professional standing nearby.
A short while later, after receiving Cairo's confirmation, Shiro returned the documents and patted Dale on the shoulder.
"Keep it up! Once the research institute is completed, you'll be my personal assistant and the institute's executive administrator!"
Dale was filled with anticipation. "Yes! Professor Corviknight!"
He could already see it. One day, this Hoenn Research Institute would become famous throughout the world and leave a lasting mark on the history of scientific research within the League.
**
**
**
Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you can visit my P@treon:
P@treon/SilverShark769
Vote with Power Stones for Bonus Chapters!
Your support means a lot, thank you!