The Pokémon world was a place of breathtaking natural beauty, stable society, and generally good-natured people…
But with so many years of development, social class division and wealth inequality had become increasingly prominent.
That said, the people here were still relatively kind and simple. Despite the gap between the rich and poor, the working and middle classes didn't harbor much resentment toward the elite. And the upper-class clans rarely engaged in oppression or exploitation of common citizens.
Because of that, society remained peaceful and harmonious on the whole.
As the Pokémon world entered the age of modern science and technology, many of the old noble families began to decline, while newer powers slowly rose to prominence.
Currently, the most powerful and stable family forces in society were none other than the Joy and Jenny clans—one dominating the medical field, the other the law enforcement industry.
"Dominate" might sound too strong; it was more accurate to say the Joy family members had an innate talent for medical and nursing professions, while the Jenny clan was naturally gifted in police and security work.
Even though "Joy" had become synonymous with Pokémon nurses and doctors, and "Jenny" had become a stand-in word for officer, neither clan used their status to create unfair barriers. Regular people could still enter those professions—just like Brock from the original series became a Pokémon Doctor.
Another unique trait of these two clans was… their members were all female—and they all looked exactly alike. (Though none of them would admit they looked like their relatives.)
The Joy and Jenny clans carried extremely dominant genetics. Regardless of the man's height, build, or skin tone, any child born from them would be a girl—and she would look identical to the rest of the family.
To be honest, Ash wasn't entirely thrilled that Daisy Oak was trying to set him up with someone from the Joy family.
Sure, he already had Serena.
But come on—what man wouldn't be at least a little tempted by the idea of multiple wives or a harem of beautiful girls?
And let's face it: the Joy women were gorgeous. On top of that, Miss Joy wasn't just the face of the medical field—she was the very definition of the gentle, sweet, supportive wife and caring mother.
If a man had the chance to date a Joy… he'd laugh himself awake in his dreams.
Still, Ash knew deep down why the Joy family wanted him.
Their real goal was to obtain his so-called Healing Grace.
But Healing Grace wasn't some standalone psychic ability. It was one of the four core powers granted by the Viridian Blessing, bound directly to the sacred Viridian Forest.
The Viridian Powers couldn't be passed on. They weren't genetic. So the Joy clan's hopes of acquiring the Healing Grace "bloodline" through him were doomed to fail.
Ash didn't want to deceive anyone, and right now, he also couldn't—and didn't want to—reveal the full truth about the Viridian Blessing.
So in the end, he had no choice but to politely decline Daisy Oak's offer and, by extension, the Joy clan's proposal.
…
"Ash, are you sure you don't want to reconsider?" Daisy asked with a hint of disbelief.
"The Joy family promised to introduce you to the sweetest, kindest, and most beautiful girl in their entire clan. Not only that, they're willing to financially support your entire path to becoming a top-tier Pokémon Trainer."
"They also promised they wouldn't interfere with your freedom—and that they'd be completely fine if you dated other girls too."
"With terms like that… Ash, aren't you tempted at all? If I were a guy, I'd have accepted before they even finished talking," Daisy said, her tone sweet and tempting.
"Holy—" Ash nearly trembled with excitement.
The Joy clan really was going all out just to gain access to Healing Grace.
They were literally offering a wife, throwing in a generous dowry, and still not restricting his freedom? He could even date other girls on the side?
What man in the world wouldn't be tempted?
Ash was no exception—he was very, very tempted.
But it was exactly because the Joy family's conditions were so generous that Ash could see just how desperately they wanted Healing Grace. Unfortunately, he couldn't give them what they were after.
If Ash shamelessly took advantage of their offer and the truth eventually came out, he'd be in serious trouble.
You could lie about anything—but not about love.
Especially not to an entire clan of women.
…
"Ash, the conditions they're offering really are extraordinary," Daisy said seriously. "Why did you turn them down? Can you tell me, so I know how to respond?"
Ash paused.
"Please thank the Joy family for me," he said. "Just tell them… I can't give them what they're looking for. And I personally prefer free love over arranged matches."
Daisy gave a slightly helpless smile.
"Well, I was hoping to gather all the best girls in the world and make them your girlfriends. But if that's how you feel, I won't force you."
"Thanks, Daisy." Ash looked at her with heartfelt gratitude. She really had been thinking of what was best for him.
"I'll go call the Joy family and give them your response. Go talk to Grandpa for a bit—he said he had something for you," Daisy said, rubbing his hair and kissing him on the forehead before walking off to make the call.
Ash stood there, heart full of conflicting emotions.
I really wanted to say yes… but I had to say no.
He forced himself to push thoughts of the Joy family out of his mind and walked toward Professor Oak, who was busy sorting books at a nearby shelf.
Before Ash could speak, Professor Oak turned around with a wide grin.
"Ash, my boy! You're a hot commodity these days! I honestly don't understand why you'd reject the Joy family. If I were a young man again, I'd have agreed on the spot!"
"Well, too bad you're not," Ash snorted, giving the old man a side-eye.
"Haha, you got me there. Too bad this old man's youth is long gone."
"Oh, right—the Poké Ball Transfer Machine you requested has arrived. It's that silver one sitting on the table," Oak said, pointing behind him.
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