So, the question was this. If Birch was not running a research institute, then through what channel was Devon Corporation legally conducting its research business?
Or rather, if Hoenn hadn't cooperated with Birch, which professor from another region had Devon Corporation been working with?
The answer was already clear.
Devon Corporation probably wanted to break away from that professor too, freeing itself from the obstacle that had been holding back its development.
"Steven..." Shiro spoke calmly. "I also have the intention of cooperating with Devon Corporation. We can discuss everything openly."
Steven lowered his gaze and thought for a moment before replying, "Professor Shiro, even before your identity was revealed, I greatly admired Professor Corviknight on the internet. Now that I've met you in person, I admire you even more."
Since he had been able to come here with the support of Devon Corporation, Steven had naturally investigated Shiro thoroughly.
His long list of achievements was truly astonishing.
Not everyone could climb up step by step from the bottom of Galar and eventually reach a position as important to the League as his current one. It took both strength and luck.
As the son of a wealthy businessman, Steven naturally admired someone like that, and he wasn't lying just to flatter him. Back when they were still interacting online, Steven had indeed been speaking up for Shiro, or rather, Professor Corviknight.
However, Shiro showed no emotional reaction after hearing this. He simply smiled and said, "Just call me Shiro, Steven. We're actually the same generation, so there's no need to call me professor everytime."
Steven fell silent for a few moments. His fingers unconsciously tapped against his thigh before he finally explained, "Back when the Birch Research Institute had just been established, Devon happened to be in a period of rapid development. We urgently needed a research institute to cooperate with us so that our research projects could pass the League's approval process."
"It's a little unfortunate. For various reasons, we weren't able to reach an agreement in Hoenn."
"So my father took a few detours and eventually found Professor Oak, who was extremely famous at the time..."
His voice stopped there.
Steven would not, and more importantly, did not dare, to continue.
Professor Oak of Kanto was a monument in the field of Pokémon studies and a living legend among professors. He had enough supporters to stretch from Hoenn all the way to Galar. He wasn't someone just anyone could evaluate, or even casually mention.
Shiro naturally understood his concerns and spoke frankly, "You should also know about my relationship with Professor Oak… It's fairly good."
After all, this was only a matter of research cooperation. Oak only needed to put his name on the projects and collect the money.
Whether it was because of his ambition to publish the Pokédex or because he wanted to support and build a good relationship with a newly recognized professor like Shiro, Oak wouldn't refuse him. Besides, Devon Corporation was originally a Hoenn company.
Shiro asked, "What areas are you cooperating with Professor Oak on?"
Steven pondered for a while before slowly answering, "Pokémon items, Poké Balls, trainer equipment, Pokémon navigation devices..."
He quickly listed more than a dozen examples.
They covered most of Devon Corporation's industries. Almost all of them were connected to the Oak Research Institute and registered under its name.
The problem was that back then, Steven's father, Joseph Stone, had been desperate to find a research institute willing to authorize their projects. Because of that, the contract he signed with the Oak Research Institute was extremely unfair.
Aside from giving the Oak Research Institute all rights to interpret the agreement, every research result and project that was later put up for public sale had to be reported to Oak first.
The problem was that the Oak Research Institute was not somewhere an ordinary person could enter, nor was Oak someone an ordinary person could meet.
Many times, a research project might take half a year to complete, but simply getting an appointment with Oak to obtain authorization could take another year.
Devon Corporation was not short of money, and it was willing to spend heavily to get things done. Unfortunately, money could not help them meet Oak ahead of schedule because the people waiting before them were all senior figures from academia or the League.
The Oak Research Institute would never offend those League officials over a little money.
As for the small Devon Corporation, it could only wait.
Over the years, whenever they produced a new research result, they had to spend both time and a great deal of money dealing with the Oak Research Institute and Oak. But if they wanted to change course, the original contract had already been signed. At the very least, they first had to terminate it.
Why would the researchers at the Oak Research Institute who were responsible for these projects willingly give up such free research funding?
Devon Corporation also did not dare simply break the contract because they were afraid the Oak Research Institute would cause trouble for them.
On top of that, the professors in Hoenn were not capable of holding their own against Oak.
And so, the matter had dragged on until now.
Steven's face was full of helplessness.
Shiro patiently listened to everything. Then he smiled and asked slowly, "Your company shouldn't only be cooperating with Professor Oak, right?"
The moment he finished speaking, Steven's body trembled. He almost couldn't stop himself from standing up.
Oak was a leading figure in academia. Who would dare betray him?
How could Devon Corporation dare to play both sides and secretly cooperate with another research institute?
That was something they absolutely could not admit!
"Professor Corviknight... that's only your guess. I'm afraid you've guessed wrong." Steven clasped his hands and pressed them against his thighs. His body had become tense.
"Professor Shiro, how could Devon possibly dare to cooperate with another research institute behind the Oak Research Institute's back?" Cairo hurriedly explained from the side. "Even if we had the courage to do so, the other research institutes certainly wouldn't agree to it either!"
Shiro smiled without saying anything. Instead, he casually continued as though they were simply chatting, "Not long ago, I was carrying out a mission assigned by the main League to wipe out the Hunters Guild. The person leading the team at the time was Elite Blaine..."
The moment Steven heard the name Blaine, he held his breath. Cairo was even covered in cold sweat.
"I talked with Elite Blaine about a few things and discovered that he is also a Pokémon professor with very deep academic knowledge. His research institute is in Cinnabar Island. It seems to be somewhere in the far southern waters of Kanto. If he hadn't mentioned it himself, it really would have been quite well hidden and difficult to discover..."
Shiro crossed his hands and rested them against the table as he smiled at the two men.
Steven lowered his head, his pupils shrinking sharply. His palm slid toward his knee and pressed down hard against it to keep himself from losing his composure.
Cooperating with Blaine and the Cinnabar Research Institute was one of Devon Corporation's most important secrets.
It was a secret that could bring the entire company crashing down.
As long as this matter was reported to the Kanto League, once the Oak Research Institute began working behind the scenes, Chairman Goodshow's ruthless methods combined with the greedy Hoenn Chairman would be enough to have Devon Corporation sealed off and investigated by the next day.
They would be accused of conducting illegal and unauthorized secret research on Pokémon.
That was one of the most serious crimes possible.
As for Blaine of Cinnabar Island, he could simply shrug his shoulders and claim that he had no idea who Devon Corporation had cooperated with in the past. He could say that he had known nothing about it.
Who would question an old Kanto Elite Four member and senior League official who had supposedly been kept in the dark?
The only ones who would suffer would be Devon Corporation…
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