Edward agreed that his older brother was right. When it came to legal matters, it was ultimately useless and time-consuming for him to try and figure out ways to skirt around issues on his own. It would be far more efficient to consult a professional.
Devon Corporation, with its vast assets and immense business empire, stood at the top of the Hoenn Region's corporate hierarchy. It was the dream company of nearly every job seeker in the area, and naturally, its employees were selected from only the best of the best.
The head of Devon's legal department, Miss Sara, was renowned as the most outstanding attorney in the entire Hoenn Region. She was currently working for Devon Corporation as well.
When Edward arrived at the Devon offices, Miss Sara was already waiting for him in her office.
"Miss Sara, good afternoon. I hope I'm not bothering you. There's a matter I'd like to trouble you with," Edward said with a polite smile. Sara waved her hand quickly in response, signaling that it was no bother at all, and courteously asked about the purpose of his visit.
She had already received a call from old man Joseph earlier, and so she had cleared her schedule in advance, setting aside all other complicated affairs to wait in her office for her future boss.
Everyone at Devon knew that, barring any unexpected developments, Edward was the only likely successor to lead Devon's future. Although Mr. Steven was incredibly capable, he had always preferred digging for rocks over running the company and had shown little interest in corporate management.
"Well, it's like this..." Edward gave Sara a simple explanation of what was on his mind. She listened carefully and attentively. However, once he finished, she didn't immediately offer an answer. Instead, she politely excused herself and turned to her computer, beginning to look up some information.
Sara wasn't familiar with the issue, so she needed to get a solid grasp of the situation first.
Edward didn't mind and waited patiently in silence.
"Mr. Edward," Sara eventually said after finishing her research, "the issue you raised—if you're looking for a solution—currently doesn't really have one. Legally speaking, there are no existing laws under the current Pokémon League legislation that define anything like 'a short film inciting wild Pokémon to commit offenses.' In other words, no matter what wild Pokémon do after watching your shorts, you cannot be held legally accountable."
Miss Sara's analysis was clear and professional.
Edward scratched his head. Legally, that may be the case, but he knew that in practice, things weren't so simple. Even if the law didn't hold him accountable, public opinion might. There were some actions that, while not punishable under law, still drew public scorn or contempt—and that could affect both his own reputation and Devon Corporation's image.
Still, at least for the moment, the good news was that no law existed to hold him responsible. So even if those tree-splitting, crotch-kicking Pokémon ended up chopping down every tree in the Hoenn Region, the League couldn't come after Edward directly.
That said, something still had to be done.
"If your concern is more about reputation than legal liability," Sara continued, "then there are still steps you can take. You could consider making a donation and participating in tree-planting initiatives. I've looked into the affected trees, and although they've been split, it hasn't significantly affected their ability to survive. Furthermore, trends like these typically don't last very long. As long as you release new shorts, you should be able to guide attention in a different direction."
Edward nodded. That did make sense. Since that was the case, he would just hand Ada a new script and have him shoot another short film as soon as possible. Once Yanister started broadcasting the new video, they could redirect the attention of the Pokémon audience toward other activities.
"I remember there were some more positive and constructive episodes of Tom and Jerry," Edward muttered thoughtfully. "Maybe I can pick one of those and give it a Pokémon-world-style overhaul..."
He had made up his mind. He would expedite the release of a new Persian and Rattata short film to avoid having every tree in Hoenn become a victim of crotch-splits. Otherwise, he really might end up getting reprimanded by the League.
After thanking Miss Sara, Edward left. He decided to stop by and visit Headmistress Lilian. Now that he thought about it, ever since he returned to Hoenn, he hadn't visited her yet.
He wondered how Ruckus was doing these days. And then there was that foul-mouthed Kirlia—had it become even a little more normal under Lilian's guidance? The thought piqued Edward's curiosity.
Passing by a juice bar on the way, Edward took a detour and walked in. He ordered three berry juices for himself and then placed an additional order of several cups of berry juice, asking the staff to deliver them to the Pokémon Daycare Center once they were ready.
"Fortune, what kind of juice do you like?" Edward asked as he released Fortune from his Poké Ball. He already knew what flavors Q liked, but he hadn't figured out Fortune's preferences yet.
Fortune looked over the menu and eventually selected a Leppa Berry juice. Edward then asked the staff to swap out one of his previous orders and make it a Leppa Berry juice as well.
Once everything was prepared, Edward picked up Q, with Fortune following behind, and they left the juice bar. Edward didn't have anything against Fortune in particular—it was just that the Pokémon weighed thirty kilograms, and frankly, that was a bit much to carry around.
"Oh, right—there's one more thing I need to do today." Edward suddenly remembered something important. It was midday, the usual lunch break, and Zoroark was still passionately gaming back at the company. Edward had a scheduled appointment this afternoon to visit the bank and withdraw some funds.
With Q in his arms and Fortune trotting beside him, Edward made his way through the city streets under the astonished gazes of passing pedestrians, eventually arriving at the largest bank in Rustboro City: the Pokémon Bank.
This was the official bank of the Pokémon League, and the largest banking institution across all Pokémon regions. It was a cross-regional financial giant—anywhere under the jurisdiction of the Pokémon League, this bank could be found.
"Good afternoon, sir. What business would you like to take care of today?" A lobby manager approached him as soon as he walked in. When the manager noticed Fortune at his side, it was as if everything clicked into place. He seemed to understand exactly why this customer was here.
A Gholdengo, huh? That species had been all the rage lately within the League. They were known not just for their popularity, but for their association with extreme displays of wealth.
Occasionally, other trainers with Gholdengo came in to exchange their currency for coins too.
"I had an appointment to exchange 500,000 into coins," Edward said as he hugged Q, who had just finished drinking his juice and let out a satisfied little burp.
Fortune's eyes widened.
How much?!
"Ah, Mr. Edward! Yes, yes, of course, we've received your appointment. The coins you requested have already been prepared and are currently stored in our mini-vault. Please, follow me!" The lobby manager became even more enthusiastic after recognizing his identity.
Edward was a name everyone in finance knew: the future president of Devon Corporation, a mega-rich individual, and a VIP client of the highest tier.
The Stone family was, after all, the largest account holder in the entire League Banking system.
Edward wasn't surprised in the slightest. Hugging Q and followed by Fortune, he made his way into the bank's mini-vault. And there they were—an endless, dazzling sea of coins.
All of them were League-issued coins, in one-dollar denominations. A full five hundred thousand of them, stacked and stored right here.
"Fortune, time to put it away," Edward said casually.
Fortune let out a happy cry and dove forward, his body absorbing the coins like a flowing river. One after another, the coins disappeared into his golden body, making his already shimmering form shine even brighter and more brilliantly gold.
Edward rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
'Five hundred thousand in coins... is that enough to crush a pseudo-legendary Pokémon to death?' A single Make It Rain attack tossing all five hundred thousand coins... now that would be luxurious.
This time, he really was going to throw money around—literally.
(End of Chapter)