In the early morning, Gringey City was still shrouded in a layer of gray, hazy mist.
The peculiar scent in the air—a mixture of chemical agents and rotting organic matter—had not dissipated in the slightest with the passing of the night. Even though many of the Grimer, Muk, and Trubbish in the city had been dealt with, this pervasive odor that seemed to emanate from nowhere and everywhere was impossible to eliminate.
Fortunately, after these Pokémon had gorged themselves on the city's garbage, their tempers had improved significantly, and they were no longer as violent as before. The environment is not something that can be changed in a short time, unless a powerful Pokémon were to directly alter the surrounding ecology.
For example, if Ho-Oh were to fly across the sky, it could directly purify the surrounding air.
Right now, only a few parts of the entire city still had relatively clean air. The Pokémon Center, relying on its powerful air filtration system, barely maintained a pure land where one could breathe freely.
After all, the Pokémon Center is a medical facility, so it has certain requirements for the environment. If the air were full of inexplicable components, how could medical treatment be carried out?
Inside the Pokémon Center's cafeteria, the lights were bright. The warm aroma of heated food filled the surroundings.
However, unlike usual, the common noise and vitality of Trainers on their journeys were missing here; instead, there was mostly silent eating and hushed conversations.
Well, Gringey City is a relatively remote place to begin with, and very few Trainers pass through here. Everyone usually chooses another route.
For instance, going east from Vermilion City and then south to reach Fuchsia City. Going west from Celadon City and then south to Fuchsia City is actually a bit far.
At the time, Ash and his two companions thought it would be perfect to return the bicycle to Erika. Plus, getting comfort from a beauty as stunning as Lady Erika was obviously a higher priority than seeking out that rough fellow, Lt. Surge.
...Although this reason is a bit of a stretch, a beautiful young lady is indeed more popular than a rough man, right? It's just that unfair.
So, the three of them did not choose to go from Saffron City to Vermilion City, but instead returned to Celadon City from Saffron City.
Many of the people eating around them wore expressions of obvious exhaustion. Maintaining order in this city was a mentally draining task... dealing with those troublesome 'filth monsters' whose demands were also a hassle. Garbage-type Pokémon are clearly very strong. But there's a reason very few people catch them. They are truly difficult to handle.
Ash, Brock, and Misty sat in a relatively quiet corner of the cafeteria. Simple breakfast items were laid out on the table—bread, Berries, and hot soup.
But the appetites of the three seemed to be affected by the external environment and their internal thoughts, appearing somewhat lacking in enthusiasm.
Ash unconsciously stirred the soup in his bowl with a spoon. Incidentally, he told his two companions the full story of his encounter in the sewer yesterday, his conversation with Riyong, Officer Jenny's explanation, and Professor Oak's analysis.
This kind of thing wasn't classified information anyway. It was certainly better for everyone to think about it together.
"...So, that's roughly how it is." Ash finished speaking and let out a long breath. "The League's strategy is to let them decrease naturally as the environment improves. The Professor also said this is... part of the ecological balance."
From the League's perspective, this was the optimal solution.
Brock remained silent. The breakfast in front of him had hardly been touched. On Brock's face, which usually appeared steady and reliable, brows were slightly furrowed at this moment.
Is it too early for Ash to be worrying about such things?—That was what Brock was thinking.
After a while, he spoke slowly, his voice deep and carrying a sense of vicissitude: "Conflict and struggle... are inherently part of how this world operates, Ash."
Brock raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Ash and Misty. "It's not just between humans and Pokémon, but between Pokémon and Pokémon, and even the changes in the natural environment itself—all are full of this kind of silent or vocal contention."
Brock picked up a piece of bread and gently broke it apart, as if demonstrating something. "Just as rocks seem solid and eternal, under the day and night erosion of water flow and windblown sand, they will slowly change shape, or even shatter. New mountain ranges will rise, and old rock strata will sink."
"The Pokémon living within them compete, fight, and eliminate each other for food, territory, and chances of survival... This is a rule carved into the underlying code of life. Cruel, but real."
Brock paused, looking out the window at the gloomy sky. "The problem in Gringey City is merely a manifestation of this rule becoming exceptionally sharp and complex at a specific time and place due to the intervention of human activities."
If the Kanto League hadn't felt back then that they couldn't just let the Grimer and Muk saving Gringey City starve to death, and artificially dumped large amounts of garbage... it wouldn't have caused the Grimer and Muk to multiply in large numbers, nor the mass birth of Trubbish and Garbodor.
In a sense, the situation today is the backlash against the League's artificial interference in natural selection.
"What we can do as Trainers is perhaps, on the basis of understanding this rule, to try our best to find that... balance point that allows the most life to continue and reproduce."
"Although this balance point is often accompanied by the sacrifice of a portion of life."
Having been a Gym Leader for many years, Brock was obviously more knowledgeable. As a Gym Leader, one also has to maintain the surrounding ecology. Sometimes, small anomalies always appear. The problems aren't huge, but they must be dealt with.
Brock's words carried a profound understanding of earth and rock. They also revealed a heavy sense of helplessness. This is the duty of a Gym. Ordinary people can enjoy quiet and peaceful times, naturally because the strong are carrying the burden and moving forward.
...Anyway, when this world encounters most problems, ordinary people can't handle them even if they try. ...So if something bad is really discovered, the strong must step up immediately and not let the matter ferment and grow larger.
Listening to this, Misty also put down the Berry in her hand and sighed softly. A trace of empathetic melancholy flowed in her eyes... she had started working at a young age, after all. Fortunately, she was working for her own family's Gym, so it didn't count as child labor.
"What Brock said... although it sounds a bit uncomfortable, it is indeed true," Misty said. "In our Cerulean Gym, we focus more on the ecology of Water-type Pokémon. In the ocean, this situation is even more common and direct."
"There are simply too many Pokémon in the ocean."
Misty felt this was also the reason why the Giant Dragonite didn't care much during the previous incident in Vermilion City. The biological density in the sea is much higher than on land.
"On the surface, it looks blue and magnificent, harmonious and happy, but beneath the sea surface, a drama of survival is being staged almost every moment. Weak schools of Goldeen need to be constantly vigilant against the hunting of Sharpedo."
"Magikarp want to evolve; they need to accumulate enough energy and experience countless dangers. Even the seemingly gentle Tentacool will engage in fierce conflicts with other groups to fight for fertile waters."
"The limited nature of living space dictates that the brief peace achieved amidst struggle is the main theme of the ocean and even the entire world."
The resources of this world are indeed abundant. But living space is also limited. Who wants to live in a small studio apartment if they can live in a large flat? Who wants to live in a pigeon cage if they can live in a detached villa?
"Dynamic balance..." Ash muttered, repeating the term, his eyes somewhat unfocused.
This reminded him of a certain work, Digimon Adventure. In that world, there is an existence that is neither good nor evil, neither light nor dark... although everyone likes to jokingly call it a shit-stirrer. That is the Digital Host mentioned in Digimon: Homeostasis.
"Dynamic balance is the main theme of the world..." Ash looked up at his two companions, trying to use this cross-world concept to support and organize his thoughts.
"...It is not about maintaining an absolutely static, perfect state, but ensuring that when the entire world system encounters internal chaos or external shocks, it can restore itself to a dynamic balance through self-regulation."
"Allowing conflict, death, and even destruction and restart... as long as it doesn't lead to the collapse of the entire ecosystem."
"This is called: [Eternal Motion of the World · Balancing All]."
"It is known as: [Homeostasis]."
Simply put, it is the fault tolerance rate of a system.
And just as Ash thought of this point, the Ho-Oh feather he kept in his chest pocket began to glow again. The trial of the Rainbow Hero is just like this. It doesn't ask for absolute right or wrong. The transformation of the challenger's thinking is the key point.
After all, how could something with a clear right or wrong answer count as Ho-Oh's trial? That difficulty would be too low.
Brock nodded thoughtfully: "A very interesting analogy... Homeostasis, maintaining a dynamic balance rather than a pool of stagnant water. This indeed aligns more with the essence of life and world evolution than simply pursuing one side overwhelming the other, or maintaining a fragile static illusion."
"The predicament before our eyes is the necessary labor pains and internal regulation that this local area of Gringey City must experience while transitioning from an [Industrial Pollution Balance] to an [Environmental Cleanliness Balance]."
Brock felt these terms made a lot of sense; they sounded very faithful, expressive, and elegant. They could definitely be used when writing papers in the future. At that time, he could even list Ash as the second author~~
Brock wasn't a brute who only knew martial force. He had learned a lot on the path of a Breeder.
Misty also nodded slightly: "The sea is the same; there is no eternal peace, only an order that is constantly broken and constantly re-established."
"It's just... knowing is one thing, but seeing those Grimer and Muk struggling because they lost their foundation for survival... my heart still feels bad."
Her words represented the soft side within the hearts of most Trainers—understanding the rules, yet unable to be completely numb to the suffering of individuals.
Regarding this, Brock and Ash held the same attitude. Knowing is one thing. But feeling unhappy about it is still feeling unhappy.
Just as the three of them were immersed in a heavy discussion about the laws of the world's operation in the corner of the Pokémon Center, trying to find a pivot point for the contradictions in their hearts...
In another forgotten shadow of Gringey City, another force was quietly gathering and fermenting. After all, the current situation in Gringey City was not that simple. The thoughts on the human side were not completely unified.
Likewise.
Regarding Ash's mindset, Suicune and Entei were also very satisfied.
Not standing completely on the side of humans. Not standing completely on the side of Pokémon.
Having his own stance. Having his own thoughts. Having his own conclusions.
Suicune: "This one should be able to pass this time."
Entei: "His mindset is very good; there shouldn't be big problems this time."
Entei: "Eternal Motion of the World · Balancing All · Homeostasis... I like this phrasing."
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