Although Edward had now become the acting chairman of Devon Corporation, his life hadn't changed all that much. If anything, it just meant he had more responsibilities and more documents to review each day.
Still, Edward adapted to this new routine rather well. After all, he'd done similar work in the past—just without having to go through so many reports and spreadsheets.
Even though his father had gone off to "recharge" by mining, Devon Corporation didn't suffer in his absence. On the contrary, everything continued to operate smoothly.
"Chairman, did I hear correctly—you're interested in developing electric trains?" Secretary Kennedy asked as he looked at Edward.
At the moment, Edward was seated in his chair, going over a project list detailing the company's current R&D efforts. Most of the projects still focused on Devon's core industries, though there were quite a few new developments scattered throughout—almost like casting a wide net.
"It's not exactly electric trains—more like clean energy vehicles," Edward replied with a smile. "I did some market research before, and currently, traditional gasoline cars are still dominant across all regions of the League."
He had his own ideas for the future direction of Devon.
Back when he attended the PokéTech Expo, Edward had realized that the Pokémon League was gradually pushing an environmental agenda. It was very likely that eco-friendly industries would become a major focus in the future—just like in his past life. That's why he decided to get a head start by launching clean energy vehicles.
On one hand, it would align with the League's sustainability goals. On the other, it would boost Devon's public image. After all, the League was built around the harmony between humans and Pokémon, and protecting the environment was a natural extension of that.
"Yes. According to last year's League Industry Survey, gasoline-powered cars are still the mainstream," Kennedy replied instinctively.
Zoroark, standing nearby, looked at Kennedy in surprise. It hadn't expected him to remember something as obscure as last year's industrial report.
That report was thick—Zoroark had seen it before. It was packed with data on nearly every public industry in the League. There was so much information that Zoroark hadn't even bothered to read it.
"At the PokéTech Expo, I noticed clear signs that the League wants to move toward environmental protection," Edward said calmly as he handed a few documents to Kennedy. "Cars are one of the most widely used forms of transportation in the League right now. I think there's still a huge market for cleaner alternatives."
Though Kennedy was technically "just" a secretary, he had served alongside Edward's father for years. So even though Edward was now acting chairman, he knew better than to ignore Kennedy's opinions.
If he could get Kennedy on board, it would also make it easier to explain the plan to his father later.
"I understand." Kennedy examined the documents with a more serious expression. Then he immediately summoned the head of Devon's R&D department—a Kadabra named Corona.
"So you're looking into clean energy development?" Corona asked, telepathically transmitting her question while scanning the documents floating before her.
Edward nodded. "To be more precise, I want to focus on clean energy that's cheap and easy to obtain. My initial idea is electricity."
He rubbed his hands together in excitement.
In his previous life, electric cars had already proven to be viable. Although recharging had always been an issue, that wouldn't be a problem in the Pokémon world. With so many strong Electric-type Pokémon, even high-powered electricity was easy to come by—some Pokémon could generate lightning rivaling that of natural storms.
If someone like Zapdos were involved, powering an entire city wouldn't even be a challenge.
So if Devon could develop electric vehicles compatible with Pokémon-assisted charging, the issue of difficult charging infrastructure would essentially be solved.
It would be incredibly convenient.
Even League-run charging stations wouldn't require heavy infrastructure—just a few trained staff with Electric-type Pokémon on duty, and that would be enough.
"Electricity really is a great energy source," Corona said, instantly understanding what Edward was going for. She could even guess the deeper reasoning behind the idea. Even though she was a Psychic-type Pokémon, she knew a few Electric-type moves herself.
With this, road trips would never have to worry about running out of fuel—just a Thunderbolt or Thunder Wave could keep things going.
As for the League's environmental policies, Corona didn't care much about that. She focused solely on the technical challenges.
"Is this idea feasible?" Edward asked, rubbing his hands again.
From what he had seen, Devon currently had no involvement in the automotive industry. If they could break into it, they'd be able to grab a share of that market too. Sure, it might ruffle a few feathers, but Devon wouldn't mind.
After all, the company had grown from a regional powerhouse in Hoenn to one of the most renowned enterprises in the League. They had made plenty of enemies along the way.
But unless someone was stupid enough to join a criminal organization and go against the League itself, the League wouldn't do anything drastic to Devon.
Of course, a few restrictions were inevitable.
For now, though, those restrictions were minimal—mainly because Silph Co. still sat at the top. Silph was the real titan of the League economy, with massive influence. Even Poké Balls were one of their products, showing just how deeply embedded they were in League infrastructure.
"I don't know yet. We'll have to research it," Corona replied, stirring her spoon gently.
Edward wasn't in a rush. He told her and the R&D team to start looking into it as soon as possible. Whatever they needed—money, resources, staff—he'd provide.
After all, the development costs would eventually be factored into the product prices and passed on to the consumers. That was how most companies operated anyway.
Because if you used your profits to fund R&D directly and hit a snag, it could bring the whole company down. That's why most corporations spread development costs across product sales—the more they sold, the faster they broke even.
"Alright then, I'll leave it to you, Corona." Edward smiled.
"By the way, Chairman, I heard that Kode is working under you now?" Corona looked at Edward and asked, catching him off guard for a moment.
Then, reflexively, he nodded.
(End of Chapter)