Professor Elm was asking whether such experiments were necessary. After all, this was not his theory, and the final decision rested with Shiro.
"Just like types, a Pokémon may belong to only one Egg Group, or it may belong to two at the same time."
After typing that line, Shiro went on to answer the rest of Elm's minor questions.
He then read through everything again, and once he was sure there were no other important messages, he closed the laptop and stepped out of his bedroom.
He had arrived in a hurry yesterday and gone straight into research, so he had not properly looked around the institute yet. Professor Rowan had said he would give him a tour today; he just did not know whether Rowan still had the energy after working all night.
When Shiro walked into the main hall, he found the dining area packed with researchers.
"Dr. Corviknight, the experiment is finished!"
Rowan's assistant, a tall middle-aged man named Rei, approached him. Dark circles hung under his eyes and his face looked worn out, yet his eyes and voice carried unmistakable excitement.
"It's done?"
Shiro had not expected it to be this fast. "You didn't stay up the whole night, did you?"
"That's right." Rei smiled as if it were nothing.
If the experiment worked and proved a theory correct, then staying up one night meant nothing. Even three days without sleep would not make him or the others complain.
"That's impressive…" Shiro praised sincerely. "Have you seen Professor Rowan?"
"Oh." Rei pointed upstairs. "The professor is still in Research Lab No. 3 on the second floor, entering data."
"Thanks."
Shiro turned and headed upstairs.
At the far end of the east corridor on the second floor, beside a large rectangular glass window, the door to Research Lab No. 3 stood open. As soon as he stepped inside, he saw Rowan bent over a computer, typing nonstop.
After just one night, Rowan's neatly combed hair had turned into a messy nest, and his white lab coat was stained with black and red marks. He was so focused that he did not notice the figure quietly walking up behind him.
"Sinnoh region Pokémon data, number 111, Garchomp. Type: Dragon/Ground…" Shiro murmured softly.
The interface on the screen looked familiar, instantly reminding him of the Pokédex.
The Pokédex… wasn't that Professor Oak's research project?
Rowan was probably helping collect Pokémon data along the way. This was groundbreaking research.
Hearing the voice, Rowan snapped out of his repetitive data entry and turned around. "Ah, Shiro."
His face looked pale, and his voice sounded weak.
Seeing how drained he was, Shiro quickly said, "Professor, why don't you get some rest first…"
"No need!" Rowan immediately straightened up. "My institute isn't that big. I'll show you around first. Otherwise, if you need to conduct some research later, it'll be troublesome if you don't know your way."
The main reason he insisted was that he did not want to appear discourteous. A renowned Pokémon scholar who had helped him had come all this way; if he did not personally give him a tour of the institute, he would not forgive himself.
"Alright then."
Shiro had no objections.
Rowan first raised his hand and pointed to the device he had been using to input data. "This is actually a part of Professor Oak's research project. I'm just helping provide some data."
The Pokémon data might look simple and insignificant, but for the vast majority of trainers it was extremely valuable knowledge. In the wild, it could even save lives.
Because Pokémon knowledge was kept under strict confidentiality, it could not simply be copied and pasted. In the entire institute, only Rowan was qualified to transmit such information.
"Honestly, it's just manual labor," Rowan complained, rubbing his aching lower back. "I just don't understand why Professor Oak wants all this. He could clearly handle it himself…"
Shiro frowned slightly.
He knew that Oak's goal was to create the Pokédex, and that the finished device would be distributed to trainers. Oak's ultimate aim was likely for every new League trainer setting out on their journey to have one.
Such large-scale dissemination of Pokémon knowledge was bound to offend certain parties.
And yet Oak had requested all this data without explaining his true purpose…
While Shiro was still thinking, Rowan had already started walking and gestured for him to follow.
"This is Research Lab No. 2. It mainly handles theoretical studies and research on small Pokémon," Rowan said as they continued forward. "And this is Research Lab No. 1, which focuses on large Pokémon."
Shiro gave the rooms a quick glance. Research Lab No. 2 was filled with desks and chairs, while Research Lab No. 1 housed the evolutionary magnetic field research. Large instruments stood prominently inside, and several researchers were busy recording data.
"The west corridor has Lab No. 4, 5, and 6. They're similar."
After saying that, Rowan led Shiro straight downstairs without any intention of stopping to look.
"There's no one over there. It's been empty for a long time," he explained.
Shiro could not help asking, "Is the institute short on staff?"
Rowan looked slightly embarrassed and scratched his head instinctively. "Yes. There are only a little over twenty people in total. Mainly because this institute hasn't produced results in a long time, so talented researchers don't want to come. Most of them head to Kanto to try their luck."
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked," Shiro apologized.
"It's nothing. Everyone knows it anyway…"
The two men walked into the yard outside.
According to League standards, a professor's research institute required not only one or more main buildings, but also at least three different types of Pokémon ecological parks so that Pokémon could be raised and used for experiments conveniently.
In larger institutes such as Professor Oak's, there could be as many as eight types of ecological zones, enough to cultivate Pokémon of nearly every type and effectively function as a medium-sized breeding center.
"I only have three types of ecological zones here."
As he spoke, Rowan led Shiro to the vast grassy field.
The grass grew evenly across the lawn, gradually decreasing in height and density from east to west. Scattered throughout were Pokémon that fed on or lived among the grass, such as Turtwig and Kricketune.
Toward the northern side of the field lay a sizable lake, around which many Pokémon had gathered.
"This is the Grass Zone," Rowan said, then pointed north. "That pool over there is for raising Water-type Pokémon, and further north there's a forest."
Shiro nodded repeatedly, but his gaze was soon drawn to a four-legged, beast-like Pokémon standing on the grass.
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