Chapter 6: Resources Rationalization

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It wasn't until 7 o'clock the next morning that Sato slowly woke up from his bed. The first thing he did, still half-asleep, was to glance at the red and white Pokéball resting on the table.

Realizing this wasn't a dream, Sato checked the time on his Team Rocket-issued watch. He closed his eyes for a moment, and after about a minute, he opened them again, now fully awake.

After a quick wash, Sato put on his Team Rocket recruit uniform and attached the Pokéball containing Zubat to his belt, then left his room.

As the saying goes, "food is the first necessity of the people." Feeling quite hungry after waking up, his first stop was the communal dining hall. Team Rocket's welfare system was quite decent for it's members—anyone contributing to the organization could get enough food to eat, and it was unlimited.

Even though Sato and other new recruits hadn't contributed to Team Rocket yet, they were still entitled to certain benefits, including three free meals a day with no limits on portions.

Of course, with free meals, you couldn't expect high quality. The food was basic—there was plenty of rice, but only limited amounts of side dishes. If you wanted something better, you'd have to spend points to buy it.

It was already past 7 a.m., so those with assigned tasks had long since left the dining hall. The only ones left were new recruits like Sato Kaede.

Most of them had already finished eating and were gathered in small groups, frowning as they discussed how to tame the Pokémon inside their Pokéballs. These recruits weren't stupid; they knew that "three heads are better than one," so they hoped to work together as a team to tame their Pokémon.

While a single person might not be able to handle a Pokémon, ten or more well-prepared individuals could likely stand a chance.

If they could help one person tame their Pokémon, the rest would be easier. Once the first Pokémon was tamed, that person could help the others do the same.

Sato's arrival didn't draw much attention. By now, the new recruits had naturally formed small teams, and no one was interested in Sato, who had arrived late and was as quite thin.

So, Sato quietly picked up his free breakfast from the cafeteria staff and found a secluded corner to eat in peace.

He wasn't concerned with how others planned to tame their Pokémon. He already had a method in mind to tame Zubat—what he needed now were the tools to do so.

The easiest and most straightforward way to get those tools was to exchange points through Team Rocket's internal points exchange system. Having reviewed the exchange system's prices multiple times and memorized them, Sato knew very well how crucial points were within Team Rocket. Points were the lifeblood of the organization.

If he wanted to live well in Team Rocket, he had to earn as many points as possible. Outside of Team Rocket, raising Pokémon cost money; inside, it cost points.

Moreover, Team Rocket had access to many rare resources, some of which couldn't be purchased even with a lot of money. Combined with the fair exchange rates, points were considered far more valuable than money by Team Rocket members.

As a new recruit, Sato Kaede currently only had 200 points as his initial resource. How to make the best use of these resources to ensure greater returns in the future was a crucial matter.

During the briefing from the Team Rocket squad leader yesterday, although the explanation of the places new recruits were allowed to access within the base was brief, Sato Kaede remembered it clearly.

The places where new recruits like him could freely come and go were limited to four areas: the public cafeteria, the recruit dormitory, the public training ground, and the public market.

He had already visited the first two places, but the third—the training ground—wasn't necessary yet, as he hadn't tamed Zubat. As for the fourth place, the public market, it was the one Sato wanted to check out the most. If his guess was correct, he would likely find something valuable there.

Where there are people, there is a marketplace, and the role of a market is to efficiently optimize the distribution of resources. Most of the people in Team Rocket, including the experienced members, had once faced the same challenges that Sato and the other new recruits were now encountering.

Those who succeeded and stayed must have found ways to tame their Pokémon. While their methods might have been varied and unusual, someone must have figured out how to exploit Zubat's weakness to bright light in order to tame it.

Thus, those who had used this method to tame Zubat were bound to have the very items Sato Kaede needed.

Currently, the base was seeing an influx of new recruits (Sato Kaede's group was just one of many). Each new recruit had been given 200 free points. While that might not seem like a lot, when you consider the number of recruits, it added up to a lucrative opportunity.

Experienced Team Rocket members wouldn't pass up such a "juicy" target. Though this was only the first day, and they hadn't yet openly started exploiting various methods to "seize" the recruits' valuable points, Sato Kaede was certain that in a day or two, even if the recruits hadn't thought to seek help from these veterans, the veterans themselves would reach out to offer assistance.

The instructor, Caesar, had already said that as long as the recruits could tame their Pokémon, it didn't matter what method they used—it would count as a pass. So, when veterans offered paid assistance, the recruits would likely be very willing to accept it.

Of course, time was on the veterans' side. The more time pressed on, the higher their prices would go, especially for the recruits who had yet to tame their Pokémon by the final day. Those desperate recruits would be willing to pay any price, even promising future rewards in exchange for help.

Sato, who was especially sharp-minded, had thought through all of this. Since learning a hard lesson in the past, he had become extremely cautious in his actions. While others might only plan one or two steps ahead, he would try to anticipate the next four or five and come up with several contingency plans.

Having lived two lives, Sato had matured significantly. The tragedies of his first life had caused him to lose much, but they had also taught him many valuable lessons.