Chapter 20: More Than Meets the Eye

The next morning, a bright and clear Sunday, dawned with promise. With no classes to attend, Ethan set off early for Oak Coral, eager to check on Bulbs. As the sun began to rise above the horizon, painting the sky with soft hues of gold and orange, the morning air felt crisp and invigorating. The rustling of leaves and the cheerful chirping of Pidgeys created a symphony of nature that accompanied Ethan on his journey.

He had spent a restless night, his mind buzzing with thoughts of his discovery and its potential implications. Now, his anticipation grew as he approached Oak Coral, curious and anxious to learn the results of the tests Bulbs had undergone the day before.

Walking into the expansive PokeRange, Ethan immediately headed toward the sprawling oak tree where Bulbs often lounged. However, the area was strangely empty. Not a single Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, or Venusaur was in sight. Ethan frowned, his mind racing through possibilities.

"Where could they all be?" he muttered under his breath, scanning the area.

Before he could decide on a course of action, a shimmer of light caught his eye. In a moment, Professor Oak materialized beside him, psychic energy dissipating into the air.

"Good morning, Ethan," Oak greeted him warmly, extending a Poké Ball toward him. "You must be looking for Bulbs."

"Yes," Ethan said, taking the ball with a mix of relief and curiosity. "Where is everyone? The range feels... deserted."

"Cedric and his team are working with the Bulbasaur population in a separate area today," Oak explained. "We're conducting some controlled experiments based on your findings. But don't worry; I made sure Bulbs wasn't overworked."

Ethan nodded and released Bulbs from her Poké Ball. She materialized with a faint shimmer, looking at Ethan with tired eyes. The usual spark of energy in her was dimmed, and Ethan immediately felt a pang of concern.

"You've earned the day off, Bulbs," he said gently. "Rest up."

Bulbs gave a small nod, then bounded off to her favorite spot under the oak tree, curling up and falling asleep almost instantly.

"She's fine," Oak reassured him. "Nurse Joy gave her a clean bill of health. Yesterday's tests were extensive, but nothing she can't bounce back from after a good sleep."

Ethan smiled faintly but was already turning over a question in his mind. Before he could think of a polite way to phrase it, Oak spoke again.

"Anyway," Oak said, his eyes twinkling with a cheerful glint, "what would you like as a reward for your discovery? If it's within reason, I might just comply."

Ethan hesitated, his mind churning. Before he could think about rewards, he needed clarity. Something about their reaction to Vital Powder didn't sit right with him. The excitement from Oak, Master Cedric, and Nurse Joy seemed exaggerated, almost disproportionate to the powder's capabilities. Sure, Vital Powder was useful, but it wasn't groundbreaking—not compared to moves like Life Dew, Healing Pulse, or Healing Wish, which Pokémon like Chansey and Blissey could perform with astonishing results. Those moves could heal internal injuries, mend organ damage, and even reattach severed limbs. Vital Powder, in contrast, only treated minor cuts and bruises while offering a modest energy boost. It wasn't a miracle cure by any stretch of the imagination.

Why, then, had everyone treated its discovery like a monumental breakthrough? What was he missing?

"Professor," Ethan finally said, his voice measured but laced with curiosity. "I'm a little confused. Everyone seemed so excited about Vital Powder, but it doesn't seem all that potent compared to other healing moves. I mean, it's not like it can mend serious injuries. So why is it such a big deal?"

Oak's expression shifted to one of thoughtful consideration. "Ohh, I see where you're coming from, Ethan," he replied, nodding slowly. "It's true that Vital Powder isn't as immediately powerful as some of the healing moves you mentioned. But its significance lies not in its potency, but in its potential."

Oak noticed Ethan's confusion linger and chuckled, his eyes glinting with understanding. "Ah, Ethan," he began, his tone warm yet patient, "you're struggling to grasp the true significance of your discovery because you're unfamiliar with the process behind the creation of this world's most commonly used healing item—Potions. That's understandable, given your clearance level. Let me shed some light on it."

Ethan listened intently as Oak elaborated. "Potions are the cornerstone of Pokémon healing for trainers everywhere. They're portable, flexible, and designed for widespread use. While healing moves performed by Pokémon like Chansey or Blissey are undeniably powerful, those Pokémon are incredibly rare. In fact, only members of the Joy clan normally have access to them.

"This means that to benefit from their abilities, you'd need to bring your Pokémon to a Pokémon Center. But when you're out in the wild, far from any town or facility, that's often impractical. Potions, on the other hand, are readily available and ideal for managing injuries during journeys."

"Now, think about this," Oak said, gesturing to drive his point home. "You're in the middle of nowhere, and your Pokémon sustains a minor injury—nothing life-threatening, but enough to hinder its performance. What would you do? Waiting to reach a Pokémon Center could worsen the situation, and let's be honest—those healing services aren't cheap, especially for something as minor as a few cuts or bruises.

That's why trainers rely so heavily on Potions. They're affordable, efficient, and perfectly suited for handling the most common injuries after battles: minor scrapes, cuts, and general exhaustion. Healing Pokémon, while powerful, are far more expensive to access and reserved for critical situations. For trainers on a budget—and let's face it, most are—Potions are the go-to solution."

Oak then requested Ethan's datapad, and after a few moments of fiddling with it, he brought up a holographic display showcasing the Potion production process. A complex 3D animation sprang to life, illustrating the multi-step manufacturing system. The process involved extracting raw materials from medicinal herbs, processing them, and combining the extracts into various recipes to form healing sprays like Potions, Super Potions, and Hyper Potions. The machinery was vast, spanning an entire industrial facility. Streams of herbs were fed into the system, crushed, distilled, and processed into a whitish powder—the core component of potion-making.

"You see," Oak began, gesturing to the display, "Potion production isn't simple. It's a highly industrialized, complex process."

Ethan leaned in closer, his eyes following the intricate mechanisms that extracted the herbs' essence. "That machinery looks expensive," he remarked.

Oak nodded solemnly. "Exactly. The initial extraction phase is particularly resource-intensive. It requires large-scale equipment to process the herbs into raw materials. And the costs don't stop there—there's maintenance, skilled operators, and the sheer volume of herbs needed, all of which contribute to the financial and logistical burden."

He tapped the screen, zooming in on the herb-extraction phase. "Here's where your discovery comes in. Based on our analysis of Bulbs' Vital Powder, we found that Vital Powder can replace the raw healing compounds this system produces—and it does so with far greater efficiency."

Ethan's eyebrows shot up as Oak continued, his tone animated. "When fed a diet rich in medicinal herbs, a Bulbasaur's ability to produce Vital Powder essentially mirrors the herb-extraction phase of potion production. With proper training and optimization, a group of Bulbasaurs could perform the work of the entire initial phase of this industrial setup."

Oak paused, letting the significance of his words sink in. "And here's the real game-changer, Ethan—our initial calculations suggest that this method is over 30% more efficient than the current industrial process. Think about what that means."

Ethan's mind raced as he pieced it together. "It's not just about saving money," he said slowly, realization dawning. "This could change the process a lot. You wouldn't need massive factories or expensive machinery. Just trained Bulbasaurs and a steady supply of herbs."

Oak smiled, nodding. "That's right. At least for the initial process. The final production into Potions would still require some machinery for additional processing. But Bulbasaur's Vital Powder can replace the bulk of the work in the early stages."

Ethan listened intently as Oak's expression grew more animated. "You see, Ethan, the reason Cedric and I are so excited about this is that Oak Coral has been facing some serious funding challenges lately. It's been a while since we made a breakthrough with enough financial impact to cover our expenses. Most of our recent discoveries have been valuable from a research standpoint, but they haven't generated the kind of profit we need to sustain the high costs of running the entire Oak Coral facility.

"While these discoveries do secure us funding from the League, it's not nearly enough to support the lavish expenses we've become accustomed to. You see, we used to generate a substantial amount of revenue through royalties tied to the products of our research. For example, Oak Lab was instrumental in the creation of the potions and antidotes currently used all around the world today. But those discoveries were made years ago, and after 20 years, our patents expired recently.

Suddenly, we lost a major source of income, as we no longer receive payments every time a potion or antidote is produced or sold. And the Oak Coral facilities, which are used to operating on a larger budget, quickly found themselves in a financial downturn as a result.

"This expiry of some patents really hit us hard. Without those royalties, we've struggled to replace that income. Small modifications to existing recipes or technologies don't count as new innovations for patents, and the League is very strict about preventing what's called 'evergreening'—the practice of extending patent life through minor, trivial changes. So, we've found ourselves in a bit of a bind. We couldn't focus our research powers on improving the existing potion and antidote production processes, because frankly, it would require a capital-intensive, multi-year project, with no guaranteed results. That's why we've had to prioritize other areas, like the NovaDex project, which we are currently focusing on."

Oak paused for a moment, allowing Ethan to absorb everything he'd said. "But now, with your discovery, everything changes. Your finding has the potential to completely transform the potion-making process and, quite possibly, secure us a new patent in the field. That's why Cedric and I are so excited—this could open up an entirely new stream of revenue for Oak Coral."

Ethan's eyes widened as the full significance of Oak's words sank in. Oak's voice grew more animated with optimism as he continued, "Cedric and his breeders are already working to replicate your results with other Bulbasaurs and their evolutions. If they succeed, not only will we secure a new patent—ensuring a steady income for the next 20 years if anyone adopts our method for producing raw materials for potion-making—but we'll also be able to generate income ourselves by producing these materials directly."

He leaned in, emphasizing the next point. "You see, Oak Coral is home to the largest population of tamed Bulbasaurs in the world. While some other enclaves may have more Bulbasaurs, those are all wild ones, unlike ours. Once we get our Bulbasaurs trained in Vital Powder and ensure they're fed a steady diet of medicinal herbs, we can begin mass-producing Vital Powder as the raw material for potion-making."

Oak paused. "Usually, we focus on creating the technology or product, and then we sell the production rights to someone else because our manufacturing capacity is limited. But in this case, we don't need sophisticated machinery to produce the raw materials. All we need are medicinal herbs and trained Bulbasaurs. That's why your discovery is so substantial—even if it doesn't seem like it at first glance."

Ethan nodded slowly, the full scope of his discovery coming into focus. The possibilities were far greater than he had initially realized.

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