"Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds choke the unused path." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Is it wrong that I'm a bit jealous of Aaron now that our reveal has happened?
Ever since that inaugural conference, his popularity has soared to new heights, captivating audiences far and wide. Not a single day goes by without him appearing on a talk show or being featured in news broadcasts, where his insights and charisma continue to draw attention.
The thing is, when you can teleport anywhere in the world via the GTS, you can appear on half a dozen talk shows and still make several appearances at children's hospitals, all on the same day.
Given how monumental the whole 'returned hero' thing is, I completely understand the fervor, but it still feels unfair that I've been temporarily prohibited from taking interviews just because I went 'off script' one time!
Still, it's not like I'm complaining. Stepping back into the field has been nothing short of exhilarating. Each day brings the thrill of exploring new regions and venturing into deep, untamed wilderness—some places that humanity may have never set foot in before.
Much of my time is spent surveying breathtaking landscapes, but I also get to do other things, like planting berry bushes in strategic zones in the deep wilderness.
One of the first crucial steps in successfully taming a wild area is ensuring that the native Pokémon are well-fed, which in turn makes them less aggressive. To achieve this, the league has me plant genetically enhanced berries that are designed to flourish and yield multiple harvests each day.
I'm very good at identifying the prime locations where wild Pokémon are most likely to search for food, creating a perfect synergy between my cultivation efforts and their natural foraging behaviors.
By strategically placing these berry plants, the hope is to create a tame zone that promotes tranquility among the local Pokémon populations. This would allow humanity to come in and capture a greater diversity of species for their trainers and, depending on the area, push the carefully managed zones of human civilization out further.
When I return from these first-ranging expeditions, I check in to see how my kits are doing with the Unovan Royals and at Oak's lab.
Seeing them happy and well-fed always reassures me that I made the right decision all that time ago. Amidst the joy of these visits, I also immerse myself in a sea of legal documents that the league and Oak regularly provide me with.
It's a constant battle that I have to keep on top of. It's an ever-changing complex web of legal loopholes that require my constant attention, particularly in relation to safety standards and the rights of Pokémon.
The intricacies of this legal landscape can be more than a bit bewildering, as each region has its own unique set of laws that can occasionally clash with the broader regulations established by the League. Understanding these discrepancies is crucial, as they can significantly impact my life if I'm not careful.
No matter what I do, I have to tread carefully to ensure I'm not inadvertently breaking any laws simply by living my life. It's also somewhat fascinating to dive into the legal nuances surrounding certain regulations such as those that were implemented specifically to thwart wealthy individuals from designating their Pokémon as the exclusive heirs to their multi-million pokédollar fortunes in their wills.
Among the usual paperwork, I sort through bank notices that denote my steadily rising bank account balances. The back pay from my time in captivity is no joke, and now, my new ranger position offers a solid steady income. Bolstered by hazard pay for working in the unpredictable wilderness, I am starting to make bank!
The only issue now is that I am still trying to figure out what to do with my money. I don't really have any significant wants and most of my needs are already being taken care of.
Initially, I find myself spending money on novelty battle items, drawn in by their unique designs and the power boosts they promised. However, my excitement quickly fades when I realize just how easily the fragile trinkets break in actual combat. Their lack of durability morphed my enthusiasm into disappointment.
My big spending has secondary unintended consequences, however. The ad algorithms on the online marketplaces notice my spending habits because suddenly, my browser is flooded with an array of dazzling and enticing objects, each one vying for my attention and beckoning me to part with my hard-earned money.
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When the online shop presents me with an immaculate gold nugget on sale, I immediately snap up the deal but once I actually get my claws on it, I'm not sure what to do with it.
At first, I use it as a sort of paperweight, but an idle thought makes me wonder: Didn't people used to take a bite of the metal to check its purity? Is gold really that soft?
Driven by an insatiable curiosity, I cautiously sink my teeth into the imposing gold sphere before me. To my surprise, my supernaturally strong teeth pierce the metal with ease. The texture is undeniably much tougher than anything a human could ever hope to gnaw on comfortably, but a strange satisfaction washes over me as I break into the gleaming surface.
Somehow, the high-value item has become my favorite chew toy. I mean, it's made from a non-toxic material but also has a unique texture—it's firm yet not chewy, offering a delightful resistance that no other hard plastics can match.
And when the glossy surface catches the light just right, it makes it even more enticing to play with. What I love most is that it's basically infinitely reusable, too; I just have to reshape it back into a ball, and then bam, it's ready for my next round of fun.
One day, while staying at site 6 for a routine health checkup, Richard unexpectedly walks into my dorm room after knocking, eager to check in on me since I rarely get to visit him anymore. At that moment, I am completely caught off guard, a heavy lump of gold wedged between my teeth, half sticking out of my mouth and glinting dully in the light.
The room suddenly feels suffocating, and I struggle to maintain my composure as he stands there, wide-eyed. I already know that he is going to overreact and make a big deal of my new chew toy choices.
Richard looks at the precious metal in my mouth in abject disbelief, a mixture of shock and disgust etched across his face.
"What are you chewing?" Richard asks slowly.
Acting nonchalantly, I wave and grin, giving him a better view of what I held between my teeth—a large, crumpled wad of golden metal representing what must be an entire year's salary for him.
He gasps, his voice rising in urgency as he demands I spit it out, but I stand my ground. With a defiant shrug, I countered, "I paid for this, so I'll do whatever I want with it." Tension hung in the air as I continued to chew, relishing the taste of rebellion.
A glint enters his eyes as he contemplates my words.
Not taking my reasoning as sufficient enough, he lunges for me, intent on taking away my precious, but I dash out of my desk chair, causing it to crash to the ground, and barely dodging his attempt to grab at me.
Hoping over my couch, I turn around and grin at him, showing off the deformed metal ball again as if to taunt him. Whenever he makes a motion to go around the couch one way, I move in the opposite direction, forcing him to glare at me and for my metallic grin to grow wider at his frustration.
He then proceeds to chase me around the room, yelling all the while as if I am some toddler chewing on something that I shouldn't have in my mouth. He keeps on yelling at me to 'drop it' like I was a dog, so in response, I growl back at him playfully.
Finally, Richard has enough and vaults over my couch in a surprise attack. I try scurrying out of the way, but he lands directly on top of me, pinning my limbs with his knees.
Not wanting to use my claws in fear of accidentally hurting him, I find myself trapped as his hands try to pry my jaws apart.
In some instinctive fear of losing my prize, I accidentally do something really stupid: I swallow the deformed metal ball in one big gulp.
Richard, seeing this, looks at me in disbelief.
"...well, if you want it now, you are going to have to wait a day or two," I say sheepishly.
Richard stares for a moment longer before laughing at the absurdity of the moment.
"You realize that's not going to be fun when that has to come out the other end," he says.
Thinking of how large the gold ball had been, I grimace.
He was right. It was not a fun experience, and I'd never look at gold the same way ever again.
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