The protagonist, Hibiki, was delivered to the afterlife by a speeding truck and reincarnated as an infant into the Pokémon world.
Losing all memories of his past life, he began his second journey under the name Sean Ray.
[PS: Cynthia’s romance sub-plot starts in Chapter 37.] [LanLi: I expect that he gets it back.] ———— Main Story Begins ———— Night.
Heavy snow drifted through the air like goose feathers, casting a cold, silver moonlight over the frozen ground.
A shiny Cyndaquil stumbled through the forest, a deep, bone-deep gash clearly visible on its hind leg.
“Golem, use Rollout!” A Team Rocket grunt hot on its heels yelled at the top of his lungs.
Golem tucked its limbs inward, curling into a massive boulder before launching forward like a cannonball.
Kicking up clouds of snow and debris, it closed the distance at a terrifying speed.
Cyndaquil desperately pushed its limbs forward, using every single ounce of its remaining strength to run.
Its eyes were wide with pure terror and helplessness, tears mixing with melted snow as they streaked across its face.
It didn’t know where else it could run.
Driven entirely by survival instinct, it could only struggle through this freezing, dead-end wasteland.
Just as Golem was about to crash into Cyndaquil at that hair-raising moment…
*BOOM—!!!* An incredibly intense wave of scorching heat erupted out of nowhere, instantly dispelling the biting cold and melting the falling snow.
Cyndaquil stopped in its tracks and turned around in confusion, only for a tall, imposing blue figure to fill its vision!
The panic in its eyes slowly faded, replaced by pure joy and utter reliance, because standing right there was its father—Typhlosion!
Swirling flames enveloped Typhlosion’s body.
With eyes wide with fury, it bared its fangs at the rapidly approaching Golem and roared.
The next second, a massive pillar of crimson flame erupted from its jaws, twisting and warping the very air around it from the sheer heat.
The Flamethrower slammed dead-on into Golem.
Its rocky body instantly turned a glowing, molten red, knocking it completely out of commission.
“Tch.” The Team Rocket grunt clicked his tongue in annoyance.
A flash of apprehension crossed his face, but he didn’t show the slightest hint of backing down.
He immediately whipped out a walkie-talkie, barking orders to call over the nearby reinforcements.
Within moments.
Several dark silhouettes slowly stepped out from the depths of the dense forest.
Typhlosion warily scanned the surrounding Team Rocket members who had regrouped.
These were the exact same enemies it had gone through so much trouble to lure away earlier.
Seeing them close the perimeter again brought a tense expression to its face.
Subconsciously, it shielded the Cyndaquil behind it even tighter, the flames around its neck flaring up with renewed intensity.
“Golbat, Air Cutter!!” several Team Rocket grunts shouted in unison.
High in the air, a swarm of Golbat began flapping their wings violently, unleashing countless crescent-shaped blades of wind.
The attacks converged directly on Typhlosion’s neck, instantly staining its pale yellow fur red with fresh blood.
Normally, it could have dodged these attacks with ease.
But right now, its child was standing right behind it…
Typhlosion spread its arms wide and took the brunt of the slicing wind blades, its body trembling uncontrollably from the excruciating pain.
“Gaoo!
(Run!)” Typhlosion forced its battered body to turn around, roaring anxiously at Cyndaquil.
But Cyndaquil just froze in place, unable to move a muscle…
In its eyes, its father was an invincible pillar of strength, someone whose mere roar could drive away any threat, whose roaring flames could dispel any cold…
Cyndaquil instinctively took a step forward, but then hesitated.
How could it…
how could it just abandon its father and run away alone?
Catching the hesitation out of the corner of its eye, Typhlosion pressed again, desperate: “Gaoo!!
(Run!!)” That roar carried a painful hoarseness, filled with a father’s pleading and absolute command, striking Cyndaquil like a whip.
It finally forced its legs to move and began running with everything it had, though its limp kept its pace painfully slow.
With its life hanging by a thread, Typhlosion’s Blaze ability suddenly erupted.
A towering inferno shot into the sky, illuminating the snowy night like broad daylight.
The light was so blindingly brilliant that the path ahead, the swaying grass, and even Cyndaquil’s own shadow became crystal clear.
Typhlosion charged at the Team Rocket grunts with unstoppable force, using the very fire of its life to light a path of survival for its child.
…
…
Johto Region.
New Bark Town.
Pokémon Primary Academy.
The morning sun filtered through the glass windows, spilling across rows of neatly arranged desks and chairs.
With some time left before class officially started, the classroom was alive with the noisy chatter of students.
“Just another day of world peace~” Seated at the back row by the window, Sean rested his face in his hand and let out a long yawn, gazing idly at the scenery outside.
The class rep, Lyra, was weaving through the aisles, carrying a neat stack of assignment notebooks in her arms.
Full of energy, she always did everything strictly by the book.
“Sean, you’re the only one who hasn’t turned in yesterday’s homework.” Lyra’s tone carried a heavy sigh; this was already the fifth time this week.
Hearing her voice, Sean immediately turned around, revealing a pair of massive dark circles under his eyes.
Lyra knew instantly.
The guy had definitely stayed up all night playing video games again.
“Waaaaah…
Boss Lyra, to tell you the truth, I got hit by a massive truck last night and passed out, so I couldn’t finish my homework.” Sean scratched his perennially messy, spiky hair.
Showing zero remorse, he instead slapped on a deeply flattering grin.
He pressed his hands together in a prayer gesture, squinting one eye as he looked at the neatly stacked notebooks in her arms.
“Let me ‘borrow’ your homework for some quick inspiration.
Five minutes!
No, three minutes is all I need to get it done!” Looking at that entirely too familiar routine, Lyra let out a deep, defeated sigh.
This was a little drama that played out almost every single day, and the excuse changed every single time!
She hesitated for a brief second before pulling out her own notebook and handing it over.
“Just this once, okay?
Don’t make it a habit~” Lyra warned.
Though she knew perfectly well that the warning would fall on deaf ears.
“You’re the absolute best, Lyra!” Sean snatched Lyra’s notebook and immediately began writing at breakneck speed!
Just as the tip of his pen began scratching against the paper, filling the air with a frantic *rustle-rustle*, a very familiar voice echoed from the classroom doorway.
“It seems some people are exceptionally busy this morning.” Professor Elm’s voice was calm, yet it carried the undeniable authority of a teacher.
The noisy classroom went dead silent instantly.
Not a single sound could be heard, save for the frantic *rustle-rustle* of Sean’s pen as he continued to aggressively copy the homework.
Wearing his round glasses and signature white lab coat, Professor Elm slowly walked up, his gaze fixing mildly onto Sean, who was currently scribbling lines like a madman.
Sean suddenly realized a shadow had fallen over him.
Thankfully, it wasn’t shaped like a mushroom cloud…
Wait, no!
He slowly raised his head, and a suffocating pressure akin to a python wrapping around his neck hit him instantly!
Holy crap!
He had been copying so intensely that he completely missed this old geezer sneaking up on him!!
“Uh, haha…
Professor Elm, the wind is quite wild today, isn’t it?~” Sean played dumb.
“Sean Ray!
Just how many times has this been?!
Theoretical knowledge is the very foundation of becoming a Pokémon Trainer!
If you don’t even know a Pokémon’s moves or abilities, how on earth do you expect to train them?!” Professor Elm barked.
“Professor, I’ve noticed you take things way too seriously~ What’s the point of knowing all this junk anyway?
It’s much better to just have a real, gloves-off brawl down on the battlefield!” In an instant, Sean’s mind flashed to an image of himself defeating Champion Lance on a grand stage under the gaze of millions.
He pictured himself showing off a perfectly chiseled jawline, winking smoothly as he dropped the line: “In Johto, you’re nothing but a…
little girl~” Hehehe…
The more Sean thought about it, the more pumped up he got: “Professor, hurry up and give me a Pokémon!
I can’t wait to make my name echo through the entire Johto region!” “…” Professor Elm was completely speechless.
However, those words struck a chord with almost every student in the room, causing them to turn and look at Sean in unison.
It also brought to light a major shift in the current era…
In the Pokémon world, any child who turned 10 used to be able to claim a starter Pokémon—one of the traditional regional trio—from the local Pokémon Professor, before setting off on their dream journey to challenge gyms, collect badges, and enter the League Conference.
But due to a high frequency of injuries and casualties among young, uneducated trainers in the past, the League was forced to implement a strict new policy— Every child who turned 12 had to undergo five long years of theoretical education at a Pokémon Primary Academy, followed by a rigorous examination.
Only after passing the exam could they officially receive a starter Pokémon!
Students who didn’t want to become trainers could choose to continue their higher education and pursue other professional fields instead.
But for a hot-blooded kid like Sean, this policy was nothing short of pure torture!
Professor Elm wasn’t surprised in the slightest by his shameless, straight-faced boasting.
Instead, he calmly countered with a question: “Want to graduate early?
Sure!
The academy’s system isn’t completely rigid.
If you can pass the exams with flying colors like Silver did, you could have started your trainer journey a long time ago!” “This…” Silver.
That name stabbed right into Sean’s heart like a needle.
Sean, Silver, and Lyra were childhood friends who grew up and played together in New Bark Town.
Silver was an absolute, undisputed prodigy who always maintained a cool, detached composure.
A whole year ago, he had cleared the exams with a perfect score across all subjects, kicking off his trainer journey ahead of everyone else.
Lyra’s grades were also exceptional; she only stayed behind at the academy because she was still mulling over whether she actually wanted to become a Pokémon Trainer.
Otherwise, her marks were more than enough to grant her an early graduation.
Seeing his rival and his childhood friend light-years ahead of him left Sean feeling incredibly frustrated.
Right then, Professor Elm patted Sean on the shoulder, delivering the final blow: “Looking at your current state, your primary goal shouldn’t be graduating early, but making sure you don’t get held back a year~” “You old geezer, you—!” “Call me teacher!
You disrespectful brat!” *Bonk!* Professor Elm’s iron fist came down right on Sean’s head, making a crisp sound.
A short while later.
The school bell rang right on time, and the noisy classroom completely settled down.
The lecture was just as mind-numbing and tedious as always…
Sean started by using a pair of dividers to perform a makeshift C-section on his eraser.
Once he got bored of that, he began doodling all over the historical figures in his textbook.
Finally, he resorted to staring blankly out the window at the blue sky, white clouds, and the overly chatty Pidgey perched on the telephone pole, using a ruler to saw away at the corner of his desk to kill the endless hours of class.
*Ring-ring-ring-ring…* Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was finally time for dismissal.
“Ahhh~ Man, I really worked hard today.
What a fulfilling and beautiful day!” Sean stretched his arms, packed his things, and prepared to make a run for it.
…
By evening.
The setting sun painted the sky in shades of brilliant gold.
Following his usual routine, Sean smoothly snuck over to Professor Elm’s house to freeload a meal.
Since his parents worked year-round in other regions and had no time to look after him, they had entrusted him to their old friend, Professor Elm.
Professor Elm didn’t mind the arrangement.
While Sean’s grades were terrible and he was a total troublemaker, he possessed an extraordinary amount of patience and care whenever he dealt with the Pokémon inside the lab’s ecological enclosure.
He kept them fed so well that they grew round and plump, their coats sleek and glossy—honestly doing a better job than Elm could himself, which saved the professor a ton of time and energy.
Treating Professor Elm’s place entirely like his own home, Sean walked through the door and immediately collapsed onto the sofa, lazily clicking through the TV remote.
From the kitchen, Professor Elm, wearing an apron, shouted loudly: “Sean, stop lounging around!
Go out to the storage shed and grab me a few potatoes!” Right in the middle of a gripping segment on the TV, Sean gave a highly reluctant “Fine,” slowly dragged himself off the couch, and headed out toward the backyard storage shed.
Just as he reached the shed door, Sean happened to run into Lyra, who lived right next door.
She looked at him, slightly puzzled, and spoke up: “Leaving potatoes in the equipment shed is just going to attract Rattata, isn’t it?” “Can’t be helped, there’s literally nowhere else to put them.” Sean replied as he grabbed the doorknob.
Right at that exact moment!
A series of frantic, rustling, scratching, and gnawing noises suddenly echoed from inside the shed.
Both of them froze instantly.
They looked at one another, a shared look of confusion passing between their eyes.
“What’s that noise?
Don’t tell me your prediction actually came true?” “…” Lyra didn’t say a word.
*Clatter—* Without a second thought, Sean yanked open the shed’s steel door.
Sunlight instantly ripped through the darkness, illuminating dust motes dancing in the air.
Right in the middle of the scattered potatoes on the ground, a brownish-yellow figure snapped its head up!
Cyndaquil’s pitch-black eyes locked instantly with Sean’s gaze.
A bone-deep gash was clearly visible on its leg.
It felt as though a single glance had spanned a lifetime…