A beautiful little town in the Kanto region, filled with pastoral charm and picturesque scenery.
Originally, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it, yet almost everyone in Kanto’s research community knew of this place.
The reason was simple.
The most authoritative Pokémon Professor in all of Kanto—and arguably the entire League—lived here: Professor Oak.
Nestled within a vast mountain range on the outskirts of Pallet Town stood Professor Oak’s laboratory.
The area was enormous, with diverse and complex terrain.
Forests, hills, lakes, and mountains could all be found here, providing countless Pokémon with a natural environment where they could live and thrive freely.
Inside the laboratory, an elderly man in a research coat sat in front of a screen, happily slurping instant noodles.
He was none other than the famous Professor Oak.
Around him, countless adorable Pokémon played freely.
Nearby, a boy of about ten was enthusiastically conducting a health examination on a small crimson fox Pokémon with six tails.
“Professor, this Vulpix has fully recovered.
Its growth is progressing very well too—it’s in the excellent category.
Looks like Xing has raised it exceptionally well,” the boy reported seriously.
“Really?
To find such an outstanding Vulpix after only two months of traveling…
it seems Xing is doing very well out there.
Truly the hope of Pallet Town,” Professor Oak praised while taking another bite of noodles.
“Yeah.
He’s already sent back thirteen Pokémon in just two months.
Adding the six Pokémon he carries with him, he might even achieve a good ranking at this year’s Indigo Conference.” A confident smile appeared on the boy’s face, though a trace of sadness inevitably surfaced in his eyes.
Professor Oak noticed it.
Rarely, he set down his noodles and said, “Aaron, you’re the same age as Xing—both ten years old.
By all rights, you should have set out on your own journey too.
Instead, you’ve been staying here at the lab keeping an old man like me company.”
“It’s fine, Professor.
This was my choice,” Aaron replied with a carefree smile.
As a ten-year-old boy, he had always kept a secret hidden from everyone.
He was a transmigrator.
He came from a world everyone knew—a planet called Azure Star.
His method of transmigration had been fairly ordinary.
He was hit by a car while going out.
Not because he was saving someone, but because a vehicle suddenly lost control and crashed into him, sending him off in spectacular fashion.
When he woke up, Aaron found himself lying in a hospital bed.
At first, he wondered which kind-hearted person had saved him.
Then he was shocked to discover that the nurse in this hospital wasn’t even human.
It was a giant egg-shaped creature with a humanoid appearance.
At the time, Aaron had nearly rolled off the bed in surprise.
He recognized it immediately.
In his previous life, it had been Nurse Joy’s signature Pokémon—Chansey.
As expected, he soon saw Nurse Joy herself.
He had actually been quite happy at the time.
First, he had survived being hit by a car and gotten a second chance at life.
Second, his favorite anime growing up had been Pokémon.
Being able to transmigrate into this world was practically a dream come true.
There were so many unbelievably adorable Pokémon, along with countless fascinating places and breathtaking landscapes to explore.
Most importantly, it was relatively safe.
As long as you didn’t go looking for trouble, the world was generally peaceful.
Otherwise, there was no way ten-year-old children would be allowed to travel across the world on their own.
Not long after, Aaron discovered something even more astonishing.
His mother in this life was Delia Ketchum—the mother of Ash from the Pokémon anime.
And his younger brother was none other than the protagonist himself: Ash Ketchum.
His mother was gentle and caring, and although his younger brother was hot-blooded, he was also obedient.
Aside from some initial difficulty adapting, Aaron quickly came to love his new family.
He eagerly looked forward to turning ten and receiving his starter Pokémon from Professor Oak.
That changed one night.
Unable to sleep, Aaron happened to see his mother, Delia Ketchum, exhausted beyond belief, falling asleep in a chair.
This was a real world.
Naturally, it was very different from the harmonious and carefree world portrayed in the Pokémon anime.
Every child could receive a Pokémon at the age of ten.
However, if they wanted one of the three traditional starters—Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur—their family had to pay additional taxes every year.
Otherwise, their starter Pokémon might end up being something commonly found in Viridian Forest, such as a Caterpie or a Rattata.
Although Aaron’s family technically still had both parents, his unreliable father had been traveling for three years without returning home.
For all anyone knew, something might have happened to him already.
Every bit of income supporting the household came from Delia Ketchum alone.
Raising two children was already difficult.
Having to pay the additional taxes made it even harder.
Ash might have been carefree and oblivious, but Aaron wasn’t.
So he made a difficult decision.
He told his mother that he didn’t want to become a Pokémon Trainer.
The taxes that had been paid for him were transferred entirely to Ash.
Then, to reduce the family’s financial burden, he volunteered to become Professor Oak’s assistant and began studying Pokémon knowledge under him.
After all, this world belonged to both humans and Pokémon.
And the most profitable careers were almost always related to Pokémon in one way or another.
Take Silph Co., for example.
By monopolizing Poké Ball manufacturing technology, the company had become one of the wealthiest corporations in the entire League, earning enormous profits year after year.
Of course, that path wasn’t suitable for a ten-year-old commoner like Aaron who lacked connections.
For someone of his background, the best path available was becoming a Pokémon Professor.
A renowned Pokémon Professor received generous funding, housing, and research support from the League.
Once someone became a Professor, fame, wealth, and social status naturally followed.
Becoming one of the richest people in the world might be unrealistic, but living comfortably and prosperously was virtually guaranteed.
Just look at Professor Oak.
His laboratory occupied an entire mountain.
Officially, it belonged to the League.
But as long as Oak remained alive, everything here was under his control.
He could even designate a successor.
As long as that successor passed the necessary research examinations, they could inherit the position of Professor.
Although Aaron hadn’t played Pokémon in many years, he still remembered certain things.
For example, Eevee’s evolutions.
At present, Kanto had only discovered the Water, Fire, and Electric evolutions.
But Aaron remembered that Eevee had a total of eight evolutionary forms.
Although he had forgotten some of the specific evolution methods, he was confident he could eventually figure them out.
There was also another important discovery.
The Pokémon type chart was still incomplete.
The Fairy type had not yet been discovered.
Aaron was confident that if he could complete research on the Fairy type, he would instantly become a sensation in the academic world.
He might not surpass Professor Oak, but he was certain he could stand alongside famous researchers like Professor Bill of the Lighthouse and Professor Elm of New Bark Town.
And thus, the current situation came to be.
Professor Oak looked at Aaron, a complicated expression appearing on his face.
He was extremely satisfied with this assistant.
Despite his young age, Aaron worked with exceptional care and diligence.
Over the past two years, he had devoured countless books related to Pokémon research.
His knowledge was impressive, and he treated every Pokémon with genuine kindness.
Compared to him, Oak’s own five-year-old grandson was nowhere close.
Yet because he cared, Oak could see it clearly.
Aaron desperately wanted to travel.
He desperately wanted a Pokémon of his own.
“Alright.
Once you’ve finished recording today’s observations, head home,” Professor Oak said.
“Got it, Professor.
I’ll come see you again tomorrow.
But seriously, you should eat fewer instant noodles.
Just because I was focused on research today and didn’t cook for you doesn’t mean you can’t make your own food,” Aaron said helplessly as he looked at Oak’s bowl of noodles.
“That would waste too much time.
As scholars, we can’t afford to spend excessive time on things like eating,” Professor Oak declared with a completely serious expression.
“Fine, Professor.
See you tomorrow.”
With that, Aaron waved goodbye.