In the world of Pokémon, a young man was lying on a strange beach.
Suddenly, the young man twitched as if waking up from a nightmare.
He abruptly opened his eyes, gasping for air as if he had just been deprived of oxygen. After a few breaths, he finally calmed down.
Then, he looked around, realizing he was on a beach surrounded by dense trees.
He silently recalled the events leading up to this moment, trying to understand why he was there.
The young man's name was Rex, 21 years old, a odinary college student.
It was the weekend when he rode his beloved bicycle and, while passing by a river, noticed a little girl struggling in the water.
Rex quickly stopped his bicycle but found no other pedestrians around. Perhaps due to the remote location, there were few passersby.
Seeing the girl struggling, Rex didn't hesitate. He left his phone and wallet on the bank and jumped into the water to rescue her.
Although Rex's hometown could be considered a water town, he had only played in the river occasionally during his childhood.
However, lacking formal swimming lessons and being able to swim only a little, he dared not venture into deep water for fear of not being able to return.
But today, faced with such a situation, he had no choice but to brave it.
Knowing that drowning victims tend to cling to anything they can, Rex deliberately wrapped his arm around the girl's neck from behind and swam towards the shore with his other arm.
Rex rarely exercised, only occasionally cycling on weekends, and his legs were already sore from today's long ride.
Lacking proper training, Rex didn't know how to swim efficiently. As he swam towards the shore, he began to feel exhausted.
Nevertheless, he couldn't afford to stop and rest now. Rex had to use all his strength to swim desperately towards the shore.
Finally, with Rex's efforts, they reached the shore. He pushed the girl onto the shore first.
Then, Rex heaved a sigh of relief.
Now it was his turn to get ashore.
As Rex tried to climb onto the bank, his hands slipped, and he fell back into the water.
Feeling utterly exhausted, Rex struggled for a few moments before losing consciousness amidst a sense of suffocation.
When he woke up again, Rex found himself on this unfamiliar beach.
At that time, the river where Rex was had been far from the sea. It was unlikely that he would drift all the way to the coast. This was something he couldn't comprehend.
"Gulls!"
"Gulls!"
Just as Rex was puzzled, several birds flew from a distance. Initially, Rex thought they were seagulls, but as they approached, he widened his eyes and rubbed them vigorously.
Because he found that these birds looked very similar to Wingull in the Pokémon games.
Rex didn't have many hobbies other than reading novels and watching anime. He liked Pokémon anime, but because of its long duration, he couldn't recall much of the plot, only some vague memories.
Moreover, it wasn't just Wingull. Occasionally, there were also Magikarp jumping out of the sea, confirming to Rex that he had indeed crossed into a world with Pokémon.
Rex stood up and approached to take a closer look but realized that his whole body was extremely sore. Looking at his tender hands, he felt that this wasn't his original body.
Enduring the pain, Rex walked to the seaside. Reflected in the sea, he saw the image of a boy no more than 11 or 12 years old.
The boy was slender, with fair skin and handsome features.
"Not bad, about 7 or 8 points handsome compared to me!"
Rex thought shamelessly.
His appearance before crossing over couldn't be described as handsome, just ordinary. He would probably be the last one picked out in a crowd.
"Now that I've crossed over into this boy's body, does that mean I have his memories?"
Rex quickly ran his brain. After a while, some fragmented memories appeared in his mind.
After sorting through the previous owner's experiences, Rex couldn't help but feel sorry for the boy and his family. Natural disasters were inevitable in any world.
However, considering that he now had the memories of the boy, Rex had a place in this world. He knew that being an outcast was always the hardest, no matter which world.
"Now that I'm in this world, the past can only be memories. Luckily, I still have an older brother, so my parents won't be too saddened by my departure."
"From now on, I am Rex."
Rex, or rather the current 'Rex' now, silently declared to himself.
After looking around, Rex didn't find any traces of humans except for some garbage on the beach.
With many wounds still on his body, every step was agonizing for Rex. The scorching sun in the sky heated the beach, making him feel parched and his lips cracked.
"I wonder how many days have passed since I lay here like this. With my body in this condition, it
would be difficult to make it to a human settlement alive without assistance."
Rex could only drag himself to a tree and lean against it. The lush leaves provided some shade from the blazing sun, bringing him a little relief.
However, just reaching this point had exhausted all of Rex's remaining strength. He didn't feel like moving anymore.
"Am I going to die of thirst in this place just after crossing over? It's really hard to accept!"
Looking out at the sea, Rex couldn't help but smile bitterly.
"System, panel, come out now!"
In his previous life, Rex had read many novels where every person who crossed into another world had some sort of cheat. There was no reason he shouldn't have one.
Unfortunately, no matter how long he shouted, nothing happened.
Just as Rex was despairing and about to give up, he felt a verdant gas-like substance in his lower abdomen.
Previously, he had been overwhelmed by the chaos of crossing over, so he hadn't noticed it until now, when he finally calmed down.
However, Rex didn't know what this gas-like substance was or how to control it.
"Heal!"
After groping around for a while, Rex finally understood the function of this gas-like substance. It could repair objects touched by Rex's hands, including himself.
But to make it work, Rex needed to consciously control it.
Rex pressed his right hand against his chest, and a verdant light emanated from his palm. As the light entered his body, his injuries were rapidly healed.
After the healing was complete, Rex felt the gas in his lower abdomen decrease by about a third.
In other words, for injuries like his, he could still heal two more times.
However, Rex didn't know if this gas would deplete permanently or if it could be replenished, and if so, how long it would take.
After standing up from under the tree, Rex jumped a few times to confirm that he had fully recovered.
However, he still felt extremely thirsty, and his stomach growled.
Looking around, Rex knew he had to find food and water, so he had no choice but to enter the jungle.
He knew that the dark jungle held countless dangers.
For someone like him without Pokémon, encountering malicious Pokémon or accidentally trespassing into the territory of territorial Pokémon could bring danger at any moment.
(End of this chapter)