Ryan used to be an ordinary office worker on Earth, living the grueling "996" schedule (working from 9 AM to 9 PM, six days a week).
Having lost his parents at a young age, he grew up introverted, with hardly any friends. His only hobbies were playing games and watching anime. If it weren't for his somewhat decent looks, he'd definitely be labeled a "shut-in nerd."
Out of all the games and anime he enjoyed, his favorite was the Pokémon series.
Perhaps due to the absence of family and friendship in his real life, Ryan found himself deeply longing for the special bond between humans and Pokémon.
Maybe the universe had sensed his love for Pokémon. One day, after a gaming session, Ryan went to bed. The next time he opened his eyes, he saw a middle-aged man in armor standing before him, accompanied by a Beedrill!
Panicking, he tried to speak, but before he could, a sharp pain shot through his head, and he blacked out again.
In a half-dream state, he absorbed the memories of the body he now inhabited—Ryan's.
How ironic that we share a same name.
When he awoke again, he realized he had really traveled to the world of Pokémon. However, the timeline didn't seem right. It wasn't the period of the League, like in the games or anime, but a time long before that, in the age of kingdoms.
The Pokémon world during this period was far from peaceful. Wars between nations and territories were frequent and fierce.
At this time, people's attitude toward Pokémon was still one of fear and exploitation. They called Pokémon "beast" and used devices to forcibly control them for use in warfare.
As the human population grew, they needed more land to survive, often encroaching on Pokémon habitats. As a result, the relationship between humans and Pokémon was tense, if not outright hostile. Some Pokémon even formed wild hordes to attack human settlements.
Ryan's father had mysteriously disappeared a few days ago while defending against one such Pokémon horde. Though no body was found, it was widely assumed he had met a grim fate.
The territory couldn't go a day without a leader, so as the sole heir, Ryan naturally inherited his father's barony. However, the combined shock of his father's disappearance and the sudden burden of leadership led to a mental breakdown, which caused him to fall into a river while inspecting the territory.
Although he was rescued by a passing Bounsweet who called for help, the original Ryan perished, and the soul in the body now was that of a man from Earth.
After fully absorbing the memories of the original Ryan, the new Ryan had spent the past two days pretending to be still unwell, when in reality, he was adjusting to the new body and its memories, trying to avoid any suspicious behavior.
After all, even though his father was gone, there were still plenty of people who knew him well. In particular, Uncle White, who had watched him grow up, might notice if something seemed off, and Ryan had no idea what his fate would be if he were exposed.
Today was the first time Ryan dared to leave his room and truly engage with this magical world of Pokémon.
Reflecting on this, Ryan couldn't help but chuckle bitterly.
"I always dreamed of traveling to the Pokémon world, to befriend all kinds of cute Pokémon, but I imagined the world from the anime! How did I end up in this medieval kingdom setting?"
Crossing into a kingdom period wasn't too bad—at least he was the son of a baron.
But before he could even enjoy the life of being waited on by maids while playing with an Eevee, his father went missing in defense against a horde of wild Pokémon. The knights who followed his father were also killed, and the territory suffered severe damage, desperately in need of rebuilding.
To make matters worse, the neighboring lords were eyeing his defenseless lands. If they weren't so busy cleaning up the mess left by the horde, they might have invaded already.
"Internal troubles and external threats… Why is it that everyone else's transmigration seems smooth, but mine is full of problems?" Ryan sighed and paused what he was doing.
Bounsweet looked up at him, puzzled, as if to ask why he had stopped petting it.
"You've got no worries, huh? Well, I suppose that's fair. No point stressing about it. I might as well make the best of things. After all, I'm not without an ace up my sleeve."
Ryan glanced at the ring-like pattern on the back of his left hand.
From the moment he regained consciousness, he had noticed the mark on his hand and knew it was his "cheat"—his special advantage in this world. After some experimentation, he had figured out how it worked.
His "cheat" was like a task panel. As long as he completed the tasks it assigned, he would receive corresponding rewards and opportunities for lucky draws—like the special medicine he had used on Scyther.
But the task panel was only the most basic function. Its most important feature was the ability to summon "players" from Earth, a function Ryan valued the most.
In his previous life, Ryan was a gaming enthusiast, and he knew all too well the power of the "Fourth Calamity"—the players. If he could guide them properly, all the problems in front of him would be solved.
"Good thing I'm summoning players from a parallel world like Earth. If I were summoning real Earth players, I might not be able to fool them," Ryan thought, relieved.
From what he understood, the world of Earth and his world shared many similarities, including technological development and history. However, there were also major differences—such as Earth not having the Pokémon franchise.
While Ryan loved Pokémon, he had only played through the games' storylines and watched the anime. He had little experience with competitive battling.
If he were summoning real Earth players who knew Pokémon inside and out, he wouldn't stand a chance at leading them.
And if things went out of control, the destruction caused by the "Fourth Calamity" would be something his small barony couldn't withstand.
But summoning players from a parallel Earth was different. They didn't know anything about Pokémon, which made them much easier to guide—or trick.
"I hope someone logs in tomorrow. Although I've managed to connect to Earth's internet through the task panel, I don't know how to design a proper game registration page. All I could do was throw up a link on the platform and hope someone stumbles across it," Ryan thought, feeling exasperated as he looked at the pitiful four pre-registrations on the panel after three whole days.
"Surely they'll try it out. I mean, the helmets were shipped directly to their homes. Whatever, I'll stop worrying about it."
Ryan picked up Bounsweet and said, "Let's go check on Scyther. It won't do any good if it keeps refusing to eat."
"Bouncceee!" (I want food too!)
"Alright, alright, you'll get your share."
--
Meanwhile, Vrix was staring in confusion at the helmet in front of him.
Just moments ago, he had clicked on the pre-order link, and right after, there was a knock at his door. When he opened it, no one was there—just a package on the ground.
Inside was a sleek helmet with the words "Pokémon World" printed on it.
"This must be a joke, right? There's no way this is a real gaming helmet. Has technology really advanced this much? And I didn't even fill out my address."
Vrix felt a mix of fear and curiosity. He couldn't help but wonder what the helmet was about.
"Just trying it on can't hurt, right? I'll just put it on my head and not fully wear it."
He cautiously picked up the helmet and slowly placed it on his head.
"Nothing's happening. I knew it was just a prank. Whoever—whoa!"
Suddenly, a message appeared in front of his eyes:
[22 hours 32 minutes and 15 seconds until game beta launch]
"Wait, this game is for real?!"