Swish...
In the bathroom, Eddie put his head under the faucet, letting the cold tap water cool his thoughts.
"Is this real?"
Even after five minutes of standing in the shower, Eddie couldn't accept what he had seen and felt.
"This..."
Eddie placed his hand on the mirror and gazed at the bathtub, the showerhead, and every fixture in the bathroom.
"Are all of these real?"
Looking into the mirror, Eddie stared at the young man reflected back at him. His face was pale from the prolonged exposure to cold water, yet a smile lingered on his lips.
"It's real—so vivid and painful—it can't be an illusion."
Pulling down his sleeve to cover the reddened mark on his arm he had pinched to confirm reality, Eddie hurried back to his room and logged onto a website—the official "Pokémon Generations" website.
"The revolutionary holographic virtual game Pokémon Generations launches at 12 noon on June 6th!"
"The poster with the familiar Pikachu is correct," he murmured.
Eddie had been reborn—back to a time before the release of the world-changing game, "Pokémon Generations."
This groundbreaking game came to life when researchers discovered a mysterious device in ancient ruins and developed it based on the extracted data. It became the first-ever holographic virtual game. The world celebrated its release, with people from every corner immersing themselves in the Pokémon world.
However, five years after its launch, the Pokémon world began merging with reality, with continents from the game appearing in the oceans of the real world.
This event drastically reshaped the world.
The strong within the game came to control their destinies in real life.
Thinking of this, Eddie smiled.
"Although I don't know why I've come back to this time, I won't waste this chance—I'll become stronger!"
His mind brimmed with precious knowledge: the locations of rare items, hidden missions, habitats of powerful Pokémon, key characters, and even major plot developments.
All of it was his most valuable asset.
Two hours later, the doorbell rang.
Eddie remained composed as he walked to the door and retrieved the package containing the game helmet. In this age of advanced technology, delivery efficiency was incredible.
Opening the package, Eddie pulled out the helmet and quickly adjusted its settings based on his recollections.
Everything was ready—now it was just a matter of waiting for the servers to open.
He glanced at the clock—only forty minutes remained.
...
Thirty minutes left.
...
Twenty minutes.
...
At the ten-minute mark before launch, players were allowed early entry to create their characters.
Without hesitation, Eddie donned the helmet and started the game.
"Connecting to server..."
"Connection successful. Helmet number WIN007. Verifying player identity and starting binding..."
"Player identity verified. Helmet binding successful!"
With these prompts complete, Eddie's vision gradually expanded.
He found himself in a laboratory. A beautiful woman in a lab coat stood before him, beginning her explanation.
"Welcome to the world of Pokémon Generations. Here, magical creatures called Pokémon—also known as pocket monsters—inhabit the land. They..."
Once players enter the game, the researchers explain Pokémon to them, giving a general overview to help them understand the concept of these amazing creatures.
"...So, what is your name?"
Now it was time to create a character.
"Morning Sun"
"ID login successful. Which region would you like to begin your journey in?"
After the researcher finished speaking, Eddie saw a map displaying the names of the seven regions:
Kanto Region, Johto Region, Hoenn Region, Sinnoh Region, Unova Region, Kalos Region, and Alola Region.
"Kanto Region!"
Eddie chose without hesitation. The Kanto Region was known to be the most competitive area in the game, and the storyline started there.
"What type would you like your Starter Pokémon to be?"
In Pokémon Generations, Pokémon had eighteen types:
Normal, Fire, Water, Electric, Grass, Ice, Fighting, Poison, Ground, Flying, Psychic, Bug, Rock, Ghost, Dragon, Dark, Steel, and Fairy.
However, only the first nine types were available for selection at this stage of the game. Fortunately, the game didn't openly mention the existence of all eighteen types, and most players were unaware of them.
Except for Eddie, who had knowledge from his past life.
Yes, Eddie was not originally from this world. He had inexplicably been transported here and had lived a peaceful life since then. But when Pokémon Generations launched, he recognized that this was the world's first exposure to Pokémon.
In his previous life, Eddie had wanted to choose the Dragon type, but it wasn't an option in the early stages—likely a deliberate decision by the developers to hide certain attributes.
After selecting a type, players would appear in the first town of their chosen region. From there, they would follow guidance to a local laboratory to receive their Starter Pokémon. The Pokémon they received would match the type they had chosen but would be randomly assigned.
"Fire type!"
"I understand. You will now be transported to Pallet Town in the Kanto Region. Please proceed to Professor Oak's Laboratory to receive your Starter Pokémon. Have fun..."
With the researcher's words, Eddie's figure flashed and disappeared from the laboratory.
...
When Eddie entered the game, a system prompt immediately rang out.
"Ding! A Mythical Pokémon blessing has been detected. You have received..."