"Ring ring ring"
Quincy reached out to turn off the alarm clock, then rolled over.
"So tired... I can't do this anymore. I really need to talk to my advisor about switching my research topic. Studying rocks all day is going to drive me crazy."
Quincy curled up his body, grumbling as he reluctantly lifted his head from the soft blanket.
Around the room were Pokémon posters everywhere—Metagross, Salamence, Tyranitar. Various battle scenes, extremely thrilling.
Quincy got dressed, then glanced at the time. The Snorlax clock clearly showed it was 1 PM.
"Better order takeout quickly, I'm starving."
Opening the food delivery app, Quincy frowned.
What kind of restaurant names were these?
Farfetch'd Roast Duck, Snorlax Hot Pot, Charizard BBQ...
This Pokémon content was a bit over the top.
Had the world's biggest IP finally proven itself domestically?
Quincy then clicked on a restaurant called "Flapple Noodles" and ordered beef mixed noodles (favorite the shop to get a free sausage).
Then he headed to the bathroom to wash up.
In the mirror was a handsome, clean-featured young man around twenty-one or twenty-two years old. His features were attractive, and even with dark circles under his eyes, he didn't look slovenly.
After washing up, Quincy turned on his computer. After skillfully entering the password "SpeakerCricketHero," he accessed the desktop interface.
A desktop wallpaper appeared showing champions with their ace Pokémon.
Quincy moved the mouse and skillfully clicked on the forum.
"Shocking! Mysterious cave discovered underground on Ever Grande Island in Hoenn, countless geologists rushing to explore"
"Stone Cave secretly harbors brand new cavern, who can solve the mystery of Stone Cave"
"Anyone want to team up to explore Route 120 near Petalburg? I have an Onix for safety, professionals only!"
This was an internal forum for people who liked studying rocks and geology, but today...
"What's going on here, some kind of abstract art?"
"Wait, don't panic when things happen, take a breath first."
Quincy had a terrifying thought in his mind.
But everything could only be determined after opening the window.
Opening the window, outside was a patch of green shade with a large tree not far from his window.
On the tree, several birds covered in brown feathers were chirping.
If Quincy remembered correctly, those were called Pidgey.
Downstairs, a Growlithe was chasing a green furry ball through the grass.
Its trainer, a little girl, was happily spinning around the Growlithe with an innocent, radiant smile.
And a green-haired young man in a white shirt was sitting on a distant bench, looking at this scene with longing eyes.
Everything was so peaceful and beautiful.
"That boy is... Wally?"
This was Petalburg Town, which meant the current timeline was before Ruby had started his journey.
Not long after Ruby began traveling, Wally captured his own Ralts.
Quincy clenched his fists.
"Finally waited for this day! Twenty-one years—do you know how I spent these twenty-one years!"
Transmigrating to the Pokémon world, the first thing to do was definitely become a trainer.
But this trainer wasn't like other trainers.
Although in the anime, trainers seemed to live glamorous lives, in reality, being a full-time trainer wasn't something ordinary people could do.
Real full-time trainers, aside from those protagonist-blessed chosen ones like Ash and Red, were probably few and far between.
Even someone as strong as Leon had to run a Battle Tower to make a living.
Diantha, Wallace, Lance, and others all had their own professions to earn money.
Quincy wanted to be a part-time trainer as well.
As for his full-time job, that was simple.
In his previous life, he was a geology graduate student.
In this life, he'd go mining. At worst, he could be a Hiker and definitely make enough to support himself.
Moreover, the Pokémon world didn't have mineral resource laws.
As long as you weren't using drilling equipment for large-scale mining, individual small-scale mining was generally fine.
Quincy excitedly rubbed his hands together. A brand new tomorrow was beckoning to him!
"Hello, your delivery!"
Just as Quincy was daydreaming by the window, a male voice from downstairs brought him back to reality.
"Go, Rotom."
An orange cone-shaped body with two small lightning bolts around it—a Rotom carrying a plastic bag floated in front of Quincy.
Good heavens, using Rotom for food delivery? That actually worked.
"Remember to give a five-star review, dear customer!"
The delivery person left in a hurry, and Quincy took the takeout into the living room.
"If I want to go mining, I'll need a headlamp, work clothes, dust mask, safety goggles, gloves, ear protection... and most importantly, a pickaxe. This whole set would cost quite a bit of money. How can I earn some money first?"
Quincy thought of the people on the geology forum.
Since they were all enthusiasts, working for others first should be fine, right?
No sooner said than done. Quincy quickly finished his takeout, then came to the computer.
He clicked on the forum, opened the team formation interface, and started refreshing to see if there were any suitable opportunities.
Although he didn't have tools and his physical condition wasn't great, as a scholar, he still had basic experience.
Plus, he had a heart eager to improve.
Looking at his bank account balance, Quincy was determined to freeload some tools.
At worst, after finding treasure, he could give them a portion and only take a small share.
"Looking for someone to go dig stones together in Petalburg Cave. Not for minerals, can provide tools, funding, and other assistance. Requirement: familiar with Petalburg Cave."
Wasn't this a post tailor-made for him?
Although he wasn't actually familiar with Petalburg Cave.
But unless this poster appeared right in front of him immediately and demanded he lead the way, with just a few steps' distance, he could definitely familiarize himself with Petalburg Cave first.
Even if he didn't have Pokémon and couldn't go in himself, he could always ask the old folks nearby, right?
Maybe some retired miners or something.
When you're broke, you have to be a bit thick-skinned.
Quincy immediately replied quickly.
"I can do it!"
The poster instantly deleted the post and sent Quincy contact information.
While happily adding the contact, Quincy thought:
"I can go find May later. May is Wally's sister, and May's boyfriend is exactly a worker responsible for mining the Rusturf Tunnel. But it won't be long before Petalburg Cave becomes Rusturf Tunnel. This person being so urgent probably has this factor in mind too."
Once the cave became a tunnel, the minerals inside would definitely be snatched up by lots of miners.
Mining again would be difficult then.
Quincy entered a string of numbers into the messaging app, then his finger froze slightly.
The ID clearly read:
AAA Precious Stone Recycling Steven Stone.
Steven?
Steven Stone?
You mean this poster was the Hoenn region champion, heir to Devon Corporation, owner of a Mega Shiny Metagross, absolute stone enthusiast, Steven Stone?