Trainer's Gambit

"Ding ling ling—"

Natsume opened his groggy eyes, staring at the ceiling, and let out a long yawn.

"Just another ordinary day."

It was the weekend, and the Pikachu alarm clock on his bedside table showed it was already noon, but Natsume had just gotten up.

Heading to the bathroom, while waiting for the water to run, Natsume quickly ordered some takeout.

"Dodrio Express, Pelipper Fresh... Hah, the names these shops come up with are getting more creative by the day."

Several new stores had names inspired by Pokémon, which made Natsume feel a sense of familiarity.

Look, this is what you call the world's number one IP! (Tactical lean back)

Without giving it much thought, Natsume casually ordered a "29.9 Pokémon Coins Farfetch'd Combo (with free flatbread)" and set his phone aside to start washing his face.

"Splash—"

He cupped a handful of water and splashed it on his face.

The mirror reflected a tall, handsome young man with classical Greek features.

His hair was disheveled, and the thick dark circles under his eyes only made his gaze seem more profound.

It made one sigh in admiration—even dark circles looked like natural eye bags on someone this good-looking.

It was truly relatable.

After finishing his morning routine, Natsume returned to his rented room and comfortably sank into his gaming chair.

He turned on his computer, entered the password "Sakurajima Mai," and the Pikachu screensaver lit up.

"Pikachu(?′?`?)~?!"

Natsume skillfully opened Nico Dou and started searching for today's video to watch while eating.

As a freshman at Tokyo Metropolitan University and a part-time gaming content creator on Nico Dou, Natsume's main content revolved around editing and commentating on Pokémon battles.

With his unique style and expertise, he had attracted nearly 100,000 followers.

Although Natsume himself was a high-ranking player in the competitive scene, having once reached as high as 7th in the world rankings, his luck was notoriously bad. He was even infamous for a "Hydro Pump triple MISS" moment.

This was why his audience often teased him about his "entertaining" gameplay.

Between streaming and making videos—

Natsume rented a place off-campus and only went to the university for classes.

"Huh?"

As Natsume browsed the homepage, he muttered, "Why are there so many Pokémon-related recommendations today?"

"Has Pokémon's popularity surged again?"

Out of the ten recommended videos on the homepage, eight of them were related to Pokémon.

[Bear Grylls: Look what we found, a wild Caterpie]

[Trump X Gumshoos: Nobody knows Pokémon better than me]

[Suggested Edit: Splash]

[Huanong: My buddy's Berries are ripe, let's go pick some]

...

"Something's off about today's homepage."

"What's with the Caterpie? Six times the protein of beef?"

"And Berries... surely they don't mean Oran Berries or Sitrus Berries, right..."

Natsume scratched his head, utterly confused, and switched to the gaming section. His eyes suddenly widened.

The battle video he had uploaded last night had shot straight to the top of the gaming section!

Natsume gulped and shakily clicked on the video titled [Natsume-sensei Teaches Battling 03: SubProtect Toxic].

He took a deep breath.

"Something's off about today's homepage."

"What's with this Caterpie? Six times the protein of beef?"

"And Berries... surely they don't mean Oran Berries or Sitrus Berries, right..."

Natsume scratched his head, utterly confused, and switched to the gaming section. Suddenly, his eyes widened.

The battle video he had uploaded last night had shot straight to the top of the gaming section!

Natsume gulped and shakily clicked on the video titled [Natsume-sensei Teaches Battling 03: SubProtect Toxic].

He took a deep breath.

"1.2 million views!?"

What the hell, I'm freaking out!

"Cover letter notification."

"Learned something new, gonna try this against the Gym Leader now."

"Please, just be human for once!"

After staring in disbelief for a while, Natsume chuckled as he scrolled through the barrage of comments, but a hint of doubt crept into his mind.

"SubProtect Toxic" is such a basic strategy, how did it suddenly blow up?

Did some big shot in the gaming community give me a shoutout?

But I haven't been doing any behind-the-scenes deals lately.

Rubbing his chin, Natsume scrolled down to the comments section.

In the comments, a verified level 6 account with the ID "The Battler" had posted a detailed explanation of the "SubProtect Toxic" strategy.

[The Battler: "SubProtect Toxic" refers to a strategy where a Pokémon learns the moves "Toxic," "Substitute," and "Protect," and uses them as the core of its battle plan.

In battles, the Trainer needs to have exceptional adaptability to execute this strategy effectively.

The content creator has already explained the mechanics of this strategy in great detail.

Grass-type and Poison-type Trainers have a natural advantage and should study this guide carefully.

Thank you to the content creator for such a high-quality tutorial!

PS: Seems like this was posted in the wrong section; it would fit better in the Battle section.]

After reading this lengthy comment, a huge question mark popped up in Natsume's mind.

What's this "Battle section"?

Since when did Nico Dou have a "Battle" category?

The replies below included: "Master Ball catch!" "Holy crap, it's the real deal!" "Red, mom loves you!"

Scratching his head, Natsume gave "The Battler's" comment a like and casually clicked on their profile.

In an instant, a cold sweat dripped down Natsume's forehead.

"Renowned content creator in the Battle section, champion of the 9th Indigo Plateau Conference, Pokémon Masters League Champion..."

Natsume stammered, barely able to get his words out.

"Red!?"

"You've got to be kidding me. Red is the protagonist from the Pokémon Special manga, how is he a content creator on Nico Dou!?"

Clicking on Red's photo gallery, Natsume was met with the image of a cheerful young man in his early twenties.

He wore a red cap, a black tank top with a red vest, and a fluffy Pikachu perched on his shoulder.

If this was a cosplay, it was ten times more accurate than Natsume had ever imagined!

And this real-life Pikachu was incredibly cute, just like the one from Pokémon Detective Pikachu!

Natsume was completely dumbfounded.

"Okay, don't panic. Stay calm, stay calm!"

"Here's what happened: I woke up this morning, found my video had gone viral, and a big shot showed up in the comments."

"This big shot is a world champion, the protagonist of the Pokémon world, Red."

"Ha! Once you break it down like that, it all makes sense!"

"...Makes no sense at all!"

"Did I get transported to another world, or is this world just messed up?"

"Did the timeline converge, and now Red is a content creator!?"

Natsume was trained to handle even the most absurd situations.

But this...

Just as Natsume's brain was about to short-circuit, his phone suddenly rang.

"Hello, your takeout is here. Please come to the window to pick it up."

"Oh, okay."

Natsume walked to the window, only to suddenly remember he was on the sixth floor.

You want me to come to the window on the sixth floor? Are you planning to deliver it with a Pidgeotto or something!?

Suddenly, a shadow swooped by, and a large, brightly feathered bird with a majestic crest landed on the windowsill. Its long beak held a takeout bag, and it waved a wing at Natsume with a cheerful grin.

Natsume stood frozen like a statue.

The delivery guy shouted from downstairs.

"Don't forget to leave a good review!"

Natsume couldn't even remember how he took the takeout bag from the Pidgeotto's beak.

All he could recall was the sight outside his window: flocks of Pidgey flying across the sky, Oddish toddling around in the flowerbeds of the neighborhood, and a Rapidash galloping gracefully along the overpass.

His landlord was walking through the neighborhood, leading an orange-furred, black-striped Growlithe, and waved at Natsume with a smile.

"The Pokémon world... has merged with reality..."

Natsume stood there for a long time, looking up at the sky, feeling his eyes grow moist.

Eighteen years... it's been eighteen long years.

I finally made it to this day!