Pokemon: My Strange Pokemons

"Morning, Feebas! How did you sleep last night?" Ethan yawned as he approached the aquarium.

Last night, he spent hours racking his brain to devise a training plan for Feebas. Unfortunately, not a single concrete idea came to mind, leaving him wide awake into the early hours.

For the first time, Ethan realized how limited his imagination was. In the end, he typed a few words into a blank document: Eat well, build a solid foundation.

Everything else would have to wait until Feebas evolved into Milotic.

Feebas, long unaccustomed to care and attention, was so overwhelmed by Ethan's kindness that it blew bubbles excitedly.

"Rescuing me from the abyss, giving me a system to evolve into a dragon, and now showering me with boundless care..."

Feebas might not have been particularly cultured, unable to grasp phrases like "Repay kindness with loyalty," but it harbored a similar thought in its heart.

When I evolve into a celestial dragon, I'll take Ethan to explore the depths of the ocean and soar through the skies!

Ethan, oblivious to Feebas's grand aspirations, headed into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

At the dining table, Ethan habitually opened P-Studio. Yesterday's video had given him a pleasant surprise.

A million views!

It was his second video to break the million-view mark. Even better, the comments section revealed that this time, no big-name creator had helped promote it.

This achievement was purely due to the video's originality and quality, and his account's followers had now surpassed 300,000!

At the beginning of the month, he had fewer than 100,000 followers. This growth rate was nothing short of terrifying.

"Come here, Eevee, time for some cuddles!"

In high spirits, Ethan scooped up the Eevee beside him, who was happily feasting on its breakfast.

Ever since finding Eevee, good things seemed to happen constantly—it was like his lucky charm!

"Vee~!" Eevee didn't understand what was happening but never resisted Ethan's cuddles.

...

After a moment of affection, Ethan let Eevee return to its meal while he continued browsing the comments section, eager to see how viewers were praising him this time.

However, before he could dive into the comments, a message popped up on the Pingchat app from Rosa.

"Ethan, your identity's been exposed!"

Ethan froze, his heart skipping a beat. His first thought was that his secret as a transmigrator had been discovered.

In an instant, visions of being interrogated, detained, or worse flooded his mind.

Thankfully, Rosa's subsequent message clarified things. She sent a screenshot showing that a single frame of his face had accidentally been left in his latest video.

While it wasn't exactly good news, Ethan found himself oddly relieved.

At least it's better than being exposed as a transmigrator, right?

Forget it. Trying to edit the video now would be like covering one's ears to steal a bell. If my face is out there, so be it.

"I guess I'll just have to live with the label of someone who relies on their looks," Ethan thought wryly.

After breakfast, Ethan returned to the kitchen to experiment with something new: a type of energy cube designed to enhance a Pokémon's Beauty stat.

Although he knew of such items from the games and shows in his previous life, creating a beauty-enhancing energy cube from scratch was no easy feat.

Fortunately, Ethan's passion for the Pokémon series and his sharp memory gave him a starting point.

After thoroughly browsing through Berry Shop listings the previous night, he identified the berries that boosted beauty stats in the games: Pamtre, Cornn, Hondew, Kelpsy, and Bluk.

These berries, when used to make blue Pokéblocks in the games, could potentially enhance a Pokémon's beauty stat.

The bad news? These berries were rare and sensitive to their growing environments, primarily cultivated in regions like Hoenn, Sinnoh, and southern Valoria.

The good news? Precisely because these berries were so rare, beauty-enhancing energy cubes had yet to be developed in this world.

Let alone feeding them to Feebas to discover a second method of evolving into Milotic.

Ethan spent the morning visiting several berry shops before finally finding a supplier that stocked all five berries.

With these, and the multi-function energy cube maker he had purchased from Silph Co. the previous evening, Ethan began experimenting right away.

Thanks to his basic knowledge of cooking techniques, Ethan's sense of proportion was fairly accurate.

It just so happened that energy cube production demanded meticulous timing and precision.

After following a tutorial from P-Studio twice, Ethan gained a rough understanding of why identical machines could produce energy cubes of varying quality.

Berries, much like Pokémon, defied conventional scientific explanations.

Factors like blending time, direction, speed, and the precise moment to stop before the cube solidified—all played a role in determining the cube's quality.

The intricacies were no less complex than Pokémon breeding, which was why high-quality energy cubes commanded such steep prices.

Generally, because of the need for skill and practice, older and more experienced cube makers were highly sought after.

Although it seemed as simple as pressing a few buttons, in reality, it required technique, composure, and swift reflexes.

As a result, the methods shown in video tutorials often looked straightforward, but when trying it yourself?

Oh no, why won't my hands cooperate?

This was a lot like cooking.

By midday, Ethan stared at the brightly colored energy cubes on his plate, lost in thought.

Venturing into uncharted territory truly was a daunting task...

"Lunchtime!"

Ethan brought over all the energy cubes he had made that morning and placed them in front of Eevee.

Initially excited, Eevee's expression instantly turned sour.

Seeing the plate piled high with multicolored energy cubes, Eevee was struck by a wave of dread.

Memories from its past life came flooding back—the first time Ethan had tried making homemade energy cubes.

That meal had left an indelible mark.

Back then, Ethan's career as a content creator hadn't taken off, and the household funds were running dangerously low. Eevee was on the verge of not having enough to eat.

It was then that Ethan made a bold decision: if they couldn't afford energy cubes, they would make their own!

Trusting Ethan, Eevee had bravely volunteered as the taste tester.

That meal introduced it to every possible flavor under the sun.

Ethan, in his enthusiasm, had purchased every berry he could find and started experimenting with combinations.

Needless to say, the bitterness of Hondew, the spiciness of Tamato, and the astringency of Kelpsy berries...

One bite was enough to bring Eevee to tears.

They say a single bad dish can overshadow a hundred good ones, and that day, despite Ethan's previous culinary successes, Eevee's faith in his cooking was shattered.

The experience left a scar so deep that even in this life, Eevee couldn't forget.

Now, faced with an eerily similar situation, Eevee was on the verge of tears.

If I've done wrong, punish me. But why must I endure this torture?

(End of Chapter)