Chapter 10: A Peculiar Pokemon, and a More Peculiar Situation!

*Michael's POV*

I woke up groggily as a feeling of soreness overwhelmed my entire body.

"Ah! Where's Rowlet?!" I spoke subconsciously as I slowly remembered what happened before I passed out.

Before I could worry myself any longer, I noticed a Pokeball that was sitting on my nightstand. I grabbed the foreign Pokeball without hesitation; I could surmise that my new partner was inside of it resting.

"I should formally introduce myself, huh… Come on out, Rowlet!" I gently pressed the button on the Pokeball as if to prevent waking up a baby.

As the red light of the Pokeball faded, the small, round figure of Rowlet was left slumbering peacefully on my lap. Rowlet breathed quietly as its snore bubble grew and shrunk with every breath. I could only describe the scene as incredibly adorable.

After taking a second to quietly enjoy this calming moment, I gently poked Rowlet's forehead in an effort to wake it up. Its snore bubble popped as the grass/flying-type Pokemon woke up. It released a cute yawn while rubbing its eyes with one wing before looking up with a tilted head at me.

"Rowlet!" The tiny Pokemon greeted me as it snuggled closer into my chest.

"It's nice to meet you, Rowlett. My name is Michael, and I'm gonna be your trainer from now on. I'll teach you about many different things as we train and get stronger together. What do you say?" I asked Rowlet as I pet its head.

Rowlet, in response to my question, tilted its head in confusion as if it did not understand most of the words I just said.

"Haha, I almost forgot you're still just a baby… In that case, let's start with the simple things instead. Are you hungry, Rowlet?" I asked.

"Row! Row!" Rowlet enthusiastically answered me by lifting its right wing and speaking with excitement in its eyes.

'I can already tell that our future adventures together will be enjoyable' I thought to myself as I cherished the scene.

*??? POV*

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU REINCARNATED A MARTIAL ARTIST INTO THE POKEMON WORLD??? WE RESERVED THAT WORLD FOR AN EARTHLING, YOU FOOL!!! THE WHOLE PLOT LINE OF THE WORLD WAS GONNA BE ABOUT SOME POOR SOB HUMAN OBSESSED WITH POKEMON WHO DIED TRAGICALLY AFTER PUSHING A YOUNG GIRL OUT OF THE WAY OF A SPEEDING TRUCK!! THEN WE WORK OUR MAGIC - AND BADA BING BADA BOOM, THEY GET A SECOND LIFE IN THE POKEMON WORLD WITH A CHEAT AS A REWARD FOR THEIR KARMA!!

OH, BUT NOW THE SETTING IS BEING USED BY SOME CLUELESS MEATHEAD THAT DOESN'T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT REINCARNATION TROPES!! HOW IS THIS DAMN SOUL EVER GONNA UTILIZE THEIR CHEAT???" The loud nagging of an inexplicable being berated the incorporeal lifeform(?) sitting in front of it.

"M-my deepest apologies, boss! I swear I didn't know that this world was reserved!! I mean, even our collective consciousness servers didn't have the world registered! I swear!" The incorporeal being worriedly begged its boss to understand.

"YOU- hah… why do I even bother with you 18th-dimensional idiots… Ugh, fine. I won't dig any further. HOWEVER! You better start turning this shitshow of a reincarnation story into something interesting, or it's your hypothetical ass! We have loyal customers that are dying for some Pokemon content!" With those last words, the inexplicable existence vanished from the incorporeal lifeform's office.

"*sigh* Alright, how the hell am I gonna inform this soul of its cheats…"

*Michael POV*

I fetched a bottle of moomoo milk that Professor Oak had gifted me out of my backpack and fed it to Rowlett. For a newborn, it sure knew how to get every last drop of milk out of the bottle…

"Rowlett!" The baby Pokemon jumped onto my shoulder once it had enjoyed its fill.

I looked out the window of my bedroom and noticed that the sun was rising from under the horizon.

'Wait… How long were we asleep??'

With that thought in my mind, I quickly ran downstairs where I found my mom and dad already awake and cooking breakfast together.

"Oh, good morning you two! Huhuhu! Michael, why don't you introduce your father to your new companion!" My mom spoke with an extra tone of warmth in her voice.

"Mm. Rowlet, that's my mom, and that's my dad." I explained to my companion while pointing at my parents.

"Nice to meet you, Rowlet!" My dad spoke while putting down a frying pan on the stove.

"Row?" Rowlet hid shyly behind my head whilst standing on my shoulders and let out a soft coo.

"No need to be shy, buddy. Mom and Dad are my family, and that means they're your family too." I encouraged the young Pokemon.

Seemingly taking my advice, Rowlet decided to stop hiding by hopping onto the top of my head and cooing more confidently.

"Rowlet!" The young owl Pokemon waved its right wing in a greeting gesture.

"Huhu, my you're just the cutest! It's so nice to meet you, Rowlet." My mother started to pet the young owl.

Rowlet was hesitant until my mom's pets convinced him that there was nothing to worry about.

"By the way, Professor Oak says that you're free to visit him whenever you woke up. He seemed quite excited to research and discuss this cutie's abnormal characteristics with you!" Rowlet seemed to melt from the head scratches, as it barely reacted to its name being said.

"Mm. I'll go see him now then. I'm curious about Rowlet's circumstances myself, and I'm sure the professor can't wait to start researching."

Having said my peace, I pulled the reluctant baby pokemon away from my mother's hands and set off to Oak's lab.

"Ahh, Michael! I'm happy you're here so soon! How are you feeling after yesterday?" Professor Oak was waiting patiently at the entrance to his lab, sneaking glances at the freshly hatched pokemon trying to hide behind my head.

"Much better professor! It seems Rowlet over here is very healthy, so I doubt the strange readings from his egg are anything to be concerned about. On the contrary, I think he might be a bit too energetic for a day-old pokemon…" Rowlet, who seemed to understand we were talking about him, lowered his guard as he poked his head out from behind.

'It seems this little guy is cautious towards strangers. If he were in my old world, he would have surely survived for a while at the very least. Perhaps he would have even become a powerful demonic beast… None of that matters anymore, let's just enjoy our time together as companions.'

I reached towards my neck to pet the cautious little owl, who immediately dropped all caution to enjoy the pleasant sensation.

"Excellent! Let's talk more inside, I want to discuss something important with you. It's related to your specialization." The Professor guided me inside the laboratory as we continued to converse on various topics.

"I've recently connected with Professor Kukui, a professor based in the Alola region who specializes in pokemon moves. According to him, he's looking for a research assistant related to typing energies and their connection to pokemon moves. While I understand that this isn't your exact area of interest, it should be noted that the Alola region is home to a large sample size of 'regional variant' Pokemon. With that in mind, I recommended you by name." Oak smiled as he delivered the shocking news.

"Eh? But I still haven't graduated from the academy yet, Professor. I'm also not confident that Rowlet is ready for such a long trip. He hasn't even fully acclimated to being here!" Professor Oak seemed to have expected my answer to be as such, as the smile on his face never left.

"Haha! No need to be worried, young Michael! I've already informed Professor Kukui of your circumstances, and he has already informed me that he is willing to wait until you complete your studies here at the academy before asking you to assist him. That is, of course, if you agree to take up this position. I want to make it abundantly clear, you are free to decide your future for yourself." Oak's smile deepened as he seemed to understand my concerns.

"Now, that's enough about that. Shall we learn more about our new friend here?" Oak's gaze shifted to the half-asleep owl Pokemon on my shoulder.

The remainder of their time at Oak's laboratory was spent taking various readings and measurements of Rowlet, from size to follow-up typing energy readings. It was no surprise that the results remained the same, albeit slightly more pronounced. Nostalgic thoughts surfaced in Michael's mind of the rare happy times he experienced in his past life, before they were expelled by his reminder of his past actions.

'I must never forget the anguish I have caused. I shall dedicate this life to experiencing the joys of the world around me, and more importantly, spreading that joy.'

With the thoughts in Michael's head returning to their usual collected state, an unexpected event took place.

"*Ding* Congratulations on unlocking the 'Martial Master' System! We look forward to your future endeavors!"

"Eh?"