—Liam POV—
The moment I opened my eyes, I was in a forest.
"Ouch! Now I have a splitting headache. It feels like I got hit by a piano or something."
It wasn't until I remembered that I actually did get hit by a piano that dropped on top of me out of nowhere while I was going to get the new Pokémon game that came out a few months ago called Legends: Z-A.
"I swear, that has to be the most random thing to happen to a person, getting hit by a piano... Wait! Why does my voice sound younger?!"
It wasn't until I looked at my reflection in a pond next to me that I realized I looked five years younger, with silver and red streaks in my hair and blue eyes.
"Great. Now I'm going to be treated as a kid again!"
I cried internally, knowing that I wouldn't be treated as an adult anymore. Before the piano hit me, I was an 18-year-old teen, fresh out of high school who had recently become a college student!
"I should stop complaining about my age. It won't get me anywhere. Right now, I should find out where I am."
Internally, I believed I had been isekai'd into another world, something I had read about in manga before. If I had, I needed to find a village, town, or some place with people.
Rustle. Rustle.
At that moment, I stopped and heard a sound coming from the bushes. I was prepared to run if it was a monster.
"Huh? You shouldn't be here. You know this place is restricted to outsiders unless they have business with my grandpa."
The good thing was that it wasn't a monster in front of me, but a girl who appeared to be in her mid-teens, probably around 15, with long brown hair and green eyes.
"Cute."
"Oh my, do you say that to every girl you first meet?"
She chuckled at me for blurting it out loud, but her appearance made me believe I had seen her before.
But where, though?
"Hello?"
After hearing her voice again, I stopped thinking about it and looked at her.
"Sorry about that. I was lost in thought, and I appear to have gotten myself lost. You said this was a restricted place?"
"Hmm, well, it seems you aren't lying about that. You have the look of someone who doesn't know where he is."
I could tell she was trying to hide her laughter at me.
"Yeah, sorry about that. My name is Liam Valiant. What's your name, Miss?"
"Oh, sorry for not introducing myself. My name is Daisy Oak. You're in the Oak Corral. It's basically a natural environment where Pokémon can develop."
"It's where trainers leave their Pokémon in the care of my grandpa since they can only carry six at a time."
Wait, did she just say Pokémon?!
"Wait a minute, Miss. You said Pokémon, right?"
"Yes, I did. Is there something wrong with it?"
She gave me a weird look, as if that were a strange question to ask, but it made me realize where I had seen her before.
"Sorry if my question was weird. You said your grandpa runs this place, right?"
"Yes, he does. Of course, I help out too, now that I've recently become a Pokémon Researcher."
And just to confirm her words, I had to say it to make sure myself.
"And this is Oak Corral, where trainers leave their Pokémon after their journeys and where wild Pokémon are normally spotted in the mix, correct?"
"Yep."
Okay, now this is getting exciting.
"And your grandpa? He isn't Professor Oak by any chance, right?"
She gave me a smile.
"Correct. You're right. Professor Oak is my grandpa, Liam."
Okay, now I know exactly where I'm at. Even though I read Pokémon Adventures in the past, she looks exactly like her manga counterpart that I remember reading about.
But the fact remains that I'm now in the Pokémon World! But which one, though? Based on her being here, I'm probably in the Adventures one since she looks exactly like her manga counterpart.
Cough. Cough.
I looked at her as she seemed like she wanted to tell me something.
"Well, you can tell me why you're here while we head back to my place, okay?"
I only shook my head in agreement as I followed her to Oak Labs.
Along the way, I told her that I'm a new trainer but got lost on my way here and ended up in the forest. What surprised me was that she asked if I had filled out the application form and sent it to the Pokémon Association to become a trainer.
I told her no, as I didn't know about that, and that I'm sort of a drifter since I was young and never really stayed in one place for long.
She seemed to have the look of someone asking about something they shouldn't have. I told her it was fine, as I asked about the application form.
From what Daisy said, you need to fill out the form six months or more in advance in order to qualify as a trainer, along with your name, age, address, and which place you plan on getting your starter Pokémon from. This is because they tend to have a huge influx of new trainers every year.
The only places you can get your starter are gyms, Pokémon Centers, a Professor's Lab, or the designated regional headquarters of the Pokémon Association. However, there have been rare cases where people have forgotten to fill out the form and still have a chance to get a Pokémon.
Only after the rest of the trainers who filled out the form first, of course. Each place has a limited amount of Pokémon they give out as starters, too, and it is on a first-come, first-served basis.
"Actually, I just came home today to see my grandpa and drop off this package that my grandpa's cousin sent him from Alola. Of course, I'm sad that I didn't get to see my little brother and his friends off yesterday. So, I'm not sure if Grandpa has any Pokémon left for new trainers."
"That's fine. If he doesn't have any, then I'll just fill out the application and try again next year. After all, I don't care how long it takes. I will be a Pokémon Trainer!"
She gave a small laugh at my comment.
"Ha-ha-ha, I swear, you seem to be full of energy. You remind me of my younger brother's friend."
I glanced at her, trying to figure out which friend she meant and if her brother was Blue or Gary.
"I do? Do you mind telling me who they are? Because I know that I might meet them on my journey."
I asked innocently because I was curious to figure out which Pokémon world I was in.
"Sure. I can tell you guys are bound to cross paths someday. My brother's name is Gary, and his friend's name is Ash."
"Oh! I forgot there are these other two as well. Their names are Red—he's the silent type. Gary said once that he'll be a strong Pokémon Trainer."
"The other one is Leaf. She is a pretty adventurous girl and loves to battle. Not going to lie, she once asked me a few months ago that once she sets out on her journey, she'd want to battle me the next time we meet."
Okay, now I am confused here. After hearing her explain about her brother and his friends, I at first thought it was Blue, but instead, it was Gary and Ash!
Not to mention that Red and Leaf are their childhood friends as well. Just what the hell is going on here?!
This Pokémon World feels like a mix of the anime, manga, and the games. I swear, this is going to be crazy!
"Is something wrong, Liam? Why did you stop?"
At that moment, I slapped my cheeks very hard, which stunned even Daisy. It may look weird to her, but I can't be afraid of something that is out of my control. All I can do is persevere no matter what!
"Alright! Sorry about that, Daisy. Just hearing you talk about your younger brother and his friends got me all fired up."
In truth, I wasn't afraid because I was excited about this development.
"I can't wait to be a Pokémon Trainer and cross paths with them and battle them! I can tell it's going to be awesome!"
"Ha-ha-ha! I swear, you really are a funny guy, Liam. Hmm... you know what? If Grandpa doesn't have a beginner Pokémon left, I promise to go catch you one."
I looked at her in bewilderment at her offer.
"Really, Daisy?! You'll do that for me even though we just met?"
"Sure, why not? I can tell by that look in your eyes that you're not the type to give up. And besides, it might be fun knowing my brother and the rest are going to have an interesting rival and perhaps a new friend."
I smiled and jumped up in excitement before starting to run toward the exit of the forest.
"Come on! Let's go already! You said it's past these trees, right? The sooner we're there, the sooner I can become a Pokémon Trainer! Whoohoo!"
"Wait! Hold up, Liam! There's a—"
"Ahhhh!"
Splash.
"A edge that leads to the pond."