Night fell.
Under a star-strewn sky, a single beam of moonlight spilled across the pitch-black sea, drawing all attention to the tiny fishing boat drifting quietly on its surface.
"Okay… That should do it."
After helping Luffy adjust the sails and confirming once more that their heading was correct, Arelon nodded with satisfaction. Then he turned toward Luffy.
"Get ready, Luffy."
"No matter what, tonight we're clearing Viridian Forest!"
"Wahoo~ Anything involving battles, just leave it to me!"
Knowing Arelon wasn't good at fighting, Luffy let out a peculiar cry—yet somehow, it was reassuring.
He hopped to Arelon's side in a single bound, eyes shimmering with excitement and anticipation.
Even though this wasn't their first time entering that alternate world, the sheer strangeness and wonder of the experience hooked Luffy's adventurer's soul every time.
Seeing this, Arelon didn't hesitate. He smiled faintly, closed his eyes, and sank his consciousness inward.
In an instant, a classic red-and-blue handheld console appeared in his mind's eye.
This was the golden cheat that had crossed worlds with him—
a virtual game console that allowed him to enter the worlds of its games.
It existed only within his consciousness, yet it gave him the confidence to survive on these dangerous seas.
But despite its incredible power, the console had one fatal flaw…
Its battery life was absolutely abysmal.
Just booting it up had taken two and a half years.
From the very moment he transmigrated, the screen had read:
[Insufficient Power. Unable to Boot.]
If not for the tiny corner indicator reading [Charging…] with a progress bar, Arelon would've thought his cheat ability was broken from the start.
Only three nights ago did the console finally reach minimum power and turn on.
And the moment it did, a flood of information rushed into Arelon's mind—knowledge of the console's functions and how to use it.
First—
He could enter game worlds unlocked on the console. Completing achievements or clearing stages would grant rewards matching the game's theme.
Second—
By consuming energy, he could extract items from the game into the real world—fully functional.
Third—
After the first startup, the console could recharge itself by absorbing Arelon's bio-energy, at a rate safe for his body. Currently, it gathered enough power for two hours of gameplay per day.
Because he hadn't played yesterday while preparing for their voyage, today he had four hours saved up.
The only disappointing part?
All the games on the device were ones he had already played before—
and he could only unlock the next game by beating the previous one.
"Sigh… If I knew this would be my cheat ability, why did I play so much Pokémon back then?"
"If this were a Dragon Ball game, the One Piece world would be my backyard!"
"I'd go wherever the hell I wanted!"
He groaned inwardly as the game list appeared—
a long row of icons, each bearing the same three characters: Pokémon.
He really had no one to blame but himself. After getting hooked on Pokémon and earning a scholarship, he'd rewarded himself with binge sessions… many of them.
Let's Go! Pikachu/Eevee, Legends: Arceus, Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl, Sword/Shield, Scarlet/Violet…
Because of the transmigration, what had originally been version pairs were now merged into single unified games.
And after Scarlet/Violet came the system's default "Shop" icon—
which he could unlock only after completing the last available game.
That shop represented his hope—
his dream of one day turning super-Saiyan in the One Piece world.
With every version merged, all exclusive items and Pokémon existed within a single game.
However…
The only thing he could actually look forward to were the special items.
Because—
his cheat DID NOT allow him to catch Pokémon. At all.
"Who can understand the pain of selecting Pikachu, throwing out a Poké Ball… and having Luffy pop out instead!?"
He still couldn't forget the traumatic moment when level 46 Luffy one-shot the rival NPC's Eevee.
Yes—
Even inside the Pokémon world, Arelon couldn't use a single Pokémon.
The system Pikachu was replaced by Luffy.
Any Pokémon he caught turned into a white flash—converted into EXP or the occasional dropped item.
His only fighting force in the game world…
was Luffy.
He still had no idea whether this was a bug or intentional design, but he'd long since given up trying to understand it.
And honestly—
a level 46 Luffy was far, far stronger than any level 5 starter Pokémon.
Thanks to Luffy, Arelon had quickly cleared the early battles.
He then tested the console's mechanics and discovered a problem—
If the distance between him and Luffy exceeded 100 meters, re-entering the game would trap him in an infinite loop of waking up in his in-game bed with the message:
[No Available Pokémon to Battle.]
From that moment on, he understood—
he had to follow Luffy to sea.
Luckily, he'd transmigrated soon after Ace left, during the period when Luffy was still lonely.
Between his foreknowledge and Earth-side understanding of One Piece, Arelon unexpectedly formed a deep bond with Luffy.
When he first arrived, Arelon had actually planned to train himself to become a powerful fighter.
He had even attempted the legendary Saitama Training Regimen:
100 squats, 100 sit-ups, 100 push-ups, and a 10 km run—daily!
Not impressive by Marine standards, but for a sedentary college student?
Hellish.
But he persisted.
And something definitely changed…
His body grew stronger—but in the wrong direction.
Two and a half years later, his strength had indeed increased. He even defeated Windmill Village's local strongman in arm-wrestling.
But his punches?
Still as soft as a child's.
It was as if some mysterious rule prevented him from dealing damage.
In exchange, though—
his vitality, resilience, and defense had skyrocketed to ridiculous levels.
While living with Luffy, it was impossible not to get injured.
But no matter the damage—lightning strikes, burns, falls from height—
the injuries remained superficial. He rarely bled. And everything healed within a short time.
If he weren't afraid to test it, he would've suspected he'd achieved the "Immortality" perk from Saitama's training.
He chalked it up as transmigrator welfare.
He didn't get Saitama's conceptual "one-punch kill," but he had become a super rookie—at least strong enough to protect himself in East Blue.
"Alright then…"
"Pokémon—start!"
After reviewing his memories, Arelon focused, letting his consciousness touch the Let's Go! Pikachu/Eevee icon.
A brilliant white light swallowed his senses.
When he opened his eyes again, he and Luffy had left the moonlit ocean behind—
and stood within a lush forest that felt not quite real.
The fresh scent of greenery replaced the salty sea breeze.
What greeted them was a soft, vibrant, cartoon-like world.
Half-man-tall bushes swayed gently as though welcoming them.
From behind the grass and trees, tiny creatures occasionally peeked or wandered:
Weedle, Caterpie, Oddish…
Creatures once confined to fantasy now stepped vividly into view.
Though none seemed aware of the intruders in their world, moving instead along fixed paths in typical game-world fashion.
This was a unique Pokémon world—
and their current location was exactly where they had saved last time—
Viridian Forest.