Pokémon: Check-In System

Vasciyna Region, Galas City.

Above the city, Skarmory and Pidgeot, both clad in steel-like armor, soared through the sky. Each bore a special police insignia on their wings, their sharp gazes surveying the city below. From their perspective, the sprawling Galas seemed no larger than a small rural village.

On the ground, an electrician was working on a utility pole, assisted by a floating, silver-white, single-eyed mechanical Magnet Pokémon—

Magnemite!

Using its magnetic abilities, Magnemite levitated and handed a tool to its partner. The electrician smiled in appreciation of its help.

About a hundred meters away, a young man stepped out of a department store. Walking at a steady pace, he made his way to a nearby bus stop, where he located a shared Dodrio.

After scanning the QR code attached to Dodrio's body with his phone for payment, the three-headed Pokémon crouched down, allowing the young man to mount it.

Much like shared bicycles, shared Dodrio were stationed at various locations throughout the city.

As an ostrich-like Pokémon renowned for its speed, Dodrio were either tamed from the wild or hatched from daycare center eggs before undergoing rigorous training to be used as temporary rental Pokémon for convenient urban transport.

Because of its alignment with eco-friendly travel initiatives, the Trainer Association viewed this innovation with cautious optimism.

More than two hundred years ago, Pokémon emerged in the real world. Initially, humanity regarded these mysterious creatures with extreme caution, even resorting to force in an attempt to drive them away.

However, over the course of two centuries, the relationship between humans and Pokémon evolved from mutual hostility to harmonious coexistence.

In this Pokémon Era, Pokémon had successfully integrated into human society, becoming vital companions in various professions, fostering a world where people and Pokémon lived in peace.

...

"Mom, I'm off to school!"

Nero pushed open the door, carrying a backpack, a piece of bread in his mouth, and running toward school. Following close behind him was a Pokémon.

"Chamo!"

Trailing Nero was a Pokémon resembling a fighting rooster, its body covered in light yellow and orange feathers, equipped with sharp white claws.

Because this bird Pokémon stood on two legs and could breathe searing flames, the neighbors had taken to calling it "the walking fire-breathing chicken."

Though the nickname was somewhat comical, this Fire- and Fighting-type Pokémon was undeniably strong.

Both Nero's classmates and neighbors believed that this Pokémon had great potential for the future.

"Almost forgot—I still need to check in today."

While running, Nero slid his backpack down to his arm and retrieved a pair of blue-framed glasses.

"Combusken, hold onto my backpack for me."

He tossed the bag to his Pokémon, which caught it and slung it over its shoulder.

After putting on the glasses, Nero's slender fingers tapped a small button on the left frame.

Ding!

[Congratulations, Host! Today's check-in is successful! You have received your daily reward: one ordinary-quality red Pokéblock. Please claim it.]

Nero pressed the button again, and a translucent cyan screen appeared before his eyes.

He slid today's check-in reward into his inventory tab.

Rewards obtained from daily check-ins could be stored for future use.

Since running while looking at a screen was dangerous, Nero slowed his pace to a walk.

He tapped the "Check-in Progress" tab in the top-left corner of the screen, and within two seconds, a row of text appeared:

[Host's Check-in Progress]

Daily Check-in: 1/1 (Reward Claimed)

Weekly Check-in: 6/7

Monthly Check-in: 27/31

Seasonal Check-in: 27/120

Yearly Check-in: 27/366

Decade Check-in: 27/3652

Gazing at the statistics displayed on the cyan screen, Nero was lost in thought.

In truth, Nero was not originally from this world. He had transmigrated here from another universe.

However, intriguingly enough, the owner of this body was also named Nero, and his parents bore an uncanny resemblance to his own from his previous life.

Perhaps this world and his original world were connected by the theory of parallel universes.

In his past life, Nero had been a high school sophomore. During a family road trip in July, they were involved in a tragic accident—a truck driver, drunk at the wheel, collided with their car, leading to the deaths of Nero and his parents.

Meanwhile, in this Pokémon Era, Nero had acted heroically. At a busy intersection, a little girl had run a red light, and Nero instinctively rushed forward to push her out of harm's way.

Though his bravery saved the girl, he sustained critical injuries and was rushed to the hospital.

Though his life was saved, he fell into a deep coma, effectively becoming a vegetative state patient.

For over six months, his parents wept daily but held onto the belief that their son would one day wake up.

Fate seemed to intertwine at a crucial moment. On January 1st of the following year, the Nero from another world, who should have perished in the car crash, mysteriously transmigrated into this Pokémon Era Nero's body!

Their appearances were identical, their personalities strikingly similar, and even their parents were the same.

The only difference was the existence of Pokémon in this world!

This bizarre twist of fate left Nero bewildered, but when he miraculously woke from his coma, news of his recovery quickly spread.

After six months of sorrow, his parents finally smiled again.

Though he had awakened, he remained under observation for a while.

Perhaps because of his past life's extensive reading of novels, Nero quickly accepted his new reality.

During his hospital stay, he delved into books to better understand this world.

The Pokémon Era's history had mirrored his original world's for over two centuries—until Pokémon appeared, triggering a dramatic divergence in the future timeline.

Nero discovered some of the Vasciyna Region's recently implemented policies:

"The Professional Trainer Code of Ethics"

"The Youth Trainer Act"

"Prohibition on Trainers Under 20 Engaging in [Censored] Relations with Opposite-Gender Pokémon"

The last policy made Nero's thoughts wander, but what truly caught his attention was the Youth Trainer Act.

According to this law, Vasciyna youths who reached 16 years of age—typically during their sophomore summer break—could receive their first Pokémon from a local daycare center, provided their parents paid a certain tax.

Moreover, Pokémon battles had been integrated into college entrance exams!

Both versions of Nero were the same age—both high school sophomores. Ironically, the original Nero of this world had been on his way to select his first Pokémon at the daycare center when the accident happened...

By the time he awoke, he was already six months behind his peers!

To make matters worse, this world's college entrance exam did not allow repeat takers. Since repeat students would have an extra year of Pokémon training, it was deemed unfair and thus prohibited.

While Nero had extensive theoretical knowledge from watching Pokémon anime and playing games, he was now at a severe disadvantage, trailing behind his fellow trainers by half a year.

Nero wasn't so confident as to think he could dominate everything effortlessly.

The news of his awakening spread, and his best friend and classmate, Lyle, came to congratulate him.

Regardless of the world they were in, their friendship remained unchanged. Through Lyle, Nero learned some critical news:

Sometime after the new semester started, likely in early March, the school would hold its final selection tournament for the school team!

Although Nero's high school wasn't a prestigious institution, it was still one of the better ones in Galas City. Becoming a member of the school team meant enjoying significant benefits.

From expert coaching to access to valuable resources, these advantages would greatly aid a student trainer in improving their skills and achieving better results in the college entrance exams.

Having already lost six months compared to others, if Nero failed to make the school team, his future path would become extremely difficult!

His family wasn't wealthy—just an average household. Resources were already scarce, and with six fewer months of training than his peers, the obstacles before him seemed insurmountable.

Starting on "Hell Mode" right from the beginning, Nero almost wanted to cry...

But then...

It seemed this world had not abandoned him!

On the third day after arriving in this world, Nero woke up from his sleep to find a mysterious blue-rimmed pair of glasses sitting on his bedside table!

In both worlds, Nero was nearsighted. Though it was only mild myopia, he was accustomed to wearing glasses when reading for long periods.

The moment he put on the blue-rimmed glasses, something incredible happened—a mechanical voice suddenly spoke!

At first, he was bewildered. But with the voice's guidance and the "Assistance Function" built into the glasses, Nero spent over half an hour exploring its features and finally understood what made these glasses so special!

They possessed an extraordinary ability— the Check-In Reward System!

Through the "Assistance Function," Nero quickly grasped how the Check-In Reward System worked.

The rewards were divided into two modes: Time-based and Location-based.

The Time-based rewards worked just like he had just experienced. By pressing a button on the left frame, he could check in and claim his reward.

There were six stages of time-based check-ins:

Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, and the Decade Check-In!

As the levels increased, the rewards would become progressively more substantial. However, the specific rewards were not disclosed upfront; Nero had to check in over time to unlock them.

The Location-based mode allowed him to check in at specific special locations to receive related rewards.

According to the "Assistance Function," these rewards seemed to be randomly drawn based on the environment. However, Nero had no clear idea what counted as a "special location."

Still, he had a bold hypothesis: these special locations might correspond to the unique spaces that appeared when Pokémon first manifested in this world—Secret Realms!

When Pokémon first arrived in reality, they existed within a special dimension known as a "Secret Realm."

Over time, Secret Realms had fused with real-world locations. In this world, if any place could be considered "special," Secret Realms were the most likely candidates.

However, with his current status as a novice trainer, Nero had no qualification to explore a Secret Realm just yet.

That said, even if Secret Realms were unique spaces, it didn't mean that big cities lacked their own special locations. Nero simply hadn't discovered them yet.

...

"Combusken, buy me a bottle of water."

Nero closed the screen, pulled two coins from his pocket, and handed them to his Combusken, instructing it to purchase a bottle of mineral water from a nearby vending machine.

"Cha-mo!"

Combusken nodded, gripped the coins in its beak, and then turned its gaze to the left before dashing off at full speed.

At the same time, a small sedan was driving along, moving parallel to Combusken.

The car wasn't particularly fast, but it was still easily outpacing Combusken.

In just a short while, Combusken had fallen over a hundred meters behind.

However...

After running for some distance, a brilliant blue glow suddenly radiated from Combusken's powerful legs!

The shimmering blue light enveloped its limbs, and Combusken's speed... increased dramatically!

The gap between Combusken and the sedan quickly narrowed. Yet, it didn't stop there—after another stretch of running, the blue glow flared up once more!

At this moment, Combusken was flying across the pavement!

With a gust of wind, it overtook cyclists one after another. Even a Dodrio, known for its incredible speed, was effortlessly left in the dust. Combusken was now running neck-and-neck with the car!

"Wow! Mommy, look! That chicken is so fast!"

The incredible display of speed caught the attention of passersby, who watched in amazement, stunned by Combusken's agility.

Tossing the coins into the vending machine, Combusken retrieved a bottle of mineral water as it dropped down.

Holding the bottle, Combusken swiftly returned to Nero's side.

Nero didn't immediately take the water. Instead, he fixed his gaze on Combusken and pressed the button on the right frame of his glasses!

In an instant, a semi-transparent blue-green screen appeared before his eyes.

The screen displayed Combusken's detailed stats!

Pokémon: Combusken

Type: Fire/Fighting

Ability: Speed Boost

Gender: Male

Level: Normal Level

Status: Good (No Abnormalities)

Evaluation: Healthy body, immense growth potential. With proper training, it has the potential to become a formidable Pokémon.

The button on the left frame controlled the Check-In Reward System, while the right frame displayed basic Pokémon data!

Normally, Pokémon eggs contained an unknown life form. While it was possible to determine the species of a Pokémon egg through observation or scanning, abilities and growth potential were impossible to discern in advance!

However, with these blue-rimmed glasses, Nero could access an egg's basic data, though only if the Pokémon inside was close to hatching. Newly laid eggs wouldn't display any information.

Upon being discharged from the hospital, Nero's first move was to visit a Pokémon Breeding House to select his first partner. Using his glasses' ability, he successfully found a Torchic with an exceptional growth potential and the highly coveted Speed Boost ability!

Speed Boost continuously increases the Pokémon's speed as time passes!

This was an extremely rare ability. Nero had searched through four different breeding houses before finding only three Torchic with Speed Boost.

The Combusken standing before him was the result of evolving the third Torchic he had chosen.

Back then, Nero had only been searching for the Speed Boost ability and hadn't bothered investigating growth potential further.

The reason? Simple—it was love at first sight!

The moment he laid eyes on that Torchic, Nero had already made his decision.

And it turned out, Combusken did not disappoint him. Together, they rapidly grew stronger. By the time the semester exams approached, Torchic had evolved into Combusken!

With its newfound strength, Nero quickly became one of the top three trainers in his class!

Many were utterly shocked—after all, Nero had only been training Pokémon for less than a month, yet he had already reached such a level. If he continued at this pace for six more months, wouldn't he be practically unstoppable?

His classmates couldn't help but praise both Nero and his Combusken, but deep down, both trainer and Pokémon knew—they were still far from their goal!

So far, Nero had only completed the daily and weekly check-in rewards from the system.

The daily rewards mostly consisted of Berries and Pokéblocks.

The weekly rewards, on the other hand, seemed to focus on TMs for basic moves and common battle items.

The system categorized "basic TMs" as those that included certain status moves or offensive moves with a base power of 90 or less.

Three weeks in a row, Nero had received a TM as his reward. For an ordinary trainer, this would have been an incredible windfall. However, Nero's competition consisted of the school's elite team members!

At prestigious schools, students on the official battle team were either exceptionally gifted trainers or came from wealthy families that could provide them with top-tier resources.

In most cases, it was the latter. And if their families could afford to support them, would they ever lack basic TMs?

The answer was obvious. Nero's weekly check-ins merely allowed him to stand on the same playing field as the school team members, but time was still his biggest obstacle!

To be honest, Nero felt a bit guilty toward the original "Nero" of this Pokémon world. Though they shared many similarities, no two leaves in the world were exactly the same. In the end, he had taken over another person's life.

There was always the possibility that if he hadn't arrived in this world, the original Nero would have remained in an endless slumber. But even so, that wasn't an excuse.

There was no way to repay the kindness of the one who had come before him. Moreover, Nero knew just how valuable a high-potential starter Pokémon like Torchic truly was.

The only thing he could do now was live on in his place and take good care of his parents.

As an only child, Nero knew that his parents—ordinary people without any special connections—had sacrificed a lot for him. They didn't want him to struggle like they had, so they had gritted their teeth and paid extra tuition just to ensure he received a strong Pokémon companion. This way, he would have a better shot at standing on his own in society.

Nero was truly grateful to them.

He understood that if he wanted to take care of his parents, his only real option was to get into a top-tier Pokémon Trainer University, study hard, and prepare for the future.

At the very least, he needed to make sure they wouldn't have to worry about covering even his future wedding expenses.

That was his way of thinking.

Opening the "Check-in Progress" screen once again, Nero's gaze fell upon the Monthly Check-in. He let out a small sigh.

"I really hope I pull a Golden Legendary this time…"

The daily and weekly check-ins were no longer enough to close the gap between him and those wealthy trainers. His only hope now was that the monthly check-in would grant him a truly valuable reward.

Some might say that even if the monthly check-in wasn't great, there was still the seasonal check-in before the university entrance exams.

But by that point, he would have already fallen too far behind. Unless the seasonal check-in reward was completely broken—practically a bug-level prize—it wouldn't be enough.

And even that wasn't the final milestone. The seasonal check-in was only the third-to-last major reward. If there was a truly game-breaking prize, it would have to be the once-in-a-decade check-in!

Nero stared at the countdown on the screen, exhaling softly.

Four more days until the monthly check-in… What kind of reward would he get this time?

----- 

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