Joy Shazhi certainly wasn’t scolding anyone; she just found it strange. How could a child who wasn’t that young be completely ignorant of such basic knowledge? Had no one taught him since he was little? Had he run away from home? Or... did he escape from an orphanage?

“... Sister Shazhi, can you keep this a secret for me?” Su Sheng’s eyes darted around, and then he lowered his voice seriously to ask.

Joy Shazhi was taken aback by Su Sheng’s demeanor. She quickly nodded solemnly.

“Actually... I’m the child of a human and a Pokémon.”

“Ah?!” Joy Shazhi, as a medical practitioner, was shocked. Humans and Pokémon can have children? This was the first time she had heard of such a thing!

“My dad... he’s a jerk!” Su Sheng pounded his little fist on the table, gritting his teeth. “Years ago, after he made my mom pregnant... he put her in a Poké Ball, and while she was asleep, he threw her, along with the Poké Ball, into the forest.”

“Later, my mother gave birth to me in the forest, and I grew up with Pokémon, so... I don’t know much about the human world.”

Joy Shazhi was completely stunned. This story was reshaping her worldview. Meanwhile, the Umbreon beside her also wore a puzzled expression.

Don’t know about the human world? I saw you communicating with humans on the way to the Pokémon Center without any issues at all.

“This, this is really shocking. I didn’t expect that humans and Pokémon could... Xiao Sheng, you’ve really had it tough all these years...” Joy Shazhi's heart suddenly filled with compassion.

“Don’t worry about it, Sister Shazhi. I’m doing fine now, aren’t I?” Su Sheng silently apologized to his father, who had already passed away. He hadn’t thought of a better excuse earlier and had immediately used N’s background.

But thinking about it, N might not necessarily be the child of a male human and a female Pokémon. It could also be a male Pokémon and a female human, right? For example, with a Shiny Gardevoir... after all, that guy has green hair.

In the end, under Joy Shazhi's sympathetic gaze, Su Sheng, an undocumented individual, successfully completed his identity registration. Although she didn’t help him pay the ten years of taxes to become a registered trainer eligible for the starter Pokémon, having a formal identity meant he could do much more than as an undocumented person.

After that, Joy Shazhi told Su Sheng to go back to his guest room to rest, and she would help him look for a host family tomorrow. Hearing this, while Joy Shazhi wasn’t paying attention, Su Sheng woke up very early the next day and left a letter expressing his gratitude before leaving.

Usually, it was fine to learn from Taosheng and pretend to be a child to gather some information. But actually living in another family and pretending to be a child for a few years? Wouldn’t that be risking his life? Moreover, although Su Sheng felt that Joy Shazhi wasn’t that kind of person, he was always afraid that once she reported his “background,” someone might take him for research purposes.

There was no way around it; after spending a long time in a world filled with pirates and deceit, he always thought of the worst-case scenarios. Although in his previous life, he often experimented with pirates and government lackeys, he didn’t want to be experimented on himself.

...

“I have a general understanding of this world, but the money issue hasn’t been resolved yet.” Su Sheng stretched lazily and walked down the street with the Umbreon, chatting idly. “To help you devolve, I need to study your DNA composition, which requires a lot of specialized equipment, like syringes, blood collection tubes, and blood test instruments...”

“All of these things cost quite a bit of money, but I don’t even have enough for lunch.”

“Bu Yi~ Bu Yi~ Bu Yi~” Umbreon responded in a similar idle manner, occasionally casting incredulous glances at her new master.

No, could he be serious? Not to mention the Eevee family, even throughout the entire history of Pokémon, Umbreon had never heard of anyone being able to devolve after evolving.

“Just because others can’t do it doesn’t mean I can’t. I’m quite confident in this regard.” Su Sheng stroked Umbreon’s round forehead. “Tsk~ But no matter how many times I look, I find you so beautiful, with that sleek black fur, those red eyes, and a little golden pattern accenting it.”

Ever since the Fairy-type Sylveon appeared in “XY,” with its elegant and beautiful appearance, along with the “Cute Charm” ability, which is the best trait in the Eevee family, it became the most welcomed Eevee evolution.

But Su Sheng still thought Umbreon was the coolest. There was a kind of mysterious beauty to it.

Su Sheng’s praise left Umbreon stunned once again. Am I... really that beautiful? Just last night, I fell asleep in the Pokémon Center, and in my dreams, I still saw the fearful expression of my original master abandoning me.

The boy and the fox continued their walk down the street. Umbreon’s glances at Su Sheng grew more frequent. She could feel it. Su Sheng’s words earlier were not mere comfort or deceit; he truly believed that.

Why... weren’t you my first master?

“Cyndaquil, use Ember!”

“Wow! Rattata! Quickly dodge!”

At that moment, a series of children’s shouts came from up ahead. Su Sheng and Umbreon looked up to see two boys, about Su Sheng’s age, engaged in a Pokémon battle. The Pokémon they used were Cyndaquil and Rattata.

Well, both trainers had similar command skills. But looking at the Pokémon difference, the outcome was clear.

Don’t talk about “there are no useless Pokémon, only useless trainers.” Or take examples like Giovanni’s Beedrill or Red’s Pikachu. As a scientist, Su Sheng expressed that one shouldn’t use individual cases as examples.

For instance, if you had to choose between Kaido’s Mythical Zoan Dragon Fruit and Hancock’s sisters’ Snake Fruit, which one would you choose to eat? Giovanni and Red are exceptional cases; okay?

Where are the other trainers who can raise a Beedrill or Pikachu, two common Pokémon, to such a high level?

For all you transmigrators out there, if you’re aiming to become a peak trainer without systems or cheats, you’d better choose a Pokémon with a higher potential cap.

Didn’t you see that Luffy’s Rubber Fruit couldn’t keep up with the pace in the late game of divine battles and directly evolved into Nika?

“Yay! I won!”

In the end, Rattata still couldn’t turn the tide with its move “Quick Attack.” Cyndaquil’s trainer emerged victorious.

“According to our agreement, this pack of Pikachu chocolate cookies is mine now.” The little boy received a pack of cookies with Pikachu on the cover from the other boy.

Watching this scene, Su Sheng’s smile gradually turned twisted.

Oh no, how did I forget how to make money in my previous life while playing games?