He opened his eyes.
Silence. The pendulum of an old-fashioned clock on the wall swung without a sound.
Leo shot up in bed, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath.
Where was this place?
He scanned his surroundings, his mind a canvas of confusion. It was a small, unassuming wooden cabin.
A single bed was pushed against one wall. Opposite it sat a simple wooden desk, upon which a stuffed hiking backpack had been casually tossed.
A yellowed calendar hung on the adjacent wall, looking as if it had seen many years. On the other side of the room stood a wooden cabinet. Next to it, on a countertop, was a coal-burning stove, along with a stockpot, an iron wok, and other kitchen utensils.
The unfamiliar scene only deepened his confusion.
What was going on?
Shouldn't he be working overtime at the office right now? How did he end up here?
"Ouch... My head hurts!"
Something new crowded his mind, a foreign pressure that made his head throb. A flood of memories washed over him. Once he had processed them all, a look of utter disbelief spread across his face.
He had been transported?
After the initial shock, Leo slowly pieced together his new reality.
He had, indeed, been transported.
Sudden death from exhaustion, brought on by five consecutive days of overtime, had sent him to this world.
This was a world entirely different from Earth.
Here, alongside humans, lived creatures called "Pokémon." They could be found in every corner of this world—in the sky, in the sea, and on the land.
"The world of Pokémon!" Leo's voice held a spark of excitement.
He couldn't claim to be an expert on Pokémon, but he had played the games and watched the anime. In his youth, he had yearned for a life in this world.
Everyone knew it was a world of leisure. Once you turned ten, you could receive a starter Pokémon and travel the world with it.
Since he was here now, could he also travel freely, just like Ash in the anime?
The thought of escaping the 9-to-5 grind, of being free from mortgages and car loans, of no longer being a corporate drone, ignited a fire within him.
But he quickly calmed himself.
The dream was beautiful, but reality was harsh.
The previous owner of this body was also named Naoki. He was from the Paldea region but had moved with his parents to the Hoenn region as a child. Not long after, both his parents passed away from illness—the very reason they had moved to Hoenn was for treatment.
After their deaths, the original Naoki sold the family property. As if renouncing the world, he drifted aimlessly for years, free of all ties. Finally, at the age of twenty, he chose to return to his hometown in Paldea, to the ranch left behind by his long-deceased grandfather, and there, he ended his life.
Though this was the world of Pokémon, the original owner had never captured one, wanting no attachments.
As these memories surfaced, Leo felt a pang of sympathy and couldn't help but sigh.
"Grrrrumble..."
His empty stomach protested loudly. Leo glanced at the time.
2:00 AM.
It seemed the previous occupant hadn't eaten dinner.
Leo sighed again, muttering an apology in his heart. He got out of bed, located the backpack as per his new memories, and pulled out a packet of instant ramen. He filled a pot with some water and set it on the coal stove to boil.
While waiting for the water, Leo searched the cabin. Aside from some basic seasonings, he found nothing else edible. Although this was a ranch, it had been abandoned for years. The fields were overrun with weeds and rocks, so there were no vegetables or fruits, let alone eggs.
Memories of the ranch in its prime flickered in his mind.
Back then, the ranch was bustling and prosperous. Neat fields grew all sorts of crops, and the branches of fruit trees were heavy with fruit.
The Pokémon barns housed a herd of Miltank imported from the Johto region and Wooloo from Galar. Rows of beehives lined the grass outside the house.
Combee would gather nectar from outside and bring it back to the hives to make honey. Every few days, they could harvest jar after jar of crystal-clear, sweet, and rich golden honey.
Just then, the water boiled.
As Leo opened the ramen package, ready to drop it into the water, a piece of information suddenly appeared in his mind.
[Instant Ramen: A low-quality, low-nutrition basic food. Its convenience has made it popular among outdoor workers and travelers. Effects unknown.]
Huh? This is...
Leo felt a strange sense of familiarity.
As the ramen went into the boiling water, the hard noodles quickly softened. He added the seasoning packet. He wasn't an expert cook, but he knew the basics. Living alone, he had prepared most of his own meals to save money, and over time, he had learned.
Soon, the ramen was ready.
Without a second thought, he dished it into a bowl and sat at the desk, ready to fill his stomach.
But just then, that familiar information flashed in his mind again.
[Oversalted Broth Noodles (D-): A low-grade dish. The excessive amount of salt has nullified any potential buffs, making it only useful for satiating hunger. May cause thirst. Pokémon that enjoy salty flavors might like it. Evaluation: Poor, but not so bad as to make a Pokémon faint.]
Leo's eyebrow twitched.
Well, what do you know.
He finally remembered where that feeling of familiarity came from. This was the recipe description interface from a game his company had developed called "Cuisine Master"!
It was a trashy, pay-to-win game disguised as a culinary adventure. The premise was that players possessed a magical ability. The dishes they cooked could provide characters with various attribute boosts, buffs, and other strange powers.
The strength of these buffs depended on the level of the dish, which, like in most trashy games, ranged from F- all the way up to SSS. The dish's level was tied to the rarity and quality of the ingredients, as well as the player's culinary skill.
A D- was just mediocre. An F- rated dish would even apply a debuff, reducing the character's stats and causing them to get wiped out in battle.
"What's happening?" Leo muttered, stunned. He thought of the web novels he used to read. "Is this my golden finger?"
Reading the description that mentioned Pokémon, he lifted the bowl and took a bite. A wave of saltiness instantly flooded his mouth.
Leo was speechless.
It really was too salty.
But this was the only food left in the house. Forcing himself to eat, he continued to study his "golden finger."
So, this meant that the food he cooked now could give Pokémon who ate it all sorts of magical abilities and buffs.
Probably?