The Teaching Job

As an ecology teacher, Hu Yang did not have classes every day.

On days when he had no classes, he went to the library to borrow books related to Pokémon, then brought them back to his dormitory to read.

Whenever he read, Cramorant stood blankly beside him, keeping him company. Every so often, it used its beak to preen its feathers or stared dazedly into the air.

Hu Yang did not know what the daily routine of wild Cramorant was like.

His Cramorant stayed up until late every night, only closing its eyes after he put down his book.

It gave Hu Yang the feeling of raising a cat. In his previous life, he had owned a cat while he was in school. At night, it would lie on his test papers and snore while he worked on them.

After he started working, the cat grew old but never kicked the habit. It would climb onto his keyboard whenever he worked at his computer.

Later, the cat died of old age. Hu Yang buried it beneath a tree with its favorite cat treats and grieved for a long time.

Hu Yang scratched Cramorant under the chin, switched off the desk lamp, and carried the fool onto the bed before heading to the bathroom to wash up.

Cramorant opened its eyes, still wearing that vacant expression. Once it saw that it was its Trainer, it closed them again.

With Cramorant accompanying him as he studied, Hu Yang rapidly familiarized himself with this world's body of knowledge.

Turning from thirty years old back into a ten-year-old had changed more than just his appearance. His memory had returned to its peak as well.

When he had first crossed into this world, his only goal had been to find a job that would keep him fed.

Now, however, his goal had become seeing the grandeur of the Pokémon world for himself.

But before that, he needed to save up some money.

Early the next morning, Hu Yang received a notice that the school would be arranging for teachers to take the children to Petalburg Woods for a field observation of wild Pokémon ecology.

As an ecology teacher, he was among the first assigned to the lineup of teachers leading the trip.

"With so many classes, do we have enough teachers?" Hu Yang paused and looked at Nishida Gang, who was ready to go.

Petalburg Woods was full of wild Pokémon. Though each class had only twenty students, if they ran into danger, they would have no way to answer to the parents.

Nishida Gang explained excitedly, "Don't worry, not everyone is going. Only a few second-year classes!"

In that case, there would be enough teachers. Hu Yang nodded and reminded him, "I'm not a Trainer." He did not have much fighting ability.

Nishida Gang thumped his chest and promised, "Don't worry! I'm a Trainer who competed in the Hoenn League tournament!"

It was the first time Hu Yang had heard him mention this. Curious, he asked, "How did you do?"

The smile on Nishida Gang's face froze. Forcing a grin, he said, "Of course I did great! Who do you think I am?"

Hu Yang: "..."

"Pfft!" Erika walked over with a hiking backpack on her back and laughed. "Don't listen to him. He got eliminated in the qualifying rounds."

Nishida Gang immediately felt short of breath. "Didn't you promise not to expose me?!"

"Let's go. The students are ready," Erika said with a smile.

The three of them were in charge of the same class.

When Hu Yang went downstairs, he spotted May at once among the crowd, her backpack on her back and her face filled with excitement and anticipation.

If he had not known this was the Pokémon world, Hu Yang would have thought they were going on an autumn outing. Though that was more or less what it was.

"Is everyone ready?" Erika asked as she stood before the twenty-odd children.

The boys and girls answered energetically, "Ready!"

"Then let's go!" Nishida Gang said.

Hu Yang walked on the left side of the group, explaining to the students what they needed to watch out for in the wild as they went.

For example, if they encountered Beedrill that actively attacked humans and did not have Pokémon with them, they should remember to run toward a river.

"Teacher, that sounds scary. Is it really that serious?"

The speaker was a delicate-looking boy. Hu Yang had taught them for some time, and from their usual interactions, he could tell that the boy treated everything in the outside world with kindness.

He nodded and said seriously, "Of course it's serious. I hope everyone remembers that while the Pokémon world is certainly fascinating, not all Pokémon are as close to humans as Eevee and Skitty."

"Some Pokémon have a very strong sense of territory. When humans intrude upon it, they will immediately launch a frenzied attack. Even if you mean no harm, they will see you as a threat. It is their survival instinct."

"So, I hope everyone remembers this. When you turn ten and begin traveling outside, first remember to protect yourselves. Then you can go and meet new Pokémon companions."

The little boy seemed thoughtful. It was the first time in his life that anyone had told him such things. He took the words to heart, his small face solemn as he said, "Thank you, Teacher. I'll remember!"

Hu Yang patted his head. He rather liked these children.

"Teacher, you're clearly the same age as us, so why do you know everything?" another sturdy-looking boy asked in confusion.

"That's because I experienced it myself." Hu Yang put on a serious expression and said, "Back then, I accidentally ran into Beedrill territory. While I was running away, I got hit by their Poison Sting. Just when I could barely run anymore, a river appeared ahead of me, and that was how I escaped disaster."

"What happened next?" several other children asked impatiently.

"After that?" Hu Yang smiled faintly and continued, "After that, I met a kind Skwovet. It gave me a Berry that could cure poison and helped me remove the Beedrill's poison."

"That's amazing!" a younger girl said happily.

As they chatted, the group unknowingly arrived at Petalburg Woods.

The number of wild Pokémon around them gradually increased.

There were Weedle, Caterpie, Shroomish, and more.

At noon, they had a picnic in an open clearing.

Hu Yang went beneath a large tree and released Cramorant from its Poké Ball. He took the food he had prepared beforehand from his backpack and piled it onto a picnic cloth.

Just then, he suddenly felt someone watching him.

Hu Yang paused what he was doing and quickly turned around, but saw nothing.

"Caw?" Cramorant blankly raised its head to look at the sky.

Hu Yang thought it wanted to fly off to catch fish again and immediately stopped it. "You can't run around today!"

As he spoke, he tore the food into small pieces. "Open up, ah!"

Up in the tree, Ralts leaned against a branch and quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

That was close. It had almost been discovered!

Holding onto a nearby branch, it curiously looked down at the human and the food they had brought.