Restoring Bill to his human form proved remarkably simple. Following his instructions, Eddie just needed to place him in the transfer device and pull the activation lever.
Bill was immediately separated from his hybrid state as a human-faced Raticate back into his original form: a young researcher and a normal Raticate.
"Ding! You have completed the hidden task: Bill's Request for Help. You have received the task reward: TM Earthquake and a random Pokémon egg with at least quasi-elite potential."
"Excellent! A quasi-elite potential Pokémon egg plus a bonus TM Earthquake. I definitely made the right choice not to skip this task," Eddie thought to himself with satisfaction.
Although the task details differed slightly from what he remembered reading on the forums in his previous life, the rewards remained the same—with the addition of an extra TM.
Eddie had primarily been targeting the random Pokémon egg with quasi-elite potential. The TM Earthquake was an unexpected bonus.
This powerful Ground-type move would be valuable for his team. While Charmeleon and Grovyle would need to evolve into Charizard and Sceptile respectively before they could learn it, and Frogadier couldn't learn it at all, Riolu could master it immediately.
Since Charmeleon and Grovyle were just one level away from evolution, they'd soon be able to learn this devastating attack as well.
As for the Pokémon egg, the system didn't deliver it directly—it came from Bill himself.
"Hello, and thank you for your help. I don't believe I caught your name yet," Bill said, stretching his limbs and clearly relieved to be back in his human body.
"It was no trouble at all. My name is Morning Sun, a rookie trainer just passing through to strengthen my team," Eddie responded politely, waiting patiently for Bill to offer his reward.
"Morning Sun? That name sounds familiar somehow..." Bill paused thoughtfully before shaking his head. "Well, if I can't remember, it must not be important. Anyway, to properly thank you for your assistance, I'd like to give you something special."
Bill was evidently a generous person. Despite Eddie's initial confusion of him with a bizarre experiment, he bore no grudge.
He hurried to his room and seemed to search through his belongings. "Ah, here it is—a true treasure!"
Bill emerged holding a Pokémon egg carefully in his hands. "This is a Pokémon egg I acquired by chance. I haven't specialized in egg research, so I can't determine exactly what species it contains."
"However, I did scan it with specialized equipment. When this Pokémon hatches, it will have at least quasi-elite level potential."
"You've helped me enormously today, and I can see you're an exceptionally talented trainer. A strong trainer deserves equally strong Pokémon. Please, take this egg."
After his explanation, Bill gently handed the Pokémon egg to Eddie.
"At least quasi-elite potential? That's remarkable! I accept with gratitude," Eddie replied without hesitation, taking the egg and immediately scanning it with his Pokédex.
[Mysterious Pokémon Egg]: Contains a Pokémon with at least quasi-elite potential. Will require time to hatch.
Like Bill, Eddie hadn't extensively studied Pokémon eggs in his previous life. He had focused more on battle strategies and narrative progression rather than egg hatching, so he couldn't identify the species from the egg's pattern.
"Even at worst, a Pokémon with quasi-elite potential can't be disappointing," Eddie thought to himself.
He recalled that in his previous life, the lucky players who received this egg had hatched Growlithe with quasi-elite potential—an extremely powerful Pokémon. With his improved luck stats in this playthrough, he expected to receive something even more impressive.
"Thank you again for your assistance," Bill said earnestly. "If you hadn't come along, I might well have become Fearow food today."
After all, his cottage was quite remote, and visitors were rare. Without Eddie's timely intervention, the Fearow would likely have made a meal of him.
"You're too kind. I merely helped where I could," Eddie replied, his modesty only half-genuine. "I should be thanking you for this egg. You've given me a Pokémon with tremendous potential."
Truthfully, Eddie would have bypassed this location entirely if the reward hadn't been worthwhile. But the Pokémon egg exceeded his expectations.
"Listen to yourself!" Bill chuckled. "What might have been a simple errand for you was literally life or death for me. A Pokémon egg seems a small price in comparison."
"Oh! That reminds me—I also have this S.S. Ticket for the S.S. Anne. I'd like you to have it as well."
Bill didn't consider the ticket particularly precious, but reasoned that no material possession could compare to the value of his life. Eddie had saved him, so giving his most valuable items seemed only natural.
Eddie accepted the ticket graciously. This was another unexpected bonus he hadn't anticipated.
Reflecting on Bill's words, Eddie had to agree. Compared to a human life, an unhatched egg and a cruise ticket were modest compensation. Although he had initially come for the egg, the S.S. Ticket was a welcome addition.
"It's getting rather late," Bill observed, glancing at the darkening sky. "Do you plan to stay here for the night, or will you head to Cerulean City to rest?"
Eddie checked the time. "If you hadn't mentioned it, I might have forgotten my plans to reach Vermilion City. The timing works perfectly—I can still arrive before nightfall."
"I shouldn't linger though. Bill, thank you for everything. Until we meet again!"
Eddie wasn't one to waste time on unnecessary conversation. After bidding farewell to Bill, he quickly departed from Sea Cottage.
After traveling steadily through the afternoon, he successfully reached Vermilion City from Sea Cottage just before darkness fell. Despite the unexpected events of the day, he had managed to stay on schedule.
"Perfect. Tomorrow I'll challenge the gym and claim my third badge." After settling his Pokémon at the Pokémon Center, Eddie logged off for the night.