His thoughts returned to the present.
Watching Sprigatito, who had just finished eating and still looked a little unsatisfied, Aarav suddenly said:
"Sprigatito… be my Pokémon."
It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision brought on by the system.
Even if the "system bro" hadn't appeared today, Aarav had planned to ask Sprigatito anyway.
Things were different from when they first met. After doing videos and streaming for a few months, he'd managed to save up some money—raising one Sprigatito would be easy.
Not to mention, Aarav now had a system on his side.
Of course, those were secondary.
The most important reason was simple:
He genuinely liked Sprigatito.
Whether it was the personality or the looks, this little cat was exactly the kind of Pokémon a devoted cat-lover like Aarav couldn't resist.
As for its past—being abandoned by a Trainer, branded "useless"?
Aarav had never cared much to begin with. After all, he wasn't chasing the title of Pokémon Master.
And now?
Was this really something a cheat-user like him needed to worry about?
So he asked.
That long-planned straight shot hit Sprigatito like a thunderbolt.
It was still licking Moomoo Cream Cheese off its lips when its tongue froze mid-motion—so stiff it made you want to grab it and tug it out just to see if it moved.
It took a while before Sprigatito finally reacted. It stared at him wide-eyed and asked, as if double-checking:
"Spriga?"
Aarav nodded with a smile.
"Or let me put it another way—how about I become your Trainer?"
Sprigatito's first instinct was to shake its head and refuse.
But when it saw how serious Aarav's expression was… it hesitated.
Aarav wasn't surprised.
After spending so much time together, he had a good read on Sprigatito's temperament. Its abandonment, combined with its naturally tsundere attitude, had shaped a very particular "avoidant attachment cat personality."
In other words—
Sprigatito wasn't good at accepting kindness.
Even their nightly routine—the fixed feeding schedule—only became a silent agreement after Aarav had worked at it for a long time.
But Sprigatito's hesitation didn't mean rejection.
It meant fear.
Fear of building closeness with a human again… and a deeper, instinctive fear of being abandoned again.
So Aarav needed to give it a reason.
"Do you remember the first time we met, Sprigatito?"
"Spriga?"
Sprigatito blinked, and the image of Aarav—exhausted, helpless, on the verge of collapsing—rose in its mind.
"You were the first friend I made here… and the partner I treasure the most. You saved me that day, so I want to change things for you too."
Aarav's voice turned firm, his gaze locking onto Sprigatito.
"Sprigatito… you don't want to leave that stage behind forever, do you?"
Just like Aarav had said before, he understood this little cat whose heart was wrapped in thorns.
Being abandoned didn't crush its pride or its will.
If anything, it made Sprigatito even tougher.
Its solitary habits, its refusal to bow to Mankey bullying—everything proved that.
Deep down, it still carried a hunger to grow stronger.
Maybe even more than before.
Aarav's single sentence pierced straight through Sprigatito's heart.
Do I miss that stage?
The question lasted less than half a second before the answer swallowed it whole.
Of course it did.
Sprigatito loved the rush of battle—the heat in its blood, the thrill of fighting back.
If it could step onto the battlefield again… it would never refuse.
As for whether Aarav would be a good Trainer?
That wasn't even worth thinking about.
One night with Aarav is happier than all the time I spent with my previous Trainer combined.
If Sprigatito could speak, that's what it would've said.
Aarav was a thousand—no, ten thousand—times better than the kind of person who treated Pokémon as nothing but battle tools.
So what was there to hesitate about?
Sprigatito lifted its head and nodded firmly.
"Spriga!"
Aarav didn't understand Pokémon language.
But he understood body language.
Smiling, he held his hand out.
"Then… please take care of me from now on, Sprigatito."
Once Sprigatito made a decision, it never dragged its feet.
It placed its pale-green paw on Aarav's hand, and a rare smile appeared on its cute little face.
"Spriga!"
From now on… you're my Trainer.
[Detected: Host has caught their first Pokémon. Bond System activated.]
The cold voice shattered the warm atmosphere.
Well—only for Aarav.
Sprigatito couldn't hear the system at all.
With one hand scratching his newly caught cat's fluffy head, Aarav read through the newly opened Bond System.
[Current Pokémon (1/6): Sprigatito]
[Active Bonds: 0]
[Pending Bond: Grass (1/2)]
After battle begins, Bond Pokémon gain +1% Attack, Defense, and HP per second, up to 100%!
(At 6 Grass Bond, cap increases to 200%. Once the cap is reached, summon the Tree of Life on the field!)
[Pending Bond: Dark (1/2)]
Defeating opponents collects Fear stacks. Every 100 Fear stacks grant +5% bonus damage and a Fear Chest. Opening a Fear Chest yields rewards!
(At 6 Dark Bond, Fear gained per victory is doubled!)
[Pending Bond: Speed Attacker (1/2)]
Bond Pokémon skill power and energy cost are reduced by 30%, and skill cast speed increases by 50%!
(At 6 Speed Bond, skill power reduction becomes 20%, and cast speed increases by 100%!)
[Chosen Pokémon (activate via Chosen Emblem):]
Chosen Pokémon gain +20% to all stats, receive exclusive skill enhancement, and +1 extra Bond layer!
Aarav fell silent, deep in thought.
Isn't this just Teamfight Tactics' "Eternal Forest" and "Conqueror" traits with a new coat of paint?
System bro… you're copying this so hard you're going to get a lawyer letter from the legal department of the eastern hemisphere!
Do you think the "always-wins" law firm is decoration?
…Then again, this is the Pokémon world. No red-scarf penguin is going to sue you here.
After silently roasting the system, Aarav began seriously analyzing Sprigatito's three Bonds.
First, the Grass Bond—simple and brutal. A straight stack of multiple stat boosts.
It would be insanely good on defensive Grass-types like Ferrothorn or Cradily.
Of course, an Attack/Defense/HP boost would still be useful for Sprigatito too.
The Dark Bond was a bit strange.
Sprigatito was pure Grass-type until its final evolution—only then did it become Grass/Dark.
So the system's Bond evaluation was probably based on a Pokémon's final evolution line.
Either way, a growth-type Bond like Dark was actually more suitable for a starter-stage Sprigatito right now.
Of course, that came with a condition:
Aarav and Sprigatito would need to consistently win—stacking victories to "harvest" Fear rewards.
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> patreon.com/lucarioTL