Sprigatito could vaguely sense that ever since being captured by Ethan Vale, its body had undergone no small changes over the past two days.
But it was only after actual combat that it realized—this wasn't just a change.
This was practically a mutation!
Naturally, Sprigatito couldn't see the system's detailed stats, so it had no idea that this was achieved while several major synergies still hadn't even been activated.
This level of performance came purely from the effects of the [Chosen Emblem], [Trinity Force], and [Bloodthirster].
The Chosen Emblem and Trinity Force alone provided Sprigatito with over a 50% boost to all attributes, while Bloodthirster supplied the critically important sustain.
With just these three bonuses, it might not be enough to say Sprigatito had undergone a qualitative transformation—but dealing with a few newbie-area Mankey was effortless.
Even without knowing the full truth, Sprigatito understood one thing clearly:
All of this was inseparable from Ethan Vale.
He had given it meticulous care and warmth, restored its dignity as a battle Pokémon, and dramatically increased its strength…
At this moment, Ethan Vale's standing in Sprigatito's heart rose to an incomparable height.
A knight dies for one who understands him.
Though it had never heard this saying, Sprigatito understood the sentiment.
Its eyes sparkled faintly as it made a silent vow—
It would accompany Ethan Vale all the way to heights no one else could reach!
——————
Meanwhile, Ethan Vale—who had passively become Ash Ketchum—after deducing the most likely situation, oddly wasn't in a hurry to rush back and check.
Mainly because there was no way to contact Sprigatito. Even if he went back now, he wouldn't be able to find it.
Safety wasn't much of a concern either. This little guy had survived half a year roaming the wilds around campus—ostracized, yet still doing just fine.
Not to mention now, with the system's synergies and equipment buffs stacked on top.
If the kid wants to play, let it play.
Besides, the Dark-type synergy's Fear Value needed to be accumulated by defeating Pokémon anyway. He might as well relax and focus on class, letting Sprigatito farm Fear Value out in the wild on its own.
Moreover, modern Pokémon cultivation studies showed that among groups of similar Pokémon trained in the same way, those that engaged in combat more frequently—without exhausting themselves—tended to grow slightly faster on average.
This showed that while reality wasn't a game where levels skyrocketed through battles, there was still a similar, albeit weaker, effect.
In other words, Sprigatito really was grinding monsters and leveling up right now.
Ethan Vale thought this to himself.
That said, defeating a Pokémon—especially while punching above one's level—only yielded a fraction of a Fear Value point.
At that rate, reaching a hundred stacks would take months, wouldn't it?
And a hundred stacks was only the starting point.
According to Teamfight Tactics–style mechanics, to open high-quality loot from these kinds of chests, you'd need several hundred stacks of Fear Value.
In the short term—forget it. Even two or three years wouldn't be enough to "graduate."
Still, no matter what, Ethan Vale's plan of "win streak farming" had finally taken its crucial first step.
So throughout the entire Pokémon Mythology History class, Ethan Vale spent it listening to the system's voice repeatedly announce:
"Sprigatito defeated Mankey…"
It felt strangely like the joy of AFK gold farming in idle games.
Of course, Ethan Vale wouldn't forget that this joy was built on Sprigatito's effort and sweat.
From this perspective, capturing a Pokémon that others had abandoned wasn't such a bad thing.
These Pokémon were more sensible than completely untrained ones—and even knew how to train themselves.
By the end of the morning, Sprigatito's final record was five Mankey defeated, accumulating a total of 1.1 Fear Value.
On a battle stage, that was practically a terrifying one-versus-five performance.
Even with the system's help, pulling off such results while underleveled was no easy feat.
So who said Sprigatito was useless?
Sprigatito was amazing!
As for whether it would make it home safely in the end, Ethan Vale wasn't too worried.
Firstly, if the system announced victories, it would probably announce defeats too.
Secondly, he knew Sprigatito was a cat with a strong sense of limits.
They'd known each other for months—no matter how battered it got, he'd always see it drag its still-reasonably-healthy body back to the dorm around nine at night for food.
Its combat ability might only be A- or B-rank, but its escape ability was definitely S+.
Sure enough, when Ethan Vale finished his morning classes and returned to the dorm with a nutritious lunch and some medicine, Sprigatito was already inside, waiting as if nothing had happened.
Though it tried to look calm and had neatly groomed its fur before Ethan Vale returned, its slightly unsteady steps and several fresh, obvious wounds betrayed it.
"So you ran out on your own to do combat training without telling me… just so I wouldn't worry, huh? You little rascal."
Ethan Vale rubbed Sprigatito's head as it came to greet him, then took out the healing supplies he'd bought on the way back.
While applying medicine, he frowned and said,
"I told you before, didn't I? Whatever you want to do, I'll support you. So don't hide things like this from me in the future. Don't make me worry."
"Meow-fee…"
Sprigatito, half guilty and half touched, lowered its head and obediently accepted the scolding—completely ignoring the fact that Ethan Vale had once again used a nickname it didn't like.
But then it suddenly realized something.
Its expression shifted in surprise as it raised its head and looked at Ethan Vale suspiciously.
"Meow-fee?"
Wait. You even brought medicine back.
So how did you know in advance that I went out fighting this morning?
Reading the look in Sprigatito's eyes, Ethan Vale felt a little guilty. He grinned around, putting on an awkward half-smile.
When you know the other person is lying but can't call them out—because the way you know the truth is also a secret.jpg
——————
Freshman schedules weren't particularly packed, and Ethan Vale had no classes that afternoon.
He'd originally planned to use the free time to edit videos, but instead took Sprigatito to Silph Pokémon Mart and bought a portable Pokémon locator.
This high-tech device, hidden inside a collar-style tag, could not only display Sprigatito's exact location on Ethan Vale's phone app, but also monitor its vital signs and current condition.
In emergencies, Ethan Vale could even use his phone to talk directly to Sprigatito through it.
It was basically must-have black tech for Pokémon that liked to roam wild.
Though the price was just as "beautiful" as its functionality, Ethan Vale bought it without hesitation.
With this on Sprigatito, Ethan Vale could finally feel more at ease when it went out to "train itself."
Afterward, Ethan Vale and Sprigatito agreed on a set of ground rules for its independent training—
Don't provoke Pokémon far stronger than yourself.Disengage from combat before stamina or condition is completely depleted.Every thirty minutes, meow three times into the locator so Ethan Vale knows you're safe.And make sure to be home before dark.
As for why "three rules" somehow turned into four—
Well, everyone knows the Elite Four has five members, so three rules having four clauses is totally reasonable, right?
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