Chapter 166
Umbreon had completed her evolution, and once her baseline physical metrics were fully
scanned, her standard training routine could officially begin.
Speaking of which, the Eevee species had a natural biological affinity for mastering the
move Copycat, which was mostly similar to but slightly distinct from Mimic.
Copycat required executing the move immediately following the target's action, whereas
Mimic allowed the user to copy a move the opponent had used and permanently add it to
their current battle kit to deploy whenever they pleased.
Therefore, Copycat could be viewed as a budget version of Mimic, though it was still
highly effective for rapidly absorbing new abilities.
And if a Pokémon already mastered Copycat, how difficult could it be to transition into
Mimic?
Following this logic, the Feebas species was also capable of learning Mimic; Lorze knew
he had to hard-code this god-tier ability into her kit as well.
Lorze returned to the edge of the artificial lake, tossing a generous handful of pre-made
Water-type Pokéblocks into the water while shouting Feebas's name out loud.
A moment later, a sudden ripple triggered a disturbance at the bottom of the lake.
Lorze's eyes lit up, assuming Feebas was rushing over to greet him.
But the second he saw the partner poking its head out was a resident Bruxish, his vision
went dark with disappointment.
Who the fuck claimed Feebas was the ugliest fish Pokémon on the planet?
In his professional opinion, the Bruxish standing before him claimed the absolute #1
crown of hideousness!
Then why did humanity treat Feebas with universal disgust, while harboring a love-hate
relationship with Bruxish?
It all boiled down to Bruxish being a rare Psychic-type with Base Stats that completely
stomped Feebas into the dust.
Fish Pokémon carried an innate biological deficit: although they could breathe oxygen on
land, once they left the water, their mobility ground to a halt, meaning very few
competitive arenas accommodated their templates.
Even on a grand stage like the World Championships, there were barely any proper
aquatic arenas, because high-tier battles caused catastrophic collateral damage to the
infrastructure, forcing the league to deploy standard flat terrain.
Under those rules, how was a fish Pokémon supposed to execute its kit?
But Bruxish was built different; as a Psychic-type, she possessed Telekinesis—she could
literally fly!
Goddammit, even a fish can fly now. Is there anyone left on Earth who can't fly?!
Lorze watched Bruxish snatch his Pokéblock, hovering happily over to rub against his leg
as if begging to join his roster, leaving him completely speechless.
Do you not realize I am a thoroughly shallow man who only cares about looks? Please
find a mirror and look at your face before you try to simp for me, okay?
Of course, he couldn't voice those cruel thoughts out loud, simply using the excuse that
his Psychic-type slot was already occupied by Kirlia, tossing her a separate box of Watercubes to send her away disappointed.
Lorze then hooked up a megaphone to the underwater intercom system, shouting for
Feebas for half an hour. But his efforts only succeeded in drawing a massive crowd of
random Water Pokémon to the shoreline, who happily devoured his premium stock of
Pokéblocks while Feebas remained completely MIA.
If this kept up, before he could even coax Feebas to the surface, not only would his
snack supply be wiped clean, but he might also end up getting passively stalked by a
swarm of wild Water Pokémon trying to force a contract.
Is that Feebas seriously ghosting me? Lorze harbored deep suspicions.
The aroma of the Pokéblocks had drawn creatures from the furthest reaches of the lake;
there was zero chance Feebas hadn't noticed the commotion. That meant her refusal to
manifest pointed to only one conclusion.
This Feebas was planning to void their contract entirely!
Fine. If you refuse to come up, don't blame me for diving down to catch you myself.
Lorze grabbed Kirlia and teleported straight into the Hydrological Monitoring Station. He
ordered the female researchers tracking the underwater ecology... to strip naked on the
spot, launching into a multi-hour carnal marathon with him right inside the command
center. The wild commotion was so intense it actually drew Xue Yi and the other girls to
join the fray.
Ultimately, the entire group hosted a massive orgy right there on the floor, flooding the
room with sweet nectar and rendering the command center completely coated in carnal
fluids. Only after they finished did he return to business, having his now-submissive
wives assist in locating Feebas's exact position on the radar grids.
"Husband, we ' ve localized Feebas. She ' s tucked inside a crevice near the rock
formations in Zone 5.
"
The female researchers pulled up the aquatic cameras and deployed underwater drones
for a full carpet scan, uncovering Feebas's hiding spot within thirty minutes.
On the monitor, Feebas sat with her eyes closed, resting inside the rock crevice, her
expression carrying a deep hint of melancholy.
Hours ago, she had indeed heard the vibrations tracking down from the surface,
intensely recognizing that the boy had come looking for her.
Hearing his frantic shouts, Feebas's frozen heart had actually softened a fraction.
She wondered if she should offer him a response; after all, this boy had manually
extracted her from the living hell of that aquarium, making him her literal savior.
But turning it over in her mind, his only motivation for claiming her was a carnal greed for
her theoretical evolved form. She didn't even know if that evolution truly existed, and the
mathematical probability pointed to it being a total myth.
Once he discovered she was locked at baseline, he would wallow in disappointment and
project all his frustration back onto her.
Hmph. She had unraveled human nature long ago!
Thus, Feebas had ignored Lorze's voice entirely.
Yet... for some reason, the second Lorze's voice cut off, her heart felt an unexplainable,
heavy ache.
She felt a sudden pang of grief, assuming he had genuinely given up on her...Had she just permanently slammed the door on another Trainer who might have
accepted her?
Deep down, she still craved acceptance, but she despised that they weren't embracing
Feebas herself; they were merely simping for a fantasy of her evolution.
An intense wave of loneliness washed over Feebas; she squeezed deeper into the
darkness of the crevice, her frame radiating another layer of frost as she resolved never
to leave this tiny sanctuary...
But before she could freeze the rock crevice entirely shut, a familiar voice drifted through
the water right next to her.
"Feebas? Are you in here?"
Feebas snapped awake, darting out of the crevice to trace the sound, terrified that her
mind was playing tricks on her.
She hadn't misheard. It was truly his voice; backed by Kirlia's psychic kinetic shield, he
had actually dove straight down to the lake bed himself.
He... he still hasn't given up on me?
Watching Lorze's silhouette approach, her heart began to hammer frantically against her
ribs. She felt a deep desire to be found, yet her body instinctively engaged in a game of
hide-and-seek around the rock formation.
Her internal conflict was severe: one half craved acceptance, while the other half refused
to face the shallow prejudices humanity held toward her species.
Lorze had tracked her path from the start, but he didn't call her out. He simply pulled out
a container of Pokéblocks, scattering them into the water as he trailed behind her.
Having starved for two full days, how could Feebas resist such temptation? At first, she
clamped her mouth shut, maintaining a fierce stance against accepting handouts.
But after a few laps, her biological impulses won out. If I just eat a single piece, he won't
notice, right?
And so, she snapped up one cube after another, following the exact breadcrumb trail
Lorze had laid out until she swam right into his face.
The second her mouth clamped onto a cube resting directly in Lorze' s hand, she realized
with total horror that she had walked right into his trap!
Lorze now seriously suspected this Feebas was either a complete moron or possessed
the Oblivious Ability.
Chapter 167
Realizing she had been tricked, Feebas quickly turned her back in anger, but she didn't
swim away.
Lorze couldn't help but want to smile; even though Feebas was a Pokémon, she was a
girl after all, and looking at her now, she clearly needed to be coaxed.
"What's wrong, Feebas? Do you really not want to see me?"
Lorze moved to face her, bringing out his talent for smooth-talking girls, coaxing her
patiently.
But Feebas turned her back again, ignoring him like a sulking girlfriend.
"But I really wanted to see you. Look, these are the Pokéblocks I spent two whole days
preparing specifically for you.
"Lorze pulled out two more boxes of Pokéblocks and waved them in front of her, trying to
tempt her with delicacies she couldn't refuse.
But this time, Feebas stayed clear-headed and didn't fall into his trap again, turning her
face away once more.
Except she still snuck a glance at the Pokéblocks from time to time, showing she
couldn't ignore them entirely.
"Feebas, I know humans deeply hurt your heart before, but there are so many people in
the world, and everyone's personality is different. Some people don't like you, but
naturally, there are those who will. Just give humanity one last chance and become my
Pokémon, okay?" Lorze faced her again, dropping the cheap tricks this time and
initiating a direct conquest with absolute sincerity.
Perhaps sometimes sincerity is the ultimate weapon; when Feebas heard that someone
actually liked her, she couldn't help but feel a flutter in her heart.
Lorze had dove into the deep water just to find her—was this sincerity not enough to
prove his affection?
She should drop some of her prejudices and trust a human one last time, just as he said.
Right as Feebas hesitated, Lorze knew the hook was set and immediately pressed harder:
"Since I chose you, I will definitely take full responsibility for you. Come with me, Feebas,
I will absolutely help you evolve into Milotic.
"
Lorze had displayed what seemed like his maximum sincerity, assuming these words
would finalize the deal.
Little did he expect... a result did come, but it was entirely contrary to his expectations.
Feebas suddenly snapped her eyes up at him, her gaze burning with pure fury, and then
dove violently toward the lake bed, vanishing instantly into a rock crevice and leaving
Lorze standing there completely dumbfounded.
Hmph, men. After all that talk, he's still just lusting after my evolved form. He doesn't
genuinely like me at all. I will never trust him again!
Lorze: "???"
Wait... what the hell is the situation now?
Why did this Feebas suddenly flip her script? Did I say something wrong again?
Is saying I'll take responsibility for you not enough?
Is saying I'll help you evolve not good enough?
Wait... could this creature actually not want to evolve?
Why wouldn't she want to evolve? Is it because everyone pushes her to become a Milotic,
creating a psychological rebellion?
Ah... then he had truly failed to consider that aspect.
At the end of the day, all of Feebas's past misfortunes were indeed tied directly to the
name Milotic.
If humans hadn't lusted after Milotic's physical beauty, they wouldn't have dragged her
out of the wild for research. Without that ordeal, she wouldn't have cared whether she
was ugly or not; she'd just be evading predators every day, living meal-to-meal, and
accidentally becoming someone else's lunch.
Cough cough. But a warrior can be killed but not humiliated; she would rather die than be
called hideous all day!So there was a valid reason for Feebas to despise the name Milotic. His constant
mention of evolution right to her face was the literal equivalent of tap-dancing in a
minefield, wasn't it?
Fine, at least he had unraveled the tiny secret hidden in Feebas's heart, which actually
made things much easier moving forward.
Lorze's mind whirled; as an expert manipulator, he instantly thought of a new way to
make a girl happy.
He immediately signaled Kirlia to dive down with him, arriving before the rock crevice
where Feebas was hiding, and spoke to the silly fish jammed inside: "Feebas, do you
actually not want to evolve?"
Feebas didn't answer him, remaining wedged motionless.
"If you didn't want to evolve, you should have told me. I always assumed you craved
evolution.
"
"I'm so sorry for hurting your heart. Perhaps I'm not a qualified Trainer.
"
"But if you're willing to give me one more chance, I can promise never to demand your
evolution. Even if you retain Feebas's appearance forever, I am perfectly willing to keep
you by my side, proving to you that even a Feebas can be truly loved.
"
One had to admit Lorze was a true fuckboy; his scripts for coaxing girls came one after
another, to the point where even Xue Yi and the girls spying through the underwater
drone almost bought it.
And to put it bluntly, Feebas was basically just a six- or seven-year-old little girl; how
sophisticated could her inner mind be?
As long as her heart still feared loneliness and craved acceptance, she was incredibly
easy to win over.
Forget Feebas; just look at how many girls who have been thoroughly broken by
fuckboys still get swept off their feet by their ghost stories time and time again?
Do they not know that a fuckboy's lies aren't worth believing?
Of course they know!
It's just that their hearts are still anchored to the man, so they desperately hope he might
change his ways.
When it came to Feebas, though she didn't know if Lorze's promise was genuine, hearing
that he wanted to prove a Feebas could be loved made her inner heart behave like a
foolish woman blinded by a fuckboy, actually falling for his words a little bit.
Thus, Feebas's fragile inner defenses wavered once more, leaving her intensely
conflicted over whether to trust the fuckboy one last time.
Lorze then dropped his ultimate nuclear option, speaking with a dejected tone: "If you
still refuse to believe me, I can also grant you your absolute freedom. From now on, you
can just live here in peace.
"
"Let's leave it at that for now. If you're still willing to accept me, I will be waiting for you
on the shore at this exact time tomorrow. I hope you'll manifest; I truly want you.
"
With that, Lorze floated back to the surface without looking back, completely
unconcerned whether the unresponsive Feebas was still pondering, or if she was simply
wedged in the rock crevice and couldn't get out...
She was a Pokémon, after all; she wouldn't literally get jammed to death by a rockcrevice, right?
Otherwise, she'd probably be laughed to death by the other Pokémon...
The moment he cleared the artificial lake, Xue Yi walked over with her arms crossed,
completely immune to the absolute garbage this fuckboy had just spouted underwater.
But just to be sure, she pressed him: "You aren't actually planning to let Feebas skip
evolution forever, are you?"
Lorze immediately rolled his eyes at her: "What are you thinking? Can't you tell I'm just
making a girl happy? If Feebas doesn't evolve, how is she supposed to compete with
those baseline Base Stats?"
"Then how are you going to fulfill those promises?"
"Heh, my promises are always kept, obviously. But girls are simple~; once you coax
them into a good mood, they won't give a damn about technicalities or promises
anymore. They'll naturally do whatever you want by then.
"
"Heh, you certainly understand these patterns well. A true fuckboy through and through!"
"And yet don't you happen to love a fuckboy exactly like this?"
"Hmph!"
Xue Yi let out a cold snort, offering no denial.
Who liked fuckboys? The person she happened to love just turned out to be a fuckboy,
that was all.
Even to this day, she still couldn't fathom exactly why her heart had flipped for such a
degenerate piece of trash in the beginning; it was truly bizarre.
But one had to admit this fuckboy's approach was undeniably lethal; before they could
even step away from the area, a yellow fish broke the surface of the water.
See? Girls just need to be coaxed, and hadn't he just completely reeled her in?
Chapter 168
The moment Feebas poked her head out of the water, Lorze knew this girl had been
successfully snared.
To better demonstrate his overflowing affection, Lorze went all out and threw himself
recklessly into the water, clutching Feebas with frantic excitement as he cried: "Feebas!
Are you willing to remain my Pokémon?"
How could Feebas's innocent soul tell this man was just putting on a performance? She
only knew Lorze's display perfectly mirrored his claim that he cared for her, leaving her
heart deeply moved.
"Gurgle gurgle...
"
Feebas tried to speak underwater but only produced a string of bubbles, a detail that
reminds us that even Water-type Pokémon can't actually talk while submerged.
But her emotional resonance carried the message clearly, essentially translating to her
giving him one final chance, maintaining a somewhat tsundere demeanor.
Lorze nodded frantically with delight, immediately transforming into a literal master
fisherman as he cradled her, launching into a session of heavy fondling and rubbing.
Such passionate physical contact made Feebas feel slightly uncomfortable; of course,
she didn't hate it, it was just that no one had ever been this physically intimate with her
body before.Whether it was the scientists from before or the Trainer who exploited her to secure a
rookie tournament victory, their eyes had only seen profit, and their daily contact was
strictly limited to feeding time.
And feeding was literally just dropping food, callously tossing it in front of her face, their
actions radiating a profound lack of respect—or rather, universal disgust for the Feebas
species.
As for an act like Lorze happily rubbing his cheek against her body, it was something that
wouldn't have even materialized in her wildest dreams.
To the extent that Feebas, completely unaccustomed to being treated with such warmth,
froze in a daze, wondering if this was truly a dream.
"Feebas, no matter how the world views you, as long as you remain my partner, you are
one of my most precious family members. Let's work hard together to grow stronger,
okay?" Lorze, the Ultimate Method Actor, stared into her eyes with pure sincerity.
Although Feebas was still slightly dazed, she heavily nodded her head.
At the end of the day, having someone willing to embrace her as a Feebas filled her heart
with genuine happiness.
She would just observe him for a while; over time, she'd naturally find out whether he
was being real or not.
...
In short, Lorze soaked in the water playing with his fish for hours, until he let out a few
cold sneers and sneezes, prompting a worried Feebas to frantically shove him back onto
dry land.
Xue Yi and the girls could only shake their heads at the sight, knowing this Feebas had
been thoroughly devoured and handled by Lorze.
Cold sneezes my ass.
This bastard faced down an Alolan Ninetales' Blizzard in sub-zero temperatures on the
snow mountain without blinking, and now you're telling me he's catching a chill from
taking a dip in a lake?
Where did your invincible True Qi Mode go?
The guy probably realized lounging in a lake indefinitely wasn't a sustainable plan but felt
too awkward to just dump Feebas, so he staged the chills to secure an exit route, right?
Hmph! Fuckboy!
She truly couldn't fathom how Kirlia had been blinded enough to choose this man in the
beginning, triggering a domino effect that dragged all of them down into the swamp with
him.
Although, to be fair, they were all enjoying their time soaking in his "waters" quite
thoroughly~
.
Over the days that followed, Lorze and the team launched right into local training
sessions on-site.
Umbreon needed to master her newly awakened power before the Metropolitan Battle
and attempt to unlock the Toxic move Lorze mentioned.
Meanwhile, Lorze wanted to map out a way to trick Feebas into evolving within a month,
and then develop a personalized hack for her that wouldn't trail far behind Mawile's.
As for Hu Wenjun and the Principal Qin mother-daughter pair who had later moved intothe compound, they naturally integrated into Lorze ' s daily orgy schedules and
specialized training drills.
However, much to Lorze ' s profound surprise, Feebas ' s latent talent extended far
beyond the Hidden Power Ice she displayed— she had actually already mastered the
move Mimic.
Rumor had it she had grinded and learned it at the aquarium while trying to copy
Luvdisc's movements to earn public adoration. She used to think it was a useless trait,
but it had now become a god-tier time-saving shortcut for Lorze.
This made the engineering infinitely easier; he had already mapped out a rudimentary
"hacker blueprint" for Feebas in his mind.
First, the baseline cheat codes of "Strength Exertion" and "Dual-Wielding Abilities" could
not be abandoned.
Granted, Milotic was a dedicated special attacker whose baseline pool lacked physical
contact moves, making Strength Exertion look mostly useless on paper.
But don't forget that Milotic possessed the move Coil, which simultaneously buffed
Attack, Defense, and Accuracy, allowing her to comfortably pivot into a physical attacker
when the strategy demanded it.
Furthermore, training a Dual Trait set on a Feebas looked completely redundant, because
the second she crossed the evolution threshold, her entire Ability pool would be
completely overwritten. Spending effort to grind Dual Traits now seemed like optimizing
for a ghost metric, didn't it?
The logic held up, but don't forget Lorze was still performing an elaborate drama; if he
didn't display an absolute willingness to strain his gears for Feebas's development, how
could he secure her 100% devotion?
Therefore, everything had to be queued up, and it had to be engineered with flawless
care!
The morning slots were dedicated to grinding those two baseline cheats, while the
afternoons used Mimic to rapidly absorb new active skills.
This brought him to the specific tactical blueprint he had designed for Milotic.
If Kirlia's archetype was peak special attack and mental disruption, and Mawile's was
extreme velocity and raw physical annihilation...
...with one handling special offense and the other handling physical bursts, analyzing the
team's balance meant Lorze currently lacked only a dedicated Utility Support and a
Defensive Tank.
Milotic could comfortably solo both of those roles. Backed by her Hidden Power Ice, she
could use Mimic to absorb Hail and Aurora Veil. The second Aurora Veil went live, all
incoming damage would be slashed by half— could you ask for a more elite support
asset?
He just didn't know if Aurora Veil's damage reduction stacked with Light Screen and
Reflect; if they could compile together, wouldn't the damage be minimized to a literal
fraction?
A Milotic armed with Marvel Scale was already a naturally bulky iron wall; if she stacked
such an exaggerated layer of resistance buffs on top, breaking her health bar would be
an absolute impossibility.Picture a target that refused to die, continuously sustained her health with Recover, and
utilized Mimic to drop Toxic alongside Hail for a dual-layered damage-over-time torture
loop... anyone facing her would cry themselves to sleep.
Of course, Lorze knew a passive brick wall lacked the cinematic visual shockwave of
Mawile ' s one-shot deletions, so he couldn't completely neglect Milotic's offensive
capacity either; if an opportunity manifested, he'd have her Mimic Sheer Cold.
[Sheer Cold: A move with abysmal baseline accuracy, but landing a clean hit instantly
forces the target into a state of total, near-death fainting.]
Unless the target happened to be a Legendary God whose biological tier broke the logic,
though tracking that scaling was always tricky.
As for the garbage accuracy, it wasn't an engineering roadblock; he just needed to have
her acquire the locking skill Mind Reader.
The only real obstacle was that in reality, Sheer Cold wasn't an asset you could just pick
up a store like in the games. Up until now, Lorze hadn't heard of a single soul
successfully hard-coding this move; it almost entirely surfaced through random rolls of
Metronome.
He would just have to slowly track down a target to copy it from down the road, and if all
else failed, he'd find a way to engineer the execution mechanics himself.
In short, Milotic's roadmap was officially finalized inside his notebook. What followed
was a regime of rigorous training drills, alongside mapping out the ultimate scheme to
manipulate Feebas into crossing her evolution threshold.
Chapter 169
Feebas began her rigorous training according to Lorze's blueprint.
Conveniently, she could copy both Hail and Aurora Veil directly from Xue Yi's Alolan
Vulpix using Mimic.
After more than two weeks of continuous effort, her Hidden Power Ice talent allowed her
to absorb them effortlessly.
This brought out the unique mechanical advantage of a Hidden Power type assignment.
Hidden Power was an exceptionally rare and specialized biological trait.
A Pokémon carrying this trait could absorb all the positive baseline multipliers of that
type...
...while remaining completely immune to the structural type weaknesses of that typing.
Take Feebas's Hidden Power Ice: she could master almost all Ice-type moves and trigger
the STAB damage bonus.
She could even absorb the defensive multipliers of the Hail weather condition.
Yet she didn't carry a single one of the fragile defensive deficits inherent to the pure Ice
type.
It was an elite trait that left genuine Ice-type Pokémon burning with absolute envy.
Because of how monstrously powerful this talent was, running into a Pokémon with a
viable Hidden Power assignment in the wild was staggeringly rare.
If you ever encountered one, you didn't overthink the logistics—you simply threw a ball
and claimed it immediately!
Backed by Mimic, Feebas absorbed Ice-type energy even faster than the Alolan Vulpixherself.
She practically drained Vulpix's entire move pool, leaving the little fox questioning which
one of them was the actual Ice-type.
Vulpix eventually taught her the ultimate Ice-type nuke: Blizzard.
With that, Feebas's Ice-type coverage was perfectly optimized.
As for her Water-type kit, Lorze was in no hurry to engineer it.
She was a Water-type by birth; those moves would unlock naturally once she crossed
the evolution threshold.
Ultimately, by deploying Aurora Veil and utilizing her "Dual-Wielding" Adaptability Ability,
Feebas unleashed a Blizzard that finally pinned her power level to a solid Intermediate
tier.
Yes— even after devouring a mountain of Lorze's premium baseline cheat codes, she
could only barely match the baseline performance of a standard partner in her tier.
Before absorbing these cheats, she couldn't even reliably beat a lower-ranked
"Excellence" tier opponent.
This was an unalterable biological deficit: other species possessed offensive Base Stats
climbing past a hundred points.
Feebas possessed a measly ten points. The chasm was too vast for basic cheat codes to
bridge.
This reality solidified Lorze's resolve to manipulate her into evolving as fast as humanly
possible.
If she didn't evolve, any resources poured into her development were a total waste of
engineering time.
To speed up the timeline, he manually recruited a few actors.
It was time to introduce Feebas to the strategic manipulation of the human heart!
...
One afternoon, a school of Water-type Pokémon gathered near a shallow sandbar of the
artificial lake.
This was the designated feeding zone where the caretakers delivered daily meals, so the
partners gathered here like clockwork whenever the dinner bell rang.
Recently, with the mass production of the Snowhide Version 3.0 device, many
inner-circle members had acquired their own Pokéblock machines.
Consequently, the standard feed delivered to the resident Pokémon began containing
crushed crumbs of high-grade Pokéblocks.
Unable to resist her gluttonous impulses, Feebas would sneak over to this zone every
day after devouring her Master's premium supply to grab a secondary "snack"
~
.
Feebas's current life was the absolute definition of blissful happiness.
After more than two weeks of skin-to-skin bonding, she had firmly concluded that her
Master truly loved her for who she was.
If her Master weren't genuinely dedicated to her, why would he strain his gears to
hard-code such powerful cheats into her soul?
Feebas could clearly feel she was infinitely stronger than before. Her face radiated an
absolute surge of self-confidence.
She felt like no other Feebas on the planet could ever stand a chance against her in amirror match.
She was officially the strongest Feebas in the world—her Master said so himself!
With a loving Master, a stable, luxurious lifestyle, and zero threat of predators, she
wondered if this place was the literal definition of heaven.
Feebas finally understood why so many wild Pokémon craved a Trainer.
This lifestyle completely stomped the brutal reality of the wild into the dirt; she could no
longer imagine leaving her Master to survive alone~
.
But right as she was basking in these beautiful thoughts, the conversation between two
caretaker madams on the shoreline caught her attention, freezing her body solid.
"By the way, do you think our husband has a realistic shot at winning the World
Championships?" Caretaker Madam #1 asked.
"That depends entirely on his choice for the fourth roster slot. You know the World
Championships require bringing at least three partners.
"
"Kirlia and Mega Mawile's combat power is completely off the charts, but Feebas... her
baseline is too pathetic.
"
"If husband deploys her, she' s going to act as a catastrophic liability in a high-tier match
like that, right?"
"Feebas... honestly, I thought husband just wanted to keep her as a house pet. But
looking at his training schedule, it looks like he's actually planning to take her to the
World Stage. Is that really safe?"
"Of course it isn't safe! I'm terrified husband will let his emotions hijack his brain, trying
to prove a Feebas can compete, and actually throw her into the ring.
"
"That tournament is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If Feebas drags his score down,
husband will wallow in lifelong regret! I can't bear the thought!"
"Uh... he wouldn't actually bring her, right? No matter how many cheats she eats, she
can only barely match a normal Intermediate. She can't scale to high-tier matches.
"
"I bet husband is just riding a wave of temporary excitement. Once the novelty fades, he'
ll probably just leave Feebas permanently benched in the lake, right?"
"I agree. A wingless, unevolved Feebas can never keep up with husband's rapid pace.
She' s destined to be replaced by the other partners who secure husband's carnal favor.
"
"Unless... she actually manages to evolve into that mythical Milotic. Maybe then she
could lock down husband's permanent love. Otherwise... her future looks completely
bleak.
"
The caretakers shook their heads in unison, their voices filled with absolute pity for
Feebas and deep anxiety that she would ruin their husband's legacy.
Feebas: !!!
Hearing the dialogue, her entire biological system went rigid with terror!
She didn't grasp the mechanics of the "World Championships,
" but she understood the
core message: if she was too weak, she would act as a anchor to her Master.
She would cause the Master who loved her to experience lifelong misery!
Especially the claim that his interest in her would plateau, and his favor would be stolen
by the other partners, leaving her permanently benched and abandoned...
The words struck a vein of raw panic in Feebas's soul.
She had fought so hard to find a Trainer who would embrace her; she wanted to stay byhis side for the rest of his life. She refused to be benched!
Realizing her luxurious paradise was on the verge of vanishing, she lost all interest in her
snack.
She plunged straight back to the lake bed to launch into a frantic regime of self-directed
extreme training.
As long as I can keep up with his scaling pace, I can stay by his side forever, right?
But after grinding for several days and feeling zero visible improvement in her stats, raw
panic truly took over.
She had hit a hard biological ceiling; her raw strength refused to scale further.
What do I do? What do I do?
Am I actually qualified to stand beside my Master right now? If I'm not, how wide is the
chasm?
Right! Go ask Idor! Didn't the caretaker madams say Idor was an absolute monster?
If I measure the gap between myself and Idor, I'll know exactly how far behind I am!
And so, Feebas waited until the afternoon when Mawile trotted down to the shoreline to
play.
She broke the surface of the water, calling out to her quietly: "Gurgle gurgle! (Idor! Idor!
Come over here for a second!)"
"Maw? (What's wrong, Feebas?)" Mawile trotted over with curiosity.
"Idor, can you tell me what the raw power level of Master's primary vanguard looks like? I
desperately need a benchmark to compare myself against.
" Feebas pressed anxiously.
"Why compare? Master doesn't give a damn about things like that.
"
"Oh, come on~! I just need to know. Can you show me a glimpse of your maximum
output?"
"Well... if you insist. Move back a bit.
"
"It's fine. I'll watch from right here.
"
"Alright. I'll throw a single punch. Watch closely.
"
Feebas nodded rapidly, watching Mawile retreat a few paces and begin her charge
sequence.
The moment the energy hit its peak, the twin-tailed jaw on her head snapped shut with a
mechanical ring, blasting a beam of white light from the nozzle.
The counter-thrust caused Mawile's silhouette to vanish from the spot instantly.
When Feebas located her again, Mawile was already standing at the opposite bank,
executing a casual, dry-swing Focus Punch into the open air!
BOOM.
A violent sonic boom ripped through the courtyard as the air was instantly compressed
by Mawile's fist, generating a visible shockwave.
The resulting kinetic blast wave rippled across the artificial lake, whipping the water into
a frenzy of tidal waves.
The wave caught the spectating Feebas dead-on, flipping her upside down and dragging
her to the bottom of the lake. It took her several seconds to stabilize her balance and
break the surface again.
Staring across at Mawile, Feebas couldn't believe this was the same cute little girl who
spent all day begging for her Master's hugs.Was that destructive power really something an Intermediate-tier partner could achieve?
If that punch landed on her body, she'd be launched straight out of the solar system!
Yet Mawile just shook her head with a sigh: "Don't look at me like I'm special. In reality,
I'm nowhere near the Big Boss's level.
"
"With Kirlia's monstrous mental fortitude and her endless rotation of copied Abilities,
whoever faces her gets completely hard-countered into submission.
"
Feebas was thunderstruck: "Then... just how strong is the Big Boss?"
Mawile shook her head: "I've rarely seen her have to go all out. Her opponents usually
collapse before she even needs to try.
"
Feebas: "
"
...
It was over. She completely believed the caretaker madams now.
I am a literal dead weight to my Master!!!
What do I do... can I really evolve into a Milotic?
I don't want to lose my Master!
Chapter 170
Witnessing the reality of Mawile's raw power, Feebas gained a brutal understanding of
her own biological deficit.
She realized those caretaker madams had been wrong about one detail: they said she
would eventually fail to keep up with the primary vanguard's pace.
In reality, she was already completely left in the dust!
It was a miracle she woke up to the truth now; if she had remained oblivious until later,
the chasm between them would have widened until it was mathematically un-catchable.
Come to think of it, Kirlia and Idor were always recalled into their balls to be carried back
to the main house to sleep in Master's bed.
Meanwhile, she had been left benched in the open artificial lake for over two weeks.
Granted, part of the reason was her aquatic physiology, so she couldn't reading it as a
sign that her favor rank was lower.
But every single time she projected that reality into the future, raw panic gripped her soul!
No. I can't keep swimming around lazily every day. I want to go home with Master too!
Thus, that very evening, when she spotted her Master approaching with a group of
women hauling heavy equipment, she launched herself out of the water with total resolve,
diving straight into her Master's chest.
Feebas obviously didn't realize the hardware consisted of video cameras and diagnostic
sensors.
After hearing Mawile's report that Feebas wanted a benchmark of her power, Lorze had
already deduced that the fish was ready to cross the threshold.
After all, the caretakers were actors he paid, and the script had been engineered to strike
her exact pain point.
As long as Feebas genuinely cared for him and feared being benched and unloved, her
only viable pathway was evolution.
Lorze wasn't about to let the cinematic moment slip, having his wives set up the cameras
immediately.
The innocent Feebas had zero clue she was being thoroughly maneuvered. Her onlythought was ensuring her Master's gaze remained anchored to her forever.
Ignoring the fact that her body was dripping wet, she snuggled frantically against his
clothes, muttering: "Gurgle! (Master, I want to become strong!)"
Lorze stroked her scales gently, his lips curling into a hidden smirk of pure victory, while
maintaining a face of innocent confusion: "Why the sudden talk about power? Aren't we
already growing stronger every day?"
"Gurgle! (Not that kind of strength! I want to become hyper-powerful, just like Idor and
the Big Boss!)"
"I see. You want a slot on the primary vanguard. But the competition in my main squad is
incredibly fierce; you could be benched by another partner at any time.
"
"There's no need to push yourself into that stress. As long as you live happily every day, I'
m already fully satisfied.
"
"Gurgle! (Does Master think I'm biologically inferior to them?!)"
"Well... I don't want to hurt your feelings, but Idor and the vanguard are tier-one monsters,
you know.
"
"Gurgle! (I know! I saw Idor's punch myself! That's precisely why I want to scale to her
level!)"
"But to achieve that... you might have to evolve to catch up. Are you truly okay with
that?"
"Gurgle! (As long as I evolve, I can keep up with your pace?)"
"Of course you can. You might even have a shot at becoming stronger than both of
them.
"
"Gurgle! (Then I want to evolve! Master, can you help me evolve?)"
Feebas stared at her Master with an intense, burning longing. It was the first time in her
life she truly craved evolution—truly desired to become a Milotic.
It wasn't to prove to the world how beautiful her form could be.
It was solely to retain her right to stand by his side.
The current Feebas didn't give a damn about people calling her hideous anymore,
because she had found the one person who truly mattered.
The public's opinion was completely irrelevant; she only wanted this boy's love.
Even if it meant overwriting her own identity for him, she was perfectly willing.
"You... are willing to evolve?" Lorze blinked in shock, putting on an Oscar-worthy
performance of pure surprise.
"Gurgle! (I WANT TO EVOLVE! I WANT TO STAY BY MASTER'S SIDE!)" Feebas cried,
snuggling into his chest.
"Silly girl. Even if you never evolved, I would never abandon you. But if you truly wish to
cross the threshold, I respect your decision.
"
Lorze's soul was singing with pure, sadistic pleasure, his mouth twitching with the urge
to laugh out loud, yet he maintained a face of doting warmth to finalize the manipulation.
On the sidelines, Xue Yi and the girls' faces went completely black.
Our man is truly a piece of trash. How can he bear to deceive such a pure, innocent fish
like this?
You've literally got the cameras tri-podded up, and you have the balls to tell her you
didn't care if she evolved or not?How does this guy maintain a straight face while spouting such massive lies?
If the evolution weren't a massive net benefit for Feebas, they wouldn't have been able to
stand watching him manipulate an innocent girl like this.
"Gurgle! (Master... can a creature like me truly evolve into a Milotic?)"
Seeing her Master accept the request, Feebas felt a surge of joy, followed immediately
by a layer of deep anxiety.
After all, the scientific consensus across the planet claimed her species couldn't evolve
into Milotic.
She had spent months trapped in a state-of-the-art lab where elite scientists used every
method imaginable to force an evolution, yet her body had shown zero response.
She was terrified that her biological code simply lacked an evolutionary branch. If she
was locked at baseline despite wanting to catch up to Idor, the tragedy would be
absolute.
"Don't worry. I can guarantee with 100% certainty that you will become a Milotic. The
reason those scientists failed is because they are incompetent morons, whereas your
Master happens to be a Genius Researcher~
.
" Lorze bragged without a shred of shame.
Though to be fair, Xue Yi and the girls actually agreed with that statement. If Lorze's
baseline performance didn't qualify as a genius, then the word had no meaning on Earth.
"Gurgle? (Then what do I need to do to trigger the evolution?)" Feebas asked eagerly.
"区分 The underlying principle is actually quite simple. You know the Magikarp species,
right? Rumor has it that certain Magikarp can trigger a genetic mutation under the
influence of extreme Rage, forcing an evolution.
"
"So...
"
"Gurgle? (So I need to become extremely angry?)" Feebas guessed.
"Not quite. Many systems in nature operate on a principle of binary opposition. For
instance, if Eevee has an evolution form unlocked by Day, it is guaranteed to possess an
opposite form unlocked by Night.
"
"Unlike Magikarp's rage-driven evolution, your trigger is the exact polar opposite. You
require a state of peaceful, compassionate, and loving emotional energy to mutate.
"
"I've coded this emotional metric after Milotic, calling it the 'Beauty' condition.
"
Lorze explained patiently.
He was manually delivering the lecture for the benefit of the rolling cameras, as this
recording would serve as the official data submission when he published Milotic ' s
evolution pathway.
"Gurgle? (Beauty condition?)"
Feebas tilted her head, only to realize her species technically lacked a neck structure.
Regardless, she couldn't grasp what the term meant at all.
"Heh, you don't need to overthink the taxonomy. You just need to focus your entire soul
on why you crave this evolution. The pure emotion of wanting to change your form for the
sake of another person... that force will naturally unlock your genetic potential.
" Lorze
whispered.
"Gurgle! (I WANT TO BE WITH MASTER! I WANT TO BECOME MASTER'S STRENGTH!)"
Feebas cried out.
"Mmm. Me too. I will love you for the rest of my life. What about you?"Lorze leaned down and gently pressed a kiss against Feebas's forehead.
"GURGLE!!! (ME TOO! I LOVE MASTER THE ABSOLUTE MOST!!!)"
Feebas erupted with a massive wave of excitement, flopping frantically inside his
embrace, desperate to project the absolute maximum volume of her love into his soul.
Under the influence of this catastrophic surge of positive Emotional Energy, the
"stubborn" genetic locks within Feebas's code finally shattered.
In the next heartbeat, Feebas became light!
The blinding radiance of Evolution erupted from the body of the large yellow fish, striking
the spectators dumb.
Holy shit... she's actually evolving right now???
Watching Feebas bathed in the violent glow of genetic mutation, her body restructuring
itself rapidly, the silhouette became unmistakable.
That serpentine, elegant form... there was zero doubt it was scaling toward a Milotic.
Who... who could have ever guessed the math on this?
The creature hailed as the supreme pinnacle of physical beauty, Milotic, was a literal
evolution of the Feebas— a fish universally discarded and labeled the absolute ugliest
species on Earth.
And the trigger condition hard-coded into her biology meant a Trainer could never look
down on her; they had to show her absolute, pure sincerity.
An insincere handler who secretly despised her could never secure her true love,
meaning they could never trigger that catastrophic surge of positive Emotional Energy
needed to crack the locks.
No wonder every research lab and elite Trainer had failed to force the evolution; not a
single one of them had ever genuinely loved a Feebas.
Once this footage hit the global network, count less people were going to lose their
minds, realizing how disgusting their behavior toward Feebas had been.
Wild populations of Feebas weren't exactly common; they only spawned in specific,
hidden clusters.
If you uncovered their nest, you could claim dozens, but if your radar missed it, you'd
never run into one in your life.
Missing this train meant you'd be waiting eons for the next slot.
As Milotic's impossibly elegant form fully materialized through the fading light, every
single girl present felt their hearts skip a beat, burning with an intense desire to claim a
Milotic of their own.