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 Water cubes 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.