Chapter Six: New Leaf Meow

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Xia Chi’s sudden end to the livestream left the few thousand viewers in the chatroom all simultaneously puzzled. The screen went black, but the barrage of comments continued fervently.

“Did he really mean the last round was the last round?”

“Ran a quick ad and then ended the stream in a flash? No respect for Qi Shu at all.”

“No extra time even for a Master Ball? Laoshui, you’re ruthless!”

“I was hoping to watch a couple more matches to learn this tactic, and now he’s gone?”

“Laoshui must have been challenged offline because he’s been playing too many shady tactics. Don’t worry too much, everyone.”

“...”

Of course, Xia Chi wasn’t ending the stream because of the box opening; the broadcast simply reached its scheduled time. Although Qi Shu’s presence had caused the stream to explode in popularity, and playing a bit longer could have earned more, Xia Chi had more important matters to attend to.

He opened the window beside his desk and, as expected, saw a pale green kitten sitting neatly on the windowsill. It was one of the original starter Pokémon from the Padia region—a Sprigatito.

“Ha-ki-miao, you’re quite punctual for once,” Xia Chi said with a smile, reaching out to pet the little cat. But the Sprigatito cleverly crouched down and dodged his hand.

“Meow-fee!”

The kitten’s expressive crimson eyes gave him an indignant look, as if scolding him.

“Alright, alright, I won’t call you that anymore. Good evening, Sprigatito,” Xia Chi apologized sincerely for the nickname and then brought over a fruit salad that Chen Zhenze had helped prepare.

“Today’s mix is orange fruit and apple berry salad, tossed with your favorite Moo-Moo cream cheese dressing.”

Seeing Xia Chi’s genuine apology, the Sprigatito finally jumped into the room and started nibbling on its dinner. Because it was a stray cat, the Sprigatito looked a bit thin. Its fur, which should have been clean and soft, was spotted with dirt, and the deep green markings shaped like four overlapping leaves on its face bore a few scratches of dried blood.

Xia Chi frowned as he gently touched the wounds. The kitten instinctively wanted to pull back but relaxed when it realized it was Xia Chi’s hand.

“Had another fight with those monkey brutes, huh?” Xia Chi asked, knowing the Sprigatito well.

The focused kitten didn’t look up but gave a short, sharp “Meow-fee!”

Xia Chi took out a healing spray from the drawer and said, “Wait a moment. Let me treat you before you eat.”

The Sprigatito pretended to be tough and shook its head, “Meow-fee!”

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“A little scratch? That’s nothing to worry about,” Xia Chi said, pressing down firmly on its stubborn little head. “Nope, you have to let me spray it, or I won’t give you any food tomorrow.”

Knowing the little cat well, Xia Chi understood that if he threatened to withhold food, the Sprigatito would only look indifferent. But since the threat came from himself, the kitten would obediently comply.

He grinned mischievously. “Sprigatito, you don’t want to see me go hungry all day tomorrow, do you?”

Faced with Xia Chi’s playful self-sacrifice, the Sprigatito froze for a moment, then rolled its eyes and muttered softly, “Meow-fee...” which roughly translates to “Childish” in human terms.

Regardless, it still agreed.

After carefully treating its wounds, Xia Chi released the fluffy little head. The Sprigatito averted its gaze, somewhat awkwardly meowing twice in thanks before continuing to eat.

Watching the kitten eat so earnestly brought a smile to Xia Chi’s lips.

——————

Xia Chi first met Sprigatito over two months ago on the afternoon of the freshman orientation day while wandering around the campus to get familiar with the new environment.

As one of the top Pokémon high schools in the Donghuang region, Shanghai University’s campus was almost as large as a small town. With such a vast area, wild Pokémon outnumbered humans.

Despite having studied hard in high school for three years, this was Xia Chi’s first time in a place abundant with wild Pokémon yet still very safe.

Unsurprisingly, he got lost.

Well, that’s not just an excuse; Xia Chi had always been terrible with directions, a genuine case of a poor sense of direction.

If it had been in his previous life, a dodgy map app would have solved the problem instantly.

Unfortunately, the tech tree in this world didn’t focus on such conveniences, so Xia Chi wandered around the back mountain of the school for a long time without finding the way back.

The worst part was his phone had died and shut off at some unknown time.

Anyone who’s experienced early September in Shanghai knows exactly what that means.

What’s the difference between that and a super massive inferno?

Hot, thirsty, and exhausted, Xia Chi thought for a moment he might say goodbye to this world and return to Earth to continue the grind as a corporate slave.

Then he met Sprigatito.

At the time, the kitten was aloof and cold. If it weren’t for Xia Chi’s pitiful state, Sprigatito might have turned and left.

But the kind-hearted kitten eventually guided Xia Chi back to the main campus, after which they parted ways.

What else could they do?

Sprigatito had no phone, and Xia Chi couldn’t leave any contact information.

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If he had tried to catch it then, the kitten they had only just met might not have agreed.

Besides, Xia Chi’s livestream wasn’t even established yet, and he could barely support himself, let alone care for another Pokémon.

But their fate didn’t end there. A few days later, they met again.

This time, Sprigatito was in trouble, and Xia Chi played the hero.

The situation was simple—

The school was home to many wild Pokémon. Where there are Pokémon, there are factions. Where there are factions, there is conflict.

Sprigatito was a lone feline hero, unlike the Eevees that had been fattened by the affection of female college students.

Nor did it huddle with Meowths or Thwackeys in groups, fighting for dominance.

Sprigatito stayed on the edge of the school and the back mountain, picking fruit when it could, relying on photosynthesis when it couldn’t.

As a Grass-type Pokémon, it was hard for it to starve.

Yet even living so calmly, it had made enemies with some aggressive fighting monkeys.

That day, Xia Chi stumbled upon their conflict while wandering.

More accurately, it was the monkeys’ one-sided bullying.

Seeing his newfound friend being threatened, Xia Chi couldn’t stand by. He stepped in slightly...

and called the campus security to stop the bullying.

He then took Sprigatito to the Pokémon Center for treatment and let it recover in his dorm for a few days.

From then on, the two formally became close.

Later, through some deliberate inquiries, Xia Chi learned that Sprigatito actually had a trainer who was a student at Shanghai University’s Pokémon Academy.

But after a loss in a school tournament, the trainer had abandoned Sprigatito, deeming it “incompetent.”

Its story was similar to the anime’s Monferno, who was abandoned by Shinji and later accompanied Ash to reach the top four of the Bell Cup.

But Sprigatito’s case was even more tragic—it never met an Ash-like savior.

No one wanted to catch a Pokémon discarded for being “useless.”

Of course, even if someone wanted to, Sprigatito might not have been willing to accept.

So, it began a wandering life that lasted more than half a year.

Until today.