In the living room, Garchomp was noisily crunching on the Dragon Scale.
The golden-haired beauty raised her gray eyes, quietly watching Natsume.
Natsume sighed, "Alright, I'll go cook now!"
Cynthia smiled slightly, brushing her golden bangs aside. "I can help too, you know."
"No, you can't take the housework away from Haunter," Natsume said with a serious face. "It would get upset!"
"Haunter!" Haunter nodded solemnly, its expression stern.
Cynthia chuckled behind her hand, then asked, "Then what should I do?"
"You can play with the little one," Natsume said, looking pained. "But remember, you can't bury your face in its belly. I haven't even done that yet!"
"Eevee?! (｀皿′)?"
Eevee lunged at Natsume, but he easily grabbed it by the scruff of its neck, its short legs flailing in the air.
"Eevee! (〃＞皿＜)"
Natsume smirked triumphantly.
"Little brat, I can dodge Haunter's Lick, you think I can't handle your Tackle?"
Sure, my physique might not be on par with a superhuman, but Natsume-sensei here has maxed out evasion!
Just as he was feeling smug, Eevee bit Natsume's hand.
Natsume: ?
He braced himself for pain, but instead of a sharp sting, it felt more like an affectionate nibble.
"Eevee!"
Eevee looked startled, as if worried it had bitten too hard.
Seeing Natsume unharmed, the little one's face turned red with embarrassment.
"I'll take care of the two Pokémon," Cynthia said with a smile. "You can go out without worry."
"Huh?"
"Aren't you going grocery shopping?" Cynthia blinked. "Or... should I come with you?"
Natsume coughed. "No need, I'll go by myself."
Cynthia's presence was way too noticeable. If it weren't for the Tokyo Association's strict media ban, news of them living together would probably be all over the headlines by tonight.
With Cynthia looking after the two Pokémon, it would be easier for him to shop.
"Then I'll leave it to you," Natsume nodded.
"What would you like to eat?"
The deadly question was thrown back at her, and Cynthia rested her chin on her hand, falling into deep thought.
Natsume glanced at the clock. Five minutes passed before Cynthia finally spoke hesitantly:
"Anything... is fine?"
Don't answer a question with another question!
Natsume wiped his sweat. "Then I'll decide."
"Mm..." Cynthia nodded gently.
As Natsume was about to leave, a sense of foreboding washed over him.
Given past experiences, Natsume rarely left his Pokémon alone at home, fearing they might wreck the place.
But today, with Cynthia watching over them...
Surely they wouldn't destroy the house again, right?
"It should be fine!"
Natsume nodded to himself, muttering, "We're out of groceries, so I need to pick the ingredients carefully..."
Cynthia was left alone at home.
Although she had stayed the night before, this was the first time she had taken a proper look around a man's living space.
The furnishings were clean and tidy, even the blanket on the sofa was neatly folded.
Thinking back to this morning, when she had groggily opened the door in her pajamas, Cynthia's face flushed slightly.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, where the greenery outside cast a cool shade. The chirping of cicadas filled the air, making the room feel even more serene.
Cynthia smiled softly, her deep gray eyes softening.
"I'll do my best to help him out."
"Haunter!"
The diligent little housekeeper, Haunter, had polished the house to a shine.
After hurriedly putting down the broom and dusting its claws on its apron, Haunter pulled out a set of notes and grinned at Cynthia.
"What's this?"
Cynthia took the document, eyeing the bold black text with slight surprise.
"Toxic Manuscript?"
"Haunter!" Haunter nodded, smiling shyly.
"This must be Natsume-sensei's training notes," Cynthia murmured. "Quite impressive insights..."
No wonder Natsume-sensei chose to train Haunter.
At least in the realm of Poison-type moves, this Toxic training method was definitely at the Elite Four level.
"I'm not very skilled with Toxic moves, so I can't offer much guidance there," Cynthia said, seeing Haunter's disappointed expression.
She tucked her golden hair behind her ear and smiled. "But I can teach you other moves."
Haunter was stunned for a moment, then its eyes lit up with excitement. "Haunter!"
"Consider it part of my thanks."
Cynthia tied her golden hair into a smooth ponytail, put on her sunglasses, and said with a gentle smile, "Come on, Haunter, let's go train."
"Eevee!"
Eevee rushed out, looking anxious.
Cynthia smiled. "Eevee, you can come too."
"Eevee! (?ω?)"
Natsume-sensei was at the supermarket, picking out ingredients.
As he placed a pack of bell peppers wrapped in plastic wrap into the shopping cart, his eyelid twitched, and he let out a long sigh.
"Why do I feel so uneasy?"
Natsume muttered to himself, "It shouldn't be... I've been on a lucky streak lately."
"Must be overthinking it."
Shaking his head, Natsume pushed the unease aside and started tallying up his gains from the Master League.
Aside from forcing a draw with Lance and earning some goodwill from Garchomp with the Dragon Scale, Natsume had also picked up "Return" and "Quick Claw."
Honestly, they were items he couldn't sell, which made Natsume-sensei a bit heartbroken.
The two items rewarded by the System—one legendary and one epic—Natsume claimed them immediately.
The epic-quality item was a light green Berry covered in small, sharp bumps.
[Salac Berry: Contains the power of the sky, boosting a Pokémon's Speed.]
This new Berry variety was also unlocked in the System Shop, priced at 500 BP, the same as Petaya Berry.
According to the System, Salac Berries were sweet and sour, and even humans could eat them.
Natsume's expression turned odd. "Feels like... there's a new snack option."
Of course, this snack was meant for Eevee and Haunter.
Poor as he was, Natsume-sensei wasn't about to steal Berries from his Pokémon.
The legendary item, however, had Natsume genuinely excited.
With trembling hands, he tapped on the golden card in the System interface, and the screen vibrated.
[Wow! Legendary!]
[Black Glasses: A strange-looking pair of glasses. When held, they slightly enhance Dark-type moves. (Looks no different from regular sunglasses.)]
Natsume's eyelid twitched again.
From the looks of it, they resembled the sunglasses worn by Ash Ketchum's Squirtle in the anime...
But are you sure this isn't just a random pair of sunglasses you're trying to pass off as special?!
No one would buy this. If I tried to tell people it boosts Dark-type Pokémon, they'd probably think I'm crazy.
"Oh well, Haunter will probably like these."
Playing with the slightly punk-looking sunglasses, Natsume sighed wistfully.
"If nothing else, I can wear them as sunglasses and save a few hundred bucks..."
The shopping cart was now packed to the brim.
Natsume had already decided on the menu: Japanese curry. Cynthia should be able to handle that.
After about two hours of shopping, Natsume pushed open the door, arms full of bags.
"I'm home!"
But to his surprise, the house was empty.
On the table was a pink sticky note, with a line of Japanese handwriting from Cynthia, still faintly scented:
"I took Haunter and Eevee out for training. We'll be back later."
How long is "later" supposed to be?!
It's almost time for dinner...
Sneaking off to train is one thing, but doing it while I'm not home...
Feeling like an empty nest elder, Natsume slumped onto the sofa, glancing at the piles of groceries on the table, and let out a long sigh.
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