It was a bird, its body the same sky blue as the heavens. Its tail and feet were tiny, and two blue feathers stuck up from its head like absent minded tufts. Most striking were its wings, like two fluffy balls of cotton, and when Satoru Gojo brushed them by accident, it let out a displeased cry.

  “Chiru…”

  The clear, pleasant sound instantly drew the attention of everyone from Tokyo Jujutsu High. “What a strange bird,” Satoru Gojo said bluntly, earning immediate backlash.

  “How is it strange?” “It is obviously super cute.” “You are the strange one, blindfold weirdo.”

  While being scolded, the little blue bird shook its wings and lightly flew up. It landed on the head of Utahime Iori, who had scolded Satoru Gojo the hardest, chirping in thanks and making the hearts of the women present melt. Yuta Okkotsu and Toge Inumaki, these two Boys, were not much better.

  That made Panda feel a bit sad. “Everyone… do you not like me anymore?” Yoshinobu Gakuganji glanced at his guitar case, deep in thought.

  Satoru Gojo leaned over to Akira and asked quietly, “You had Utahime Iori sing because of this?” “That is exactly why,” Akira nodded.

  This was his fourth Pokémon, Swablu. The Cotton Bird Pokémon. Named for its sky blue color and wings like cotton, it liked quiet places and would sing beautifully when in a good mood.

  Its evolution was even more direct in classification, the Humming Pokémon. It felt close to Utahime Iori not only because Utahime Iori had snapped at Satoru Gojo, but also because Utahime Iori herself was the source of its meme.

  It was worth noting that the Swablu egg had not formed the first time it saw Utahime Iori. It only appeared when Utahime Iori began to sing, shifting from “meme detected” to “meme collection in progress, congratulations on obtaining Pokemon Egg.” As her singing continued, the egg showed rapid signs of hatching, which was why Akira hurriedly manifested it and placed it somewhere suitable to incubate while listening.

  By the time the MV finished recording, Swablu had already hatched. It was the fastest hatching among all of Akira’s Pokémon. His excitement was not only because of a new Pokémon, but also because of a pattern he had begun to notice.

  Meme acquisition was not simply about meeting someone and scanning them. There was likely a subjective trigger involved. There had been signs of this when he met Rika Orimoto.

  When he first met Yuta Okkotsu, there was no reaction at all. When Rika Orimoto half manifested, a meme Hint appeared. Only after Gardevoir’s full power attack forced Rika Orimoto to fully manifest and fight him did the Pokemon Egg tied to that Hint finally arrive.

  Because the time gap was short, Akira had not thought deeply about it until meeting Utahime Iori and triggering another meme detection. That was when he became certain and suggested to Satoru Gojo the idea of a woman singing and a man playing guitar. The result was exactly as he expected.

  He successfully obtained a Pokémon related to singing. It was not the peak of song, the Mythical Pokemon Meloetta, nor the ancient progenitor Jigglypuff, but in Makoto’s view, Swablu was no worse. Most importantly, it filled his biggest weakness, the Flying type.

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  It was still small and could not carry people yet, but once it reached level thirty five and evolved into Altaria, he would no longer have to endure expensive taxi fares. If it could Mega Evolve later, it would become the famous dragon traitor with the “invincible” Fairy Type Dragon typing. On top of that, this line had another special advantage.

  Those soft wings were more comfortable than any pillow. Listening to it sing while resting on its wings was a true pleasure for any Pokémon trainer. Certified by Team Rocket’s only official spokesperson Meowth, even Boss Giovanni approved.

  Pokémon were never just about battles and companionship. They were part of every aspect of life. Being a Pokemon Trainer like Makoto was truly wonderful, and Akira thought so from the bottom of his heart.

  In truth, Akira had been thinking a bit too simply. Getting Swablu to sing was not hard, as long as it was in a good mood, but using its wings as a pillow was another matter entirely. Swablu cherished its feathers, and while the wings looked like cotton, they were still feathers that would be pressed flat if someone rested their head on them.

  Maybe after it leveled up, the load-bearing ability of that “cotton” would improve, otherwise he would have to wait for Altaria and hope for mass production. Even if it could not be used as a pillow, it worked fine as something to hug, soft to the touch and very pleasant to hold. Because of that, it quickly became the new favorite at Kyoto Jujutsu High.

  The main group responsible was the women led by Utahime Iori. Unfortunately for them, closeness was one thing, but Swablu still belonged to Akira. Letting them hug it a little was fine, but taking it away was out of the question, especially when he himself was not done yet.

  After he finished, there was still Little Sha. She was no different from a young girl in this regard and had no resistance to such things, clinging to Swablu and refusing to let go. With Psychic Power in play, she did not have to worry about damaging feathers like a human would, and in the end she earned the right to sleep while holding Swablu.

  Watching Gardevoir change into pajamas and lie on the bed facing Swablu, which had somehow found a hat to protect its little tuft, Akira showed a gentle expression he usually only had at home. He carefully tucked them in, then quietly left the room without making a sound. More and more often, he felt that raising Pokémon was closer to raising children.

  Pancham was the troublesome son, while Swablu felt like a young daughter. As for Darkrai, there was basically no need to worry at all. From the moment it was born, it was already sensible, far beyond Pancham.

  After some time passed, its steadiness was on par with Gardevoir. Recently, it had taken the word reliable to the extreme. Akira had just closed the door when a mass of shadow slipped through the corridor window, floated in, and let out a low “mm,” greeting him without disturbing anyone else.

  Akira said nothing, only patted its shoulder before turning to walk away. Darkrai understood at once and followed him to the rooftop, where it began to speak softly under the moonlight. Akira listened and nodded from time to time.

  “So that is how it is. The stability of Cursed Spirit and the extermination rate are even better than in Tokyo. As expected of the thousand-year capital, the foundation here is indeed thicker than Tokyo.” He paused, then added, “Of course, Kyoto is much smaller and has far fewer people. We cannot just look at the city itself, we need to consider the whole Kansai area, at least include Osaka.”

  Darkrai shook its head softly. Akira continued, “Right, if there is time after the Goodwill Event, we can make a trip. It will be good for leveling Swablu as well.” When Darkrai made another low sound, he smiled and said, “You will escort us? Then thank you. Rest early if nothing else comes up, even if you are God of Nightmares and the night is your domain. We might still need your power tomorrow, and this is not our territory, so caution is better.”

  Darkrai nodded silently and melted back into the darkness without leaving a trace. It had done similar things dozens of times in Tokyo, and Kyoto was no exception. After the MV shoot ended, the Jujutsu Sorcerer all returned to Kyoto Jujutsu High, while Darkrai stayed behind in Kyoto alone.

  It was both an investigation into the state of Cursed Spirit in Kyoto and a solitary hunt. Yes, a solitary hunt, which was one of Darkrai’s daily routines. After witnessing the nightmare of Rika Orimoto, it had become keenly aware of its own lack of strength and actively asked Akira for permission to improve itself.