The morning sunlight spilled through the farmhouse window, casting golden slivers across the wooden floor. Ashwin stood in the kitchen, absently stirring a pot of berry oatmeal while skimming the latest system alert in the corner of his vision.
[System Notification: 2 Days Until Activation of Field Boss Event – "Sudden Bloom"][Recommended Preparation:• Strengthen Perimeter Defenses• Assign Patrol Pokémon• Stockpile Food & Potions][Optional Bonus Objective: Complete 3 Pokémon Bonding Sessions for Buffed Morale]
Ashwin exhaled deeply, setting the spoon aside. "So it's really coming, huh?"
The world had shifted so quickly since his arrival. From confusion and isolation to the bustle of farm life and Pokémon companionship, each day revealed another layer of mystery. The system wasn't just a guide—it was pushing him to build something bigger, something meaningful.
Outside, the farm was waking up.
Combee zipped from flower to flower, collecting sweet nectar and buzzing rhythmically, signaling a content routine. Bidoof plodded along the irrigation channel, stopping now and then to nudge loose soil back into place. Zigzagoon (Galarian) weaved between the hay bales, tail twitching, always alert. Nearby, Skwovet and Seedot worked on evasion drills through a wooden obstacle course Ashwin had rigged the night before.
Training had started bearing fruit.
[Training Report – Skwovet: Evasion Skill +6%][Seedot: Growth Progress 16% → 17% (Evolution Tier 3: Progress Slowed)][Bounsweet: Learned Minor Movement Technique – "Aroma Glide"]
Ashwin watched them quietly, a warm pride blooming in his chest. But it wasn't just the system pushing him now—it was genuine affection. These Pokémon weren't tools. They were partners.
After breakfast, Ashwin headed toward the old cellar below the farmhouse. Dust and cobwebs greeted him as he descended, the wooden steps creaking under his boots. He hadn't explored the space much, aside from occasional storage. But now, with extra supplies arriving and the system's event countdown ticking, he needed to clean and secure every inch.
Combee, curious as ever, followed him down and began buzzing erratically in one corner. She spun in the air in tight loops, wings a blur.
"What's up, girl?" Ashwin asked, stepping closer.
Behind a stack of grain sacks and unused crates, something shimmered faintly beneath the dirt-caked wall.
Combee rammed the stack, knocking it over with a crash.
Dust exploded into the air, and where the sacks had once been was a mossy, metal panel embedded in the stone wall—completely out of place.
[Biometric Lock Detected.Analyzing…Link Confirmed – Access Granted.][You Have Unlocked: The Breeder's Grotto][Hidden Location – Unique System Space Bound to User][Primary Functions:• Healing Spring• Habitat Pods• Genetic Incubator Lv.1• Soil Enrichment Node (Locked)][System Remark: "A hidden place where roots grow deep."]
A faint grinding sound echoed through the basement as the wall slid open, revealing a spiral staircase leading down into a tunnel glowing faintly with soft green light.
Ashwin blinked, stunned. "This has been under my house the whole time?"
Combee buzzed excitedly, then zipped into the tunnel. Ashwin followed, pulse quickening.
The staircase opened into a vast chamber—cool, damp, and alive. Vines curled across the stone walls, glowing fungi cast bioluminescent light over a crystalline spring in the center. Ancient incubator pods lined one side, nestled in moss beds. Everything here felt... sacred.
"This…" he breathed, "is a miracle."
He knelt by the spring and dipped his hand in. It felt like touching a heartbeat—warm, soothing, full of vitality.
[Breeder's Grotto Online – Functions Available.][Optional Feature: Assign Pokémon for Passive Regeneration and Calm-State Bonding][Exclusive Access – Unauthorized Entry: Impossible]
Just then, a loud buzzing echoed from above.
"Combee?" Ashwin turned sharply.
She shot up the tunnel and into the house again. Something had startled her.
Ashwin sprinted up the steps and burst into the backyard.
There—at the edge of the flower ridge—Combee hovered frantically over a patch of rustling grass.
Ashwin rushed forward and dropped to his knees.
Nestled in the bloom lay a small Pokémon with a cracked shell and trembling body. Its leaf was wilted, its eyes half-closed.
A Turtwig.
Dirt, bruises, and dried sap marred its usually vibrant shell. It had clearly traveled far—too far for a young Pokémon alone.
Ashwin's chest tightened. "Hey there… it's okay. I've got you."
He gently scooped Turtwig into his arms. Its body was warm, too warm. It whimpered softly.
[Wild Pokémon Discovered – Turtwig (Status: Critically Injured)][Special Trait: Unknown.Bond Potential: High.][Plot Trigger Activated – "Roots of Resistance"][This Pokémon has fled a dangerous location. Protect it.]
The message made Ashwin's blood run cold.
"This isn't just a lost Pokémon…"
He turned and sprinted back into the farmhouse, down into the glowing Grotto. Turtwig stirred weakly in his arms as he lowered it into the healing spring.
A gentle light enveloped it, the water pulsing with energy as if recognizing the trauma it had absorbed.
[Emergency Healing Initiated – Recovery Boost: +300%][Emotional Resonance Detected – Trust Seed Planted]
Ashwin stayed beside the pool, not moving, watching every twitch of Turtwig's expression as its breathing slowed into something less frantic.
The world above remained quiet. But something was coming.
A whisper beneath the soil.
A threat in the air.
He looked at the peaceful spring and the Pokémon slowly recovering in it.
"I'll protect you. All of you. This is my home now."