"Holy crap!"
That was the last sound Iron-Blooded Lifter managed to squeeze out.
Bang! A muffled, sickening thud echoed through the stream—the unmistakable sound of a physical move making intimate contact with human flesh. A devastatingly heavy Karate Chop landed squarely on the burly man's lower back and tailbone. After all, this was a Fighting-type Pokémon with immense physical strength!
The screen shook violently.
The muscle-bound streamer, who had just been styling himself as a "strict father," was launched into the air like a kicked sandbag. The blow lifted his feet right off the ground, sending him flying over six feet forward before he face-planted heavily onto a yoga mat.
"Ouch, holy crap! My back!"
The burly man clutched his lower back, baring his teeth in agony as he rolled around on the floor. "You rebellious brat! Did you seriously just hit me?!"
His phone had clattered to the floor, leaving the camera tilted at an awkward angle that perfectly framed the "assassin."
At this moment, the Machop didn't look anything like a "good son." It stood with its arms crossed over its chest, looking down imperiously at its writhing owner. It snorted a puff of white air from its nostrils, its eyes brimming with disdain and contempt.
It was as if the Pokémon were saying: 'I've tolerated your nagging long enough. If you want to train, just train. Why all the nonsense?'
"Help! I'm dying! Someone come quickly! The Machop is rebelling!"
The gym instantly descended into chaos. Several trainers heard the screams and rushed over. Someone tossed out a Poké Ball to summon a Machoke, while another called out an Onix.
It took a frantic, coordinated effort to finally drag away the Machop, who was actively trying to sneak in a few extra kicks on its downed owner.
In the livestream chat, there was a dead, stunned silence.
The two dozen viewers who had just been spamming "Scripted!" and "Scammer!" were completely dumbfounded. They had just watched a tragedy of "fatherly love and filial piety" play out live in front of their eyes.
While nobody died, the hit looked excruciatingly painful.
It took a full half-minute before the chat feed erupted like a volcano.
[Viewer "Kindergarten Food Snatcher": Holy shit?! It actually hit him? That Machop has zero chill!]
[Viewer "Deer in the Woods": Omg... Is this the rebellion the streamer was talking about? Nailed it! One second they're bonding, the next he gets chopped across the room 😭]
[Viewer "Passerby A": Streamer... no, Master! Bro is cooking! You nailed every single detail! That's not a Pokémon, that's a menace to society!]
[Viewer "Melon Eater": LMAO 💀 "Treacherous jawline" my ass! This Machop is built different!]
Miles watched the frantically scrolling chat feed and let out a long exhale, a knowing smile curving the corners of his mouth. He took a sip of water to moisten his throat before looking directly into the camera.
"I told you," he stated plainly, his tone light and breezy. "A Machop with that kind of bone structure is born with an explosive temper. It won't tolerate the slightest grievance. That brother insisted on playing the loving father and even patted its head. Wasn't that just lighting a match over a powder keg?"
Miles paused, letting the words sink in.
"This is what we call 'a doting parent ruins the child, and a rebellious nature inevitably harms the master.' Let's just hope that brother's spine is okay. After all, if you don't train your lower back at the gym, you're going to end up crippled sooner or later."
Stopping there, Miles swept his gaze over the livestream's viewer list.
The online count read 108.
In just a single call, his viewership had quintupled! Moreover, the atmosphere in the chat had shifted completely, transforming from harsh skepticism to absolute shock and worship.
His first shot had been fired, and it was a resounding success.
Meanwhile, the commotion at the gym had settled down slightly. The burly man who called himself "Iron-Blooded Lifter" finally limped back into the camera's frame, supported by two of his colleagues.
He was pale and grimacing, his forehead slick with cold sweat. His previous arrogant and invincible demeanor had completely vanished.
Trembling, he righted his phone stand and looked at Miles's calm face on the screen. The skepticism in his eyes had been entirely wiped away, replaced by a lingering dread and the kind of reverence usually reserved for deities.
Then, under the watchful eyes of over a hundred viewers, the towering, muscle-bound man respectfully clasped his hands together and gave the screen a deep, traditional bow.
"Master! I'm not even going to call you streamer anymore. You are a true Master!" The burly man's voice still shook, carrying the distinct relief of a man who had narrowly escaped disaster. "I yield! I am completely and utterly convinced! If you hadn't shouted at me to freeze earlier... if I had actually bent over to pick up that dumbbell and exposed the back of my head to it, that Karate Chop wouldn't have landed on my butt. It would have snapped my neck, wouldn't it?"
Just thinking about that possibility made the man shudder violently. He really could have died!
Miles sat in front of his screen and calmly took another sip of water, acting as if nothing extraordinary had happened.
"Consider yourself lucky. That shout stopped you in your tracks. Your lower back took a beating, but at least you kept your life."
"Yes, yes, yes! Thank you, Master, for saving my life! I was blind not to recognize a true expert when I saw one. I was even flaming you in the chat earlier. I'm less than human!"
Iron-Blooded Lifter felt sick with regret. Enduring his back pain, he asked with a mixture of confusion and hurt, "But Master... I still don't get it! I treated that Machop so well! I gave it the best food and gear, and I never mistreated it. Why would it suddenly turn on me like that? Does it really have that 'rebellious nature' you mentioned?"
This was the exact question lingering in the minds of everyone in the stream. They were all waiting for Miles to explain.
Miles set down his water glass and lightly tapped his fingers against his desk. He deliberately held back the medical term "Hyper-Aggression Syndrome"—the actual condition only he could see through his System—and instead maintained his carefully crafted persona as a mystical master of the esoteric arts.
"Like I said earlier, it's a matter of 'bone structure,'" Miles explained. "Your Machop has a treacherous jawline and a vicious glint in its eyes. It possesses a natural face of rebellion. For this specific Pokémon, 'violence' and 'insubordination' are practically written into its genes."
"In its worldview, there is no such thing as warmth or emotional bonds; there is only the strong and the weak. You treated it like a son and goofed off with it, which only made it see you as weak and easily bullied. Coupled with you patting its head... that was the straw that broke the Camels' back."
Miles sighed softly, delivering his final verdict.
"Take my advice: you can't handle this Machop. It's born to be a bloodthirsty blade, completely unsuitable as a house pet."
"Your best option is to send it to a specialized Fighting-type Gym. Let professional martial artists suppress it with absolute force and drain its excess energy through high-intensity training. Otherwise, get rid of it as soon as possible."
Iron-Blooded Lifter broke out in a cold sweat as he listened, nodding furiously.
"I understand! I completely understand! I won't keep that rebellious brat around for another day!" He gritted his teeth, a ruthless expression crossing his face. "Damn it, to think I spent five hundred thousand at the 'Elite Breeding House' because they claimed it was a top-tier Pokémon with a docile nature!"
"This isn't a top-tier pet, it's a top-tier assassin! Master, I have to go. My back is killing me, and I need to get an X-ray at the hospital. Once I'm patched up, I'm taking my receipts straight to that breeding house for a refund! I'm going to demand ten times my money back! This is blatant fraud!"
After finishing his rant, the burly man endured the sharp pain and tapped his screen a few times.
[System Prompt: User "Iron-Blooded Lifter" followed the streamer!]
"Master, I've followed you! I'll be here every time you go live from now on! Once I sort out this mess, I'll come back and drop some Rockets to apologize properly!"
Beep— The call finally disconnected.
With the burly man's departure, the tense atmosphere in the livestream eased a little, but then the chat feed exploded like a burst dam. If anyone had still suspected it was all scripted, the "live assault" combined with the streamer's genuine agony had utterly shattered their defenses.
[Viewer "Kindergarten Food Snatcher": Holy crap... I'm on my knees. W streamer! Bro just saved a life through a screen?]
[Viewer "Passerby A": Ngl that was terrifying. I can't forget the look in that Machop's eyes. Thank God the streamer shouted, or RIP to that guy's neck.]
[Viewer "Melon Eater": How is this Pokémon appraisal? Bro is straight up fortune-telling! Master, please accept my worship!]
[Viewer "I Love Rattata": Is this that legendary 'seeing the truth in a single glance'? Instant follow!]
Miles watched his follower count skyrocket in the background while the System panel continuously ticked upward.
[System Prompt: +1 Fame Point]
[System Prompt: +1 Fame Point]
A satisfied smile curved his lips. His first battle was a total victory.
The power of this Appraisal System was even more terrifying than he had imagined. Furthermore, this method of packaging hard "data" into mystical "fortune-telling" seemed to yield phenomenal livestream results.
"Alright, our first fated friend's issue has been resolved. Let's hope his lower back recovers," Miles said, smoothly turning the page on the incident.
He shifted his gaze back to the viewer list, his voice taking on a lazy, magnetic drawl. "So, where is the next friend who wishes to see through their destiny?"
The moment the words left his mouth, a comment impatiently jumped onto the screen. It was from the viewer who had been watching all along and was now thoroughly conquered: "Deer in the Woods."
[Viewer "Deer in the Woods": Master! Look at me! I'm begging you! I never should have doubted you!]
Perhaps because the shock of the previous event was too great, this girl—who had originally only come to watch the drama—now seemed incredibly agitated.
[Viewer "Deer in the Woods": Please look at my Pokémon too! It's not as dangerous as that Machop... but it's seriously driving me insane! If you can fix this, I'll drop some massive donos!]
Miles looked at the ID, and then at her profile picture: a seemingly harmless Oddish.
'Driving her insane?' Miles raised an eyebrow, laughing inwardly.
The first one nearly got beaten to death, and this one was being driven crazy. It seemed all of today's fated friends were bringing some truly unique skills to the table.
"Alright then," Miles said, adjusting his posture and flashing a calm, confident smile at the camera. "Since Ms. 'Deer in the Woods' is so sincere, let's connect."