"Finally! After months of waiting!" The scrawny teenage boy woke up with a cheer. He had messy black hair and rare brown eyes in the city.

*Growl*

Arthur, the scrawny boy, held his stomach as it reminded him of the ever-present hunger that had haunted him since life took a turn for the worst.

Instinctively, he reached for his pocket, finding a small piece of moldy bread, his only possession other than the rag he wore as clothes.

"No, I will get a Bond with this," he shook his head, suppressing the hunger. Ignoring his hunger had become a habit for the boy since the apocalypse ten years ago.

Arthur was 5 years old when the apocalypse happened. He lost his home, his parents, everything that day.

"So today is my birthday, huh? I should remember this if I'm still alive next year," he mumbled as he stared at the translucent screen in front of him.

HAPPY 15th BIRTHDAY!

CONGRATULATIONS ON UNLOCKING THE ANIMAL CULTIVATION SYSTEM!

He grinned at the system.

*Growl*

Arthur's stomach protested, but he didn't care. Today was his 15th birthday, the happiest moment in the last ten years of his life!

Name: Arthur

Bond: -

Rank: N/A

Talent: Superior Intellect

Trait: Fast Hands

"If I didn't know any better, I would think I've become super smart with this talent," Arthur mumbled.

Even though Arthur lived on the streets, he would go to the nearby school every day. Of course, he didn't attend the school; Arthur would just sneak onto the school grounds and listen through the windows. Sometimes he would learn something about the System and Bond, while other times security would find him and kick him out.

"The first talent should be an ability related to Bond. Let's check," he concentrated on the talent, and the system display changed.

Superior Intellect: Bonded animals are smarter and learn faster.

"Not the best talent, but it should help, I think," Arthur said.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

He shifted his focus to his trait, and the system display changed again.

Fast Hands: Improves hand movement and precision.

"Now that sucks," Arthur couldn't help but become depressed. He was hoping for something more than that.

"Others get Fire Affinity or Sword Genius, and here I am with fast hands," he complained.

Of course, he knew that most people didn't have such exaggerated traits, but he couldn't help hoping for some luck after all this time. Unfortunately, Lady Luck hadn't smiled upon him yet.

*Growl*

"Beggars can't choose," he thought as his stomach protested once more, reminding him of his situation.

"I need to find an animal to bond with... and find something to eat with its help" Arthur got out of his hiding hole under the bridge.

Three hours later, Arthur was back under the bridge, tired and disappointed.

"Damn it! I knew this would be hard, but I've already gone around the city and nobody wants me as an apprentice!" he complained in defeat.

In order to get an animal to bond with, Arthur first needed to find one. However, the chance of encountering a wild animal in the city was very slim, if not impossible. Most animals were either bonded to someone, being sold in a shop, or owned by someone. For Arthur, who didn't even have money for decent food, he was hoping to become someone's apprentice.

"And here I was hoping to get a 2nd generation bond. In reality, I can't even get a 1st gen bond," he sighed.

2nd generation bonds were bonded animals that were born from 1st generation bonded animals. They inherited their parents' deviated traits, amplification, and even evolution. 2nd gen bonds were precious; they were either sold for a sky-high price or given by parents to their children. For an orphan like Arthur, his only chance to get one was by being an apprentice to someone who was generous enough.

"I guess it's time for the backup plan," he mumbled as he went toward a dark back alley.

Arthur wasn't crazy enough to go outside the city to find an animal to bond with. Beyond the city walls, his chance of survival was almost non-existent, and even if he did survive, the only animals beyond the wall were spirit beasts. There was no way he could persuade a spirit beast to bond with him!

The dark alley was familiar territory to Arthur. For the last few years, he had visited such alleys hundreds of times, going through trash cans, looking for anything to fill his stomach.

Arthur knew of one kind of animal that he could find in such an alley. No one really cared for them, as they were too small and harmless to be strong Bonds, even if people cultivated them.

As soon as Arthur stepped inside the alley, he could hear sounds coming from the heap of trash. "There should be a group of them. At least I need to pick the biggest one!" he thought, resigning himself to his fate.

As he walked closer, he tried to be as silent as possible not to scare his target. He could see five gray-furred animals looking at him as he tried to get closer.

Arthur pulled out the moldy bread from his pocket as he closed the distance, intending to feed it to the four-limbed animal.

Three out of the five animals walked closer to Arthur's outstretched hand.

"The one on the left looks the biggest. I should give it to that one," he thought.

*GROWL*

The animals got scared by the sudden sound of Arthur's stomach. It was the loudest sound his stomach had ever made, and Arthur's heart almost jumped out of his chest from the scare it gave him.

"Damn it!" he screamed in his heart as his Bond candidates ran away due to the sudden loud sound.

Luckily, one of them only flinched from the sound and didn't run away from him.

"This one is smaller than the others, but as the saying goes, beggars can't be choosers," he thought as he tried to coax it into eating his offering.

*DING*

After the longest ten seconds of his life, the animal finally took his precious food. Instantly, a system notification popped up in front of Arthur.

Bonding Successful! Do you want to keep the Rat as your Bond? (Y/N)