Twenty days after that incident, by a river, Greninja held a Quick Attack, and Gui Ling slowly drew his tang katana, pointing it at Greninja.
"You've practiced for so long; let me see how much you've truly learned?"
"koo-gah."
Gui Ling initiated the attack, taking a step and raising his katana to cleave forward. Greninja also used Quick Attack to cleave upward, but as the two collided, there was a violent clang, and the Quick Attack was directly split in half. Before Greninja could react, he was kicked away by Gui Ling.
"When two things collide, trying to resist with pure strength, the most important thing is the mastery of force. If you can, even a stone can be split."
"koo-gah!"
Greninja summoned Quick Attack again and slashed forward. This time, Gui Ling also put all his energy into defending. The two began to spar. Although Gui Ling's strength and agility were not as great as Greninja's, his sword-swinging speed was much faster, and he even performed a few sword flourishes during his attack downtime.
Meanwhile, Yveltal and the others, who were watching the battle from the side, were quietly eating their favorite snacks and observing the two.
"... (Oh, I'm starting to wonder if Gui Ling is even human. His sword-swinging speed is so much faster than Greninja's.)"
"Gardevoir, Gardevoir ~"
Gardevoir sat on a large rock by the river, broke her donut in half, and offered it to Gengar and Banette in front of her.
The two happily accepted, but Gengar suddenly snatched Banette's portion, and then the two brothers began their chase-and-be-chased routine.
Noivern yawned as Banette and Gengar used him as a pillar to run around. Noivern didn't seem annoyed and continued to stay there.
But soon, another loud crash was heard. Gui Ling performed a jumping Slash, once again cutting Greninja's Quick Attack in half, and Greninja, losing his balance, fell to the ground.
Gui Ling slowly walked over, used his tang katana to pick up the Quick Attack, and tossed it in front of Greninja.
"Stand up."
Greninja's eyes sharpened. After repairing Quick Attack, he stood up again. This time, the Mega Evolution ite on Greninja's wrist and the Key Stone on Gui Ling's wrist simultaneously glowed with a purple aura.
At this moment, both rushed towards each other, their sword-drawing styles identical, slashing at each other.
After five minutes of continuous sparring, human stamina ultimately couldn't compare to a Pokémon's. Gui Ling was the first to lose stamina, stumbling and sitting on the ground. Then, Greninja held Quick Attack against Gui Ling's neck, and the match concluded.
"Heh."
"koo-gah."
Greninja helped Gui Ling up. Gui Ling patted Greninja's shoulder and nodded.
"There's nothing more I can teach you. From now on, you'll have to experience it for yourself."
"koo-gah!"
Afterward, everyone, as usual, set up tents by the river. Although Gardevoir had fully recovered, everyone habitually stayed awake, accompanying Gardevoir by the river to count stars.
"Ding dong, ding dong."
"Hmm, what?"
"Ding dong."
"Ah? Well... I haven't thought about it yet."
"... (Yes, I understand it's not convenient for me to appear, so you should really think about what your seventh Pokémon will be.)"
"Hey, don't rush me ~"
Just then, Gardevoir playfully patted Gui Ling's head, feigning annoyance. Although the force was minimal, Gui Ling still pretended to be hurt and clutched his head. Greninja also narrowed his eyes and stood by with his arms crossed.
"Gardevoir, Gardevoir!"
"koo-gah..."
"Why is everyone starting to blame me? Who's the Trainer here anyway!"
Gardevoir placed her hands on Gui Ling's shoulders and shook him. She was a bit annoyed; she was the only girl in this big family, which made her a little uncomfortable.
"Gardevoir, Gardevoir!"
"Then if I catch a few more male Pokémon, wouldn't you explode?"
"Gardevoir!"
"Hey! I was wrong! Wrong! Wrong, sis!"
The stars were exceptionally bright that night. After everyone fell asleep under the moonlight, Gardevoir woke up early, gently looked at everyone sleeping beside her, and smiled contentedly.
Before, although she lived with another Gardevoir, her physical defect had always made her personality cold, and her aggressive instincts were merely a disguise.
Now that her disguise was torn, she had no need to pretend anymore, nor did she need to remain cold.
She had originally intended this journey to be the last chapter of her life, but now, she only wanted to quickly integrate into this family.
The unlucky Gui Ling, the sleepy Yveltal, the bickering brothers Gengar and Banette, the Greninja who wanted to protect everyone, the Noivern who liked to slack off...
What kind of personality did she have?
As she pondered this question, Gardevoir involuntarily closed her eyes...
...
Early the next morning, Gui Ling looked at the narrow path. He had originally intended to walk through it alone, so he recalled everyone into their Poké Balls.
But as expected, "once you walk, there's always a pit." With a thud, Gui Ling fell into a deep pit, accompanied by a scream...
"Ow!!!!"
Everyone in the Poké Balls: "Sigh... we're used to it."
Gui Ling slowly got up, dusted himself off, and stretched his back, feeling pain all over.
"Xerneas just healed all my injuries a while ago, and now there's another one... Ah! My butt... Ugh..."
Gui Ling opened his eyes and realized he was surrounded by Carbink, all staring at him with fearful and dangerous eyes.
"Hiss... Ah haha, the weather's really nice today!"
Looking at the fawning Gui Ling, the Carbink's faces darkened, and they used Stone Edge, intending to drive away the intruder.
"Oh my! Are you serious?!"
Gui Ling quickly dodged to the side, drew the tang katana from his back, stepped onto the Stone Edge, and then stomped on one of the Carbink.
The Carbink were startled by this scene. At the same time, Gui Ling's expression changed from fawning to serious, his gaze sweeping over the Carbink in front of him.
Meanwhile, nearby, a pink figure was hiding behind a crystal pillar, waiting for her three guards to find her.
"Hehe! Majima and the others will never find me here ~"
"Gengar! Banette! Greninja!"
Three beams of light shot out from the Poké Balls. Gengar and Banette appeared making ghostly faces, while Greninja stood solemnly with his arms crossed.
Hearing the commotion, the Carbink rushed over, and an elder Carbink continuously looked around.
"Where is Princess Diancie?"
"Since you attacked me first, then..."
However, just as Gui Ling was about to attack, he was patted on the head by a fair hand.
"Ow! Gardevoir, why did you come out?"
"Gardevoir!"
"No? They started it... Ow!"
"Gardevoir!"
"Alright, alright, you go talk to them..."
Gui Ling put away his tang katana. Gengar and Banette shielded Gui Ling from behind, and Greninja followed Gardevoir to stand before the elder Carbink.
"Gardevoir, Gardevoir ~"
"koo-gah."
"So that's how it is. This old one apologizes to you."
After an explanation, Gardevoir and Greninja brought the elder Carbink to Gui Ling.
"My apologies, young Trainer. If anything unpleasant happened to you, I apologize."
"Ah... it's nothing. I just slipped and fell into this deep pit, and then when I looked up, several Stone Edge attacks came flying at me. I reacted a bit instinctively. I should also apologize to you."
Gui Ling looked at Gardevoir and nodded to her.
"That's truly amazing, as expected of Gardevoir!"
"Gardevoir ~"
However, just then, Gui Ling inadvertently caught sight of a pink figure next to the crystal pillar. He nodded to Gengar and Banette, and the two immediately understood, using Confusion to lift the three of them and fly towards that direction.
"Hehe, my hiding spot must be good!"
But Diancie looked up to find herself covered by some shadow. Looking behind her, she saw the three making ghostly faces and rushing towards her. This startled Diancie.
And then...
"Gengar, Gengar..."
"Ding dong..."
"Wrong..."
Gardevoir stood with her arms crossed, looking exasperated, shielding Diancie behind her. Gengar and the other two, on the other hand, stood in a line like naughty children, heads bowed, listening to Gardevoir's scolding.
Greninja sighed and slapped his forehead, chatting with the newly summoned Noivern about what had just happened.
"Princess Diancie!"
"Elder Carbink... who are they?"
"Outsiders who fell in. It's alright, they have no ill intent for now."
"Oh ~"
Hearing this, Diancie relaxed and voluntarily emerged from behind Gardevoir.
"My name is Diancie."
"Hello, my name is Gui Ling. The one behind you is Gardevoir, these are Gengar and Banette, and over there are Greninja and Noivern."
"Mmm-hmm! Are you a Trainer from outside?"
"Yes, they are all my partners."
Gardevoir, standing behind Diancie, slowly crouched down. Looking at Diancie in front of her, she didn't know why, but she liked her more and more, and she stroked Diancie's head.
"Gardevoir ~"
"Woo hoo hoo! Hello, Gardevoir ~"
The elder Carbink nearby suddenly remembered something. He quickly called out to Diancie.
"Princess Diancie, the Sacred Diamond is about to wither! Please come with us to see it!"
"Huh? The Sacred Diamond..."
"The Sacred Diamond?"
Gui Ling, however, perked up with interest, scratching his head and asking.
"Can I come see it too?"
"Yes, alright. Please follow us."
A few minutes later, Gui Ling's mouth dropped open at the sight of the enormous diamond in front of him.
"Holy moly, this is the first time I've seen such a huge diamond! How much must it be worth? Too bad it's not mine... Sigh..."
"Lord Gui Ling..."
"Ah, ah! Sorry, it's my first time seeing something this big, it's a bit overwhelming."
Looking at the sparkling pink diamond in front of them, everyone was stunned. Its brilliant light was like stars in the sky, and this large diamond was particularly pleasing to Gardevoir.
"Gardevoir, Gardevoir ~"
"But this Sacred Diamond is already withering!"
"But it's still shining so brightly. Worrying too much isn't good for your health, you know ~"
Diancie smiled, trying her best to comfort everyone, but she had never doubted the elder Carbink's words.
“Princess Diancie, please listen carefully to me!”
“Alright~ Alright~”
“One answer is enough!”
“Alright~”
“If the diamond loses its luster, then our country will face destruction!”
“Aren’t you making a bit of a fuss?”
“No! Right now, only you can replace it! The time has come to show your power!”
Diancie lowered her head in thought, then her eyes became resolute, and she stretched her hands forward, using her energy to create a diamond.
Diancie raised her hand, releasing energy to accumulate a huge pink diamond, but as the energy gradually faded, the diamond Diancie created slowly dissipated.
“Ugh… it’s not working?”
Diancie lowered her head, feeling a bit disappointed, but Gui Ling walked over, knelt down, and stroked Diancie’s head.
“It’s okay, don’t worry, I believe you can do it!”
“But…”
“Xerneas!”
Just then, the Diamond Elder nearby spoke a name.
“Xerneas?”
“Yes, when I was traveling around, in a place called the Aurous Woods, a terrifying great destruction once occurred! I was able to survive thanks to Xerneas!”
“So I need to see that…”
“Xerneas.”
“If I go to see Xerneas and gain the Fairy Aura, I’ll be able to unleash my true power, and then I’ll be able to create the Sacred Diamond, right?”
“Exactly, you must believe in the Fairy Aura!”
Gui Ling and Gengar, who were standing by, were a bit speechless. It had only been 12 days, were they already at odds with Xerneas?
“Hiss… Xerneas…”
“Gui Ling, do you know her?”
Diancie tilted her little head, looking at Gui Ling, who stroked his chin and pondered.
“I do know her, I even saw her ten days ago…”
“What?! You’ve seen Xerneas?!”
The Diamond Elder suddenly jumped over, looking at Gui Ling with a mix of surprise and scrutiny.
“No, don’t look at me like that. Fairy Aura? Gardevoir absorbed a bit of it while healing. Let’s see if it can help you all.”
“Really?!”
Gardevoir looked at her hand, thought for a moment, then nodded.
Gardevoir slowly placed her hand on Diancie’s shoulder. As the Fairy power of both of them activated, Diancie’s diamond creation improved.
However, the diamond was not ultimately created; it only lasted for a period of time before dissipating, but it was much better than before.
“It seems you really have seen Xerneas. Although faint, this Gardevoir indeed had the Fairy Aura on her!”
“Yeah, I told you I wasn’t lying. Looking at your expressions, I thought you were going to hit me with Stone Edge again…”
The Diamond Elder looked at Diancie, then at the Pokémon around Gui Ling, and then jumped in front of Gui Ling, asking.
“Lord Gui Ling, may I ask a favor?”
“What?”
“Could you take Princess Diancie to find Xerneas? Since you were able to find Xerneas, you must have some trick!”
“Me? Huh? Aren’t you afraid I’m a bad guy?”
“If you were truly a bad guy, you would have already snatched Princess Diancie when you saw her. Moreover, you also have Gardevoir. I, an old man, would not be mistaken.”
“No, humans are very dangerous!”
“Aren’t you human?”
“Exactly, that’s why I’m telling you all not to trust humans!”
The Diamond Elder shook his head and, after pondering for a moment, continued to ask.
“Then, if you really don’t want to, could you tell us how to find Xerneas?”
This time, it was Gui Ling’s turn to fall silent. He couldn’t possibly make Yveltal use Dark Aura to bring Xerneas out again, could he? Wouldn’t Xerneas scold him? He still wanted to get along with this Legendary Pokémon.
“Uh, my method probably won’t work anymore.”
“Ah? Then this…”
The Diamond Elder pondered for a moment, then began to ask again.
“Then… do you need anything? Anything we have here, you can take, as long as you accompany Princess Diancie to find Xerneas!”
“Why does it have to be me…”
“Gengar, Banette, Noivern, Gardevoir, Greninja. Your lineup is very strong, more than enough to protect Princess Diancie.”
Gui Ling’s eyelid twitched. So, they were treating him as a bodyguard?
“koo-gah.”
Greninja shook his head. Although he always envisioned himself as a knight, he only wanted to protect his family and didn’t want to protect others.
“Gardevoir.”
Gardevoir chatted with Diancie for a while, then stood up and whispered a few words into Gui Ling’s ear.
“Ah? That’s a bit unrealistic, isn’t it? She’s a princess of a country!”
“Gardevoir Gardevoir…”
Diancie ran over to the Diamond Elder and chatted for a while. The Diamond Elder also shook his head in distress; he still hadn’t fully put his trust in Gui Ling.
Then, the two looked at each other, seeing the suspicion and uncertainty in each other’s eyes.
“Then how about a guarantee from the other party?”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
The Diamond Elder took a deep breath, looked at Diancie’s resolute eyes, and nodded.
“As long as you can help Princess Diancie obtain the Fairy Aura, Princess Diancie can become your Pokémon and go with you.”
“Wait? Isn’t this supposed to be a guarantee? Why does it feel like a transaction?”
“Hmm, this is also a request made by Princess Diancie, but I have a test to see if you have the ability to protect Princess Diancie.”
“Why does this feel like giving away a child? If it’s about protecting her, I am 100% capable.”
“Empty words are useless.”
Hearing this, Gui Ling’s competitive spirit was also ignited. He took out his last Poké Ball and said.
“Alright, I’ll show you proof, but first, let me say, no matter what you see later, don’t panic, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Since you know the Aurous Woods, you should also know the source of that great destruction, right?”
The Diamond Elder was about to speak when he heard this, but suddenly remembered something and looked at the Poké Ball in Gui Ling’s hand, a drop of cold sweat appearing.
Something almost impossible, yet explainable, exploded in his mind.
“Do you recognize this?”
As the Poké Ball opened, the cocoon of destruction appeared, and the Diamond Elder was so scared that his eyes widened, and he retreated backward.
“Y… Yveltal?!!”
As the cocoon of destruction opened, Yveltal revealed its true form and roared at the Diamond Elder, who was so scared he was incoherent.
“How about it? Do I have the ability now?”
“Diamond Elder! What’s wrong?”
“Hmm, what’s going on here?”
Along with Diancie’s exclamation, Gui Ling finally looked in the direction of the Diamond Elder and realized that it had been scared so badly that it was foaming at the mouth and had fainted.
“Ah? This, this, this… Is this considered a scam?”
“………… (What’s wrong? You woke me up again.)”
“It seems we need to find Xerneas again.”
“………… (What now? Always looking for my arch-rival. Why don’t you just catch her and let me get some good sleep!)”
Everyone lifted the Diamond Elder onto a bed made of diamonds. During this time, Gui Ling began to explain the current situation to Yveltal.
Originally, Yveltal had no interest in searching again, but hearing that Diancie could become Gui Ling’s seventh Pokémon piqued its interest.
“………… (Is this Pokémon strong?)”
“If she can gain the power of diamonds, she should be able to block your Death Wing.”
“………… (This little squirt? Does she have that ability?)”
However, Yveltal looked at the somewhat cold-eyed Gardevoir and didn’t say anything more. It knew that if it weren’t for its height, Gardevoir would definitely hit it on the head.
After all, everyone had always doted on Gardevoir before, and Gardevoir always took the lead in resolving matters. Yveltal also started listening to Gardevoir, following everyone else.
“Alright, the most respected Gardevoir in the entire region has appeared.”
“I know you don’t believe it, but once she gains the Fairy Aura, we’ll know if we try it.”
“………… (If anyone else said it, I definitely wouldn’t believe it, but since you said it, I’m a bit curious. But there’s one more thing I don’t know, what’s a diamond?)”
“Diamond? It’s just a mineral.”
“………… (What’s a mineral?)”
“You should go stand aside.”
“Gardevoir Gardevoir~”
“………… (Hmph, I’ll listen to Gardevoir.)”
After a series of explanations, Yveltal was completely shocked.
Because it learned the use of diamonds. Gardevoir explained it in a way Yveltal understood.
With just one large diamond, it could eat grilled fish for a very long time, the kind that never runs out.
Then, Gardevoir added that Diancie could make them infinitely after gaining the Fairy Aura, and Yveltal was completely stunned.
“………… (Can I eat grilled fish infinitely?!)”
“Gardevoir~”
“………… (Let’s go! Let’s find my arch-rival! If she dares not give it to me, I’ll break her antlers!)”
“Gardevoir~”
“………… (I know… I’ll be more polite next time… But what you explained was really clear, unlike Gui Ling, who explained nothing I understood.)”
Gui Ling stood by with a black line on his face, looking at Yveltal.
“I’m right in front of you! You’re talking trash about me to my face?!”
Gengar and Banette played hide-and-seek with Carbink and Diancie, while Noivern and Greninja watched over the Diamond Elder.
“Gengar Gengar!”
“………… (Hide-and-seek?)”
“Dang dang!”
“………… (My turn? Are you sure? I’m bigger than all of you.)”
“Dang dang?”
“………… (I’m worried about breaking the surrounding diamond pillars. If you’re not worried, then I’m coming!)”
“Please leave a comment to urge for more updates…”
Thanks to TX Hilde for the flowers and the like, and thanks for your support, Big Brother