Off to the side, Gardevoir immediately understood her Trainer's intentions.
She lifted her chin without a word.
Letting Diantha see her current strength wasn't a bad idea.
With that thought, Gardevoir stepped onto the battlefield.
Since Elias had been Gardevoir's Trainer during this recent period, it was naturally his role to issue commands.
Across from them, Diantha was still giving Goodra a pep talk.
"Just treat it like normal training. You've always wanted to battle Gardevoir, haven't you?"
Diantha soothed her Pokémon gently.
Goodra had always been competitive. Despite her typing disadvantage, she often challenged Gardevoir.
She wanted to be the team's new ace.
Diantha knew this clearly—otherwise, she wouldn't have chosen her now.
Only after hearing Diantha's encouragement did Goodra nod.
Normally, she'd have stepped confidently onto the field without hesitation.
Yet today—perhaps it was her imagination—she felt that the Gardevoir she hadn't seen in a while was somehow… different.
That calm, assured aura made Goodra's heart pound nervously.
"Goodra!"
In the end, Goodra clenched a fist and entered the battlefield anyway.
It was only Gardevoir. Even at a type disadvantage, she was confident she could handle it!
...
A few moments later…
"Goodra!"
Thud—
With a weak, wobbling sound, Goodra fell straight to the ground.
Her body didn't move—she'd clearly lost the ability to battle.
Staring blankly at the fallen Goodra, Diantha felt her mind go blank.
She wondered if her eyes were playing tricks on her.
Just a moment earlier…
She'd planned to follow her initial strategy: Goodra would rely on her endurance and go first to probe Gardevoir's tactics.
Even though Gardevoir was her own Pokémon, she'd spent months training under Elias, so assessing her strategy first was wise.
This was an entirely standard opening in regular battles—and one of the safest methods, too.
Diantha felt she'd already been cautious enough—she would likely adopt the same approach even in an official competition.
And yet…
Just as she thought that, she saw her Gardevoir lightly raise her right hand.
Before Diantha could react, several semi-transparent blades had already reached Goodra's head.
No chance to dodge—Gardevoir's Psycho Cut landed directly on Goodra.
The sudden strike caught both Goodra and Diantha completely off-guard.
By the time Diantha regained her senses and rushed to give an order, a full moon had already risen behind Gardevoir.
Moonblast!
A Fairy-type move—instantly super-effective against Goodra.
When the pale moonlight dispersed, Goodra was already down, entirely unable to battle.
Two moves.
Just two moves, and Goodra had fallen to Gardevoir.
To Diantha, it was simply unbelievable.
In the past, Gardevoir and Goodra had often sparred. With the type disadvantage, Goodra naturally lost more often.
But…
Goodra had also trained seriously, so while there was indeed a gap, it wasn't overwhelmingly large.
Certainly, it shouldn't have been an instant knockout like this.
Yet now…
Reflecting on the power Gardevoir displayed in that brief exchange, Diantha immediately understood.
It wasn't that her Goodra had weakened—it was that Gardevoir had greatly improved under Elias's training.
And by an astonishing margin.
"So? Gardevoir didn't disappoint you, right?"
By now, Elias had already brought Gardevoir back to Diantha's side.
Gardevoir lifted her chin proudly, clearly pleased.
And honestly, who wouldn't be? She'd been gone just a few months and returned significantly stronger.
At Elias's words, Diantha flushed and hastily lowered her head in gratitude.
"Elias, thank you for training Gardevoir."
"To be honest… I didn't have very high expectations before."
Remembering how she'd even thought about teaching him how to train a Gardevoir, Diantha's face burned.
Thank goodness…
They'd conducted this test first—otherwise, she'd be desperate to disappear underground.
...
After the battle, it was naturally time to return Gardevoir to Diantha.
As Elias placed Gardevoir's Poké Ball into Diantha's hand, he wished her well.
"In that case, good luck in the competition."
Pokémon League tournaments were always filled with strong contenders, and occasionally, surprising dark horses emerged.
Even Diantha had a real risk of stumbling.
Hearing Elias's words, Diantha's eyes curved.
"Don't worry. I'll give it my all!"
After Elias had trained Gardevoir to this level, she'd be too embarrassed to face anyone if she still lost.
...
[After chatting a little longer with Diantha, you prepared to leave.]
[Things had changed significantly—there was no longer time to stay overnight.]
...
Hearing Elias was leaving—and had other matters to handle—Diantha couldn't hide her disappointment.
Her eyes grew watery, filled with sadness.
She looked like a small animal that had been abandoned.
It wasn't unusual for Diantha to feel this way. In two days, her tournament would begin.
Until it was over, she'd likely have no opportunity to see Elias again.
"Elias—after the tournament finishes at the beginning of next year, you have to visit me, alright?"
Diantha pressed her lips together as she spoke.
"Gardevoir!"
Beside her, Gardevoir nodded softly.
She still wanted to sneak back to Elias's side again later.
"Beginning of next year…"
Elias narrowed his eyes slightly.
Diantha's tournament would take even longer than he'd expected.
But… that was fine.
"Don't worry. If nothing comes up, I'll visit you then."
"For now, just focus on your matches, okay?"
Elias smiled, comforting her gently.
Hearing Elias agree, Diantha felt vaguely uneasy—but more than anything, she felt excited.
"Don't worry! I'll definitely take the championship!"
She confidently patted her chest, looking even more enthusiastic than she did when acting.
Though there was still a good amount of time, Diantha had already mapped out everything in her mind—where they'd go afterward, what they'd do.
A faint blush appeared on her fair cheeks.
---
T/N: heres ur updates :3 meeting the 4 chaps a week quota :3 posting earlier so bonus chaps will be a longer waitttt >:)
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
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