"Hmm—"
"Even though I know Lord Xerneas's name, where exactly is Allearth Forest?"
Walking on the streets of the human world, Diancie curiously observed her surroundings while politely asking passing humans.
"Hello? Excuse me, do you know where Allearth Forest is located?"
Unfortunately, it seemed no one knew the exact location of Allearth Forest.
After failing again, Diancie, who was visiting the human world for the first time, felt a little discouraged.
"I should have brought Dace with me, he seemed to have mentioned the story from a thousand years ago before—"
"When the crisis happened a thousand years ago before I was born, Dace was already the personal guard of the previous princess, so he definitely knows a lot of things I don't."
"But if I brought Dace, this trip would definitely become very boring—"
After struggling with her inner thoughts, Diancie finally shook her head.
It was a rare opportunity to leave the Diamond Domain and come to the human world; besides completing her mission, she absolutely had to properly experience their lives!
Occasionally, Carbink who left their hometown would travel with humans, leaving behind their stories upon returning.
Diancie had heard many of them since she was little, and she yearned for that strange and beautiful outside world.
Now that her wish had finally come true, she absolutely refused to be constrained by Dace any longer!
Diancie, whose mood had clearly improved, revealed a smile and showed friendliness to every passerby, causing them to stop and stare one after another.
A 100% head-turning rate.
"Do you know that Pokémon? It looks so cute, I really want to take it home!"
"Let me see—"
"Hmm? The Pokédex doesn't seem to have any info on it either?"
"Hiss—, could it be another Legendary Pokémon? Since when did our Lumiose City have such prestige?"
"Maybe it was attracted here by Teacher Azure!"
The passersby discussed animatedly, but Diancie, who had already bounced away, naturally couldn't hear them.
However, when Diancie passed a corner and came face-to-face with a dashing man in a black suit—Steven: ?
The previously incredibly aloof man suddenly froze in place, his expression clearly showing a hint of astonishment.
"This is—"
An elegant Pokémon, whose entire body of gems sparkled in the sunlight, and whose every step seemed to poke directly at his heart, reflected in his pupils.
Ores, gems— Diamonds!
And an elegant, intellectual unknown Pokémon at that!
Steven suddenly clutched his left chest, only feeling a powerful electric current pierce straight through his heart's defenses.
"Hello?"
Noticing that the human in front of her was staring at her with a strange look, Diancie bounced forward and waved at him in a friendly manner.
So cute!
And it could actually speak human language!
Steven's pupils quaked again, but this time he reacted quickly, immediately standing up straight and making an elegant gentlemanly gesture.
"It is an honor to meet you, beautiful lady."
"I am Steven Stone, from Mossdeep City in Hoenn."
"Hello, Mr. Stone."
Diancie revealed a smile.
"I am Princess Diancie from the Diamond Domain."
A Princess!
Steven wasn't surprised by her identity. After all, her speech and demeanor were obviously not those of an ordinary Pokémon; he would believe it even if she said she was a Legendary Pokémon.
But what country was the Diamond Domain?
It sounded like it had a lot of fate with him; there must be many rare ores there!
Just as Steven was about to fall into his fantasies, Diancie spoke again: "Mr. Stone, may I ask if you know where Allearth Forest is?"
"Allearth Forest—?"
Steven frowned and thought for a moment, then was about to shake his head.
Although his small company had some collaborations with the Kalos region, he hadn't really visited this region across the ocean very much.
So, aside from Lumiose City, the venue for this competition, he really didn't know much about other places.
However, saying that would definitely disappoint Diancie, right—
Steven couldn't bring himself to say it, so he simply took out his Rotom Phone, planning to ask the local Champion, Miss Diantha.
And just then—"Yo, Steven, you're here too."
A familiar young voice came from behind.
Feeling a pat on his shoulder, Steven subconsciously turned his head, just in time to meet the smiling eyes of Aiden.
"Hello, Uncle Steven~"
"Hello, Uncle~"
Ansha and little Hoopa, who were following behind Aiden, also smiled and greeted him, making Steven look a bit awkward as he noticed them.
Uncle—
So I've already reached that age?
But why was Aiden together with a child?
Steven looked at Aiden, seemingly wanting an answer.
However, Aiden had already crouched down, smiled friendly at Diancie who was curiously examining him, and slowly reached out his hand.
"Hello, Diancie."
"It seems the Diamond Domain is in crisis again, is it the impact caused by Yveltal?"
Hearing this, Diancie excitedly grasped his hand.
"That's right! This gentleman actually knows, then the location of Allearth Forest should also—"
"Yeah, I know~"
Aiden smiled and nodded.
"You're going to find the sleeping Xerneas, right? Then that's the same as my goal."
"Do you want to travel together with me for the time being?"
"Okay!"
Beating Diancie to it, Steven on the side raised his hand first.
"It seems the impact of the previous incident hasn't ended yet, I won't just stand by!"
"Sure..."
Aiden's gaze toward Steven suddenly added a few degrees of scrutiny.
Steven, you sly dog—
Do you think I don't know what you're thinking!
"Thank you, Mr. Stone."
It was Diancie who spoke.
She looked up, elegantly bowed to the righteous-looking Steven, and then looked at Aiden, who had narrowed his eyes and was waiting for her answer.
"Then, I'll leave it to you, Mr. Aiden~"
"I see, so the Diamond Domain is actually a kingdom of Carbink—"
The group was sitting on top of Steven's Metagross, flying slowly in a certain direction.
After Aiden's explanation, Steven quickly gained a general understanding of the Diamond Domain and Diancie.
No wonder wild Carbink almost never had fixed groups, and were only occasionally found in certain areas; it turned out they had their own civilization—
A magical kingdom located at the origin of the Kalos mining veins, where ores could even slowly grow like plants under the influence of power?
Whether he had time or not, he really wanted to go see it!
Moreover, every thousand years, a Diancie carrying a mission would be born from the Carbink.
Steven looked at Diancie, who was covering her mouth and chuckling on the side, thinking that he was indeed very lucky to be able to accidentally meet the Diamond Princess who was far removed from the human world.
He only had a few hobbies in total—
Collecting various precious ores and fossils, this was a hobby inherited from his father, and the only ultimate goal in his life.
Next was encountering various Pokémon related to the earth.
If they could form a bond and become companions, that would of course be even better, but just the encounter itself was enough for him.
As for his final pursuit—
Naturally, it was a man's Steel Soul!
The three absolute main forces in his team—Metagross, Aggron, and Skarmory—all perfectly showcased his aesthetic style.
Although Diancie didn't seem to have the Steel typing, the layer of hard diamonds covering her body could easily surpass steel in purity!
She was simply a Pokémon right in his sweet spot—
However, Diancie didn't notice his increasingly fervent gaze, and was instead curiously staring at Aiden on the other side.
The gazes of the three were fully captured by Ansha, who was sitting obediently beside Aiden.
Is this the "love triangle" that often appears in the movies Mom filmed?
The adult world is really interesting~
"I didn't expect that Mr. Aiden actually knew about the Diamond Domain?"
Diancie asked curiously.
According to Dace, the Diamond Domain should have absolutely no contact with the human world—
Only when Yveltal awakened and the Heart Diamond dimmed would each Diancie go to assist Lord Xerneas.
And receive the aura blessed by the God of Life, gaining the ability to condense a brand new Heart Diamond.
But a thousand years had passed; logically, humans should have forgotten long ago, right?
"I really like collecting legendary stories from various regions, so I know some intel that normal people wouldn't be aware of."
Aiden smiled and replied casually.
Of course, this was definitely a white lie.
After all, even if he told the truth, no one would believe it—
"That's amazing, Mr. Aiden!"
Diancie nodded.
Originally, when she came to the human world, she was actually a little nervous.
After all, this was her first time going out alone, and she heard from Dace that there were good and bad humans, so she couldn't blindly trust their words.
It seemed her luck was pretty good, she just happened to meet two good people!
As long as she went to Allearth Forest and defeated that evil god who polluted the Heart Diamond, everything should be able to return to normal!
Thinking of this, Diancie was suddenly full of confidence.
Steven was also full of confidence.
After all, even a huge trouble like Hoopa was resolved; wouldn't a mere awakened Legendary Pokémon be a piece of cake for Aiden?
If he just put in a little effort this time, he might be able to form a friendship with Diancie and get the chance to visit the Diamond Domain!
So as for the Hoenn Champion duties, let Wallace suffer a little longer; he had a more important mission to complete.
Mining King, I'm definitely going to be it!
Steven felt like he was already fired up.
And this trip to the Diamond Domain might also have unexpected surprises—since the Diamond Domain was the origin of all the mining veins in the Kalos region, could it also expand into a path to the Hoenn region?
Although it might require crossing an entire ocean—
"I always feel like you're thinking of something outrageous."
Aiden glanced at Steven, noticing the rapidly changing expressions on his face, and couldn't help but say.
The friendly, spring-outing-like atmosphere lasted for about an hour.
It wasn't until a large emerald-green forest appeared ahead that Aiden took the initiative to end the pleasant exchange.
"We're here, Allearth Forest is up ahead."
Even if he didn't say it, the others had more or less realized it too.
After all, that vigorous life energy spreading from the center of the sea of trees could be clearly felt even by ordinary people.
It was completely different from Aiden's impression.
But it made sense; in the movie version, this place was ravaged by Yveltal first, so no matter how much life energy it had, it wouldn't be enough for it to absorb.
This time, however, the Cocoon of Destruction had been moved away by Lysandre in advance, intending to charge the Ultimate Weapon, so its revival naturally couldn't affect Allearth Forest.
If one looked into the distance, they could quickly notice a strange tree that was shining with light and full of vitality.
That should be Xerneas, right?
Aiden pointed in the direction of the glowing tree.
Steven immediately understood and commanded Metagross to slowly descend over there.
"I can feel it, there is a rich life aura here, and a very special atmosphere—"
After returning to the ground, Diancie immediately closed her eyes, carefully feeling the flow of energy in the air.
When she quickly opened her eyes again, her gaze had already locked onto the ancient tree in front of her.
"Lord Xerneas is here!"
Even though she had never seen the God of Life, the energy source alone was enough for her to get the answer!
Such abundant life energy, who else could achieve it besides Xerneas?
"This disguise is too realistic—"
Aiden also curiously examined the glowing ancient tree in front of him, clicking his tongue in wonder.
If he didn't know what Xerneas looked like, he would probably have been fooled by the brilliant disguise before him.
When Xerneas slept, it would only reveal the pair of intricate antlers on its head, forming a tree-like structure.
If one didn't observe carefully, they really wouldn't be able to tell it was a Legendary Pokémon.
Come to think of it—
I wonder if this Fairy aura is good for Sylveon?
Absorbing some Legendary Pokémon's energy, what if it could really learn a move or two from it?
Even if it couldn't learn Geomancy, freeloading a knockoff Fairy Aura wouldn't be bad either!
So before waking Xerneas, Aiden first took out a Poké Ball from his pocket and pressed the button.
"Syl?"
Sylveon landed lightly, looking around with a confused face.
It couldn't quite describe the feeling, but the aura covering the surrounding environment made it feel very warm, with a wonderful affinity.
"This is the Fairy Aura of the God of Life, Xerneas."
Aiden smiled and crouched down, patting its head.
"How is it, do you feel anything special?"
"Sylveon! ∑(*°A°)/"
Sylveon froze for a moment, subconsciously took a few more breaths, and showed an expression of enjoyment.
Hmm— it didn't seem to feel anything special either?
But since the trainer said so, it must be because it hadn't absorbed enough!
Sylveon took deep breaths while slowly moving forward with cat-like steps.
The closer it got to the glowing tree, the richer the Fairy energy around became, even making it a bit intoxicated.
However—
Just as Sylveon's ribbons fluttering in the wind were about to touch the tree trunk, the tree suddenly shook.
Then, the large tree covered in colorful branches and leaves violently uprooted itself, revealing the giant head of a deer.
"S-Sylvee?!!"
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