Seeing Cogita's strong attitude, Diancie lightly pursed her lips but didn't speak further.
If Elias could truly awaken, she felt she could endure a temporary separation.
After all, a brief parting was far better than never seeing him again for a lifetime.
Moreover—
Even if Elias stayed with Cogita, she could still drop by occasionally to check on him.
If she visited once a day, it wouldn't make much difference.
Maybe even…
"Can I move here to live with you?" Diancie quietly asked Cogita.
If she did that, although she'd have to put up with Cogita being an eyesore, at least she could still remain by Elias's side.
Unfortunately, hearing Diancie's request, Cogita merely glanced at her calmly, clearly rejecting her outright.
"Uuu..." Diancie let out a discouraged sigh.
At the same time, Cogita gently reached out, ignoring Diancie's reluctant gaze, and picked up the diamond from the table.
"If there's nothing else, feel free to leave once you finish your tea~," Cogita told her.
Having received this obvious dismissal, Diancie felt even more dissatisfied.
But unable to find any reason to stay, she could only sip her tea in tiny gulps, deliberately slowing down to delay her departure.
"You have to take good care of Elias, okay...?" Diancie warned Cogita anxiously.
Although several years of observation had shown her Cogita indeed treated Elias very well—
In some ways, even more carefully than herself—Diancie still couldn't help feeling worried.
This time, Cogita simply nodded her head in reply.
Seeing that, Diancie let out a breath and didn't say anything more.
While quietly drinking tea, her eyes fell upon the vase on the table.
The vase was elegantly patterned in black and white, meticulously crafted, with a beauty she couldn't quite describe.
With two pale roses placed inside, it gave off an oddly harmonious feeling.
Moreover, the black-and-white color scheme seemed perfectly matched to Cogita herself.
Even Diancie couldn't help but feel drawn to it.
"Do you like the vase?" Cogita's voice suddenly sounded next to her ear.
Diancie was startled for a moment, then nodded lightly.
"Yes..." she softly replied.
Seeing this, Cogita's lips curled up into a graceful smile.
"A certain little one I once raised personally fired this vase for me. His artistic sense was quite good."
"And the painting inside the house was also made by him."
As she spoke, Cogita extended one slender finger towards the nearby wooden cottage.
Hearing Cogita's rather proud tone, Diancie scratched her head, feeling inexplicably strange.
This was also the first time she'd heard that Cogita had raised someone before.
"Is he also human?" Diancie asked curiously.
"No. He should be... a Ghost-type Pokémon, I suppose?" Cogita thought briefly, then answered naturally.
At this, the strange feeling in Diancie's heart grew even stronger.
Ghost-type Pokémon can even fire ceramics now...?
She suddenly felt curious about the "little one" Cogita spoke of.
But comparatively, she still believed her own Elias to be more outstanding.
He definitely had a better personality, too.
However, seeing Cogita had such a good relationship with this ghost Pokémon, Diancie breathed a sigh of relief.
If this was the case, the odds that Cogita would pursue Elias should be much lower.
"Where's that Pokémon now? I haven't seen him around," Diancie said with a friendly smile.
Seeing her reaction, Cogita inexplicably felt excitement rising in her heart.
"He's a bit stubborn—ran away from home for quite a long time."
"But soon, he'll obediently return to accompany me again," Cogita said leisurely.
Hearing that, Diancie roughly understood the situation.
No wonder Cogita had focused so obsessively on her Elias these past few years—her own Pokémon hadn't returned yet.
Since that was the case…
"I hope he returns soon to keep you company," Diancie blessed Cogita warmly, a rare sight.
And from her lifted lips, it was clear Diancie was very enthusiastic and sincere about this matter.
Cogita didn't deny it, replying simply:
"Of course."
After finally finding Elias and secretly taking him back to her side, she would never let him suffer harm again—even if Giratina himself came to snatch him away.
Not long afterward, the tea was finally finished.
Though reluctant, Diancie had no choice but to leave.
As she prepared to depart, her gaze continuously, subtly, lingered on the diamond held in Cogita's hand.
Cogita had not yet explained clearly why they had to be separated.
She had only said Diancie would eventually understand on her own, which made her feel both curious and uneasy.
Just what could the reason be...?
...
[Vaguely, you felt yourself being handed over again to the human woman from before.]
[You didn't feel much negativity towards her.]
[But likewise, you didn't understand exactly what had happened outside to make Diancie willing to give you away.]
[However, there was one thing you could clearly confirm—after being handed to Cogita, your growth speed noticeably increased.]
[The previously sluggish energy accumulation had significantly accelerated.]
[Though still not comparable to your original speed back in the mine cave, it was nonetheless a substantial improvement.]
[Upon investigation, you realized the root cause might actually lie with Diancie herself.]
...
Inside Cogita's cottage.
Cogita smiled faintly as she looked at the diamond resting on the table.
Just as I expected...
It matched her suspicions perfectly—the ghost within the diamond hadn't grown stronger for such a long time, precisely because Diancie had unknowingly sabotaged him.
As the princess of the underground Carbink Kingdom—a Pokémon naturally born from mineral veins—
Diancie instinctively absorbed energy from surrounding minerals.
This wasn't intentional, but an unconscious, passive act.
After years of accumulation, even Diancie herself likely hadn't noticed.
But undoubtedly, this had devastating effects for Elias.
All the energy he painstakingly accumulated had been continuously drained away by Diancie. It would've been a miracle if he'd made any meaningful progress at all.
If Cogita hadn't carefully observed and noticed the diamond embedded in Diancie growing brighter over time, she might never have realized.
Thinking this, Cogita let out a sigh of relief, feeling deeply pleased with herself.
If not for her timely discovery, Elias's ghost form might have eventually dissipated entirely.
Such unrestricted draining could've easily led to a catastrophe.
Besides the Diancie factor, Cogita had also uncovered other possible reasons—
But for now, she wasn't entirely sure yet...
---
Diancie:Why do I feel strangely uncomfortable after giving her my blessing...?