Even after the topic about Lysandre passed, Cogita's hand, holding her spoon, still trembled slightly.
Her mind was completely occupied by what had just happened.
She'd forced herself to appear composed, yet the agitation in her heart wouldn't calm so easily.
She had to admit—when Elias reached out to her, she'd felt nervous.
She'd even subconsciously wanted to close her eyes.
Such a reaction was completely out of character for her usual self!
"Haa..."
She gently sipped the thick soup from her spoon, tasting a sweetness as smooth as honey.
Rich, but not overly sweet.
She decided she'd ask Elias to bring her here again in the future.
When Cogita finally raised her head, Diancie and Braixen were glaring at her fiercely.
Both Pokémon bared their teeth slightly, looking as though they wanted nothing more than to bite her.
Cogita, of course, knew exactly what they were thinking.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, and an intentionally mischievous smile curled up the corners of her lips.
Then, slowly raising a white-gloved finger, she lightly traced it over her own cheek, as if savoring the lingering sensation.
In the eyes of Diancie and Braixen, this gesture was nothing short of a provocation.
"I raised Elias!" Diancie declared loudly, slapping her small hand against the table.
Beside her, Braixen silently observed. Unable to speak human language, she knew she wouldn't be understood. Right now, Diancie was on the same side as her.
But after glancing briefly at her own fluffy tail, Braixen quietly rolled her eyes and began thinking.
"You raised him?" Cogita asked calmly, leisurely stirring her soup with a slow circular motion.
"Of course!" Diancie proudly puffed out her chest.
Cogita instinctively glanced at Diancie, then immediately withdrew her gaze dismissively.
So small…
She couldn't help but pity Diancie; she suspected even Lucario might be bigger.
"What kind of look is that?" Diancie frowned, inexplicably feeling uncomfortable.
"How many years have you raised Elias for?" Cogita asked again, ignoring Diancie's question. As she spoke, the playful smirk on her lips widened slightly.
On this point, Cogita was absolutely confident that no one could match her.
No one!
Seeing Diancie seriously counting her fingers, Cogita scoffed lightly and said:
"No need to count—I've lived with Elias for a full one hundred and seven years."
"Can you beat that?"
Cogita combined the time they'd spent together in Kalos with their time in Hisui, adding up to over a century.
When she announced this number, Diancie wasn't the only one shocked—even Braixen stared at Cogita in astonishment.
Elias himself had already known he'd shared a past with Cogita but hadn't expected it to be so long.
Realizing Cogita wasn't lying, Diancie lowered her head, carefully counting again on her fingers.
"Uu..."
She quickly became discouraged upon realizing her fingers weren't enough.
"S-so what if you've known him longer? Elias definitely likes me better!" Diancie grumbled stubbornly.
"Just your own delusions," Cogita bluntly retorted.
She had no intention of forcing Elias to answer—doing so would only make things difficult for him.
As for Diancie…
Cogita had no reason to fear such a silly Pokémon.
As Diancie continued arguing with Cogita, Braixen quietly moved, her restless tail twitching impatiently.
Her tail was fluffy, soft, and looked very tempting to touch.
Seeing nobody was paying attention to her, Braixen carefully extended herself under the table.
Meanwhile, Elias was racking his brain for a way to stop Cogita and Diancie's ongoing dispute.
Suddenly, he felt something soft brushing against his leg.
Glancing downward, he saw a fluffy, reddish-tipped yellow tail gently swaying between his legs.
It was Braixen.
When Elias glanced across the table, Braixen quickly turned her head away, pretending nothing was happening.
Elias: ...
If Diancie or Cogita found out, Braixen might never make it home today.
...
[The argument finally ended when Braixen's tail accidentally brushed against Cogita's leg.]
[Unsurprisingly, Braixen was severely scolded afterward.]
[Other than that incident, the trip back remained peaceful.]
[However, shortly after entering the forest around Shalour City, you noticed something had changed.]
...
"Yveltal is gone," Elias murmured, frowning slightly at Cogita.
"Should I call Enamorus over?" Cogita asked after a brief pause.
Although Enamorus wasn't particularly powerful, he was still more reliable than Diancie or Braixen at the moment.
After thinking briefly, Elias shook his head.
"No need—it's probably long gone by now."
Previously, Yveltal had only been resting here temporarily to recover from injuries.
Leaving once healed was entirely normal.
But…
Elias couldn't help but feel uneasy—Yveltal seemed unusually hostile towards him.
In their two previous encounters, it had charged straight at him before they'd even properly met.
Moreover, during their second encounter, despite Diantha standing beside him, Yveltal had targeted him directly, completely ignoring her.
This made Elias wonder if he'd somehow provoked the legendary Pokémon.
Listening to his thoughts, Diancie and Braixen nodded in agreement.
They'd also witnessed that strange hostility.
Braixen vividly remembered hiding nearby as Yveltal had flown past her, directly targeting Elias.
Walking along quietly, Cogita furrowed her brows. Unlike with Dialga or the others, she wasn't familiar with Yveltal and couldn't guess what it might be thinking.
"Elias…" Diancie suddenly spoke up, "Do you think it might be related to your Life Energy?"
"I feel like the energy you give off is very similar to the aura left behind by Xerneas…" she explained quietly.
Elias paused to think, quickly realizing it made perfect sense.
When he'd first encountered Xerneas's lingering energy, he'd sensed a clear familiarity—it matched exactly the power he'd used when healing Dianna.
Viewed from that angle, Yveltal's hostility might indeed be due to this.
After all, Xerneas and Yveltal were eternal enemies.
Realizing this, Elias's heart sank slightly.
No one would feel good knowing a legendary Pokémon had marked them.
Even worse…
Now that Yveltal had been wounded by Xerneas, the first thing it'd likely do upon recovering was seek revenge.
And if it couldn't find its real enemy, Elias, carrying a similar aura, might become the next best target...
---
T/N: UMM GUYS ITS NOT TORNADUS!!! I ONLY REALIZED AFTER TRANSLATING TORNADUS FOR URBAN POKEMON!!!!! ITS Enamorus ENAMORUS!!!!
眷恋云 = enamorus
龙卷云 = tornadus
LOOOOOOOOOOOK I WASN'T PAYING ATTENTION!!!!!!!!!! I WAS ONLYU LOOKING AT THE END :SOB: OUGHHH