Thinking of this, Elias felt a fresh headache coming on.
From what he knew, if Yveltal couldn't locate Xerneas, it was entirely possible it would redirect its vengeance onto him instead.
After all…
That Pokémon was naturally aggressive, embodying destruction and death.
"If only all legendary Pokémon were as gentle as Diancie," Elias murmured, gently rubbing Diancie's small head as they walked.
Hearing this, Diancie initially puffed up proudly, but then paused and scratched her head in confusion.
Did Elias… just compliment me? Probably?
Beside them, Cogita rested a pale hand under her chin, sinking deep into thought.
Previously, Elias only had the Power of Viridian; the Life Energy he had now only appeared after he became a ghost.
Maybe… that very energy was the reason he'd survived as a Ghost Form in the first place.
If that's true, reducing his Life Energy to avoid Yveltal wouldn't be an option. We'll just have to prepare in advance.
Cogita's usual carefree expression was replaced with a rare seriousness. She was terrified that something like the Giratina incident would repeat itself.
Yveltal might not be as powerful as Giratina, but it was certainly more temperamental.
Not to mention…
Diancie's current strength couldn't compare at all to Zoroark's back then.
Cogita found herself strangely missing that troublesome fox—despite how annoying he was, at least he'd been reliably strong. If he were here, perhaps he wouldn't have feared Yveltal at all.
And as for Diancie…
In Cogita's opinion, Elias spoiled her far too much. The way she was pampered made her seem less like a Pokémon and more like a princess raised in luxury.
Even though she actually was a princess.
"Useless."
With that thought, Cogita cast a sideways glance at Diancie and muttered softly under her breath.
Diancie: ?
Why was I just insulted?
...
[After thinking for a while, you couldn't come up with a definitive way to counter Yveltal, settling instead on one or two backup plans.]
[Besides, if Lysandre's plans progressed smoothly, conflict with Yveltal was inevitable anyway.]
[Thus, you weren't particularly worried.]
[On the other hand, Braixen quietly took note of your concerns during the walk home.]
...
By the time you returned to Cogita's cottage, the sky had darkened slightly, signaling evening.
While Cogita went to tidy up and Diancie ran off to another room, Braixen carefully tiptoed toward Elias.
"You'll get scolded again if you're not careful," Elias warned gently, pausing as he wiped down the courtyard table.
Braixen's fluffy cheeks flushed deeply at his reminder, clearly remembering what happened earlier.
"Fwoo!" she barked softly at Elias, quickly stating her intentions.
Thanks to the Power of Viridian, Elias easily understood.
"You want to train every day starting tomorrow?" Elias asked in surprise, staring at Braixen.
When Braixen nodded firmly, he realized she wasn't joking.
In truth, he'd never been strict about the Pokémon's training routines, so Braixen voluntarily bringing it up came as a genuine surprise.
"Fwoo!" Seeing Elias's startled expression, Braixen's tail proudly flicked upward. She'd already made up her mind on the way home—she'd grow stronger as quickly as possible.
Only then could she always remain at his side.
Compared to a clueless princess like Diancie, Braixen was sure her method was far more practical.
Seeing Braixen's determination, Elias nodded readily.
He wasn't sure how long she'd keep it up, but since she was motivated, he certainly wouldn't object.
...
[For quite a while afterward, you stopped traveling around randomly.]
[Aside from visiting the Underground Kingdom once a week, your days passed in peaceful routine: training Braixen, teaching Diancie, and caring for Cogita.]
[As technology rapidly advanced, Cogita somehow obtained a gaming console, and she began pestering you to play it with her every night.]
...
"Cogita, it's time for bed," Elias said, eyes glued to the game as he worked the controller.
But clearly… Cogita had developed immunity to his bedtime warnings, her attention still fully absorbed by the tiny characters on the screen.
Elias sighed softly.
Cogita used to enjoy sleep and had always gone to bed early. Recently, though, her bedtime kept getting pushed later and later.
Until she found some new nighttime activity, she likely wouldn't return to her previous schedule.
Still, the gaming console Cogita had found was indeed pretty entertaining.
Unfortunately, Braixen's paws couldn't handle the controls properly, and Diancie's hands were far too tiny. Whenever she tried, she inevitably got bullied mercilessly by Cogita.
Beside him, noticing Elias had stopped nagging her, Cogita smiled faintly to herself.
She was thoroughly satisfied with their current life. Even though two Pokémon constantly wandered around the house, she didn't really mind—as long as Elias was there, she felt perfectly content.
And now that he'd become a Ghost Form, his lifespan had significantly increased, removing her worry that their time together might abruptly end, as had nearly happened in Hisui.
Everything was finally turning out for the better.
As though struck by sudden inspiration, Cogita glanced at Diancie sitting beside Elias. Leaning forward slightly, she whispered teasingly:
"Diancie, aren't you curious about what Elias's body felt like when it was warm?"
Her eyes sparkled mischievously.
She wanted to tease Diancie a little. After all, Cogita was the only one here who'd experienced Elias's warmth when he was still human—a fact Elias himself seemed to have forgotten.
Diancie, who had been about to push Cogita away, suddenly froze in place.
She knew Cogita and Elias had known each other before, but…
Had she really touched Elias when he was warm?
Diancie stared suspiciously at Cogita.
For her, this was a long-standing curiosity. Unfortunately, Elias's ghostly body would always remain icy cold—even intense heat couldn't change that. Thus, Diancie could only ever rely on her imagination.
"Wh-what was it like?" Diancie finally asked, swallowing nervously and leaning closer.
As she asked, she felt a small pang of guilt.