(Bonus chapter for the holidays. Enjoy!)
Blackwater Kingdom, a country next to Draconia.
As champion of the Blackwater Kingdom, Marcus Storm was the first to feel the violent shock waves.
He quickly told his country to prepare for earthquake dangers, sent out rescue teams, then climbed on his Aerodactyl and rushed toward where the shaking was coming from.
Such regular and strong vibrations, if someone wasn't causing trouble on purpose, then it had to be a legendary Pokemon or some rare event.
Full of excitement, Marcus arrived at the scene.
He saw a battle between a giant Tyranitar and a Pokemon with a pink diamond on its head.
Even though he couldn't recognize the diamond-headed Pokemon, anything that could fight such a massive Tyranitar was clearly very powerful.
'It has to be a legendary Pokemon!'
"It's so strong. This isn't a battle I can join!" Marcus wanted to catch both Pokemon, but he wasn't strong enough, so he could only hide far away.
He planned to act after they had tired each other out.
Then he'd catch both powerful Pokemon and surely do better in the World Pokemon Tournament.
Until he saw an even larger Tyranitar coming down from the sky.
"Which sneaky person dares to steal my targets!" Marcus opened his eyes wide, looking for Mega Tyranitar's trainer.
Soon, a giant black figure and a handsome young man appeared before him.
"Oh my god! a Shadow Lugia..." Marcus quickly remembered a name that had caused heated global discussions recently.
"Draconia's Champion! John"
The moment that name and title entered his mind, Marcus quickly released his ace Aerodactyl, triggered Mega Evolution the instant it came out, and flew toward his country without looking back.
Only after making sure John hadn't chased him did Marcus feel relieved, but he quickly realized something.
"Wait, why should I run? I'm not a wanted criminal, and I'm not in Draconia territory."
Being afraid of getting involved in the Tyranitar-Diancie battle, Marcus had stayed far away, never crossing into Draconia borders.
"That's right, why should I run? What am I scared of?" Marcus turned back again.
But he only dared fly over the border and watch from far away.
He hadn't entered Draconia territory. If John attacked him, John would be wrong!
Marcus quietly encouraged himself.
"What a shame, why is John at the border? That Tyranitar and unknown legendary Pokemon can only end up in his hands." Watching the massive Tyranitar about to start fighting, Marcus sighed sadly. The trainer world was so harsh, only the strong deserved everything.
But... taking photos, recording videos, and selling this information to the other eight masters to earn money wouldn't be too much, right?
As a top figure in the trainer world, John's news was extremely valuable!
With this thought, Marcus returned to his country's border and used a high-quality camera to film the entire Tyranitar battle from high up.
Watching the footage, he whispered "amazing."
John did notice the spy, but seeing he hadn't crossed into Draconia territory, he ignored him.
Leaving with Diancie, they headed north.
After flying about a hundred kilometers, they entered rolling mountains. In a hidden corner of the range, they found a cave leading underground.
"It's really well hidden," John said with amazement. Without Gardevoir's scan or Diancie's guidance, he'd never have found this place.
"Because we Carbink are too weak. If we weren't hidden, we might become food for other Pokemon," Diancie answered while leading the way.
"Even with you here, are they still in danger?" John was curious, were all Pokemon bothering the Carbink clan as strong as the Tyranitar King?
'Were there also Aggron and Steelix Kings?'
"They can't stay with me all the time. Once they leave my protection, they become targets," Diancie said sadly.
For Pokemon like Tyranitar, Steelix, and Aggron, Carbink with diamonds in their bodies were great food supplements. Even with her protection, Carbink disappeared from time to time.
John nodded quietly.
Gardevoir lit up a bright orb with Flash, and they were already about a hundred meters underground.
Tyranitar immediately jumped from its Pokeball. Even though the cave couldn't fit its huge body and it had to lie inside like a caterpillar, it still came out.
"TYRA~~ (I don't know why)" Tyranitar argued loudly, but John recalled it without mercy.
"You just ate such a huge piece of Crystal Diamond Core. If you eat more, you'll get a stomachache," John refused.
Diancie nodded and continued downward with John and Gardevoir.
Just over ten seconds later, Gardevoir suddenly gave a warning.
With diamond veins appearing, Carbink began showing up one by one.
Carbink looked like rock spikes with rings of white fluff around their middles, blue eyes, and diamond-shaped ears on their heads. They looked like rabbits buried in the ground with half their heads showing.
Under the light, dots of brightness appeared on the walls around them, mirrors reflecting the light orb's glow.
As the diamond mine where Carbink and Diancie lived, these raw diamonds already had shiny surfaces without polishing.
The scared Carbink thought enemies were coming and ran around in panic.
It was quite cute watching them hop up and down in mid-air.
"It doesn't matter. These Crystal Diamond Cores are useless to us. Please enjoy them freely," Diancie quickly calmed her people, speaking generously.
This should be the small pieces of Crystal Diamond Core that Diancie had mentioned.
Deep in the cave lay an extremely powerful energy source.
Diancie led John further downward. After another hundred meters, the diamond veins on the rock walls around them began glowing brightly, and their colors grew more vivid.