The paper contained information about Xerneas and Yveltal that he'd asked Dianna to investigate.
As the queen of the Underground Kingdom, she could mobilize the entire Carbink race to search for any trace of these two Pokémon.
Carbink were highly adaptable Pokémon, able to tunnel everywhere with ease, whether above ground or below, allowing for thorough searches.
In a sense, not even the Pokémon League's intelligence network could match theirs.
Yet even under such circumstances, after several days of meticulous searching, they hadn't found a single clue about Xerneas.
Yveltal was a different matter—the giant bird was still fast asleep in the same forest.
But for Elias, Yveltal was far less critical right now than Xerneas.
What he truly wanted was to locate that deer with magnificent antlers.
Gently pushing the paper aside, Elias sighed softly.
It really wouldn't be that easy.
But it wasn't entirely surprising.
Judging from the traces left in the forest, Yveltal had likely won the battle, albeit narrowly.
The injured Xerneas would surely find somewhere secluded to undergo a prolonged rest.
For a legendary Pokémon capable of controlling life force, it was perfectly normal to hide its tracks carefully.
Moreover, he'd heard it turned into a tree during its sleep.
Given all these factors, it wasn't surprising the Carbink couldn't find any trace.
After a bit of thought, Elias calmed himself down.
Five years was plenty of time to conduct an exhaustive search for Xerneas.
And if that didn't work out…
Elias narrowed his eyes slightly; he still had a backup plan in mind.
---
[The next day, you temporarily set aside your Xerneas research.]
[The reason was simple: today was the day you'd agreed to meet with Lysandre again, so you needed to head to the library.]
[Naturally, you woke Braixen and Diancie up early as well.]
---
Having just gotten up, neither Diancie nor Braixen seemed particularly happy.
Both Pokémon loved sleeping in and clearly didn't appreciate an early wake-up call.
"Elias is such a dummy..." Diancie murmured quietly, cheeks puffed out in annoyance.
But the moment Elias glanced her way, she quickly turned aside, feigning innocence.
Seeing this, Elias shook his head helplessly.
No matter how quietly Diancie spoke, he could easily hear it through Telekinesis. She was simply fooling herself.
"I'm coming along too~"
As Elias was busy prepping breakfast ingredients, a lazy voice suddenly sounded next to his ear.
Along with it came a warm breath tickling against his earlobe, humid enough to make him shiver slightly.
Turning his head, Elias was surprised to see Cogita, who had somehow woken up unnoticed.
Seeing her there, Elias felt genuinely startled.
Cogita typically never got up this early.
And if he'd heard correctly, she'd just said she wanted to come along?!
Elias shifted his gaze toward Cogita, noticing that although she maintained her usual indifferent expression, she didn't seem to be joking at all.
In other words… Cogita was serious.
"What would you even do there?" Elias asked in confusion.
It wasn't that he minded her coming along...
He was just genuinely curious why Cogita, who usually preferred staying indoors, would suddenly want to tag along.
Besides, he wasn't exactly bringing Diancie and Braixen out to play.
At that thought, Elias's eyes brightened slightly.
It was rare for Cogita to go outside. If she was willing…
"After we finish our business, we could check out some of Shalour City's attractions," he proposed. "I've heard there's a pretty good night market."
He strongly approved of Cogita getting some fresh air; staying indoors all day wasn't good for anyone.
Hearing Elias's words, Cogita's lips curled slightly upward, dissipating the faint sleepiness that came with her early awakening.
However, her intention wasn't actually to go sightseeing.
"You're meeting that person from the forest today, right?"
Cogita stared into Elias's eyes as she spoke.
He'd previously mentioned Lysandre to her.
Hearing the question, Elias instinctively nodded, even more confused by Cogita's purpose now.
Seeing him confirm it, Cogita leisurely fiddled with the tea leaves in her hands, speaking unhurriedly:
"So, I'll be coming along."
"I'm worried...worried you might get tricked."
She revealed her purpose calmly.
Now Elias wasn't quite sure whether she was actually serious.
Afraid he might get tricked… it sounded odd.
He wasn't naive or clueless like Diancie, after all.
Elias believed he could judge clearly whether Lysandre was trustworthy or not.
He opened his mouth slightly, about to say something—
But after catching Cogita's faint glance, Elias swallowed back his words.
She was only worried about him, after all. There was no real issue with her tagging along…
Even though her reason seemed flimsy, Elias decided to interpret it as Cogita wanting to go out but feeling embarrassed to admit it.
"Alright, we'll go together today then," Elias agreed with a smile.
Cogita didn't respond further, but her expression brightened noticeably.
As she brewed her tea, she quietly reflected on her earlier words.
Indeed, it sounded like a clumsy excuse.
But…
With the Giratina incident as a lesson, Cogita certainly wouldn't allow something similar to happen again.
Though Elias technically hadn't been tricked by Giratina either, caution was never misplaced.
Thinking this way, Cogita's beautiful lips curled even more, her mood brightening considerably.
She greatly enjoyed this feeling of protectively looking after Elias from above.
---
[After breakfast, and once Tornadus finished tidying up the dishes, your group prepared to leave for Shalour City.]
[Strictly speaking, this was your first time traveling together as a full group.]
[Perhaps because you were going out, Cogita even applied a subtle bit of makeup.]
[Though understated, it added an alluring charm to her already beautiful face, and her rosy lips seemed particularly captivating.]
[Having been to Shalour City multiple times already, the journey was naturally familiar and smooth.]
[Soon enough, you arrived at the outskirts of the city.]
---
Walking just behind Elias, Cogita was in an exceptionally good mood.
She had clearly noticed that Elias seemed very interested in her makeup today.
The time she'd secretly spent learning makeup techniques hadn't gone to waste.
After just a bit more walking, Elias reached the library at the city center.
Compared to his last visit, the library had even added a café area.
As soon as Elias entered, he immediately spotted the iconic red lion-like hair.
The corner of his lips twitched slightly as he prepared to step forward and greet Lysandre.
But at that very moment—
"Please move aside!"
An anxious voice suddenly cried out next to Elias.
Turning his head, he saw a girl on roller skates, carrying a cup of steaming coffee.
The girl's face was filled with panic. Clearly, she'd lost control and couldn't stop.
---
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