I'm the Owner of the Pokémon Day Care In the World of Pokémon-Chapter 1382: Diancie

After leaving the Allearth Forest, Yuga traveled for several more days aboard the ghost ship before finally spotting the first human town.

Come to think of it, it had been nearly a month since he last saw another human. He had been on the road continuously for days and then spent more than half a month busy in the desolate Allearth Forest.

If it weren't for the Pokémon accompanying him, he would've gone crazy.

Thinking of this, Yuga pointed to the town ahead and said to Dusknoir, "I'm going down to restock supplies. Wait for me in the forest over there."

"Dusknoir~"

After hearing Dusknoir's reply, Yuga released Dragonite, mounted it, and flew toward the town below.

As he gradually got closer, Yuga noticed that the town was bustling with activity, as if some event was taking place.

After having Dragonite land in a less crowded area, he casually asked around and found out that the town was holding its annual Harvest Festival.

This was a common and significant event in the Pokémon world. Many agriculture-centered towns hosted such festivals every year—sometimes called Harvest Festivals, sometimes Thanksgiving Festivals. They were usually held in autumn, and the activities were mostly the same. Even Verdanturf Town held one every year.

Due to the Harvest Festival, the town had organized a variety of celebratory activities, making it lively and festive. Vendors lined the streets, calling out to sell their goods.

In addition to that, the town had organized a special event specifically for Trainers.

Trainers in town could go to the registration point to receive a badge. After the event started, whenever Trainers encountered each other in the streets or alleys, if they saw the badge on the other person, they would engage in a battle.

The winning Trainer could take the loser's badge, and by the end of the event, the Trainers with the highest number of badges would receive special gifts prepared by the town officials.

Since this event was quite interesting, it attracted many visiting Trainers to participate, which explained the town's bustling atmosphere over the past few days.

Watching battles break out in the streets and alleys, Yuga found it amusing and occasionally paused to watch for a while.

However, he had no intention of participating. First, he didn't have high expectations for the prizes; second, he didn't want to bully newbies.

As he observed along the way, Yuga noticed that most of the participating Trainers were of average skill, with some being amateurs. Many people were simply there to have fun, and winning prizes wasn't their main concern.

Perhaps because he had spent so much time in the wild, Yuga found it refreshing to stroll casually through the crowds. Along the way, he even bought some local specialty products to bring back as gifts for his aunt and the others.

In the end, he accidentally bought too much, and his space backpack couldn't hold everything. Since it wouldn't be appropriate to transfer items into the system's storage in the middle of the street, he had no choice but to release Breloom to help carry some of the items.

As a Fighting-type Pokémon, Breloom was strong and didn't mind carrying things. In fact, it was delighted to be out and about, enjoying the chance to stroll through the bustling town.

With the help of Breloom, Yuga began to shop recklessly again, as if trying to vent all the frustration he had accumulated during his time in the Allearth Forest.

"Gym Leaeder Shimizu?"

At that moment, he suddenly heard someone calling him. Turning around, he saw a blonde girl looking at him in surprise.

"You are... Astrid?"

"It's really you! I didn't expect you to still remember me!" Astrid said excitedly. Being remembered by someone of Yuga's status was an honor.

The reason Yuga still had some impression of this girl wasn't just because she had challenged the Verdanturf Gym, but also because she had an Absol capable of Mega Evolution.

"Ah... haha... Of course I remember. How could I forget?" Yuga replied evasively. He did remember her, but not very clearly.

"Gym Leaeder Shimizu, what are you doing here? Are you here to participate in the event as well?" Astrid asked.

"Ah, no... I'm just... here for sightseeing," Yuga casually made up an excuse.

"I see."

As they continued chatting, Astrid suddenly mentioned Ash.

"You're saying Ash is here too?" Yuga asked in surprise.

"Yes, he even participated in the event yesterday! He should still be in town now."

In fact, the event had been going on for several days. Ash had left the town for two days midway through but came back afterward.

Ash was quite famous now, so Astrid wasn't surprised that Yuga knew him.

"Do you know where he is now?" Yuga asked eagerly.

"I'm not too sure about that. I think I saw them near the town's clock tower this morning," Astrid said, pointing to the prominent clock tower on the south side of the town.

"Got it. Thanks for telling me. I have something to discuss with Ash, so let's catch up next time." After bidding farewell to Astrid, Yuga headed toward the clock tower.

The clock tower was a landmark of the town, so it wasn't difficult for Yuga to find it. However, before heading there, he found a secluded spot and, when no one was looking, stored all his purchases into the system space.

Yuga searched around the clock tower but couldn't find Ash and his friends. Instead, he stumbled upon a woman dressed in a magician's outfit and a man in a ninja costume fighting over Diancie.

According to legend, Diancie could create diamonds. Now that it had left the Diamond Domain, it naturally attracted the attention of many criminals.

Chased by the man and woman, Diancie fled in panic, only to be ensnared by the ninja man's Greninja's tongue.

At that moment, the female magician's Delphox used Mystical Fire to force Greninja to retreat. The magician then rushed forward and grabbed Diancie, trying to take it away.

"Let me go! Where are you taking me? You're a bad person!" Diancie struggled in frustration. "I have something very important to do. I can't go with you!"

Yuga finally decided to intervene. At his command, Breloom fired a barrage of vibrant green Seed Bombs, forcing the magician to release her grip on Diancie.

"Who's there?"

The appearance of a third party irritated the magician. The ninja man also looked around cautiously, while Diancie seized the opportunity to run to the side.

Yuga walked out confidently and said, "The two of you bullying someone like this doesn't seem very decent."

"What's it to you!" The female magician, seeing that the newcomer was just a young lad, didn't take him seriously at all. "If you know what's good for you, get lost. This isn't something you should meddle in!"

To be honest, Yuga's fair and youthful face was quite deceiving. At first glance, no one would guess he was already twenty-six years old—they'd simply assume he was a teenager.

Well... maybe a teenager who was a bit too tall and a bit too brawny.

"And what if I insist on meddling? What are you going to do about it?" Yuga replied nonchalantly.

The male ninja, however, stared at Yuga's face for a moment, as if something had clicked in his mind.

Just as the female magician was about to lash out in anger, the male ninja suddenly shouted, "You fool! Get out of here, now! This guy's a Champion level Trainer!"

After saying that, the male ninja tried to make a run for it. Clearly, he'd recognized Yuga's identity. Despite competing with the female magician over Diancie, he couldn't help but warn her.

The female magician's face changed dramatically upon hearing this. She'd known the male ninja long enough to be certain he wouldn't lie about something like this.

Money was important, sure—but their lives were more so. The two of them immediately turned around to flee, but how could Yuga possibly give them the chance?

With a flash of light, Octillery burst out from its Poké Ball. Its flexible tentacles lashed out with a sharp whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, ensnaring the male ninja, the female magician, and their Greninja and Delphox—all without letting a single one escape.

Dangling in midair, the two of them screamed in terror.

A giant, fierce-looking Octillery really was quite terrifying.

After securing the pair, Yuga waved to Diancie, who was still frozen in place. "Come here, it's all fine now."

But Diancie didn't move. Instead, it eyed Yuga warily and asked, "Are you a bad person too? Did you catch me because you want me to make diamonds for you?"

After days of being relentlessly hunted, the once-naïve Diancie had finally figured out why these bad people wanted to catch it.

"Uh... I'm not a bad person," Yuga replied, looking completely innocent. "And I don't want to catch you to make diamonds."

Diancie still didn't believe him. "Even if you catch me, it's useless. The diamonds I make will disappear after a short time." Diancie was convinced Yuga was a bad guy and tried to persuade him to let it go.

"Diancie, are you okay?!!"

Just then, a voice echoed from the sky. Ash swooped down, clutching Talonflame's feet.

"Ash!" Diancie cried out in delight.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Ash said with a worried look as he landed. Earlier, he'd been held up by Team Rocket, giving the magician and ninja the chance to pounce on Diancie.

After confirming that Diancie was unharmed, Ash finally noticed the giant Octillery nearby—and the ninja and magician dangling from its tentacles.

Seeing the two of them made Ash furious. They'd been chasing Diancie for days. But where had this Octillery come from?

"Ash!"

Just as Ash was puzzling over it, Yuga's voice rang out. Because of Octillery's massive size, Ash hadn't seen Yuga standing behind it.

"Yuga!" Ash exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard from Astrid that you were here, so I came looking for you!" Yuga said with a smile. Then he turned to Diancie and added, "See? I told you I wasn't a bad person."

Diancie huffed proudly. "Well, since you're Ash's friend, I'll believe you. Because I'm Ash's friend too."

Yuga couldn't help but laugh and shake his head. Diancie's logic was truly something else. Ash couldn't exactly guarantee all his friends were good people, after all.

"Yuga, is this Octillery yours? Were you the one who saved Diancie?" Ash asked excitedly.

"That's right, it was just a coincidence."

As the two talked, Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena also returned. When the Clemont siblings saw Yuga, they were filled with surprise and joy, catching up with him warmly.

Only then did Yuga learn that Ash and his friends had already heard from Shauna that he had arrived in the Kalos region. Meeting so soon truly felt like fate.

While chatting, Yuga suddenly noticed something unusual. Pointing in a certain direction, he abruptly said to Octillery, "Octillery, Water Cannon!"

Without hesitation, Octillery shot a massive column of water into the sky. With a loud boom, an aircraft slowly revealed itself in midair, and beside it stood a short-haired girl on top of an Aegislash.

It was precisely because of this Aegislash that Yuga sensed something was wrong.

"Miss Millis!" Upon seeing the short-haired girl's face clearly, Serena exclaimed in surprise.

The aircraft only appeared briefly before quickly vanishing again, taking the short-haired girl with it.

After confirming that both the aircraft and the girl had left, Yuga turned to Ash and the others and asked, "Do you know that person just now?"

Serena nodded and said, "Yes, her name is Millis. When Diancie was captured by Merilyn and Riot before, she helped us."

Merilyn was the name of the female mage, and Riot was the male ninja. Both were notorious thieves in the Kalos region, having been after Diancie for several days.

"That Millis probably doesn't have good intentions either. Her target might be Diancie too. Just now, she was clearly spying on you," Yuga explained.

"How could that be?!" Ash and his friends exclaimed simultaneously. They had thought Miss Millis was a good person.

"You're still too young!" Yuga said helplessly. "You need to be more cautious when dealing with people, or you might get tricked without even realizing it."

After Ash and his friends explained everything, Yuga learned that they had met Diancie several days ago.

Upon learning that Diancie was searching for Xerneas, Ash and his friends decided to help Diancie to ensure its safety.

However, when they went to the Allearth Forest, they couldn't find Xerneas at all and had to return.

"Dace clearly said he'd seen Xerneas near the Allearth Forest before, but no matter how hard we searched there, we just couldn't find it," Diancie said dejectedly.

Dace ain was an elder of the Diamond Domain, a survivor of the great destruction in the Allearth Forest, and had witnessed the battle between Xerneas and Yveltal.

Hearing Diancie's words, Yuga paused for a moment. Xerneas had indeed been near the Allearth Forest before, but it had already left. Clearly, Ash and the others had just missed it.

"Actually... I've seen Xerneas near the Allearth Forest," Yuga said hesitantly.

"Really?" Everyone looked at Yuga with faces full of joy.

"But it has already left there," Yuga said helplessly.

"Ah~" The group immediately looked disappointed again.

"Ahem..." Yuga cleared his throat and said, "I think the reason that Millis hasn't made a move on Diancie yet is probably that she knows Diancie can't independently create diamonds. That's why she's been secretly following you, planning to act after you find Xerneas and Diancie learns Fairy Aura, enabling it to create diamonds on its own."

"So that's it!" Everyone suddenly understood, feeling both enlightened and furious.

"But what's the point of her following me? If we can't find Xerneas, I won't be able to learn Fairy Aura, and I won't be able to create the Sacred Diamond," Diancie said, growing even more upset.

Without the Sacred Diamond, the Diamond Domain would disappear.

"Actually, there is a way for you to learn Fairy Aura," Yuga suddenly said.

Upon hearing this, Diancie immediately looked at Yuga with delight, feeling as though its emotions were on a rollercoaster, rising and falling rapidly.