Miare City, Pokémon Café.

The twilight was dim, and the shop was enveloped in a heavy atmosphere.

Alcremie clumsily carried a tray, carefully placing two cups of coffee on either side, then hugged the tray to its chest, looking pitifully at Lu Ye.

"It's very good." Lu Ye took a small sip of coffee and smiled slightly. "Much better than before."

Alcremie breathed a sigh of relief, still clutching the tray as it turned around and slowly shuffled toward the kitchen, giggling happily: "Emmai~"

"The head chef here?" Steven picked up his coffee.

"Just a pastry chef for now, but I plan to train it as head chef."

Lu Ye set down his coffee, clasped his hands together, and continued their previous topic: "Let's head to 'Orus Forest' first thing tomorrow morning, Steven."

Steven nodded gently. "I also need to return to Devon Corporation first to make thorough preparations."

As night fell, the two agreed to meet the next morning.

Lu Ye crossed the courtyard, returned to the back room, and began packing his luggage.

Ms. Olympia's precognitive dream had clearly mentioned the 'Death God' Yveltal.

The "Rainbow Wing" containing life energy could effectively counter the oppressive aura within Yveltal's "Dark Aura."

Meanwhile, the "DNA Splicers" representing draconic fluctuations would be affected by Xerneas's "Fairy Aura."

Therefore, Teacher Lu would only bring the former this time, leaving the latter at home to continue serving as decoration.

Rainbow Wing: (*^▽^*)

DNA Splicers: o(╥﹏╥)o

"Fingerless gloves, Z-Ring, Repel Spray, Full Recovery Potion, journal..."

Lu Ye checked his backpack, glanced up at the wardrobe, and started packing shirts as well when he suddenly froze.

He felt the nervousness and anticipation of preparing for an adventure, packing luggage ahead of time...

In the mirror, a grinning Haunter suddenly appeared behind Lu Ye's empty shoulder: "Gengarrr!"

Lu Ye smiled faintly, looking down as he zipped up his backpack. "You'll carry the luggage tomorrow, Haunter."

"Gengarrr~" Haunter patted its chest with a 'leave it to me' expression.

Blastoise hid in the water tank, limbs retracted into its shell, radiating an aura of 'it's over, we're not coming back this time...'

"Ga!" Sirfetch'd cheerfully lifted its big leek and shield.

No need to train at home, and other big shots would handle the boss fight.

This duck really loves missions~!

"Nimi~" Victini made a V-sign at the mirror, baring its little fangs.

I can already see it—the Victory Star is shining brightly!

"Now the question is..."

Lu Ye paused while slotting Poké Balls into his "trainer belt" and muttered:

"How should I ensure I meet Diancie?"

In the original storyline, most events were triggered because of the 'bonded person' Ash.

If we act ahead of schedule and bypass Ash, we might also miss Princess Diancie...

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow.

But it's fine.

We still have the true protagonists who trigger the plot!

"Hey, Musashi, James, Meowth."

Lu Ye first topped up their disconnected phone number, wondering 'why are these three broke again?' before putting on a stern face:

"You have a new mission!"

...

Kalos region, Bineck Town.

A scenic town famous for its freshwater lake.

An arena stood at the town center, with fountain square, clock tower, and spire buildings fully displaying Kalos charm.

The Trio trudged heavily through an alley, heads hanging low.

"I'm so hungry..." James slumped his shoulders.

"Our plan to dig up Mega Stones using the Meowth robot went down the drain along with our funding, meow..."

"Private excavation of ruins isn't allowed? What kind of rule is that! We're Team Rocket!" Musashi shouted.

Even after being promoted to executives after their Unova mission, allowing direct communication with Boss Giovanni, the Trio still struggled to make ends meet.

The last Team Rocket executive who fared this poorly, even losing to newcomers, was named Marshal...

"I saw in the news that there's a battle competition in Bineck Town today, meow." Meowth said. "This is our last chance to get funding, meow."

Musashi and James sighed: "I guess that's our only option..."

Starving, Meowth skillfully rummaged through a trash can, then trembled with excitement:

"It's canned fish, canned fish that hasn't expired, meow!"

"One bite each, no fighting for more." Musashi said through gritted teeth.

James: "Wobbuffet doesn't need to eat, it's kind of chubby anyway."

"So nans... o(╥﹏╥)o"

Beep beep beep.

Musashi: "Huh? I thought our phone was disconnected."

James: "It's a call from the executive!"

Meowth answered the call, and a virtual projection appeared. The three snapped to attention, full of energy:

"Executive, what are your orders!"

Lu Ye looked at the three pale and thin members, his mouth twitching:

"I've transferred part of the thirty percent I deducted from your funds to your account... Go get a hot meal first."

Teacher Lu realized he didn't feel like a superior at all, but more like a mother hen managing the Trio's pocket money!

"Executive..." The Trio's voices choked up.

"If you want to repay me, then show some spirit!"

Lu Ye said sternly: "I'm sending you a photo of a Pokémon. Your mission is to find it and protect its safety until we meet up, understood?"

The email opened, revealing an ancient drawing of Diancie that could easily be matched with the real one.

Lu Ye had no doubt about the Trio's tracking abilities... After all, no matter where the twerp went, they could always catch up immediately!

"Yes!" The Trio saluted.

After the call ended, Meowth looked at the increased balance in their account, drooling happily: "We can buy so many cans of fish, meow~"

"A mutated individual of Ralts?" James rubbed his chin. "Named Diancie... Seems like it can even create diamonds."

"Diamonds, diamonds!" Musashi's eyes lit up.

"Idiots, we definitely have to offer them to the executive, meow." Meowth rubbed its paws. "But, hehe... we can keep a few pieces for ourselves, meow."

Musashi and James: "Hehe~"

"Alright, we can go eat now~"

Meowth raised its paw, and the canned fish it was holding fell, rolling 'clatter clatter' toward the end of the alley.

"Meow's treasure!!" Meowth cried anxiously.

The rolling can stopped before a dirty, muddy leather boot.

The sunlight at the alley's end was blocked, casting a huge shadow over the Trio's faces.

The Trio looked up, their expressions changing.

It was a man wearing a cold-weather hat, dressed in rags and unkempt. He was excessively tall, nearly three meters, blocking the alley's sunlight. He carried a tattered backpack on his shoulder, with long white hair extending past his eyebrows down to his waist.

The man stared silently at the trembling Trio.

Gulp... The sound of swallowing was clearly audible.

After a long moment, the man bent his knees in his ragged jeans, picked up the canned fish at his feet, and turned to leave without a word.

Dead silence filled the alley, the inexplicable pressure seemingly gone.

"H-how can there be such a tall human?" James swallowed. "He must be three meters tall!"

"I thought I was going to be eaten, meow..." Meowth's face stiffened.

"Someone that big being a homeless person." Musashi clicked her tongue. "Alright, let's go to a restaurant and not bother with him!"

"Meow's canned fish...(இωஇ)"

...

On the town's streets, a boy carrying a Pikachu on his shoulder appeared at the end.

"There's a battle competition here today, Ash." Clemont said, looking at the tourist guide.

Before he finished speaking, Clemont looked up.

He saw Ash squeezing through the crowd, shouting: "Hello, I want to sign up!"

"Ash is still the same as always." Serena smiled.

"He becomes a different person whenever battle is involved." Clemont sighed.

The battle competition officially began at noon.

Ash battled a blonde-haired girl named Ayaka.

Unexpectedly, Ayaka used Mega Evolution with her partner Absol and successfully defeated Ash.

Following the chat group tradition, Clemont uploaded the battle recording to the group files for the senior members to review.

Green: "..."

After undergoing his special training, Green was genuinely surprised that Ash showed no improvement at all.

Lu Ye exclaimed in surprise: "Ash lost?!"

Serena: "Yes... he lost to a Mega Absol."

Lu Ye looked up at the sky.

Did I remember wrong?

Shouldn't Ash be defeating everyone in his path at the beginning of the movie... or is this not the movie version at all?

Lu Ye breathed a slight sigh of relief and was about to speak.

Darkrai's haunting voice drifted over: "Choose your words carefully."

Lu Ye: "..."

The sky was clear blue, with white clouds floating brilliantly in the sunlight.

Latias carried Lu Ye, its red wings parting two streams of air as it plunged into the clouds like diving into cotton before quickly emerging, giggling: 「Isn't this fun?」

Lu Ye coughed from the water vapor. "It would be more fun with Light Screen!"

On the other side, Steven stood atop his white Metagross, flames jetting from the ends of Metagross's four arms, the wind whipping at Steven's suit jacket.

"How much longer until we reach our destination, Teacher Lu?" Steven asked.

Lu Ye placed his hands on Latias's white neck, gazing ahead at the vast river and vibrant greenery.

A circular patch of land looked as if hit by a missile, exposing bare ground with short, bald trees that starkly contrasted with the surrounding lush forest.

"Ten minutes." Lu Ye replied. "Let's rest at a nearby town first, Steven!"

Steven nodded gently, directing his white Metagross to descend toward a town below.

Latias followed suit, and at the same time, Lu Ye's phone began vibrating.

A message from Team Rocket.

Lu Ye was slightly startled.

So soon? Did the Trio already find Princess Diancie?

...

Kalos, Bineck Town.

"So full..."

After a satisfying meal, the Trio sat resting on lounge chairs under a sun umbrella, patting their full stomachs.

"Wait, that's..."

Meowth's eyes widened as it pressed down on Musashi and James's shoulders. "The twerp is over there!"

On the other side of the street, Ash, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie were sitting together, chatting and laughing.

Musashi lowered her sunglasses, glanced over, and gasped in surprise: "It really is them!"

James whispered: "We have an important mission from the executive! We can't get too entangled with the twerp and his friends!"

"But, talking diamonds..." Musashi lay on the table, sighing mournfully. "In such a big world, where would we even find them?"

James and Meowth also sighed.

Just then.

A pink diamond Pokémon with a round pink diamond on its head, wearing a crown, and carrying itself elegantly came bouncing out of an alley.

It moved lightly, the diamond ruffles on both sides of its body gently shaking as it passed by the Trio with a smile.

Following behind it were three busy Ralts, constantly surveying the area and guarding against suspicious individuals.

Trio: (⊙ˍ⊙)

"You don't need to follow me, I can take care of myself." Diancie said with a smile.

"Princess, the outside world isn't as simple as the Mineral Kingdom! You might even encounter robbers and thieves!" Ralts said anxiously.

"Thieves? Robbers?" Diancie blinked. "What are those?"

"It's hard to explain quickly!"

"Okay~ I'll learn about them myself!" Diancie smiled with pursed lips.

Diancie continued bouncing along, walking right past the Trio while the three Ralts followed in a row behind her.

Trio watched them go: (°ー°〃)

"Pink diamonds?" The Trio said in unison. "And it talks!"

Mission accepted! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻

The Trio shot to their feet, employing their old skills as they began tailing Diancie's group.

The shop owner ran out, shouting: "Hey, you three customers, you haven't paid your bill yet!"

...

The tall, ragged man sat on a park bench, swallowing canned food whole.

Several Fletchling flew over, then quickly flew away from the man.

The man emitted an aura of decay and brokenness, so strong you could almost smell the pain.

Anyone wandering for a thousand years burdened by guilt and self-blame would live like a walking corpse.

The man's peripheral vision caught a Flabébé fluttering among the park flowers, his turbid eyes flickering.

After a moment, he continued looking down, swallowing the remaining half of the can, then roughly wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Here you go~"

The man turned his head.

It was an incredibly beautiful, seemingly eternal pink diamond.

Diancie wore a holy smile as she offered an Oran Berry.

"You probably aren't full yet, right?" Diancie said. "Take this, then hurry home after eating."

Diancie glanced back at the three Ralts who had lost track of her, smiling faintly: "Otherwise, someone might come to take you away!"

The white-haired man in the cold-weather hat placed his hands on his knees, his turbid eyes flickering.

He opened his mouth, organizing language functions that had nearly deteriorated, and spoke in a hoarse, low voice that sounded like gunpowder smoke sweeping across a battlefield: "I have... no home."

"How can that be? Whether human or Pokémon, no one should wander too far from home, or someone will be sad." Diancie blinked. "Then do you have friends?"

"Friends..." The man fell silent for a long time, each word seeming washed by the river of time. "Before... I had... one friend."

"Where is he?"

"He... left me." The man's breathing grew heavy, his voice intermittent, beginning to choke up.

Diancie looked strangely at the man. "Are you crying?"

After a thousand years of wandering, no one would have any moisture left in their body to supply their tear glands.

Yet, the man's numb heart felt a pang of sorrow at this moment, memories long forgotten seized by a withered hand.

The man stood up.

"...I must go."

Diancie looked thoughtful, as if making a decision, and called out: "You haven't taken the berry yet."

The nearly three-meter-tall hobo turned around, meeting the gaze of the holy, eternal Diancie who was looking up at him.

For a moment, her figure seemed to overlap with his beloved Flabébé.

Tears welled in the man's eyes as he wiped the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

He half-knelt, hands on his knees, accepting the princess's gift with kingly etiquette.

"...Thank you."

"My name is Diancie."

Princess Diancie made up her mind and smiled: "I grant you permission to be my friend—what is your name?"

The man forced a smile. He hadn't smiled in centuries, his facial muscles withered, his hands large and gaunt.

But before Diancie, the man uttered the surname that his people had called a wise king, yet avoided as a tyrant.

"...AZ."

...