"Elias, was this Fennekin's talent this strong from the start?"
"Or… did you use some other method later on to raise her potential?"
Diantha leaned in, asking curiously.
For her, aside from acting, Pokémon battles were what interested her most.
And if she wanted to become a stronger Trainer, having a few powerful Pokémon was essential.
As things stood, only Gardevoir could really be called her ace, and her strength was about at Champion level.
But her remaining Pokémon were nowhere near what she wanted.
Diantha had worked hard on that, too—she'd studied ways to raise her Pokémon's strength herself.
She'd even paid a high price to hire Pokémon breeders to improve the rest of her team.
But maybe because their talent was just too far behind Gardevoir's…
No matter how much she tried, those other Pokémon had a gulf between them and Gardevoir.
In ordinary battles, it was fine.
But once she ran into an opponent who had a type advantage over Gardevoir, her overall fighting power was basically cut in half.
With her foresight, Diantha believed that if things continued like this, sooner or later she would definitely drop the ball at a critical moment.
Unless… Gardevoir's strength could rise another step, to the point where she didn't fear type disadvantage.
But doing that was just as difficult.
That was why Diantha wanted to ask Elias how he'd raised Delphox to this level.
Hearing the question, Elias casually stroked Delphox's fur as he replied, "Delphox had great talent back when she was still a Fennekin. What she's achieved now is the result of her own hard work."
"I just make her a training plan now and then so she doesn't accidentally hurt herself."
Elias answered so offhandedly, like it was truly no big deal.
But Delphox—who'd been sitting with her eyes closed, quietly enjoying his petting—slitted her long fox eyes open a crack.
Master's being modest…
She thought to herself.
No one understood her own talent better than she did.
Sure, it was decent. With enough effort, she might have had a chance to push toward Champion-level strength—but it wouldn't have been this easy.
These past few years, she'd been like most Pokémon.
She simply followed her Trainer's requirements and completed her training plan diligently every day.
Aside from that, she rarely did extra training. Even her usual training load couldn't be called heavy.
At the very least, she'd watched Gardevoir train a few times and could say with certainty that she had it easier.
And yet…
Her strength had grown the fastest.
In only a few short years, she'd already caught up to Gardevoir.
If they fought a fair battle head-on now, Delphox believed she wouldn't lose—she might even win.
And the reason things had turned out this way, Delphox felt, was mostly because of Elias.
The training plans he made for her weren't just efficient and effective—they fit her body and condition perfectly.
As long as she completed them seriously, they often produced twice the results for half the effort.
And beyond that, the Pokémon food he prepared every day was also uniquely different.
With the Power of Viridian mixed in, day after day, it had invisibly pushed her talent up another notch over time.
If Diancie's situation weren't so special, Delphox felt she would absolutely be able to reach Champion level too, just like her.
With that thought, she closed her eyes again. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, tracing a pretty curve.
From the day she was born until now, the best decision she'd ever made was probably sneaking into Elias's Poké Ball.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have caught her…
Across from them, after hearing Elias's answer, a trace of disappointment flickered across Diantha's face.
As expected, she'd been thinking too wishfully.
It wasn't absolute, but a Pokémon's strength still depended on its innate potential to some extent.
From the look of it, trying to patch up the weak spots in her team was basically impossible.
Gardevoir's talent was just too strong.
Just as Diantha frowned slightly, wearing a troubled look as she sank into thought, Elias considered for a moment, then suddenly spoke.
"I can't do much for the others, but when it comes to raising a Gardevoir, I've got a bit of experience."
"If Miss Diantha trusts me, you can leave Gardevoir with me for a while."
As he spoke, Elias even nodded, looking humble.
Hearing that, interest flashed in Diantha's eyes.
"So, Elias… you've raised a Gardevoir before?"
Holding onto the Gardevoir beside her—who was already trying to pounce—Diantha asked as she restrained her.
In her impression, Elias only ever had Diancie and Delphox at his side.
At the question, Elias's movement paused.
In his current memories, he'd never raised a Pokémon like Gardevoir.
But like a few other things, the instant he saw Gardevoir, ideas for training plans would always pop into his head.
Those plans came from unusual angles and were recorded in meticulous detail.
Elias suspected that perhaps, back before he became Ghost Form, he'd once had a Gardevoir of his own.
Rather than letting that knowledge go to waste, using it on Diantha's Gardevoir wasn't a bad choice.
Besides… even if that knowledge didn't work,
Elias was still confident he could raise her strength a level just by feeding her Telekinesis and the Power of Viridian.
"Mm. I think… I probably did raise one," Elias answered gently under Diantha's sparkling gaze.
So that meant he had!
Diantha subconsciously ignored the hesitation in Elias's tone.
To her, Elias was wonderful, and Gardevoir was wonderful.
Then an Elias who'd once raised a Gardevoir—how could that not be even more irresistible?
"Then I'll be counting on you for Gardevoir for now, Elias!" Diantha nodded, saying it without a second thought.
It was obvious she trusted him a great deal.
If there was one thing that still gave Diantha a headache, it was Gardevoir's attitude.
Not that she was unwilling—rather…
Glancing at the Gardevoir beside her, eyes shining, Diantha suddenly regretted how rash her decision had been.
That look in Gardevoir's eyes was like a starving wolf spotting a lamb, and there was even a bit of glistening at the corner of her mouth.
Letting a Gardevoir like that stay by Elias's side… Diantha couldn't quite relax.
Rarely for her, she shot Gardevoir a glare.
This was the one thing she'd scolded her about countless times.
"Go and behave. Don't do anything you shouldn't, do you hear me?" Diantha leaned close and warned in a low voice.
And the reason she was sending her over wasn't because she expected Gardevoir's strength to improve dramatically.
It was mainly because Elias seemed to like Gardevoir quite a lot, and she wanted the latter to keep him company.
Thinking of Elias's packed schedule, Diantha couldn't help feeling sorry for him.
As for whether he was really that good at raising a Gardevoir… she wasn't optimistic.