Chapter 76: Diancie's Super Evolution Stone!

The next day,

Early in the morning, everyone packed their luggage, slung on their backpacks, arrived at the port, and boarded the earliest ferry to set sail.

As the ship slowly pulled away from the shore, Yurie gazed at the azure lake surface, as if stars were shimmering in her eyes.

"It's my first time on a ship, I'm so excited!"

"That's true..."

Clemont scratched his head; the siblings had lived in the city since childhood and had never seen such scenery, so they felt quite curious.

Diancie, who grew up in the underground kingdom, likewise had never seen a lake,

silently listening to the siblings' conversation, her eyes turned toward the blue lake, filled with curiosity.

"Let's go check out the rooms."

As soon as she finished speaking, Yurie spread her arms joyfully, mimicking Latias's flight, and ran from the deck toward the housing area on the next level.

Worried about Yurie's safety, everyone followed closely behind.

After arriving at the next level,

At that moment, a flock of Ring Weasels and Diving Weasels leapt out of the azure lake, moving forward in groups.

"Wow! ⊙? ⊙!! It's a Ring Weasel!"

"Ring Weasel!" Ash looked at the familiar faces and couldn't help recalling the one he traded with Xiaoguang, a smile tugging at his mouth.

Diancie squinted happily, "Everyone's swimming skills are really great!"

The group waved toward the Ring Weasel flock,

and the Ring Weasels and Diving Weasels waved back, with two Diving Weasels leaping high out of the water to perform, eliciting laughter from everyone,

but,

when they fell back into the water, the huge splash drenched everyone's clothes.

After the initial shock, seeing each other soaked like drowned chickens, the group burst into a chuckle.

Especially the aloof Nana, who showed a smile for the first time in front of everyone, causing a wave of surprise!

Diancie also gradually let go of her sense of mission and responsibility during this, like a pure little girl, smiling brightly.

Later the group went to the assigned rooms and took out fresh clothes from their backpacks to change.

They regrouped on the deck, admiring the beautiful scenery of the lake and the forest along the shore.

Diancie gazed into the distance, "This is the first time I realize traveling can be so joyful!"

Ash smiled, reached out and rubbed the red gem atop Diancie's head, "As long as I'm with friends, it'll be happy!"

Hearing that,

Diancie showed a clueless expression, "Friend? What does that mean?"

"A friend just means a friend!" Ash answered instinctively.

Se Mei flicked the wind‑tousled strands by her ear, gave Ash a puzzled look, and, with a wife‑type flair, patiently added, "It refers to companions you have fun with and chat with, making you very happy!"

After Se Mei's explanation, Ash recalled that although Diancie is a princess of a nation, her knowledge of human common sense is severely lacking, and he scratched his head.

At that moment, Yurie and Clemont, Ash's companions, also chimed in,

"Help a friend or be helped by a friend!"

"Both parties are equal."

"Friend!" Diancie kept repeating the word, her ruby‑like eyes flashing with thought.

Ash crouched, hands on his knees, looking level with Diancie, his tone gentle, "We're already friends, right!"

Having finally grasped the meaning of friend, Diancie's ruby‑like pupils narrowed into crescents, and she smiled as she stepped back from the group to the center of everyone's attention.

She turned, maintaining the dignity and etiquette of a princess,

"Then I will allow all of you to become Diancie's friends."

Yurie looked at Diancie's solemn demeanor and couldn't help giggling, "Diancie really does look like a princess!"

Ash was left speechless by that, and everyone burst into laughter.

Diancie felt everyone's joy, clapped her hands together, and squinted her eyes.

"Friends, so happy!"

In that moment, she completely forgot her travel mission, immersing herself in pure joyous happiness.

When Diancie spread her arms, a pink light suddenly manifested.

A pink diamond radiating dazzling, pure pink brilliance appeared abruptly, nearly falling into the lake,

Fortunately, Ash's quick eyes and hands caught the diamond.

"It's a diamond!"

The group stared in amazement at the pink diamond in Ash's hand,

appreciating its pure, flawless appearance, their gazes full of admiration and surprise.

Ash silently employed Waveguide Power to scan,

unlike sight that would pass straight through the crystal, the Waveguide Power detection allowed him to clearly sense the massive genetic chain contained within the diamond,

That's right!

It's definitely Diancie's Mega Evolution Stone! And it's permanent.

Perhaps, from this moment, Diancie's travel mission has already been fulfilled,

as long as she can use this Super Evolution Stone to achieve super evolution, forging a Holy Diamond should be a breeze.

However, over a decade has passed, and this theatrical version hasn't left as strong an impression on Ash as Mewtwo's comeback or the Red/Blue Water events,

worried that he might have missed some detail that could affect the whole picture, Ash temporarily kept his discovery to himself.

Such an important item obviously cannot be carelessly discarded, so Ash decided to keep it with him.

"Diancie, may I temporarily take this diamond to keep it?"

Diancie heard that, her eyes narrowed into crescents, and she answered instinctively.

"But... the diamond will disappear right away!"

The diamond's disappearance had become Diancie's inherent understanding, making Ash feel a pang of frustration for the poor girl.

Just as expected...

He couldn't keep Diancie sad any longer; Ash couldn't do that—hell with the details!

Ash now wants Diancie to smile.

"It won't happen!" Ash shook his head seriously and gave Diancie a thumbs‑up,

"This diamond was created by Diancie in the happiness and joy of interacting with her friends; I believe it won't disappear!"

"Won't... disappear?"

Everyone waited patiently for a long time, and when the diamond that should have vanished still remained, they all showed astonished expressions,

In an instant, looks of doubt, confusion, curiosity, and inquiry all turned toward Ash,

especially Diancie, the one directly involved,

Having failed so many times, Diancie had become accustomed to disappointment; now, seeing it truly as Ash said, she couldn't help but be very curious.

"Why does Ash know this diamond won't disappear?"

Since he had decided not to let Diancie stay sad, Ash naturally wouldn't keep anything hidden.

Smiling, he walked to Diancie's side, crouched, and gently stroked the pink gem atop her head, saying softly,

"It's Waveguide Power!"

While patiently answering, Ash glanced back at the silent, dark‑haired, red‑eyed beauty standing quietly in the corner,

"Nana should be able to sense it too; the core of this diamond contains a huge amount of genetic information,"

Hearing that,

Nana instantly released psychic power to perceive, and a look of astonishment gradually appeared on the girl's face.

"Hmm? This diamond..."

"Does it feel a lot like a Super Evolution Stone?"

So that's it? Nana, who had long been familiar with it, finally caught on after Ash's reminder.

She nodded vigorously, "Hmm!"

And on Diancie's face, a puzzled expression resurfaced, "Super Evolution Stone?"

Next, Ash briefly explained to Diancie the phenomenon of Super Evolution and the operating principle of the Super Evolution Stone.

Diancie tried to resonate with the diamond to undergo Super Evolution, and unsurprisingly failed.

For a moment, Diancie couldn't help feeling deeply discouraged.

Seeing Diancie's sad expression, Ash felt uneasy in his Heart, hesitated briefly, and decided to tell a kind lie.

"It's not the moment of despair yet!"

That sentence drew Diancie's attention,

"As I just said, Pokemon Super Evolution requires a deep bond between trainer and Pokémon to cause the Key Stone and Super Evolution Stone to resonate!"

Diancie eagerly asked, "So what should Diancie do?"

"Diancie, would you briefly become Ash's partner?"

As he spoke,

Ash took out a pink sweet ball, matching Diancie's color, with a heart on its surface.

Knowing that Mewtwo can evolve into Mewtwo Y without a trainer, Ash didn't trust his own words,

Fortunately, Diancie, being simple‑hearted, chose to trust Ash,

As for capturing Diancie... Ash had no such intention,

His reason for proposing this plan was simply to prevent Diancie from being sad,

Only Ash didn't realize that his past actions, combined with his gentle, patient, kind side toward Pokémon, had already won Diancie's heart, making her want to stay by his side forever.

Even after completing the mission of creating the sacred diamond, Diancie still wanted to stay by Ash's side and travel with him.

Thus, faced with the sweet ball in Ash's hand, Diancie's choice was very decisive!