Diancie jumped slightly when her shoulder was suddenly touched by a strange human.
She shuddered, instinctively stumbling backward a few steps, not steadying herself until she bumped gently into Elias behind her.
Raising her gaze, she saw it was a human woman—instantly, she felt a surge of wariness.
According to Her Highness, humans were terribly cunning.
Some might look attractive, or even wear sweet-smelling perfume, yet their real intention was simply to sell her off somewhere.
The woman standing before her matched that description perfectly, sparking a flicker of fear in Diancie's heart.
"W-who are you?"
Diancie tugged at the brim of her hat, quietly questioning the stranger.
She'd already prepared herself to flee—if the woman showed even a hint of ill intent, she'd immediately drag Elias away from here.
Hearing the question, the woman in front of her suddenly snapped out of her daze.
She glanced at Diancie, staring for several long seconds before sighing quietly, somewhat disappointedly.
"No need to hide yourself—I won't do anything to you."
"Also, you can just call me Cogita."
Straightening her clothes, she spoke to Diancie calmly.
Though her voice had returned to a neutral tone, the disappointment lingering in her eyes didn't fade at all.
It had been quite a while since she left Hisui and traveled all the way to this region called Kalos.
After careful consideration, she'd decided to settle here.
The reason was simple—the beautiful scenery here had temporarily eased her deeply troubled heart.
Given her abilities, creating another hidden sanctuary similar to the one she'd left behind was naturally not difficult.
Recently, she'd already begun constructing the basic structure.
But without Elias around to help her, everything felt inconvenient and frustrating.
Today, like any other day, she planned to visit the library for some design inspiration.
Yet unexpectedly…
The instant she arrived in this bustling part of town, she sensed something strangely familiar.
After looking carefully around, she spotted a figure wearing a cloak and hat—clearly disguised as a human.
Although the build and appearance didn't match, Cogita's heart still skipped a beat.
The aura emanating from this individual was far too similar to the one she had decided to bury deep within her memories.
So much so that, by the time she regained her senses, she'd already reached out and tapped the figure's shoulder.
Normally, she would never act so impulsively or rudely.
Yet miracles ultimately didn't happen.
The other party turned out merely to be a Pokémon disguised as a human.
A sparkling creature resembling gemstones, undeniably cute as well.
If seen by others, they'd likely be overjoyed, enthusiastically taking out Poké Balls to attempt capturing it.
But as for Cogita herself, once she realized this Pokémon wasn't the person she'd been desperately hoping for, her interest vanished instantly.
Her polite reply was merely an afterthought.
Realizing her true identity had been discovered, Diancie's expression froze awkwardly for a moment.
She carefully stole a glance at Cogita.
Only after confirming that the woman genuinely meant her no harm did she let out a small breath of relief.
At the same time, she secretly reached out her tiny hand and grasped Elias's hand by her side.
Only like this could she feel somewhat reassured.
Standing beside Diancie, Elias watched the suddenly appeared human woman with faint puzzlement.
Had he seen her somewhere before?
He had no memory of this woman, yet she somehow felt familiar.
"Can… can you really help us get inside?" Diancie mustered her courage and asked.
Elias wanted to enter the library to read, but she had no way of bypassing the guards herself.
Since this human woman had said she could help, maybe they could ask her for assistance…
Hearing Diancie's timid voice, Cogita regained focus slightly.
Though she usually disliked getting involved in troublesome matters, she'd already made the offer herself.
Besides…
She still felt curious.
How could an ordinary Pokémon give off such a strongly familiar feeling?
She wanted to interact a bit more with Diancie to find out.
Thinking this, Cogita clenched her slender fingers, feeling a rare stubbornness rising within her.
---
[With the help of the woman named Cogita, you and Diancie successfully slipped into the library.]
[The library was spacious and mostly empty, causing Diancie to finally relax.]
[At the same time, the human woman seemed to have no immediate intention of leaving.]
"These are the books you were looking for."
Cogita lightly pushed the pile of books in her arms toward Diancie.
These were the books Diancie had asked for.
She'd glanced briefly through them—several were about Kalos's local Legendary Pokémon.
The rest concerned various Pokémon type attributes.
A Pokémon reading these… she almost suspected Diancie wanted to switch careers and become a trainer herself.
Not to mention, the Pokémon clearly couldn't even understand the library's categorization system earlier.
This left Cogita seriously doubting how Diancie intended to read them.
"Thank you!"
Holding the books closely, Diancie softly thanked her.
Following Elias's instructions, she opened a book about Pokémon types first.
Then she placed a blank sheet of paper next to it and clumsily held a pen, posing earnestly as if she intended to read seriously.
But in reality, the only one actually reading was Elias.
Even the notes appearing on the blank paper were from Elias's hand gently guiding hers.
Feeling the soft warmth enclosing her tiny hand, Diancie nervously swallowed.
She found this far more exciting than reading books, to the extent her body temperature seemed to rise steadily.
She suddenly wondered—if Elias's hand actually had warmth, her temperature might climb even higher…
Across the table, seeing Diancie seriously beginning to "read," Cogita sighed softly.
She still had several things she wanted to ask, but now it seemed she'd have to wait a bit longer.
But…
After repeatedly glancing at Diancie, she felt an indescribable discomfort in her heart.
It felt like a heavy stone was pressing tightly against her chest—both bitter and suffocating.
Such a strange way of holding a pen. Can you really write like that?
Looking at Diancie's tiny hand all curled up oddly, Cogita thought in bewilderment.
Then, shaking her head slightly, she pushed the strange thought away and took out her own book to read.
She also laid down a blank sheet of paper, beginning to write and sketch absentmindedly.
Seeing her own handwriting, she felt simultaneously happy and sad.
Elias's handwriting had always held an indescribable smoothness and comfort.
So much so that although her own handwriting was excellent, she'd deliberately practiced his style for some time.
Perhaps because she'd seen Diancie today, she unconsciously began imitating it again.
---
T/N: COGITA IM CRYING FOR U