Pokémon: No Way! The Golden Finger Only Comes When I'm About To Die!?

Soon, dinner was ready, and Angie and the others had prepared noodles for the meal.

Gengar made the noodles, while Angie, Munchlax, and Drzzile prepared the side dishes. There were five flavors to choose from: tomato and egg, braised ribs, braised beef, spicy chicken giblets, and shredded pork with pickled vegetables.

Looking at the lavish dinner spread before them, Serena exclaimed in surprise, "So, this is the famous noodles served only at the Munchlax Home in the evening?"

Angie nodded and said, "That's right! At night, Gengar is the head chef at the Munchlax Home!"

"That's amazing!" Serena praised.

"Gengar~"

Gengar shyly hid behind Angie upon hearing the compliment.

"Everyone must be hungry by now. Let's dig in!" Angie said.

Everyone eagerly chose their preferred flavors and began eating.

Slurp, slurp~

Slurp, slurp~

Soon, the only sound left at the table was the slurping of noodles.

Finally, after finishing a bowl, Ash drank a big mouthful of soup and said heartily, "That was delicious!"

Gulp, gulp~

Pikachu held a bowl larger than its body, mimicking Ash as it gulped down the soup. Afterward, it patted its now-round belly and collapsed onto the table.

"Pikachu~ Pikachu~"

That was so good!

The princess of the Diamond Domain also accidentally overate. She gently rubbed her stomach, and before she could stop herself, let out a loud burp. Suddenly, everyone (and all the Pokémon) turned their attention to her.

With her face flushed, the princess quickly covered her mouth and said shyly, "How impolite of me!"

Her words sent everyone into peals of laughter.

After dinner, Angie and his family chatted with Ash's group and the princess of the Diamond Domain. Upon learning that the Oinkologne and Charcadet had volunteered to help Ash's group search for Xerneas, Angie was visibly surprised.

However, he didn't stop them. Instead, he said to Ash's group, "In that case, please take good care of Oinkologne and Charcadet on the way."

Patting his chest, Ash said, "Don't worry, Mr. Angie. As long as I'm here, Oinkologne and Charcadet will be fine!"

Angie then added, "Oh, by the way, you're leaving tomorrow morning, right? I have to head to Azoth Kingdom for work early in the morning, so I won't be able to see you off. I hope you'll forgive me."

Clemont quickly said, "No, no, Mr. Angie. You've already been so kind to take us in and treat us to such a delicious dinner. We're truly grateful. Please don't worry about us."

Angie nodded. "Then make sure to have breakfast before heading out!"

After chatting a bit more, Angie had Diancie arrange rooms for Ash and the others, while he headed off with his apprentices for training.

Angie, Munchlax, and Drizzile practiced unlocking other recipes from the system, while Gengar focused solely on improving its noodle-making skills. Meanwhile, Magearna dedicated itself to making desserts.

Since the system hadn't unlocked dessert recipes, Magearna couldn't practice using materials from the training room or rely on its guidance system.

However, the training room's special time flow feature allowed Magearna to quickly hone its dessert-making skills.

Halfway through training, Diancie returned after setting up the guest rooms for Ash and his group. As always, she transformed into a strict coach, wearing a serious expression and giving stern instructions to Angie and his team.

Once training ended, everyone went back to their respective rooms to sleep.

The next morning, Angie followed his usual routine and left early with Drizzile, Ralts, Espurr, and Meowstic to head to the Munchlax Home for work.

When he left, Ash and his group were still asleep.

At breakfast, Ash asked, "Has Mr. Angie already left?"

Diancie nodded. "Yes, Angie always leaves early. If he's late, he can't open the shop on time."

Serena sighed, "Mr. Angie works so hard."

Diancie smiled but said nothing.

In truth, Angie wasn't as busy as Serena and the others imagined. He did wake up early every day, but he only worked half a day. In the afternoons, he could rest as much as he wanted.

Now that everything in Nebel Plateau was running smoothly, Angie didn't have much to worry about or handle. Most afternoons, he enjoyed a rather leisurely schedule.

After breakfast, Ash and his group, along with the Princess of the Diamond Domain, bid farewell to Diancie. Accompanying them on their journey were the two Oinkologne and two Charcadet.

Diancie and Magearna escorted them all the way to the edge of the grasslands.

As they walked, Ash's group waved back at Diancie and Magearna.

"Diancie, Magearna, you don't need to see us off anymore!" Serena called out.

"No need to!" Bonnie added, hopping along cheerfully.

Once Ash and the others disappeared from view, Diancie and Magearna held hands and headed back home.

Ash and his group followed the playful Oinkologne and Charcadet bouncing ahead of them.

Their first destination was the forest where Oinkologne and Charcadet had first encountered Xerneas.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, they came across a cliffside. Suddenly, a Carbink with an unusually bushy beard emerged from a cave, followed by several smaller Carbink.

Upon seeing this Carbink, the Princess of the Diamond Domain exclaimed in surprise, "Dace!" She then rushed toward it with Merrick, Bort, and Allotrope by her side.

It turned out that this Carbink was none other than Dace, the oldest living Carbink in the Diamond Domain and second in status only to Diancie.

Dace had witnessed Diancie's birth with its own eyes.

"Your Highness!" Dace greeted her telepathically, just as Merrick, Bort, and Allotrope could.

"Dace, what brings you here?" Diancie asked in confusion.

"Your Highness, there is grave news," Dace said with a serious expression.

"What happened?" A sense of foreboding filled Diancie's heart.

"Your Highness, please follow me!"

With that, Dace led Diancie and her group into the cave from which it had emerged.

"Your Highness, who are they?" Dace asked as they walked, glancing at Ash and the others.

Diancie joyfully introduced them, "They are friends I met during my journey. They've helped me a great deal and are now assisting me in finding Xerneas."

Hearing this, Dace sincerely thanked Ash and his companions.

As they continued walking, a sudden collapse up ahead startled everyone.

"What happened?" Diancie asked Dace in surprise.

With the sacred diamond sustaining the Diamond Domain, such occurrences shouldn't happen.

Dace's face was sorrowful as it answered, "Your Highness, the Sacred Diamond has finally reached the end of its lifespan. I came here to inform you of this dire matter."

"How could this happen?" Diancie's face was filled with shock.

"Your Highness, please follow me."

Under Dace's guidance, Diancie and Ash's group arrived in a vast underground space, part of the Diamond Domain. White diamond pillars originally adorned the ground and ceiling of the space.

However, the once-lustrous diamond pillars had lost their radiance, turning into pitch-black, decayed stone columns that continued to collapse.

The original Diamond Domain was not like this. Powered by the Sacred Diamond and connected to the world through radiant diamond pathways, it formed a vast Carbink empire.

But now...

"How could this happen..." Diancie looked at the scene before her in disbelief.

Dace stepped forward with a solemn expression and said, "Your Highness, the most urgent matter is for you to quickly master the Fairy Aura and create a new Sacred Diamond. Only then can we stop the Diamond Domain from continuing its collapse!"

"But... but I still can't do it," Diancie said sadly. "Diamond Domain has become like this, and I knew nothing about it. I've failed my duties as a ruler."

Tears of guilt streamed down her face.

At that moment, Ash walked over to comfort her. "Diancie, crying won't solve anything. We will definitely find Xerneas, and besides, isn't Angie still around? The Diamond Domain will be okay!"

At the mention of Angie, a glimmer of hope returned to Diancie's eyes.

Dace, puzzled, asked, "Who is this Angie?"

Merrick, Bort, and Allotrope stepped forward and began explaining Angie's story in a lively chatter to Dace.

The Oinkologne and Charcadet proudly strutted forward.

"Charcadet~ Charcadet~"

Don't worry! With Angie here, you have nothing to fear!

"Oinkologne~ Oinkologne~"

That's right! And you have us too! We'll definitely help you find Xerneas!

After hearing everything, Dace exclaimed in shock, "Unbelievable! There's actually a second princess in this world. Now the Diamond Domain can be saved!"

"We should hurry and search for Xerneas!" Ash suggested.

"Yes, let's find Xerneas!" Diancie said firmly.

And so, the group left the Diamond Domain and returned to the surface, this time with Dace accompanying them.

"Your Highness, where should we look for Xerneas?" Dace asked.

Just then, the goodboy Charcadet, riding on the male Oinkologne, pointed towards a distant forest.

"Charcadet~ Charcadet~"

Over there!

When Dace saw the forest clearly, a look of shock appeared on its face.

"That's..."

"What's wrong, Dace?" Diancie asked, noticing its unusual expression.

"That's the Allearth Forest..." Dace said, trembling with fear.

Ash asked, "Dace, do you know that place?"

Dace nodded. "That forest is known as the Forbidden Place!"

"The Forbidden Place?" Ash's group and Diancie all looked puzzled.

Dace explained, "Many years ago, the Allearth Forest experienced a mass extinction. Countless lives were lost there, and since then, no one has dared to go near it."

"What's a mass extinction?" Diancie asked in confusion.

"It was a catastrophe in which all life plunged into darkness, and every living being perished. I experienced that disaster firsthand—it was terrifying…"

Recalling the events of that time, Dace couldn't help but feel a surge of fear.

It continued, "The disaster was caused by the legendary Pokémon—Yveltal."

"Yveltal?" Ash and his companions had never heard of this Pokémon.

However, Clemont had some knowledge of it. He speculated, "Could it be the Yveltal of legend, the one said to steal all life?"

"Yes!" Dace nodded. "It's known as the God of Destruction, the God of Death, and is the very embodiment of ruin!"

"I almost thought I was going to die during that catastrophe. But just when I had lost all hope, it was Xerneas who saved me," Dace reminisced.

Serena asked in confusion, "Why would Yveltal do such a thing?"

Clemont thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps it was to trigger new life energy."

"Trigger new life energy?" Ash and Serena exclaimed in unison.

"Yes!" Clemont nodded. "Death and life are not completely opposites. A mass extinction might bring about a more vigorous force of life! I think that's the essence of Yveltal's existence."

Dace pondered aloud, "What Sir Clemont said might… be correct. Death and life are not opposites; rather, they depend on each other!"

"Then should we still go to the Allearth Forest?" Serena asked, puzzled.

"Yes! I must go!" Diancie suddenly said resolutely.

"Your Highness…"

Dace, Merrick, Bort, and Allotrope all looked at Diancie with concern.

"No matter how difficult or dangerous it may be, I must see Xerneas, master the Fairy Aura, and protect Diamond Domain and my people!" Diancie said firmly.

"Your Highness…" Seeing Diancie like this, Dace's face showed a look of relief. It then said with equal determination, "Let's go, Your Highness. Let's head to the Allearth Forest and meet Xerneas. We will always be by your side!"

"Yes, Your Highness," Merrick, Bort, and Allotrope echoed in agreement.

"Diancie, we'll go with you too!" Ash and his friends added.

"Everyone…" Diancie looked deeply moved.

"Then let's continue our journey!" Ash exclaimed loudly.

"Yeah!!!"

With renewed energy, everyone set out again on their quest to find Xerneas.

Along the way, Dace explained, "It is said that after Yveltal causes a mass extinction, it transforms into a cocoon of destruction and falls into a deep slumber. Therefore, Yveltal must currently be sleeping somewhere within the Allearth Forest.

However, it's also said that anyone who disturbs the slumber of the cocoon of destruction will face its wrath."

Clemont said, "So while we're searching for Xerneas, we must make sure not to disturb the cocoon of destruction, right?"

Dace nodded, "Exactly!"

After an indeterminate amount of time, Ash, Diancie, and their group finally reached the edge of the Allearth Forest.

Looking at the dense forest, Diancie exclaimed excitedly, "I can sense it—it's the aura of the Fairy Aura! It's incredibly strong here! Xerneas must be inside!"

"That's wonderful! That's great news!"

Hearing this, Dace and Merrick smiled brightly.

The Oinkologne and Charcadet were also thrilled, knowing they would soon reunite with their friend.