However, after this morning's exhibition match against Wikstrom, and after seeing Pidgeot display its Mega Evolution, Alain was no longer as cold and aloof toward Ash as he had been when they first met.
Now, whenever he looked at Ash, his eyes were filled with the kind of passionate admiration one would expect from a devoted fan.
"Haha... Is that so?"
Hearing Alain's words, Ash laughed awkwardly. He himself didn't have much of a reaction. After all, he wasn't involved in the academic world.
"Oh, right. Clarissa, Misty, Serena... Let me introduce you all. This is Alain. He's a research assistant at Professor Sycamore's laboratory. I met him two days ago when I went to the park for my morning training."
Ash turned toward the people beside him and continued introducing Alain.
"Also, Alain was the one who told me about Wikstrom's Knight Spirit lecture tour and reminded me to sign up for the exhibition matches."
"Hello, everyone. My name is Alain."
Alain gave everyone a modest and courteous greeting.
"..."
"Oh, right, Ash."
Alain suddenly remembered something.
"When I came over just now, Professor Sycamore told me that if I happened to meet you today, I should invite you to visit his laboratory after the event."
"Professor Sycamore wants to invite me over?"
Hearing that, Ash immediately understood that it was probably because of Pidgeot's Mega Evolution.
After thinking about it for a moment, however, he didn't refuse.
"Sure, no problem. After the Knight's Trial this afternoon, I'll go to the laboratory and pay Professor Sycamore a visit."
Ash thought about it briefly before agreeing.
Professor Sycamore was one of the leading figures in the Kalos academic community. Although Ash wasn't part of that world, there was no reason why he couldn't get acquainted with someone of Professor Sycamore's stature.
"..."
"..."
After chatting outside the Castle of Chivalry for a while, the drawbridge in front of the castle was finally lowered.
Ash's group, along with the other Trainers who had gathered outside, entered the Castle of Chivalry one after another.
Compared with the morning's lecture tour, where Wikstrom alone had stood onstage to deliver his speech, and where only Wrench, Clemont, and Ash had been allowed to participate in the exhibition matches, this afternoon's Knight's Trial had far fewer restrictions.
As a result, a huge number of Trainers had signed up.
There were more than a hundred participants.
Those who hadn't registered for the trial but were interested in the afternoon's event could simply stay in the stadium and watch the proceedings through the live broadcast.
A smaller number of people had come to the Castle of Chivalry as companions of participating Trainers, intending to watch the trial in person.
Ash's group was one such example.
Among them, the people who had actually registered for the afternoon's Knight's Trial were Ash, Misty, Clemont, Tierno, and Trevor.
Serena, Shauna, and Clarissa, meanwhile, had chosen not to participate.
Yes, that's right.
Misty had also chosen the path of becoming a professional Trainer. Whenever she encountered an event like this—something that could improve her own strength and provide valuable training for both herself and her Pokémon—she naturally couldn't afford to miss it.
"Those who seek strength!"
"Welcome, everyone, to the Castle of Chivalry!"
"I am Wikstrom, one of the Four Elite Members of the Kalos League—the Steel-type Elite Four member!"
At 1:30 in the afternoon, once Ash's group and all the other Trainers registered for the Knight's Trial had gathered, Wikstrom, the organizer of the event, finally appeared on the balcony of one of the castle towers.
Unlike the approachable and easygoing demeanor he had displayed during the morning lecture, Wikstrom now faced a group of Trainers who had come specifically because they desired greater strength.
Because of that, the aura surrounding him was completely different.
The dignity and overwhelming presence of an Elite Four member radiated from him without restraint.
"Wikstrom's presence is so powerful..."
"I feel like my heartbeat actually slowed down for a second."
One of the Trainers standing beside Ash spoke in a lowered voice.
"Mhm."
Ash nodded.
"Mr. Wikstrom is, after all, an Elite Four member. He's a true Elite-level powerhouse, someone who has already reached the highest level of strength in the Pokémon world."
"A powerful person naturally possesses the aura of a powerful person."
Ash had never looked down on Wikstrom simply because the latter had been exceptionally courteous toward him earlier.
Ash possessed extraordinary talent and potential, but talent and potential could never be completely equated with actual strength.
Even though his current strength was already considerable, there was still a huge gap between him and a genuine Elite-level powerhouse like Wikstrom.
Wikstrom paid no attention to the participants below who were whispering among themselves after being intimidated by his Elite-level aura.
He calmly swept his gaze across the crowd before continuing.
"I firmly believe that the path of the knight is the true road to becoming a powerful Trainer."
"That is why, in order to pass this belief on to the Trainers and Pokémon of the Kalos region, I established the Knight's Trial."
"The Knight's Trial consists of three parts."
"They are respectively: [The Trial of Willpower], [The Labyrinth of Unease], and [The Knight's Glory]."
"These three trials correspond to the three floors of the Castle of Chivalry."
"Only those who pass the previous examination without being eliminated may proceed to the next."
"And only those who successfully complete all three examinations can be considered to have completed the Great Knight's Trial."
Wikstrom paused briefly before revealing the rewards.
"Any Trainer who completes the Knight's Trial will receive a Knight's Honor Badge, engraved with their individual name."
"And the three Trainers who achieve the highest overall scores across all three examinations will receive a set of knight's armor as their reward."
"Whoa..."
"Wow!"
The moment Wikstrom finished speaking, the Trainers who had registered for the event erupted into excitement.
After listening to Wikstrom's lecture on the knight's way that morning, everyone had already come to regard the knight as an incredibly cool profession and symbol.
The Knight's Honor Badge and Knight's Armor were things that, in Ash's eyes, were little more than souvenirs or collectibles.
But to many of the Trainers around him, they had extraordinary significance.
They were treasures that they desperately wanted to obtain.
Ash wasn't particularly interested in the Knight's Honor Badge or the knight's armor.
But that didn't mean he intended to give them up.
First, they were indeed excellent commemorative collectibles.
Second, Ash himself had an extremely competitive personality. He hated losing and never willingly admitted defeat.
Since he had signed up for the Knight's Trial, naturally he would give it his all and strive to achieve the best result possible.
...
After Wikstrom finished introducing the three examinations of the afternoon's Knight's Trial, the event officially began.
The spectators who had accompanied the participating Trainers were guided by staff members toward the observation balconies higher up in the castle, where they could watch the trials.
Meanwhile, Ash and the other participating Trainers, along with their Pokémon, were instructed to put on special weighted equipment.
Each participant was required to wear a training harness equipped with iron weights weighing roughly twenty to thirty pounds.
The first trial—the [Trial of Willpower]—was about to begin.