"Clang!"
Wikstrom thrust his sword forward.
Ash raised his own sword and met the attack with a horizontal block, easily deflecting Wikstrom's strike.
With a sharp push of his blade, Ash knocked Wikstrom's sword aside. He immediately pulled his weapon back and launched a counterattack, using the techniques of Laijutsu and wielding the sword like a blade meant for slashing rather than fencing.
His attacks came one after another in a relentless storm.
Sword energy flashed through the air, each slash carrying a chilling sharpness.
For a moment, Wikstrom was actually forced onto the defensive, unable to do anything except block and retreat.
The spectators and Trainers watching from outside the battle area were left completely dumbfounded.
They already knew that Ash possessed extraordinary talent as a Pokémon Trainer.
What they hadn't expected was that Ash himself also knew swordsmanship—and not merely knew it, but possessed an astonishingly high level of skill.
Everyone stared at the battle in disbelief.
In fact, it wasn't only the spectators outside the battlefield who were shocked.
Even Wikstrom, Ash's opponent, was stunned by the personal combat ability Ash was displaying.
Throughout the history of the Pokémon world, there had once been many professions that emphasized individual martial prowess—knights, rangers, samurai, ninjas, and others.
But with the rise and development of the Trainer profession, these ancient traditional occupations had gradually faded into history.
In the modern Pokémon world, becoming a Trainer was the mainstream path.
And the Trainer profession was essentially a profession centered around commanding and raising Pokémon.
A Trainer's cultivation focused primarily on identifying Pokémon with excellent potential, designing systematic and effective training plans for them, and displaying outstanding command ability during battles.
In other words, the physical training and combat development involved in the Trainer profession were largely centered around the Pokémon.
Trainers themselves generally focused on theoretical study and mental training.
Very few Trainers would actually train their own bodies alongside their Pokémon.
Someone like Wikstrom, who continued to practice the ways of a knight himself, was already extremely rare among Trainers.
Wikstrom had never expected Ash to have trained his own physical combat abilities as well.
And judging from the swordsmanship Ash was now displaying, his mastery was extraordinarily high.
Naturally, Wikstrom was deeply surprised.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!"
However, they were still in the middle of the trial.
Faced with Ash's relentless barrage of attacks, Wikstrom barely had an opportunity to speak.
Ash wasn't interested in explaining anything either.
He simply continued wielding his sword, launching attack after attack against Wikstrom.
Nor did Ash use his Aura.
Years of physical training, combined with the enhancement of his body through his psychic abilities, had already tempered his physique to an extraordinary degree.
Even relying purely on physical strength, Ash was already not much weaker than Wikstrom.
With swordsmanship alone, Ash had managed to fight the knight evenly.
In fact, he even held a faint advantage.
But Ash had no intention of revealing too much of his personal strength.
He deliberately refrained from increasing the intensity of his attacks enough to defeat Wikstrom.
After all, Wikstrom was one of the four Elite Four members of the Kalos League.
Ash still had to leave the man some dignity.
After all, whether during the morning's exhibition match or this Knight Trial, Wikstrom's Pokémon had deliberately suppressed their strength and held back.
If his opponent was showing mercy, yet Ash went all out and completely crushed him, that would hardly be sporting.
So, Ash decided that the best thing to do was to simply keep Wikstrom occupied.
That was all he needed to accomplish in this trial.
His task was to restrain Wikstrom and prevent him from finding an opportunity to assist Escavalier.
As for Escavalier and Klefki...
Fearow would handle them.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!"
On the viewing balcony of the Castle of Chivalry, the battle between Ash and Wikstrom had reached a stalemate.
Meanwhile, inside the castle, Fearow had chased after Klefki, with Escavalier in hot pursuit.
A fierce chase had erupted between the three Pokémon.
Klefki was one of Wikstrom's Pokémon, but its strength wasn't particularly high.
It was only at the Elite level, around Lv. 40–49.
Furthermore, Klefki hadn't been raised as a combat-oriented Pokémon.
Faced with Fearow's pursuit, all Klefki could do was flee.
However, Fearow's flying speed was extremely fast.
After repeatedly using Agility to increase its speed, Fearow would probably have caught up to Klefki long ago if Escavalier hadn't been chasing closely behind it with its twin lances.
Even so, despite Escavalier's relentless pursuit, Fearow continued harassing the two Pokémon from the air.
Klefki and Escavalier were already in poor condition.
It wouldn't be long before Fearow caught up to them.
"Fearow!"
"Behold my Glare!"
With Klefki desperately fleeing and Escavalier pursuing Fearow from behind, Fearow began putting its plan into action.
After entering the Castle of Chivalry, Fearow first unleashed Glare toward both Klefki and Escavalier.
The intimidating glare simultaneously inflicted paralysis upon them.
Once afflicted with paralysis, both Klefki and Escavalier suffered a major reduction in speed.
"Gaaa!"
"Next, take this—Feather Dance!"
Fearow unleashed Feather Dance.
Normally, Feather Dance lowered the target's Attack.
But the technique worked by weakening the opponent's muscles and making them feel sluggish and powerless.
In the middle of such an intense chase, that effect could also cause the opponents to lose momentum and slow down.
As expected, after being struck by Fearow's Feather Dance, both Klefki and Escavalier suffered another substantial decrease in speed.
...
"Gaaa!"
"Almost there. One last move—Chatter!"
Fearow unleashed Chatter, its signature move.
The attack dealt damage with a base power of 65, while simultaneously leaving both Klefki and Escavalier confused.
Their movement became even more erratic, and their speed was further compromised.
After being hit by multiple negative status effects in succession, Klefki and Escavalier had been slowed to their absolute limits.
That was when Fearow finally began to unleash its true speed.
Quick Attack!
Fearow suddenly accelerated explosively in midair.
Then—
Pursuit!
The second burst of acceleration allowed Fearow to effortlessly catch up to Klefki.
Fearow stretched its long neck forward.
Its sharp, sword-like beak darted toward Klefki.
With a quick peck, it seized the key hanging from Klefki and pulled.
The key came free almost effortlessly.
Fearow had successfully obtained the key required to pass the trial.
"Gaaa!"
With the key firmly held in its beak, Fearow immediately performed a graceful midair turn before flying away.
"Gaaa!"
"Oh!"
Ash's eyes lit up when he saw Fearow flying back toward him with the key.
"You already got the key?"
Ash swung his sword and knocked Wikstrom's weapon aside before smiling.
"Looks like we've successfully passed this trial."
"Hahaha..."
Wikstrom laughed heartily.
"It certainly seems that way."
"Then, Ash, congratulations! You've become the first person to pass today's Knight Trial."
"As they say, heroes often emerge in their youth. Ash, you're even more impressive than the rumors made you sound."
"I have to admit, you've truly opened my eyes today."
Seeing that Fearow had successfully obtained the key, Wikstrom finally lowered his sword and smiled broadly.
"Wikstrom, you're giving me too much credit."
Ash modestly shook his head.
He showed no sign of becoming arrogant or self-satisfied simply because he had passed the trial.
The first challenge of [The Knight's Glory] had been completed.
And Ash had accomplished it without defeating either Wikstrom or Escavalier.
He had simply seen through the true objective of the trial, used Fearow to bypass the strongest obstacle, and relied on his own swordsmanship to keep Wikstrom occupied.
That was enough to earn him his first victory in the final Knight Trial.