"Ash, we'll meet at the City Stadium later."
After breakfast, Clemont waved and hurried toward the City Stadium.
"Okay~"
Ash nodded in response. He then boarded the subway with Tierno and Trevor and headed toward the northern bus station.
…
…
As a major metropolitan city in the Kalos region, Lumiose City had an extensive subway network with lines running in every direction. After arriving at the northern bus station and picking up Serena and the others, Ash's group once again took the subway, this time heading toward the City Stadium.
"(○o○) Wow~ There are so many people!!"
As they followed the crowd out of the subway station, Shauna stared in astonishment at the sea of people filling the plaza outside the City Stadium and the long lines waiting to have their tickets checked at the entrance.
"Mm-hmm. Exactly. When the subway arrived at the station just now, so many people got off at the same time. I didn't realize what was happening at first. I just thought this was a major station. I never imagined they were all coming here for the event."
Serena was also extremely surprised. Although she had expected many Trainers to attend the promotional tour hosted by Elite Four member Wikstrom today, she hadn't imagined the turnout would be this enormous.
"Serena, you're way too slow to figure things out! I already guessed that they were all Trainers coming to the City Stadium for the event. Most of them are carrying Pokémon, and they've been excitedly talking about today's event the whole way here!"
Bonnie energetically raised one finger and spoke with the knowing, clever expression of a little girl who thought she had figured everything out long ago.
"…"
"All right, forget about that for now. We need to figure out how we're getting inside. There are way too many people here~"
"Do we have to line up to get our tickets checked? We don't seem to have tickets, though…"
"(^o~)/ You forgot! Brother already got nine front-row tickets from the event organizers yesterday. And Brother is also the Lumiose Gym Leader, so we can have him meet us at the staff entrance and take us inside. We don't have to stand in line forever."
Bonnie smiled mischievously.
"That doesn't seem right…"
Although Serena was secretly relieved that she wouldn't have to stand in the enormous line, she immediately felt a little embarrassed about getting special treatment.
"It's fine. This is simply one of the benefits enjoyed by Gym Leaders, event organizers, and internal staff. Come on, let's go."
"I already messaged my brother when we came out of the subway station. He should be waiting for us at the staff entrance by now. We'll go inside first, find our seats, and then talk."
"All right~"
"I'll clear the way. Everyone, stay close behind me."
Seeing how packed the plaza was, the sturdy and broad-built Tierno volunteered to lead everyone through the crowd.
But Ash grabbed him before he could do so.
"No need to go through all that trouble. Leave it to me."
As he spoke, Ash directly activated his Aura power. A warm, gentle yet repulsive current of wind seemed to surround his body.
Holding Pikachu in his arms and accompanied by Greninja, Ash took the lead.
The densely packed crowd in front of him suddenly began gently parting to both sides, creating a passage just wide enough for one person to walk through.
Years of training had given Ash extremely precise control over his Aura power. The repulsive Aura and wind pushed the crowd apart without causing anyone to stumble or creating even the slightest danger of a stampede.
Serena and the other girls followed behind Ash as they made their way toward the staff entrance of the stadium.
"Hey, Ash! Bonnie…"
Bonnie was right. When Ash's group finally made their way to the staff entrance, Clemont was already waiting there to receive them.
…
…
Following Clemont into the stadium, Serena, Bonnie, Tierno, and Trevor went ahead to find seats in the main venue.
Ash and Clemont, meanwhile, were the Trainers scheduled to participate in the exhibition matches before the end of the morning's promotional event.
Clemont first took Ash to the waiting room, where they met the other Trainers who would be participating.
"Hello, Gym Leader Clemont~"
"Hello, Mr. Ash! I'm a huge fan of yours. Could I take a photo with you?"
The third Trainer scheduled to appear in today's exhibition matches was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. His hair was dark green and had been styled with hair gel into the shape of Chespin, the Grass-type starter Pokémon of Kalos.
The moment he saw Clemont and Ash enter the waiting room, he enthusiastically greeted them.
"Hello. ×2"
Ash and Clemont politely shook his hand.
…
…
The three of them exchanged a few courteous words in the waiting room. During their conversation, Ash also learned from the Trainer known as Boras about the lineup of six main Pokémon belonging to Elite Four member Wikstrom.
"As one of the Kalos League's Elite Four, Wikstrom not only strongly advocates the knightly spirit and the knight's code, but he's also a specialist Steel-type Pokémon Trainer. All six of his main Pokémon are Steel types."
"From what I've learned, his lineup includes Klefki, Probopass, Scizor, Escavalier, and Aegislash."
"There are only five listed here…"
Ash noticed the discrepancy, but before he could ask, Boras continued.
"Wikstrom's main Pokémon are all extremely powerful, especially his Aegislash."
"It can switch flexibly between its Attack Forme and Defense Forme. With Sacred Sword and King's Shield, it's incredibly difficult to deal with. Even Diantha's Gardevoir, when it encountered Aegislash during previous celebrity exhibition matches, couldn't gain much of an advantage."
The young Trainer known as Boras spoke with an expression full of admiration.
"Aegislash?"
Hearing Boras's warning, Ash's expression also became thoughtful.
Aegislash was a Steel/Ghost-type Pokémon, while Gardevoir was a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokémon.
Apart from their high physical defenses, Steel-type Pokémon also possessed exceptionally strong resistances. Compared with Rock types, which were likewise known for their physical durability, Steel types had the additional advantage of possessing an extraordinary number of resistances.
More importantly, Aegislash's Steel/Ghost typing gave it a significant defensive advantage against Gardevoir.
Psychic-type attacks were not very effective against Ghost-type Pokémon. Since Aegislash also possessed the Steel type, Gardevoir's Psychic-type moves would be further hindered by its formidable defenses and resistances.
Gardevoir's Fairy-type attacks didn't fare much better. Steel types resisted Fairy-type moves, meaning that even Gardevoir's strongest Fairy attacks would struggle to inflict significant damage on Aegislash.
In other words, Gardevoir had very few ways to gain a direct advantage over Aegislash. Its usual offensive options were either resisted or otherwise poorly suited to breaking through the Steel/Ghost Pokémon's defenses.
"Aegislash is Elite Four member Wikstrom's ace Pokémon. Ash, your strength isn't weak at all, and your reputation is already so great. To show you proper respect, there's a good chance Wikstrom will send out Aegislash when he battles you."
"Ash, you should mentally prepare yourself. If you end up facing Wikstrom's Aegislash, you need to think carefully about how you're going to deal with it."
As a good friend, Clemont turned toward Ash with a worried expression and reminded him.
"Haha…"
"Wikstrom is a powerful Trainer who can even make Diantha feel troubled. If we're facing someone like that, do we really have any hope of winning?"
"If I end up facing Aegislash, that's fine too. I'll just try to drag the battle out for a few rounds and make sure I don't lose too badly."
Ash laughed it off, his tone relaxed and carefree.
But what he was truly thinking deep down…
That was another matter entirely.