The reason for holding this special honor was that those who had performed exceptionally in a League tournament were considered to have already earned their privileges through effort.
The Indigo Conference champion, runner-up, semi-finalists, and quarter-finalists, these rankings weren't just about placement and prize money. Otherwise, it would be a disservice to the eight Badges earned through hard work and the effort put into securing those rankings.
The newly launched Battle Frontier app took this ranking and honor into consideration. A champion could even skip all the rankings and directly proceed to the front of the queue.
Although Ash was only the Indigo Conference champion, as long as there were no other League champions ahead of him, he could still secure a very high spot.
Under Paul's guidance, Ash entered his data into the app and clicked to queue again. Ash watched his ranking drop from over 500 to just above single digits.
"Ranked fifth? So the Indigo Conference championship really does count for something!" Seeing Ash's ranking, Paul frowned slightly, because his own ranking was fourth. Which meant Ash would be right after him in the queue.
"It's my turn." Paul glanced at the notification on his phone, said one line to Ash, and turned to leave.
"Hey! What do you mean 'your turn'? Are you about to battle the Pyramid King?" Ash hurriedly caught up with Paul, and the others followed close behind.
Paul didn't answer, just nodded with his hands in his pockets.
"What's your ranking?"
"Fourth."
"Isn't that right ahead of me? Does that mean after you're done, it'll be my turn?" Ash was slightly startled hearing the number four, but a second later he caught up. Four was the spot right before his. Theoretically, after Paul's battle against the Pyramid King Brandon ended, it would be his own turn.
"Can I go watch?"
"Up to you."
"It's not about whether I want to. Mainly, will the guy inside the pyramid let us in?"
Hearing this, Paul paused, then without turning around said, "As long as you say you're going in with me to watch the match, the gatekeeper won't stop you."
"Really? That's great!" Ash showed an excited expression.
He'd already prepared for three or four days of queuing. The news had come in wave after wave. First, offline queuing was canceled. Then online queuing would take a month. Then the Indigo Conference champion could shorten that queue drastically.
Back and forth, and now he could challenge on the same day. And that wasn't all. The person ahead of him in line was Paul of all people. What a coincidence. Now he could even follow Paul into the Battle Pyramid to watch.
Not a moment wasted. It was simply the best arrangement possible.
"Ash, don't you think Paul has changed a lot?" Misty gently nudged Ash's side and whispered.
"Huh? Really? I don't feel any different." Ash scratched his head, his face full of doubt. Had Paul really changed? Wasn't he always this cool and reserved?
"He's changed a lot," Brock chimed in. "Before, Paul absolutely would not have talked to you about going in together, let alone proactively taught you how to queue."
Paul's change was so obvious that anyone who knew him would probably be confused. Was this really Paul? Only someone as thick-skinned as Ash hadn't noticed.
However, for Ash, he really hadn't seen any noticeable change. That was still just Paul's usual cool, indifferent demeanor, wasn't it?
In fact, that was the attitude specifically toward Ash. The reason for such a significant softening was partly due to Ash's strength, and partly because Ash's personality had also had some influence on him.
Paul was no longer the same person he'd been when he'd first met Ash. He used to treat his Pokémon as tools. However, his obsession remained unchanged. To defeat Brandon and cleanse his own inner darkness.
The reason Paul was rebuilding himself back into a more open version of the person he'd been when he'd first met Ash was inextricably linked to Reggie. His older brother had originally been a very powerful Trainer, but after battling Reggie, he'd become a Breeder instead. It was because of his brother's change that Paul had changed as well..
Although he'd softened somewhat, he hadn't forgotten Brandon's name. So upon hearing that Brandon was in Goldenrod City, he'd rushed there without stopping, determined to battle Brandon and avenge his brother's humiliation.
Before long, Ash and his companions arrived at the Battle Pyramid. It was an extremely large structure, much bigger than a normal Gym. It was hard to imagine that this thing could fly. The gatekeeper checked their identity and let them through. Ash and his companions were allowed in as well.
The interior of the pyramid was even more spacious than the outside. The light was somewhat dim, but the layout was very expansive. Following the guide through seven turns and eight twists, the group finally arrived at the battle arena.
This arena was twice the size of an ordinary Gym, with rows of large white lights illuminating the entire space. There were also plenty of spectator seats arranged around the arena, seemingly prepared for those who would publicly challenge here.
A rough count indicated that at least several hundred people could be seated.
"You've arrived, new challenger?" A powerful voice echoed through the arena, drawing everyone's attention. They saw a middle-aged man in mountaineering attire, with a serious demeanor and a calm expression, looking like a seasoned Trainer who had experienced countless battles.
This person was none other than the master of the Pyramid, Brandon, the Pyramid King himself.
"So you are indeed the Pyramid King. I am Paul, from Veilstone City." Paul bowed respectfully to the Pyramid King. He was always very polite to powerful Trainers.
Courtesy first, force second.
Brandon studied Paul's face for a moment. Something about the young man's features and posture tugged at his memory. He'd battled a lot of Trainers over the years, but a few always stuck.
"Paul. You wouldn't happen to be related to a Trainer named Reggie, would you?" Brandon asked. The resemblance was too close to be coincidence.
"That's my brother." Paul hadn't expected the Pyramid King to remember his brother's name. It seemed his brother had left a considerable impression.
"Your brother, I see. No wonder you look somewhat alike." The Pyramid King nodded, showing understanding, and immediately asked, "How is your brother now?"
"He's now become a Breeder, thanks to Mr. Pyramid King's blessings." Paul's voice held a subtle hint of resentment, but the Pyramid King still noticed it.
"Are you saying your brother shouldn't have become a Breeder?"
"He was a very strong Trainer, but because of his previous defeat, he gave up his position as a Trainer and instead became a Breeder." Paul didn't directly answer the question, but his words were indirectly implying that his brother shouldn't have just become a Breeder.
"Being a Trainer and being a Breeder aren't a hierarchy. Your brother chose to become a Breeder simply because he felt it was a more suitable path for him, not because of any defeat." The Pyramid King caught the real meaning behind Paul's words.
Paul believed that because of his battle with the Pyramid King, Reggie had abandoned his career as a Trainer to become a Breeder. To put it bluntly, that the Pyramid King had dealt Reggie such a huge blow that Reggie lost confidence in being a Trainer. That was Paul's inner belief.
But the truth was different. The Pyramid King still remembered Reggie. Although young, the boy hadn't been someone with weak character. That single defeat would never have made him give up the Trainer profession.
Reggie had simply followed the Pyramid King's suggestion, felt that being a Trainer wasn't suitable for him, and changed careers to become a Breeder.
Although the mainstream profession in this world was Trainer, Breeders weren't lesser, and were arguably more valuable due to their rarity. Rarity made something more welcome.
The only issue was that the barrier to becoming a professional Breeder was very high. It was very difficult to become one without the corresponding talent. The fact that Reggie could become a Breeder and continue on that path was itself proof of his aptitude.
So even the Pyramid King didn't feel that Reggie abandoning his Trainer path to become a Breeder was a sign of weakness. He hadn't wasted his talent. It was just that his younger brother seemed to have some kind of filter over his eyes, which was why he didn't see this clearly.
"Perhaps you're right, but that's not a reason to stop after one defeat. Even if he wanted to become a Breeder, he should have finished what he started as a Trainer. His choice, fundamentally, was an act of avoidance." Paul retorted coldly.
Regardless of his brother's reasons, it wasn't an excuse to switch careers before completing his path as a Trainer. It was precisely because of this that Paul felt that victory was everything and defeat meant nothing. Even Reggie's own advice to Paul was useless.
The Pyramid King sighed, realizing that verbal explanations alone wouldn't free this young man from his obsession. Well, they'd have to settle it through actual combat.
Just as the Pyramid King was preparing to signal his staff to take up their referee positions, his peripheral vision caught sight of Ash and the others in the stands. In an instant, his attention was drawn to them.
"You are, Ash, right?"
Suddenly being called by name, Ash was startled, then immediately nodded. "Yes, Mr. Pyramid King. I'm your opponent in the next match. We're here as friends to watch this one, and so are they."
Ash was afraid the Pyramid King would kick them out ahead of his own turn, so he quickly found an excuse to hold his ground.
"The next match's opponent is you? So that's it, you're taking advantage of the Indigo Conference championship privilege to jump the queue, right? I was wondering why you weren't on the list of challengers when I looked at the top fifteen today."
Every morning, the Pyramid King would check the battle list, and sometimes he'd encounter familiar faces who had challenged him before.
That said, fifteen battles a day was already his limit. So the Battle Frontier system only surfaced the top fifteen challengers and didn't scroll further, since with the volume of applications, most days wouldn't even reach fifteen.
Today, Ash's name wasn't on the list, but Ash said he was the next challenger, which clearly indicated Ash had used the Indigo Conference championship privilege to jump the queue. The Pyramid King was indifferent to that kind of maneuvering and wouldn't allow anyone to interfere anyway.
The Trainers he battled every day, to put it nicely, were just going through training, experiencing the atmosphere of powerful Pokémon battles. To put it bluntly, they were just a bunch of small fry. Even bundling a dozen of them together, they wouldn't be a match for him.
After almost a month here, he'd finally encountered a potential real match. And one of them was a genuine prodigy, who had achieved fourth place thanks to his runner-up finish at the Indigo League.
Because his name had been registered very early, the Pyramid King already knew he was coming to challenge him. However, the Pyramid King didn't know that this challenger was Reggie's younger brother.
And Ash's appearance was completely unexpected. It seemed that today he could have two meaningful battles.
"Let's begin, young man. Let me see how you compare to your brother." The Pyramid King said, his eyes signaling the staff.
After escorting Ash and the others inside, the staff member took up the referee's position and announced the rules. "The rules are three-on-three. The Frontier Brain is not allowed to change Pokémon, but the challenger can change them at will. The first side to have three Pokémon incapacitated is considered defeated."
"My first Pokémon is you! Go, Dusknoir!" The Pyramid King threw out a Poké Ball.
A flash of light, and a huge, dark brown Pokémon appeared on the field. This Pokémon had no legs, but rather a ghost-like tail, only one eye, enormous fists, and a robust physique. This was the final evolved form of the Night Watcher line: Dusknoir.
It was also the Pokémon that had appeared at the Indigo Conference and caused Ash quite a bit of trouble.
Ash glanced at Dusknoir's information. A Elite Four Pokémon, with decent stats in all aspects. If judged by the difficulty of Gym challenges, this level of Pokémon would undoubtedly be among the best in any Gym.
But compared to the strongest of the Frontier Brains, it was somewhat insignificant. After all, the Frontier Brains had Trainers comparable to Champion-level. This Pokémon certainly wasn't the Pyramid King's ace, but it should be ranked among the top two on his roster.
Paul couldn't clearly see the opponent's stats like Ash could. He could only roughly judge their aura. After a moment of thought, he took out a Poké Ball and threw it out.
"Electivire!" Electivire entered the arena.
Paul immediately unleashed one of his two ace Pokémon, Electivire. He was determined to win the first round and show off. Compared to the previous Indigo Conference, Electivire's level and there is no type advantage between Dusknoir and Electivire, so it all came down to Trainer skill.