When we continue on Route 7, we are now by the river and we meet up with Tierno and Trevor. Tierno says, "Oh, hey, guys! Trevs said he wants to check out the Pokémon Day Care. Come with us!"

"Another Pokemon Day Care... so this is where the Day Care is in Kalos." I say.

"This is the Pokémon Day Care! They take care of your Pokémon for you here." Trevor says.

"Yes, indeed." The Day Care Lady says, "You can leave up to two Pokemon here at once!"

"I seem to remember something good can happen if you leave two Pokémon here." Trevor says.

"That's right! Sometimes we'll find a new addition - like an Egg! If you carry the Egg around, a Pokemon will emerge from it!" David says.

"Wow! A Pokémon will come out? Maybe I'll leave some Pokémon here! Having the same Pokémon with the same moves might step my dance up! How about you, Ash?"

"Maybe some other time, I mean this is not the first Day Care we've been to." I say.

"There aren't many Pokémon I want to raise. I'll try it on some other occasion." Trevor says.

"Well, I'm gonna go look for some Pokémon for my dance team!" Then Tierno runs off. Trevor yells, "Hey! Wait! Tierno! Wait up!"

After those two leaves, Elline says, "They seem to be really lively, don't you think?"

"Yeah." I say.

Once we get outside, Tierno seems to be trying to find Dunsparce, while Trevor decides to walk with us since there is a place called the Battle Chateau.

Trevor says, "Guys, do you know about this building? It's called the Battle Chateau, and it's famous for being a place where Trainers gather to improve their skills. If I learn even more about Pokémon, I'm sure I'll be able to defeat Kalos's eight Gym Leaders."

"That sounds cool." I say, while Trevor leaves because he wants to find more Pokemon. David says, "Since you're a gym leader, Clemont. What's your rank in the Battle Chateau?"

"Well, we gym leaders are given the title Maquis, the Elite 4 are given Duke, and the champion is given the highest, Grand Duke. And if we battle here, we can also rank up." Clemont says.

"I see." Then we enter the Battle Chateau, and we are surprised to find Viola there. "It's Ms. Viola!"

Viola says, "Oh, if it isn't Ash. Who would've thought I'd run into you here? What is your title in the nobility?"

I say, "Well, I just came here for the first time..."

"What? You don't have a title?! That's a surprise. No one could doubt that a kid as strong as you should have one. See, your title here at the Battle Chateau shows everyone just how strong you are. Only a handful of Trainers can join the ranks of the nobility and earn these titles!"

It is then a gentleman comes and he asks, "Lady Viola, are you acquainted with the young gentleman?"

After he notices my Bug Badge, he says, "Ahh, I see you carry the Bug Badge, young sir. It appears that Lady Viola has recognized your ability as a Trainer, then."

"And you are?" Elline asks.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, my lord. My name is Hennessy. Might I ask your name?" When he asks, I say, "My name is Ash Ketchum."

"Sir Ash Ketchum. A fine name." The man says.

"I will gladly recommend Ash, so will you grant him a title? He has the makings of a very strong trainer, so I'm sure he'll contribute to the Battle Chateau. Not to mention this young man here is also the Champion of 5 regions."

"Oh, is that so? If you're willing to speak for him, Lady Viola, then that is more than sufficient. And you say that this young man here is the Champion of 5 regions? I do see some extraordinary potential emanating from young Sir Ash."

After showing the Rotom Phone with my status, he decides to grant me the Grand Duke, the highest level because of my Champion status. "Trainers with noble titles can do battle against other trainers with titles in the nobility here at the Battle Chateau. Well then, Sir Ash, Lady Viola. I will take my leave now."

Once he leaves, Viola says, "I love the Chateau. Actually, I have the noble title of Duchess. Which is one rank lower from yours, Ash. The female equivalent of Duke is Duchess."

"Oh, wow. So you must've won a lot of battles to be a Duchess!" Serena says.

Then we see the battle on the battlefield, so we decide to watch, just then, we see a man falling from the sky? Where did he even come from in the first place?

"Huh? Not again." Viola sighs.

The Duke named Turner says, "Grant, once more?"

"I'm afraid I just couldn't help but applaud. It was to show my respect for such a brilliant battle." The man named Grant says.

"But Grant, if you felt that way, why didn't you come down first?" Viola asks.

"Because the wall refuses to let me go." Grant says. "The walls here are so smooth, they're irresistible. They draw me to them. You do see the delicate beauty of the Battle Chateau's walls don't you, Viola?"

"Talk about their beauty all you want, but I'll never understand the appeal of walls." Viola sweatdrops.

"So you know this guy, Viola?" I ask.

"His name is Grant. He's never seen a wall around here he didn't love." Viola says. "Also, he's strong."

I say, "Really? If that's the case, can I have a battle with you? But first, what's your title?"

"My noble title is Duke." Grant says.

"That means as a Grand Duke, I can have a battle with you!" I say.

Viola says, "Even though this is Ash's first time battling, because of his Champion status, he is given the Grand Duke."

Grant says, "Oh? So you're a Champion?"

"Yes, although I've already won against a lot of champions, I plan to win the Kalos League for my sixth Champion title." I say with a smile.

"I see." Grant says while throwing the white glove at me. "Grand Duke Ash, I would like to challenge you to a battle."

"And I accept." I say as we all head to the battlefield. Because of the rules, I have to wear a purple cloak that shows I'm a Grand Duke, while Grant's wearing a red one that shows the Duke.

There are four other colors. White for Baron or Baroness; Blue for Viscount and Viscountess; Green for Earl or Countess, and Yellow for Marquis and Marchioness. We are now rising our Pokeballs at each other, and Grant says, "To a good battle."

"To a good battle." I say.

Then I decide to go with Absol, who jumps into the field. Grant says, "Onix, you're on!"

So he's using an Onix, which is a Rock and Ground Type. I have the first move as I have Absol start with Quick Attack. Grant says, "I see, so you're going for speed. But let's see how you handle this! Use Rock Tomb!"

Much to my surprise, the Onix is actually controlling the boulders. Serena asks, "What's going on with that Rock Tomb?"

"It's controlling the boulders!" David says. "He must've trained hard to do that!"

"He's obviously no ordinary trainer!" Clemont says.

When Absol is trapped, I say, "Absol! Detect now!"

Absol manages to block the rocks, and as it keeps moving forward, Grant says, "You dodged that well."

"Now Absol! Night Slash!" I say, as Absol is heading for the attack, but Grant has Onix go for Flash Cannon, which hurts Absol.

"Absol! Are you okay?" I ask. "Now try to get closer to Onix!"

"Rock Polish!" Grant says as Onix's speed is getting up. Viola says, "Grant's power and speed have improved tremendously... I wonder how Ash is going to deal with it."

"Absol! Ice Beam!" I command, but Onix suddenly jumps in the air before going for Rock Tomb, and that traps Absol again.

"It's over, Flash Cannon." Grant says, but I say, "Are you sure about that?"

Much to Grant's surprise, the Future Sight from Absol activates and Onix is hit, and it is out of the battle.

"That's it! Absol is the winning Pokemon!" As I hug Absol, Grant says, "I see why have the strength of the Champion. You really are strong."

I say, "That Rock Tomb was totally incredible. I faced a lot of Rock Tombs before, but none of them are close to yours."

And before we finally leave, I say, "Grant? Do you think we can have a rematch?"

"Sure, I'll be here." Then he says, "Oh, yes. So I've been told you're challenging several Gyms. Then we'll probably be seeing each other at the Gym first before we battle back here."

"You see, Grant's the Cyllage City Gym Leader." We are shocked to learn the news, since this is actually the gym that we're going to challenge next.

Clemont says, "You used Onix, so that means your Gym is a Rock-type gym!"

"Uh, you're exactly right." Grant says, "You know, your Pokemon is quite strong. I'll be looking forward to the day you come and challenge me at the Cyllage Gym. Until then."

After he leaves, I say, "Well, I'm glad that this time the Rock Type gym is not the first gym that I faced."

"Elline says, "You faced a lot of Rock gyms as the first in the other regions?"

"Yeah, in Kanto there's Brock, Hoenn there's Luke's Mom, and in Sinnoh there's Roark." I say.

After we get outside, we find Calem with Trevor and Tierno. Calem says, "You guys are here."

"Hey, Calem. So what are you up to?" I ask.

"OK, let's battle. Tierno and Trevor, you'll battle against Ash and me!" Calem says.

"Sure, that sounds fun." I say.

Tierno is using a Corphish while Trevor is using a Flabebe that's a yellow flower, and I go for my own Pikachu and Calem goes for Quilladin, I'm surprised that his Chespin has already evolved. After defeating their Pokemon, Tierno says, "Whoa... Now THAT was a nice move!"

"So you can't learn everything just from the Pokédex... I see!" Trevor says.

"You guys are amazing. I mean, you two sure make a good team." Serena says.

"I agree with my cousin, Ash. Maybe we should try to tag battle sometime again." Calem says.

"Yeah." I say.

Calem says, "Everyone sure has a different approach to being a Trainer. Well, that was fun, but I guess we should head to Ambrette Town."

Then we bid farewell to the three of them, we head inside the Connecting Cave. The Connecting Cave links Route 7 and Cyllage City, not to mention that there are Axew, Zubat, and Whismur living in this place as well. We can just go to Cyllage City now, but we want to look for more Pokemon first, which is why we decide to go to the exit that leads to Route 8.

Here is a new chapter, and this is the Battle Chateau chapter. I hope you like this chapter and the next one will be Route 8 and also Ambrette Town.

Ash and Serena's Pokemon:

Venusaur, Charizard x2, Blastoise, Pikachu x2, Alakazam, Gengar, Kangaskhan, Pinsir, Gyarados (Shiny), Aerodactyl, Ampharos, Scizor, Heracross, Houndoom, Tyranitar, Gardevoir (Shiny), Mawile, Aggron, Medicham, Manectric, Banette, Absol, Garchomp, Lucario, Samurott, Audino, Zoroark, Hydreigon, Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie, Bunnelby, Fletchling, Vivillon x20, Litleo, Flabebe (Rainbow), Skiddo, Pancham, Furfrou, Espurr x2, Honedge, Spritzee, Swirlix