Because of this "Coronation Ceremony," Xia Chi had to completely upend his original plans for his Unova tour.
He had originally planned to head south after wringing Elesa dry, taking the opportunity to challenge Burgh in nearby Castelia City.
But since he would be going to the Unova League headquarters in the north a month later, Xia Chi decided to visit Opelucid City first.
Conveniently, it was home to the Opelucid Gym, where Drayden, widely acknowledged as Unova's strongest Gym Leader, and Iris, Unova's future Champion, were based.
Unlike the games, where the Gym Leader depended on the version, things were different here.
The Opelucid Gym currently had two Gym Leaders in this world.
It was similar to the arrangement at the Sootopolis Gym, where the master-and-student pair of Juan and Wallace worked together.
Drayden, who also served as Opelucid City's mayor, had gradually begun handing the gym's work over to Iris, the gifted young girl from the Village of Dragons.
With these two heavyweight Trainers holding the fort, the Opelucid Gym had been a nightmare for Vertress Conference entrants over the past two years.
For Xia Chi, however, the powerful Opelucid Gym topped his list of must-visit Unova gyms.
After all, challenging strong opponents was always the fastest way to improve his strength and gain fear.
Especially when he could challenge two at once.
Pure enjoyment.
Before that, though, squeezing the last bit of fear out of Elesa was his most important task.
To maximize his fear gains, Xia Chi had to stick to the principle of beating stronger opponents with weaker Pokémon.
So whenever there was an opportunity to give Dragonair some training in battle, Xia Chi would never let Meowha and the others, whose strength was already well established, take over.
That strategy also meant he stayed