"Alright, I'll take the intel that's useful for my clan," Lance shrugged, wearing an expression like, 'I'm your captain...'
"Final answer?" Sato kept a cold face, confirming once more.
"The Mega Stone for Tyranitar isn't mine to keep anyway. I don't actually have a choice, alright?" Lance finally rolled his eyes at Sato, unable to hold it in.
Sato pressed his lips together, deciding to change the subject. "I'll only say this once. How you go about verifying it afterward isn't my concern."
"Mhm, go ahead." Lance finally sat upright, his expression turning serious as he prepared to listen closely.
"While traveling, I discovered that some Pokémon are completely immune to Dragon-type moves, just like how Dark-types are immune to Psychic attacks."
"Impossible!" Lance immediately sprang to his feet in shock, but after realizing his outburst, he sat back down slowly. His brows were now tightly furrowed.
It was well known that Dragon-type Pokémon naturally possessed stronger physical stats and superior resistance compared to other types.
Any Pokémon with the Dragon typing was no pushover. Overall, they had higher potential than most other Pokémon.
Even Druddigon, often mocked as the disgrace of Dragon-types, was still stronger than many other Pokémon.
Druddigon was only considered weak when compared to other Dragon-types.
Now, Sato was telling him that there were Pokémon immune to Dragon-type moves. Lance's first reaction could only be one thing:
He didn't believe it!
But he had known Sato long enough to be sure... Sato was not someone who spoke recklessly.
If he was saying this, then there was a very real chance it was true.
"Seeing is believing. Let's test it out. Do you have a small-bodied dragon-type on you?"
"I do, actually. I just got a Dratini recently," Lance nodded and sent out a rather adorable Dratini.
Sato had to admit, he was deeply impressed by the Dragon Tamer clan's wealth. The moment they spotted a promising "junior", they showered them with resources.
If he remembered correctly, this was Lance's second Dratini... and apparently there would be a third one in the future.
'Tsk tsk tsk... never mess with the rich', Sato thought bitterly, then turned and called out.
"Ralts, come help out."
"Ral?" Ralts had been listening with interest on the side and was a bit dazed when suddenly called.
"You don't have to do anything, just stand there and let Dratini hit you once. It won't hurt," Sato, assuming Ralts was reluctant, made a rare effort to persuade it.
In reality, Ralts was pissed. Its deep red eyes beneath the fringe were full of indignation. 'Is this really about pain?
This is about dignity!'
"One week's worth of high-grade custom Pokéblocks plus Gogoat's Grass Milk."
Ralts nodded instantly and walked over to stand in front of Dratini without hesitation.
Ever since tasting the custom Pokéblocks made by Joseph and Gogoat's Grass Milk, Ralts had come to a sobering realization: everything it had eaten before...
That had become one of the main reasons Ralts was becoming increasingly cooperative; it was terrified of starving to death without Joseph's food...
"Have Dratini use a Dragon-type move on Ralts," Sato said once Ralts was in position.
"Dratini, use Dragon Tail," Lance gave the order without hesitation... and to be honest, he was a bit surprised at the strong aura coming off this Ralts.
'Where the heck did Sato find this little monster? Not even evolved, and it's already this strong?'
"Dra~" Dratini, slithering like a little blue serpent, zipped toward Ralts and raised its short tail high into the air.
Ralts was knocked back two steps by the hit, but it just casually dusted itself off, completely unharmed.
"A special attack would make the effect even clearer," Sato suggested.
"Ral!" Ralts raised its hand in protest. 'You said one hit, and that was it!'
Ralts immediately ran up to Dratini, waving its little hand excitedly as if to say, 'Hit me, quick!'
"Dratini, small-scale Dragon Rage."
In contrast to Ralts's cheerful mood, Lance had not smiled once throughout. In fact, his brow was furrowed even more tightly.
An orb of Dragon Rage, about the size of a fist, formed quickly and lightly struck Ralts.
Ralts didn't dodge. In fact, it even puffed up its chest and took the hit directly!
...Once again, it wasn't hurt at all.
Lance fell silent. He could clearly see that once Dragon Rage made contact with Ralts, it seemed to be completely dissipated by some invisible force.
Sato's intel was real.
"Besides Ralts, the Clefairy line, Jigglypuff line, Snubbull line, and Togepi line should all be immune to Dragon-type moves. I'm not sure if there are more."
Seeing Lance remain silent, Sato dropped the rest of the info with partial concealment; saying everything at once would only raise suspicion.
"The ones you listed..."
"Yeah, aside from Granbull, they all look 'pretty cute' and aren't typically used for battle," Sato added right away.
"Exactly. That's probably why no one ever noticed." Lance filled in the logic on his own, giving Sato perfect backup.
"Mhm. I have a bold guess... this might be an entirely new type, one that's immune to Dragon-type moves." Sato continued to guide the line of thinking.
"Let me handle verifying that," Lance said as he stood and patted Sato's shoulder. Then he added, "When this intel gets back, I wonder if the old men will be shocked or delighted."
"If you're the first to know, it'll be a delight."
"True enough. Take the Mega Stone for Tyranitar. Honestly, that piece of intel is worth way more than a single Mega Stone," Lance said with admiration.
"I'm already satisfied just getting a pseudo-legendary's Mega Stone." Sato smiled as he accepted the Tyranitar Mega Stone, then handed Lance the one for Camerupt.
"Stop it already. You keep it, I'm out," Lance rolled his eyes and turned toward the study's exit; his vacation now completely forgotten.
"Take it. That's what we agreed to." Sato stopped him and forcefully stuffed the stone into his hand.
After everything that happened with the Joy family, Sato understood more than ever the importance of keeping promises.
Never use your own reasoning to guess at others' thoughts. Breaking promises only drives people apart.
"Fine, I'll trade it later for something you can actually use," Lance said as he patted the Mega Stone now crammed into his pocket.
Sato smiled without replying and opened the door to the studio.
Lance hurriedly said goodbye to Joseph and Mark in the living room and left without another word.
Sato stared at the closed door for a while, then turned and said to Joseph, "For now, let's avoid having Florges use Fairy-type moves in front of others."
"Huh?" Joseph blinked, a flash of shock in his eyes. 'How did Sato know about the Fairy type?'