The island where Pacifidlog Town was located was one of the few well-developed islands, so the ship would stay here for two days to restock supplies for the trip to Tower Town.
The four newly boarded Trainers, two males and two females, were quite strong.
And as a result, rather arrogant. When they found out that Sato had also been invited aboard, they immediately challenged him to a battle.
Cheered on by the crew, Sato sent out Ariados, who excelled at control, to pair with Mark's Arbok.
They easily wiped the floor with the opponents. Sato clearly saw that Maxie and Courtney, who were watching nearby, didn't look too pleased.
In contrast, Archie looked openly delighted. Mark had surprised him; his synergy with Arbok was unexpectedly good, and their strength wasn't bad either.
They were all young. Even after losing, the four Trainers didn't seem too discouraged. They let go of their initial arrogance and began chatting with Sato and the others in high spirits.
Most of the talking was done by Mark. Sato simply listened from the side, but still managed to gather some information.
These four young Trainers were all from the same place. However, their hometown was underdeveloped, and their starter Pokémon had been randomly caught in nearby forests, mainly Wurmple.
Fortunately, all four had decent potential as Trainers, and since they always traveled together and supported each other, they had gradually grown stronger over time.
From the Pokémon they sent out in battle: Swellow, Lombre, Breloom, and Corphish. It was clear they weren't rare Pokémon… they were typical basic Trainers.
However, all four had participated in the League tournaments. While their results were average, they had still outperformed most of their peers, which explained their arrogance.
What they had most in common with Sato's group was that none of them had any background or powerful connections in the Hoenn region. Even if something happened to them, no one would go out of their way to investigate.
Sato was quite famous in the Johto Region, but in Hoenn, he wasn't much of anything.
"We're going to the Pokémon Center in town. Do you guys want to come?" After bragging nonstop, Mark finally remembered their task and turned to ask the four Trainers.
Since Joseph had already casually healed the four defeated Pokémon, the group decided to stay on the ship.
Archie didn't mind them going ashore. He just casually reminded them to return on time, and let them go.
At times like these, Sato noticed that Joseph and Mark's respect for Archie seemed to deepen with each interaction. The mental seeds were clearly beginning to sprout!
The three of them arrived at the Pokémon Center and handed their Pokémon to Nurse Joy. Sato then contacted Lilian and finally received the long-awaited Gengar Mega Stone.
"Help me thank Haruka."
"It was yours to begin with, but..." Lilian hesitated, as if she wanted to tell Sato something.
"Have you discovered something new about Mega Evolution?" Sato thought for a moment and quickly guessed the reason. There weren't many things that could trouble her.
"How did you know!" Lilian's eyes widened, and then she gave up trying to hide it. "We've indeed discovered other Mega Evolutions… this time it's for Tyranitar and Ampharos."
"Hmm, I suppose you can't make the decision on the Tyranitar Mega Stone, can you?" Sato followed up.
"…That's right." Lilian looked a little ashamed. Even if she couldn't make the decision herself, she was still a Joy.
"Then leave it at that. Just help me take good care of Pupitar and the others." Sato hung up the call. He had already expected this, so he wasn't disappointed.
Beep-beep-beep-
"Lance? How's your research on Mega Stones going?"
"Tch, finally remembered me, huh?" "Flying Master" Lance crossed his arms, his voice with a hint of exaggerated grievance.
Was that an illusion?
"The research isn't going so well. I don't have firsthand data either. Fortunately, I stocked up on some Mega Stones before, so I'm taking it slow. We'll get results eventually."
Lance had only been teasing a bit. Still, there was anticipation hidden in his tone.
"Mhm, I've sent you a copy of all the data I have. There are also a few Pokémon in there that you should pay special attention to. They have a big chance of being capable of Mega Evolution."
"Seriously!" Lance jumped up at once. He had heard from certain channels that there were some voices of doubt about Sato within the Joy family.
Sato had contacted him first this time, and while he expected some results, he hadn't imagined it would be this much.
Clearly, Sato's understanding of Mega Evolution went far beyond anything they had imagined.
'The Joy family… get ready to cry!'
"By the way, Lance, I need your help with something."
"What is it? Just say it!" Lance had already opened the email Sato sent him. After glancing over it briefly, he could tell it was packed with valuable information. He was thrilled.
"Here's the thing. Recently, I met someone named Archie…"
An hour later, Sato regrouped with Joseph and the others in the lounge. After a casual stroll through Pacifidlog Town, they returned to the ship.
Three days later, at dusk, the ship arrived at a new island: Tower Town, which happened to be Maxie's hometown!
As soon as the ship docked, the four cooped-up Trainers eagerly prepared to disembark and explore.
Courtney, ever agreeable, volunteered to act as their guide. With Maxie's silent approval, she led the four ashore.
"You three aren't going ashore. This is Maxie's hometown, nothing interesting to see," Archie said as he pointed at Sato and the others.
"Ah, understood, Captain," Joseph responded with confusion in his eyes, then nodded obediently.
Sato remained silent on the side. Over the past two days, he had perfected his act. He glanced at the setting sun and then lowered his head.
---
As night fell, with no entertainment available, everyone quietly returned to their rooms to rest.
In the darkness, Sato waited patiently. Before long, Gengar returned.
"He didn't come back to the ship? Even better!" Sato removed his outer jacket, his black infiltration suit blending completely into the night.
This three-masted ship wasn't a luxury cruiser. The passageways were dimly lit by just a few oil lamps. The only two crew members on duty were chatting and drinking on the deck.
Sato first hypnotized Joseph and Mark. After all, they were already under control. If anything went wrong during his mission, they could be used by Archie to attack him.
Just imagining such a melodramatic scene was embarrassing.
Next, Sato snuck over to Archie's room. Maxie's room was right next to it, but since Maxie was staying in Tower Town tonight, it made things easier for Sato.
He signaled silently into the air, and the invisible Gengar immediately slipped inside.
With Sato's Dark Energy allowing him to scan the room, every move Gengar made was clear to him.
In less than two minutes, Gengar came running out. It gave Sato a thumbs-up and tossed over Archie's battle belt.
The belt had all six Poké Balls attached. Sato manually locked every one of them and stored them away in his small spatial backpack.