Chapter 162: The Fairy Type (Patreon)

"Altaria, use Hyper Voice!" Alex commanded without a moment's hesitation.

Receiving the order, Altaria immediately opened her beak and unleashed a booming, earsplitting cry. The sound crashed outward like a shockwave, indiscriminately attacking everyone in the vicinity.

Before giving the order, Alex had already utilized his psychic powers to shield himself from the brunt of the Hyper Voice. Even so, he felt a bit dizzy, his ears ringing. The sheer power of the move was simply overwhelming.

As for Salamence and Hunter J, who took the attack head-on, their situation was far more miserable.

Struck directly by the Hyper Voice, Salamence howled in agony, clearly suffering severe damage. Meanwhile, Hunter J felt her vision spin. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her head buzzed incessantly, completely stripping her of the ability to think clearly.

"You brat, I'll kill you!" Hunter J roared, her voice slightly hoarse with fury.

She had never expected this kid—despite his young age—to possess such an extraordinary instinct for cutthroat battles. He completely bypassed the usual pre-battle trash-talk phase, acting with the ruthless efficiency of a veteran prosecutor who had spent years dealing with dark syndicates.

Faced with this situation, Hunter J suddenly drew the dagger she kept on her and viciously slashed her own thigh without hesitation. The intense jolt of pain instantly cleared her head.

One had to admit, the woman was utterly ruthless; she showed no mercy to her enemies, nor did she spare herself. She truly possessed the extraordinary grit necessary to climb to her current position.

"Salamence, use Dragon Claw! Tear this brat to shreds!"

The moment Hunter J regained her senses, she immediately issued the command. She wanted Salamence to rip the kid before her to pieces, not even bothering to interrogate him about the secret of Mega Evolution.

However, the moment the command left her lips, she was shocked to see Salamence looking exceptionally lethargic and in excruciating pain, barely able to maintain its flight.

Seeing this, Hunter J panicked and hastily pulled out a Hyper Potion, spraying it onto Salamence.

"Salamence, what the hell is wrong with you!?"

Hunter J's mind was filled with confusion and unease. She simply couldn't comprehend why a Normal-type Hyper Voice would inflict such devastating damage on a Salamence.

Following Mega Evolution, Altaria's Ability changed to Pixilate. This Ability caused Normal-type moves used by Altaria to become Fairy-type, and their power was further boosted by the Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB). Taking a super-effective Fairy-type move head-on was a devastating blow to any Dragon-type Pokémon.

This was doubly true for Salamence, who was already severely injured and in poor physical condition.

Furthermore, Mega Evolution had propelled Altaria's strength to the Elite level, drastically narrowing the gap between her and Salamence. The compounded injuries made the damage dealt by Hyper Voice even more catastrophic.

As a human, Hunter J naturally couldn't perceive the type-shift of the Hyper Voice like a Pokémon could. But her extensive battle experience told her that Salamence's terrible state after taking the move was absolutely abnormal. There was definitely something wrong with that Hyper Voice.

'This kid is bizarre!'

The already half-dead Salamence's condition worsened further after taking the Fairy-type Hyper Voice head-on. If she had been at her peak, she wouldn't have spared a second glance at an opponent like Alex. But right now, she was forced to seriously consider retreating.

"...You'd better pray you never fall into my hands!" Hunter J swiftly made her decision, glaring viciously at Alex while ordering Salamence to turn and accelerate its retreat without hesitation.

Between her pride and her life, Hunter J ultimately chose self-preservation. Although her obsession with money far exceeded that of a normal person, she was no fool. After surviving in the underworld for so many years, Hunter J understood one universal truth: you can always make more money, but you only have one life.

Therefore, she was willing to pay any price to secure her own safety. Subordinates didn't even factor in; anything could be discarded.

Just as Hunter J was about to order Salamence to flee, Alex keenly sensed her intent.

"Don't let them escape! Mawile, use Sucker Punch!" Alex yelled.

Since they were still in the air, Alex quickly released Meowstic. Meowstic immediately understood the assignment, using Confusion to grab Mawile and launch her forward like a projectile.

"Dragon Rush, finish it!" Seeing Alex in relentless pursuit, Hunter J didn't choose to dodge. Instead, she ordered Salamence to launch a sudden counterattack.

Unexpectedly, Alex didn't have his Pokémon evade either. He decisively chose to meet the attack head-on.

"Don't dodge! Charge straight in!" Alex's voice was firm and resolute.

"Heh, as if a weak Mawile could withstand my..."

Seeing Alex adopt such a reckless, defenseless strategy, Hunter J was about to mock him when she was suddenly struck dumb by the sight unfolding before her.

Mega Mawile actually took Salamence's Dragon Rush head-on and emerged practically unscathed! Not only that, but the force of the Dragon Rush caused the two Pokémon to violently collide.

"That's impossible!" Hunter J's voice was laced with disbelief. She couldn't wrap her head around what had just happened.

Mawile was renowned for its fragile constitution. How could it possibly withstand Salamence's Dragon Rush without a scratch?

Because the Fairy type hadn't been officially discovered yet, Alex's Mawile was arguably the only active Steel/Fairy dual-type Mawile in the world at this moment. The unique defining trait of the Fairy type was its total immunity to Dragon-type moves.

Not only did Mawile possess the Fairy typing, but it had also gained immense power through Mega Evolution, pushing its strength infinitely close to the true Elite tier.

Against such a formidable opponent, Hunter J's exhausted Salamence naturally struggled to make an impact.

It could be said that Hunter J suffered such massive losses this time entirely due to a lack of intel.

First, she didn't comprehend the true strength of a Legendary Pokémon, recklessly leading her people in and nearly getting wiped out by Palkia.

Then, completely ignorant of Mega Evolution, the Pixilate Ability, and the Fairy type's immunity to Dragon-type moves, she directly attacked Alex, who had intercepted her halfway.

If blame had to be placed, it could only be placed on Hunter J for using a Dragon-type move. If she had ordered Salamence to use Flamethrower instead, Alex would have undoubtedly dodged the brunt of the attack immediately.