Looking at the travel plans in front of him, Arceus asked Queen plainly, though Queen felt the scene was a bit uncanny.
"Y-yeah, Lord Arceus, is there a problem?"
"Is there a problem? A war in the East Sea Kingdom, which is at least a few months' voyage away from here—did you take this mission planning to collect their bodies?"
Nobody can predict the occurrence of wars, and this is especially true in the pirate world, where reputation means everything when working in the Underworld. Currently, the Hundred Beasts Pirate Crew has a 100% mission completion rate.
Most missions are handled by Queen. Not long ago, he took on a war assistance request from the East Sea Kogia Kingdom.
Originally, this was not part of the fixed mission sequence, but Queen looked at the price and didn't notice the address, and he took on the mission directly.
"Well... I think they should be able to hold out for a while..."
"Do you think a country that can hold out on its own would be in such a hurry to spend a fortune asking for help?"
The reason they asked for help is that they couldn't win. Arceus thought that the Kogia Kingdom might hold on for ten days or half a month, but at normal sailing speed, by the time they get there in three or four months, it would just be to collect bodies.
No, collecting bodies wouldn't even be needed. It would take at least half a year for a large fleet to get there. After all, the Hundred Beasts Pirates are not the Navy; they can't garrison forces all over the world.
Only the Navy and the World Government can mobilize aid to any crisis worldwide at the fastest speed.
The problem now is that Queen has already accepted this job. If word gets out that the Hundred Beasts can't complete a task they took on, it wouldn't look good on them.
"Lord Arceus, I think we could send a flight squad there; as long as the top combat power arrives, there shouldn't be a problem."
"That's a pretty good suggestion. So Queen, this task is yours."
"Huh?"
"Shaina has already taken the fleet elsewhere, King has tasks in the country, Olga is at the Shampodi Islands, Zeraora and Setsuna have returned to Zou, and Mandfeish are on Fishman Island. Do you want me to lead the team, or should I ask Kaidou to lead the team?"
Since it was a task Queen took on a whim, most other officers didn't have the time to deal with it. Kaidou and Arceus were temporarily available, but an East Sea nation wasn't worth having Arceus or Kaidou take action personally.
This wasn't something that could be solved with Belly unless it had high value; otherwise, they would never do it.
Queen himself has the title of Plague Disaster hanging over him, and though his bounty keeps rising, neither Kaidou nor Arceus intended for him to stay cooped up in Wano Kuni all the time.
He still needed to go out. He hadn't taken much action in years, and in the eyes of ordinary members, his status was slowly declining, so he needed this opportunity.
"What? Has your body rusted to the point where you can't fight anymore? Do you need me to ask Kaidou to help loosen your joints?"
"N-no need! No need to trouble you! I'll get ready to set out now!"
Listening to Arceus, Queen immediately expressed that he was ready.
"This time, take GT6 to GT10 to test the combat capabilities of the new units."
Genosect is currently the only mass-produced mythical beast. The units are now numbered up to 10, and there are no plans to expand further in the near future; even modifications from robots are a considerable cost.
So, after GT5, Arceus tried a new modification method, which was only to modify parts of Genosect.
In Pokemon, Genosect is a very special existence. They possess insect characteristics and robotic features. Compared to the first five, GT6 to GT10 are weaker in strength, but they have another feature.
As long as their heads are intact, they won't die even if their bodies are destroyed because Arceus only modified this part; the rest is made from a special Arceus Steel body.
However, these Genosect still maintain their original speed and will be deployed as a squad to accompany Queen on the mission.
"Five units? I understand, Lord Arceus. Leave it to me. I'll handle this matter well. This enemy is an old acquaintance after all."
The intruders are Germa 66, led by Vinsmoke Judge, a former teammate of Queen's, although their relationship wasn't very harmonious.
Considering Queen's estimation of his current strength, along with the five Genosects, he was very confident in this operation.
"Bring Yamato along too, let her experience the battle."
"Lord Arceus, are you sure you're not going with us this time?"
Hearing Arceus' arrangements, Queen suddenly felt doubtful. Theoretically, Arceus would never entrust Yamato to him, but Arceus had no intention of going, which was odd.
"Of course not. She's grown up; I can't watch over her all the time. Go prepare quickly. You'd better pray that the Kogia Kingdom can hold on for a bit longer. By the way, there's a trade in the North Sea. Do it on your way back."
"Understood, I will handle it well."
...
Until Yamato stood on the back of Genosect and left with Queen, Arceus didn't follow them, which made Queen feel very strange. Yamato was also a bit surprised, but she was full of excitement to go out and explore.
However, she kept looking around as if she were searching for something.
"Uncle Queen, isn't my foster father really coming?"
"Lord Arceus said so, but Miss Yamato, can we discuss not calling me Uncle? I'm not much older than King and Shaina..."
"No, you look much older than them."
Queen felt like his heart was stabbed, but there was nothing he could do. Although he didn't have to address her as Ghost Princess like the ordinary members, he couldn't force Yamato to stop calling him that either.
"Forget it... Miss Yamato, let me describe this mission's details. We received an invitation from the Kogia Kingdom to help them resist intruders. The intruders are Germa 66, led by Vinsmoke Judge, an old acquaintance of mine.
He's not particularly strong, but he created a special battle suit through Bloodline Factor research. You might have seen the Sea Warrior manga; the abilities of those battle suits are real..."
Queen began to describe the intelligence he had, though how much Yamato actually took in was uncertain.
And as Arceus said, he really didn't follow because he had made another preparation...