“Damn it! You gained abilities just like that???”
For top-tier powerhouses, abilities have relatively little impact. As long as one’s strength is sufficient, they can carve out a path with their own physical prowess, even without relying on abilities. However, for those at the bottom, an ability can bring about qualitative change.
A beast possessing human-level intelligence is the most straightforward example of a Zoan User. Rory’s porcupine is decent, but Harper’s crow truly made them envious. The ability to fly freely is a dream for many.
“Brother Mandrell once said that luck is an indispensable part of growth. Who told you two to wander around? I guess this is what you call luck.”
Mandrell, who rose from an ordinary member to a scout captain and then climbed step by step to become a high-ranking officer, is the epitome of success within the Beasts Pirates. He is often used as an example in promotional stories, and many ordinary members hope they can have an opportunity like Mandrell’s.
Even an ordinary ability, even if not a Mythical Zoan, represents significant progress.
Under the envious gazes of the two, the pair handed off their post. But before they could relax and celebrate, they were ordered to go to Queen and undergo a series of new tests. Along with them, the defective SMILEs were also sent over.
…
Some time later.
“Boom!”
A SMILE disappeared from Queen’s hands, and the explosion at the shooting range left behind a massive crater.
“It’s different, Lord Arceus. This thing is, at best, an enhanced bomb. Compared to the genuine Devil Fruits, it falls far short. At least these defective ones can’t trigger the Devil Gift.”
Using the defective fruits to activate Natural Gift, Queen summarized the feedback in a report based on the results.
“By the way, Lord Arceus, these things are somewhat peculiar. The Human-Beast form doesn’t seem to have any issues, but both Harper and Rory reported that their stamina consumption increases in Beast Form.”
A prominent trait of Zoan users is their immense stamina. Having greater stamina consumption in Beast Form is clearly abnormal.
“Could it be an issue with the experiment’s results?”
Yamato, holding a lollipop in her mouth, asked from the side. She was only present because she found the fruits intriguing and wanted to see how the experiment would turn out. Natural Gift wasn’t a move exclusive to Queen.
Solitaire’s Ambipom could also use this move. If it proved effective, Yamato planned to take a few back as ammunition.
“We can’t rule out that possibility. With only two samples, the experiment data might be insufficient. Still, these things do make rather excellent ammunition.”
The power of the Natural Gift unleashed by the fruits earned Queen’s approval—they could be used as a special type of ammunition.
“But Lord Arceus, where did these come from? For some reason, they look really familiar.”
“Kaido got them from Doflamingo—or rather, Doflamingo voluntarily sent them over. As for the creator… it’s your old acquaintance, Caesar Clown.”
“He created Devil Fruits? That means his skills are quite impressive, huh?”
Yamato knew nothing about MADS and wasn’t interested in such things anyway, but upon hearing Yamato praise Caesar, Queen felt extremely uncomfortable.
“No, no, no, Miss Yamato, he’s just a good-for-nothing. He doesn’t have any remarkable skills.”
“So, Uncle Queen, does that mean you could make these fruits too?”
“Uh… well… I’d need more time. Given enough time, I should be able to make them…”
Although Queen looked down on Caesar, he truly couldn’t create artificial devil fruits, not even the defective ones. Their research focus is fundamentally different, and even if Queen had an entire library to supplement his knowledge, it wouldn’t help.
He didn’t possess the Brain-Brain Fruit, so he couldn’t instantly memorize all that information.
“Alright, that’s not the point. Kaido has already decided on a trade plan. Queen, negotiating the price with Doflamingo is up to you, but no matter what, you can only offer him a maximum of 10% of the quoted price.”
“Lord Arceus, isn’t that price… a bit too ruthless?”
The seller can ask for a sky-high price, and the buyer can make a down-to-earth offer—anyone in business knows the phrase. But even cutting the price in half is considered ruthless bargaining, let alone trying to cut it down to almost nothing.
“That’s your problem. This thing is worth no more than that. How you make him agree is your business. Now, Yamato, stop playing with those fruits and come with me. I’ll check your recent training progress.”
After assigning Queen his task, Arceus prepared to leave with Yamato. But just as he was about to leave, Queen proposed a peculiar request.
“Wait a moment, Lord Arceus. Can I add one condition to the deal?”
“What is it?”
“I want to beat up that bstard Caesar. If it weren’t for that bstard’s banana virus, my banana plantation wouldn’t have been ruined. If possible, could Harper and Rory come with me as well?”
With Shaymin’s help, Queen had successfully revived his banana plantation. However, he was incredibly vindictive and kept a mental list of all the culprits responsible for it.
He couldn’t do anything about Akainu, but dealing with a mere Caesar? That was an entirely different story. Since Doflamingo was able to get these fruit, he clearly knew where Caesar was.
“Do as you like. As long as the deal gets finalized, it doesn’t matter.”
“Leave it to me. I’ll make sure it’s handled perfectly.”
Yamato was dragged off to have her progress checked, while Queen, after some preparations, summoned Rory and Harper. Together, they boarded his new ship, the Banana Brachiosaurus, and set sail for Dressrosa.
The Banana Brachiosaurus was Queen’s new ship. As for why they were headed to Dressrosa? It was because Queen wanted a business-funded vacation and a chance to personally beat up Caesar.
……
“Doffy, the Beasts Pirates sent word back—they’ve agreed to the deal. The specifics will be discussed in person by someone they’re sending.”
“Who’s coming?”
“Queen the Plague.”
“Queen, huh? So they are interested in this after all.”
Exactly how much of Queen’s bounty was due to his own deeds was unclear to the outside world. All they knew was that his massive bounty of 2.7 billion berries was unparalleled among the Four Emperors’ officers. Many even believed Queen to be the true third-in-command of the Beasts Pirates.
To Doflamingo, it shows how seriously they were taking this matter.
“But Doffy… they’ve made a rather peculiar request.”
Since Doflamingo looked so excited, Pica was hesitating whether to bring up the follow-up issues.
“What? Is it about the price? That’s negotiable.”
Doflamingo wasn’t aiming to make money from this deal. Instead, his goal was to gain a powerful backer, preferably securing some rights to sell Seastone.
“No, Queen said he is willing to negotiate—but only if he gets to beat Caesar up first.”
Doflamingo’s hand holding the red wine glass stiffened for a moment, almost causing him to drop the glass, but then he started laughing again.
“Fuffuffuffu! Interesting. Tell Caesar I’ve prepared a party for him—lots of hot women will be attending.”
You can read ahead upto 75 chapters on my patreon and I’ve also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon.
Become a Patron!