Chapter 81

Covering up the hole and returning to camp, Bill smiled, thinking that this was indeed going to be tough.

When he returned, the others were just beginning to wake up, but Marron was already dressed and coming towards him.

After a brief greeting, the girl with chestnut hair said seriously, "Lieutenant! Captain Hina requests your presence in the command center as soon as you finish your morning duties!"

Smiling slightly, Bill waved his hand and replied, "At ease, Marron. Do you know what the captain wants?"

From what Bill knew, they were supposed to continue cutting down trees and lining them up as they did yesterday.

Of course, when Bill said "they" would be cutting down trees, he actually meant that he would be doing the cutting, while Marron and the others would be trimming branches and shortening the tops to more or less the same length. Then, using a rope, he would drag the fifty-meter fallen trees to where they would be further processed.

As he considered this hard work, Bill thought that the captain was probably very glad to have such a strong man like him on her ship.

"I don't know," replied Marron, now more relaxed, but with a grim expression she added, "But the prisoners were there, near her tent, and they smelled awful."

Hearing this news, Bill also fell silent for a moment, but trying not to show it, he said, "Did they look happy? Finally getting off the ship, they'd probably do somersaults if they could."

In reality, the situation for those people couldn't have been good. The lower level of Marine ships typically housed the prison cells, and since this level was below the waterline, there was no ventilation.

Being almost in complete darkness in a damp cell without toilets, except for a few chamber pots, it was no wonder Marron mentioned the smell.

As they talked, Bill and Marron headed to the mess hall, and with a shrug, she exaggeratedly said, "I don't think they looked happy. A few of them glanced around, but nothing special... oh, but I didn't stand there watching them for too long."

After that, Bill had a modest breakfast with Marron, and when the rest of their team gathered, Bill announced that he would go to the captain while they got to work.

All these recruits were either sixteen or seventeen years old, and Bill could tell they were conducting themselves admirably. After all, many of the Marines from Captain Hina's crew were still in such shock that they couldn't manage to work.

Moreover, although his authority had never been questioned, likely due to his impressive size, now the other recruits looked at Bill with respect. Receiving many nods of agreement, Bill left the mess hall and headed towards the command tent.

On one side of the tent were eighteen pirates, and on the other were crudely made wheelbarrows and digging tools. Bill noted this but refrained from making any conclusions just yet.

Although he did make one deduction: there had been twenty-eight pirates arrested, and likely nine of them had died on the lower decks of the ship.

Now all the pirates were bound by Hina's Devil Fruit, and as Marron had described, most of them looked dejected.

As Bill approached the tent, he saw the captain's secretary standing outside. This man was so unremarkable that Bill struggled to recall his official position as quartermaster.

Though it didn't matter to Bill, he chuckled inwardly, wondering if a quartermaster should be so inconspicuous.

Gathering himself, Bill clearly stated, "I've come to see the captain."

Nodding, the man had evidently been expecting Bill, and after stepping inside the tent for a moment, he returned and signaled for Bill to proceed.

Entering the tent, Bill saw Captain Hina and the chief shipwright standing around an improvised map that outlined the fort.

Lifting her head from the drawing to Bill, Hina was the first to speak: "Lieutenant Ox, I'm glad to see you so promptly. "I have a new assignment for you."

While she spoke, the other sailor remained silent.

"Our reconnaissance team has found a small stream about three hundred meters from the shore. I need you to redirect it."

Yesterday, Bill and his team had worked at the edge of the forest. Given the island's dense vegetation, it wasn't surprising that he hadn't heard the sound of running water while working.

Showing he understood, Bill approached the table and looked at the rough diagrams.

The fort they were building looked impressive for a temporary structure. Although Bill understood that the outer walls were more decorative.

If one of the two monsters fighting in the surrounding waters came ashore, only he and the captain could stop it. A forty-meter peak wouldn't stop a creature two kilometers long.

The more he learned, the better he understood the reason behind the large-scale marine construction.

"It's just a channel dug between this place and the stream?"

Nodding, Hina lit a cigarette, took a drag, and exhaled, "Exactly. We need a water source, and you'll take the prisoners and oversee their work."

Although he suspected this as soon as he heard what was required of him, it didn't please him.