Chapter 85

By midday, the reservoir was completed, though the pirates were exhausted. Bill instructed them to follow him to gather sand and stones.

This was done just to kill time; they weren't planning to spend the night in the forest, and there wasn't enough time to dig a trench, so Bill decided to line the bottom of the reservoir somehow.

It could last for several months.

By the time they finished, evening had arrived, and Bill led the pirates to their makeshift cells, quietly amazed at how much had been accomplished.

Captain Hina didn't earn her rank for nothing. Using her Devil Fruit, she had almost completed half of the fort's construction in just two days. Each built house had a ribbed shape, as iron tubes were used instead of nails to connect everything together.

The only major tasks remaining were the outer walls and the sewage systems.

Before going to sleep, Bill spoke with Marron and the others, who informed him that they had been digging sand from under the ship. Interestingly, Marron also mentioned that they had loaded several barrels back on board today.

That wasn't what he thought they would be doing, but since no one was harmed, he didn't insist on investigating further.

Bill rarely slept long unless he wanted to. It seemed he could function perfectly well with just a couple of hours of sleep a day.

Exiting the tent while it was still dark, Bill didn't hear the roars of two giants fighting nearby.

Shifting his gaze from the ocean to the ship, Bill noticed Captain Hina sitting on the edge, facing the camp, evidently standing guard. Approaching her, Bill jumped to sit beside her.

"I can take the watch, Captain."

From her side, he saw her raise an eyebrow before she replied, "Are you sure you can stay awake?"

Nodding, Bill didn't confirm his words with a gesture and simply said, "I don't need to sleep long, plus I haven't seen any monsters in the depths of the island today. I think everything will be fine."

Shaking her head, the captain said, "Do you hear that? The giants have stopped fighting. If I'm right, it will be even more dangerous now, even if we somehow manage not to attract their attention."

Looking at her, Bill asked, "Is that why you ordered my people to start digging out the ship?"

Looking seriously at the teenager, the captain replied, "Yes, I noticed the giants were fighting most of the first day, but by this morning, their battles had become less intense. By midday, they nearly stopped clashing with each other. The ship isn't meant to sail, but that doesn't mean it won't be able to. The Main Mast is likely to break, but with the foremast and the sea stone hull, we can at least move a little."

As she said this, Hina stood on the edge of the ship, looked at Bill, and added, "Be careful tomorrow in the depths of the island. Remember, just leave the others if necessary."

Then she jumped down.

Watching her leave, Bill thought that if they could hang on for a few more days, everything would be fine. As he began meditating, he didn't have a good feeling.

The night watch passed peacefully, and the start of the day was quiet too.

The pirates began working where the others left off, making good progress in a few hours. Bill thought they would finish their task by midday.

But then, hearing the crack of trees breaking in the distance, all fourteen working men looked up.

Focusing on the distant sounds, Bill heard Hollandez quietly ask, "Hey, sir, what is that sound?"

Shaking his head and waving his hand, Bill continued to listen. Deciding it was best to get a look from above, he jumped over the tree line.

Maintaining altitude, he looked toward the source of the noise and saw a fleshy mass pushing through the foliage, with trees starting to shake behind it as something advanced.

The line was heading toward the fort.

Bill was quick, but something had made the forest come alive. Before he could land to warn the team, a six-legged cat, about three meters tall, leaped out of the bushes, targeting the stunned people.

The beast was swift, but Bill was swifter. Catching the large cat in mid-air, Bill slammed it to the ground, grabbed its tail, and hurled it back to where it came from.

But as if taking turns, one after another, strange beasts began leaping out of the bushes.

Bill fought back as thirteen men started scattering like sheep surrounded by wolves.

There was no order or even a clear direction to their escape. They would suddenly stop, then suddenly start moving. They ran right, then turned left.

Bill didn't have time to watch them, but he would have sworn it was the most disorganized and disgraceful spectacle he had ever witnessed among grown men, even if they were fleeing.

Today, Bill learned two lessons. The first was an introduction to crowd psychology. The second was how to fight while being surrounded by monsters on all sides.

Swinging his arms left and right, with fists that could easily demolish concrete walls, Bill was never sure if he actually destroyed any of the animals.

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