Chapter 68

"I've brought you a new recruit. Can I go now? I need to start important experiments."

The old man, not taking his eyes off the tablet, simply waved his hand and replied, "Yes, yes, everything is fine."

As soon as he said this, Caesar grinned widely and disappeared like smoke.

After standing for a while in anticipation, Bill was about to speak when the old man turned first.

"Yes, I remember. You're Ox's son, right?"

"Yes, I have the documents here for the cadet school."

Saying this, Bill began searching for the papers in his backpack.

"No, no, that's not necessary."

Extending his hand, the old scientist continued, "When I heard that your father had discovered a Devil Fruit, I suspected I would see you."

Not expecting this, Bill asked the obvious question: "Why did you think you would see me?""With your mother's illness, your father would never have allowed you to go far. But now that she has fully recovered, we couldn't stop you, yet we sent you to a place he deemed safe."

In his thoughts, Bill was grateful that he didn't have to do anything too extreme to leave Vallipo.

Seeing that the boy did not respond, the old scientist continued, "Well, never mind. Now you're here. We will send you to a mentor. You must pass a suitability test and then receive an assignment."

After these words, the old man took a small communication snail out of his pocket.

"Bonaduce, come to my lab."

After that, he put the snail away and continued talking with Bill. Most of his questions concerned Dina and her recovery.

During the conversation, Dr. Vegapunk wasn't particularly forthcoming about the technologies at the base, but the discussion wasn't useless, as it was the first time Bill heard that he inherited his middle name from his mother.

It was almost half an hour after the snail call when Bill heard light footsteps behind him.

Turning his head to the entrance, Bill saw a man with short dark hair enter, dressed in a black tuxedo.

As he entered, the old man switched topics without missing a beat.

"This is Instructor Bonaduce.Despite his light steps, the man didn't take long to reach them.

Greeting Dr. Vegapunk, the man looked at Bill: "So, you're the new recruit?"

Nodding in response, Bill said, "Yes, nice to meet you, my name is William Ox."

Upon hearing his last name, the man in the black suit glanced at Vegapunk, who nodded slightly before instructing him to show Bill his quarters and conduct the suitability test.

When Bonaduce indicated he was ready to leave, Bill thanked and said goodbye to the scientist.

As he followed the man to the exit, Bill asked about the suitability test.

"It's a series of written exams. They start off very broadly but then narrow down to fairly precise measurements. You know, you'll be the first we've given such a test to in a long time. After all, most who join the Scientific Division either come from other research institutions or from the islands they manage."

Hearing this, Bill became intrigued. Technically, the ARCHIPELAGO VALLIPO was managed by the Sailors of the Southern Blues, but he had never seen anything explicitly promoting the fleet.

"What's special about the islands managed by the Scientific Division?"

As they continued walking, Bill noticed their route was different from the one he had taken earlier. However, they seemed to be moving upwards.

"Well, it's all about education. Your father was a Vice Admiral, right?"

Shaking his head, Bill replied, "He's a Commodore now, but yes, he was one of the youngest Vice Admirals."

"Right, either way. I assume you had a general education, right? Maybe you specialized in one subject more than others, but overall, you had a broad education."

After Bill agreed that was the case, the man in the black suit continued:

"So, for children in schools managed by the Scientific Division, it's the same, except we identify their interests, and usually by the age of ten, they enter more specialized schools. These specialized schools then become even more focused as the children grow up. Soon they become experts in their field."

Hearing this, Bill asked, "So all children go through this?"

"Hmm," the man mused before answering.

"Well, all children who are interested in science, yes. As for the rest? Naturally, they can find jobs and so on. "Only children who go through the second specialization need to sign a contract with the Scientific Division."

By this time, they had walked quite a long way. Bill continued to ask questions about the division, and Bonaduce answered them quite clearly.

The most insightful answer was given to Bill when he asked about the differences in technology found at this base and the rest of the world.

"There aren't enough resources for the mass production and assembly of most of this equipment. We release the innovations we can, but even in those cases, there aren't enough skilled workers to maintain them. Do you know what the top priority is in the Scientific Division?"

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