Chapter 94

Hina commanded the helmsman, "To port side! Maintain distance!"

With only one remaining mast, the ship was maneuvered like a pregnant cow. Nevertheless, the crew did everything they could to follow orders and not show their exhaustion.

Now it became clear to everyone that smoke was rising from the island.

The most experienced gunners took their places at the ship's single mortar, while the others stood on the deck, armed with muskets, each with an axe, saber, or hammer at their belt.

Even Bill had a hammer this time. He made this decision after surviving an attack by a beast horde. Although his fists could destroy anything they touched, when surrounded on all sides, he really wished for something that would help create space around him.

Freedom of movement wasn't a real problem, since Bill could move relatively freely thanks to his strength and speed. What he needed was space to think.

For the first time, Bill considered using a sword, but after all the arguments with Sasha, he couldn't bring himself to take up that weapon. So he chose the hammer.

The reason was that, firstly, wielding a hammer didn't require much technique, or to be more precise, Bill's natural combat style was perfectly suited for swinging blows. And secondly, and most importantly, Bill thought the hammer looked more intimidating than a sword.

His fists, paradoxically enough, were his most dangerous weapon, but in the opinion of others, a blow from a hammer was definitely scarier.

"Heh, maybe I should also grab some bricks!" he thought, standing on the deck, touching the hammer and laughing to himself. If he chose a weapon for its psychological effect, how terrifying would a man be who could throw bricks like cannonballs?

The fear here wasn't a fear of death; it was the realization that these things would surely break anything they hit! Even if no one thought they would die, everyone could imagine they might break a bone.

Standing at attention, of the one hundred ten people left on the ship, only thirty-four were ready to land ashore. The rest were either too injured to participate in the fight or needed to man the ship.

Out of these thirty-four, five were recruits from the Scientific Division who survived the shipwreck. Bill winced, remembering that out of the fifteen members who came here, five had died and three were injured.

Fortunately, except for Tom's broken leg, the other injured had recovered in a week. This left three biology students on the ship and five recruits from the Scientific Division who were preparing to go ashore.

Thinking about how he truly wouldn't let anything happen to these recruits, Bill told himself he wouldn't let anything bad happen to them.

As the ship adjusted course, a high mountain peak suddenly dropped to half its original height. Considering this good news, Bill approached the captain and asked, "Captain Hina, I think I could climb up there if I try. May I scout the area?"

Pondering this as the ship moved, Hina suddenly pulled out two old signal flares. "Take these signals. If there's danger, fire the red one toward the ship. If everything is safe, use the blue one."

Taking the two forearm-length flares and a tinderbox, Bill instructed Marron and the other recruits to stay alert. He didn't forget to mention quite loudly that an island like this must surely have fresh water.

Of course, most of the senior Marines would know this, but from a few whispers Bill heard, he realized he had just motivated a few people.

After all, although the water on the ship wasn't completely gone, what was left didn't taste pleasant after being stored for over a month.

With these thoughts, Bill leaped into the distance. He wasn't sure of his exact limits using Moon Step, but he felt he could cover a couple of kilometers to the top of the cliff. As he jumped through the air, Bill moved at a good speed, but noticeably slower than on land or in water.

Using air as a support was, to say the least, not easy.

Several minutes passed before Bill finally reached his goal and began to massage his legs. When he proposed his idea, he didn't take into account that he was suggesting the most challenging leg exercise of his life after two weeks of undernourishment.

Sitting on the ground for a few seconds, Bill took a deep breath and directed oxygen to his legs. Soon, he stood up again.

Taking a closer look at the mountain's summit, Bill was slightly surprised by its size — probably several hundred meters, by his estimation.

Moreover, the ground had grooves from years of accumulating condensation, which turned into flowing streams.

Strangely, there was no vegetation on the summit except for a few sparse shrubs. Mostly, it was a few square kilometers of bare, wet rock.

One thing was clear: the smoke in the distance indicated a large fire if it was visible from such a distance.

Wasting no time, Bill rushed to the other side of the cliff, covering several hundred meters in a matter of seconds.