They didn't even require repairs!
Here's the point, Rance. We need durable, long-lasting, and easily repairable products to trade with impoverished islands. If we can acquire such goods, we'll succeed.
This island is called the Island of the Clockwork Mechanism, and I need your help to get there."
Rance agreed on the spot, and given his rank, Bill could initiate the transfer on his own.
During lunch, Rance mentioned to Fia that he was joining the Scientific Division, and when he asked her if she was going to join, she simply replied, "Yes, of course. I can't leave the Marines anyway."
It was a good day, and as he left, Bill handed Rance his gift.
Rance: "What is this?"
In his hands lay a rough star with a faded outline of the letter "D."
In response to his question, Bill laughed and said, "This, my friend, is how I earned my advanced certificate in metallurgy. It's pure sea stone, and initially, it was supposed to say 'Deputy', but..." he added, embarrassed, "pure sea stone is very hard to produce, and engraving letters on it turned out to be much more difficult than I thought."
Rolling his eyes, Rance laughed, put the sea stone star in the pocket of his coat, and patted Bill on the arm.
"Well, thank you. "When do we set off?"
Bill looked into the distance, then turned back to him.
"In three days, we're leaving early in the morning. Our flagship is called 'Border Breaker.' Don't be late."
After saying goodbye to his family, Bill left his parents' house and mentally checked if everything was ready.
He wanted to spend more time with his little sisters, but important matters awaited, and he would try to write regularly, hoping they would reunite in the future.
Yesterday, the ship was launched and loaded with the others' help, and while they worked, the group explored the vessel, determining who would control which part of the ship.
Bill took the Captain's cabin, while the others argued about who would get which part of the ship.
He spent nearly all his savings on supplies of salted eggs, beer, biscuits, and citrus fruits, as well as extra rigging, nails, lumber, and sails they might need.
A small frigate was still a very large ship for just five people, but with their physical abilities, one could imagine how they might safely navigate in and out of port.
They really needed more people, but Bill didn't have an immediate solution to this issue because he didn't want to rely on drafting Marines from the Blues or conscripting random pirates they captured.
Marines from the Blue Sea were usually weaker, but more importantly, they were people who rarely envisioned a career in the navy. More often, these men and women enrolled at a local Marine base and, after training, worked on their island's trade routes.
Using coercion was a tactic Bill wasn't completely against, but forcing pirate crews to join his enterprise gave him pause. The old saying, "one bad apple spoils the whole bunch," was well-known to him, having worked as a schoolteacher for a long time in the past.
Thinking about this, Bill reached into his front pocket and pulled out two Eternal Logposes.
One was a gift, pointing to the Lesser East Blue, and the second had cost him more than all the other supplies combined, directing him to the famous harbor town of Loguetown on the island of Polestar.
Ricky theoretically knew a bit about navigation, but he lacked practical skills. Until Bill found an experienced navigator, these two Logposes would be the ship's lifeline.
Leaving the house, he decided to hurry and headed to the ship.
Landing on the deck of the "Border Breaker," Bill entered the Captain's cabin, stashed away his commission and other legal documents, and then sat down to roughly chart their course.
Maps in this world were rare or, at best, crude outlines, leading to a lack of clear routes.
The tentative path he charted was to follow the Logpose to the Lesser East Blue, crossing a couple of islands along the way.
Bill felt confident planning to cross Rocky Gap Island before leaving the South Blue. Crossing the Calm Belt, they would make their way to Zum Island before reaching Water 7. From Water 7, they were already quite close to the Lesser East Blue, where Bill planned to replenish supplies and meet old friends.
After reviewing the route, he took a stack of wanted posters and memorized the names, faces, and other identifying features. During their journey, they intended to hunt pirates and try to earn as much Beli as possible. This was challenging with five people, as for most pirates, their ships were more valuable than their crews, but Bill doubted that the islands would accept his "promissory notes" as readily as Rance and the others had.
Flipping through the posters, he heard footsteps on the gangplank connecting the dock to the ship's deck. Putting away the papers on the table, he stepped out of the cabin.