Seeing the shock on the former Commodore's face, Bill continued, "We have about ten days before we arrive on Hannibal, and I need to make sure these recruits don't run away from the battlefield. I'll ask Baskud to help you, and together you'll gather the recruits and train them as best you can."
The bounty hunter was somewhere on the Victory, his small boat with one sail also loaded on board.
Although Bill mentioned it only in passing, the more he thought about the idea, the better it seemed.
Nelson might never have had Masterson's practical skills, and given his personality, he was unlikely to ever have made a good instructor, but in the tactical department, he was an excellent choice to teach these raw recruits how Marines conduct operations.
Given that these men were already soldiers, Nelson didn't need to train them from scratch. He was supposed to play more of a military advisor's role.
While thinking about this, Bill missed Nelson's gaze and only noticed when he stood up and walked towards him.
Nelson was tall by normal standards, standing at about 7 feet, but next to the 9-foot Bill, he still had to look up.
"Are you serious?" he asked firmly, and for a moment it caught Bill off guard.
Looking at the man standing in front of him, Bill nodded and explained to Nelson what was required of him.
Bill needed the new recruits to grasp the basic tactics taught in his department: the indirect approach, the feint retreat, and defense in depth.
They also needed to understand the general rules drilled into recruits in New Haven, such as the need to attack from a distance and not rush into combat against very strong enemies.
Marines fight constantly around the world to keep the seas safe, and Bill believed that, whether attacking or defending, heavy losses should not be accepted as the norm.
Nelson listened carefully to Bill and gave him a strange look when Bill spoke so calmly about retreat being the main option.
What Bill couldn't know was that nearly every Marine officer lived by the motto "Justice First," and for them, "justice" didn't include the lives that had to be lost to achieve it.
But now, having regained command, Nelson decided to follow in Masterson's footsteps and not contradict his captain. Instead, he firmly resolved to consider how to reduce losses without sacrificing combat power.
After a few more minutes of talking, the former Commodore said he understood, and Bill watched Nelson descend the steps to the ship's main deck.
Seeing the big man not stumbling or looking tired, Bill felt that he had unwittingly done something significant.
It was a strange feeling, but he couldn't dwell on it.
Next to the huge beetle, the young girl checked her equipment several times.
Her pack contained flares, flash grenades, a bag of nails, rope, a knife, a canteen of water, and five small slabs of hardened sugar bread—standard equipment for all Marines in her squad.
She didn't have a gun, but she thought it was because Boss was with her.
Yoko was well aware that the Boss was stronger than almost everyone around her, and, aside from the war hammer hanging from her belt, the lack of a gun didn't seem like much of a problem. After all, she was faster and stronger than most adults and had the greatest success in the Iron Body and Meditative Push-up techniques that she and the other special operators had mastered.
Yes, Yoko felt confident. This day was the culmination of all her hard work. Today would finally come when she would punish those villains who had killed, robbed, and laughed while doing it.
They were on an island called Hannibal, a famous pirate port where dozens of pirate crews would gather to spend their plundered riches.
They gambled, indulged in debauchery, fought, and did everything that Yoko despised them for.
"But today all this will end," the girl said to herself, involuntarily touching the hammer on her belt with her right hand.
After all, with Bill here, she was confident that nothing could go wrong.
Of course, Uncle Rance and Aunt Fia were with them, and she didn't ignore them, but with Bill by her side, Yoko knew that the days of "freedom" for these bloody pirate scum were over.
The thought made her smile again.
Ahem-ahemTurning towards the familiar sound, Yoko saw that it was just Akisu.
He was two years younger than her, but they became friends because they were both junior sailors in the department. Of course, the friendship only began after she beat him enough to make him stop dreaming of becoming "the greatest thief in the world."
A couple of good punches to the stomach every day for a few months—and that was enough. She made sure the blows were painful but left no marks, and since she was doing it for the sake of justice, Yoko believed she was doing the right thing.
There was no guilt in her thoughts, even when, despite the beatings, the boy kept coming back. And then she forgave him, and they became friends.