It sounded like a large sum, but when Bill recalled that the cheapest frigate with a sea stone hull for his new venture cost 100 million Beli, that he had yet to pay Rans and the others, and that he didn't have exact instructions on how much of the funds he should send back to the Scientific Division, the figures didn't seem so large after all.
All of this led him to think that the biggest acquisition in this deal was currently sitting on a deck chair, rubbing its fluffy belly on the deck of the "Border Breaker."
Sasha was well-trained as a field medic, but she wasn't a doctor. Looking at the mink, Bill wondered how to bring the goat into his crew.
He remembered trying to transfer Samantha, Tom, and Jerry to the supply department, but Sentomaru refused, stating they were understaffed.
This was understandable, considering the state of affairs in the Scientific Division, but it left Bill with a critical problem.
He needed a doctor, a real doctor.
Thinking he shouldn't delay, Bill called out, "Hey, Miyagi."
After consuming an amount of greens equivalent to his weight, the mink was relaxing and only slightly turned his head toward the large Marine.
"Yes?" he said.
"You said you want to become the best doctor. Well, we're not exactly ordinary Marines, you see."
Pausing for a moment, Bill saw that Miyagi wasn't going to respond, so he continued, "We're from the Scientific Division, and our department leads in technological innovations... but that includes medicine.
So, I thought, if you..."
"Yes," said the mink, interrupting him.
Surprised, Bill raised an eyebrow as the goat continued, "You need a brilliant mind like mine, I understand."
Still rubbing his belly, Miyagi asked with an unperturbed expression, "How long do you have to serve in the Marines if you join them?"
"A six-year contract. You can't share all the knowledge gained during your service, but most skills can be used in personal life after the contract ends."
As if he didn't hear Bill's full explanation, Miyagi continued, "You saved me. Oh, I could have freed myself, but you saved me."
Then, rising from the deck chair, the goat looked at Bill seriously and said, "What's your name, human?"
After Bill replied that his name was Bill Ox, Miyagi nodded seriously and said, "I owe you. I will follow you as an excellent doctor for six years to repay you for this."
Realizing that everything turned out much simpler than he had imagined, Bill, not wanting to miss such a stroke of luck, smiled and said, "Great! Welcome aboard!"
Calling the others, Bill announced that Miyagi would be the doctor of their unit. As the goat received a warm welcome, Bill's thoughts had already turned to what awaited him the next day.
Interrogations.
Reviewing the documents he had, Bill realized that there was very little information about a pirate named Forker. It was annoying but not surprising, as the bounty on him was set after robbing merchant ships and not due to clashes with the Marines.
In situations where pirates did not engage directly with the authorities, the Marine Headquarters would set bounties high enough for local bases to arrest suspected criminals.
Most bounties were issued this way since pirates rarely attacked Marine ships, unless they were incredibly brave or desperate.
These bounties could be claimed regardless of the so-called pirates' criminality. Pirate hunting was an important source of income for many isolated Marine bases.
When Bill read about this system many years ago, he found it generally acceptable.
The system was good in that it helped maintain isolated bases, but bad in how easily it created tension between the Marines and pirate hunters.
Pirate hunters were a complex topic. They provided a necessary service, but their actions directly threatened the financial resources of the nearby base.
And although it wasn't surprising, Bill couldn't help but frown, remembering how his first interrogation didn't go as planned.
He chose a tough approach, glancing around and challenging the looters as he took the pirate captain from the cell and dragged him up the steps.
Leading the unshackled pirate forward, Bill gripped him by the neck with his massive hand and seated him in the makeshift interrogation room.
Then he began questioning the pirate about his crimes, but instead of confessions, he received complete denial.
The pirate denied all accusations. He denied capturing anyone. He denied that the fabrics were stolen or that they were even on his ship. He even denied that his crew fired on Bill's ship or that he ordered his men to fight instead of surrendering.
According to this pirate, he was completely innocent, and Bill and his crew were the real criminals who had seized an innocent fishing vessel.
Of course, there was no fishing gear on Forker's ship, but the pirate claimed that they had thrown it overboard to frame them.
The last straw was that every time the pirate opened his mouth to deny his obvious crimes, he would also whisper an admission.