Navy Discussion 2

Facing Captain Austin's surprised expression, Earl Paul continued, "It's not just about promoting your rank, but also transferring you to another branch—the Navy."

He had just become the company commander of the newly formed 6th Company, and hadn't even gotten to know his men, and now he was being transferred to another unit. Wait, the Navy? Does the Alarda Territory have a Navy? A look of confusion appeared on Austin's face.

Paul saw the doubt in Austin's mind and explained, "Yes, given the continued threat of pirates and for the sake of future overseas trade, we will be establishing a new branch of service—the Navy."

Austin understood. The Earl probably valued his familiarity with maritime life since childhood, and someone must have recommended him. Overseas trade? Not a bad idea. Looks like I have a lot to contribute.

Sure enough, Paul continued, "Bryce recommended you to me. He said you come from a family of ship merchants and have lived at sea with your elders since childhood, making you a very suitable Navy prospect."

"Lord Bryce is too kind." Although inwardly delighted, he still had to be modest.

Paul changed the subject, "However, your position will temporarily have the prefix 'acting.' Whether it becomes official depends on your own abilities."

Austin puffed out his chest. "Please rest assured, Earl Paul, I will certainly live up to your expectations."

Paul waved his hand. "Everyone says that to me, but I care about the final results!"

"Yes, sir! Where are the sailors now? We'll go to sea for training right away." He had to show his enthusiasm now.

Paul pointed at Austin. "Right now, you are the entire Navy."

Austin: "..."

So I'm a one-man band? Is this a rhythm where I have to row a boat alone to fight the pirates to the death?

"Don't worry, everyone is not very familiar with the sea, so we haven't acted rashly. I plan to organize the Navy into fleets, battalions, companies, and detachments, and you will be my acting commander of the Northwest Bay Fleet, and also the acting detachment leader of the 1st Detachment of the 1st Company of the 1st Battalion of the Northwest Bay Fleet. This is a position where you can be as independent as Bryce and the others."

"Given your familiarity with maritime affairs, you can draft your own conscription standards. After I review them, I will hand them over to the conscription office to recruit qualified soldiers and sailors for you, and you will personally assess them. At the same time, I will allow you to freely select veteran soldiers from the current two infantry battalions who are proficient in swimming and ship handling to supplement your command, and set up the framework of the Navy as soon as possible."

Austin was relieved. This would be much easier. "Yes, Earl Paul, we will definitely form combat effectiveness as soon as possible."

"As for ships, we can only use captured pirate ships or requisition a batch of civilian ships for your training. But I will order the shipyard to rush to build a batch of warships. You can offer opinions on the style, structure, and other details of the ships."

"I've known Rubin, the director of the shipyard, since I was a child. I'll go and discuss it with him."

Paul nodded with satisfaction. Everything was going smoothly.

"Go back and estimate the required expenses first, and come to my room tonight. We'll discuss it in detail."

"Yes, Earl Paul!"

Captain Austin stood up, saluted, and turned to leave, but suddenly thought of something.

"Sir, I suddenly had an idea. If you agree, it would be a great supplement to our combat effectiveness."

Paul became interested. "What idea? Stop talking nonsense and tell me quickly."

Austin carefully considered it and said, "I was in charge of interrogating the pirate prisoners. A considerable number of them were coerced into joining, and basically haven't done anything bad or their crimes are relatively minor. Can these prisoners be handed over to me and let them atone for their crimes in the Navy?"

"Hmm, this request..."

Paul hesitated, his right hand on the table, his index and middle fingers alternately tapping the surface, thinking about the feasibility of this suggestion.

"It's not impossible. Send me their information first, and we'll organize people to carefully screen them together. But even if they join the Navy, don't let them appear in public."

"Your Excellency is wise!" A well-timed flattery was necessary.

But Austin was still standing there, not moving.

"Is there anything else?"

Austin stammered, "Uh... that pirate leader named Quirk, maybe we can consider him too. His naval combat command experience should be very rich, and that's exactly what we lack most."

Earl Paul seemed to recall something unpleasant, and he stared at the captain grimly.

"That pirate leader? The one who wrote a letter to humiliate me, the 'Great Quirk'? Hey, don't try to take advantage of me."

"Uh... just pretend I didn't say anything." Captain Austin turned to leave.

Paul waved his hand. "Forget it, bring his information over too, and we'll take a look first."

The next morning, Austin brought a large stack of thick notebooks, which detailed the interrogation records of a group of pirate prisoners with lighter crimes. The paper used for the records was the new type of paper invented by Paul, which had spread throughout the Northwest and was becoming increasingly popular.

Paul summoned Schroeder, Joyce, Bryce, Claude, Cecil, and the other five company commanders to review these records with Austin, and to screen those who could join the Navy. This had to be strictly controlled. The Navy would be Paul's precious treasure, and he couldn't let those black sheep mix in.

"This Quirk Gang is really interesting!"

Looking through the information of the Quirk Gang pirates who had been captured earlier, Paul turned to Captain Austin and said, "No wonder you wanted a pirate leader like this."

"Yes, I think Quirk and most of his men can be recruited."

Indeed, this Quirk Gang was a unique group among pirates. According to the information, they didn't seem to have ever robbed ordinary civilians. They mainly targeted the rich and some minor nobles. What was strange was that they had even helped some poor people—at least, that's what they claimed. Moreover, they didn't rely on looting for a living year-round; instead, they also engaged in business, occasionally hiding their identities to do small-scale short-distance shipping and other small businesses.

Captain Austin added, "Most of the Quirk Gang members are from bankrupt farmers and runaway slaves. Few of them had a criminal record before joining the pirates. They have never gotten along well with other pirates and have even fought with several gangs."

Paul nodded to himself, They have a bit of a 'rob the rich to help the poor' vibe. No wonder Loach slipped away silently during the Battle of Lakeheart Town when he saw things were not going well, showing no camaraderie at all.

Actually, he was overthinking it. Pirates lived a life of licking blood off their blades every day. There was no such thing as camaraderie among them; infighting was common.

After careful review by everyone, a total of 300 prisoners were selected.

Paul thought for a moment and decided, "It's impossible to recruit all of them. Even if they haven't done anything terribly evil, at least their age and physical fitness must meet our conscription standards. Also, we can't take troublemakers who don't obey management during their imprisonment. Cecil, collect information on the Quirk Gang's activities to see if they really haven't looted civilians as they claim."

Then he turned to Captain Austin and said, "These people should be recruited into the Navy in batches, scattered and assigned to various teams, and closely monitored. We must not allow them to form cliques."

Captain Austin accepted the order, "Yes, Earl."