By the time Lind returned to the base, it was nearly evening.
Under the moonlight, the pirates at the base gathered in small groups in the square, chatting.
Perhaps they were discussing the day's gains, or perhaps they were talking about something utterly pointless.
When they saw Lind return with the enormous carcass of a Sea King in tow, they took notice.
Every pirate there broke into cheers!
"You're the best, boss!"
" Hahahaha! Boys, let's have a feast!"
Using telekinesis, Lind quickly butchered the Sea King, then left Allison to organize the remaining work.
Although Allison was not particularly reliable as a ship's doctor, she had no trouble handling logistics.
She was also the only one among them with experience in that area. His other four subordinates had previously been full-time fighters.
They could perhaps manage some subordinates, but logistics required specialized knowledge that was beyond them.
Soon, as night fully enveloped Hachinosu, bonfires sprang up throughout the base.
Lind held a half-meter-long skewer of Sea King meat over a fire.
As he roasted the meat, he chatted with Axel and Liana.
"Axel, Liana, do you know any really capable cooks or ship's doctors?"
"The food our Seventh Division's cooks make is barely edible. It's making me want to cook for myself!"
"We desperately need a skilled cook to improve our meals!"
"And a ship's doctor. Allison knows medicine, but looking at her track record, I can't help feeling she's a little unreliable!"
Lind's first thought was of the talent his team needed. He wanted to see whether his officers' connections could help him recruit a skilled cook or ship's doctor.
"Hehe, boss, now that you mention it, you're right. None of our cooks are professionals. We're lucky they can cook the food through."
"Why don't you find some time to teach them, boss?"
All his officers had visited Lind's home and had the good fortune to taste his cooking. They had praised it to no end.
After two and a half years of practice, aided by his powerful telekinesis, Lind was long past being the novice cook he had once been!
He was already a culinary master capable of creating his own "Lin Family Cuisine"!
Hearing Axel and Liana's suggestion, Lind fell into thought. It did seem to make sense!
Teaching people to cook was somewhat different from training his subordinates, but the difference should not be too great. Perhaps he could give it a try!
Cooks he trained himself would make food better suited to his tastes!
He could also spread "Lin Family Cuisine," perhaps even go legitimate and establish a restaurant chain. The financial prospects were bright!
"You make a very good point. It's settled, then. Starting tomorrow, I'll set aside some time every day to teach them to cook!"
"What about a ship's doctor? I don't know medicine. Surely you don't expect me to learn it and teach it on the spot!"
Because of his previous life, Lind was very easygoing with people, entirely free of the bad habits that often came with authority.
When his subordinates made a somewhat joking suggestion, he accepted it without hesitation because he thought it made sense!
He even cracked a small joke in return.
"Boss, come to think of it, I know a very skilled doctor. I just don't know whether he'd be willing to join us!"
"Back when I was running with gangs in West Blue, there was a really good doctor in town. No matter what injuries we had, he could treat them!"
"When I lived there, I thought all doctors were like that. Only after going to sea did I realize his medical skills were absolutely among the best in the world!"
"In eight years at sea, from West Blue to the New World, I've never met another doctor as good as him!"
"If you're interested, boss, I can take you there. He should still be in the same town. I just don't know whether he'd be willing to join us!"
Lind's eyes lit up at Axel's words. From his description, this doctor was clearly an expert living in obscurity.
Whether they could invite him aboard was another matter, but his skills were definitely top-notch.
"Excellent. Once we set sail, we'll definitely find an opportunity to visit. Even if we can't invite him aboard, knowing a great doctor has plenty of benefits."
Afterward, Lind asked the other officers whether they knew anyone suitable.
Unfortunately, he gained little from it. Only Allison had studied under an old man with exceptional medical skills before she went to sea.
Unfortunately, before she had learned much, her previous captain had taken her away to serve as his ship's doctor.
That captain's eventual fate proved that a great teacher did not necessarily produce a great student.
Since Allison's previous captain had failed to persuade the old man to come aboard, Lind did not hold out much hope for himself either.
He could only hope that Allison's teacher had successfully trained a reliable apprentice while she was at sea. That would give him a better chance of recruiting a ship's doctor.
As for the others, none knew any outstanding doctors. The ones they knew were all average.
He would be better off trying his luck in a medical powerhouse like the Drum Kingdom. Their contacts could only serve as backup options.
Although finding a ship's doctor was important, there was no point in Lind getting anxious about it now.
Besides, although Lind's Seventh Division was practically no different from an independent pirate crew, it was still part of a larger organization.
In reality, he was merely a Division Commander under Rocks. If he needed a doctor, he could simply find one on Hachinosu.
As the rulers of the New World, the Rocks Pirates had quite a few highly skilled doctors.
Setting aside the question of a ship's doctor, Lind saw that the meat was nearly ready and began digging in.
With Lind's secret sauce, the Sea King skewer in his hand had roasted beautifully and looked extremely appetizing.
The officers who had also used Lind's sauce found their appetites whetted as well.
And so they quietly enjoyed the food, taking an occasional sip of alcohol. For a moment, Lind felt as though he had returned to his previous life.
Dinner ultimately lasted several hours, and everyone ate a considerable amount of meat.
Unfortunately, Lind's division had no absurdly voracious eaters. For this three-hundred-meter Sea King, what a hundred people had eaten amounted to little more than a tiny incision.
Lind estimated that the Sea King would last at least several more months. They certainly would not finish it before setting sail.
(I did the math. Even if a Sea King 300 meters long were only forty or fifty meters tall and wide, that would still be 300 × 40 × 50 = 600,000, giving it a volume of 600,000 cubic meters.
That's roughly 600,000 metric tons. Even after subtracting the bones, organs, blood, and so on, there would still be at least 300,000 metric tons left. With a hundred people each eating an average of 100 metric tons a day, they would only consume 10,000 metric tons per day. It would take a month to finish.
And I think that even in the pirate world, 100 kilograms a day would be the absolute limit for most people. By that calculation, a single Sea King could feed a hundred people for decades. That's ridiculous!)
With the Sea King safely stored in the underground freezer, Lind certainly would not need to hunt again before setting sail.
There was no way Lind's Seventh Division could get through so much meat, though, so he considered giving some to the other commanders.
The next day, Lind continued guiding his subordinates' training in the morning and planned to check on the Wanderer's refit in the afternoon.
As for training the cooks, Lind felt they should focus on their training during the day. He would teach them when they prepared dinner.
The morning's training soon ended amid his subordinates' repeated thanks. Lunch consisted of Sea King jerky prepared the previous evening.
Sitting casually in the open space, Lind took a bite of jerky and said:
"I'm going to take a look at our future pirate ship this afternoon. Anyone want to come with me?"
Before you continue