Nothing particularly important was asked, but one thing that caught Bill off guard was that the woman recognized his captain's badge as belonging to the Science Department.
After a few minutes, Bill couldn't resist and asked the standard question, "Excuse me, what's your name, miss...?"
In response to this question, the woman adjusted her glasses and seriously replied, "Is this sexual harassment?"
Hearing this, Bill's face tensed, and his eyes narrowed. He had never pursued women in this life, and this fact, combined with the absurd suggestion of harassment, made him frown and say, "Don't flatter yourself. What's your name?"
Just as the woman was about to answer, a voice came from behind, which immediately triggered Bill's sense of danger.
"Is there a problem... Kalifa?"
Spinning around sharply, Bill saw a dark-haired man with a bird on his shoulder. Tall, about seven feet, he looked serious.
Those few seconds felt like an eternity, and the man broke the silence, skillfully speaking through the bird: "Idiot-Sailor."
As someone who had mastered the technique of 'Life Return,' Bill could easily control his voice in a supernatural way and also recognized when others did the same.
At that moment, he paid no attention to how skillfully the bird moved, instead focusing on the dangerous man and seriously replied without opening his mouth, "Very funny."
He spoke through his nose, and it didn't sound much different than speaking through his mouth.
In the man's eyes, Bill first noticed surprise, then confusion, and finally hatred. Although Bill stood two feet taller than this man, his instincts told him to be cautious. He was already prepared for anything when he heard Kalifa clear her throat.
The receptionist walked around the counter and stood next to the dark-haired man before saying, "Sorry, sometimes I get carried away. Now I understand you meant no harm, Captain Ox."
Then, gesturing to the man, she continued, "This is Rob Lucci, the foreman of the shipyard. He can't speak normally."
Bill wanted to say that this person definitely could speak normally, but at that moment, a blond man with a large nose entered the room.
"And here's Kaku," said the receptionist, although Bill still hadn't relaxed his cautious stance around Lucci.
As the man approached them, Lucci, still speaking through the bird, asked, "I've come to see Iceberg. Is he available?"
After being given permission, he simply left.
Watching him walk away, Bill realized he had become too relaxed lately. His mind acknowledged that he had learned a lot while working with Vegapunk, but his heart wouldn't let him accept that he could lose to a shipbuilder.
Once the threat was gone, Bill turned to the others and continued the conversation more casually, but after the accusations Kalifa had made, he could no longer interact comfortably with her.
The rest of the process went relatively quickly. The man named Kaku, known as "Mountain Wind," leaped from the shipyard into the port and returned in less than forty-five minutes.
During this time, Kalifa continued to ask Bill questions, but he politely declined to answer, believing the woman to be overly curious.
When Kaku returned, he appraised the ship at 7 million Beli, which turned out to be slightly higher than what Rans and Bill had estimated.
Leaving the building with 3 million Beli in hand, Bill contemplated buying a suit but ultimately decided against it.
With these funds, their total amounted to just 15 million Beli. They still needed a base, a laboratory, and though the "Border Breaker" was an excellent ship, they required many more vessels with sea stone hulls.
There was much to do, but as Bill returned to the ship, he thought that, despite everything, they were doing well considering they'd only been at sea for a few months.
After selling the pirate ship, Bill and Sasha waited for the others, and soon they set sail. None of the crew received even close to a million Beli for their first wages, and Bill was slightly surprised at how well his old friends managed to save money, even though they grew up in relatively privileged conditions.
Rans bought several rolls of fabric and sewing equipment, which he used to make himself a coat and attach a string to a badge that Bill had jokingly given him. This both pleased and slightly saddened Bill: on one hand, he had put considerable effort into making that rough badge, but on the other hand, the gift was just a joke and held no deep significance.
Fia and Sasha bought necessities for women that would make life at sea a bit more comfortable, Ricky purchased an encyclopedia, and Miyagi bought some dried plants, which he claimed could help him finish creating a "miracle medicine."
Bill asked Miyagi about his "medicine," and he replied that his goal was to "heal any wounds." If this had been said on Earth, Bill would have been skeptical, but in this world, he believed that creating a panacea was entirely possible.
Enies Lobby was quite close to Water 7, and following the sea train route, it took them only two days to reach the island and turn in the prisoners. The payout was immediate, demonstrating just how profitable pirate hunting could be: turning in three wanted criminals added a sum equivalent to a small fortune—43 million Beli—to the department's funds.