Seeing such a reaction, Bill did not completely blame Smoker for this remarkable oversight.
One thing he understood many years ago, working in the offices of Vallipo, was how difficult it was to control archipelagos in this world.
Communication snails were an incredible invention, but there simply weren't enough of them to cover every remote island. Therefore, the Navy had to rely on regular patrols, because, barring rare exceptions, they would never receive real calls for help.
Looking at Smoker, Bill said restrainedly, "It's not impossible because it happened. I have over two thousand witnesses on these ships who can confirm it."
With that, Bill recounted what he knew about the Trump Pirates and how he had arrested them. Smoker was stunned when Bill mentioned Queen Honey—no doubt because she also had a Devil Fruit of the Nature system.
A few minutes later, Bill concluded his story by saying, "I could understand why Loguetown didn't notice the problem since King Bear always paid tribute. But what I find hard to understand is how no one noticed dozens of pirate ships, all bearing the same symbols, and that these very ships were sailing to and from the Island of Mechanisms."
Hearing this, Smoker quickly grasped what Bill was implying, but still asked, "What are you trying to say, Captain Ox?"
At this moment, Bill could have rightfully accused Captain Smoker of incompetence, but though he was going to write his reports on what happened, obtaining help was more important now.
Without smiling, but also without blaming, Bill calmly replied, "I mean that I have over 2,500 refugees on those ships I captured from the Trump Pirates. We are low on food and other necessary supplies since we didn't have time to gather everything when the island was destroyed."
Saying this, Bill saw Smoker pondering and then spoke again: "I have an island where I can relocate the refugees. However, this island is beyond the Calm Belt, and it will take us about a month and a half for the round trip if everything goes according to plan."
Taking a drag on his cigars, Smoker nodded, then shook his head and stated, "Does your frigate carry four hundred people?"
Shaking his head, Bill replied: "Two hundred and fifty" Although the "Frontier Run" could accommodate four hundred people, it wasn't equipped to sustain them for a six-week journey.
Hearing this, Smoker looked up, then turned to Bill and said, "We don't have enough space or resources to accommodate that many refugees for a year..." Taking another drag from his cigars, Smoker seemed to ponder something before continuing: "But we'll do what we can. And if you need a big ship, we have one we can spare. But it won't come cheap."
Hearing this, Bill felt relieved—his approach had worked. After all, even if Smoker had completely overlooked the situation with the Island of Mechanisms, this man was too competent for Bill to immediately demand his removal from office.
Taking this as a good sign, Bill asked how much the ship would cost, but, receiving a sly look, Smoker said, "First, let's just inspect it. You need to see if you'd even want to take this ship—it's a bit damaged."
Agreeing, Bill accompanied the other captain to the docks located on the other side of the island.
Along the way, they discussed the needs of the refugees. Smoker believed they could provide sufficient drinking water and even help with food, but medical assistance would be stretched, and housing would present significant challenges.
The closest they came to a dispute was over the possibility of relocating the refugees to an uninhabited island nearby. Even though Smoker promised frequent supply deliveries, Bill naturally did not wish to leave a couple of thousand people in the wilderness while he and the others would be gone for at least a month and a half.
This thought troubled him even more due to the plans he had developed with the engineers. The first wave of settlers to Little East Blue was supposed to consist primarily of young and able-bodied individuals. This was necessary so that by the time children and elderly people arrived, they wouldn't be sleeping in tents.
As they turned the corner to the docks, Bill saw the ship Smoker was referring to—a majestic gargoyle figurehead was built directly into its hull.
Without much hesitation, they ascended the gangplank onto the deck. To get a better view of the ship, Bill said, "I'll go up top to inspect everything from above, alright?Saying he would return, he used Moon Step to soar into the air and inspect the ship.
Although the ship wasn't as tall as the massive warships in the Marineford harbor, its main deck was slightly lower than that of the "Frontier Run." Nevertheless, the ship was so wide that it housed three towers, each the size of small apartments, and dozens of cannons on each side.
Instead of a ship, it more resembled a small floating city. Bill thought the only reason this colossal vessel hadn't sunk was due to its hull made of sea stone.