Marlo and Ratcliffe ran into the forest alongside a hundred other panicky pirates that ran haphazardly in fear.

There were many hideouts deep in the forest, so some went to the ones they could remember.

Of course, others thought of riding towards the other camps to call for help.

They didn't think that these people would be able to take everyone on the island all at once.

One should know that their crew alone roughly had 15,000, and the other crews had 13~14000 people in them.

Of course, their first captains had several other men and shots on missions at the moment.

So there were only about 15,000 of them in the base.

Again, some freshly new pirate captives were currently in another island training.

Each time slaves were brought and assigned to crews or positions on land, they would first get trained on another island for a year and a half before they began working where they were stationed.

From there, many start by becoming floor boys who clean the deck at all times.

And with time, they eventually become the fierce and lawless pirates that they were today.

On the training island, all their complaints, plans and hopes of escaping will be driven out of them in very gruesome manners.

So they had no choice but to give up because even if they did escape, they would now be 'wanted' by the pirate organization for life.

This was bad because greedy people who spotted them would undoubtedly want to turn them in and get the reward money.

And if they had another family, then that family would also be targeted as well.

In short, escape wasn't an option for them.

So they had to give up and accept their faiths as pirates.

.

Anyway, their crew got 1,200 recruits after making them fight each other hand with only daggers at hand.

They could fight as they liked with anything going.

But they couldn't kill their opponent or deliver a fatal attack.

After all, every one of them was still merchandise that had been bought.

So after fighting, the pirate captains would bid for the fiercest, smartest or even strategic ones.

Of course, the ordinary ones would still be gotten at lower prices, but the eye-catching ones were treated as treasures.

And last year during April, after the fierce bidding, their crew got 1,200 new pirate recruits that have been training on that island ever since.

Additionally, they also had another 5000 or so who were out on missions.

So their total population was around 20,000 for just their pirate crew, the Rock-Head pirates.

Anyhow, even with just 15,000 people currently at the base, they still felt like this alone was enough to give any enemy headaches and nightmares.

So the chances of the enemy presently attacking the other bases on the different sides of the island seemed less likely.

After all, the other crews also had thousands of people there too.

With that in mind, several pirates ran towards the island's extreme ends to get aid from the other pirate crews.

Some also ran towards the ship docks of the other crews in order to get on their ships and urge them to set sail instantly.

This matter needed to be reported to headquarters at once.

And so just like that, Marlo and Ratcliffe found themselves running and bumping into confused and panicked pirates that couldn't decide whether to go back, forth or to the sides.

.

"Radcliffe."

"Yes my Lord, say no more." 

Din Din Din Din

"Uhh!"

With quick assassin steps, Ratcliffe secretly knocked down two confused pirates by their side who had similar physiques to them.

One should know that even though it was nighttime, the moonlight was so bright that they could see each other's faces here.

Ratcliffe glanced around and after confirming that no one saw anything, he and Marlo dragged the bodies to the bushes.

Three minutes later, they came out with entirely different attires, as well as head scarfs over their heads and mouths.

Since the enemy could now identify their faces and clothes, it was paramount that they switched it up as soon as possible, should they run into the enemy again.

Stepping out of the bushes, they once again mingled amongst the other panicky pirates calmly.

They stayed in the middle of a particular group of people, as they intended to use them as experimental subjects.

Unlike the pirates who were too scared at the moment while rushing for safety, they on the other hand still had their sense online.

This was the forest, so how could they ever forget about the dangers of mother nature?

.

Ratcliffe and Marlo looked at each other in understanding while ensuring they stayed in the middle of the group.

And just as they expected, they encountered several tests from mother nature, all of which didn't affect them since they remained in their center positions.

Many pirates drowned in sinking mud, while others ran close to massive beautiful but deadly plants that sucked them dry.

Some idiot also accidentally bumped into a Hongorous beehive that was a colony of red bees which were smaller than regular bees but more gruesome.

The bees all swarmed around the idiot's face, disfigured him and killed him in a matter of minutes.

But how could mother nature let things go?

'Grrrrrrr!!!'

A deep grunting noise echoed all around the group, making many tremble weakly.

Some had just been thinking about leaving the group and branching off to where they wanted to head to.

But now, how dare they?

The sound right now didn't sound like it came from one creature.

No!!

It sounded like many beasts were out there hiding in the shadows, waiting to have a taste of their thick flesh.

'Sling!'

They took their swords and daggers out impatiently while carefully observing their surroundings

"My Lord, it appears that we have company."

"Hmm.

In this case, then this group is now useless to us, understand?"

Ratcliffe smiled broadly and while looking at the anxious pirates.

"My lord, I understand."

"Good."