Check out advanced chapters on P@treon: [email protected]/CosmicKaminari
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"...Then I'll buy ten!"
"You guys go aside first, leave one for me!"
The scene quickly spiraled out of control!
The mermaid waitresses at the Mermaid Cafe abandoned their elegance, beating their fish tails to squeeze to the front;
Fish-men from Fish-Man District also arrived, emptying their savings just to buy a phone capable of live streaming!
Even prisoners held in jail asked relatives to purchase on their behalf, asking them to bring the phones during their next visit. "I heard you can watch adult films!" a certain seahorse Fish-man said.
Even more unexpectedly, many Fish-men who had been drifting abroad risked returning to their homeland.
A shark Fish-man covered in injuries squeezed to the counter: "I was caught three times in Sabaody! Those bastards said they could buy a phone if they sold me!" He trembled as he pulled out his savings. "This time, I'll die on Fish-Man Island even if I have to!"
"Me too, those guys' eyes lit up when they saw me, just like they saw a phone!"
"Damn it, am I only worth one phone?"
Ryugu Palace had to dispatch the Royal Guard to maintain order. The Left Minister looked at the frantic crowd on the surveillance footage and wiped away cold sweat:
"This is even more scary than the Eve riot back then..." The Right Minister, meanwhile, worriedly flipped through reports: "This batch is clearly not enough, hurry up and urge the dealers, the next shipment must send more..."
In the alley behind the shop,
A cloaked figure quietly pulled aside a Fish-man salesman who was selling phones:
"Hody Jones asked me to deliver a message..." He showed the stimulant in his arms, "Exchange this for twenty units..." The person's fish fins instantly turned pale with fright. He quickly called Jinbe's subordinates to take the man away.
Because this situation was completely beyond his control, he had already contacted security.
As night fell, the first batch of fifteen thousand phones sold out.
Pappag collapsed onto the empty shelves, his suit torn.
He looked at the scattered packaging boxes and gave a wry smile: "I should have known not to learn from humans and do this hunger marketing..."
Suddenly, his phone vibrated. Morgans sent a holographic projection: "Dear Mr. Pappag! The new order has been sent! By the way, would Princess Shirahoshi like to do a live streaming debut? The reward split is negotiable!"
"Ah? That's not something I can decide," Pappag quickly refused. "That depends on King Neptune's wishes."
"Oh oh, please give my regards to King Neptune."
"..."
...
Inside a hot spring tavern on a certain spring island in the New World,
Ron was lazily soaking in the misty open-air hot spring.
The hot spring pool beneath him was carved from a single piece of volcanic rock, and sake and a sashimi platter he had just brought up from downstairs were placed by the pool.
In the distance on the sea, the giant Sea King, Little King, was obediently curled up in the harbor, scaring nearby fishing boats from leaving port.
"Now this is life..." Ron sighed contentedly, the warm spring water relaxing every muscle in his body.
He casually picked up his entertainment phone, and the water droplets on the screen quickly disappeared as he swiped.
The first video on the TikTok app's opening screen was a Fish-Man Island tourism promotional video – "A fantasy kingdom ten thousand meters underwater, the home of mermaids and Fish-men."
As he scrolled, Ron was suddenly attracted by a simple video.
In the video, several mermaid girls awkwardly sang to the camera, the shooting angle was crooked, and the spires of coral houses could be seen in the background.
"Looks like Fish-Man Island is also keeping up with the times..." Ron lightly smiled and liked it.
Following the algorithm's recommendations, more and more Fish-Man Island videos appeared on his homepage:
A chef from Fish-Man District was live streaming the cooking of "Deep Sea Tyrant's Feast," making sashimi from glowing lanternfish;
The waitresses at the Mermaid Cafe were dancing clumsy TikTok dances, their fish tails constantly hitting their companions by accident;
An aged Fish-man elder was recounting stories of Fisher Tiger to the camera, with a child's voice in the background shouting, "Grandpa, look at the camera!"
Just as Ron was about to swipe away, a special video suddenly popped up.
The cover was Princess Shirahoshi's deep blue, sea-like eyes, and the title read "My Daily Life."
After clicking to open it, the screen shook violently a few times before stabilizing, clearly indicating the shooter was unskilled.
"H-hello everyone..." Shirahoshi's timid voice came from the speaker. Her pink long hair was a bit messy, and she was huddled in a corner of the Hard Shell Tower.
The camera swept over the walls covered in knife marks and the faint shadows visible outside the window.
"I... I want to see the outside world..." Her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes. "But Vander Decken, he..."
Princess Shirahoshi's trembling fingers tightly clutched the phone, her pink long hair falling on both sides of her face.
She took a deep breath and finally gathered the courage to look directly at the camera, tears glistening in her clear, ocean-like eyes.
"F-friends on the surface..." Her voice was as light as sea foam. "I am the mermaid princess Shirahoshi... I've been forced to live in the Hard Shell Tower since I was six years old..."
The camera slowly moved along her swimming path, filming this magnificent prison – the walls were densely covered with axes and spears thrown by Vander Decken, some already rusted, some still gleaming with cold light.
When the camera reached the window, a giant sword suddenly swept past, scaring Shirahoshi so much she almost dropped the phone.
"That person... Vander Decken IX..." Shirahoshi bit her lower lip, pearl-like tears rolling down. "As long as I take one step out of the Hard Shell Tower, weapons will rain down from the sky..."
She showed the densely packed weapons on the Hard Shell Tower and a shallow scar on the wall. "Even the guards my father sent..."
The video suddenly shook violently, and a shout of "Princess, be careful!" came from the distance.
The screen finally froze on a whistling giant axe, and then suddenly ended!
This short two-minute video, however, exploded on TikTok like a depth charge!
The comment section had already blown up:
[What?! The mermaid princess is imprisoned?!]
[Those knife marks... My god, how has she lived these years?]
[@Marine Headquarters, do something!]
[Shouldn't this be @Neo Marines?]
[That's useless too, ten thousand meters underwater, what can the Marines do!]
[Ten likes, go kill that scumbag!]
[...]
Princess Shirahoshi's plea for help video stirred up huge waves on the internet!
Ron, soaking in the hot spring, lightly swiped his finger and directly threw a million Berry worth of "TikTok Boost" at the video.
Instantly,
Shirahoshi's video was massively pushed out to every corner of the world, the bubble bars in Sabaody, the mess hall at Marine Headquarters, the secret base of the Revolutionary Army, and even the small islands in the East Blue...
Everyone saw the mermaid princess trapped in the Hard Shell Tower.
"Interesting, let's see how much weight 'justice' in this world carries." Ron's mouth curved slightly as he swirled his wine glass, quietly waiting for the world's reaction.
Soon, Shirahoshi's account updated with a new video,
This time, the person appearing on screen was not the timid princess, but the King of Fish-Man Island – Neptune!