It turned out Zhang Da Ye's advertising worked pretty well. By evening, the tavern was much busier than at noon.
At the busiest times, Rui Meng Meng couldn't handle all the customers alone. Zhang Da Ye and Shark Chili helped out as temporary servers, while Artoria and Tom manned the cash register for a while.
Finally, during a brief lull, Zhang Da Ye wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead. Such light work wasn't enough to make him sweat anymore. "No wonder people aim for trending topics. Exposure is easy money."
"What's this hot search the little boss is talking about?" someone familiar asked, intrigued by the new term.
"I said the weather's getting hotter, food goes bad faster, but we never sell spoiled food," Zhang Da Ye replied casually.
The person touched their ear. "That's a lie. I wasn't drunk. That's definitely not what I just heard!"
"Drunk people always say they're not drunk."
"Huh… maybe I am? Did I get drunk?"
Zhang Da Ye felt pleased. People in this world were really easy to fool.
"Never mind that. I heard someone saw the little boss hitting people with a golden folding stool. Is it true?"
Many nearby perked up at that question.
"Yes," Zhang Da Ye nodded and reached under the bar, pulling out the folding stool. "This is the one."
"So… so shiny!" A crowd quickly gathered around.
Zhang Da Ye looked at the person who first spoke. "Want to touch it?"
"Can… can I?" the person asked excitedly.
Zhang Da Ye teased, "Just touch it?"
"Really?" The person's face lit up with anticipation, and the onlookers were eager too.
"Exactly! I can even let you sit on it. One second costs a thousand Berries." Before the person could fully rejoice, Zhang Da Ye added the price.
The crowd immediately complained. "So expensive! Charging by the second!"
"Not at all. Most people will never see a stool made entirely of gold. Plus, it was handcrafted by a Fishman Island artisan—maybe even a mermaid!"
Zhang Da Ye had that confident look of someone who believed sitting on it was a profit. He suspected all the ads he watched had taught him some tricks.
Slap. The person slapped a 5,000 Berry bill on the table. "I want five seconds. Worst case, I'll skip a drink!"
"No problem." Zhang Da Ye happily took the money and set down the shared golden folding stool, feeling like a business genius.
The person swallowed nervously, lightly touched the seat, then sat down with pure bliss. "Ah~"
Sitting on a stool like this felt like sitting on a toilet! Zhang Da Ye was disgusted by the tiny expression.
"Time's up." As the five seconds ended, Zhang Da Ye kicked him off.
The person looked reluctant, but didn't dare cause trouble in the tavern. He stood up and walked out, already planning tomorrow's boasting material.
Seeing this, the crowd couldn't resist. Everyone pulled out bills of various amounts.
"I want to try!"
"Me too!"
In just ten minutes, excluding switching players and bargaining, Zhang Da Ye earned nearly 300,000 Berries.
Once no one signed up, he put the stool away and admired the crowd. Surprisingly, no one even tried to steal it.
"Impressive, Da Ye. I didn't think of making money this way," said old Bob, the tavern's original owner, who had apparently been watching from the back.
"Uncle Bob, you're here? Honestly, I didn't expect so many people to spend that kind of money." Zhang Da Ye greeted him and poured a drink.
"I was just wandering around. The commotion was all your doing," Bob explained. "Maybe people have it easier this year, so they don't mind spending a bit."
Zhang Da Ye asked curiously, "What's different this year?"
Bob said, "The Sabaody Archipelago is noticeably safer, so all industries are earning more."
Could that be my doing? Zhang Da Ye flattered himself, but quickly realized he'd only been here for three months. He hadn't taken down many pirate shops or captured many pirates, so his influence couldn't be that big.
Zhang Da Ye suggested two plausible reasons. "Is it because Admiral Kizaru took office? Or because the Sabaody Navy garrison is stronger than before?"
"No, Kizaru only recently took office, and the garrison here hasn't changed much," Bob said. Then he mentioned another factor. "It's probably the 'Devil's Triangle.'"
"The Devil's Triangle?" Zhang Da Ye thought first of the Bermuda Triangle, then realized this was the One Piece world. It must refer to the area controlled by Shichibukai Gecko Moria.
"Yes, it's a region shrouded in thick fog year-round. One wrong move and ships drift off course. Many ships disappear there every year, and this year there have been especially many."
"Rumor has it there are terrifying monsters. This year alone, over a hundred ships vanished."
Zhang Da Ye considered that Moria's breakdown by Kaido was nearly ten years ago, and he's been a Shichibukai for a while. Only now ready to start again?
Listening to Bob describe this mysterious sea and its terrifying creatures, Tom grew scared but still curious.
"They say ghost ships appear, moving skeletons, and strange singing…"
Zhang Da Ye recognized this. Brook, a funny, lecherous skeleton, was probably drifting there for fun. People could easily mistake him for a ghost.
Holding trembling Tom, Zhang Da Ye considered rescuing him at sea later to meet Laboon the whale.
"So, the reduction in pirates around Sabaody Archipelago is mainly due to the Devil's Triangle?"
Bob thought for a moment. "If you want to call it a credit, it's not really. Many merchant ships vanished too."
"True." Moria wasn't exactly a hero. Zhang Da Ye looked at Bob's empty bottle. "7600 Berries, please."
Old Bob frowned. "Huh? You haven't seen me for so long and won't even buy me a drink?"
Zhang Da Ye calmly replied, "Business is business. Not a Berry less. You taught me that."
Old Bob: … Did I just trap myself?
For most people in Sabaody, this day was like any other.
Only that night, people leaving the tavern compared odd experiences:
"I sat five seconds. It felt amazing!"
"Haha, I got ten seconds!"
"Eh? I only got three…"
Bystanders heard this and felt something was off but had no idea what these people were talking about.
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