Level 5! Ocean Headlines App
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(A/N: If you want to see more chapters, go to my P@treon to see more chapters ahead. You can see more than 20 chapters ahead of everyone on my P@treon: -www.p@treon.com/VoyageToGlory
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Two months had passed since Kael ascended to the throne of Alabasta.
Though burdened with the responsibilities of ruling a vast kingdom, Kael remained focused on his primary goal—spreading his phones far and wide.
By employing aggressive publicity campaigns and affordable pricing strategies, Kael managed to achieve astonishing results. In just two months, the sales of his magical phones reached an impressive one million units.
What truly stood out was that more than half of these sales came from overseas markets. The phones had become increasingly popular across the seas, particularly among merchants. On the vast oceans, where smooth communication was often a luxury, Kael's phones proved indispensable.
For small merchants, the cost of owning Den Den Mushi was prohibitive, while larger fleets found it impractical to equip every ship with one. Kael's affordable and efficient phones filled this gap perfectly, making them a must-have tool for anyone involved in maritime trade.
One of the most significant contributors to this success was the Silverfang Consortium from East Blue.
Once a renowned trading powerhouse, the consortium had fallen into decline with the rise of underworld figures like Doflamingo and other Underworld Emperors. However, through their partnership with Kael, they accounted for over 100,000 units sold, helping to revive their fading influence.
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In the palace, Kael sat buried in paperwork, a task that might have overwhelmed a lesser ruler.
However, Kael had an advantage—he had downloaded the knowledge and skills needed to handle these administrative tasks directly from the ministers in the palace using his unique abilities. With this edge, managing the affairs of the kingdom became far less daunting.
Once the paperwork was out of the way, Kael dedicated most of his time to producing phones. His wealth multiplied exponentially during these two months.
The sale of one million phones had generated over 5 billion Beli in revenue. Additionally, the monthly communication fees from his user base brought in an extra 300 million Beli, ensuring a steady stream of income.
Kael had devised a clever communication fee system inspired by prepaid cards from his previous life.
Merchants sold recharge cards, each containing a unique code that users could input into their phones to top up their balance. The codes were generated seamlessly through the powers of the Phone-Phone Fruit, leaving no room for bugs or errors.
However, what thrilled Kael the most wasn't the sheer wealth he had accumulated—it was the evolution of his Phone-Phone Fruit. With the recent progress, his Devil Fruit powers had leveled up once again, unlocking new capabilities.
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[Mobile Fruit Level 5:
Current User Count: 1,000,000
Memory: 110GB/301GB
Network: 3G Enabled
Download Speed: 400 KB/s
Download Range: 10 km
New Feature: Basic App Creation]
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After reaching the milestone of one million units sold, Kael's Phone-Phone Fruit underwent its fifth evolution, bringing transformative upgrades to the mobile phones.
The memory capacity expanded from 101GB to an astonishing 301GB, and the download speed doubled, reaching a level comparable to Earth's 3G networks. Additionally, the phones' download range increased to an impressive 10 kilometers, further solidifying Kael's ability to download other skills and abilities.
But the most groundbreaking change was the unlocking of a new feature: Basic App Creation.
Through this function, Kael could now develop and install applications directly onto every mobile phone he created. While these apps were relatively simple, akin to Java applications on Earth, they marked the dawn of smartphone functionality in this world.
One significant advantage of the Phone-Phone Fruit was that hardware upgrades didn't require users to purchase new devices. Instead, Kael sent upgrade notifications to their phones, allowing users to transform their devices into fifth-generation models with a single update.
This seamless process ensured that the phones stayed cutting-edge without the hassle of replacing them, a concept that left merchants and users in awe.
For the debut of the fifth-generation phones, Kael created his first app: Ocean Headlines.
Though basic, the app was a game-changer. It functioned as a platform for disseminating information, essentially a news website. The process was straightforward: Kael's team would purchase newspapers from News Coo, copy their content, and upload it to the app. The entire operation took just ten minutes.
The world was home to over ten major newspapers, each covering different regions and topics. In Alabasta, five newspapers were readily available, which was sufficient for the launch of Ocean Headlines.
To manage this new venture, Kael established a dedicated News Department, responsible for gathering and compiling content. They also created additional articles under Kael's guidance, ensuring the platform offered a mix of existing news and original content.
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Crocodile, the mastermind behind the chaos in Alabasta, he was able to move freely because of his control over public opinion.
His schemes relied heavily on manipulating the masses through misinformation and fear. However, Kael recognized this and resolved to turn the tide using one of the most powerful strategic tools of the 21st century—media influence.
Kael's plan was simple yet efficient: with the right level of hype and information control, he could undermine Crocodile's schemes without triggering a civil war.
Ocean Headlines would serve as his weapon, exposing Crocodile's lies and countering his propaganda. Kael's strategy was to flood the app with accurate news, investigative reports, and uplifting stories, gradually building trust among the people of Alabasta and beyond.
The introduction of Ocean Headlines marked the beginning of a media revolution. While the app itself was still in its infancy, it represented the first step toward shaping public opinion on a massive scale. Crocodile, with all his cunning and manipulation, would soon discover what true media influence looked like.
With his wealth multiplying, his technology advancing, and his influence spreading, Kael was sure that his plan would work. He didn't need to meet Crocodile head-on in battle. Instead, he would wield the power of information to dismantle Crocodile's plans piece by piece.
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Suddenly, one million mobile phone users received a notification for the much-anticipated upgrade.
Over 90% of users, intrigued by the new features, eagerly opted to proceed. Within moments, their devices underwent a transformation—what were once basic phones now sported vibrant color screens, along with a brand-new app: Ocean Headlines.
Curiosity got the better of them, and users began opening the app. What they saw left them speechless—an extensive collection of news articles from various newspapers, including content they had never purchased or even heard of before.
"This… this is the newspaper content?" One user muttered in astonishment.
"Wait a minute!" Another exclaimed: "Does this mean I won't have to buy newspapers anymore?!"
The realization spread like wildfire. The convenience and accessibility of having the world's news in their pockets triggered an outburst of excitement.
"This is revolutionary!"
"I don't need to spend a single Beli on newspapers anymore. Everything's here!"
"I've never seen anything like this. It's incredible!"
"I'm buying another phone for my old man!"
"I'll buy 100 phones, take them overseas, and make a fortune!"
The sheer convenience and innovation of Ocean Headlines created a frenzy. Kael's vision for a media revolution was already coming to life.
Of the one million users, only 300,000 were from Alabasta, but the app's impact went far beyond the kingdom's borders. The buzz surrounding Ocean Headlines was electric, and its influence was spreading faster Kael anticipated.
Pell, stared intently at the content on his phone. As he scrolled through the articles, he couldn't shake the feeling that something monumental was taking shape.
For centuries, the Den Den Mushi had been hailed as the pinnacle of communication technology. Yet, here was a device that didn't just connect people but gave them the power to browse, share, and access the world's news directly from wherever they were—without ever needing to buy a newspaper.
Kael, meanwhile, had a larger plan in motion. Without direct evidence to take down Crocodile, he decided to weaponize the power of Ocean Headlines.
Through the app, Kael began to carefully craft stories exposing Crocodile's dark past—his crimes, manipulations, and the schemes he had orchestrated behind the scenes.
Though the kingdom largely revered Crocodile as a hero, believing his narrative of protecting Alabasta by defeating pirates, Kael knew the truth: no amount of staged heroics could erase Crocodile's past.
Kael's strategy was subtle but powerful. Instead of outright accusations, he used investigative articles and carefully curated stories to sow doubt among the people.
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In just a week after the launch of Ocean Headlines, a torrent of carefully crafted articles—designed by Kael to subtly shift public opinion—began circulating discreetly throughout Alabasta via his phones.
These articles didn't directly accuse Crocodile of wrongdoing, nor did they exonerate the Royal Family from allegations regarding the use of Dance Powder. Instead, they posed thought-provoking questions, encouraging citizens to think critically about the narratives they had been fed.
"If the Royal Family truly had the wealth to purchase Dance Powder for years, why didn't they use it to solve the kingdom's drought problem? What would they gain from making their people to suffer?"
Another article questioned: "If Crocodile is truly the hero who saved the kingdom, why, as the so-called Hero of Alabasta, did he not help the citizens when they needed him the most?"
Alongside these questions, Kael introduced articles discussing Crocodile's past. They detailed his time as a powerful pirate in the New World and his significant achievements during that era.
While these pieces appeared to praise Crocodile's strength and accomplishments, they subtly highlighted his ruthless and heinous deeds. The intent was clear: to expose the darker side of Crocodile's history without directly condemning him, allowing the people to draw their own conclusions.
As these articles spread, rumors began reaching the ears of the rebel army. However, blinded by anger and resentment toward the Royal Family, most rebels dismissed them outright, citing the lack of concrete evidence.
Yet, not everyone was so quick to disregard the whispers. Among the populace, a growing segment began to see beyond the surface, realizing that the situation was far more complex than it seemed.
This was the power of controlling public opinion. Kael understood that in a kingdom as vast as Alabasta, it would be nearly impossible to completely discredit the Royal Family through baseless rumors alone.
It had taken Crocodile years to manipulate the people and build his influence, but Kael was confident that, with the right strategies and tools, he could undo Crocodile's efforts in a fraction of the time.
By combining truth, half-truths, and cleverly veiled questions, Kael was planting seeds of doubt—seeds that would soon grow into a force capable of toppling the false narrative Crocodile had spent years weaving.