Otohime spent most of her time advocating for her ideals. The residents of Fishman Island could hear her speeches, but the humans on the surface couldn’t.
Compared to the five million residents of Fishman Island, the total number of humans was much, much larger. Especially considering the historical discrimination against the Fish-Men and Merfolk, who were once considered mere fishes.
Apart from relying on the World Government’s propaganda, Otohime couldn’t think of any way to change this perception globally. There were notable Fish-Men like Tiger, Namur, and others, but they were all notorious pirates.
In the eyes of ordinary people, this was undoubtedly negative publicity. Coupled with the appearance of Fish-Men themselves, many believed that Fish-Men were inherently vicious criminals.
To Otohime, Tesoro’s desire to shoot a film seemed like a perfect opportunity.
The entertainment in the one piece world is quite scarce and significantly limited. While some films could circulate on the Red Line, it’s a different story for countries on the islands. Whether it’s the intensity of promotion or other aspects, most people don’t have access to these channels.
Films from ten years ago may still be new releases on some islands, not to mention those islands that do not have the conditions to broadcast them.
Only when the basic issues of survival were mostly resolved, and people had extra money, could they afford to pursue entertainment.
In the one piece world, it’s a society where the upper class dictates to the lower class. A country’s king has the ability to restrict what the citizens hear and see. If the king and nobility of a kingdom are trying to discredit something, the lower class could only accept it.
If a highly influential film could be made, Otohime hoped that these people would be the first to see positive publicity about Fish-Men and Merfolk, which can lead to subsequent changes.
Not to mention cooperating, she was even willing to play some roles herself.
Tesoro naturally had no objections to Otohime’s cooperation and immediately started revising the script, as he was already juggling roles such as screenwriter, director, male lead, investor, and more.
There were not many professional actors, especially in the deep sea. Shooting a movie here was quite challenging.
So, the acting skills of other supporting roles might become an issue, and Tesoro’s solution to such problems was to go for authenticity. If it was difficult to act, then simply don’t act.
The plot of the movie was not complicated, even a bit clichéd. Such as the male protagonist encountering a storm at sea, falling overboard, and then being rescued by a Mermaid.
Initially, he was wary of Merfolk and Fish-Men, but upon getting to know them, he discovered that it was all societal prejudice. Eventually, they smoothly fell in love.
However, the male lead was a prince, and the king did not approve of it. He even bribed a group of pirates to abduct the Mermaid.
But the ambitions of those pirates went beyond that. They also kidnapped the king and demanded a huge ransom. In the end, the Mermaid, setting aside past grievances, escaped with the king. At the critical moment, the male lead appeared, defeated the villains, and everyone lived happily ever after.
The antagonist had to be a pirate, as otherwise, the World Government wouldn’t permit the screening. The prince’s identity was to cater to the masses, which was the current mainstream on the Red Line.
Princes and princesses were far more popular than commoner protagonists, whether they were born into royalty or ordinary life, they could better immerse themselves in this environment.
After all, the film also included a lot of opera, which was also mainstream nowadays.
Tesoro’s authenticity in acting was reflected here. They didn’t need to find people to play pirates; instead, they could easily get some non-wanted pirates to act as the pirates in the movie.
Even the king found someone to cameo for him in the film. Some kings, in order to ensure their safety, could spend a fortune to obtain the Beasts Pirates’ flag. So, they don’t mind it as Beasts Pirates were the uncrowned kings.
As for the fights, that wasn’t a problem at all. After all, the Beasts Pirates’ training involved in-fighting. When the time came, it could serve as real combat practice. However, only those who made it to the end were allowed to act; otherwise, injuries could become troublesome.
Among them, the Merfolk and Fish-Men appeared when the male lead lived on Fishman Island, showcasing the beautiful side of the place. For Otohime, this was already sufficient. However, Tesoro made a request – the Merfolk had to be fair-skinned and beautiful.
This time, he was promoting beauty whitening products. Having a dark-skinned Merfolk wouldn’t sell well.
Since the filming of the movie would take time, they decided to check out mining preparations.
During Kojiro’s inspection, he had already identified the locations of some mineral deposits.
To further confirm the environment there, Otohime and Neptune decided to accompany them and see where these minerals were. At the same time, they wanted to inspect the auxiliary mining machinery mentioned by Tesoro.
To express a sense of closeness, Neptune’s whale mount, Hoe, carried a bubble on its head, transporting them to the location marked on the sea chart.
As they gradually left the influence of Sunlight Tree Eve, the surroundings began to darken. Merfolk could still see in such an environment, but humans couldn’t. Tesoro and the others could no longer even see what was nearby.
Even Fish-Men don’t enjoy living in such a dim environment for an extended period. Otohime and Neptune, not being heartless capitalists, were about to inquire if there was a solution when Manaphy took action.
With a wave of his hands, the surrounding seawater, as if sensing something, suddenly emitted a faint golden light. The influence of this light continued to expand, quickly turning this silent deep sea into something akin to daytime.
The Prince of the Sea wasn’t just a title; it represented his control over marine life. These were deep-sea microorganisms with inherent bioluminescence. Under Manaphy’s influence, they gathered in large numbers, using their natural ability to illuminate the deep sea.
While a portion of the energy released by Manaphy became their nourishment.
However, as they looked at the suddenly brightened deep sea, Otohime and Neptune felt their heart tremble.
“Don’t, don’t make it so bright!”
Many organisms exhibit phototaxis, and the sudden bright light in the deep sea might attract Sea Kings. Fishman Island was not afraid of such incidents because, every once in a while, a Merfolk princess chosen as Poseidon would be born.
Due to Poseidon’s existence, Sea Kings wouldn’t attack Fishman Island. However, it was uncertain outside.
This was the reason they came to inspect the environment. They were concerned that there might be a Sea King’s nest nearby. Facing a large Sea King in the deep sea, even Fish-Men and Merfolk could only choose to escape.
But it was too late; in Otohime’s vision, a giant eye suddenly appeared, and below them was a colossal Sea King. Compared to that Sea King, Hoe the whale, who was carrying them, seemed minuscule.
“Don’t be afraid, don’t move around, and don’t shout. Let me try to communicate with it.”
Merfolk could communicate with fish, but Sea Kings were beyond that scope. Otohime intended to use her Observation Haki to communicate with it. The accompanying guards didn’t move; they knew that running was useless when facing such a monster.
Otohime was worried that Tesoro and the others might do something to provoke the Sea King, but she then noticed that these two showed no signs of fear. Moreover, the Sea King seemed uneasy; it appeared to be communicating with some creature.
“Good child, we didn’t mean to disturb you. Go back to sleep.”
Watching Manaphy on Stella’s shoulder, Otohime revealed an expression of disbelief.
In the eyes of ordinary people, Sea Kings were monsters incapable of communication. However, Otohime knew very well that they simply disdain communication because it’s a privilege for Poseidon only.
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