Suddenly, Marigold seemed to remember something and said excitedly, "Ron-sama, I almost forgot! When I was scrolling through TikTok yesterday, I saw tons of comments asking where they could buy those beautiful outfits!"
"But at the time, I figured there was no way to send them out, so I didn't think much of it. But now it's different! With Ron-sama's shopping cart, we can instantly deliver these clothes and make money!"
At that, Marigold couldn't sit still anymore and immediately sprang into action. "I'm going to gather the island's best needleworkers and rush a batch of high-quality stockings. Those things are guaranteed to sell like crazy!"
Ron smiled. Among the sisters, Marigold was the most straightforward and hardworking. She always acted the moment she made a decision, never slacking.
Hancock also stood up to return to her room. "Then this Empress will go prepare for the livestream, Ron-sama."
Sandersonia got up as well, needing to go back and study how to teach, simplify her process, and figure out how to film for those without snake tails.
In the blink of an eye, the room emptied out, leaving only Ron behind.
"They show up fast and disappear faster," Ron said with a helpless chuckle as he shook his head.
Then, Ron checked the backend of the system. The number of TikTok users had already exceeded thirty million.
While that was just a fraction compared to his previous world, it was already a huge leap forward.
Just then, his phone buzzed with a notification.
Clicking it open, he saw a short video from Hancock. She was wearing a cheongsam, standing tall with her fair neck exposed, and quite a bit of her porcelain skin peeking out. She radiated confidence and charm.
She declared boldly:
[I, Empress Hancock, will begin my livestream tonight at 8 PM. I hope everyone will tune in and support me ♡]
As soon as the video was posted, it racked up over 100,000 likes in under a minute.
That was the power of fan devotion!
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… This really brings back memories of scrolling TikTok in my past life. Time to give it a little push."
Ron used his system privileges to promote Hancock's video, boosting its reach so more people would see it.
The video instantly began trending and spreading, with the comments section exploding with excitement.
After all, this was the only way anyone could look directly at Hancock without being turned to stone.
"Goddess! My goddess! I'll definitely watch the livestream!"
"I was supposed to go out today to hunt Pirates, but now that Empress Hancock is going live, I'll do it tomorrow instead."
"Damn it, I was gonna capture a few Marine soldiers to do chores today, but forget it. Empress Hancock comes first!"
"You lunatics! Stop polluting my goddess's comment section!"
"These phones are the best invention ever. If not for them, we'd all be petrified before we even got a glimpse!"
"Yeah, Hancock's powers are terrifying. Anyone with even slightly unstable thoughts would be stone the moment they saw her!"
"Thank you, phones! Thank you, TikTok devs!"
...
A whole crowd of people was filled with gratitude toward Ron, because getting a chance to admire the Empress's beauty without dying was basically a miracle.
...
Marineford, Fleet Admiral's Office.
Garp was lounging on the side, one hand on his phone scrolling TikTok, the other hand shoveling senbei into his mouth.
"Ahahaha! Hilarious! This stuff is gold!"
Garp pulled Sengoku over. "Sengoku, come see this! That bastard Wapol got wrecked! Damn satisfying! How can a guy who kicks out doctors still call himself a king?!"
Sengoku grunted, his face twitching, but Garp dragged him to the next video. Coincidentally, it was Luffy's.
"I'm Monkey D. Luffy! The man who will become the Pirate King!" Luffy shouted confidently in the video.
At the end, there was a group outro recorded by the Straw Hat Crew: "Please follow us and witness our journey of chasing dreams and growing together. Thank you~"
Garp, furious over Luffy being a Pirate, slammed his phone a few times, then just kept scrolling. "This brat… Seriously! He's still so proud to be a Pirate!"
Seeing Garp fume, Sengoku finally laughed. "Your grandson is nothing like you, Garp. And now, thanks to TikTok, he's famous. Loads of Pirates want a piece of him now."
Garp didn't mind at all. "Let the kid suffer a little. He'll beg me to join the Marines eventually."
Sengoku shook his head. He'd seen all kinds of people in his time, and he was sure of one thing—Luffy would never become a Marine.
But this phone… it really was convenient. Even he didn't have one yet.
It wasn't about money. It was just that the phones had been out of stock for ages.
Before they blew up in popularity, he hadn't known about them. After they went viral, knowing didn't help him get one.
And as Fleet Admiral, it was unthinkable to go begging his subordinates for one. That would be humiliating.
So now he just sat there, watching Garp swipe through videos with an envious expression.
Garp, of course, knew exactly what he was thinking and deliberately exaggerated his phone-swiping moves, making Sengoku grind his teeth in frustration. He genuinely wanted to punch the old man and snatch the phone.
"…Garp, given our years of friendship, could I borrow your phone for just one day?" Sengoku asked cautiously.
"Nope." Garp shook his head immediately and decisively. "I borrowed this one from Bogard. I have to return it when I head back."
"…"
Borrowed?
You call that borrowing?
If Sengoku hadn't seen Bogard confiscate Koby's phone with his own eyes, he might've actually believed that lie.
"Hmph! If you won't lend it, I'll just buy my own!"
"Then hurry up and buy one. And get one for me too. I'll pay you back when you return," Garp said without even looking up.
BANG!
The door burst open as Sengoku's adjutant rushed in.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku! I didn't let you down. I got the phone!" The adjutant proudly held up a brand-new phone box.
The moment Sengoku saw it, his eyes lit up.
A brand-new phone. The ones that had been out of stock were finally back?
"Excellent, excellent!"
"Hahaha! Garp! I've got my own phone now. You can keep playing with yours," Sengoku said smugly.
Garp glanced over, snorted, and kept scrolling through videos.
Sengoku opened the box and skimmed the instructions. Since getting hooked on the idea of phones, he'd already done his research and learned how to use one.
Now that it was in his hands, the first thing he did was open TikTok and complete the real-name verification!
TikTok ID: Buddha Sengoku!
"Announce this to everyone. Tell all Marine personnel with phones to follow my TikTok. I'm staying up to date with the times too," Sengoku told his adjutant.
(To be continued.)