Arceus's Pirate Journey

Chapter 499: Chapter 498: The Premiered Mermaid Blockbuster

Some of the Ancient Islands naturally can’t screen movies, but this is the Four Seas, not the Grand Line. The varying climates and strange islands are mostly found in the Grand Line and the Windless Zone.

Although the islands of the Four Seas vary in development, they are generally on the same level, without the huge gaps between the Stone Age and the Electrical Age. As long as a country or island is somewhat affluent, entertainment facilities are quite comprehensive.

Queen stopped to rest precisely to enjoy himself, so naturally, he would choose an island with better development, and cinemas are not hard to find in such places.

”Tesoro? Is it really him? Has that movie already been released?”

Before he and Yamato left Ghost Island, there was word from Tesoro’s side about this. It was the movie shot on Fishman Island. The shooting didn’t take long, but post-production and smoothing over relations took much more time.

The World Government is the World Government after all. Though movies can circulate without their approval, to show them openly in all member nations, a World Government permit is necessary.

Even so, some countries will still ban certain films because these films would violate their local customs, and the protagonists might be considered heretics there.

As for Yamato’s way of addressing him, he gave up resisting but comforted himself. Yamato called others elder brother or sister, but only called him uncle, which meant he was considered a generation older than them.

He didn’t reject Yamato’s proposal to watch a movie; it would only take about two hours. However, he felt some discrimination from the cinema.

”What? I can’t sit in the front row? Ah! Isn’t this money? Are you looking down on me?!”

”No...it’s not that, sir, but if you sit in the front row...”

Looking at Queen’s size, the ticket seller showed a troubled expression. If Queen sat in the front row, others might not be able to see, as he might even block the projector’s view.

Had it not been for Yamato liking a lively atmosphere, Queen would have definitely chosen a private screening. In the end, he could only choose the VIP box on the second floor because he simply couldn’t fit into the regular seats.

The movie begins quite simply, with Tesoro, the heir to the throne, caught in a storm at sea and accidentally falling overboard. He was then rescued by a mermaid named Stella.

Initially, he was afraid of mermaids and fishmen, because in his country’s rumors, they were man-eating demons carrying deadly viruses. Contact with them would supposedly infect humans with a fish plague.

This wasn’t his own fabrication; in many places, there really were such misunderstandings regarding fishmen.

But as they spent time together, he realized those were just societal prejudices. Eventually, they fell in love smoothly.

Being a prince, the King did not approve and even hired a pirate crew to kidnap the mermaid.

He believed his son should marry a princess from another kingdom and survive with a powerful alliance.

However, the ambitions of the pirates went beyond that; they even kidnapped the King for a large ransom, and eventually, it was the mermaid who saved the King, disregarding her past grievances.

In this process, the Queen secretly contacted Tesoro, letting him know what had truly happened.

Then, in the final moment, the male protagonist appeared, defeated the bad guys, and everyone lived happily together.

There’s a lot of personal emotion in the story. For instance, the King and Queen overly doted on their son, even hired the best vocal coach in the country for him.

That’s Tesoro’s dissatisfaction with his own life. He longs for supportive parents, but reality had already shattered his ideals, so he could only fabricate such a fact in a movie.

The film’s theme is to advocate for the equality of mermaids, fishmen, and humans, and for more communication between parents and children. It’s not about pursuing an artistic style that ordinary people can’t understand. He didn’t make this movie to win awards but to ensure normal people would want to watch it.

While the plot wasn’t overwhelmingly superior, it was above average, coupled with the spectacular effects and realistic fights at no cost, receiving a decent reaction.

However, Yamato couldn’t immerse herself because most of the actors were people she knew, making it feel a bit out of place.

In scenes that moved others, she would mentally insert some comedic images, similar to finding that everyone has Zhang Wei’s average face while watching The Shining, making it impossible to be moved.

The depiction of Fishman Island caught her interest more, appearing more realistic than the postcards Jack brought back.

Hence, she added Fishman Island to her future travel goals.

Queen, on the other hand, planned to later ask Tesoro for the contacts of a few supporting actresses, as he had two new favorite stars.

For ordinary people, this film held some educational value. At Otohime’s request, Tesoro added a two-minute sidebar for Fishman Island, to educate on their legitimacy and mentioned the law stating that mermaids and fishmen are people, not fish, at the end.

But in other places, the film’s reaction was entirely different, especially on Fishman Island, where Otohime was moved to tears.

The storyline was just a part; more importantly, she sensed some long-lost notions of goodness within the audience.

Some came from the fishmen and mermaids, and others from humans staying on Fishman Island. This was a very positive beginning for her.

Fishman Island didn’t have a dedicated cinema, but for this film, she specially enlisted the help of the Hundred Beasts Fruit and Mineral Division to procure a projector, showing the film for free at Jidekailong Square.

Spurred by Otohime, many chose to come watch, while some came with the intent of watching for free. Movies were rare on Fishman Island, and many were hearing the term for the first time in their lives.

Thus, when it was shown, Jidekailong Square was packed with people, and Neptune even dispatched the Sea King Army to maintain order there.

Tesoro didn’t ignore reality. He repeatedly used Rushaka’s words in the film to mention one thing — that the land is dangerous for mermaids and young mermaids should stay away from there, as he didn’t want a movie to lead to more incidents of mermaids getting hurt.

He loathed the identity of being a slave. In the original timeline, due to Stella’s death and his life as a slave, he was completely shrouded in darkness, choosing to use wealth to enslave more people.

Yet, things are different now: he is a veteran member of the Anti-Slavery Association on the Red Earth Continent. The aim of this association is to urge the World Government to abolish slavery. However, it’s utterly ineffective, and at most, they can only help some people in dire situations in secret.