Chapter 221 Queen Otohime Captivates Fish-Man Island
Fish-Man Island—the vigorous preliminary auditions for this selection had begun.
Though registration was conducted simultaneously, the auditions were not.
If preliminary auditions everywhere happened at the same time, how could they provide focused coverage?
That's what Tesoro thought.
So auditions in all regions were staggered, ensuring every competition zone received attention while keeping audiences in suspense. A win-win situation.
In the entire schedule, Fish-Man Island's preliminaries came first. Needless to say, this was Mr. Tesoro's consideration for an old friend.
The audition venue was Geode Square—only that location could easily accommodate such a lively selection event.
According to Tesoro, on Fish-Man Island alone, over ten thousand people had registered before the deadline to participate in preliminaries. This was quite an astonishing number—Fish-Man Island's total population was only five million.
Even after initial screening, the final number of successful registrants still reached several thousand.
This showed just how tremendous Tesoro's influence had become—instantly sparking a trend across Fish-Man Island.
Of course, Director Brett's strong support was also an indispensable factor. After all, no matter what, Fish-Man Island was Brett's home turf, and his prestige in this nation was unmatched.
Especially now, after the Heptagonal Alliance's establishment, all fish-men and merfolk knew they'd joined an immensely powerful force. This nation was becoming safer and stronger.
Brett privately thought that with his current prestige, he need only stand up and raise his arms—his worshippers would storm Ryugu Palace and crown him the nation's new king.
But there was no need. Neptune was doing well, and they were good friends. Maintaining the current arrangement was fine.
Perhaps in the future, they could gradually transition to a parliamentary system.
In any case, today Fish-Man Island's preliminaries would begin.
Outside the Mermaid Cafe, the shop's tables and chairs had been moved to the outdoor space, with customers enjoying a pleasant morning beneath opened parasols.
Brett sat in one of the chairs. The surrounding customers thought nothing of this—Brett and Shyarly's relationship was no longer a secret.
"Hasn't it started yet?" Shyarly walked over carrying two cups of coffee and sat beside Brett.
"Should be starting any moment now," Brett took a sip of coffee and replied. "Probably adjusting the equipment."
Before the open space, a screen had been set up with a Den Den Mushi placed before it, currently listless with closed eyes.
As they spoke, the previously lethargic Den Den Mushi suddenly perked up. It raised its head, and two beams of light shot from its opened eyes, converging on the screen to create a blurry image.
"It's here! There's a picture!"
"Finally starting?"
"Hahaha, been looking forward to this!"
The cafe's customers immediately grew excited.
The image on screen gradually sharpened. Soon, an impeccably dressed man holding a microphone appeared, with a long line of people behind him.
"Welcome to the World's Greatest Audition!" The host waved his fist somewhat spastically. "Over the next several months, we'll select one group from tens of thousands of applicants worldwide!"
"The world's number one idol group!"
World's Greatest Audition.
This was the name Tesoro had given this selection.
Honestly, it was somewhat grandiose.
One could only say it probably matched Tesoro's flashy aesthetic.
"Ohh!" The surrounding customers all cheered.
"Spending money to build this broadcast system wasn't bad, right?" Brett smiled at Shyarly. "At least for the next few months, customer traffic is absolutely guaranteed."
Like bars in World Cup host cities—they never lacked customers.
"You had a good idea," Shyarly's lips curved slightly.
This entire selection would be broadcast live.
Morgans' World Economic News Agency played a crucial role in this.
Nearly every major nation worldwide had their broadcast points being constructed. This was simple—only requiring about a thousand Den Den Mushi, which for the wealthy Morgans was no difficulty at all.
Staffing would be slightly more troublesome, but hiring more people with money solved that.
The World Economic Journal even allowed private parties to pay for signal access to set up private broadcasts, expanding coverage while recouping some costs.
Though this selection had already broken even before officially starting.
Tesoro's tremendous influence meant he'd secured numerous sponsors and naming rights during the initial phase, basically recovering all costs already.
Everything from here would be pure profit. Once the group actually formed, he'd probably make a fortune.
On screen, the host began rapidly rattling off a list of sponsor names.
Customers started complaining.
Fortunately, the host's speaking speed was truly fast. The segment thanking financial sponsors didn't last too long before finally transitioning to the preliminary audition.
The so-called preliminaries were basic screening—contestants displayed their talents, judges determined whether they qualified for the next round.
Multiple preliminary rounds would occur, ultimately controlling the number advancing to the main competition to around one hundred.
The final victor emerging from all this would be only one person.
After all, Tesoro believed that since this was a united group of races, one person per race was sufficient.
So this selection would be extremely brutal.
Especially for Fish-Man Island, the Longarm Tribe, and humans.
The champions from these three regions were practically already decided.
The Longarm champion was Apoo. For humans, Tesoro also wanted to recruit Princess Viola. And for Fish-Man Island—
"Oh! Look who this is!" The host, who'd been darting around among the queued contestants, stopped before someone. His face showed visible exaggerated astonishment. "Are my eyes deceiving me? Excuse me, are you Queen Otohime?"
The woman who appeared on camera was extremely familiar to everyone on Fish-Man Island.
"It's Queen Otohime!"
"I heard rumors someone saw her register for preliminaries! Can't believe it's true!"
"This is amazing! Does this mean we'll actually see Queen Otohime perform?"
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"
The cafe customers immediately erupted.
"Just call me Otohime now," Her Majesty smiled on screen. "Right now I'm just another contestant like everyone else! However—"
She pumped her fist energetically. "Please support me! I want to become a star representing Fish-Man Island!"
"OHHHHH!"
Cheers came from all directions.
The cafe customers practically boiled over. "That's guaranteed!" "Everyone support Queen Otohime!" "Anyone not supporting her isn't from Fish-Man Island!"
Even the contestants on screen had started cheering for Otohime.
With this level of popularity, who on Fish-Man Island could possibly be her rival?
That's why Brett said if she participated in the audition, there was no need for any rigging.
She'd already captivated all of Fish-Man Island long ago.
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