"One newspaper," said Murphy, sitting on a box and fingering the few coins in his purse, addressing the news.
After recent events, he obviously couldn't get his money back, and since he had decided to stay on Jaya Island for a while longer, the sailing fee was temporarily waived, so he decided to accept the loss.
Murphy, who initially wanted to leave the island as soon as possible, eventually decided to stay. The reason was simple: the mystery of the jagged tattoo, which he had to solve, even knowing that the truth is often cruel.
Of course, he wasn't going to run to Nelson and demand an explanation directly. After all, if he was hiding something, that would be tantamount to suicide. Murphy needed to at least have the ability to defend himself, and better yet, be even stronger.
Taking a 100-belly coin out of his wallet, he flicked it into the air with his thumb, aiming for the news ku bag. The coin described a graceful arc in the air and... landed next to the bag.
"Damn, what's wrong with my accuracy..." Murphy said quietly.
Once you have enough points, maybe you should learn basic Ranged Attack first?
Then he probably won't miss.
Forced to pick up a 100 belli coin, he wisely handed it to the bird.
The money was meant to buy a newspaper. He wasn't just spending his few coins or trying to dispel the confusion of the recent conflict. He just felt that he really needed to keep up with world events through the system.
Although he didn't yet fully understand the rules for scoring, he had made a preliminary conclusion based on the limited clues: the more popular the article, the more points it would bring. And the points directly affected his strength.
News Coo, taking Belly, made a human understanding coo, then took a newspaper, a magazine, and a purse from her bag, placed them in front of Murphy, and flew away. These News Coos were specifically used to distribute newspapers across the ocean. They could also be used to send manuscripts and receive royalties.
— A wallet? So this is a fee — it looks like my manuscript was really accepted.
Murphy opened his wallet and looked inside. It wasn't much money, but it was enough to last him a while and solve his immediate problems. He then picked up the magazine and smiled slightly when he saw the title, "Strange Stories."
— It looks like they accepted that article.
And indeed, after flipping through a few pages, he saw a familiar title: Noland Reinterpreted: The Lost City of Gold.
He was currently on Jaya Island, and the article told of the island's past and the history of Sky Island, including the people's misunderstanding of Noland, who was called a liar.
The story was true, but when he started writing it, he realized he couldn't provide any evidence, so he decided to file it under "strange stories."
Strange Stories was a magazine published by the World Economic Newspaper, which was a leader in the global media industry. However, the World Economic Newspaper had many editions, and magazines based on fictitious stories were not in great demand. After all, there were truly legendary events happening in this ocean all the time, and it did not require much fiction. But it was because of this that Murphy felt that he should focus on the World Economic Newspaper in the future.
The World Economic Newspaper, or MEG for short, was the newspaper with the largest circulation and influence in the world. Its news reflected the dynamics and direction of developments throughout the world.
A successful publication of an article in it, naturally, gave maximum publicity, but either current news or materials related to the political struggle of various forces were published there. If the article was just a story, even a well-told one, it would hardly be accepted.
Besides, the World Economic Newspaper had a huge team of reporters, editors, writers, and if the news wasn't exclusive, the manuscript would probably not be accepted. And Murphy had no desire to join the paper.
So his future goal was clear - to be a freelance writer and constantly search for exclusive news.
Exclusive news is what all media workers strive for.
- Although for me it's probably not that difficult?
He had the advantage of foresight. If he kept a close eye on current events and compared them, he would not miss major events that could bring in a lot of points.
Of course, Murphy had another ambition. He hoped that one day his actions would directly influence the direction of the world.
Thinking about it, he looked rather strangely at the prominent letters in the newspaper - World Economic Newspaper. And after thinking for a while, he added another small item to his list of ambitions...
He hoped that he could, with the stroke of a pen, control public opinion, deciding which events, large or small, the public should know about and which it should not.
Of course, this road will be long, and for now he must live in the present. He looked up at the calm sea. After Roger became the Pirate King, the whole world was plunged into a rare calm.
Murphy knew this was just the calm before the storm.
Soon after the Pirate King's arrest and execution, the entire world will enter the Great Age of Pirates.
Under the veil of secrecy of the World Government, who could have known that Roger had actually surrendered himself rather than been captured?
This subtlety was merely a matter of saving face for the World Government, a show of force and threat. But for Murphy, it was a huge opportunity he was not about to squander.
While other reporters were chasing news of Roger's arrest, an article revealing the truth and being accepted by the newspaper could have attracted a lot of attention.
Finding a newspaper willing to publish the truth was important, but even more important was gathering evidence. As Murphy recalls, the World Economic Journal was one that dared to challenge accepted norms. All he had to do was gather evidence.
But he also knew it was a huge risk. Would it be a climb to the top or a fall into the abyss?
— I'll only know when I try it!
Compared to his former self, his agility had only slightly increased, but his attitude had completely changed. With the help of the system and having found a way forward, he was no longer at a loss.
Murphy looked into the distance, and a special light emanated from his face - the light of a man who had wandered and rushed about in the darkness for a long time, but had finally found the way to the other shore.
Though his thoughts were vast, they occupied but a moment. Murphy jumped down from the box and, taking the fee he had just received, went to the shopping street to stock up on the necessary supplies.
The drunk's death was clearly linked to Nelson, and Mock Town may no longer have been a safe place. He decided to leave the town, walked along the coast and found a deserted place.
- I'll stay here for a while!
In front of him was an endless ocean, behind him was a dense forest. He set up a simple tent, hung an oil lamp, and began to write quickly. Of course, news did not happen all the time, but Murphy had many exciting stories that people in this world had never encountered. Writing these stories would not necessarily earn him a large number of points right away, but as a daily or transitional method, it would allow him to steadily become stronger...