Chapter 142

Cyrus Zuoyi ordered the latest issue of the newspaper to be published as soon as possible, and placed the comic in the most prominent position to ensure that it would be noticed at a glance and arouse people's interest in reading it.

The first issue of the comic book series "Samuel Fern's Sea Adventures" featured three vertical strips. The comics used only a small amount of text as a reading aid, with the rest presented in the form of pictures. This method made it easy for both adults and children to understand.

Moreover, the content of this comic is very interesting, and the art style is very novel, a style that has never appeared before.

For example, the overall composition and the round, adorable characters make it resemble neither a painting nor a book.

It's more of a combination of the two; the text is omitted, and most of the descriptions are expressed through drawings, which are simple yet very humorous and funny.

These "easy-to-understand" paintings make it easy for people to grasp their meaning.

Samuel Fern is depicted in the comics as a handsome man with a slight stubble on his chin.

He wears a hat that symbolizes his status as Windrider, and it also features the emblem of Desinia. The comic begins with a self-narration.

--The main storyline of the entire comic is that after Samuel Fern has returned to the Desinia Territory, he begins to recount, in a retrospective tone, the various dangers and sights he encountered on his voyage to explore the New Continent.

The first flashback is the scene where Samuel Fern encounters the Orca Rice Ball and the Orca led by Rice Ball.

This scene recreates Cyrus's first trial voyage on the Windrider —her assassination attempt, falling into the sea, being rescued by the Orca Rice Ball, and being carried on its back...

In the comic, the lord's face is not shown. When the Orca Rice Ball lifts him up from the sea, the tiny human figure lies on top with his limbs outstretched, making the Orca appear even larger.

Samuel Fern explains at the beginning of the comic that Orca are the guardians and lucky charms of the sea, and are even favored by the Creator God.

Orca rescue people in distress at sea and bless ships with safe voyages.

The text then briefly mentions that Orca are protected by law in the Desinia Territory.

Then, the story featuring Orca begins.

The black and white Orca, with its round and Rollie shape, is depicted so vividly and adorably that it truly catches the eye.

But the sea is not just a boring voyage; it also offers the scenery described through Samuel Fern's voice—the ever-changing azure sea and sky, the occasional landing of never-before-seen seabirds on the ship's side or mast, and, even more wondrous, the various creatures that inhabit the sea...

This comic book, featuring "The Adventures of Samuel Fern at Sea," attracted considerable attention upon its release.

As time went on, this issue of the newspaper began to be in short supply.

Some people who couldn't buy a newspaper tried to borrow one from their neighbors that they no longer read or didn't need, as they usually did, but were refused.

The reason was that they wanted to cut out the cartoons published in this issue of the newspaper for their own collection, and they really couldn't share them with outsiders.

"But this issue of the newspaper is sold out. I just want to take a look and finish reading it here."

It doesn't matter where you look at it.

The neighbor agreed to the request.

The person then picked up the cut-out comic and began to read it with great interest. But when they reached the end and realized there was no sequel, their expression suddenly turned disappointed. "That's it?"

He flipped through the pages as if he didn't believe in anything, trying to find even the slightest clue about what happened next in the comic.

No, no.

Seeing this, the neighbor hurriedly took back the comic strip she had painstakingly cut out, carefully smoothed out the creases, and said, "Look how well it's drawn! And the content is interesting too."

"Look here... this painting depicts the lord!"

The neighbor pointed to a cartoon character whose face wasn't fully visible and said, "I'm going to buy every issue of the newspaper, cut out these cartoon clippings, and collect them in my ' Tales of the Gods' collection."

"Isn't that unnecessary?"

The person who came to borrow the newspaper asked in bewilderment, "What's so interesting about collecting this?"

"Many people do this outside."

The neighbor concluded by saying, "You wouldn't understand," and then sent the man away.

This practice of collecting comics was started by a shop assistant who sold goods at the Thorn Merchant Guild. He not only cut out comics but also pasted them into a blank notebook, displayed it in front of the counter, and would flip through it from time to time.

Over time, this method was noticed by customers who frequently purchased items from the Thorn Merchant Guild.

Then it gradually began to spread.

Over time, some people couldn't resist joining in the collecting and found a lot of enjoyment in it.

The man said there was nothing worth collecting, but as soon as the second batch of newspapers was printed and put on sale, he immediately went to the Thorn Merchant Guild's newspaper shop to buy some.

Cyrus had anticipated such a wildly popular scene, but she hadn't expected it to be this well-received.

Newspapers featuring the first comic book began to be published within the Desinia Territory, and similar publications were also launched elsewhere, especially in the Saint Airo Empire.

This is the area that Cyrus values most.

The newspaper, which was not particularly popular in the Saint Airo Empire, saw its sales skyrocket after this issue was published.

This has indirectly made people who previously didn't know what a newspaper was, or who thought it wasn't worth spending money to buy and read, realize the interest in reading newspapers.

Not long after, the number of people moving around in Visas began to increase.

Especially around the harbor, people often stop to gaze at the sea—outsiders listen to the locals talking about the scenes of Cyrus and Samuel's first trial Windrider, and the circumstances of their departure before setting sail to explore the New Continent...

"That day was truly beautiful, with the sun high in the sky—definitely a good omen."

"We originally went out to sea in a small boat to fish, but who knew that day would happen to be the very day the Windrider Chaser returned from its voyage..."

Those who frequently work on the Cogit Sea, recalling what they saw that day, clicked their tongues and said, "We were sitting in a small boat when we saw water suddenly spraying out of the sea from afar, and we were wondering about it."

"When we rowed closer, we realized they were a group of large black and white fish, what they're called in comics... Orca."

"A pod of Orca! They're huge! They're swimming in from afar, spouting water from their backs..."

"The water splashes formed colorful rainbows in the sunlight, it was so beautiful!"

After listening, someone couldn't help but ask, "Then how can we see Orca? Can you take us out to sea now?"

"This is a small fishing boat; it can't seat many people."

"There are special sightseeing boats over there, but they only go as far as near the shore. Whether you see Orca or not depends entirely on luck. After all, those big fish don't come here often." With that, the man waved and left.

He still has a lot to do.

Furthermore, it is not permitted to take people out to sea without approval, and in serious cases, it may violate the laws within the Desinia Territory.

After the man left, the remaining people became interested and began to walk towards the sightseeing boat he had mentioned.

Cyrus is also at the harbor today.

Not only him, but also His Holiness the Pope and three others who had recently arrived in the territory.

They were near the shipyard, with Cyrus accompanied by Samuel, who would be acting as a crew member to steer the ship for a while.

After returning from its voyage, the Windrider was sent to the shipyard for repairs. The long voyage had left the once brand-new Windrider with marks from the waves and sea.

--For Samuel, those were all honors.

Today is the first day after the Windrider's maintenance is completed, and they have been waiting on the shore since this morning for Cyrus and the others to board the ship and set sail.

Before long, Cyrus and the others boarded the Windrider, and the large ship began to sail towards the near sea.

Orville, standing beside Cyrus, asked, "I wonder if we'll be able to see Orca today... The big Orca leading the pack is called Rice Ball?"

What does this mean?

Cyrus: "It means Rollie."

Orville nodded, agreeing that it was indeed an apt description.

He gazed into the distance, his face as still as a deep well, revealing no emotion. His pale gray eyes seemed to be filled with the coolness of a spring. After a long while, Orville said, "That direction... is where Yami is?"

Cyrus hummed in agreement.

He didn't quite understand why Orville would want to ask that question, and then he heard him speak again.

"I need to go to Yami. Tell me where you found the Rollie."

Upon hearing this, Cyrus turned her head. "... You, you're going to Yami, do you want to raise pandas?"

Orville: "Hmm."

--Short, powerful, and affirmative.

Cyrus silently clutched her chest, feeling a little guilty. "I'm sorry... even if I told you which forest I 'found' the Rollie, you still wouldn't be able to find it..."

But faced with Orville's question, Cyrus had no choice but to answer.

After he finished speaking, he asked again, "Are you really going to Yami?"

Then Cyrus received an affirmative answer from Orville: she would go.

Cyrus: Then I can only silently wish you good luck... At least you'll encounter a bear in the mountains.

"Actually, brown bears and black bears are quite cute too."

Orville turned his head in confusion. "You want to raise it?"

"No..."

Just as Cyrus was about to answer, a pair of hands suddenly pressed down on his shoulders, pulling him back slightly, and a voice rang out at the same time. "Look over there, the Orca are coming."

Segalot looked out at the sea in the distance, and led Cyrus to the nearest ship's railing. "Would you like to take a small boat down?"

[By the way, this is currently the best app for reading aloud and listening to books. Install the latest version.]

Cyrus sensed Rice Ball's joyful mood and nodded with a smile, "Of course, Your Majesty, let's ride together on the same boat."

Segalot smiled and said, "Okay."

Rice Ball stayed beside Cyrus, peering out and circling around. The other Orca noticed many ships not far away on the sea, so they reported to Rice Ball and swam over there.

Cyrus could hear the continuous shouts coming from here.

"Eek."

Rice Ball poked its head out and brushed against Cyrus's palm.

After Cyrus focused his attention on it, Rice Ball suddenly opened its mouth, letting him see—

"Huh?"

Cyrus leaned forward, almost leaning out of the small boat.

Segalot put an arm around his waist and whispered, "Be careful."

Cyrus's eyes widened in surprise. He saw that Rice Ball's open mouth held a pearl the size of half a palm, with a faint blue halo around it, which was extremely beautiful.

Cyrus took out the pearl, simultaneously conveying her emotions to it—Is it for me?

The Rice Ball rice ball made two soft "oohs" sounds, then closed its mouth and happily spun around the small boat, occasionally spraying water and performing somersaults and spins.

Samuel and the other crew members who followed him down slowly came to their senses and pushed their jaws back up, still wide with astonishment.

Samuel scoffed, "I often played with Rice Ball in my little boat after I went to sea... but it never gave me a gift."

I'm genuinely envious.

Cyrus: After all... we're different.