The next day, at the newsstand next to the Marine base, two clerks yawned and sluggishly unlocked the door.
Yesterday's sales were pitiful—aside from that one weirdo, they'd barely sold a couple of units.
They figured smartphones just weren't popular here. They even spent the night writing a self-criticism report, which was why they opened late today.
But the moment they opened the door, their jaws dropped. A massive crowd had gathered outside, and they were all wearing the same uniform!
Marines!
"What the heck? Is Boss getting arrested for debt?" one clerk mumbled.
"I don't know. Why would there be this many Marines? We haven't broken any laws!" The other clerk looked equally puzzled.
While the two were still scratching their heads, the Marines who had been waiting for two or three hours outside saw the stand open and surged forward.
"A phone! Gimme one!" A Marine slapped a handful of Berries on the counter. "Hurry up! I've been standing here forever!"
"They're open! Damn it, why'd they open so late today? Morning drills are about to start!"
"Yeah, I almost got marked absent! Quick, give me two!"
"Outta the way! I've been here four hours!"
"Damn Coby wouldn't let me watch yesterday, so I've gotta get one today to watch on my own!"
"Hancock! Goddess Hancock! I never thought I'd be able to look at her without risking being turned to stone!"
"What're you spacing out for? Start selling!"
…
If they weren't worried about collapsing the whole stand, the mob would've rushed inside already.
The two clerks suddenly realized—these guys were here for the phones!
Oh. My. God.
Thank goodness they hadn't submitted that self-criticism report yet. Who could've predicted the phones would become a runaway hit overnight?
"Don't rush! Line up, one by one!" one clerk shouted, scrambling to control the chaos.
"Limited supply. No phone if you don't queue properly," the other clerk said, darting inside to grab stock. He also bundled up some newspapers with the phones—hey, a sale's a sale, might as well push the paper too.
"Special Opening Bundle: Newspaper + Phone, only 200 Berries!"
"Here you go. This is your phone. Manual's inside. Please take it."
The Marine took the phone, tore the box open on the spot, and threw the packaging aside like it was trash. He didn't even glance at the manual.
Coby had already shown off the phone's insane features more than a dozen times yesterday. Every Marine watching had been drooling with envy.
"Hahaha! A phone! I finally got one!"
"Babes, goddesses, Hancock... they're all mine now!"
"I'm making a TikTok account right now! First follow, boom!"
The others looked on in envy, yelling at the line to move faster.
"I got one too!"
"Only 200 Berries?! This thing's dirt cheap!"
"I got mine! Holy crap, the camera's crystal clear, and the zoom is insane! I can peek into the girls' dorm from—"
"Shut your damn mouth! You can't say stuff like that out loud!"
The guy clammed up immediately, glancing around nervously as everyone glared at him. Realizing his blunder, he fled with his tail between his legs.
Compared to yesterday, the phone's popularity was night and day. It had completely blown up.
Sales were lightning-fast. In just a few minutes, three to four hundred units were gone.
It was only thanks to the tireless efforts of the News Coo delivery birds that they even had this much stock. Otherwise, they would've sold out in under five minutes.
"Everyone in the back, no need to line up anymore. Today's stock is sold out. Please come back tomorrow," the clerk said with a hint of regret—after all, more sales meant more commission.
"What?! Sold out?" The Marines in the back were stunned. They'd woken up before dawn, queued for over ten minutes, and now—nothing?
"Damn it! What kind of lousy shop is this?! How are the phones gone, but the newspapers aren't?!"
"Get us another hundred units right now! The Marine HQ Base doesn't allow this kind of hunger marketing!"
"Yeah! Contact HQ and restock fast, or we're pulling your vendor license!"
Meanwhile, the lucky Marines who had snagged a phone were practically glowing. They shook their heads, pitying the latecomers.
"Y'all need to chill. They said they're sold out. Don't give the clerks a hard time."
"Exactly. New batch comes in tomorrow. Just come early and line up again."
"Man, I only got here a bit earlier, and I still can't believe I got one! Whoa, this girl's gorgeous. Followed!"
As he said that, he held up his phone for all to see and tapped the plus button below Hancock's video avatar to follow her.
"Damn it!!!"
The Marines who missed out looked like they were about to riot. Their faces twisted in frustration, ready to smash the stand out of spite.
The clerks shrank back in fear, quickly trying to pacify the crowd. One of them yanked out a Den Den Mushi to call their boss.
"You idiot! Why use a Den Den Mushi? Just video call the boss!"
The other clerk pulled out his own phone, opened TikTok, found the boss's private message, and hit the video call button.
Beep... beep... beep...
The Marines all stared at the phone in his hand, itching to snatch it, but held themselves back.
Soon, the video connected.
Morgans appeared on screen, clearly annoyed. He looked like he'd been in the middle of editing something carefully.
"You two better have a damn good reason for interrupting me."
The clerks swallowed hard.
"B-b-b-boss, the phones… the phones…"
"They didn't sell, huh?" Morgans sighed, looking unsurprised. He didn't scold them—instead, he tried to encourage them.
"It's normal. New tech always faces skepticism at first. The key is staying calm and professional. Keep educating the public. Once they understand, they'll fall in love with the product.
Right?
So patience and persistence are vital."
Hearing this, the clerks were moved to tears.
This was a real boss. A true mentor.
"No, no, Boss… the phones, they're sold out! All of them!"
"Mhm, mhm. I knew you'd get the—"
Halfway through his sentence, Morgans froze. His feathers puffed up like a porcupine.
"What did you just say?! Sold out?!"
Tears streaming down their faces, the clerks stood proud. "Yes, Boss! You heard right—the phones are really sold out!"
They flipped the camera around, showing the Marines still crowding the entrance.
Morgans was completely stunned.
(To be continued.)