With Jewel casting her line, completely made of her own web, first, the others slowly follow.
Alex, after fiddling with the rods and attaching a small piece of fish meat to his hook, demonstrates the basics of fishing to Benezia.
Menchi, meanwhile, handles hers with ease. As a skilled Gourmet Hunter, she clearly has plenty of experience already.
Benezia's expression twists in horror as she takes in the blood smeared across the boat. Jewel, Alex, and Menchi have all prepared their bait by butchering the fish taken from the warehouse—but Jewel, in particular, has left behind a hideous mess, tearing her catch apart with violent enthusiasm.
"It's pretty disgusting, right?" Alex says. "I dislike it too. As a kid, I cried when I saw my uncle using worms and insects as bait. When I caught my first fish, I nearly threw up watching him rip the hook out of its mouth, making it bleed in the process, and then hitting it with a fish killer until it lost consciousness. Seeing it butchered afterward... that finished me. Hey... maybe that's why I don't like eating fish."
"It's rather... unpleasant, but nothing compared to the battlefields I've seen in my life. I am just slightly perturbed by the unsanitary process," Benezia replies, her voice calm despite the disgust in her eyes.
"It's fine... now we just wait," Alex says, though he sounds unsure. "I am a little worried about actually hooking a Sea King or Sea Beast, but this isn't the anime or manga. The system usually changes worlds to make them more... sensible and realistic. One Piece is famous for fishing, but the odds of a Sea King this close to shore are hilariously low. So there's absolutely nothing to worry about... I think... I hope...."
Jewel and I both have high LUK, so we should be safe... but how does the system interpret that? Would encountering a Sea King be actually unlucky... or lucky?!
Alex suddenly pales, a bead of sweat running down his cheek.
"What's wrong?" Menchi asks, puzzled.
"I... I was just wondering how my and Jewel's LUK might affect our odds while fishing," Alex mutters, lost in thought.
Finally he asks, "Would it be considered extremely lucky... or extremely unlucky if a Sea King actually took the bait?"
Benezia and Menchi exchange blank stares. Only Jewel seems unconcerned, happily watching the waves.
"..." Alex looks at her in disbelief. "Ever thought about what you'll do if you fish out a Sea Spider?"
Sea Spider? Princess Jewel is aiming for a Sea Cow or a Sea Pig!
"That sounds great!" Menchi chimes in, immediately forgetting Alex's worry.
"Look, there are Sea Squirrels, Sea Rabbits, Sea Cats... so I figured there could be all kinds of Sea beasts. Or wait." Alex blinks, realization dawning. "I think only mammals count. So no Sea Spiders. Looks like you won't have to make that hard choice, Jewel."
"... Okay, let's just stay quiet and concentrate..." Alex says, a little embarrassed.
Suddenly, Benezia's rod jerks.
"Fast!" Alex yells. "Raise your rod! You need to secure the hook in its mouth!"
Benezia reacts quickly, pulling the rod up with surprising speed.
"Now reel it in!" Alex urges.
"That much, I can figure out on my own," Benezia replies dryly as she begins reeling the fish in with steady control.
Moments later, she pulls a medium-sized fish from the water. Looking faintly disgusted, she drops it into the boat, where it conveniently flops beside the butchered bait fish that Alex and Menchi have cut up.
Alex stares at the fish in disbelief. He can't quite describe it—it looks like a big, ordinary fish, bland and unimpressive. But what shocks him is that it looks almost identical to the one he took earlier from the warehouse in Whiskey Peak.
"It's... the same. We used a fish to hook the same kind of fish. Is this thing called a cannibal fish or something?" Alex wonders, looking confused.
"That's slightly disgusting," Menchi snickers, amused by the bizarre twist.
Time passes, and Alex and Menchi both manage to hook several fish. But all of them look ordinary, and don't differ from the ones they saw in Whiskey Peak. The system also doesn't recognize them. Still, Alex and Menchi continue to have success, and even Benezia eventually reels in another fish.
"This... is a waste of time," she says, irritation creeping into her tone.
"I think it's rather fun," Menchi replies brightly. "I enjoy fishing! A cold soda and a lounger would make this perfect."
Usually, people would prefer beer... but whatever. Menchi is not that old yet....
How come Princess Jewel does not catch any fish, even though she used the most bait! This isn't fair! It defies logic!
"Jewel, you're a genius, but sometimes you're really stupid!" Alex snaps. "How do you expect normal fish to bite down on that giant bloody fish-web monstrosity?! At most, they'll nibble on it, but they can't actually bite through! And there's no hook inside that unholy meatball you made! The only thing you'd be able to catch would be—"
Before he can finish, Jewel is suddenly flung against the ship's railing, her web still wrapped tight around her legs, she used as a makeshift rod.
She clings on desperately, pressed against the railing as the pull grows so strong it drags the entire boat away from the harbor and out into open water.
Princess Jewel has caught something! Princess Jewel will win this contest!
"SHIT!" Alex curses. "Jewel, let go of whatever you've hooked—our ship is getting pulled away from shore!"
Princess Jewel refuses to admit defeat! She will win the contest!
"Screw this shitty contest!" Alex yells, rushing to her side. He grabs the thread, bracing his legs against the railing and straining to haul up whatever monster she's snagged.
"Fuck—I need help!" Alex shouts.
Menchi dashes over, with a very reluctant-looking Benezia joining her. Together, the two humans, Asari, and spider, struggle to drag the catch up.
After thirty exhausting seconds, the surface breaks—and Alex's eyes nearly bulge out of his skull. Floating before them is a colossal squid, easily three times larger than their boat, its enormous eyes glaring with hatred.
"Fuck me! It's a giant squid!" Alex curses.
"Take it down!" Menchi yells. "I can't help!"
Easier said than done!
Alex draws his old favorite, [Magoroth's Legacy R2], and conjures Magorian's Rage Arrow lvl. 5. He prepares to cast a Thundara Arrow, activates Ren, then uses Shu to coat the arrows with his Aura. At the same time, he triggers the Rage Illusions of his bow.
Fractions after releasing the initial arrow, thirty more spawn, seemingly morphing out of the original one, each enhanced by Shu and crackling with thunder magic.
The squid, sensing danger, raises its massive tentacles in desperation.
Alex's arrows strike the writhing limbs, leaving only shallow wounds.
You have dealt 72 damage to Giant Squid
You have dealt 49 damage to Giant Squid
...
You have dealt 36 damage to Giant Squid
You have crippled Giant Squid (Tentacle No. 1)
You have crippled Giant Squid (Tentacle No. 4)
You have stunned Giant Squid
Benezia reacts next, hurling an orb of biotic energy into the beast, making it scream in agony. Alex notes that it hits one of its eyes, blinding it on one side.
Stop, do not steal Princess Jewel's catch! This is Princess Jewel's chance to use the new and improved Ultimate Secret Technique!
Has she finally gone insane?!
Alex glances at Jewel—and freezes. She's pulled out all of his grenades, extending the fuses so they'll burn for at least fifteen seconds. She ignites them, then stuffs the explosives into a giant ball of sticky web. To finish it, she wraps four large fish around the outside, anchors her thread to the "fish bomb," and hurls it straight into the squid's gaping mouth.
The injured squid, too enraged to care, lunges at the fish and swallows them whole.
"What the..." Alex breathes. "Did that actually work?"
The squid thrashes violently, slamming its massive tentacles down onto the boat and shattering part of its deck. A spray of thick, black ink erupts from its mouth, heading straight towards the group.
Alex, for the first time, activates his new Biotic ability, Barrier, conjuring a shimmering barrier of energy around him, shielding himself. He steps forward, blocking most of the ink. It splashes harmlessly against the barrier, leaving him untouched.
A few seconds later, Jewel bounces up and down in anticipation.
3... 2... 1... ❤️
A series of deafening explosions rip through the squid, tearing it apart from the inside.
Its body bursts open, spraying a massive wave of organs, flesh, blood, and ink across the boat. The group is drenched—everyone except Alex, still safely shielded from his barrier.
With the squid obliterated, an eerie silence hangs in the air as the entire ship and group is now drenched with the remains of the Squid.
"..."
"..."
"..."
That was fun! Princess Jewel wins! Let's do it again!
Visibly frustrated, Benezia snaps, "Why is the spider in charge? I feel incredibly stupid! This is the dumbest thing I've done in all my centuries of life."
Menchi leaps off the boat, jumping into the water to drag the squid's mangled body closer to the ship, while Alex hauls up the anchor.
He dives in after her, helping to collect whatever is left. Menchi stuffs smaller chunks into her inventory while together they heave the larger pieces onto the half-destroyed boat. It takes around 5 minutes for Menchi to collect the smaller parts and hauling away a few mostly intact tentacles and part of the main body onto the ship.
Back on board, Alex notices large schools of smaller fish circling in. He quickly hoists the sails and steers the ship back toward shore.
"... This is stressful," he mutters.
"Yeah... I agree... and I can't even fight since I'm not a combat Supporter! But apparently I can drown in a damn fishing accident!" Menchi complains.
A few minutes later, as they reach the small port, one of the agents comes rushing over.
"My boat!" he cries. "What happened to it?! I can't believe this!"
"..."
"Your boat is required for Baroque Works. Mr. 8 will reimburse you, don't worry," Alex lies without hesitation.
He and Menchi haul the squid parts off toward a quiet corner, away from the main street, while Benezia busies herself with cleaning up, looking more than unhappy.
Jewel, meanwhile, dances proudly on the remains of the squid.
The new Ultimate Secret Technique is unstoppable! Princess Jewel can't be beat!
"This was fucking awful. I don't want to go fishing again," Alex complains, the stench of squid innards still invading his nose.
Menchi sighs. "Let's wait until I dismember this baddy... or what's left of it. Maybe this was worth it, after all."
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