After they’d both grown quiet, they reached a large fishing village. The people back at the inn had recommended it as a good place to rent fishing equipment and a boat. They probably did get a lot of customers. When he greeted the first villager he spotted, they were friendly and showed him around like they were used to it.
Although, just before that, when he and Keel first exited the carriage, the sight of this giant white wolf had caused a bit of a stir among the villagers.
At any rate, he paid the fee to borrow a fishing rod, and he also bought bait and a fishing basket.
Heh heh. I bought the biggest basket. Zen chuckled to himself. Of course, he fully intended to fill it up and take it home. Keel looked at him doubtfully, though.
Anyway, he couldn’t turn back now!
“It’s a good place for amateurs to fish,” the villager had said, telling him of a fishing spot that was right next to the village.
It was closer to a marsh than a pond. It was so small, and the water was muddy.
There were people who’d arrived before him scattered around here and there, and from a distance, he could see that some were on small boats while others fished from the shore.
“I wonder if you can catch more fish if you go right in the middle instead of staying on the coast.” Zen decided to follow what the villager had told him.
There were a number of small boats that the village collectively owned that were docked right nearby. It seemed the village would let you borrow them for a fee.
The boat was just big enough to fit Keel and Zen together, and because of that, Zen could row it himself.
We’re all set! It’s time to get going!
It was his first time rowing a boat, but he immediately got the hang of it. He chose a spot around the middle of the pond (marsh?) where he figured he wouldn’t get in the way of the other people fishing.
Keel was actually sensitive to the cold, and he grumbled, “The wind is so cold...”
“I’ll catch lots of fish, and you can eat as much as you want later, so please bear with me for now,” Zen comforted him while casting his rod.
“Your persuasion falls a bit flat when you’re so bad at fishing...”
“I’m telling you, I’m going to improve eventually!” Zen objected, but Keel glared at him as if saying, You sure are confident.
But wouldn’t you know it! After casting his line into the water, he felt something snag onto it before long.
“I got one!” Zen cried and pulled it in.
The fish that’d latched onto the bait pulled back, determined. Not only was this rascal strong, it was also thrashing around.
Zen found it so fun how the fishing line’s tension conveyed the creature’s struggle. However, if he pulled it in with all his strength, the line would snap. That was why he was careful with the amount of force he exerted. Then he waited for his prey to tire itself out, and...
“I got it!!!” Fishing up a splendid carp, he let out a joyful cry. The carp was much thicker than the one in last night’s dinner. It continued to thrash violently, jumping and leaping in the air full of energy.
I see now. This is why this carp is so famous!
It hadn’t felt like he was just fishing. It was as though he’d been in a great battle—an exchange of the utmost caliber against a formidable opponent as they fought for dominance. Zen was washed in a euphoric sense of accomplishment as he’d come out the victor in that fight.
After he removed the hook from the Alona carp still thrashing around in the boat, Zen put it into his fishing basket like a trophy. “Did you see that, Keel? I’ve improved!”
“It could be beginner’s luck.”
“Oh yeah? I’ll show you that it wasn’t just luck. Watch closely.”
Zen once again cast his fishing line. He immediately got a bite and fished another up. He put the thrashing Alona carp into his fishing basket like a second trophy.
He threw his line out a third time. Once again, he immediately got a bite and fished another up. Into the trophy basket it went. It was a big haul!
Aah... All my efforts are finally paying off... As he fished up a fourth and a fifth fish back-to-back, he trembled with excitement. His energy was exactly the opposite of Keel’s, who’d already started dozing off. (Come on, pay attention!)
Besides being a workaholic, Zen was also good at studying, but he didn’t know a lot about things that were outside of books. Therefore, he was unaware that carp were gluttons, and Alona carp especially weren’t cautious of fishing hooks and had a habit of biting immediately.
Moreover, while they were larger than other species of carp and stronger as a result, they also tired out quickly. Generally, anyone could easily catch them, no matter how bad they were at fishing. It also gave you the illusion that you were fighting against something really strong. That was why Alona carp were famous for being fun to fish.
However, in this world, ignorance was bliss.
“I got it! I got it! I got iiit!!!” Zen didn’t even know how many fish he’d caught at this point, but he was still reeling them up one after another through his sweat and hard work (that was how Zen saw it, at least), and he couldn’t keep himself from shouting.
He’d completely reverted back to a childlike innocence. He was more than just excited. Thus, he got carried away and yanked the fishing line. The fish flew up into the air and the abrupt loss of tension made him lose his balance on the boat.