Today started as a typical day. One where the sun was shining gloriously and a refreshing gentle breeze tickled my nose with the scent of the salty ocean.
I was performing my regular job as a lookout, and currently, after hours of being up there, nothing was happening.
I sighed softly, "Oh, man. How far is it to Arin's cave again? I really want to get there already."
"Mmm, ~ Derek said it's going to be at least a week if nothing happens!"Fay answered as she was sitting on the edge of the crow's nest. I started to get used to having her around all the time that I even started talking to her without looking. It seemed that Fay was going to be around me forever.
(Damn it...)
"I'm actually hoping something happens." I groaned as I looked through my telescope once more and all I could see was the boundless ocean. We were traveling the Gayle Ocean, the supposed territory of the Imperials. However, we haven't come across a single Imperial battleship.
(Odd...)
Once I established that there was nothing else to see I then leaned back against the side of the crow's nest, and closed my eyes to relax.
(Mmm...Well, I suppose days like these have their own charm..)
However, my relaxation time was cut short.
"Drop Anchor!!!" Liam shouted, and instantly several crew members worked to drop the anchor while we were in the middle of the ocean.
"Hm?" I had opened my eyes before I decided to jump out of the crow's nest with Fay flying close behind.
I landed right in front of Liam, "What is it, captain? Why did we stop?"
"I figured after a long day of being in the crow's nest. You would want to stretch your limbs a bit. So, I decided to hold a contest for the crew!"Liam said as he pounded his chest.
"A contest? Captain no offense, but we are in the middle of Imperial territory. " Derek chimed in as he walked over to us.
"Right we n-.."
Fay clenched her fists as she flew on top of my head, "A contest of strength and will?! Fists against fists. Crushing your opponents under your feet as they beg for mercy! Count me in!"Fay's eyes seemed to shine with a ferocious light.
"Really? I'm not sure if you will be able to," I said as I looked up at Fay.
Fay puffed out her cheeks as she instantly flew in front of my face, "No way! Of course, I can join the contest!"
"And I say no you can't!"
"Yes, I can!"
"NO, YOU CAN'T!"
"YES, I CAN!!!"
"Wait, why am I arguing with you?!"
Liam clapped his hands together, signaling us to calm down, "Gahahaha! It's not a fighting contest!"
"It's not?" Fay and I asked at the same time.
"Nope! It's a fishing contest!"
"Huh?" I stared at Liam as he grinned.
Liam explained to us that around this area lives a species of fish called the Ofiira Fish. The fish are hard to catch as they seem to break ordinary fishing lines because of their mighty jaws.
"Aww...I was hoping for a fighting contest..."Fay pouted as she laid down on my head.
"Gahahaha! Trust me! It's going to be fun. These fish are built tough. Also, there is a prize waiting for the person with the heaviest fish!"
"Prize?!"Fay's eyes lit up like a firecracker.
"It's a secret! But I promise you that it will be worth it!"Liam pounded his chest with confidence.
"What's this about a fishing contest?" Ellie asked as she happened to overhear the conversation when she was pushed up to the main deck by Vivian.
"Oh...We are around that area. I would love frying some of those fish. They become really tender and juicy if prepared right. I think we have some spices on the ship I can work with."Vivian said.
"Gahaha! Yes, that would be amazing, but they would need to catch them first!" Liam shouted.
"Alright! You heard the man! Fishing contest! Bring out the poles!"Derek yelled.
The crew members scrambled for the fishing poles as if their very lives depended on it, but still...
"Derek, what happened to it not being a great idea to stop?" I asked.
"What idea? I didn't say anything."Derek started to whistle as he walked away, but I quickly grabbed him by his shirt before he could escape.
"Let me go kid! I need to catch as many fish as I can!"Derek struggled to get away, but I have always been physically stronger than him.
"Derek! Tell the captain this isn't a good idea!"
(I can't just stop here...I need to get stronger! If an Overlord can make me stronger then...I need to get to Myra's Ocean as soon as possible!)
"I don't know. I'm kind of hoping for the fishing contest I would love to eat them!"Ellie smiled.
"Huh?" I looked over at Ellie as I continued holding onto Derek who was still trying to get away.
"Yeah, I mean...Haven't you had Ofiira fish before? It's supposedly the best fish you could eat on this planet, but seeing how it is hard to catch them...It's not eaten very often."
"Oooohooo...." I looked back towards Derek with a smirk on my face, "I see...You just want to fill your stomach!"
Derek slumped over in shame.
I then glared at Liam, "And you captain! You are only using the fishing contest to make it sound more righteous then satisfying your hunger!"
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"Gahahaha!....That...is uh...."Liam sighed as he looked down, but it only took several seconds for him to become excited again.
"BUT still there is a prize for the winner with the most caught fish! I'll have you know that eating this fish comes second when compared to the prize!"
"Come on Ian. Let's do the contest. It will be fun" Ellie said as everyone around me seemed to look at me with sparkling eyes.
(Well...I did say I wanted something to happen...But...I)
"Yeah! Listen to your lo...Ah!! WHAT THE HELL KID!" Derek shouted as I threw him down onto the deck. He then rubbed his slightly red face in pain.
I sighed as I shrugged my shoulders, "Fine...Let's do this..."
"Hurray!" Everyone shouted
A few minutes later everyone was geared up to fish, and we all selected various spots to stand at on the ship. However, the most important question comes to mind...
"How do we catch them if they break normal lines?" I asked.
Liam raised one of the fishing poles into the air and started to pull on the line, "Gahaha! Well, if you look closely at your fishing line. You can tell it is made out of a more durable-"
*Snap*
"Ma...terial..." Liam actually snapped the fishing line in half with his casual strength!
"..." Liam rapidly became disheartened after he had severed the fishing line. He was looking forward to fishing too, and the lines weren't easily made.
"If the fish are weaker than you then it should be fine," Derek said as he noticed the fishing line break only couple seconds after Liam pulled on it.
"....Gahahaha! Right! Alright, let's get this fishing contest underway! Ready...GO!"
The entire crew cheered as they flung their lures into the calm ocean with various kinds of bait that they thought would attract the fish. Liam mentioned something about stretching my limbs, but you really only move when you hook a fish!
Two hours would go by without a single bite, and few of the crew members called it quits before returning to their normal duties. But one was a bit more determined to catch the fish...
"Come on fish! Grab the line!!" Fay said as she stood on top of my head. She wasn't big enough to hold a fishing pole, so she decided to team up with me.
"Fay..if anything you are making the fish go away!"
"But its already been two hours!"
"Yeah...AND YOU have BEEN SCREAMING THE SAME THING FOR TWO HOURS!"I gritted my teeth in anger as I was rapidly losing my patience.
(Saying yes to this contest was a mistake! We should be heading towards Arin's Cave. NOT wasting our time!)
"Oh...I"m sorry," Fay said as her eyes began to tear up slightly.
"YOU! APOLOGIZE!"Uzo suddenly appeared in front of me with the end of his sword pointed at my neck.
"You...Why don't you just get that out my face?"My eyes instantly turned multi-colored as I glared at Uzo.
"Apologize!"Uzo glared back while he started to release a bit of his killing intent.
"W-wait Ian..."Fay said as she flew in front of me.
"And...I said get that...OUT OF MY FACE!!!"I instantly tackled Uzo down onto the deck without any regard to his blade, immediately dropping my fishing pole onto the wooden floor. The sudden tackle forced Uzo to drop his sword, and we started throwing punches at each other as we rolled across the deck.
*Bam!*
Uzo managed to deliver a good punch to my face which drew blood, and I was momentarily stunned by the hit. Once I realized what happened, I started to become furious!
"Damn you!" My multi-colored eyes brighten as I released my killing intent.
"Apologize to the goddess, useless brat!" Uzo shouted as he struggled to break free from my grasp.
"Ian stop!!"
"Go to hell!!" I ignored Ellie as I raised my arm to send a punch toward Uzo's face, but I was instead sent flying towards the mainmast.
Uzo used his powerful feet to knock me off.
*Thud!*
"Ugh!...Bastard!!" I groaned in considerable pain as my back slammed into the thick wooden pillar. However, it didn't keep me down for long as I would leap at Uzo who was already back on his feet.
"Di-" I was suddenly stopped mid-leap by Liam. He caught hold of the collar of my shirt and held on tight.
"..Take your hands off of me!!"I madly struggled to get out of his grip, but his grip wouldn't loosen up at all.
"Grr...TAKE YOU-"
"IAN!"
I suddenly stopped struggling with a single shout of my name. I looked back at Liam whose face was filled with rage, and his killing intent spreads throughout the entire ship, making everyone freeze in fear.
"...Captain.."I instantly return to normal as I looked down in shame.
"Uzo....I'll talk to you later..."Liam glared at Uzo with a ferociousness that made his knees buckle in fear
"Yes...Captain.." Uzo muttered as he quickly disappeared into the unknown.
"Everyone return to your normal duties! The contest is over!"Liam said solemnly, and although people were upset, none would disagree to his orders.
"Ian..." Liam rapidly calmed down as he looked at the boy. Even though he praised the boy for being hot-blooded yesterday, he witnessed first hand what the "Eyes of Enzo" has done to him. Is there something wrong with the power his captain wielded, and he simply didn't know about it?
"I'm sorry captain....I...Hm?"I instantly noticed that the reel on the fishing pole I dropped started to move!
Liam loosened his grip enough for me to get away and I dashed over to the pole. I immediately grabbed hold of the handle before it was pulled overboard, and pulled up on it with all my might!
"You got a bite!"Fay said cheerfully.
"It's so heavy!!"I struggled to pull the fish closer to the ship, but it looked like the line wasn't breaking. I still had a chance!
"Come on!"Fay cheered for me as she forgot about my outburst from earlier.
Several minutes rapidly went by as sweat started to appear on my brow from concentrating.
"You can do it, Ian!" Ellie said as she pumped her arms into the air.
"I'll cook the best pieces of it for you if you catch it!" Vivian shouted.
"You can do it, kid!" Derek said as he was practically drooling with anticipation. He wasn't a glutton, but this fish was the Ofiira fish!
My eyes instantly turned multi-colored once again as I use every bit of strength to pull the fish out of the water!
*Swish!*
My eyes widened as I saw the beast of a fish flapping wildly in the air. The fish was over 7ft long, and its entire body was covered with bright red scales! The jaw looked especially ferocious, and one might lose a finger or two just from a single snap of it!
"No wonder normal lines don't work...And what did this guy eat?!" I could tell from the tension of the line...It had to be over 1,000 pounds!
"I'm not sure...but let's eat it!!"Derek said as he was already thinking with his stomach. (A/N Oh how the mighty have fallen...Even an intellectual will bow before delicious food.)
*Snap!*
The fishing pole started to crack from the sheer weight of the fish, and I could already see it falling back into the ocean!
"Oh no, you don't!" Liam said as he instantly grabbed the fish with a single hand and threw it onto the deck.
The fish madly flapped its body to escape until...
"Oh wow...look how strong you are..."Vivian giggled as she slid her finger across the fish's scales. Her eyes burned with the will to cook, releasing a pressure that was similar to killing intent. The fish instantly stopped moving under the pressure.
It knew that it has truly been caught...
After the incident, Liam would call for the contest to continue, and everyone was more than happy to fish again. It seemed everyone was hyped up and wanted to catch their own giant fish! And soon several of the members found success in catching the Ofiira fish.
Bright redfish were flapping on the deck one after the other until finally, Liam called for the contest to end. Once everything was cleaned up, everyone would make their way toward the mess hall for dinner while Vivian was hard at work cooking.
"Gahahaha! So, the contest was a success! I hope everyone was able to have fun...because I will now announce the winner!"Liam said as he stood in the middle of the mess hall. Everyone was quite curious about the prize.
"The winner is...of course, IAN!"Liam shouted just as everyone started to clap their hands and cheer for me who slowly gets up from their seat.
"Congrats Ian!" Ellie said as she patted my arm. She wasn't able to catch anything, but being able to do something like this was a joy in itself.
"Food...Bring me the food..."Derek said as he held forks in both of his hands. He was starting to look like a deranged person.
(Is it really that serious?)
I shook my head as I looked at Liam, "What did I win?"The way he talked about the prize made it seem like it was something amazing!
But...
"You win...A week-long training session with yours truly!! Gahahahaha!" Liam laughed as she puffed out his chest.
Everyone in the hall became dumbfounded as they stared at their captain. A moment of silence ensued until Liam spoke up.
"What? Isn't that great? Training with me! Fists against Fists!" Liam started to flex his muscles, but even then no one else spoke up.
"Wait! Do I get that too?! I was on the same team!"Fay shouted as she flew around my head.
I only stared at the captain blankly even after Vivian brought out the food.
"Here we go-"
"Wait! Derek! STOOOOP!!"Vivian hysterically shouted as Derek dived straight into the food like a madman, devouring every piece of the Ofiira fish that touched his hands!
I sighed softly, "This is going to be a long week..."
The week was indeed long filled with lots of laughter and fighting. I wished that those kinds of days continued forever, but all good things must come to an end. And traveling through the massive sea cave was the start of it all...