Chapter 360
Chapter 360
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 360
Chapter Title: Outdoor Activity (2)
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It was a perfect match.
A dad dragging his reluctant daughter out for some fishing.
The daughter whining about how boring it was even after they arrived.
And the dad, too thrilled to care.
It was a well-known fact that Gehenna's natural landscapes remained pristine and untouched.
Especially in uninhabited areas like this, where human hands had never reached—there were plenty of fish in the river.
No joke—even with Siu's amateur casting, bites came every five minutes or so.
And that wasn't the only reason Siu was happy.
Fortune had smiled on him just in time.
He'd come thinking he'd catch some freshwater fish at best, but it happened to be salmon migration season, with the anadromous fish swimming upstream to spawn.
Thanks to that, thick-bodied red salmon—before their bodies had fully turned that signature hue—kept snapping up his blind lures one after another.
The satisfying bend of the rod under the weight.
The powerful pulse of life vibrating through his fingers with every reel.
Seeing that 50cm salmon flapping on the surface like a skipping stone made him think, Hell yeah, this is fishing.
Last time he'd tried, he'd barely caught a few after fishing all day.
Now he'd already reeled in two—and both were personal bests.
"Whoa, this is insane. You sure you don't wanna try?"
"I'm good."
"Miss Diana! Check this out. It's huge!"
Siu proudly held up the hefty, thrashing salmon for Diana to see.
Even as river water splashed his cheeks from its tail, he was grinning ear to ear.
Diana, sitting a short distance away with a sulky expression, gave him a look that said really?.
Salmon.
She'd eaten plenty, but this was the first time seeing one alive and flopping like this.
And the way his face lit up as he hauled in that deeply bent rod—it was so exhilarating that Diana felt a spark of curiosity despite herself.
What's so great about fishing that he's this into it?
At this point, efficient energy management was out the window anyway.
Maybe it'd be better than just sitting there doing nothing—give it a shot?
"Just try it once for real. It's way more fun than you think."
"Just once."
Diana grabbed a rod from beside him and slipped off her shoes.
Dipping her feet into the shimmering current brought a chill like ice water, goosebumps prickling across her skin.
"How does it go again?"
"Not hard. No need to cast far, but not too close either. See this spot? Grip here, flick it out, and let the hook drift with the current—that's the feel."
Whether from his explanation or watching him, it didn't look complicated at all.
"Like this?"
Diana took the rod Siu had adjusted for her and flicked the line out.
The shallow depth made the line whip downstream fast on the strong current.
"Yeah, just like that. If it goes too far, reel it back and repeat."
"Not bad."
"Right?"
It was as easy as it looked.
She figured she'd pull up some big ones just like he had, any second now.
"Don't wanna overlap spots, so I'll fish a bit further off. Lines might tangle otherwise if we're unlucky."
With that, Siu moved about 15 meters away and kept at it.
Diana watched him for a moment, then cast again.
The hook drifted lazily downstream.
It floated far with no bite, so she reeled in.
Cast.
Drift.
Reel.
Cast.
Drift.
Reel. Cast. Drift. Reel. Cast. Drift...
"......"
Diana's rod stayed silent no matter how many casts.
Meanwhile, over there...
"Oh! Here it comes! Got one!"
"Whoa, how many centimeters is this beast?"
"This ain't your average salmon! But no chance—reel it in!"
Diana glanced at the growing pile of salmon by Siu, then back to her line.
-Splish splish splish
"......"
Her line drifted idly on the flowing river.
Diana quietly reeled it in and inspected the hook closely.
Was the rod faulty?
But the lure, sinker, hook—it all matched what he'd shown her.
"Nice! Gotcha!"
"Kuhahaha!"
"More fish than water today!"
Siu looked thrilled, while Diana felt oddly vexed.
If she'd come alone, she'd have quit with an Eh, this sucks—boring and annoying.
But watching him haul in fish nonstop next to her empty creel? A competitive spark ignited.
Diana thought it over, then approached Siu.
"Hey."
"Yeah? Oh, caught a bunch?"
"...No. Switch spots. Yours seems better."
"Sure?"
Siu obligingly swapped places.
Fishing resumed.
He'd been pulling them in nonstop from here, so it had to be prime territory.
Same rod, too.
No fancy techniques in sight.
Diana's heart raced inwardly at the thought of finally feasting on salmon.
"Whoa, this spot's hot too!"
"Salmon for dinner tonight!"
"What's this one?"
And the cycle repeated.
After switching, Siu yanked fish after fish from the spot where she'd gotten zilch.
Diana? Just dunking lures over and over.
"......"
Diana felt a quiet fury bubbling up.
Her gut boiled.
He probably didn't mean it, but his glee felt like mocking her.
"Hey!"
Diana called out to Siu, who'd just landed an arm-thick salmon.
"I came out here for outdoor activity, remember? Pay some attention to me."
"Oh, right. Sorry—got too carried away."
"Teach me some tricks."
"Sure, watch."
Siu gave a more detailed rundown, but to Diana, it all sounded the same.
Maybe it was luck? She even borrowed his rod.
Still no dice.
Seeing Siu tilt his head like Huh, why's it not working? only made her grumpier.
"It's been over 30 minutes now. One more cast—if nothing, we're done."
"Got it."
Diana shot a glance at Siu's lukewarm reply, then flicked the line.
The float drifted lazily.
No bite, as usual.
She sighed inwardly, bracing for another miss—
"Huh?"
It hit.
A fierce tug.
The kind anyone would swear was a fish.
Diana gripped the rod tight before it slipped away.
"I got one!"
"Wh-what now? What do I do?!"
Zero expectations, total surprise—Diana's eyes went wide.
The massive pull had even Siu excited, hovering to coach her...
Then came a scene straight out of a cartoon.
"Eek!!"
Diana, clutching the taut rod, let out a sharp yelp as she got yanked forward.
The current was fierce; even in shallows, balance was tricky on the bank.
That brutal pull—like it could snap the rod—sent her diving face-first into the water.
-Splash!
A massive spray.
Siu dove in late, scooping Diana up with one arm via ribbon while grabbing the rod with the other.
2.
Diana sat by a campfire next to a folding chair, wrapped in a blanket.
She'd magicked away the water from her clothes and hair, but staying warm mattered.
"......"
"Hey, you okay?"
In under an hour, Diana had been royally screwed over by salmon twice. She was a walking low-pressure system.
Her face was dark, like a storm core hovered overhead.
They'd caught over 30 salmon today—he'd released all but one for dinner—so Siu cautiously gauged her mood.
Truth be told, this was unexpected trouble number two.
With all the arm-thick red salmon and occasional rainbow trout, he'd assumed just those two kinds.
But the salmon that haunted Diana was a king salmon—nearing 1.5m long and 60kg.
No wonder; a fish that heavy on the line yanked the unwary Diana right in.
"......"
"Still, yours was the biggest, Miss Diana."
Strictly speaking, the salmon caught her, and Siu caught both—but...
Best to spin it positively for her sake.
"Look at this! Massive, right?"
Easily over a meter.
He held tonight's dinner—limp and drained—in front of her.
"Big."
Still gloomy, Diana eyed the salmon and stood.
"Let's head back. Over two hours now."
Fishing had been more fun than expected; he'd hoped to drag it out till dinner.
But with things gone sideways, no choice.
Next time.
He packed their stuff, shouldered the bag, and slung the salmon, ribbon-wrapped tight, over his shoulder.
Teleporting would've been easy, but strolling through this pretty scenery was part of the outdoor fun.
As they walked the hills together, he asked the still-stormy Diana,
"Miss."
"What."
"Mind if I ask something that's been bugging me?"
"Go ahead."
He'd wondered for a while.
Sure, some folks hate hassle and going out—but Diana took it to extremes.
Couldn't just blurt Why so lazy?, so he skirted it, and she answered.
"What I do isn't laziness."
"Huh?"
"It's more... high-level. Like, status quo bias."
High-level what? He glanced at her profile—her usual blank expression met his eyes.
"My mom, people in general—they brand laziness as sloth, the sin. But this trait? Vital throughout human history."
"......"
"Science and magic for convenience—don't they all stem from 'ugh, too much hassle'?"
He'd hoped for a straight answer, but got a full-on thesis.
"So quit pushing me to wander around. Just do Wizboard. I'll handle Mom."
"Can't. Promised the Countess."
"Tch."
Anyway, today's lesson done.
Siu escorted Diana back to the estate.
Passing the gate, he spotted Countess Yesod in the distance and quietly handed Diana the salmon.
"Hold this a sec?"
"Wh-what now?! It's... heavy...!"
Diana wobbled under the weight, glaring at Siu.
That's when the Countess spotted her and hurried over.
"My girl...! Have fun?"
Diana finally got it.
Siu grinned and nudged her back.
"Go brag."
Her annoyed look vanished; she turned away.
A small nod, then she dragged the huge salmon toward Countess Yesod.
"I'm back."
"Oh my! Did my girl catch this?"
"...Yeah."
"Amazing~ Photo time! Mommy'll grab the camera!"
Siu watched the Countess pet her head, hug her, shower praises—and felt today's work well rewarded.