Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Hobbies: Fishing and Hiking
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*Plop.*
With the sound of something plunging into the water, my eyes widened.
Snatching this is like swinging a sword.
Following the grain of its strength, unwavering, as if cutting down a target.
I pulled the fishing rod taut.
It's a big one!
The powerful opponent wouldn't be reeled in easily. It was a situation where I could easily lose just the bait.
Coaxing and soothing it, pulling then releasing.
And then, at a certain moment, a strong tug to pull it up!
*Yank!*
"Ah...!"
At the end of the fishing rod, the bait was gone, leaving only a bare hook dangling.
"Heh, heheh. Rain, fishing is hard, isn't it?"
"...Whatever."
I cast my fishing line by the lakeside with a sullen expression.
"There's a technique to this, you know. It seems you can naturally catch bigger ones if you raise your skill rank. Heave-ho! Another one!"
"Ugh...!"
My cheeks puffed out completely.
Both of our fishing ranks had to be low, but Chris was catching far more fish than I was.
My bucket held three minnows, while Chris's was filled with fish of all sizes.
"I guess you could call it a pro and a con of virtual reality. The skills you have in real life can give you an advantage in the virtual world. I used to go with my father, whose hobby is fishing, all the time when I was young, so I know a thing or two about it."
"Oh."
This was the first time I'd heard about Chris's father. He must be someone who loves to fish.
"For example, the Fighter in our party is actually an excellent amateur boxer in real life. He's even won awards at amateur boxing tournaments. Though now he's a total game addict except when he's working. Heheh."
I remembered the Fighter from Chris's party.
That sharp-looking man who always had such a serious air about him.
I'd taken turns running carries through the forward base with the Spirit Master and Mage from Chris's party, but I'd never done a run with that Fighter.
I soon recalled the two who had run the carries with me.
The gentle and cheerful female Mage, Beimerung, and the quiet male Spirit Master, Cherni.
The Mage, Beimerung, showed great interest in me, but the Spirit Master, Cherni, only ever glanced at me furtively during our runs and never tried to approach me or strike up a conversation.
I got the feeling I'd seen his face, which seemed to have been customized, somewhere before, but having barely met anyone since my return, the number of people I knew was extremely limited. It must have just been my imagination.
"Rain, what's your level right now?"
"I'm 37."
"I'm 38. Seeing as the experience gain has slowed to a crawl here, the entry level for this region's elite dungeon is probably 38, right? Though it doesn't seem to have been discovered yet."
Since entering this region, I'd turned my attention to content like side quests, life skills, and crafting, so I hadn't reached level 38 yet.
I had been rushing forward too much until now. I decided to relax and enjoy the Astria Continent for a while, as there were no elite dungeons scheduled.
"Still, it's a relief that we don't have to rush, thanks to the game company controlling the content consumption rate. Hah, I barely slept at all until I hit level 25, you know?"
"Hehe. Me too."
I sat by the lake with the ceaselessly chattering Chris and enjoyed fishing for a while.
Even though I, who found it hard to deal with people and lacked conversational skills, didn't reply much, Chris kept chattering away and talking to me.
*Plop.*
It seemed another fish was on the line. I wouldn't let it get away this time.
Recalling how Chris had reeled in her fish, I moved the rod along with the fish's movements.
*Yank!*
"Wow!"
I beamed as I looked at the fish, as big as my forearm, that came up with the end of the fishing rod.
With this fish, I had finally met my side quest objective.
"I've met the quest objective."
"Oh, you caught them all! But why the sudden interest in fishing?"
"I wanted to try cooking."
"Cooking?"
A strange expression came over Chris's face.
In Astria Online, food made with the 'Cooking' life skill not only filled the hunger gauge but also provided buffs for a certain period.
If the hunger gauge dropped, stats would also decrease. The buff values from food increased according to the Cooking skill rank.
Cooking was a very important skill for combat in Astria Online as well.
But for me, with my 100% synchronization rate, it had an even more important meaning: 'savoring the taste.'
In fact, yesterday, the Iseulbi on the outside had gone grocery shopping.
Tired of always eating delivery food and sick of convenience store meals, I had felt the need to try cooking for myself.
Iseulbi, who had been craving spicy fish stew that day, had splurged on a rockfish at the supermarket. She had even thoroughly read the recipe.
The result was a total failure.
She had to force down the incredibly salty stew and mushy rockfish with a tearful face.
"The fishing quest gives you cleaned fish. But..."
I had a brief staring contest with the large fish in my bucket. This would be my ingredient for today's cooking.
But what kind of fish was this?
I had gone fishing at the lake in the plains because I wanted spicy fish stew, but with my shallow knowledge of fish, I didn't even know what kind I had caught.
Chris squatted down next to me and looked at the fish in the bucket.
"Let's see, it looks like a type of trout. I don't know if trout exist in this game's world, but we could probably cook it in a similar way, right?"
But now that I'd caught the fish, I realized I would need ingredients to cook it.
You can't make spicy fish stew with just fish. I needed vegetables like green onions and garlic, various seasonings, and for the spicy broth, chili powder was essential.
While I was pondering this after receiving the cleaned fish, Chris had already set up a campfire, a pot, and cooking ingredients. They looked like items she had bought from the auction house.
Chris took the fish I offered her.
"Let this big sister Chris show off her skills for Rain!"
"Is your cooking rank high?"
I had intended to try it myself, but Chris seemed dead set on cooking.
"Just trust me. I'm not good at everything, but having fished since I was young means I know a thing or two about making spicy fish stew."
Chris skillfully adjusted the amounts of water and ingredients, added the fish, and began to cook the stew.
*Bubble, bubble.*
"Oh."
The water began to boil, and the sharp, spicy aroma of the stew tickled my nose.
Judging by the color of the stew, which was the same as Chris's hair, she had definitely added chili powder.
So chili powder exists on the Astria Continent in this era. Or is it just a similar crop? Since there are also items crafted by users, it might just be a game mechanic.
"Alright, it's ready."
Taking the wooden bowl and stew from Chris, I gently stirred the broth.
A stimulating smell and an intense appearance. My mouth started watering instantly.
And then, a bite.
*Slurp.*
"Wow!"
My mouth fell open.
It's spicy! But it's delicious!
*Slurp, slurp, slurp.* I repeatedly brought the spoon to my mouth, gobbling up the stew.
The cleaned fish was properly deboned. A wooden spoon was all I needed to eat.
The thing I cooked yesterday wasn't spicy fish stew. It wasn't even food.
Of course, it was just tricking my brain into feeling the taste, but this level of detail...
Astria Online is a god!
"Whew, Chris. This is really delicious...!"
"Is it that good? Seeing you enjoy it so much makes me feel full already!"
With tears of emotion in my eyes, I savored the stew and praised Chris's cooking skills.
My legs started bouncing without me realizing it.
While I frantically devoured the stew, Chris just watched me with a silly grin.
***
"First fishing, now hiking. Hah, it's like watching my dad and his classic hobbies. His are fishing and hiking, too."
Chris sighed repeatedly as she followed me up the mountain.
"...If you don't like hiking, you can just go back down, you know?"
"N-No! I love hiking with you more than anything in the world, Rain! Hehehe!"
This girl complained every time I climbed a mountain to enjoy the scenery. And yet, she refused to leave my side.
We were walking along a narrow mountain path.
To our right, a sheer cliff rose high into the air, and to our left, a dizzying view of a great forest stretched out below.
How joyful it was, just the simple fact of climbing a mountain with my own legs.
It was a feeling I had never experienced back then on the Astria Continent, when I was driven by my mission.
The wind was refreshing, and the view was beautiful.
Other users didn't come to mountainous areas where there were few monsters to hunt.
And sometimes, you could discover unexpected treasures while climbing a mountain.
*Vwoom.*
As I rounded the peak, a completely different scene unfolded before me, accompanied by a strange, resonant hum.
"Chris, I think I found something good."
"Hah, hah. Yes! Sir! I'm right behind you!"
"Geez...!"
I grabbed the dazed Chris's hand and pulled her forward to get a clear look at the sight before us. Finally, Chris saw what I saw.
"Huh? What's this?"
"It's probably *that*, right?"
"Ah."
A structure built as if to bridge the valley between two mountains.
Unlike the Demon Army's Forward Base from before, this was a proper fortress-like citadel.
On the bridge connecting to the mountain where we stood, a sealing magic circle like the one at the forward base was in place. The other side was probably the same.
Chris stared at it blankly and muttered.
"The level 38 elite dungeon."
[Entry Level: 38]
[Elite Dungeon (4-Person Party Recommended)]
[Citadel of Aspero]