The First Cast
“Kkachi. Please.”
“Kkyu!”
“Sword, you’re supposed to be a demon. Can’t you handle something like this?”
—You omitted the word “sealed,” Hans. Have you developed short-term memory loss at such a tender age?
“What?”
“Enough fighting, nyang.”
As usual, I let Hans and Sword’s bickering wash over me with one ear while pulling the high-grade fishing set I had stored in Kkachi’s belly(?) and equipping it piece by piece.
“Disqualified.”
I briefly removed the Plague Doctor mask and replaced it with a wide-brimmed straw hat. It felt a little awkward, but if it raised my Luck stat, I had to wear it. Besides, wasn’t this part of the romance? Like wearing an ill-fitting school uniform or a bunny-ear headband at an amusement park. For the record, I had never done either. Back in my school days I was painfully shy until I met that friend of mine, and once I grew up there was never time for amusement parks.
Zzzzt…
“....”
While I was fiddling with the brim of the unfamiliar hat, I felt an intense gaze from below. At the tip of the lowered black beak I saw my contractor, also wearing a fisherman’s hat and a cool black shirt. It suited her beautifully. Unlike someone else.
“Kkyu kkyu.” (She’s a lovely lady.)
“Chirp?”
Ah, right—Kkachi had been freed from escort duty because the contractor had tossed off her robe, complaining about the heat. He was happily flying around and was now making eye contact with an unknown blue bird. I hoped things went well. Whether Kkachi laid an egg or that cute blue bird did, we would have a second Kkachi unit and our combat strength would double. The thought already had me salivating.
“Raven-nim. It suits you very well.”
The contractor studied me for a moment, then offered a light compliment. Hmm, does it really… suit me? Praise could make even a crow breakdance; my mood lifted considerably.
“Nyahaha! Crow!!! It really doesn’t suit you at all, nyang! You look exactly like a creepy scarecrow stuck in some field, nyang!”
And then the mood crashed.
“....”
Thwack.
“Unyang!!! My head, my head!!!”
I left a dent in Sion’s skull for laughing at me, then turned my gaze to the contractor, who was quietly chuckling at Sion’s suffering. …It suits you.
Compliments were meant to be exchanged. Yet they were also difficult to voice. Especially when they were not mere flattery, but carried genuine feeling.
“....”
My chest trembled over something so trivial. Trying to speak while minding my words and posture felt embarrassing and terribly awkward. Still, I forced my mouth open.
“You also….”
…look good. Just to say this insignificant phrase.
“Is that so.”
To capture in my eyes the sight of you smiling faintly at my words.
“…I’m glad.”
And, right now, to engrave this precious moment into the heart of the pitiful future me who would live an eternity chewing over the past of you, even after you were gone. To carve an immortal memory that would last forever.
Yuri.
In the distant past, you were an ordinary human who no longer exists, but if I still have all those shining times, those memories we shared with you and the others, then even in Terraforming, that hell, I will be able to survive somehow. Beneath the hazy sky, I will recall the faded memories, recollections, and adventures we had together. Surely, that will be enough. I thought.
Hm?
Just then, a small breeze carried a green leaf that landed on the contractor’s hat. I bent down and gently removed it. The limp, fresh green thing somehow resembled her. I let the leaf drift away on the wind and glanced down at the contractor. And then—
She squeezed her eyes shut.
“…?”
“....”
For some reason, the contractor had closed her eyes and turned bright red. Did some dust get in her eye? Yet why was she just standing there without brushing it away? Her face was flushed crimson; she looked quite distressed. Ah, don’t tell me she’s waiting for me to help? Even normally, she quietly waited until I took her hand or offered praise. The possibility seemed very high. I wanted to pry her eyes open and blow the dust away, but the Plague Doctor mask made that impossible. Accidentally poking her eye would be a disaster. So, I had no choice but to remove it by hand.
The three-hundred-million leather glove. I grabbed the edge of the Phantom Glove and carefully pulled. A pale white hand emerged from within the black leather—the proof that I was not a monster, but an ordinary human. My fragile body, kept tightly hidden inside the stifling outer skin so it would not appear weak. Once freed from the stuffy glove, the sense of liberation was overwhelming. It felt cool and pleasant.
“Contractor, stay still.”
She flinched. I knelt and reached toward her face, only to stop just short of her nose.
“....”
I had only meant to brush the dust away, but after seeing those soft, mochi-like cheeks, I could not hold back. It was a little unfair to the contractor, but I suddenly wanted to indulge a selfish whim.
“…!”
When my long fingers carefully touched her cheek, the contractor’s body trembled once. My hand must have been cold. Sorry about that.
Poke, poke. Poke, poke.
Yet contrary to my apologetic feelings, my fingers busily poked the contractor’s cheeks without pause. Was this the cheek of a fantasy middle-schooler? She did not seem to do any special skincare, yet it felt far too good. It was so soft I could get addicted.
“…?”
While I silently continued poking, the contractor opened her eyes. The dust seemed to have come out on its own somehow. Good.
“The dust appears to have come out nicely.”
“…Yes. I mean, yes?”
I lightly patted the contractor’s cheek as she stared blankly at my hand, then put the Phantom Glove back on. Once more, I extended my hand toward her—or him.
“Let’s go, Contractor.”
Let’s go, Yuri.
It was time to fish.
“....”
The contractor looked at my hand with a complicated expression, then let out a small sigh and grasped it firmly. Thud. A smile befitting her age had already spread across her lips.
“Let’s go.”
Raven-nim.
***
“Hey, you soft, fishing-rookie brats. Has any of you ever fished even once, nyang? If so, raise your hand. You, damn crow, don’t bother—I’m not expecting anything from you, so put your hand down.”
Swish. When I lowered my hand, two other hands silently shot upward. Hans and the contractor. Sion nodded as if she had expected as much while shaping the bait into suitable lumps.
“Got it, nyang. Still, don’t worry too much, nyang. Standing before you right now is a Felis who has reached the pinnacle of catching fish, nyang. This body will kindly teach you, so relax, nyang!”
“Dependable. Very.”
“As expected of Sion-nim. I always believe in you.”
“This is what an adult is like. I can rely on you… unlike someone.”
—Cheeky bastard.
We each picked up a fishing rod and sat behind Sion, waiting for her explanation. Wearing a green windbreaker with many pockets—the kind fishing uncles usually wore—Sion struck a stylish pose, gripped her dedicated rod, and opened her mouth.
“To fish, you first need to know how to do something called casting, nyang.”
“Casting?”
“Not the magic-weaving kind of casting, nyang. Yuri-ssi.”
“Ah, so there’s a separate casting term in fishing as well.”
“Exactly, nyang!”
Casting (Fishing Casting) referred to the technique of accurately sending bait to a target spot.
“Now, watch closely how this body does it, nyang! Casting, nyang!”
At Sion’s signal, the rod that had been pulled far back snapped forward with elastic force. The moment the tension peaked, Sion’s right index finger, which had been holding the reel, lightly released. The heavy sinker with the bait shot across the air at high speed.
Kiririririk!
The sight of the reel unwinding smoothly drew gasps of admiration from the contractor and Hans. Plop. The float landed precisely beside the aquatic plants, sending small ripples across the water. Sion bared her fangs in a confident smile and shrugged.
“How was that, nyang? Do you all get the feeling now, nyang?”
Nod. We nodded silently. Sion’s cast had been so perfect that words were unnecessary. More than anything, everyone’s eyes were already half-glazed over with the desire to fish as soon as possible.
We lined up along the water’s edge in the order of me – contractor – Sion – Hans. Everyone stood a little apart to maintain safe casting distance. At each spot was a folding chair, a suitably sized bucket for fish, and the green bait and fresh live bait Sion had diligently prepared.
Whoa, that looks like jelly kids would eat.
I picked up a Green Worm that looked as though it had rolled in blue mold and hooked it onto the needle. A very faint sense of fear—barely noticeable unless I concentrated—washed over me.
So you feel fear too?
A little sorry, but what could I do? You were born that way. In your next life, try being born as a sky-soaring dragon instead of a crawling earth dragon.
“Chyat!”
“Huuup!”
“Hey, you two over there—stop putting fighting spirit into it, nyang! Do you think you’re doing sword training right now, nyang?”
“Ah, Sion-ssi, I’m sorry.”
“Ahem. I didn’t realize.”
After letting out a dry laugh at Hans and the contractor, who were casting as if performing downward slashes, I took my stance according to Sion’s instructions. Then I swung the rod at a moderate strength.
—Swaaaaash!!!
A terrifying sound like a whip cracking rang out, and the reel sliced across the lake, stretching endlessly outward.
“Whoa, that went really far.”
—A clean downward slash. Fear.
“As expected of Raven-nim….”
“Wait, but Crow-ssi. If you throw it that far, what are you going to do about the bait, nyang?”
“....”
Good question. I stared blankly in the direction the float had flown, then quietly activated the scope lens—one of the many functions built into the Plague Doctor mask.
If I cast far, maybe I can catch a bigger fish?
With that thought, our first fishing trip began.