Fishing the Abyssal Depths
Yeonhae City wasn't some massive metropolis or anything. But a city teeming with tens of thousands of residents had been utterly wrecked overnight. Naturally, the aftermath was anything but minor. The whole place buzzed with frantic activity. Sirens had been wailing for days now, nonstop, mixed with the shouts of construction workers. And the news channels were pumping out related stories one after another.
"Nicely handled."
Of course, every single report had already been thoroughly censored.
They lumped it all together in vague terms like that. Easier to prevent panic that way, and simpler to manage the cleanup.
"Company's on break again."
With the entire city in ruins, normal business operations were impossible, of course. Most of the staff were laid up in hospitals, and I'd heard the office building—freshly repaired not long ago—had been smashed to pieces again. So, another extended vacation. I could almost hear the boss sobbing somewhere. But the Daehan Mu-dang Association would probably cover the support, right?
"So, what now?"
[Dunno lol]
Which meant I suddenly had nothing to do. The Cheon-do Association, which we'd been brawling with every time our eyes met lately, was obliterated. And the everyday normalcy I'd fought so hard to protect? Unenjoyable for the foreseeable future. All I could do was watch TV and chuckle at the absurdity. I'd basically turned into a NEET (temporary).
"Wanna go fishing?"
[Let's go go!]
Lounging on the sofa bingeing Netflix was getting old. Besides, I'd already promised Shin-nim we'd go fishing. Time for a long-overdue trip.
"Lemme see... where's my rod..."
I was rummaging through the storage room with that thought when my smartphone buzzed with an incoming call. Huh? I'd already checked in with everyone around me.
"Hello?"
"Is this Lee Jin-seok?"
"Yes, speaking."
It was an unknown number, and the voice on the other end was unfamiliar. But they knew my name. For a second, I wondered if this was some anomaly entanglement, but thankfully, it wasn't.
"This is Han Seong-yoon, manager with the Daehan Mu-dang Association. I'd like to discuss the recent incident."
"Go ahead."
I'd kept my true nature hidden from most people, but not from the Mu-dang Association. Yu-hwa's grandmother was a shaman, and Se-ah worked there too, so I'd been half-open with them from the start. They probably even knew my elementary school desk mate's name.
"Not quite that deep..."
"Why not?"
"Strict security protocol. Everything about you is classified as top-secret Level 1."
Top-secret Level 1? Felt a bit like being quarantined. But having few people in the know was a good thing. Even if there were spies or the Association went rogue, no blowback on me.
"Could we meet sometime soon? You pick the place."
"Hm..."
I pondered the man's words for a moment. Do it now or later? The old me would've scheduled it quick and gotten back to relaxing, but...
[Fishingfishingfishing]
'Quiet down, alright?'
♡ Gasp! ♡
Shin-nim had been chanting "fishing fishing" nonstop since the incident wrapped up. Hard to focus on anything else.
"Today's no good. Tough schedule."
"Understood. Call when you're free."
No choice but to postpone. Fishing first.
"Let's go fishing."
[Yay~]
I'd found the gear in storage. Packed minimal stuff and prepped to head out.
"You staying behind?"
[Yeah! Wee!]
Originally planned to bring Go-seo too, but the deep-sea grimoire hated water despite her origins. So, just me and the stone slab.
Transportation? Roads wrecked, no public transit. Fine. I'd sprint to the West Sea.
"Let's roll."
[~☆]
Yeonhae City wasn't far from the West Sea. About an hour by car. On foot at full speed? Thirty minutes tops. Slab in the bag, and off I went, full throttle.
"Here."
Didn't take long to reach the West Sea pier, my original target. Used to come every weekend back in the day. The salty sea air hit me after so long, stirring excitement in my chest.
"Right away, then."
[~☆]
Rod and bait ready. Normally I'd rent a boat for deep water, but no need now. The sea was my living room—why rent?
[O waves, carry me.]
A drop of blood into the sea, infused with power, light incantation. The water trembled like it was alive. A small wave bore me up, and I surfed it deep into the West Sea.
"What'll we hook today?"
[Somethin' big. Super huge!]
Didn't hear Shin-nim's voice often, but out here? She chattered nonstop. Always felt lonely fishing alone, never imagined she'd fill that void.
"Oh, something bit."
[Heart pounding!]
"Pull's pretty strong."
[Hubby fighting!]
After a while, a bite. Serious tug meant a keeper. Not enough to overpower me, though—I reeled it right in.
"This... tuna?"
[Croaker.]
"Ah, yeah?"
Deep water yielded a big one, easy over a meter. No bucket, so tossed it back. Reel and cast again.
[Special fishing? Let's do it?]
"What's that?"
Then Shin-nim piped up in a playful tone. Special fishing? Worried what mischief she had in mind, but curiosity won.
"Lead the way."
[Sweet! Go go!]
Her shout, and suddenly—a hole yawned in the middle of the sea. I sat on the edge, safe, but the float plunged into the abyss. Line intact, somehow.
"Fish like this?"
[Yup yup!]
The energy felt it: true deep sea. Not Earth's, but the sixth sea's floor. Pull something from there? Questionable, but then it hit me.
'She calls 'em up all the time anyway.'
Half my deep-sea magic was summons from down there. Used 'em constantly. Worrying now was silly.
"Screw it, let's try."
[Can't wait!]
Decision made, focus up. Whatever I hooked would outclass any Earth fish. Tougher than whaling? More like hunting deep-sea beasts.
"..."
[...]
Four tense hours in. Shockingly, zero catches. Boredom crept up; wanted to go home.
"Bite should've come by now..."
[Yawwwn... Boring.]
Shin-nim yawned, tentacles splashing. Me? Stared at drifting seagulls. Part of the charm, sure... but the dopamine rush from opening the abyss made the wait drag.
"Got any bait?"
[Hold on, lemme see.]
Desperate measure: ask Shin-nim for bait. She considered, prepping something to lure fish, when—
the float jerked.
"Huh? Whoa?!"
[What're ya doin'! Reel!]
Tremble became frenzy. Heading to the other side of the planet? Line peeled out at insane speed. Delay a second, and it'd all spool off. Gripped the handle, cranked hard.
Power contest? My win. Poured all mana into body enhancement.
"This... might be tough...!!"
[Hang on! Help comin'!]
Not enough. Feet jammed in water, pulled with everything—still sucked toward the hole. Shin-nim jumped in, flooding me with overflowing mana and energy.
"Reeling!!"
[Reel!!]
More mana to strength. With her, yanked full force—line finally inched back.
"Stubborn bastard!"
[Ease! It'll snap!]
It wouldn't yield. Yanked to break the line; had to give slack. But no quit—reeled again.
"You or me—let's see!"
[Mana? Don't care! Just reel!]
Unlimited mana? Heavenly chorus. No reason to hold back—drained it all, tug-of-war with the prey.
KUGUGUNG...
KWANGKAGAK! KWAGAK!
SHOAAAAA!!
Our battle shook the surroundings. Sky choked with thunderclouds, sea roiled endlessly, battering me. Rain lashed my face, fraying focus—but the rod stayed gripped.
"Nngh...!"
[Hubby fighting! You got this!]
Wife cheering from the side. Dropping it now? Better off dead. Even if my arms ripped off, I'd land this thing.
"RAAAAAGH!!!"
[Heave! Heave!]
Endgame now. Felt it through the rod, glimpsed the shadow beyond the hole. Almost mine.
"You're tiring out!"
[!!!]
Standoff, then—slack. Opportunity! Yanked full force, hurled it into the rear sea.
"Gotcha!!!"
[?!?!?]
BOOM!!
Massive explosion as the prey surfaced, slammed into the sea behind, massive splashdown. Long fight ended in my victory. Dopamine overload as reward.
"Landed it!!!"
[Woo!! Hubby best!!]
We high-fived joyfully for a bit. Then, as spray settled, I checked the catch.
And froze in shock.
"What."
...The hell is that.
Not a fish.