Shatei Kyokufuri Yumi-Ojisan

town filled with pandas.

◆　◆　◆

From there, I walked down the main road and towards the pin on my map which indicated the location of the Pisces labyrinth.
And while I was walking, I noticed something.
The pin was actually located inland.
All the other labyrinths that seemed to be related to the sea were near the beach.
But this one that looked like it could be related to fishing was near the center.
But I got the answer to my question soon enough.

“I see… So that’s why…”

A river.
A great river had been altered into a fishing pond…!
The large boulders were removed, and there were man-made differences in level and areas separated by nets.
And inside, fish were swimming.

Sponsored Content

Players would stand still, tilt their heads and change spots etcetera.

As it was still part of a river, the fishing pond was very long.
So there would be plenty of space even if there were a lot of players there at once.
And so I decided to get a fishing rod and start the trial.
Oh, I had to learn the requirement for winning and getting the special reward first.

‘Hey-heey! The fish will be scared if I talk too loud, so this time I will speak at a normal volume-nyon.’

This Charin…just looked like a fisher.
There was nothing fantastical about her.
A vest with a lot of pockets, waterproof pants, and boots…
She even wore a cheap looking cap on her long blonde hair.
Still, it wasn’t bad, seeing a girl put on clothes that would usually be seen on guys.

‘In a way, this trial is the most simple-nyon.
You will use the fishing rods that I’m going to give to you, and catch some fish here.
That’s all-nyon.
The pond won’t run out of fish, so don’t worry-nyon.
You will receive a medal if you catch a fish that has a rarity level of 4 or more stars.
The special reward is for players who catch something with the highest rarity level of 5 stars-nyon.’

That really was simple.
On the other hand, this fishing pond was exclusively for the event.
So just because you caught a lot of fish, they could not be sold for money or used as materials.
In other words, catching anything that was 3 stars or lower was meaningless…

Sponsored Content

‘Fishing is very simple-nyon.
Just raise the rod quickly if the float sinks… That’s it-nyon.
You’ll know if you catch something big, because of the way the water surface will splash.
But as long as you don’t drop the rod, you should be able to catch it-nyon.
In other words, this trial is just about reflexes-nyon.’

…What!?
I had a feeling she had said something frightening… But was it just me?
This was a VR game with the most recent technology, and yet it was just like an old fishing game with timed button presses…
But the fishing I did at the southern sea was so realistic…

‘Yes, yes.
Just like that certain famous relaxing game-nyon.
Just one button press once the float sinks! The timing of that moment is all that matters.
It could be a killifish or a coelacanth, and the result will be the same-nyon.’

…Well, this is an interesting trial you directed me to, Satomi.
It was a trial that would test how much I had grown.
Your reflexes were not as fast when you aged… It was the unavoidable truth.
However, I was sure that I had improved since starting the game.
And I felt like I was now a part of this world.

So perhaps I would show them.
My true capabilities now that I have adapted to this game…