It was our fourth day out venturing on the Sea of No Return.
The waters were calm, making for easy experience and loot.
That was of course a good thing, but a few problems had surfaced.
“We’ve finished all the food that we brought.”
“… ‘Kay.”
“Oh, and we’re also out of bait. Once we eat through the fish I’ve caught, then we’re out of luck.”
“W-Whatever shall we do?!”
“There’s nothing worse than an empty stomach~”
We never planned to be on a long voyage.
I mean, when I said that we brought food, it’s really nothing more than just simple rations.
Well, it’s not like I can’t fish without bait, but it’ll be a little tricky to feed all six of us.
My cooking skill isn’t that refined either, so it’s more than likely it’ll result in a few failed attempts.
That means we absolutely need to obtain and maintain our supply level.
“It ain’t all bad though.”
“What do you mean?”
“See, we’ve been without fresh water for a few days and we’re alright, aren’t we?”
“… I see.”
“Altorese is indeed correct.”
It’s true. Water should have been a problem long ago.
I remember someone saying that if you go hungry in the game, it might become a problem once you’re finished playing.
It probably has something to do with the program that brings us back to real life.
As my real life friend once said, Dimension Wave is like a dream that you can vividly remember.
There’s something sad about that, but hey, at least playing this probably won’t hurt your school grades too bad, unlike video games.
… Let’s get back on track to the problem at hand.
“It’s a game after all. We might feel hungry, but that’s just a virtual thing and we won’t die from hunger. Worst case scenario might actually be overeating.”
“I don’t think that far ahead… Well, anyway, let me see if I can’t do anything about getting us more food.”
In the end, I was thrown back into fishing, which was what I wanted to do from the beginning.
No more high-quality bait means that I won’t be able to catch us anything big like tuna but I’ll still be able to get smaller fish.
Here was where my shining lure came into play.
Since it’s always lit up, I’ve been using it as my light source at night.
I also found out that the lure can’t catch me anything during daytime, but it attracts squid at night.
Or so says Alto anyway.
“Hello, shining squid lure.”
Makes sense that you need a squid lure for squid.
I mean, it looks like a normal lure… except for the part where it lights up.
In any case, I could solve our hunger problem with it. Let’s get that squid.
Not that I can catch anything but squid at night.
In mere days, I caught myself close to 500 of them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
“I bite my thumb at thee, Miss Kizuna!”
Such were the hurtful words hurled unto me.
Even Sheryl needed to vent her frustration of too much squid. That was by shooting them out of her ballista.
Day in, day out, it was me, my fishing rod, and squid.
Never mind the fact that I had over 1,000 of them in my inventory.
What a lure.
I still stood by the words I said that day at that time at that location: it’s worth every penny.
But there’s something about the Sea of No Return. Not sure what it is, but monsters come out only during the day.
Even back at the outskirts of the First City, monsters would come out at night.
What, did the devs want to give us a break or something? Seems highly unlikely.
In any ordinary RPG, you’d find old clichéd dungeons like The Labyrinth or The Endless Desert where every route takes you down a different path and you can’t get out unless you solve a puzzle. It kinda feels like that.
It’s getting close to a week out here at sea and we’re all getting a little stressed.
Of course, the fact that we only have squid definitely contributes to it.
We’ve gotta do something about this.
“Are they biting?”
“… Oh, it’s you, Shouko.”
I was a little surprised when someone spoke to me since I get lost in my thoughts while late night fishing.
Shouko sat down beside me and gazed up at the moon.
The moon’s out tonight… It sure looks bigger in this world than the real thing.
Big as it is though, it doesn’t shine very bright.
“Nature sure is wonderful.”
“Something bothering you?”
“Oh, no… Though I realize this world was created by people, who would think that a single storm would change all of our lives?”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
We were unlucky getting sucked in by the storm, but I didn’t think that would result in all six of us living together on this ship.
Up until now, we all had our individual rooms at our accommodation.
It almost feels like we’re on a field trip together, at the risk of sounding like I’m taking this a little too lightly.
But especially because of that, we must find a way to get through this together.
Games are designed to be figured out if you pay close enough attention to the details.
If we can’t find the answer, it means we’re not looking hard enough.
“Kizuna, you have a bite.”
“S’alright. Squid aren’t that hard to catch.”
The tip of my line was bobbing up and down.
… No, wait. That’s no squid.
I had tirelessly fished for the past few days, so I know what squid feels like.
There’s nothing but squid around here at night and it’s not because of my light-up lure.
But that’s the problem. I’ve caught a thousand of them but this ain’t one.
This had to be a rare catch. Literally.
Anyway, time to reel…
“Come!”
—Kathunk!
I’ve had a bite like this before and it’s a day and night difference compared to my normal catches.
This… this was it. This was the Giant Herring.
“No, can’t be. This is more powerful…!”
“Kizuna, it’s pulling our ship.”
“… Damn! Go get Sheryl for me! I need her Harpoon skills or maybe…”
“On it!”
I didn’t have the mental capacity to track Shouko as she disappeared under deck.
My full attention was on the tip of my fishing rod.
The line was connected directly to my cranial nerves.
And when I felt it, I pulled… and reeled.
The reel, a compatible pairing to deep sea fishing and lures, was a new addition to my rod.
It wasn’t too easy to the hang of it, but it provides a lot more leverage.
The complex part is casting with a lure.
It seems like it’s not too dissimilar to how they work in real life.
Anyway, trust me when I say I feel like I’m one with my rod.
“… Here, Kizuna.”
“Sheryl, you think you can use your harpoon and hit where I tell you to?”
“… Possibly.”
“Please! I won’t be able to do this alone.”
I mean, harpoons were originally for spearfishing anyway.
It makes for a perfect weapon against a huge sea creature.
That’s why I don’t think anyone would be more suited for this job other than Sheryl.
“… Where?”
“Hold on…”
While we attacked and defended, I also tried to locate where the aquatic animal was.
My mind and my rod are one. I… should know where it is.
It should be like searching through with my mind, probably.
Oh, I see. The Crystal of Mediation must’ve pulled its aggro.
Maybe that’s why I was able to catch a thousand of them squid.
But this… thing… I feel its hatred searing my skin.
And it’s…
“Right there!”
“… Bomber Lancer.”
A mid-tier skill for Harpoon-type weapons.
It was a mid-range combat skill where you throw the harpoon like a javelin.
With one hand on the cord, Sheryl chucked her harpoon out with an explosive visual effect.
The missile audibly sunk deep into the creature.
Reeling it in was instantly easier, but it started moving again.
“How many more can you do?”
“I’m fine.”
“I’m counting on you.”
“‘Kay.”
It wouldn’t sit well with my pride if I let Sheryl do all the heavy lifting.
As difficult as it was, I kept on reeling.
From time to time, her harpoon would whiz by… It was strong enough to nearly stunlock the bastard.
It helped immensely as I tried to fish it up.
“Keep it up!”
“Mm.”
The battle dragged on, wearing down on our spirits.
At least our enemy’s stamina is also being exhausted.
But of course. It’s a 2v1. No way we’d lose.
“Sheryl, our next bout will end it!”
“… Aight.”
With her harpoon gripped firmly, I signaled her to attack with all her might. And our enemy…
“… I mean, I get it, but.”
We fished up—or rather, hunted—a humongous squid.
It’s apparent that it’s related to the Giant Herring. Thank you very much.
We couldn’t exactly heft it up on board, so we had it towed along with a rope.
I mean, I say hunted, but we’re not sure yet if it’s a monster or not.
“Kraken” wouldn’t be an unfair name for it.
… I mean, Sheryl took it down with her attacks, so I guess it is a monster?
Anyway, the harpoon is perfectly suited for fighting sea creatures.
“… Kizuna.”
“Hmm? What’s up?”
“I think you should gut it soon.”
“Why do you… Ah, whatever. Gotcha. I’ll do it.”
“Hm.”
I didn’t get the feeling she would answer even if I were to finish asking her, though there was something like a gleam in her eye.
I guess shooting squid out of the ballista would’ve been effective, but eating nothing but it is another story.
Not to mention that Sheryl had eaten the most out of any of us.
… Maybe she likes squid?
I decided it would’ve been wiser to not ask her and just to gut the Humongous Squid in silence.
What I got was:
Water Deity’s Tentacle, Water Deity’s Fin, Water Deity’s Head, Water Deity’s Arm, Water Deity’s Mantle, Water Deity’s Heart, Water Deity’s Eye, Water Deity’s Shell, Top Quality Squid Ink, Top Quality Trimmed Squid
Just like with the Giant Herring, I received a surprising number of items from gutting.
Maybe all of them boss creatures are like this, eh?
And I suppose it was originally a squid turned water deity?
Hmm, I wonder… what kind of weapons I could make with these parts…
“Sheryl, we’ll discuss it with everyone else, but have these items.”
“… You sure?”
“Why do you question it?”
“Hm.”
“I don’t have any ulterior motives. I just feel like it would be better if you held on to them.”
“Hm.”
“Call it a gut feeling. Speaking of which… that was kinda uncharacteristic of what you said earlier.”
“… Not really.”
Whatever.
Not like it’d help if I hounded her over it anyway.
In any event, I handed over all the items I received by gutting the Humongous Squid.
We’re still undecided, but it’d be nice if she could make a good weapon out of its parts.
“Kizuna! Sheryl!”
While we were basking in the glory of defeating the Humongous Squid, Shouko called out to us in a less delighted tone.
I’ve seen her flustered only a handful of times since we’ve first met.
“What’s wrong?”
“The ship is moving by itself.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s what ships do.”
“No, I don’t mean it like th—”
“Kizuna.”
Sheryl interrupted Shouko as she pointed upwards.
Our sails were furled.
I looked around. A calm night without so much wind or waves.
There was no one using Helmsmanship.
And yet, despite so.
… Our ship was traveling at an unnatural speed.
It was our fourth day out venturing on the Sea of No Return.
The waters were calm, making for easy experience and loot.
That was of course a good thing, but a few problems had surfaced.
“We’ve finished all the food that we brought.”
“… ‘Kay.”
“Oh, and we’re also out of bait. Once we eat through the fish I’ve caught, then we’re out of luck.”
“W-Whatever shall we do?!”
“There’s nothing worse than an empty stomach~”
We never planned to be on a long voyage.
I mean, when I said that we brought food, it’s really nothing more than just simple rations.
Well, it’s not like I can’t fish without bait, but it’ll be a little tricky to feed all six of us.
My cooking skill isn’t that refined either, so it’s more than likely it’ll result in a few failed attempts.
That means we absolutely need to obtain and maintain our supply level.
“It ain’t all bad though.”
“What do you mean?”
“See, we’ve been without fresh water for a few days and we’re alright, aren’t we?”
“… I see.”
“Altorese is indeed correct.”
It’s true. Water should have been a problem long ago.
I remember someone saying that if you go hungry in the game, it might become a problem once you’re finished playing.
It probably has something to do with the program that brings us back to real life.
As my real life friend once said, Dimension Wave is like a dream that you can vividly remember.
There’s something sad about that, but hey, at least playing this probably won’t hurt your school grades too bad, unlike video games.
… Let’s get back on track to the problem at hand.
“It’s a game after all. We might feel hungry, but that’s just a virtual thing and we won’t die from hunger. Worst case scenario might actually be overeating.”
“I don’t think that far ahead… Well, anyway, let me see if I can’t do anything about getting us more food.”
In the end, I was thrown back into fishing, which was what I wanted to do from the beginning.
No more high-quality bait means that I won’t be able to catch us anything big like tuna but I’ll still be able to get smaller fish.
Here was where my shining lure came into play.
Since it’s always lit up, I’ve been using it as my light source at night.
I also found out that the lure can’t catch me anything during daytime, but it attracts squid at night.
Or so says Alto anyway.
“Hello, shining squid lure.”
Makes sense that you need a squid lure for squid.
I mean, it looks like a normal lure… except for the part where it lights up.
In any case, I could solve our hunger problem with it. Let’s get that squid.
Not that I can catch anything but squid at night.
In mere days, I caught myself close to 500 of them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
“I bite my thumb at thee, Miss Kizuna!”
Such were the hurtful words hurled unto me.
Even Sheryl needed to vent her frustration of too much squid. That was by shooting them out of her ballista.
Day in, day out, it was me, my fishing rod, and squid.
Never mind the fact that I had over 1,000 of them in my inventory.
What a lure.
I still stood by the words I said that day at that time at that location: it’s worth every penny.
But there’s something about the Sea of No Return. Not sure what it is, but monsters come out only during the day.
Even back at the outskirts of the First City, monsters would come out at night.
What, did the devs want to give us a break or something? Seems highly unlikely.
In any ordinary RPG, you’d find old clichéd dungeons like The Labyrinth or The Endless Desert where every route takes you down a different path and you can’t get out unless you solve a puzzle. It kinda feels like that.
It’s getting close to a week out here at sea and we’re all getting a little stressed.
Of course, the fact that we only have squid definitely contributes to it.
We’ve gotta do something about this.
“Are they biting?”
“… Oh, it’s you, Shouko.”
I was a little surprised when someone spoke to me since I get lost in my thoughts while late night fishing.
Shouko sat down beside me and gazed up at the moon.
The moon’s out tonight… It sure looks bigger in this world than the real thing.
Big as it is though, it doesn’t shine very bright.
“Nature sure is wonderful.”
“Something bothering you?”
“Oh, no… Though I realize this world was created by people, who would think that a single storm would change all of our lives?”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
We were unlucky getting sucked in by the storm, but I didn’t think that would result in all six of us living together on this ship.
Up until now, we all had our individual rooms at our accommodation.
It almost feels like we’re on a field trip together, at the risk of sounding like I’m taking this a little too lightly.
But especially because of that, we must find a way to get through this together.
Games are designed to be figured out if you pay close enough attention to the details.
If we can’t find the answer, it means we’re not looking hard enough.
“Kizuna, you have a bite.”
“S’alright. Squid aren’t that hard to catch.”
The tip of my line was bobbing up and down.
… No, wait. That’s no squid.
I had tirelessly fished for the past few days, so I know what squid feels like.
There’s nothing but squid around here at night and it’s not because of my light-up lure.
But that’s the problem. I’ve caught a thousand of them but this ain’t one.
This had to be a rare catch. Literally.
Anyway, time to reel…
“Come!”
—Kathunk!
I’ve had a bite like this before and it’s a day and night difference compared to my normal catches.
This… this was it. This was the Giant Herring.
“No, can’t be. This is more powerful…!”
“Kizuna, it’s pulling our ship.”
“… Damn! Go get Sheryl for me! I need her Harpoon skills or maybe…”
“On it!”
I didn’t have the mental capacity to track Shouko as she disappeared under deck.
My full attention was on the tip of my fishing rod.
The line was connected directly to my cranial nerves.
And when I felt it, I pulled… and reeled.
The reel, a compatible pairing to deep sea fishing and lures, was a new addition to my rod.
It wasn’t too easy to the hang of it, but it provides a lot more leverage.
The complex part is casting with a lure.
It seems like it’s not too dissimilar to how they work in real life.
Anyway, trust me when I say I feel like I’m one with my rod.
“… Here, Kizuna.”
“Sheryl, you think you can use your harpoon and hit where I tell you to?”
“… Possibly.”
“Please! I won’t be able to do this alone.”
I mean, harpoons were originally for spearfishing anyway.
It makes for a perfect weapon against a huge sea creature.
That’s why I don’t think anyone would be more suited for this job other than Sheryl.
“… Where?”
“Hold on…”
While we attacked and defended, I also tried to locate where the aquatic animal was.
My mind and my rod are one. I… should know where it is.
It should be like searching through with my mind, probably.
Oh, I see. The Crystal of Mediation must’ve pulled its aggro.
Maybe that’s why I was able to catch a thousand of them squid.
But this… thing… I feel its hatred searing my skin.
And it’s…
“Right there!”
“… Bomber Lancer.”
A mid-tier skill for Harpoon-type weapons.
It was a mid-range combat skill where you throw the harpoon like a javelin.
With one hand on the cord, Sheryl chucked her harpoon out with an explosive visual effect.
The missile audibly sunk deep into the creature.
Reeling it in was instantly easier, but it started moving again.
“How many more can you do?”
“I’m fine.”
“I’m counting on you.”
“‘Kay.”
It wouldn’t sit well with my pride if I let Sheryl do all the heavy lifting.
As difficult as it was, I kept on reeling.
From time to time, her harpoon would whiz by… It was strong enough to nearly stunlock the bastard.
It helped immensely as I tried to fish it up.
“Keep it up!”
“Mm.”
The battle dragged on, wearing down on our spirits.
At least our enemy’s stamina is also being exhausted.
But of course. It’s a 2v1. No way we’d lose.
“Sheryl, our next bout will end it!”
“… Aight.”
With her harpoon gripped firmly, I signaled her to attack with all her might. And our enemy…
“… I mean, I get it, but.”
We fished up—or rather, hunted—a humongous squid.
It’s apparent that it’s related to the Giant Herring. Thank you very much.
We couldn’t exactly heft it up on board, so we had it towed along with a rope.
I mean, I say hunted, but we’re not sure yet if it’s a monster or not.
“Kraken” wouldn’t be an unfair name for it.
… I mean, Sheryl took it down with her attacks, so I guess it is a monster?
Anyway, the harpoon is perfectly suited for fighting sea creatures.
“… Kizuna.”
“Hmm? What’s up?”
“I think you should gut it soon.”
“Why do you… Ah, whatever. Gotcha. I’ll do it.”
“Hm.”
I didn’t get the feeling she would answer even if I were to finish asking her, though there was something like a gleam in her eye.
I guess shooting squid out of the ballista would’ve been effective, but eating nothing but it is another story.
Not to mention that Sheryl had eaten the most out of any of us.
… Maybe she likes squid?
I decided it would’ve been wiser to not ask her and just to gut the Humongous Squid in silence.
What I got was:
Water Deity’s Tentacle, Water Deity’s Fin, Water Deity’s Head, Water Deity’s Arm, Water Deity’s Mantle, Water Deity’s Heart, Water Deity’s Eye, Water Deity’s Shell, Top Quality Squid Ink, Top Quality Trimmed Squid
Just like with the Giant Herring, I received a surprising number of items from gutting.
Maybe all of them boss creatures are like this, eh?
And I suppose it was originally a squid turned water deity?
Hmm, I wonder… what kind of weapons I could make with these parts…
“Sheryl, we’ll discuss it with everyone else, but have these items.”
“… You sure?”
“Why do you question it?”
“Hm.”
“I don’t have any ulterior motives. I just feel like it would be better if you held on to them.”
“Hm.”
“Call it a gut feeling. Speaking of which… that was kinda uncharacteristic of what you said earlier.”
“… Not really.”
Whatever.
Not like it’d help if I hounded her over it anyway.
In any event, I handed over all the items I received by gutting the Humongous Squid.
We’re still undecided, but it’d be nice if she could make a good weapon out of its parts.
“Kizuna! Sheryl!”
While we were basking in the glory of defeating the Humongous Squid, Shouko called out to us in a less delighted tone.
I’ve seen her flustered only a handful of times since we’ve first met.
“What’s wrong?”
“The ship is moving by itself.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s what ships do.”
“No, I don’t mean it like th—”
“Kizuna.”
Sheryl interrupted Shouko as she pointed upwards.
Our sails were furled.
I looked around. A calm night without so much wind or waves.
There was no one using Helmsmanship.
And yet, despite so.
… Our ship was traveling at an unnatural speed.
