Chapter 30: Summer Event <Early Morning> / A Chef's Morning Starts Early

"………"

The sun rises above the horizon. The edges of the mountains in the distance gradually brighten.

It has that feeling of the mountain ridges slowly turning white...

...Though that was spring.

I stare at the scene without moving a muscle.

"………………………"

It's a muggy season, but there's something special about the refreshing quality of early morning air.

Precisely because it's such a hot season, the crispness of the early morning stands out even more.

Sorry, Sei Shonagon of the Kiyohara family, but I think I might actually prefer early morning to a hot, stuffy night.

I feel the breeze sweeping across my entire body.

I still don't move an inch.

"What are you doing, Tierra As?"

"Oh, Walt-kun. Can't you tell just by looking?"

"...You're sitting on the lakeshore with your knees pulled up, staring intently at a piece of fruit floating on the lake. Do you really think I could possibly figure out what that means?"

"When you put it into words like that, it does sound completely nonsensical. You're right. I'm trying to fish, technically."

I promised Mother Earth that I'd make fish the main course for breakfast.

And if you're cooking fish, freshness is important.

So here I am, working hard to gather food first thing in the morning.

...But when I factor in the time it'll take to cook, I'm in serious trouble.

Every single one of these people eats an absolutely ridiculous amount.

By the way, it's been about an hour since I started fishing.

My current catch: zero.

Damn it.

"Fishing? This? For starters, I don't see a fishing rod anywhere."

Exactly.

But I didn't have any strong enough thread that could be used for fishing.

What else was I supposed to do?

In this fantasy world, if you want to catch fish, ordinary thread just won't cut it.

It'd simply get ripped apart.

The fish have magical power too, after all.

For the same reason, catching them by diving in and grabbing them isn't practical either.

They're ridiculously fast.

So, after thinking about all sorts of options, I came up with this.

I float a fruit with a strong, sweet scent on the lake and watch it.

The plan is to wait for a fish to come because of the smell, then take it down and capture it with my twin swords.

"...And that's the situation."

"I understand the circumstances. I do. But..."

There's a reason I'm using fruit instead of meat as bait, too.

In this world, trying to lure fish with meat can occasionally lead to some very unpleasant situations.

Sometimes, an enormous fish-shaped magical beast comes along.

Vegetables and fruit, on the other hand, are comparatively safe.

In this world, creatures that favor plant-based food are often unsuited for combat.

So, within the limited options available to me, this is a perfectly calculated plan.

Who knew I had an aptitude for strategy, too?

Maybe the implementation of Military Strategist Tierra isn't so far away after all.

"No fish would fall for such an obvious trap. Besides, have you forgotten that a giant hole was punched into the lake yesterday? The fish are on high alert now."

It works on Earth, though!

You throw some bait into a river and they come swimming over without a care in the world!

Well, ordinary wild animals in this world are weirdly intelligent too, probably because of the influence of magic!

Another reason why other worlds are such a pain!

"Oh, right. I suppose that's true..."

That aside, I'd completely forgotten about the mess Rene made.

Damn you, Rene...!

It wasn't enough to steal my spotlight with the fireworks, now you're getting in my way here too...!?

"You look reliable at first glance, but you're actually pretty scatterbrained..."

What did you just say?

Even if you're handsome, there are some things you can and can't say.

Where in the world is there a more dependable big sister than Tierra?

The word “scatterbrained” should only apply to...

"No, no. I'm not like Pahal."

"Anyone looks competent compared to my little sister."

Mmph.

That's a fair point.

Damn it. I can't argue with that.

"Sigh... Fine. Wait here for a moment."

"...?"

What's this?

He suddenly closes his eyes.

Then, facing the lake, he draws his bow, nocks an arrow made from magic—

"...I heard it."

—and fires.

One shot.

Two.

Three.

Four.

He fires four arrows in rapid succession.

There isn't even time to carefully take aim.

The four arrows tear through the air in one smooth motion, as naturally as breathing, without the slightest hesitation, and strike the lake.

They disappear beneath the surface as though being swallowed by the depths.

"Um...? What did you suddenly...?"

"Just watch."

Immediately afterward, a small waterspout forms on the surface of the lake.

And when the waterspout disappears...

"Will this be enough?"

One large fish.

Two.

Three...

Nine fish are lined up at my feet.

Their mouths and gills are still moving, so they don't appear to be dead, but their movements are extremely sluggish.

At least they don't seem capable of escaping.

"Um, you're giving these to me?"

"I don't believe something this small is enough payment for what you fed me. But if I don't repay even a little of what I owe you, my debt will grow beyond what I can ever hope to repay."

"...?"

Please don't phrase things so indirectly.

I'm not exactly a genius.

Though maybe I'm not really in a position to say that, considering how many cryptic things I say while role-playing.

"...In other words... yesterday's meal was delicious. Consider these my thanks."

Oh.

Now I get it.

"Thank you. This is a huge help."

If that's the case, I'll gladly accept them.

This should be more than enough.

The problem is that they're in this strange state where they're completely motionless despite being alive.

Is it actually safe to eat them?

"...Ah. That's the effect of the magic I imbued into the arrows. It's only a mild paralysis. It'll wear off within five minutes."

Apparently, the first three shots each pierced three fish with a single arrow, paralyzing them.

The final arrow, imbued with wind magic, created the waterspout and blew the paralyzed fish onto the shore.

That's an SSR for you.

He may lack the flashy spectacle of some of the other SSRs, but this is still an absolutely incredible feat.

Having to beat people like this in the popularity poll...

Yeah, the difficulty level really is way too high.

"So you heard the fish and fired at them?"

"Yes. Exactly."

"Then, can you distinguish the sound of the Lord of the Lake that supposedly lives here?"

There's a chance the event boss could have its entire role erased.

If he hears it and warns us about it, the worst-case scenario is that the whole summer event gets derailed.

"...I'm afraid that's difficult. The lake is extremely deep and vast, and countless creatures live within it. I could distinguish those fish only because they were in the shallower waters. I'm sorry."

"No, no, it's totally fine! I was just asking out of curiosity!"

I'm really fine!

So please don't go diving down there to listen for sounds in the deep!

If the summer event gets ruined, we're seriously screwed.

If WF itself loses popularity, the final “value of souls” will decrease accordingly.

Even if that lets me return to Earth, there's a chance I won't be able to reach the ending where I save my little sister.

That's also the biggest reason I can't use something like “eliminate the popular characters who could become obstacles before the original story begins.”

WF exists because of the charm of its characters, and the miracle lies in winning the “Popularity Poll.”

Well, putting that aside...

Even if I used every underhanded trick imaginable, there'd be no way I could beat the SSRs and meta-defining characters anyway.

Those guys are basically monsters.

Right.

I should change the subject by asking him something I've been meaning to ask.

"Um, changing the subject... Do you know of any long, hollow, sturdy wood... or something similar?"

"That's an extremely specific set of requirements... What are you planning to use it for?"

"I thought I might use it for lunch."

"...Are you planning to eat wood?"

"No, not exactly. Actually..."

I explain what I have in mind.

It's one of those classic symbols of summer in Japan.

"...I see. In that case, I may know what you're talking about. I saw something like that in the forest yesterday. I'll bring it here later."

"Really!? Thank you!"

This is going to be fun...

I can't wait to see how people from another world react.