Chapter 162: Ironrust Catfish

Chapter 162: Chapter 162: Ironrust Catfish

Just as the landing net was about to close around it, the fish suddenly sped up. It didn’t flee in a straight line, but instead carved a bizarre zigzag path, stirring up a string of fine bubbles!

It scraped precisely past Seraphina Sinclair’s net and vanished without a trace.

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

She pulled back the empty net, staring at the once-again calm surface of the water.

The water’s surface only reflected her face, a mixture of frustration and excitement.

Frustration because the fish had gotten away, and excitement because...

’I’m sure of it now. That fish is definitely not E-level!’

’And that fish was the smallest one in this lake! Judging by size alone, the other fish should be of a higher grade, or at least the same!’

Seraphina Sinclair stopped trying to catch that clearly-too-clever fish and instead cast her gaze into the deeper water.

With a flip of her wrist, she lowered the net again. This time, she was slower, the angle more cunning. It slid into the water almost silently, hugging the edge of the mobile cabin’s doorframe.

She had no specific target, simply feeling for the subtle vibrations of the current transmitted through the handle of the net.

A moment later, a heavy force suddenly yanked at the mouth of the net!

Seraphina Sinclair’s heart tightened. She immediately gripped the handle and pulled upward with all her might.

The creature in the net struggled with immense force, far greater than any fish she had caught before, churning the surrounding water into irregular ripples.

SPLASH!

The landing net burst from the water, its bottom slamming heavily onto the mobile cabin’s floor.

It was a strange fish, about half an arm’s length, covered entirely in dull, iron-gray scales. Its form was similar to a catfish, with several thick, stiff barbels growing around its mouth.

Though out of the water, it didn’t thrash about like a normal fish. It just stared upward with a pair of dull, lifeless, grayish-white eyes, its tooth-filled mouth opening and closing with faint "CLICK, CLACK" sounds, giving it an unsettling stiffness.

The strangest part was its iron-gray dorsal ridge, which was sparsely embedded with a few dull, fingernail-sized metal flakes. They looked like foreign objects crudely fused to its body, their edges even showing traces of rust.

’What is this?’

Insight!

[Ironrust Catfish (D-level)]

[Description: A mutated catfish that has long survived in waters containing special minerals. Its scales are unusually hard from absorbing precipitated metal fragments from the water, but some of the metal has rusted. The meat is tough and has a slight metallic, astringent taste. Please seek a professional to process it before consumption! It is slow-witted, but its bite force is astonishing, and it can survive for a long time out of water. Its grayish-white eyes are nearly blind; it relies entirely on the barbels around its mouth to sense vibrations in the water.]

[D-level ingredient detected. Decompose?]

[Possible drops: Rusted Hard Scale x5, Tough Fish Meat x8, Intact Sensory Barbel x2!]

’It’s a D-level ingredient, but all I can get from it is tough fish meat?’

Seraphina Sinclair fell silent. This was clearly due to the fish’s unique properties.

’Decomposing it directly is obviously the worst option. I’ll save it for the waiter.’

Without compromising the freshness of the meat too much, Seraphina Sinclair gave the fish two solid whacks to stun it, then finished it off with her blade. Only then did she contentedly stuff the dead fish into her Silver Moon Earrings.

’Time to keep fishing!’

Not counting that first fish, Seraphina Sinclair was now off to a victorious start. Her morale couldn’t be better!

Gripping the handle, she carefully lowered the net into the water again, perfectly replicating her previous trajectory. After waiting patiently for a moment, sure enough...

’Another big dummy’s taken the bait.’

Seraphina Sinclair abruptly yanked the net out. As expected, a second Ironrust Catfish was flung onto the floor.

Just as Seraphina Sinclair finished killing and stowing the second Ironrust Catfish, the muffled voice of an unexpected visitor suddenly came from outside the door:

"Hey! Hey! You’re number one on the leaderboard, for crying out loud! Have you no decency? No public spirit! GLUG GLUG..."

"Last time I came (GLUG GLUG), this floor was filthy! This time it’s covered in water (GLUG GLUG)! Good thing I’m not human! Otherwise... you could’ve gotten someone killed, you know that?!"

Annoyed by the racket, Seraphina Sinclair furrowed her brow and looked outside.

Traveling Merchant 001 was submerged in the mid-air lake, drifting back and forth with the current.

All while cursing her out.

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’In this godforsaken place, aren’t the non-human things the ones with no public spirit?!’

’Who are they trying to scare, looking like that?’

’If you’re going to wear a human skin, at least act the part!’

Just as Seraphina Sinclair’s patience was wearing thin, the figure finally leaped out of the mid-air lake.

"Human! Hey! I’m here for the weekly runes we agreed on!"

Seraphina Sinclair watched, expressionless, as Traveling Merchant 001 hopped into the cabin, dripping wet and instantly creating another puddle on the floor.

She was soaked from head to toe, a complete drowned rat. Combined with the little girl form she was using, she looked utterly pathetic.

"The runes are on the shelf over there. Get them yourself."

Seraphina Sinclair couldn’t be bothered to argue with her. She pointed, indicating that the items were on the wall-mounted shelf, her attention still mostly focused on the deep water outside the window.

The D-level Ironrust Catfish had given her a taste of success; there had to be even better things down there.

’I didn’t expect this one to show up on a Monday, but I was already prepared.’

Traveling Merchant 001 muttered to herself as she walked over, picked up the stack of neatly folded runes, and began to count them carefully. The displeasure on her face faded slightly, replaced by the shrewd expression of a merchant. "Hmm, the quantity is right, and the quality’s fine... Hey, what are you messing with over here? You’ve gotten water all over the place, inside and out. I nearly drowned just now! You need to be more careful where you park this mobile cabin. Who parks right in front of a floating lake?"

"Fishing."

Seraphina Sinclair ignored her complaints. Her reply was succinct as she once again slowly lowered the landing net into the water, focusing all her attention on the subtle movements transmitted through the handle.

"Fishing?"

Traveling Merchant 001 leaned in, looking curiously at the floating lake outside the window, then at the unremarkable landing net in Seraphina Sinclair’s hands.

After a moment of scrutiny, she asked, "With this thing? In this place?"

Seeing that Seraphina Sinclair didn’t argue, she asked again:

"What can you possibly catch? That stupid, rusty-tasting catfish from before? That thing’s worthless. Unless you pay a fortune for someone to process it, you’ll never sell it for a good price. You’d definitely lose money."

She had clearly seen what happened earlier, and her tone was laced with disdain.

Seraphina Sinclair paid her no mind. The instant Traveling Merchant 001 drew near, her wrist suddenly dipped—a force far more ferocious than before had seized the net!

"!"

Seraphina Sinclair’s eyes narrowed. She engaged her core to steady her stance, the muscles in her arms tensing as she heaved upward with a mighty pull!

SPLAAASH! Water flew everywhere, drenching Traveling Merchant 001, but the net still hadn’t broken the surface.

Seraphina Sinclair’s expression grew even more serious. She had planned to hold the fish in a stalemate with one hand while she drank a Strength Potion from her recent trade.