Waking Up Engaged to a Cool Yandere Beauty: My Wild Journey with a Love-Obsessed Senior - Episode 19: The Decisive Battle! The Ocean\'s Master and the Howling Demon Rod!

Episode 19: The Decisive Battle! The Ocean’s Master and the Howling Demon Rod!

“Yay! We did it! Maririn-buchou!”

The fishing line suspended above the surface of the sea jerks. The rod is yanked hard, cutting through the wind.

“Alright! Well done! Yes, yes!”

“Ghehehe.”

It’s a rather decent-sized mackerel. It would surely be exquisite if fried.

And this is already my twelfth catch. Or, should I say twelve fish?

Senpai has caught two, Sunabashi four, and Buchou six.

And I…

“I haven’t caught anything.”

Even though Buchou and Sunabashi are reeling in fish like crazy, I still haven’t caught a single one.

It’s honestly kind of sad.

“Rei-kun. Here’s a drink.”

“Thank you.”

I take the sports drink. It’s ice-cold.

“Senpai, aren’t you going to fish?”

After catching two fish in one go, Senpai has been sitting beside me.

“I’ll pass today. It’s not about catching a lot. As long as there’s enough for me and Rei-kun, that’s enough.”

As expected from Senpai. She’s cool. She knows when to stop and when to keep going. Unlike those two…

“Alright! Rinrin, let’s wipe out all the mackerel in this area!”

“Yes! Leave it to me, Maririn-buchou!”

“Now! Attach the bait! Catch the fish! Spread poison through the fish city!”

A little moderation would be nice… But well, that’s probably asking too much. Those two are basically here just to fish as much as possible, like a pair of fish-slaying demons.

“By the way, do you think this rod is really a thing?”

“I don’t know. Maybe Maririn is just saying whatever.”

“I thought so too. Alright! I’ll do my best! At least catch one fish!”

I reel in the line and change the bait.

At that moment, an old man with a bent back walks up to us.

“Hey there, fisherman. Have you caught anything?”

“A little bit.”

Which is my way of saying “not really.”

“I see, well, that’s alright then. I’ll be on my way.”

“Wait a second. What do you mean by ‘that’s alright’?”

It almost sounds like he’s telling us not to catch too many.

“…Well, you see. This place is called the ‘Devil’s Lair’ by the local fishermen.”

“Wha… That sounds scary.”

This probably has something to do with that ‘master’ that Buchou mentioned earlier.

“Could you tell us more about that?”

I ask out of curiosity.

“If you want to hear, I can tell you. It’ll take a while, though.”

“Go ahead. I haven’t caught any fish anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”

Since all I’ve been catching are rubber boots and yoga mats, it doesn’t change much if I don’t catch anything.

“Alright.”

The old man starts telling a story, a legend from hundreds of years ago in this area.

If I had to give it a title, it would probably be something like “The Mermaid and the Pervert.”

A long time ago, there was a fisherman. This fisherman, every night, would go to the beach, strip off his coat (which obviously didn’t exist), and expose his naked body.

One day, a beautiful mermaid, who had admired humans, appeared before him.

The two of them fell in love… Or rather, their relationship became one of exhibitionism and voyeurism, and they were reborn that way.

“They both fell in love, even though they knew it could never be a happy ending.”

“Well, that sounds more like their fetishes than love…”

“Rei-kun. Don’t probe too deeply. Love comes in many forms, after all.”

Hmm, that doesn’t seem like the right takeaway from this story…

“So, that’s where it all began. The mermaid monster, unable to pass on, still haunts these waters.”

“No, you’re skipping ahead! I didn’t even hear the ending yet!”

“Rei-kun! The rod!”

Suddenly, the rod jerks violently. What is this, some sort of bodybuilder in the sea?! The pull is so strong, I can’t believe it!

“Mackerel!? No! It’s something else!”

There are two shadows under the water. One looks like a mackerel, but the other…

“Something’s attacking the mackerel!”

Long, thin, straight like a spear. I’ve never seen a fish like that.

“Could it be…!”

Buchou screams, as if a dead party member has joined the group just before the final boss fight.

“Gwaaa!!”

If I don’t hang on, I might get dragged into the sea! This is one heck of a pull! This is a big catch!

“Old man! Could this be…!”

“No way! To think it would appear here in these waters!”

The old man suddenly stands up straighter, like he’s twenty years younger.

“No! That doesn’t help! I haven’t heard the punchline yet!”

Tell me what’s going on! Who is this monster that just devoured the mackerel I hooked!?

“Rei-kun! This is…!”

“Senpai! What is this thing?!”

“Calm down and listen! This is…!”

“I’d like to calm down, but I’m kind of about to fall!”

My feet keep slipping on the concrete. Before I can calm down, I’ll probably fall… Is this good? It feels like I hooked it well?

“This is… a Barracuda!!”

“That’s almost an invasive species!”

I’ve heard of it. It’s a fish that lives in tropical waters. In Japan, it’s usually only found around Okinawa.

“They call it the ‘living torpedo’ in other countries, and it’s feared more than sharks.”

“Boy! Reel it in! End this curse that has lasted for hundreds of years!”

This old man’s getting all worked up! But I’m telling you, it’s not a mermaid, or an exhibitionist old man—it’s a Barracuda!

“Uka! Let’s team up! Don’t let go, alright!”

“Rei-kun! I will never let you go! So! Trust me!”

They hold onto my shoulders and shout in my ear.

My ear hurts! Oh my god! Honestly, it’s making me feel like I might pass out!

“Ukaaa! Show some guts, man!”

From a distance, Sunabashi seems to be cheering me on, but… Yeah, I don’t believe that cheering helps. If the size of the cheer determined who gets into the Koshien, then the baseball team wouldn’t need to sweat.

“Ugh! This thing’s huge!”

Looking at it through the water, I can’t get an exact measurement, but it’s probably over a meter long.

“Hang in there! You can do it, boy!”

“Shut up, old man! Stop cheering and just tell me the punchline already!”

I shout to the heavens, pulling with all my might.

A massive splash erupts from the water.

“Oooh!!”

Cheers erupt, and the Barracuda, its silvery skin gleaming, is pulled up onto the breakwater.

…

“So, what are we supposed to do with this thing?”

The Barracuda, still full of energy, bounces around on the concrete.

“Hmm. It’s definitely over 120 cm. Probably the biggest catch of the day. But…”

“Yeah, this is a problem.”

Buchou and Senpai exchange a glance and sigh deeply.

“Huh? But this is definitely edible, right? Barracuda is supposed to be good to eat, and it looks like it’s fat and full of oil.”

At least, it looks like a giant mackerel, so it seems like it’d taste good.

“You don’t know, do you, boy?”

The old man pats me on the shoulder with a sorrowful expression.

It’s the kind of pity you feel when a former comrade joins your party before the final battle, but they’re under-leveled and just slow you down.

“Rei-kun, Barracuda… It’s poisonous.”

“Eh?”

Wait, what!? After all that effort?

“Weeee, Uka-bozu~!”

Sunabashi laughs mockingly from the distance.

“What the hell’s wrong with him?”

I feel my blood boiling, but I manage to hold it in… Well, it’s true that I didn’t catch anything, so I can’t argue back.

“Wait a second.”

It’s only then that I realize something’s off about this so-called ‘demon rod.’

“Hey, Buchou, doesn’t the tip of this rod look like it’s got a hole in it?”

“Ah, you’re right.”

This rod is defective! No wonder I haven’t caught anything! What’s all this about curses?

I almost believed it for a second…

“Well, what do we do now?”

Senpai rests her chin in her hand, still staring at the Barracuda.

Is she thinking of how to cook it? …Maybe?

“Shion. The Barracuda doesn’t belong here. It’s like an invasive species. As Uka said, it shouldn’t be in these waters. So, let’s use it as food for the native species… We’re running out of bait anyway.”

Hey, that’s probably the real reason. I wanted to say something, but the fact is, it’s pretty weird that this Barracuda showed up in the Seto Inland Sea. I’ve heard it’s only found around Okinawa.

“…Right. It’s a bit sad, but…”

“Yeah. We should be thankful for all the food we get.”

Buchou and Senpai approach the weakening Barracuda with a fishing knife in hand.

“Wait! At least do it somewhere I can’t see! Gyaaaa! Blood! Blood everywhere!”

And so, with Sunabashi’s scream, our fishing trip came to an end.

We continued fishing with the cursed (defective) rod, but it didn’t catch anything.

Is it really cursed? Was the ocean’s master really a Barracuda?

And when we were cleaning up as the sun set, the identity of the giant creature that leapt from the sea remained a mystery.

That’s the end of the story.