"SHIT!" Alex exclaimed as something pulled him forward.
He slid across the floor and almost fell into the ocean. Fortunately, he quickly mobilised his mana to bind himself to the floor. Physical reinforcement allowed him to bear the strain coming from the rod.
The sudden motion of Alex didn't go unnoticed. The crew members who were nearby saw him jerk forward. They curiously looked at him.
Never did they see a person being pulled across the floor while fishing. Usually, the line and rods were weak enough to break when they experienced that much force.
They purposely built the rod and the line like that to prevent anyone from going overboard while trying to catch a meal.
The crew wanted to jump in and help him. However, seeing that he stabilised his form, they decided not to.
However, that didn't stop them from moving closer to Alex and seeing what he had caught. They strolled towards Alex, expecting the line to break any second now.
"It might be a magical beast. Yes, some of those will take the bait when they are starving. Don't worry; the fight will last for some time, and then the line will break." A man came to Alex's side and said.
"That's correct. It might be some small magical beast. You are lucky to have one take the bait." Another man said.
However, Alex ignored them. He knew it was not any tiny magical best because he had caught one previously, and that didn't pull him like the fish he was battling against.
As the battle between the fish and Alex continued, the railing preventing Alex from falling into the ocean began to display cracks. This created panic among the crew.
The fish was trying very hard to swim away and escape. The force it transmitted to Alex didn't decrease for a minute.
"It might not be just a small magical beast." Someone from the crew finally commented.
"It has already been three minutes. A magical beast could have broken the line by them."
"Then, why isn't it broken yet?"
"How would I know that, idiot?"
The crew members argued back and forth about the situation in front of them.
"Should we call the Captain? The deck and the railing are slightly damaged. Who gave him the fishing line?" The person looked around.
"I…"
"Then go call the captain. Who are you waiting for?"
"Um… Yes."
"Someone come and help me support that guy. He will go overboard if we don't help."
The crew quickly decided.
They were about to go and pull Alex back.
—
Meanwhile, the fish felt a slight pain on its upper lip.
It was the same creature that bit the mana-filled bait Alex threw.
It was supposed to bite the delectable bait and dive deep into its home. But something began to pull on it.
The hook that dug into its flesh was causing it slight pain.
But for the monstrous fish, it was nothing. Yet, it felt annoying. It tried to dive deeper instinctively.
That was the moment when Alex felt the force on his hands. After a while of pulling, the fish seemed to have realised that the annoying thing causing it pain was more severe than it thought.
So, it began to apply consistent force. This caused Alex to creep closer to the ledge slowly. The railing near Alex was breaking due to this.
—
The crew quickly gathered around Alex. They were about to pull on him. But, just as they were about to grab him, someone spoke from the side.
"Don't pull on him." This person was none other than the wind mage that was currently present on the ship. His eyes were glowing when he spoke that.
"I can see mana reinforcement on the line." The mage spoke with sweat running down his spine.
The mana vision showed the mage what was going on.
The intense glow of the fishing line and the steady and delicate flow of mana was something that even the wind mage could not make. He was even a journeyman-ranked mage. It was still impossible for him.
And yet, Alex efficiently controlled that amount of mana without a problem. He smiled as he pulled on the fishing rod, enjoying the feeling.
What does that mean?
It was apparent to the mage that Alex was stronger than him. Possibly even a master-ranked mage.
"You don't need to help him."
The mage quickly realised that Alex was not struggling against the fish. He was just enjoying the feeling. After all, this was the most fun he had since he began his voyage to the western continent.
"But the railing is about to fall apart. The ship will be damaged if we let him do it."
"You don't have to worry about that." The mage spoke in a commanding tone, shutting up the crew members.
—
Alex was thrilled by the sensation he was getting from his hand. The fish on the other side of the line was pulling on him steadily. The force was increasing with each second. He could feel the determination of the fish to not give up.
'Little fishy. I will catch you today.' Alex decided.
Just after the fish bit, Alex began to supply a steady stream of mana to enhance the line. The mana leaked from the string constantly as the fish thrashed around.
Mana consumption increased as the fish applied more force and thrashed around. At first, it took some work for Alex to grasp the correct amount of mana he could pass along the fishing line. After all, any mistake would destroy the line and thus free the fish.
Alex couldn't allow that to happen.
So, he began to employ a new strategy to catch the fish. Instead of passing his mana through the fishing line, he began to pour mana over it.
With his delicate control, Alex slowly moved his mana towards the fish. Alex did something similar when distributing smoke bombs across the Pushpam city. So he didn't have a hard time.
"What!" The wind mage exclaimed as he saw this. He couldn't believe his eyes. He had never seen a person use mana as delicately as Alex. His eyes shone as he observed it in detail.
Finally, his mana neared the end of the line.
He could finally sense the being thrashing and turning at the end of the line.
For Alex, mana was like his eyes. He could clearly see the outline of living organisms present inside the cloud of mana he could create.
So, he steadily released mana into the water around the fish. As usual, the mana turned a murky white once it spread into the water. It created a smoke screen underwater.
The smoke screen began to spread around the fish.
One core
Two core
Three core
About 50 mana cores were needed to create a smoke screen covering the fish. The density and viscosity of the water made it harder for the mana to flow easily. And the movement of the fish made it even harder for Alex to cover it entirely.
But he still covered it in its entirety.
Now, he could see the shape and size of the entire fish.
A giant bulbous head was the first thing he sensed. It had two huge beady eyes on its head. The mouth was slightly opened as it struggled to pull out the hook lodged inside.
The body was elongated and streamlined with a spindle shape. Colour was not visible to Alex, but he could barely identify the fish.
'It's a tuna! A giant one at that. It's almost as long as two people stacked on each other.' Alex smiled when he realised the fact.
'How long has it been since I last saw a tuna, much less tasted it. I can't give up now. I need to catch using any method at my disposal.' He decided promptly. Till now, he was playing with the fish. He didn't feel the necessity to capture it. He was willing to take a loss.
However, he changed once he recognised the fish. It was too good to lose.
'A giant magical tuna.' Just the thought made his mouth water.
Stepping on the railing, he pulled a little back to give him room to breathe. The mana he released clouded the giant tuna's eyes. It couldn't see anything.
Alex decided to make use of this opportunity.
He suddenly released a thousand cores of mana into the sea. It turned into a river from a thin mana tendril and flowed above the fishing line.
Quickly, the mana reached near the tuna. It expanded outwards instantly like an explosion. Everything within a kilometre radius under the sea was covered by his mana. The ocean turned murky white, almost mistaking it for diluted milk.
The wind mage who saw this felt his feet turn weak. He couldn't understand how a person could manipulate so much mana instantly without using any runes. Everything Alex did was beyond common sense.
He fell to his knees and covered his eyes in panic. The dense mana almost blinded him when he used mana vision on it.
The crew members ran to support him.
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