Unexpected Talent

"Hey, Exa."

"Hm? What's up?"

On a certain day.

When I returned to the base after completing the day's reconstruction work, Tirna called out to me with a stick-shaped object in her hand.

"I got this from an old man in the village I went to today."

"Oh, is that a 'fishing rod'?"

"Mhm. He asked me to tell him about mermaids, and after I did, he gave it to me as thanks."

"Hmm." I received the fishing rod from Tirna and stared at it.

The fishing rod was made of bamboo. It was a little short but exquisite.

The old man must have chosen it so that even a petite girl like her would be able to easily use it.

How considerate of him.

"Good for you. How about we go fishing sometime? Though I'm not very good at it…"

The last time I fished was when I was traveling with Elma.

That, too, could be counted on the fingers of one hand…

Right then.

"No worries. I'm not very good, either."

Heh heh, Tirna proudly puffed out her humble chest.

"That so." I couldn't help but smile at how adorable she was, but a question suddenly came to me and I asked Tirna, "That reminds me, your father was a fisherman, right? Did he never bring you to fish because you were too young or something…?"

If that was the case, then it was understandable that she wasn't very good at it, but…

"Not really. My father just always flirted with my mother. I was mostly left to my own devices"

"I-I see…"

The unexpected answer almost overwhelmed me.

W-well, it was good that they had been getting along well, I guessed…

Right then.

"—Fufu, you seem to be having fun."

""!""

Shiva-san suddenly appeared, walking down the hallway with a smile.

It seemed she had finished her work for the day.

"Thanks for the hard work," I said.

"Good work out there, Shiva," Tirna said.

Shiva-san nodded, "Yes, you too. …My? Is that a fishing rod?"

"Mm. I got it as thanks." Tirna answered.

"I see. Fishing, huh? It's been quite a while. Though I may not look like it, I was pretty good at fishing, you know?"

"Huh? Really?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes," Shiva-san nodded and said, "I did say I'd been traveling by myself for a long time, remember? I may be bad at cooking, yes, but I can at least roast a fish. Besides, it's a good way to pass the time."

"I see. Then, if you don't mind, could you teach us how to fish sometime? Neither of us is very good at it, apparently…"

When I asked with a wry smile, Shiva-san said with a happy smile. "All right. How about tomorrow afternoon, then? You two will only be busy in the morning if I'm not mistaken."

"Yes, that's alright with me. How about you, Tirna?"

"Mm, I'm okay with it, too. I'm really looking forward to it."

"Fufu, then we'll be having fish for dinner tomorrow. Let's work hard to catch enough for everyone."

"Yes." "Mhm."

◇

And so, we went to a fairly clear river, with each of us holding a fishing rod in hand, ready to fish.

Of course, Tirna got the fishing rod she'd received as thanks, whereas Shiva-san and I got cheap ones we'd bought on the way.

"Well then, let's get started. This time, we're going to use 'artificial baits' like this one."

"Okay. So, what should we do exactly?"

"It's simple. You just cast your line and then reel in the line slowly and jerk your rod a little to give the fish impression that the bait is alive. If you're not having any luck sitting back and waiting, try moving the line a little bit."

"I want to try it."

"Then, let's put it into practice immediately."

Tirna, who had eagerly raised her hand, took the lead, and Shiva-san and I quietly watched her.

"Ei."

As told, Tirna cast her line, and then she slowly reel in her line, giving her rod a little jerk once in a while.

—Pull!

"""!"""

All of a sudden, she got a bite. Tirna excitedly pulled her rod, exclaiming "Ohh."

"Got one." Tirna made a peace sign with one hand while holding a fish the size of her palm with the other.

"Oh, good job!" I praised her.

"Mm. This is thanks to Shiva's teachings. Thanks."

"Fufu, you're welcome. That said, I think you've got the talent from the start. I should say as expected of a fisherman's daughter, I suppose. Let's keep this momentum up and catch lots of fish," Shiva-san said with a smile.

""Yea~h."" We replied at the same, and I started fishing as taught as well.

◇

After that, we continued to fish, and by the time sky turned madder red, we were able to catch enough for dinner, but…

"Shiva, let's go back already," Tirna said.

"C-could you wait a little longer? I have a feeling that I'm going to catch one for sure this time."

…Shiva-san hadn't caught a single fish.

Biting her lips, she pulled her rod, but…

—Plunk.

"""..."""

As expected, no fish. An awkward atmosphere surrounded us.

Then.

"…It seems I have to get serious…"

""—?!""

Shiva-san yanked away the cloth covering her eyes and used her 'eyes' to see through the water, then…

"'Shield'!"

—Zapan!

…she cast a Magic Art to surround the area where the fish presumably be, and then…

"Haa!"

…she threw the artificial bait there, making the fish eat it by force.

—Flap, flap.

Shiva-san, having finally caught her first fish, showed it to us with a proud face and said, "Fufu, it was as easy as pie."

""...""

Y-yeah…