"That's right, he definitely asked for it himself!" came enthusiastic voices from the crowd.
"I've never heard such an outrageous request before! Yohohoho!" Brook's distinctive laugh rang out clearly above the noise.
"I heard it too! Oh haha!" Skull chimed in with obvious delight.
The spectators erupted into genuine laughter, with Skull and Brook's voices distinctly audible among the cheerful chaos. Their amusement was infectious, spreading throughout the viewing area as people replayed McGee's foolish challenge in their minds.
Amid all the laughter, McGee surfaced from the lake but didn't dare utter another word. He looked up at Jerry—who was cheerfully winking down at him—with unmistakable fear clouding his previously confident expression.
He knew beyond any doubt that his defeat had been completely fair, and could even be described as utterly without suspense. McGee's natural strength was genuinely impressive; over the years, he had been able to overpower most people he encountered using nothing but raw physical force, making him a genuine neighborhood bully throughout the region.
He typically ran rampant around his home village, and even many visiting outsiders proved no match for his intimidating presence and brute strength.
However, the overwhelming feeling of oppression and helplessness he'd just experienced had pierced straight through his seemingly impenetrable shell of confidence. In that crucial moment when Jerry had grabbed his hand, he'd been unable to break free no matter how desperately he struggled, and he knew with absolute certainty that he had encountered someone far beyond his capabilities.
Given McGee's naturally aggressive personality, if he hadn't witnessed powerful Marines capturing pirates during his childhood—those brutal scenes of combat between opposing forces having been deeply engraved in his memory and creating psychological scars covering more area than a spacious three-bedroom apartment—he probably would have already set sail to become a universally despised pirate himself.
When McGee looked at Jerry's face again, he felt a nagging sense of familiarity, as though he might have seen those features somewhere before. However, he couldn't quite place where or when such an encounter might have occurred.
More importantly, he didn't dare maintain eye contact for very long, terrified that Jerry might interpret his staring as some kind of renewed provocation or challenge. At this particular moment, McGee wanted nothing more than to turn around, slip quietly back to shore, and continue participating in the competition from one of the other, safer locations.
Jerry smiled warmly at McGee's retreating figure but said nothing further. Instead, he walked calmly to the front edge of his newly claimed fishing spot, unpacked his various tools and equipment, and began making his methodical preparations for the upcoming competition.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to this year's prestigious Food City Fishing Championship!" the competition host announced enthusiastically as he took the stage.
After delivering his routine opening monologue filled with excitement about the day's events, he provided a brief but comprehensive overview of the competition rules, time limits, and judging criteria that would determine the eventual winner.
Of course, the organizers couldn't realistically expect participants to fish for an entire day during such an event. The time limit had been set at several hours, with the competition officially ending at dusk regardless of individual progress.
Amid thunderous cheers and applause from the enthusiastic audience, the host and head referee jointly announced the official start of the competition with a dramatic countdown.
Numerous contestants throughout the venue, including Jerry, immediately began their individual strategies and preparations. Some methodically created elaborate bait presentations designed to attract fish to their specific locations, others took advantage of setups that previous anglers had already established, and a few simply cast their lines directly into the water with minimal preparation.
Jerry gazed down into the slightly murky water beneath his feet, noting with satisfaction that many fish were already swimming in the immediate area even before he'd begun any serious baiting efforts.
He secretly congratulated himself on choosing such an excellent location, thinking that this spot truly deserved its designation as one of the premium fishing areas selected by the competition organizers. He suspected they must have secretly placed fish attractants or other items in the water that would naturally draw large numbers of aquatic life to these specific zones.
This advantageous situation saved him considerable time and effort. After taking a closer look at the underwater activity patterns, he cast his line directly into the most promising area and settled onto the small folding stool he'd prepared earlier, patiently waiting for fish to discover his carefully selected bait.
Taking advantage of the peaceful waiting period, he turned his head to survey the competition landscape around him.
He observed that there were indeed four other premium fishing spots similar to his own positioned around the lake. However, after the fierce territorial disputes that had occurred before the competition's official start, three of those locations were now occupied by solitary individuals who had successfully claimed their space, while the fourth spot remained crowded with multiple contestants still jockeying for position.
Jerry had defeated McGee fairly and openly in front of everyone, and apparently no one else felt foolish enough to challenge him directly. Instead, all the displaced contestants had wisely chosen to squeeze into other available areas rather than risk a similar confrontation.
Looking around at the remaining fishing spots throughout the venue, he could see crowds of people clustered everywhere along the shoreline. The sheer number of participants who had registered for the event meant that many fishing locations had become hotly contested territory, forcing contestants who failed to secure individual spots to make do with shared areas alongside other competitors.
The spectator seating was positioned at a respectful distance from the actual competition area. After the event officially began, the audience maintained appropriate quiet rather than shouting or creating distractions. Instead, people either participated in small side games organized by the event staff or sat peacefully chatting among themselves while observing the ongoing action.
As time passed steadily, waves of cheers rose and fell throughout the venue as numerous contestants began celebrating their first successful catches of the day. This was particularly true for those fortunate enough to have secured positions at the premium fishing locations, where the fish populations were notably more abundant and active.
Compared to the frequent celebrations and constant activity happening around the lake, there was one particular individual who stood out as completely out of place among the general atmosphere of success and excitement.
Jerry sat in a perfect thinking pose, motionless as a statue and displaying the patience of a seasoned meditation master. His face maintained a serious, concentrated expression while his eyes remained laser-focused on the school of fish that were playfully chasing each other around his fishing hook and line in the water below.
Jerry naturally observed the impressive catches that other contestants were landing with increasing frequency, but on his side of the lake, fish were swimming everywhere in apparent abundance—yet not a single one showed even the slightest interest in his carefully prepared bait.
"Is it possible that my bait selection isn't appealing to their particular tastes?" he wondered aloud in a barely audible murmur.
"Or maybe they're already completely satisfied from previous feeding? Perhaps they simply have no appetite at the moment?"
Maintaining his focused posture and intense concentration, Jerry continued his quiet self-analysis as he attempted to understand the perplexing lack of interest from the local fish population.
Before he could finish developing his theory, a significantly larger fish glided smoothly into the area, opened its impressive mouth, and proceeded to swallow several smaller fish that had been swimming near his fishing line. The smaller fish scattered immediately, leaving his hook area notably less populated than before.
Jerry's eyes gleamed with renewed hope and anticipation—he knew this could be the breakthrough moment he'd been waiting for. As long as he could successfully hook this substantial specimen, all the modest catches that other contestants had been celebrating would become completely meaningless in comparison.
However, as he watched the newcomer with growing interest and maintained his unwavering focus for several additional hours, he discovered to his mounting frustration that the large fish completely ignored his bait offerings. Instead, it continued systematically consuming other smaller fish in the immediate vicinity and actively driving away potential competition, resulting in a virtual dead zone around his hook where no other aquatic life dared to venture.
"Seriously? Are you actually rejecting my special smoked meat bait that has that distinctive, complex flavor profile?" Jerry muttered with growing irritation.
As the referee's voice boomed across the venue, loudly announcing how many minutes remained before the competition's official conclusion, Jerry glanced around at the other contestants' impressive accumulated catches, then looked down at his own bucket—which remained completely and embarrassingly empty—and cursed under his breath with genuine frustration.
Then a sudden realization struck him like lightning. This situation was absolutely impossible! With his extraordinary natural fishing abilities and his legendary Supreme Fishing Rod, he had never in his entire fishing career returned completely empty-handed from any expedition!
At that precise moment, he suddenly felt his fishing hook snag against something substantial beneath the water's surface. It seemed likely that the large fish still swimming around his line had stirred up the water currents enough to cause some previously hidden object to become entangled with his tackle.
Jerry's eyes immediately brightened with renewed excitement and determination. He didn't particularly care what he was about to reel in—he could potentially lose this competition, but he absolutely refused to suffer the humiliation of catching absolutely nothing during an entire fishing event.
Just as he prepared to pull up his rod with decisive action, he made the remarkable discovery that the large fish had finally taken his bait as well, apparently caught up in whatever disturbance had occurred below the surface.
"No matter how cunning and selective you think you are, you'll still have to face my superior technique!" Jerry declared with triumphant satisfaction.
"Haha! Time to come up and meet your new owner!" he added with obvious glee.
Jerry, who had maintained complete silence throughout the entire competition, suddenly erupted into joyous laughter. He leaped to his feet, gripped his fishing rod tightly with both hands, and executed a powerful, fluid motion to reel in his catch.
The surrounding contestants and spectators had already been pointing and whispering about the mysterious, handsome competitor who had claimed the prime central position but apparently achieved nothing during the entire event.
When he suddenly stood up and gripped his fishing rod with obvious determination, lifting it upward with impressive force and technique, the atmosphere around the lake immediately shifted to one of intense anticipation.
Suddenly, an enormous fish shining with brilliant golden light burst from the water's surface and soared through the air toward the shore, creating a truly spectacular display that left everyone watching in stunned amazement.
"That... that fish!" someone gasped from the audience.
"Could it possibly be...?" another voice wondered with growing excitement.
"There's absolutely no doubt about it—that's the legendary Golden Arowana!" a knowledgeable spectator confirmed with authority.
Seeing Jerry successfully land a nearly five-meter-long fish that continued writhing dramatically on the ground behind him, the entire audience erupted in surprised shouts and expressions of genuine admiration for such an extraordinary catch.
"Huh? What kind of fish?" Jerry asked with obvious confusion.
With his naturally sharp hearing, he had easily caught the excited discussions coming from the distant spectator areas. He turned around to examine the massive fish that was still twisting energetically on the ground behind him, his face displaying complete bewilderment about what exactly he had just accomplished.
Support me at [email protected]/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.