Chapter 31

After that, Yugen bought a grilled squid, and Arika bought a grape candy. Unlike the apple candy, the grape candy was small and easy to eat, which made it a big hit with Arika.

“What should we eat next? I’m thinking of something sweet…”

“Oh, goldfish scooping…”

Arika spoke in a soft voice. She stopped, staring intently at the stall.

“Do you want to try it?”

“Yeah… but I’ve never done it before. It’s difficult, right?”

“Everything is a challenge.”

Encouraging her, Yugen noticed that Arika was quite hesitant. Hm? If she wants to do it, she should just do it, Yugen thought, but he quickly understood.

“If you can’t keep them, I’ll take them home, so don’t worry.”

“Really?”

“I have a pond at home. The goldfish I caught when I was young are still swimming there.”

Goldfish from the scooping game are often of poor quality or stressed from being chased, making them prone to dying. However, those that survive are incredibly resilient and can live for over ten years.

Reassured that Yugen would take them, he led Arika to the stall. The stall owner initially greeted them with a smile, saying, “Welcome,” but his face immediately turned sour when he recognized Yugen.

“Hey! It’s you, Takasegawa! I told you and your sister that you’re not allowed here!”

All the stall owners Yugen had visited before were friendly to him, so Arika was surprised by this owner’s attitude. She looked up at Yugen with a shocked expression.

“…Did you do something?”

“In the past, I overfished the goldfish.”

“How many?”

“About fifty, including my sister.”

“That’s excessive.”

Looking back, they almost put the stall out of business. But at the time, Yugen and Saiko were just kids.

Incidentally, Yugen’s father paid for the goldfish, so the stall didn’t go out of business.

“Anyway… it’s not me who’s going to scoop, it’s her.”

Yugen said this and patted Arika’s shoulder. Arika bowed slightly.

The owner was surprised and widened his eyes.

“Wow… she’s quite a beauty. I’d love to welcome such a cute girl… but I doubt she’s a goldfish scooping expert, right?”

“She’s a complete beginner.”

“…In that case, well…”

It seemed he was convinced. The owner handed Arika a bowl and a scoop in exchange for money.

Arika rolled up her sleeves and nervously dipped the scoop into the water. She tried to scoop up a goldfish but the paper broke.

“Hmm… it’s difficult. Can you really scoop with this paper?”

“Your boyfriend and his sister almost put me out of business with this paper.”

The owner said this with a satisfied tone, probably because he realized Arika was a genuine beginner. To him, she was a good target.

However, they couldn’t waste too much money.

“I want to show her how it’s done. Can I try? I’ll pay.”

“You’re not allowed.”

“I’ll return the ones I scoop. And I won’t overfish and weaken them. …I want to show her my good side. Please help me.”

“…Fine, fine.”

He was a good-natured person, and mentioning “her” made him give in easily. However, “her” here refers to Arika as a placeholder, not as a girlfriend. So Yugen wasn’t lying.

Yugen took the scoop and started teaching Arika.

“If you raise or lower it vertically, the paper will tear. So, you need to move it diagonally, like you’re cutting the water, both when you’re raising and lowering it.”

Ideally, you should avoid the tail, but that would be too difficult for a beginner like Arika, so he started with the basics. He demonstrated by scooping up one, then two goldfish in front of her.

“Let’s try it together.”

“Okay.”

Yugen handed the scoop to Arika and moved behind her. He held her hand and slowly moved the scoop to scoop up a goldfish. This was the third one.

“Do I have to release these too?”

“Of course.”

So, he released the three goldfish. Then, he got a new scoop and gave it to Arika.

“Try it.”

“Okay…”

With an unusually serious expression, Arika held the scoop and slowly approached a goldfish that had risen near the surface. She lowered the scoop under the goldfish and scooped it up. The goldfish landed on the paper. Yugen quickly brought out the bowl, and Arika placed the goldfish inside.

“I did it, I did it!”

Arika smiled happily. She looked even more charming when she smiled, a fact known only to Yugen.

“Yeah, you did it. As expected of Arika.”

Yugen patted Arika’s shoulder. He usually didn’t touch her so casually, but today he felt like it and did it without thinking. Arika, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind and smiled happily.

“Hurry up, will you?”

The owner, looking away, said this gruffly, bringing them back to reality. Arika’s cheeks turned slightly red, and Yugen looked at the goldfish to avoid the awkwardness.

After that, Arika scooped up three more goldfish, making a total of five. It was a great achievement for a beginner.

Goldfish can live surprisingly long, can't they?

This novel may not last as long as goldfish, but I hope to keep it going for as long as possible.

If you want it to continue for a long time,

please bookmark it and rate it (change the ☆☆☆☆☆ to ★★★★★ under the table of contents).

This will give me the motivation to keep writing, so I would appreciate your support.

This time, there’s no increase in the “dere” level.

But maybe in the next chapter or so…

If you’re interested in the “dere” level, looking forward to it, or hoping for it,

please bookmark it and rate it (change the ☆☆☆☆☆ to ★★★★★ under the table of contents).

This will motivate me to update, so I would appreciate your support.