Chapter 118: THIRD POV.
Flounder reeled and reeled, pulling the creature closer and closer to the surface until the water began to bubble violently right next to his boat.
Splash!
The water’s surface broke with a massive shower of white foam, and a beautiful, one-meter-long green-finned tuna was drawn completely out of the sea.
The fish’s bright green scales caught the sunlight, glittering like valuable jewels as it sailed through the air before landing heavily into Flounder’s boat.
The heavy creature landed on the bottom boards with a loud thud, flopping about wildly and splashing water all over Flounder’s boots.
"Hahaha! I finally did it!" Flounder laughed out loud, his face completely bright with victory.
He dropped his fishing rod onto the seat, quickly leaning down to grab the large, slippery fish with both of his hands.
He then lifted the heavy, struggling tuna high above his head, raising it proudly to show those on the great ship above that he had successfully fulfilled his promise.
Seeing Rebecca’s amazed and joyous gaze from the high balcony of the warship, Flounder felt very satisfied.
A big, smug smile emerged on his face as he held the heavy, flopping fish in his arms.
He could hear the little princess clapping her hands and cheering for him.
To him, this moment was a complete victory.
He had proven his worth as a loyal guard, and he had done it by using his own hard-earned skills.
’Looks like you’re all washed—’ Flounder began to think to himself, turning his triumphant gaze across the water to look at his competition.
He wanted to see the look of deep defeat and embarrassment on the first mate’s face.
But his words froze completely in his throat when he saw Jacob suddenly standing upright on his own rowboat.
Jacob wasn’t looking at Flounder with a shocked or worried expression. In fact, he looked completely relaxed, his clothes slightly shifted from his long rest in the warm sun.
Jacob stretched his arms high above his head, letting out a small yawn as if he had just woken up from a very comfortable nap.
"Looks like it’s finally time," Jacob muttered to himself, smiling at Flounder’s stunned face.
He closed his eyes and took a deep whiff of the salty sea air in Flounders direction for a moment, tilting his head up toward the sky.
After a few seconds, his pupils constricted a bit, turning sharp like a hunter who had finally spotted his target moving through the deep bushes.
Without saying another word, he leaned forward and dove cleanly into the cold sea, leaving his fishing rod lying untouched on the wooden seat.
"What?" Flounder muttered out loud, his smug smile completely vanishing. He was clearly confused, his brow furrowing deeply as he stared at the ripples left behind by Jacob’s sudden dive.
He wondered what on earth the first mate was doing.
If Jacob was planning on swimming directly into the sea in search of a green-finned tuna, why didn’t he do so all this while?
Why did he waste thirty whole minutes just lying around doing absolutely nothing? It made no sense at all.
To a regular human like Flounder, swimming after a fish, especially one known for being as fast as a blur, was a completely insane idea.
A human couldn’t swim fast enough to catch a common fish, let alone a prize tuna.
Yet, for some strange reason, Flounder felt deeply uneasy. A cold feeling of worry started to twist in his stomach, and the heavy fish in his arms didn’t feel like a guarantee of victory anymore.
Not wanting to stand around waiting in the middle of the open water, he grabbed his heavy wooden oars, slotted them into the sides of his rowboat, and began paddling with all his might towards the large hull of the warship.
*******
Up above, the crew had already lowered the thick ropes to bring Flounder back to safety.
As the captives and sailors were hoisting Flounder’s small boat upwards along the massive side of the battleship, pulling the ropes hand over hand, a sudden, loud sound echoed across the water.
Everyone’s attention quickly shifted towards the noise, the sailors leaning far over the wooden railings to see what was happening down below.
Yet, the moment they looked, their eyes widened in absolute shock and disbelief.
They saw green-finned fish after green-finned fish dropping onto the flat deck of Jacob’s little boat, flopping about helplessly.
It was an unbelievable sight.
The fish were literally flying out of the open water one after another, their bright green scales glittering under the hot sun as they landed with heavy thuds on the wooden boards.
It looked as if a hidden fountain under the sea was shooting the rare creatures straight into the air, aiming perfectly for the center of the small craft.
Flounder, who was just being pulled over the main railing, was especially the most stunned out of everyone on deck.
He froze in place, his hands still gripping his own single fish, his mouth hanging open like a landed carp.
These specific fishes were supposed to be extremely rare and difficult to find.
He had spent years learning how to trick just one of them into biting a hook, and it had taken him thirty minutes of intense physical work to achieve it.
And yet, there they were, flying out of the deep water and piling onto that same guy’s small boat like common rocks on a beach.
It was too much for him to accept.
The moment Flounder’s boots finally touched the main deck of the warship, the strange phenomenon below finally came to a sudden halt.
By then, the number of fish inside the small craft was quite much. They were over a dozen large, healthy tuna flopping around on the small boat’s floorboards, filling the narrow space completely.
It was a very much eye-catching display that made Flounder’s single catch look incredibly small and pathetic by comparison.
It was at that exact moment that Jacob’s upper body bobbed smoothly out of the water right next to his boat.