Chapter 44

The so-called 'Breathing Sea' was literally a world submerged in water.

There was no one else besides me.

The water filled up to a very high place, so much so that even the sun seemed trapped in the water and the traces of humans, like brick houses and fences, were also submerged as they were.

Among them, I was sitting on the edge of a cliff.

"I have no idea how to fish when it's completely underwater."

"Kuuuuuurung."

"Honey, let's stop drinking seawater. Your body is getting too big and scaring the fish away."

There were plenty of aquatic creatures here and there.

A creature that looked like a very large hermit crab moved clumsily, click-clack, crossing a red roof with its comrades, and a gentle-looking snake that appeared to be a water snake popped out of the sand and repeatedly hid itself.

Besides these, there was a large school of whales floating leisurely in the high-water sky and a pair of colorful seahorses dancing as if singing.

Fish hiding in the gaps of seaweed growing between the bricks....

"Am I just not talented at fishing?"

" "

"Well, a fishing rod seems completely useless in a situation like this."

" "

"A landing net? That's not a bad idea either."

I was looking at the dreamlike scenery, but I hadn't caught a single fish.

"It's not like I'm a very good swimmer either."

In 'Giovanni's' world, 90% of humanity was skilled at swimming thanks to their very close relationship with the sea.

'Giovanni' was among the 5% who were exceptionally bad at swimming.

"When I first met Aria, our connection continued because she pushed me into the sea. From my personal assessment, I can't say Aria was a good child, but she was still a diligent student."

" "

"Since you do not resent Aria, Father, my heart is also at ease."

I, with my characteristic kind smile, soon made a troubled expression.

"But… How should I catch the fish."

Giovanni was not a skilled swimmer and Seo Jio, while a good swimmer, had never caught fish in this manner.

No matter which one's specialty I utilized, it seemed I wouldn't be able to snatch the fish that looked so nimble.

"……."

" "

"Pardon?"

At the Sun God pointing not at anyone else but Honey, I turned to look at the bright yellow water bird.

Honey, bathed in the Sun God's spotlight like an actor on a stage, was sparkling.

It was nothing short of a divine revelation.

"Honey?"

"……."

"Honey, can you catch them?"

"…Kkung…."

"Why are you avoiding Dad's gaze?"

With a face that clearly said, 'I can do it, but I don't really want to,' I tilted my head.

If it simply didn't want to work, I wouldn't force it, but its reaction wasn't one of hating labor itself, so it was hard to interpret.

"Why doesn't it want to?"

"Kkungkungkung…."

"……??"

Seeing the father and son whose communication was not going smoothly, the Sun God subtly told the truth.

" "

"……."

" "

"…Ah."

Only then did I recall that my water bird was not ordinary.

No, of course, living water in the shape of a bird is by no means ordinary, but anyway. Honey had a much more intense potential than I had anticipated.

"Can my child evolve?"

"……."

"O, Sun."

Honey was very competent.

"You have to evolve to catch fish, but you don't want to take on that form, so you're being coy like this…? Really? Oh, my goodness, that's really cool and absurd. You really do have a conviction to maintain your cute appearance."

My son definitely had a prince complex.

"I think I told you just 30 minutes ago that no matter how cute and adorable you act, the only one you can conquer is your dad. What are you going to do, being so hopelessly cute?"

" "

"My apologies, I was being a bit foolish. But Father, don't you also find your grandson very cute?"

The Sun God just laughed.

He said the family relationship was very nice to see.

I didn't get a clear explanation, but I decided to be satisfied with this.

What was more important than anything right now was for everyone to join forces in this hopeless situation, overcome the difficulties, get fish, and prepare a meal.

"…Hmm…."

Not particularly wanting to force labor, I simply told them the reality they were in.

"Honey."

"Kkung."

"Dad can't swim."

"…Kkung?"

"So I can't catch fish either."

"……."

"If you really don't want to, it can't be helped, but if you don't catch the fish, we'll all have to starve. If you refuse even so, for lunch today, we'll have no choice but to grill the leftover sausages from last time."

At those words, Honey's pupils trembled.

I didn't know where the pupils were in those eyes made of water, but it was clear that Honey was shocked by the reality they faced and was trembling in fear.

I nodded solemnly like a judge delivering a verdict.

"Yes, we are in a situation where we have to eat the same menu two times in a row."

It was a miserable reality that was hard for them, as gourmets and gluttons, to accept.

"If you still don't want to, then this dad will try his best to prepare today's lunch by making stir-fried sausage, sausage fried rice, and sausage soup."

"……."

"……."

"……."

The Sun God was horrified by the strange standoff.

Even to him, stir-fried sausage, sausage fried rice, and sausage soup was a bit much.

The Sun God, who had recently become accustomed to the meals I prepared, watched the situation with an anxious heart.

"…Kku…."

The winner was me.

"Kkururuk."

But there was a condition.

"You want me to close my eyes?"

"Kkuk."

"Dad can love our son no matter what he looks like. Why?"

"Kkuk."

"Puberty really has come."

Indeed, no matter if the other person was a parent, everyone has secrets they want to hide.

Although I had never even been in a relationship, let alone married or had a child, I knew that it was important to protect a child's personal space.

I closed my eyes and nodded.

"You don't want to show your evolved form that much? Dad is really, very, extremely curious, but if it makes you feel more at ease, Honey, I can close my eyes for as long as you want…."

"Kkururuk."

"Adolescent kids really aren't easy."

I heard the sound of a large body of water gurgling once, followed by the sound of the seawater being churned. It wasn't long after I had been listening to the sounds.

"Kkungkukururuk."

"……?"

Oh, already?

"Can I open my eyes, son?"

"Kkururuk."

"Okay."

And then I saw it.

"Oh."

It was the sight of about 30 fish caught inside Honey's body, which had become plump with seawater.

"That's amazing."

"Kkurukkureuk."

"Like a magnificent pig."

"……."

"That was a compliment."

I had seen Honey become this big ever since we came to the 'Breathing Sea', so this form was probably not Honey's 'evolved' form.

'It probably swallowed the fish in its evolved form and then returned to its original form.'

Anyway, it was funny and good.

"Pig…."

"Kkung."

"A pig with fish inside…."

"Kkungkungkung."

"Nice."

Giovanni smiled brightly with his characteristic cheerful smile.

"This is so reassuring."

I was a person with a generous hand.

***

Returning to the cabin, I immediately began to prepare the fish.

"Exactly 33."

It was a number that meant my hands would be busted today, but I decided not to care.

Showing a weak side in front of a mere 33 salmon-sized fish was a great shame for a pig acknowledged by my grandmother.

"Fortunately, they say all of them are edible, so I can just prepare them without worry."

"Kururururuk."

"Honey, spit one out."

"Kkuk."

Ptooey.

Honey, still large, spat out a fish.

"……."

Staggering as I caught the fish, I felt my mind go dizzy for a moment.

'What kind of challenge have I gotten myself into.'

Anyway, it was time to prepare the seafood, for which freshness is life.

Although food doesn't rot in this world inside the painting, I didn't know if that would prevent an already dead fish from getting fishier over time.

I poked the first fish's forehead with an awl and sent it off to the Dragon Palace.

"Mm."

I pride myself that it was a swift skill on par with an assassin from a martial arts novel.

"It pays to have sliced a few fish."

"Kkuruk?"

"The taste of slicing and eating freshly caught fish on a boat is special."

Reminiscing about a fond past, I moved my hands quickly.

I cut off the fins, scraped off the scales with a satisfying shink, then inserted the knife to a moderate depth so as not to burst the innards, and sliced it all the way to the anus.

"Seeing that there's almost no fishy smell even from the innards, it must be really fresh. Now, once the innards are removed, next is…."

"Kurungrungrungrung."

"Honey, if you only eat the innards, someday you'll become as fishy as the innards."

Where on earth did it get this bad habit of snatching just the innards while its dad is cooking.

'…More than that, the way it separates and dissolves things is always fascinating to see.'

They are water birds that enjoy decorating themselves by putting things inside their bodies.

Honey, who liked gems, was not much different, but in the case of food, which was not for decoration, it melted quickly inside Honey's body.

To be precise, rather than saying it melts, it seemed more correct to say that the nutrients that entered its body were also converted into water.

This was because the swallowed food gradually became transparent and shimmered before becoming invisible to the eye.

"……."

Whose son was it to be born so amusingly.

'How interesting.'

Seeing that even the way it eats was funny, Honey was indeed my son.

It was like a creature whose every breath was excellent content.

"Eum…."

"Kkung?"

"I was just gauging how long it would take to prepare them all."

If it were fish from the supermarket that were already prepared, I would buy a ton without hesitation, but preparing live fish myself was quite a lot of work.

"Let's continue."

For the fish with its innards removed and belly emptied, I had to scrape out all the blood pooled inside what would be the rib cage in a human.

I diligently cleaned the inside of the belly and continued to break down the fish.

"……."

"……."

And the surprising fact I learned.

"…Was it really a salmon?"

"Kkuruk?"

"No, it's definitely not a salmon."

But the flesh inside was very unusual.

"The texture is that of a white-fleshed fish, but the color is orange like a salmon or trout."

When I separated it as if for sashimi, the flesh inside, like that of a salmon, crumbled softly with just a little pressure.

But the grain was round and chewy, like that of a white-fleshed fish such as flounder or sea bream.

"……."

Munch.

"……."

The taste was also similar to salmon.

It tasted like watermelon, refreshingly cool, which made me think it might be a type of trout.

'Though the texture is much more bouncy and chewy than that….'

It was a very strange feeling.

No matter how much of a fantasy world this was, wasn't it a bit subtly funny for something to overlap with elements I knew in this way?

"Uh…."

"Kkung?"

"…It's delicious, so that's all that matters."

Thanks to the soft flesh, the preparation was also fast.

"I should slice a few for sashimi and prepare a few to be deep-fried whole in oil."

"Kkuruk?"

"It's more delicious than you think. In the first place, there's no way a food deep-fried in oil would taste bad. You don't have to worry, Honey, just wait comfortably for the fried fish."

"Kurururu…."

"It's actually more delicious with a spicy sauce."

"Kkungkungkung…!!!"

"Is there a need to hate it so tragically? There are many fish left, so don't you have any intention of making just one spicy fried fish for this dad, son?"

After finishing all the cooking, I half-fainted.

"……."

"Kkururung."

"It was a record-breaking day."

The conclusion was that 33 large fish were too much.

Emphasized and repeated labor is what wears me out.

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