Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 94

How much time had passed?

Tap, tap.

The float moved.

Not yet, I need to wait.

Fortunately, I had watched fishing shows often in my past life. At first, I just flipped through channels and happened to see it because the scenery was nice. But after watching it once or twice, I got hooked.

Who knew I would use what I saw back then like this?

The method for catching crucian carp is simple. You just need to set the hook when the fish has definitely taken the bait.

That’s the theory.

Today, Hyeonseong has to prove that theory.

To set the hook, you need to know the difference between a preliminary bite and a real bite.

A preliminary bite is when the crucian carp nibbles at the bait, first eating it bit by bit. It’s the action of holding it in its lips, chewing it slightly, and then taking it into its mouth. In other words, it’s the state where the hook hasn’t caught yet.

On the other hand, a real bite is when the crucian carp has taken the bait to some extent and bites down hard with its pharyngeal teeth (teeth inside its throat), applying pressure.

Therefore, when setting the hook, you should watch during the preliminary bite and then snatch the rod up the moment you judge it’s a real bite.

But the problem is that it’s not easy to distinguish these accurately. In the end, it all comes down to experience.

Not too hasty, and not too late.

That’s why Hyeonseong’s eyes were fixed on the float.

It was then.

Whoosh!

My father’s wrist moved.

From the taut line, I could tell that the hookset was successful.

“Did you catch it?”

I asked in a low voice, mouthing the words largely.

You mustn’t make noise. Crucian carp are especially sensitive to sound. Sometimes you see people chattering at the fishing site, but that’s the same as saying they don’t want to catch any fish.

The fishing rod slowly rose into the sky, and before I knew it, a crucian carp was dangling at the end of the line.

Hyeonseong put down his fishing rod and quickly grabbed the landing net.

Hyeonseong knew very well what his role was today.

Crucian carp?

It’s okay if I don’t catch any today. There will be plenty of opportunities to catch crucian carp in the future. Of course, I don’t know if I’ll be able to catch any, though.

Today, Hyeonseong was only interested in his father’s expression.

My father had once said that there were a few things he envied while watching TV.

The first was seeing a father and son fishing together.

In my past life, I had gone fishing with my father a few times before entering elementary school. That was it. As I grew older, I never went fishing with my father at all.

When I got older, I insisted on my own beliefs.

Looking back now, it was ridiculous.

My father’s expression as he looked at the crucian carp in the landing net couldn’t have been better. It wasn’t small either. It looked to be over 30cm [approximately 12 inches].

“Wow!”

As Hyeonseong made a surprised expression, his father’s smile grew even brighter.

Time passed again.

Tap, tap.

The float began to move again. The ripple of the water seemed to be transmitted throughout my body.

Swaying, swaying.

The movement of the float was greater than before.

‘Is it now?’

Whoosh!

Thud!

It was almost simultaneous. I could definitely feel it in my hand the moment I snatched it up. A heavy feeling was transmitted to my fingertips.

But at the same time, I felt something come loose. I thought this must be what they call a preliminary bite.

The moment I felt the tug, I also felt a sense of emptiness.

It means I was too hasty.

“Just a little slower……”

My father seemed to feel sorry for me and said in a low voice, looking at Hyeonseong.

I guess this is the appeal of fishing.

It was only a moment, but that heavy feeling was so good.

This time, I put on two baits. As I did that, I became greedy. I thought if I just did a little more, I could catch it this time.

But it didn’t take long to realize that was a delusion.

As expected, nothing in this world is easy.

In the meantime, my father had added two more fish.

As they say, fishing is all about waiting. It seemed like it wasn’t said for nothing.

The aesthetics of waiting?

This didn’t seem to be it. I was starting to feel my eyelids getting heavy.

“Come over here.”

Unable to watch any longer, my father gave up his spot. Hyeonseong also knew that the importance of the spot in fishing couldn’t be overemphasized.

I also changed the bait again.

“Expect something this time.”

With a new mindset, I boldly cast the fishing line.

Whoosh.

The fishing line flying in an arc felt good for some reason. I felt like I was going to catch something this time.

Tap, tap.

Again, there was a bite. It felt good.

It was then.

My father’s right hand stretched out into the air once more.

As if proving that skill is more important than the spot, my father’s fishing rod was drawing an arc.

It was when Hyeonseong was about to move to get the landing net.

“Now!”

My father shouted, looking at Hyeonseong.

At the same time, Hyeonseong powerfully snatched up the fishing rod. This time, he had set the hook properly.

“Ah!”

An exclamation came out on its own.

The weight transmitted through my hand was heavy.

“Huh?”

But the force was no joke. It didn’t feel like a crucian carp.

If it wasn’t a crucian carp…….

The moment the fishing rod soared into the sky, a black object popped up above the water.

It looked quite long.

It wasn’t a crucian carp after all.

“Father!”

Hyeonseong called out to his father in a loud voice without realizing it.

What was flapping at the end of the fishing line was not a crucian carp but a catfish. But what was surprising was its size. At first glance, it looked to be over 40cm [approximately 16 inches]. I couldn’t help but be amazed by its thickness, which was about the size of an adult’s forearm.

My father was already next to Hyeonseong, holding the landing net.

“It’s a big one!”

My father’s expression was brighter than ever. What was amazing was that my father was looking at Hyeonseong’s float at that moment.

Even though he was clearly reeling in his own fishing rod.

That was my father.

A little later.

“Father, I’ll prepare the spicy fish stew now.”

“Are you really going to be able to make it?”

My father had an incredulous expression. Then Hyeonseong smiled and said.

“We have magic powder here.”

Hyeonseong shook the ramen [instant noodles] packet. Then, as if understanding, my father smiled and nodded.

30 minutes later.

The two men sat facing each other with an aluminum pot in the middle.

Slurp.

My father tasted the soup first.

“How is it?”

“Oh! This is no joke. This is amazing!”

“Is it to your liking?”

“No matter how I look at it, it’s amazing. That you can cook like this……”

Then, my father’s gaze fell on the ramen seasoning packet on top of the ramen package. It was definitely the ramen seasoning packet that he had said was magic powder and would be put in the spicy fish stew a little while ago.

My father looked at Hyeonseong and asked.

“You didn’t put this in?”

“I have my pride; there’s no way I can make it taste good with that, right?”

“Then, what about the seasoning?”

“I already packed all of that yesterday. Even the Cheongyang peppers [Korean chili peppers].”

My father shook his head slightly and said again.

“Hehe, really. It’s hard for me to believe even though I’m seeing it with my own eyes.”

“Just eat it. Don’t worry about that kind of thing.”

“Okay, let’s do that. Well, what does that matter? If it tastes good to me, that’s the best.”

“That’s right. And it’s really delicious because I’m eating it with Father like this.”

It was true.

How can I compare the taste of ramen cooked with my father at the reservoir after going around in circles? Also, maybe it’s because I put in crucian carp meat and boiled it, but the soup tasted excellent.

It was a moment of regret that I couldn’t prepare cooked rice.

The two men sat side by side after lunch.

“It’s good.”

“Me too. But what about earlier, how were you watching my fishing rod? You must have been busy reeling in your own fishing rod at that time.”

“Actually, I was watching you the whole time. But you kept failing every time.”

“You mean……”

It was a fact I didn’t know.

My father had been watching Hyeonseong’s fishing rod the whole time, even while he was fishing.

From the beginning.

Then, a question arose in Hyeonseong’s mind.

If what my father said was true, it meant that he had been watching me fail to set the hook all along. To be honest, I was very confused at the time.

The float was clearly moving, but I couldn’t figure out when to snatch it up. I remember the expert on the show clearly saying something about preliminary bites and real bites, but it was too difficult to find it with my actual senses.

But my father was saying that he had watched all of that process.

It was the same even when I caught the catfish at the end.

The float was constantly shaking, and I was worried about only the moment of setting the hook. But at the last moment, my father shouted.

If that’s the case, why didn’t he just watch without saying anything? If he wanted Hyeonseong to realize it on his own, it would have been right to watch consistently until the end.

“Father!”

“Why did I do that?”

My father already knew what Hyeonseong was curious about. In other words, it was intentional from the beginning.

If it was intentional, it meant there was a purpose.

Hyeonseong asked again.

“You’re saying there was a purpose.”

“You have to realize it yourself; there’s no development if someone teaches you.”

It was an expected answer. But the last question still remained.

“Then what happened at the end?”

Pfft.

Instead of answering, a smile spread across my father’s face.

And after thinking for a moment, my father opened his mouth again after a while.

“I was scared.”

“Yes?”

Hyeonseong was just dumbfounded.

Scared?

Words I had never even imagined came out of my father’s mouth.

Hyeonseong asked again.

“What are you talking about?”

“I was afraid you’d say you’d never come fishing again.”

“Yes?”

“……”

Swish.

Hyeonseong’s head turned towards his father on its own.

After a moment of doing so.

Puhuhu!

A laugh burst out of Hyeonseong’s mouth on its own.

Because I knew exactly what my father was saying.

My father was slowly getting worried because I kept failing. He was worried that Hyeonseong would lose interest in fishing.

That was it.

My father was afraid that Hyeonseong would lose interest in fishing, and then naturally the sound of going fishing would become rare from his mouth, and as a result, he didn’t want this to be the end of fishing with him. So, at the end, he wanted to make me feel the tug no matter what.

Whatever the reason, it was true that Hyeonseong had felt the tug.

I had never even imagined that my father would be thinking that way. I laughed, but on the other hand, I also felt a sense of sadness.

Hyeonseong smiled slightly at his father.

“Father, let’s come again next month. Now that I know the tug, let’s come often. And let’s go to the bathhouse together once.”

The second thing my father wanted to do was go to the bathhouse with Hyeonseong.

“Really?”

It was the moment when a smile bloomed on my father’s face.

Looking at such a father, a smile began to spread across Hyeonseong’s face as well.