Damon stepped forward and pulled his brother into a quick, rough hug. "You idiot," he muttered, voice thick. "Just stop thinking and take a fucking break. I know you lent the money and not Dad. Think of this as my turn to repay you. Stop getting so fucking emotional. Can you just take a break for a couple of days? How about we have a serious chat after that?"
John looked like he wanted to say sothing, but Damon raised a finger. "First, take a break, and then we can talk, okay? Nothing is going to happen imdiately. There is plenty of ti for you to get stronger and get back to being the perfect son, brother, and husband."
John swallowed and then smiled. He did not argue anymore and gave a simple nod. "Thanks."
"What are you both talking about?" Damon’s mother walked over. She saw the fishing pole in John’s hand and, to everyone’s surprise, she instantly beca overjoyed.
"Son, did you beco a fisherman? Oh my god, now you have made my life so much easier. Look at all my quests. I need fishes for so many of them. Co, co. Let’s go to the lake and start the work. I need to level up before your old man. He thinks I can’t play video gas. See, how I show him my power. This is great. I never get to spend ti with you John. Now you can spend lots and lots of ti with your mom."
John stood frozen, like soone who had just stepped into a trap he did not see coming. Damon was already snorting, clearly trying and failing to hold back his laughter. "Well, well, well," he drawled. "Looks like your quiet lake life just got a plus-one. Enjoy your life, bro. I will see you all later."
"I..." John began, but words failed him as their mother practically latched onto his arm, already dragging him sowhere.
Damon pulled his mom and kissed her forehead and then planted another kiss on the little munchkin’s cheeks. "I love you guys. Keep an eye on each other. I have to go now but don’t hesitate to ssage if you are in any kind of danger or going to so dangerous place. I will be with you guys in a minute. I am sending so money your way bro for expenses and for you and dad too mom. Let know if you guys need more."
Damon already started walking away afraid that his mom would throw one of the annoying cooking quests at him. Cooking quests were notorious for that. Sa went for fishing. Only people who really loved these kind of things would be able to survive the class.
John looked back over his shoulder helplessly, but Damon just waved, grinning like a devil. "Enjoy your peace and stillness, brother. You earned it." He disappeared quickly and only when he was in a safe distance, he stopped and sent so gold coins to each.
As Damon disappeared from view, John stood by the lake, his mother clinging to one arm and Lola to the other, both chattering excitedly about quests and rare fish that only appeared under moonlight or only responded to singing. The wind stirred the reeds by the lakeside, and the water shimred with gentle ripples. It really did look peaceful.
John sighed. So this was it. From boardrooms and client etings to... bait selection and ripple analysis.
"I think we should go for the Moon-Eyed Carp first," his mom said confidently, already pulling up her quest tracker. "It only shows up if you hum near the edge of the dock. Don’t worry, I brought snacks."
"Are ghost fish scary?" Lola asked, clinging to his leg now. "I want to catch one, but I don’t want it to scream. If it screams, I’ll scream louder. Is that okay?"
John gave a slow blink. "Totally okay," he said, already resigning himself to the chaos.
With a long breath, he stepped onto the wooden dock, his fishing rod in hand. His mom bead, already swaying side to side as she began humming sothing that sounded terrible.
John cast his line with as much grace as a man could while being serenaded by an overenthusiastic parent and a candy-stuffed toddler.
And then... the bobber twitched. Once. Twice. It dipped sharply.
He blinked. That was fast.
He had read about fishing even before he got here and had actually secretly planned to play the ga before all of this chaos. So he knew sowhat about the class or at least the starting experience of so players.
Most of them ntioned how awful fishing was and how slow the whole thing was. Many had already quit the class and were now searching for ways to change their class. But why was his experience so different?
Was this because of the skill the guy gave him? John’s eyes narrowed as he ntally opened his skill panel.
[Fisherman’s Goodwill: Fishing success rate, rare encounter chance, and affinity with aquatic and spiritual entities are increased by a small percentage.]
John smiled and closed the system interface. He knew it was not so kind of amazing skill that was going to instantly make him as strong as Damon, but he did not care. The fishing instructor had given him the skill, seeing how passionate he was about fishing, and he was proud of that.
John felt the tug on the line again, and he snapped out of his thoughts. He held his breath and pulled. The rod bent, water splashed, and with a fluid, almost dreamlike arc, a shimring, translucent fish leapt from the surface.
It had silver scales that caught the fading sunlight like molten glass. The mont it hit the dock, the system chid.
[You have caught: Whisperfin (Rare)]
[Ding! You have leveled up.]
Standing near him, his mom squealed in delight. "Oh my god! That’s the one! That’s the one from my quest! My singing worked! My singing worked!" She spun around and almost tackled him in a hug. "You’re amazing! See? I knew it! My son is always amazing, no matter what you do!"
John looked at the twinkling eyes of his mom and smiled helplessly. "It’s all thanks to Damon, Mom. Without him taking us to that awakening lake, I am pretty sure we wouldn’t be having such a good ti right now."
"Don’t be so humble, John. Damon is amazing, but you are also good. No matter who you beco, both of you will always be equally important to , and I am proud of both my sons. Now let’s get moving. Catch another one for . I need to level up before that old man gets here."
"Okay. Okay. I am getting right on it."
John chuckled helplessly, feeling a warmth spread through his chest that had nothing to do with the sun or the rare fish. It was strange. He’d spent years chasing achievents that ca with promotions, bonuses, and dinner parties full of empty praise.
And yet, here he was, standing on a pixelated dock beside his overenthusiastic mother and a sugar-fueled toddler, feeling more seen and appreciated than he had in years.
"All right," he said, casting his line again. "Let’s get you that level up."
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