Seeing this Seaking's size was slightly inferior to the one Andreas had caught, and that even if caught it would be hard to win the championship.
Caster couldn't be bothered to attack it and simply let the Seaking eat its fill and leave.
Afterward, Caster retrieved the X Sp. Atk from his fishing space.
[X Sp. Atk: A nutritional drink for Pokémon. When consumed, it increases the Pokémon's base Special Attack.]
"Come here, open your mouth. I've got something good for you."
Caster called Pichu over and poured the X Sp. Atk into its mouth.
"Gulp~ Gulp~"
Pichu didn't know what this was, but trusting its trainer, it hugged the bottle and gulped down the X Sp. Atk drink.
But unlike X Attack, Pichu didn't feel like there was a blazing fire in its stomach. Instead, its head suddenly became foggy and muddled.
"Pi~"
Pichu was shocked.
It felt as if it were drunk, instantly losing its ability to think and perceive, its head a complete mess.
But soon, this strange discomfort transformed into crystal clarity in its mind.
Little Pichu felt its clever intelligence had reclaimed the high ground!
At the same time, Pichu's aura began steadily climbing, its eyes shining with intensity.
Pichu's base Special Attack had increased!
What surprised Caster even more was that Pichu's stats panel suddenly appeared on its own.
[Pokémon: Pichu]
[Type: Electric]
[Ability: Lightning Rod (Draws in all Electric-type moves. Instead of being hit by Electric-type moves, it boosts its Sp. Atk.)]
[Moves: Thunder Wave, Helping Hand, Flash, Sweet Kiss, Agility, Surf, Draining Kiss, Thunder Shock, Thunder]
"Hm? It automatically learned the move Thunder?"
Caster's face showed curiosity.
But thinking it over carefully, while this was unexpected, it also made sense.
After all, with Pichu's abilities surging, it was just like leveling up in the games. Learning new moves was perfectly normal.
"Keep fishing!"
Seeing that Pichu was fine, Caster quickly reeled in and cast again, racing against time.
This place was practically a treasure trove. The value of rewards he'd harvested today could match a month of his usual hard fishing.
"Seaking are great! Gotta keep catching Seaking!"
Caster was deeply moved.
If only his strength were sufficient, Caster really wanted to ride Gyarados straight out to sea to fish.
The vast ocean, that was the true headquarters of Water-type Pokémon.
With good luck, he might even catch Phione, Manaphy, or even Lugia and Kyogre.
"Kyogre, huh..."
Caster's gaze grew distant.
If he could actually catch that "big daddy" of rain teams, how generous would the rewards be?
Caster didn't dare imagine!
Whoosh!
The bobber suddenly sank, and Caster once again continuously reeled in fish.
Because the exclusive bait had such strong attraction to Seaking, even Seaking of average size and strength didn't qualify to bite the hook.
Correspondingly, Caster's rewards became even more generous.
[Caught 'Seaking,' reward: 1 Protect TM.]
[Caught 'Seaking,' reward: 1 Bounce TM.]
[Caught 'Seaking,' reward: 1 Liechi Berry.]
...
"Fifteen minutes remain until the competition ends. All competitors, please be mindful of the time."
The host's reminder came through the giant loudspeaker, broadcasting three times in succession.
Finally pulling Caster back from the joy of his continuous catches.
"Why is it ending so quickly?"
Caster looked impatient.
He still wanted to fish!!!
Whoosh!
Just then, the fishing line was suddenly pulled taut, the rod bent into a full moon bow, and caught off guard, Caster nearly stumbled and was dragged into the water.
"This much force is even greater than the Seaking I just caught. It's a true monster!"
Caster's eyes lit up immediately. He quickly gripped the rod tightly and pulled with all his might to reel in the line.
But the underwater resistance was enormous. Even with Caster bracing his feet against the boat's deck, the boat was directly dragged along, showing just how terrifying the underwater giant was.
"Pi~ Pichu~"
On the deck, Pichu also looked amazed.
Then it looked at Caster with excitement, electric arcs constantly jumping from its cheek pouches.
Trainer, say the word and I'll blast it right now!
"Hold on!"
Caster quickly intervened.
Fishing might weaken the giant fish's resistance, but it also carried the risk of the hook coming loose.
On top of that, if the Seaking had the Lightning Rod ability, Pichu's electric attack would only feed it, making the capture much harder.
"I'm a rank 8 Fishing Saint. I've got this!"
Caster held his breath, focusing all his energy on reeling in the massive fish.
Seconds ticked by.
Caster gritted his teeth, struggling to pull the line and gradually dragging the underwater giant toward the surface, using up huge amounts of stamina.
"If I want a real chance, I need to find a strong Pokémon to help pull the rod. Otherwise, even if I hook something big in the future, I might not be able to reel it in."
The thought flashed through his mind.
With every ounce of strength, Caster managed to pull the giant fish to the surface after a long battle.
It was a Pokémon with striking, vivid colors, its size far larger than Andreas's Seaking, this was a true giant.
"Awooh~"
Its roar was deep and powerful, like a bull's, its eyes vicious and filled with an overwhelming, terrifying pressure.
[Caught 'Seaking,' reward: 1 Float Stone.]
The cheat ability's reward notification appeared, immediately followed by this giant Seaking's data panel.
Though the densely packed skill list made Caster somewhat apprehensive, seeing that its ability wasn't Lightning Rod, Caster decisively issued an attack command: "Pichu, Thunder!"
Thanks to the boost from X Sp. Atk, little Pichu was in excellent condition right now.
The key was its newly learned move Thunder, an Electric-type ultimate attack with considerable power, far exceeding the basic move Thunder Shock.
Bzzt!
A massive electrical current as thick as a child's arm shot out from between little Pichu's ears, precisely striking the airborne Seaking.
"Awooh~"
Seaking cried out in pain, showing an expression of suffering.
Faintly, one could even smell a burning odor.
"Now's the time! Go, Lure Ball!"
Caster seized the opportunity and threw the Lure Ball in his hand; this was the first time he'd put it to use.
Bang!
The Lure Ball hit its mark, drawing Seaking inside, then fell onto the boat's deck.
After shaking slightly twice, the red light on the Lure Ball went out.
"Success!"
Caster and Pichu hugged each other in celebration, overjoyed.
"Competition time is up. All contestants, please put down your rods and come to the registration desk to have your caught Seaking weighed."
The host's voice came through the loudspeaker again, saying sternly, "Anyone who continues fishing will be disqualified."
"Perfect timing!"
Caster wiped the sweat from his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he picked up the Lure Ball and piloted the boat toward the shore.
This championship was his for sure!