"It's alive! Evan, how did you do that?!"
Armin stared in awe at the large grass carp flipping inside the basket
easily three or four kilos.
Even Mikasa, usually as calm and unmoving as a frozen lake, leaned forward with a rare spark of girlish curiosity in her eyes
cautiously reaching toward the fish with an almost adorable hesitation.
Evan flicked the fishing line back into the river, smiling.
"Most fish love earthworms.
You put the worm on the hook, throw it in the water, and let the fish come to you.
Once it bites, escaping isn't so easy."
"S-So that means… we don't have to do anything, and fish will catch themselves?!"
Armin's brain exploded with enlightenment.
To him, this wasn't just fishing this was magic.
Sitting still and catching food sounded as miraculous as having money fall from the sky.
Of course, the logic itself was simple
but in the Titan world, the people had been trapped inside the Walls for a century.
Their knowledge, their worldview… utterly stunted.
Even the idea of the ocean remained a fairy tale.
So a fishing rod?
That was practically sorcery.
Mikasa, however, drew her own… interpretation.
"…Makes sense," she murmured.
Evan perked up, waiting smugly for praise.
"Oh? And why's that?"
She looked right into his eyes.
"Because it fits you.
Sunbathing, being lazy…
Of course you'd find a way to turn that into fishing.
You must've used a lot of sneaky thoughts."
"..."
Damn it, this girl…
She always found a way to insult him with that emotionless voice.
Evan rolled his eyes and refused to take the bait.
Over the next hour, his luck stayed excellent.
With his practiced technique and past-life experience, Evan reeled in four big grass carp.
Enough to feed a family for several days.
But the best part
This meant food security.
Anytime rations ran short…
they could simply come here and fish.
Just thinking about a river full of edible fish made Armin and Mikasa secretly thrilled.
Still
on the walk home, Evan reminded them seriously:
"Don't tell anyone besides your family.
We're still in a refugee camp.
Once people get desperate for food, trouble will follow."
After all
Shared food tastes good.
But keeping it to themselves tasted better.
"I'm going to go invite my grandpa for dinner! See you two later!"
At the door of the stable, Armin cheerfully waved goodbye and sprinted off.
They had already made plans:
Tonight
a full fish feast at Eren's home.
Armin and his grandfather joining as honored guests.
After days of only bread, a dinner with real meat was a cause for celebration.
When Evan and Mikasa stepped inside, Carla had already returned.
She was stirring a pot of rice porridge surprisingly, she managed to borrow rice from a neighbor.
"Evan, Mikasa, you two skipped lunch and ran off again.
Come wash up food's almost ready."
"Carla, Mikasa and I went to the river…
We caught some fish.
We invited Armin and his grandpa over for dinner.
You don't mind, do you?"
Evan set the basket beside the counter.
Carla blinked in surprise
but before she could respond
Eren suddenly crawled over from his bed.
"Evan! You caught fish?!
Is there a pond nearby?!"
"We caught them at the landing dock," Mikasa said quietly as she sat down by the wall.
Carla's eyes widened.
"The dock? Isn't that place too high?"
Then she froze.
Slowly turning toward Evan
"Don't tell me you jumped down to catch them?! Evan, that's far too dangerous!"
Evan shook his head, pulling out the fishing rod.
"Caught them with this."
Carla stared at the rod like she had never seen anything more bizarre in her life.
By dusk, the simple stable home was filled with warm smells.
Armin and his grandfather arrived right on time.
Carla had prepared the fish:
One for soup
One grilled
The rest cooked for later
Served with toasted bread and steaming millet porridge
For refugees, it was a luxury banquet.
Everyone gathered around the small wooden table, sharing laughter, warmth, and the steaming aroma of fresh fish.
Eren and Armin tasted the soup first
both immediately letting out satisfied "mmmmm!" sounds.
"It tastes… incredible!"
Armin beamed.
Mikasa, as always, ate quietly
her face unreadable, though Evan noticed she kept taking small sips of the broth.
Armin's grandfather picked up the handcrafted rod, eyes shining with intrigue.
"Evan… how did you come up with this method?"
He turned the rod over in his hands like a priceless treasure.
It made Evan smile inwardly.
No matter the world, old men always love their fishing gear.