Henry Clark’s hands gripped the rope tightly as it slid rapidly, his palms burning from the friction of the grass rope. Henry Clark pulled back hard on the rope, calling to Julius Caesar, who stood behind him, for help: “Julius Caesar, pull!”

Although it was a bit sudden, Henry Clark could feel that the force pulling toward the water was still within what he could handle, so he asked Julius Caesar to help pull, wanting to see what exactly in the water had bitten the bait.

Julius Caesar bit down hard on the grass rope and pulled back with all his strength. After dragging so many people before, pulling a rope was nothing new to him.

The two warriors watching from not far away grew tense. They had never gone into the water; even when they came to the riverbank, they only dipped at the very edge to wash animal hides, never stepping further in. They had seen huge river beasts appear on the distant water surface during the summer, and with the tribe’s bloody stories about this river passed down through generations, they always maintained a cautious fear of it. Now, seeing Henry Clark suddenly pulling something out of the river, they were shocked, their nerves stretched taut, afraid that some huge creature would suddenly emerge from the water.

“Should we go over?” one warrior nudged his companion with his elbow.

“Go… go over… let’s take a look…” the other hesitated, not sure what he was thinking, and replied.

A breeze blew from the river toward the shore, carrying moisture and a faint fishy smell. Whether it was the scent of aquatic creatures or something else, the smell only made the two warriors more nervous.

Through the grass rope in his hands, Henry Clark could feel the thing in the water tugging. That side wanted to drag it into the water, while this side wanted to pull it ashore. Henry Clark had the upper hand, retreating step by step, gradually pulling the thing out of the water.

The creature that had bitten the bait was about to reveal itself. The surface of the shallow water churned with splashes as the creature below struggled and thrashed violently.

Henry Clark gripped the rope tightly, eyes fixed on the water as he focused on pulling back. Suddenly, a vision flashed before his eyes, coming from far to near—a giant mouth filled with countless sharp teeth seemed to lunge at him, the entire maw almost enveloping Henry Clark’s head!

Just as it was about to touch Henry Clark, the vision vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

The image flashed by so fast that Henry Clark didn’t even have time to dodge before it was gone.

Henry Clark shook his head, thinking he was probably just too nervous and had hallucinated.

By the time the two warriors reached Henry Clark’s side, the thing in the water had already revealed its full form.

It was a very strange-looking fish, about half a meter long, with its head taking up two-thirds of its body. Even after being pulled out of the water, its mouth still clamped tightly onto the rope tied with the stone bug, showing no intention of letting go.

“Keep pulling, don’t stop!” Seeing the warriors who had rushed over just standing there in a daze, Henry Clark called for Julius Caesar to continue.

It was Julius Caesar’s first time dragging a fish. Aside from his initial surprise and wariness at seeing an unknown creature, he quickly bit down on the grass rope and pulled back with all his might.

After pulling the fish out of the water and dragging it back a bit to make sure it wouldn’t jump back in, Henry Clark finally let go.

“It’s finally out! Good job, Kai—Julius Caesar! Let go, where the hell are you dragging the fish?!”

Julius Caesar was still sticking his butt out, biting the rope and pulling back, even growling low in his throat. Clearly, pulling this fish out of the water had made him alert and combative, and he was so focused on pulling that even after Henry Clark let go, he kept going.

Only after hearing Henry Clark’s words did Julius Caesar reluctantly let go, cautiously approaching the fish that was still flapping its tail, baring his teeth as if he was about to take a bite.

From where Henry Clark had first stood to where he threw the stone bug, it was only a few steps away. The water where the bait was set wasn’t even as deep as a person, yet there really were such fierce fish active in the shallows. That huge mouth was full of sharp teeth, and once it bit the bait, it wouldn’t let go. Even after being dragged ashore and out of the water, it kept thrashing its tail, struggling violently, as if it wouldn’t give up until it tore the bait off.

One of the warriors who had come over used his spear—whether the tip was stone or bone was unclear—to stab the fish through. He used great force and moved quickly, the spear piercing straight through the fish and pinning it to the ground by the riverbank.

Only then did the impaled fish release the rope, its mouth opening and closing forcefully, its head swinging as if it wanted to bite anything nearby.

The grass rope that the fish had let go of, which had originally been tied to the stone bug, now had only a bit of residue left, and the rope itself was nearly bitten through.

The grass rope Henry Clark used was tough and wear-resistant, hand-woven by himself, often used for tying and hauling things. It had never broken after so much use, extremely durable, yet in just this short time, it was almost bitten through.

When his gaze fell on the strange fish’s gaping mouth, Henry Clark was stunned.

The most striking thing about the fish’s head was that huge mouth, filled with countless sharp teeth. With such proportions and teeth, it seemed born for tearing and killing. If the pulling force had been any greater, and if Julius Caesar hadn’t helped, Henry Clark alone might not have been able to drag it out of the water so quickly.

If all the diving areas nearby were full of these fish, anyone entering the water would probably be stripped to the bone. And this was just one kind of fish—there might be even more terrifying things lurking there. No wonder even the totem warriors in the tribe were unwilling to go into the water.