The Legend of the Fishermen of Sicily

Chapter 106 Silverfin Hunter

How insecure is this system...? It's taking this "hostile force" way too seriously.

After making a couple of sarcastic remarks, Leo asked the opposing family "traitor" Angie with a sigh, "When are you planning to tell Sandro?"

Angie blurted out, seemingly very confident: "I have to wait until Mom is home after lunch to tell her, otherwise in addition to a few days of confinement, I'll get a beating."

Leo muttered under his breath, a headache nagging at him, "I'll have to figure out how to go to your house at noon..."

I need to go to Sandro's house to see if I can find a way to "save" Ainge.

"What did you say?" Angie asked, craning her neck out.

Leo shook his head dismissively, saying, "I think your idea is pretty good."

"Really?" Angie was overjoyed.

Leo nodded. From a later perspective, Angie's idea was indeed quite good.

But it might seem a bit ahead of its time to people of this era.

For Tongzige, who was still living in 1895, this was even more "avant-garde," which may be why he called Angie a traitor.

"Then please help me practice some more. I'll say it a few more times so I can be more fluent and won't be stumped by Father's questions," Angie pleaded.

Leo had nothing to do in the morning, so he agreed.

Father, you—

"Skip, skip!"

"No, you have no idea how many clever ideas are in this draft. All these meaningless pleasantries are just foreshadowing."

"Whatever you want..."

"Father, how have you been lately?"

The sound of "Father" and Leo's helpless sighs echoed along the beach.

The meeting with Anji couldn't last too long, but fortunately, Marzamemi is sparsely populated.

Half an hour later, Leo went to the coffee shop.

Andrei would be here every morning, and Leo wanted to spend some time with him and give the old man a few more words of advice: take care of his health, drink less coffee, and if no one wanted to listen to his stories these days, he should just bear with it and wait for Leo to come back and make it up to him.

Unexpectedly, the coffee shop was packed this morning, with a group of old men surrounding Andrei, listening to him tell his story with great enthusiasm.

Leo looked out the window for a while, then left, reassured.

If someone is with Andrei, then wait a bit before coming over; go take care of other things first.

But Marco blocked their retreat route, and he pushed Leo back: "Go in and listen, it will be useful to you."

Leo stood at the doorway, not daring to go any further, afraid of disturbing everyone's listening to the story.

However, what Andrei talked about today was actually something he was interested in.

"In July 1964, the San Nicola set sail as usual. The lookout spotted a female swordfish on the mast. Captain Giuseppe immediately decided to take action. The experienced hunter successfully speared the female fish, and blood quickly spread in the azure water. Normally, a wounded swordfish would struggle to break free or sink to the deep sea, but this female fish did not escape..."

Today, Andrei wasn't telling dry historical stories, but rather the battle between mermaids, which the old men listened to with great interest.

Even Nicholas from the grocery store next door came in to listen, and his emotions were on the edge of their seats as Andrei's tone suddenly rose.

"The female swordfish suddenly changed direction and charged towards the hull like a torpedo at a speed of up to 100 kilometers per hour. Captain Giuseppe later recalled that before he could react, the ship shook violently, and with a muffled thud, the hull was pierced. However, the swordfish's revenge continued; it withdrew its long snout, circled around to the other side of the ship, and launched another attack!"

Andrei gestured in front of him, raising his eyebrows: "The longest impact crater is 45 centimeters!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, this little thing holds a grudge," Nicholas said with a grin.

He had heard stories about swordfish since he was a child, but these stories were always new and interesting.

Andrei stopped to catch his breath, and only then did old Nino dare to pick up his coffee cup and take a sip, his hands trembling. "What little thing? Swordfish have mouths that are over a meter long, sharper than weapons. They are one of the most dangerous fish in the ocean. Every few years, we hear news of people dying under their long snouts."

Andrei's reading glasses gleamed with a sinister light: "Swordfish are extremely dangerous creatures. They're intelligent; if they sense danger, they won't turn back immediately, but will circle underwater before attacking. They also hold grudges; if you provoke them, they might chase you for days and nights. Just when you think the matter is over, they'll suddenly attack from some direction... piercing your heart with a single strike!"

"Hiss!" The old men gasped.

"But one—" Andrei suddenly drew out the last syllable, his expression instantly changing. He stretched out his hands dramatically, pointing at the young man standing in the doorway, "Our underwater warrior, Leo, is about to head to Messina to face the swordfish! Let's cheer for the warrior! Let's await his good news!!"

After he finished speaking, he led the applause.

"Damn, what's this about me?" Leo, who was completely engrossed in the conversation, was shocked.

The old men were so engrossed in listening that they didn't notice an extra person appearing at the door.

Guided by Andrei, they all turned to look at Leo.

Some talked about the harpoon test last night, while others asked Leo how his preparations were going. In the process, they also made sure to follow Andrei's applause rhythm and croak a few times.

Nicholas missed the fishing competition, having secured a front-row seat yesterday. Upon seeing the VIP client, he immediately flattered him, saying, "Leo's fishing skills are already quite good, and now he has a powerful harpoon. Maybe he can even win the title of 'Silverfin Hunter' this time!"

"What is a Silverfin Hunter?" Leo asked Nicolas.

This question struck a chord with Andrei, who preemptively answered for Leo: "Those who personally wield a harpoon, participate in the pursuit of a single adult swordfish, and successfully hunt it down will receive the title of 'Silverfin Hunter' bestowed by the Cumanso family. In Sicily, this is proof of courage."

Leo asked Andrei, "There must be quite a few people who have received this title, right?"

The tall-masted spearfish has existed for hundreds or even thousands of years, and many people have probably received this honor.

"Then you're wrong!" Andrei continued to explain, "Hunting swordfish requires the combined efforts of many people; not everyone is qualified to be a thrower."

Marco succinctly added from the side: "It should be said that 99% of people don't have this opportunity. Even if they do get on that platform, they may not be able to successfully kill the swordfish, so this title still carries a lot of weight."

Leo asked them, "Does Bianchi have that title?"

Andrei shook his head: "Bianchi went to Messina for three years and didn't even become a lookout. Do you think it's that easy, little fox?"

There's a saying in the Strait of Messina: "A lookout can see the shadow of a swordfish, a rower can pull its tail, but only a silverfin hunter has the power to stop its heart from beating."

The story of a warrior is popular with people in any era.

The old men around him chattered about the stories they had heard about the legendary "Silverfin Hunters," encouraging Leo to try his luck at the Highmast.

Leo wasn't particularly interested: "I'll do my best."

More than the title, he values ​​the maritime experience and knowledge he can gain from this voyage.

That was the real reason he wanted to go to Messina.

Maritime knowledge was what he lacked most right now. Nicholas glanced at him: "Why are you so insecure, kid? Your skills are good, and you even have a good harpoon. Aren't you going to try and get it?"

Leo chuckled and asked Nicholas, "Then let me ask you this: if I get the title of 'Silverfin Hunter,' can you let me keep track of it?"

The Godfather hadn't gone fishing for several days, and his cash flow was tight again.

This special "accounting" service is urgently needed now.

Without a second thought, Nicholas shook his head frantically, without the slightest hesitation: "No way, no way, that's absolutely impossible! They're two completely different things!"

Leo shrugged helplessly, as if to say, "Look, what's the use of this?"

After spending some time in the coffee shop and seeing that Andrei was alright, Leo left with peace of mind to take care of his next task.

The old men in the coffee shop paused their storytelling and listening, and whispered something as they watched Leo's retreating figure.

"This child is too calm. He has such a powerful harpoon, why isn't he excited at all?"

"Yeah, Aurelio's laughter was so loud it hurt my ears last night."

"That's right. He was so cocky at the fish market this morning. People lined up to greet him wherever he went."

"It's time to let Aurelio shine a little. He's been living such a miserable life all these years."

"Oh, didn't you say he was one?"

"Stop, stop, stop! Shut up! I never said that! I've always called him the Master Forging!"

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