Various tools for catching eels were laid out on the embankment.

First were the orthodox trap types.

The one Mika had prepared was made by cutting the mouth of a plastic bottle and inserting it back in reverse—a simple, basic trap that was easy to enter but hard to exit.

Similarly, Dada and the others had brought bamboo-woven traps designed for eels.

“Now, the question is where to set these up.”

“Wait a sec,” Mika said, leaving everyone on the embankment as she descended to the riverside. Slowly extending a string, she gently lowered the trap into a part of the water near the shore where no eels were present.

At first, it seemed to work.

The trap sank quietly into the water. Inside was a weight and a piece of meat bought earlier as bait.

Lured by the scent, an eel soon entered the trap.

Perhaps she should have pulled it up immediately at that moment.

“Ah, one got in!”

Just as Mika cheerfully tried to pull up the string, the trapped eel began thrashing, trying to escape. At the same time, other eels outside tried forcing their way in for the bait, seemingly angered by the lack of space.

The trap shook violently, bumping into nearby eels, causing the lightning to ripple outward like waves across the entire river.

“Eek!”

Mika reflexively let go of the string. The trap sank, and even the end of the string was swallowed by the river.

“Ooh, that stung a bit…”

Though it was fishing line rather than wire, whether it was static electricity or the effect of the magical lightning—

Mika only got off with a slight tingle, but it would’ve been dangerous if Gatt or Zurah had tried the same.

The sunken trap continued to shake as the eel thrashed inside, sending rippling lightning outward for a while before it finally settled.

Next, they tried fishing rods.

A thick fishing line with a large hook, baited with the same meat as before.

Here, too, casting too vigorously would spread the lightning, so they carefully lowered it into the water within the rod’s reach.

Just as the meat at the end of the line was about to touch the water, the eels noticed the bait! Immediately, they swarmed in a frenzy, the water surging as several eels lunged for the meat at once. Their gaping mouths were so wide that carelessly sticking a hand in might cost an entire arm.

The moment one bit, Mika swiftly reeled in the line, successfully landing an eel. But on the water’s surface, another ripple of lightning spread.

The caught eel was about a meter long, roughly the thickness of a child’s arm.

Even on land, it continued thrashing, sending out small bursts of lightning.

Gatt rushed down from the embankment.

“Haaah!”

With a shout, he drove his sword through the eel’s head.

A shock traveled up the blade, but a single eel’s electricity wasn’t enough to seriously injure a kobold.

“We managed to catch one, but… doing this hundreds of times would be rough.”

Mika muttered softly as she carried the eel back up the embankment.

The defeated eel was placed in a plastic bag before Flower used her freezing magic on it.

Next, they decided to try magic.

Since they knew the lightning couldn’t reach the riverside, they all descended this time.

The next attempt was with magic tools.

Perched on Mika’s shoulder, Dada peered at the magic tools they had brought.

“Which one should we try first…?”

“Let’s start with this one.”

Mika picked up the freezing magic tool they had used against the Dragonfish before.

When activated, it lowered the surrounding temperature. In an enclosed space, it was fairly effective.

After switching it on, she swung it back and hurled it toward the center of the river.

The moment it hit the water, the eels’ lightning erupted in a crackling, violent burst, spreading across the entire river as before.

But perhaps due to the freezing effect, the lightning around where the tool had landed quickly subsided.

“Did it work…?”

“Let’s test it.”

At Zurah’s words, Gatt picked up a stone and threw it near where the tool had landed.

ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!

The exact same lightning spread as before.

Of course. In water warmed and churned by a massive swarm of eels, freezing it solid wouldn’t be so easy.

“That freezing tool wasn’t disposable, either…”

Zurah sighed, watching the bubbling water regretfully.

Was there even a magic that worked on these eels? Or was their only option to catch them one by one, hundreds of times over?

As they silently pondered their remaining options, the group fell into quiet contemplation.