Barry rotated the top of the cubic. Suddenly the top began emitting a green light. He quickly threw it into the pond. After a couple of seconds, the cube produced a sharp hissing sound before exploding. With the explosion came a violent crash in the water.
The Golden Orange Snakehead began wriggling furiously the moment it emerged from the Beast Space. Soon it dove beneath the surface and disappeared into the depths. However, one could clearly trace its movement as the surface of the water rippled and danced in the direction the fish swam.
Inside the underground cavern, silence filled the air except for the sound of moving water. Everyone stood stunned after witnessing the gigantic fish emerge from the Beast Space cube. It was a Golden Orange Snakehead—there was no doubt about it.
"It is indeed a Golden Orange Snakehead," a baffled voice echoed in the cavern as the old man who had laughed earlier spoke.
"It is impossible to capture that fish. No—it is even impossible to lure it to the surface. Even famous and powerful people failed when they tried," he continued in disbelief as he looked toward the duo.
"How… how did you two manage to capture it?"
"Well, we have our secret method to capture any creature in this world," Barry boasted with a proud smirk.
"No, this is some kind of scam. That's not the Golden Orange Snakehead. It must be some fish that only looks similar. These kids are trying to trick us," a voice suddenly shouted from the crowd.
"Yes, that must be it. Even legends failed to capture that fish. These two must have bought something similar somewhere. We should check its authenticity," another voice added.
"Shut your mouth. Didn't you see it with your own eyes? That's the real Golden Orange Snakehead. Are you blind or something?" someone else spoke in support of Barry and Jasper.
"Are you an idiot? Have you ever seen the legendary fish yourself? No one has, not even in their dreams. Then how can you confirm it isn't fake?" someone argued desperately, clearly afraid of losing his money.
"Yes. Are you three working together to scam people here in Fessi Village?" another person accused.
Realizing the situation, those who had bet their gold hoping to earn more began panicking and tried to invalidate the betting contract.
Barry and Jasper stood among the crowd, stunned by the accusations. Hadn't these people just seen the fish swim away in the pond? Why were they suddenly claiming it was fake?
"Everyone, shut your mouths," the old man shouted. "It is a legitimate Golden Orange Snakehead. It is not fake. That much I can guarantee."
He gave his word to silence the growing rumors.
"However," he continued, turning his gaze toward the duo, "what we need to investigate is who helped them capture the fish. Because it is impossible for these two alone to accomplish such a thing."
Barry's expression instantly changed after hearing the old man's words. He had spent his entire fortune gathering intel and used the remaining money to customize the Beast Space traps. He had even nearly died capturing the fish. Now these people were accusing him of buying it from someone else.
His chest filled with rage. He wanted nothing more than to beat the old man until he pissed his pants. But he restrained himself. Arguing with people who were merely speculating was a waste of time.
"What does that have to do with the bet?" Barry asked calmly.
"The contract clearly states that I must show the Golden Orange Snakehead. If I don't have it, then I must pay. Other than that, nothing says the fish cannot be bought from someone or anything like that."
Barry continued explaining the rules written in the contract.
"So please hand over the betting money before things escalate and someone ends up violating the agreement," he added, his tone carrying a subtle warning.
Hearing Barry's words, the old man's expression shifted from calm to barely concealed rage. When he first heard that the boy possessed the legendary fish, he had assumed these kids were just bragging about their luck to earn a few Achievement Points. That sort of thing had happened many times before.
He had never believed—even for a single moment—that the kid truly possessed the Golden Orange Snakehead.
In his entire lifetime, he had never seen anyone capture that fish. Even those so-called prodigies—young talents who later became powerful and famous—had failed when they came to Fessi Lake to capture it.
So he had been one hundred percent confident this was simply another mediocre youth trying to earn some attention.
But now that he had seen the legendary fish with his own eyes—the same creature he had only heard about in stories and seen in drawings—his mind went blank.
He was certain that catching or even luring that fish out of Fessi Lake was impossible. Therefore, the only explanation he could think of was that these kids had purchased it from someone else and were trying to trick them into believing they had captured it.
However, when he reconsidered the contract, he realized his mistake. The clause only required them to show the Golden Orange Snakehead. It never required them to prove how they obtained it.
That realization filled him with frustration, but there was nothing he could do except honor the agreement.
"He is right," the old man said in a defeated voice. "The contract only states that he must show the Golden Orange Snakehead. It does not say he must prove where or how he obtained it."
Hearing the old man admit the truth and stop accusing them of scamming, both Barry and Jasper breathed a sigh of relief.
Jasper, in particular, had begun feeling hostility toward the group that tried to twist the contract. Now that the old man confirmed the actual clause, Jasper felt immense relief—and he nearly jumped in joy thinking about the 200,000 gold. In his mind, he had already begun calculating that he would receive half the share.
"Yes, we only agreed on whether the kid had the fish or not. It doesn't matter where he got it," someone spoke up, clearly unwilling to risk violating the contract.
"He's right. Good for you two—if you really captured it yourselves. You'll achieve great things in life. All the best," another person said, offering his wishes to the duo.
"Congratulations, kid. You two have a bright future."
Soon the people gathered in the underground chamber began congratulating Barry and Jasper.
"You cowards! Do you really believe these two kids captured that fish and want to hand over all your gold to them?"
Suddenly an angry voice echoed across the cavern. The outburst made everyone turn toward the man who had shouted.
"Who are you calling a coward, you degenerate prick?" one of the adventurers snapped. "If you want to go against the contract, go ahead yourself. Don't drag the rest of us with you."
With that, the adventurer turned and began walking toward the staircase leading out of the cavern.
Following him, more adventurers and merchants congratulated the duo before leaving the underground chamber. However, a few people remained behind, their expressions dark and twisted with resentment.
"Mr. Marek, how many Achievement Points will we receive for this catch?" Barry asked.
Since the betting issue had been settled, he was eager to finally obtain his first Achievement Points—the goal he had worked toward for the past six months.
Marek, who had been standing near the edge of the pond watching the ripples created by the swimming fish, snapped back to attention when he heard his name.
"Oh, yes. Actually, I don't know how many points the Golden Orange Snakehead awards," he admitted. "Let's go upstairs and check the records."
After saying that, he took one last glance at the fish swimming beneath the water before turning toward the staircase.
"No one leaves this place unless you tell us the truth about how you got that fish."
Suddenly a man spoke with a malicious smile.
Behind him stood three others who clearly shared the same intention.