Asta repeated his fishing strategy by the riverbank, but this time with far more finesse.
Controlling his superhuman strength, he used thin cord to bind the carp together.
After securing fifteen large fish, he tied them along a long, flexible wooden pole, slinging the impressive catch over his shoulder before heading back toward the village.
Just as Asta reached the church gate, Nash—the boy with the perpetual half-closed eyes—opened the door holding a stack of bowls and wooden chopsticks.
The moment Nash spotted Asta, his habitual cynicism kicked in.
“Asta, everyone’s been waiting for you again.
Yuno used his Wind Magic around noon to catch a fish to help out with dinner.
When are you ever going to catch something like Yuno?”
“Oh?
Yuno caught a fish?” Asta raised an eyebrow with a slight smirk, gesturing for Nash to step aside.
“Move over, kid.”
“Wait…
is that a fish?” Nash grumbled, glancing at the branch.
He spotted a fat carp tied to the wood—one that looked visibly larger than the one Yuno had brought home!
Nash pouted, remembering that Yuno had actually caught two in total over the last two days.
But as Asta walked past him into the yard, Nash’s eyes widened in sheer shock.
The carp strung along the long pole were lined up like gourds on a vine, one after another!
“Two…” “Three…” “Seven…” “…Fifteen?!”
Nash stared in total disbelief.
Was this a trick?
Asta—the magicless, roaring idiot—had actually caught fifteen massive carp single-handedly?!
“Looks like today was a good haul,” Asta chuckled, giving the stunned boy a cool, confident glance before heading inside.
Sister Lily stood near the window, her soft eyes following Asta as he moved around outside.
There was a quiet composure in his posture that hadn’t been there before—a mature, steady aura replacing his usual chaotic energy.
“Father…
Asta seems so much more mature these past few days,” Sister Lily whispered softly, setting down the table settings.
“It really feels like he’s growing up.”
Father Orsi scratched his chin, letting out a soft sigh as he watched the boy stack the logs.
“Yeah…
he really is.
But honestly, it worries me a bit.
He actually came up to me earlier, talking about building a luxurious bathhouse so everyone can have a warm, private bath.”
The old priest shook his head, a mixture of pride and bittersweet concern in his voice.
“A child his age ought to be running around playing, enjoying these golden years of his life.
Taking care of the church and worrying about living conditions…
those are adult responsibilities.
He shouldn’t be carrying all these heavy burdens on his shoulders so soon.”
Sister Lily gasped softly, touched by Asta’s thoughtful gesture while feeling a warm swell of gratitude.
A hot, private bath for everyone sounded like such a wonderful gift, but she couldn’t help agreeing with Father Orsi’s protective heart.
After a quick meal, Asta selected an open, flat area beside the church.
Grabbing his axe and chisels, he began carving complex mortise and tenon joints into the harvested timber—crafting interlocking square tenons, dovetails, and tongue-and-groove joints.
Using this ancient woodcraft technique, he could build a complete bathhouse without using a single metal nail, interlocking the timber like building blocks!
“Give up, Asta!” Nash walked over, watching Asta work with a frown.
“Do you even know how to build a proper bathtub, or are you just going with the flow here?”
“Going with the flow?” Asta chuckled, rolling his eyes as his chisel shaped a perfectly smooth wooden groove.
“Little guy, every single cut I’m making is calculated.
I know exactly how to shape the timber so it holds water without leaking.
Why do you always assume something is impossible before you’ve even tried it?”
Asta understood Nash’s cynicism.
The boy buried his real feelings under a shell of apathy because he was terrified of failure and disappointment.
Asta’s relentless effort—proving that even an outcast orphan without magic could achieve great things—was meant to shatter that exact self-pitying mindset in kids like Nash.
“What would you say if I finished this entire bathhouse before dawn tomorrow?” Asta asked, locking eyes with the younger boy.
Under Asta’s intense, unwavering gaze, Nash felt a prickle of shame, but he stubbornly gritted his teeth.
“If you can actually build a whole bathhouse by tomorrow…
then…
then I’ll start believing that you really can become the Wizard King!
But if you fail, stop daydreaming and face reality!”
“Deal!” Asta let out a confident, booming laugh.
Making the impossible possible—isn’t that what life is all about?
Refusing to yield to fate, no matter how much the world stacked the odds against you!
With the bet made, Asta threw himself entirely into the work.
He quickly sketched a rough architectural layout directly in the dirt.
His motto was simple: if you’re going to do something, do it to perfection!
By his calculations, the structure required thousands of interlocking joints.
But with his superhuman physical strength and fine dexterity, Asta moved like a demon—lifting, trimming, and shaping heavy timber with ease.
Before long, he had chiseled over a thousand joint pieces for the main framework.
“Still not enough timber,” Asta muttered.
“I need more logs and four thick tree trunks for the foundation posts!”
Without stopping to rest, he bolted back toward the forest.
“Is Asta…
actually serious?” Sister Lily murmured in awe as she watched Asta work at blinding speed.
“He’s completely serious,” Yuno said, stepping out onto the porch, his eyes fixed on Asta’s moving figure.
As Asta’s self-proclaimed rival, Yuno had never doubted Asta’s drive.
Yet seeing Asta display such extraordinary physical capability made Yuno clench his fist tightly.
You better keep pushing, Asta…
if you lag behind, I’ll leave you in the dust!
When night fell, Sister Lily came out to call him for dinner.
“Asta, come eat!
We cooked three of the fish you caught!”
“You guys eat first, don’t wait for me!” Asta called out, focusing on the remaining thirty timber beams.
He had to finish all the joint cuttings before dark, or precision carving would become too difficult under torchlight.
Sister Lily wanted to persuade him further, but Father Orsi gently stopped her.
“Let him be, Lily.
Once that boy sets his mind to something, not even a bull can pull him back.”