Me and Mr. Rosana walked the whole town of Porkni to the sea.
Small and large ships can be seen docked in the harbour.
"You don't have many fishing boats"
Several piers made of wood stretch out into a stone harbor.
I see people coming in and out of moored ships.
"Based on the feeling of being packed, I wonder if it's a merchant ship landing site"
"Sounds like it. I wonder if the fishing port is another place."
The person Chris taught me was a retired fisherman.
I may not be here.
Ask the working people and they say there is a cove more south walking and the fishing boats are gathered that way.
"Looks like we're gonna walk a little from here, Mr. Rosana, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. But it's strange. I wonder if this is how we split the harbor and use it."
I see. You mean the merchant and fisherman I met earlier.
If we used the same harbor from time to time and looked at each other every day, even the merchants might have figured out what the fishermen wanted.
"Right. But this harbor is full of merchant ships, and it must be difficult to use it together."
The place is finite. You can give it up and use it, but if you push it into a narrow place, you can't ignore the little bits that come every day.
Perhaps that is why fishermen and merchants carried out the harbour habitation division.
I went as far as the south end of town as I was told.
The places where the harbour can be built seem to be limited throughout the town, with ramps lasting for a while.
Over a small high hill, a small cove was seen.
"Over there, I guess."
"Just a small ship."
"Speaking of which, fishing boats are just small things."
I imagined something bigger when it came to fishing boats, but smaller than I thought.
Less than half the merchant ships. Depending on the size, one or two passengers?
They already finished fishing today, and the harbor was idle.
Some of them were cleaning up, so I'll ask those people.
"I'd like to meet Mr. Ioz, who was a fisherman in this town."
"To Grandpa Ioz? That's unusual again."
Chris gave me the name he told me, but apparently he knows it.
"I wanted to know the old history of the town."
"Oh, you mean that. When I was a little girl, they used to listen to me. If it's Grandpa Ioz, he lives a little further away. Shall I tell you?"
They live in a tall cabin with a view of the sea.
We thanked him and headed there. Another ramp.
As I was able to ascend the stone steps, there was a cabin where I was taught.
An old man slept on a pillow with a stump at the end of a shed that faded in the wake of a rainstorm.
This man must be Mr. Ioz.
"Hello"
Speaking, the old man slowly opened his eyelids.
"... hmm?
"Um, does it fit in with Mr. Ioz?
"Well, who is it?
"My name is Leon. This is Rosana."
"Hmm, not a face I don't see."
Mr. Ioz woke up physically and sat down on the stump.
"Chris from this town taught me about Mr. Ioz. You think you can tell me the old story?"
"Hmm, Chris Fong? Did you remember that evil thing?"
The old man's face was engraved with deep wrinkles and his expression was hard to read, but he seemed to rejoice without heart.
"Chris told me about Tide People. You've told him before."
"I don't know if I talked about that when I was just a kid. Do you want to hear it, too?
"Yeah. I was hoping you could tell me more about it."
"Hmm. Yeah. I only have time to sleep anyway."
"But 'Tidal People' or I heard your nostalgic name... but where shall we talk from," Mr. Ioz snapped, telling me.
That's an old story.
Back when Ioz was just a boy, an old story I still heard from an old man who lived in this town.
The old man also slowly told me stories that he had heard when he was little… passed down from generation to generation.
A group that appeared at best in the town of Porkni.
They said they came from a place they walked from here to the west for days.
He said he had searched for people in villages and towns everywhere and had finally reached the coastal towns.
"We've reached the coastal town, but we can't move on without a ship from there. They seem to be in trouble."
At first, they saw the coast. Apparently they tried to head north or south.
In fact, some of them were on their way.
But we don't have a clue who they're looking for.
They seemed to have stayed in this town for about a year, and those who were close, and those who became new families, were born.
Slowly assimilate into town like this.
That's what the people in town thought.
But then you won't be able to achieve your purpose.
They decided they shouldn't stay like this, they decided to cross the ocean.
"There were a lot of people left. And the fathers of this city shall have them. But there were indeed those who crossed the sea."
"Is that the Tidal People?"
"Hmm. We sailed east on a single ship, loaded with all the food, water and booze we could have."
That wasn't much different from what Chris told me.
"What happened to them after that?"
"Come on. The remnants assimilated into this city and waited for the return of those who had left. But I never came back. Maybe he's dead, maybe he found a new heaven and earth. Nobody knows exactly what's going on."
"Do you have any idea where they went?
"Hmm. The eastern sea is huge... especially from the eagles and fishermen, it's hard to get to the true east."
"How could that be?
"There's a tidal flow from north to south. Same with the wind. Blowing from the north. Because of that, it's hard to get off the coast by boat."
"That's a blow-down wind."
Speaking of which, I've heard that it takes more days to go north from the moving-country to the dragon-country than south. Are you even with me offshore?
"Besides, if the inhabitants of this town had cooperated, it might have been by now."
I'm just in August now. What does the time have to do with this?
"Is there any reason for that?
"Next month or next month, there will be clouds raining heavily from west to east"
"Right."
"Not even on the ocean. The waves are rough but water is available. If the water barrel can be replenished where it has been emptied, the voyage can continue."
"I see."
If so, is it possible that he has surprisingly gone far?
It's going to expand quite a bit.
We talked about some things since then, but there has been no further progress.
"How do you know Chris Fong? You can't be a fine priest, candlestick."
"He is now at the College of Dragons because the dragon crest has appeared. He's in my room."
"Oh my God."
All this time, old Ioz also opened his eyes full of wrinkles.
"The children of this town have nothing to do while their parents are out at sea. I come here often to talk to you. Chris Fong (Boom) is the worst of them all. I've been having a lot of fights when I didn't listen to people... but I thought you weren't listening to me, but you remember."
"Right. He talked about it in a nostalgic way."
"Right, right."
We thanked the old man and quit.
Even sailing towards the true east is flushed south by the blowing down wind.
If you try to come back from there you will be flushed further south.
You must not have been able to come back to this town.
"If I were to look, would Southeast be the most powerful place from here?"
I snorted at Mr. Rosana's words.
"Right. Let's look around most likely."
The search for "Tidal People" between me and Mr. Rosana is about to begin.