This is the third day that Ness and Rui have been in Wet Harbor, and there is still no news of Fern, Ness can't help but be a little anxious, but Rui still seems calm and composed, and the two of them are pacing along the harbor in silence, one merchant ship after another passing by them.

Ships leave the wet harbor every day, and at the same time a similar number of ships refill the vacancies, and almost every dock is busy loading and unloading cargo. The sailor's swarthy muscles were soaked in sweat and shimmered like a black jewel in the sun, and the captain urged the sailor to speed up while bargaining with his old patron.

"Rui, have you ever been on a boat before?" Nessy tried to find a topic to break the silence.

"Sitting, many times. Rui was still looking ahead. "For some, the boat ride is not an experience worth remembering. ”

"Why do you say that?" asked Ness, curious.

"Have you ever heard of seasickness?" a smile tugged at Rui's lips. "It's a feeling that makes you worse than dead, and of course, not to kill you, but even more terrifying are pirates and storms. ”

"It sounds safer to go by road. Ness stuck out her tongue in disappointment. "I thought the boat ride was a pleasure?"

Rui turned her head and looked at Ness, some surprise. "Have you never been on a boat?"

"No ......" Ness was a little helpless and a little ashamed. "I grew up in the interior and then in the Mage Tower, and I didn't even get a chance to see the ship. ”

"That's what you've seen enough this time. Rui's gaze looked at the merchant ships in the distance. "You better pray that when we get on board, you won't get seasick. ”

"Is seasickness really so scary?" Ness was a little unimpressed.

"If I had to choose, I'd rather fight the dark tide than try seasickness. Rui took out a brown paper bag from the inner pocket of his clothes and carefully opened it, revealing a few pink and white petals. "These are sun-dried calming petals, which can be reduced by making tea or directly under the tongue. ”

Ness took the vellum paper bag from Rui's hand and sniffed it closer. "It's a pleasant fragrance, thank you, Rui, what about you?"

"Don't worry, I still have some in my bag, and besides, the Tranquility Flower is very common, and it can be found almost everywhere in the whole Wallis except in the cold places of the north. Rui continued to walk forward.

Ness put away the paper bag and ran a few steps to catch up with Rui. "Rui, why do you know so much, I thought that only a mercenary like Fern who had traveled to many places would have such a wealth of knowledge. ”

Rui paused again, as if struggling with some memory. "Everyone has their own secrets that they don't want to tell, don't they?"

Ness pursed her lips and couldn't ask again, so she could only follow Rui on the harbor.

Finally, Rui stopped in front of a merchant ship, stared at the blurred pattern on the sail, and began another conversation, "I think we should start thinking about the possibility of the rest of the journey without Fern." Even when it comes to this kind of topic, her tone is still unfluctuating.

"No, wait, wait a few more days. Ness immediately objected, her face flushing with excitement.

"Of course we could have waited a few more days, but it's worth thinking about how the two of us can continue our journey in the future. Rui turned her head and glanced at Ness. "Although you told me that your purpose was only to complete your trial, it seems that it is not as simple as you think. ”

Ness bit her lip and fumbled with her wand. "I didn't expect this to be the case, if possible, I'd really like to go back to the Mage Tower and ask for clarification. ”

Rui snorted contemptuously and shook his head disdainfully. "Do you think you can ask anything from the Mage's Tower? they won't tell you all the facts at all, they'll only tell you what they want you to know!" her emotions suddenly became uncharacteristically agitated.

Ness was puzzled by Rui's reaction to hearing her mention of the Mage Tower, and looked at Rui with a frown. "Why do you say that?"

Rui sighed and didn't answer Ness's question directly, "Would you like to listen to my advice?"

"Yes, please. Ness was confused.

"No matter what happens, the most important thing is to have your own judgment, and then to be a trustworthy companion, and never trust someone who can't share your ups and downs. Rui was surprisingly preachy, though his tone was still cold.

Ness didn't say anything, she looked at the wand in her hand, not knowing what to answer. In her heart, the Mage Tower is a sacred existence, and the Archmages are unquestionable. But after these recent events, a mystery slowly formed in her mind, constantly questioning her beliefs.

Seeing that Ness was lost in thought, she continued, "You may wonder why I studied shadow magic, a spell that is not well received by ordinary people. ”

"That's right, that's exactly what I've been asking all along. Ness's mind returned to the conversation.

"I beg your pardon, it's not time to say that yet. Rui's eyes dimmed, and his whole person seemed to sink into painful memories, "However, I can tell you that it was the Mage Tower that created it single-handedly. ”

"What? how is that possible?" Ness's eyes widened, looking surprised. "Shadow magic is expressly forbidden by the Mage Tower, even high-level mages can't access it, how can it ......"

"It's normal for you to be so surprised, it shows the hypocrisy of the Mage Tower, they hide it well. Rui shrugged helplessly.

"But I still can't believe it unless I see any evidence with my own eyes. Ness looked at Rui as if she were interrogating a prisoner.

"You'll believe it, sooner or later. Rui's mind was once again closed behind a thick wall, without a single gap. "Now, let's go back to the original question, assuming we lose Fern, what do we do next?"

"I don't know, why don't we wait a few days to talk about this?" Nessy reluctantly refuses to talk about it.

"Alright then, just wait a few more days. Rui turned and glanced at the entire port. "When the time comes, you have to make a decision. ”

In the middle of the night, after a busy day, the harbor finally quieted down, and a few ships arrived sporadically after a long night's journey, and the oil lamps on the ships flickered in the darkness, like a ghost fire.

Rui had already fallen asleep in bed, but Ness was not sleepy, and she was lying in front of the window looking out at the dark white river. Outside the window, the chirping of toads, crickets, and various other insects mingled, with the occasional footsteps of a drunken sailor stumbling into the mix.

Ness looked up at the bright moon, her hands crossed, words in her mouth as if she were praying for something, and the words lingered in her mind.

In fact, she also had some questions about the Mage Tower, why they had made it all the way to Deville to find a tavern keeper named Rhodes to ask him to recommend mercenaries, why the places guided by the wand were in danger of the Gloom Tide, why the archmages said goodbye to her one by one before she left, which was a treatment that no other apprentice could enjoy, and the dream on the way to Canrito.

The more she thought about it, the more clueless she became, and her intuition told her that the Mage Tower must have hidden something from her, but what could she do now? Then she thought of Fern again, and so far there was no news of him, and the hope in her heart was getting smaller and smaller, if there was no Fern, what would be the way forward? One question after another hit Ness's nerves, and the strong feeling of helplessness almost made her faint, she couldn't bear so much alone, she needed someone to help her share. Ness looked back at Rui, who was sleeping soundly, her eyes began to blur, and she quickly looked out the window again, but the tears were still dripping uncontrollably.

"Fern, where are you ......"