Early the next morning, Fern went to the harbor to look for a suitable vessel. According to the instructions Ness had received from her wand, their next destination was Doyle, who was now facing the Dark Tide. There were two options to get from Wet Harbour to Doyle, by land and by water, and after careful consideration, Fern chose the waterway. First, it is much more comfortable to take a boat than to sleep on land, and secondly, if there is another dark tide, it is easier to escape by water, provided that they find a fast boat.

Fern took a fancy to a few small ships and tried to talk to their captains, and the whole harbor slowly began to get busy as the sun rose, and one ship after another hoisted its sails and began to sail away from the harbor, but Fern still couldn't find a suitable ship. Until a brig came into his field of vision, a captain-like man was talking to a man on the shore next to the ship. Fern approached them and heard what they were talking about.

"No, I don't trade at a loss. The captain-like man said impatiently, pointing to a dilapidated old sailing ship in the distance, "That ship is quite suitable for your bid, and I think you might as well go over there." ”

The man's face was flushed, but he still refused to give up. "Take me, Mr. Captain, for the ships are either full or will have to wait for days to leave. Although the man was pleading, his tone was serious, as if he was defending his dignity.

The captain gave him one last disdainful glance, then ignored him and went back to the ship on his own.

The man sat on the tether in frustration, but his expression remained serious, which aroused Fern's curiosity.

"Hello, are you looking for a boat to get out of here?" Fern decided to talk to him.

The other party immediately stood up straight, his left hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, his right hand on the outside of his right leg, and nodded respectfully to the mercenary. "Yes, I want to go to Doyle. He was almost a knuckle shorter than Fern, his pale yellow hair was very short, his face was well-defined, his body was stronger than Fern's, and his whole person looked very energetic.

Fern was taken aback by his stance, and after a pause, he continued, "My name is Fern and I'm from Deville. ”

The man relaxed his posture slightly, but his body remained straight. "Hello Fern, I'm Stan of Doyle. ”

"Doyle?" a thought swirled through the mercenary's mind, and a few seconds later he made a decision. "Stan, my destination is Doyle too, I think maybe we can go the same way. ”

"It's a really good idea. The corners of Stan's mouth rose slightly, and then his expression returned to seriousness, "But I don't think the two of us have enough money to get the captain to sail." ”

"Oh?" Fern glanced around Stan and glanced at the ship, two masts raised high, large, thick sails rolled up and suspended from the top of the masts, the hull of the fine northern hardwood, the whole ship in perfect spindle shape. "Good ship indeed. Fern looked at Stan again. "If I help you get on the boat, can you do me a favor when I get to Doyle?"

"Of course, the Doyle people will be rewarded. The last four words were uttered by almost both of them at the same time. A distinct smile finally appears on Stan's face. "You know the sayings of the Doyle, too?"

"Yes, I've been to Doyle twice. Fern said with a smile, his eyes returning to the boat.

The captain saw that someone was watching his ship, and came out of the cabin again, poking out a swarthy face with a scar on his cheek. "Why, you're interested, touch your pockets first. ”

"I have my own pockets, but I see you don't count your business. Fern replied unhurriedly.

"No tricks to tell, be careful that I throw you into the river to feed the fish. The captain looked fierce and waved his hands at the gesture.

"You see the other ships have departed early, and although they are offering less, at least they will be able to put the gold in their pockets at once. Fern pulled a gold coin from the lining of his jacket, flicked it into the air with his fingers, and caught it with the same hand. "And you, my captain, can only wait here, waiting for your ship to rot. ”

The captain returned to shore, looked at the mercenary in front of him, and then crossed his hands to his chest and squinted at Fern. "Tell me, where are you going, how many of you?"

"Doyle, four. The mercenary replied.

The captain stretched out nine fingers and flipped back and forth, "Twenty gold coins." After saying that, he continued to fold his arms. It was then that Fern noticed that the little finger of the captain's right hand was missing.

"It seems that you still don't understand your situation. Fern turns and motions for Stan to leave.

They had only gone ten paces before the captain's voice came from behind, "Fifteen gold coins, no less." ”

Fern smirked, but hid a smile before turning around. "Ten gold coins, I won't give more than one. After saying that, he turned around and left.

This time he went a little farther, and just when Stan thought that Fern's strategy had failed, the captain yelled behind him, "Okay, you demon, ten gold coins!"

Ness and Rui waited for news from Fern at Swamp Rose, but he returned with someone. "This is Stan. Fern introduced the two of them, then turned to the other side, "This is my companions, Ness and Ray. ”

Stan straightened up, his left hand holding the hilt of his sword, his right hand bent towards his chest, and he bowed thirty degrees at the same time. "It has been a privilege to meet two ladies and please accept my compliments. ”

Ray was overwhelmed by Stan's strange behavior, but Ness naturally reached forward with her left hand, as if to accept Stan's salute, and then she immediately retracted her hand as she thought of something, her eyes rolling in her sockets, but this small gesture did not escape Fern's eyes.

Fern patted Stan on the shoulder, "Look up, Mr. Knight, there's no need for this salute here." ”

Stan looked up and smiled apologetically, "I've always held myself to the courtesy of a knight. He shrugged his shoulders, "Although I am not yet an ordained knight, I was going to Canrito to receive the knighthood, but everyone told me that no one could enter the city, and that I was running out of money, so I had to go back to Doyle first." ”

"Yes, they were right. Fern tilted his head at Ness and Ray, "We just came from there, and Ray knows what's going on there." ”

Seeing that both Fern and Stan were looking at him, Rei nodded, "Yes, I can feel those things. ”

Stan looked at Rui suspiciously, puzzled, and asked, "What are those things?"

Ryan was about to answer, but Fern preempted her and said, "I think we'd better go to the boat and talk slowly, we've wasted a lot of time." ”

The four of them came to the side of the boat, and the captain had been waiting for a long time, "You better hurry, we need to cross the whitewater bend before dark, I don't want to linger there at night." ”

"Of course, I agree. Fern took out three gold coins and shoved them into the captain's hand, but his fingers still didn't let go. "I'll give you the rest when I get to Doyle, so you'd better not play any tricks. After saying that, he let go of his hand with a smile.

The captain glanced at the mercenary and beckoned his men to help the four of them carry their luggage, while Fern observed the crew from the side. When everything was arranged, the captain gave the order, the sailors untied the thick hemp ropes tied to the ship's tethers, and two huge sails opened from the top of the mast, and then the wind blew up, and the ship slowly sailed out of the harbor.

Ness, who was on a boat for the first time, excitedly ran between the bow and stern, full of things that piqued her curiosity. Rui reminded her not to forget to hold the calming petals under her tongue to avoid seasickness. Ness stuck out her tongue in embarrassment, then took the petals out of her clothes and put them in her mouth.

"What is this ship called?" asked Fern with interest as he walked over to the captain, who was at the helm.

"Princess Merry. The captain didn't even look at the mercenary, and the words popped out of his mouth.

Not long after the sun cast its light on the river, the Princess Merry sailed away from Wet Harbor. The White River is wide and the current is very slow, and at this time the sun shines and shimmers, and sometimes a few seagulls sweep over the surface of the river to prey on the fish and shrimp in the river. All four of them stood on the deck and enjoyed the view, the fresh and damp wind blowing across everyone's faces, and the wet harbor behind them grew smaller and smaller.