The sky had begun to glow with shades of amber and violet. Eiji looked up and sighed.

“It's getting dark already?” There was a hint of disappointment in his voice.

Rowan chuckled.

“We did spend the whole day wandering around the city.” He nudged Eiji's shoulder.

“You even bought your little brother a little gift.”

Eiji smiled faintly before letting out another sigh.

“I know... I just feel like I haven’t had enough of the city, yet.”

Rowan rubbed his chin, deep in thought. Then his eyes lit up.

“I know just the place.”

They climbed a narrow trail that wound along the cliffs overlooking the harbor.

As the two reached the top, Eiji looked around the field of tall grass and wondered,

“Where are we?”

Rowan looked around with a nostalgic smile.

“Most people pass by without giving it a second thought.”

He walked toward a weathered boulder perched near the cliff's edge.

“But my dad and I used to come here every festival.”

He rested a hand on the stone.

“We'd sit right here.”

He laughed softly.

“The fireworks looked incredible from this spot.”

Then he turned toward the horizon.

“There aren't any fireworks tonight...”

He gestured toward the city below.

“...but this isn't a bad view either.”

Eiji stepped to the edge. The city stretched beneath them like a sea of stars.

Golden lanterns lined the streets. Warm lights spilled from windows. Ships rested quietly in the harbor while their reflections shimmered across the water.

For a long moment...

Eiji simply stared.

“...Wow.”

His voice was barely more than a whisper.

“It's beautiful.”

A gentle breeze swept across the hill. Then Eiji remembered something Rowan had said.

He turned.

“You said... You and your dad used to come here.”

Rowan's smile faded. His gaze remained fixed on the city below.

The wind rustled through the tall grass around them.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

Finally...

“My father passed away last year.”

His words were quiet. Almost swallowed by the wind.

“Some kind of illness.”

He lowered his head.

“He suffered for a long time.”

A tear escaped despite his efforts to hold it back.

“...At least he's finally at peace.”

Silence settled between them once again.

Eiji didn't know what to say. He had never been good with words. So he simply stood beside Rowan.

Present.

After a while, Rowan laughed weakly through his tears.

He wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve.

“If he saw me crying like this...” A small smile found its way onto his face.

“...he'd probably tell me to stop acting like a child, and man up.”

Eiji smiled too.

A sad smile.

“He sounds like a good man.”

Rowan nodded.

Then he looked at Eiji. “You know...”

He smiled more genuinely this time.

“Oddly enough, you remind me of him.”

Eiji blinked.

“Really?”

“You both have that same curiosity.” Rowan laughed quietly.

“Like there's an entire world waiting to be explored.”

Something tightened in Eiji's chest.

His own parents had shared that same dream.

They had left on a voyage...

...and never returned.

Without saying a word, Eiji stepped forward and wrapped Rowan in a firm embrace.

For a heartbeat, Rowan stood frozen.

Then the walls he'd been holding up finally crumbled.

He buried his face against Eiji's shoulder as quiet sobs escaped him.

Eiji gently patted his back.

“He's been carrying this alone…”

The thought lingered in his mind long after Rowan's tears had begun to fade.

…

Morning arrived far too soon. The harbor buzzed with activity as sailors prepared their ships for departure.

Rowan stood at the end of the dock, hands tucked into his pockets.

“I guess... this is goodbye.”

Eiji smiled.

“I hope not.”

He adjusted the pack slung over his shoulder.

“Give me a few months. We'll be back.”

Rowan laughed.

“Then I'll be waiting.”

Rowan extended his hand, and in his palm was a metal wristband.

“I, um…” Rowan shied away, “I just thought you might like it.”

Eiji looked at it...

...then pulled Rowan into one last embrace instead.

The two laughed.

“Take care of yourself,” Rowan said.

“You too.”

Eiji boarded the ship.

As the sails unfurled and the vessel slowly drifted away from the harbor, Eiji raised a hand high above his head, showing the wristband Rowan gave him.

Rowan waved back until the ship became nothing more than a silhouette against the sea.

Only then did he lower his hand.

The evening sun painted the ocean gold as the distance between them quietly grew.

That night, in the middle of a deep slumber, Eiji dreamt about their ship finally docking at the port of Tsutsumi.

When his foot touched the freezing ground, a familiar figure came that instantly froze everything: The people and the waves turned solid ice.

“Your life of journey ends now.”