"Have you heard? Two VIPs from the Middle Sea are coming to take part in this year's Tide-Chasing Festival!"
"How many years has it been since VIPs from the Middle Sea last came to the Tide-Chasing Festival? Could this really just be a rumor? Maybe they're merely Outer Sea people who happened to visit the Middle Sea and are exaggerating!"
"It's absolutely true—the mermaids from Baobol City have already spread the word. They personally saw Baobol's city lord, the merfolk prince Lide, being viciously humiliated and stomped on, yet he could do nothing but rage helplessly and raise the taxes."
"My heavens! Lords from the Middle Sea!"
"That's not all... My cousin's friend's uncle works at the Royal Capital Appraisal House. Apparently, those two lords from the Middle Sea are planning to sell a dish of perfect quality, rated as a 'Present World Treasure'!"
"Really? Things rated as 'Present World Treasure' are incredibly precious... And if it's food, wouldn't its value be sky-high?!"
"Can something like that really be put up for sale?"
"I don't know about that, but they're VIPs from the Middle Sea... so it isn't impossible."
"Those from the Middle Sea really are something. We'd treat anything we got from them as an heirloom, yet they're actually planning to sell it for money!"
"I heard that too. My aunt's coworker's nephew also works at the Appraisal House... Apparently, these two important figures came for the 'Lost Treasure.' That's also why they're taking part in the Tide-Chasing Festival."
The Tide-Chasing Festival had always been an extraordinarily lively celebration, drawing people of all races from every corner.
And so...
In such a chaotic environment, "rumors" were even more likely to ferment and heat up—especially rumors involving the "Middle Sea," "Present World Treasures," and the "merfolk prince."
Even in this