After boarding the ship, Akita Shichiro felt somewhat lost, because his uncle, Akita Neiji, wasn't on the same ship as him. He could still occasionally see his uncle at the dock, but once on board, he was squeezed into the cabin with many unfamiliar teenagers. The thin Shichiro was squeezed into a corner, feeling uneasy.

"Hey! What's your name? Are you from Nara?"

A burly young man shouted at Akita.

"My name is Akita Shichiro, and I'm from Nara. Are you from Nara too?"

“Yes! My name is Nara Kawaji, you can call me Kawaji.” The burly boy moved aside, gesturing for Akita to sit over there, where the air was much better as it was closer to the ventilation vent.

"Thank you so much! I was with my uncle, but I didn't realize we weren't on the same boat. Things will be fine once we get off; we can look after each other." Akita felt incredibly grateful to have found someone from his hometown.

"Heh! I'm afraid your uncle isn't one of us. Haven't you noticed?"

"Aren't they all going to work in Daxia? How come they're not going the same way?"

“Our employment period is sixty years, while theirs is only a few years? The place where we work must be involved in the secrets of the Great Xia, and it’s impossible for us to have contact with outsiders.” Although Nara Kawaji looks rough, he is very thoughtful and gave Akita a very logical analysis.

Seeing Akita's pale face, Nara added, "But judging from the fact that we're building new ships while your uncles and the others are building old ones, we're not the lowest of the low!"

While Naragawa's analysis wasn't entirely correct, it did contain some truth. After they disembarked at Tamsui, Akita's uncle didn't even dock; he went straight south past Tainan.

After waiting for a while, Akita Neiji looked at the vast construction site of Luzon Port, but unlike the others, he wasn't disappointed. Having worked in silver mines, he knew that you only get to eat if you have work, and you won't be abandoned if you're useful.