The world brims with treasures that are still unknown to the world of man. What one searches for is waiting for them somewhere out there, so they'll depart from anywhere to obtain it.

That is the feeling that a young Merchant will soon come to be familiar with.

Tressa is her name, and she is a young girl working in her family's merchant shop in the Coastland town of Rippletide. But, there's only so much a girl can witness within such a small town. However, this day, that view shall change. As Tressa went about gathering supplies for the shop, she soon set eyes upon a large ship with many treasures aboard it.

"Whoa. A real live merchant ship." Tressa said in awe.

"Eyeing my ship, young lass?" said a man in blue.

"Uh...this is your ship?" Tressa asked.

"Yes, and I am it's captain." he said.

"Well Captain, I'm Tressa. Would it be too much to take a look at the stuff inside? Please? It would be so wonderful." Tressa said.

"You certainly have a merchants eye you do. You view a simple trading ship as if it were made of solid gold." he said. "But alas, I only bring aboard those I trust."

They soon heard a crash.

"What the?" Tressa said running off.

"Busy as a bream that one." he said going back to his ship.

With Tressa, she ran right into town to see pirates from a nearby sea cave looting the merchants in town.

"All shops seem to be looted ere, boss!" a lakey said.

"You talk to me, I be captain." said a lean pirate named Mikk.

"Nay, I be captain." said a more broad captain named Makk.

"With all due respect, Mikk, Makk… yer both th' captain." the lackey said. "Anyways, seems we've got what we came for here."

"Indeed we did. S'what pirates do after all, we plunder. Ain't that right, Makk?" Mikk asked.

"Hey, stop that!" Tressa said.

"Says who?" Mikk asked.

"Says me. These people are hard working merchants and fishermen doing all they can to put food on the table." Tressa said. "Pirates like you stealing from these people just make things harder for us."

"Like we care for that. Hey, she's got some nice stuff on her too." Makk said as he looted Tressa of all she had. "Okay, boys. Back to the hideout."

"Aye!" the pirates said as they ran off back to the seacaves.

"Argh… those dang pirates...! I cant forgive them for any of this!" Tressa said. "I can fight as much as the next guy, but I'm not strong enough to take on a whole crew on my own though… maybe I can find some people in town!" Tressa thought getting the idea.

"There's no need for that." A voice said as Harumi appeared in front of her.

"Whaaaaaaaaa…. Whoa! How did you do that?!" Tressa asked nearly stumbling off her feet.

"It's one of the perks of being an assassin. Anyway, I saw what happened earlier. Those pirates are real savages, aren't they?" Harumi asked.

"They are. I was planning on slipping some Sleepweed into their wine they stole, buuut… I think I may have found an alternative." Tressa said.

"Ugh...so boring." Zexi said stepping out. "It's boring to depend on others like us."

"Sorry, I was just impressed by how she snuck up on me." Tressa said. "It really sparked up my curiosity of what's out there beyond Rippletide, y'know?"

"Shut up! You're trying to do things a boring way. The wine and sleepweed sounded fun." Zexi said.

"Zexi, you should really calm down. Besides, her plan will work just fine." Tulip said.

"Sigh. Sorry...he can get like this." Harumi said.

"Well...that's fine. We can do it..his or rather my way." Tressa said. "I'm sorry about all that…. Zexi, was it? I didn't mean to sound boring."

"Huh? Oh it's fine now." Zexi said.

"He just forgave it just like that?!" Tressa said in shock.

"Yeah… that's sorta how we react most of the time." Leonis said.

Tressa shook off the shock and proceeded to Purchase sleepweed from a shipmate on the captain's crew. She then loaded it up into a barrel of wine, and then sealed it.

"There we go. Now all we need is to deliver this bad boy to the Caves of Maiya." Tressa said.

It didn't take long before the barrel was delivered to the cave as the pirates took it inside and each drank their fill before sleeping peacefully.

"Poor fools. They have no idea of what they shall lose." Dark said.

"You were right, this was WAY more fun." Tressa said. "Quick, everybody grab the loot you can."

"Not so fast, Lassie!" Mikk said as he was wide awake, Makk following soon after.

"Uh oh… We're busted." Harumi said.

"Thought you could steal from us, eh? And y'thought you could get away with it?" Makk asked.

"No chance. All of this is ours, since we took it. Ye got no reason to take it back now." Mikk said.

"Well it was fun while it lasted. But now we must fight." Leonis said. "Summon the Seafarer! Toon Link!" he said as he summoned a small cartoonish version of Link.

"Let's get down to business!" Tressa said. "Check this out! Trade Winds!"

Surprisingly, Tressa was able to cast a wind spell and damage Mikk and Makk.

"Not bad. Now let's see how they handle my summon!" Leonis said as Toon Link ran at the pirates, countering their swords quickly before disarming them.

"Argh...these mateys are tough. But...we won't fall to their likes." Mikk said as they pulled out hidden daggers.

"I suggest the two of you pirates surrender." A voice said as they saw the merchant ship captain approach with a spear in hand.

"Begone, we're the strong ones here and…" Makk said as the captain went and easily defeated their waking minions.

"Those who pick on the weak have no right to speak of how the world works." The captain said.

"That stance… I've heard rumors about it. Are you Captain Leon?" Harumi asked.

"Wait...that's him? The blue spear. Its gotta be. Captain Leon Bastrallel?!" Mikk said.

"Who?" Zexi asked.

"He's an infamous pirate." Abby said.

"Not a pirate anymore. I've given that life up for the simple life of being a merchant." Leon said.

"Wow…. you must've had so many adventures." Tressa said.

"I did indeed. But I must say, you and your friends handled those pirates quite well." Leon said. "Tell me, would any of you be interested in seeing the goods on my ship?"

"Really, are you sure?" Tressa asked.

"Sure...and as a token of friendship...I will allow you to claim one thing that catches your fancy." Leon said.

"Wow… thank you, Leon." Tressa said.

Later, on Leon's ship…

"There is something for all of you. Just take your time. Whatever you need, I may just have it." Leon said.

"Hmm...Ah...this." Tressa said picking up an old journal.

"Are you certain you want that?" Leon asked.

"Of course I do! It's a diary, isn't it? I wanna write in it myself. Half the pages are empty. I wanna go out and see the world, and follow in the footsteps of a nameless traveller." Tressa said.

"Then I am not one to stop thee. If you want it, it is yours." Leon said.

"Oh, thank you, Leon!" Tressa smiled.

It wasn't long after that the Neo Dimensional Heroes were departing from Rippletide as Tressa was following after them.

"So...where should we explore next?" Psychic asked.

"I suggest we head to Quarrycrest, I hear we might be able to decipher the writings on those ruins there." Sam said.

"Quarrycrest it is." Zexi said.

"Then let's head out. You don't mind, right Tressa?" Harumi asked. "What better way to be a mobile merchant than by travelling?"

"Wait, you guys are coming with me?" Tressa asked. "I don't mind at all, but… why me? I'm just a merchant."

"Who desires to see the world. Our leader's got his own ambitions, don't you know." Leonis said

"Really? What do you want to do, Zexi?" Tressa asked.

"There are some people that I want to surpass. I'm not planning to stop until I do." Zexi said. "I'm gonna do all I can...to take their mantle when my time begins."

"In that case, we've got something in common! Let's explore all of Osterra and fill this notebook together!" Tressa smiled. "So long Rippletide!"

Tressa's journey with the Neo Dimensional Heroes has only just begun. Following in the footsteps of a Nameless Traveler, they will journey far beyond the horizon of the coastlands.

What awaits them is up to where their path leads on their quest for adventure….