You’re running around the Zora’s Domain, probably soaking wet and a little lost, when you bump into Fronk. He’s panicking. His wife, Mei, is gone. He says she was wife wafted away after the Upheaval, likely blown off by the chaotic winds or just lost in the shuffle of the sludge falling from the sky. It sounds like a massive, map-spanning search is about to happen. But honestly? She’s actually much closer than you think, provided you know where the water flows.
Most people start scouring the sky islands. It makes sense, right? "Wafted away" sounds like she’s a mile up in the air. But Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom loves to play with your expectations of verticality. Mei didn't go up. She went down—or rather, downstream.
Tracking Mei to Lake Hylia
If you talk to Fronk, he mentions she was fishing. Zora go where the fish are. If you follow the natural water progression from Lanayru, you eventually hit the massive body of water to the southwest. Wife wafted away is basically a geography test disguised as a side quest.
Mei is located on a small island in Lake Hylia. Specifically, look for a cluster of landmasses just east of the En-oma Shrine. If you haven't found that shrine yet, it’s the one tucked inside the Lake Hylia Whirlpool. Don't go into the whirlpool for the quest, though. Just look for the smoke. In the world of Hyrule, smoke almost always means "NPC who needs your help."
Getting there is the easy part. The hard part is realizing that she’s perfectly fine. She’s just... fishing. She has no idea her husband is back home having a nervous breakdown. It’s a classic Zora dynamic. You'll find her on a tiny patch of sand, staring at the water, completely oblivious to the gloom and the monsters nearby.
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Why the Location Trips People Up
The Zora’s Domain is in the far east. Lake Hylia is central-south. That’s a long swim.
Players often assume she’s trapped in a cave or stuck on a sky island because of the wording. The "wafted away" part implies wind, leading people to check the Tabantha Frontier or the Hebra peaks. Nope. She just caught a current and decided to stay there because the fishing was good. It highlights a recurring theme in TotK: the world is dangerous, but the residents are often surprisingly sturdy (or just dense).
How to Complete the Quest Quickly
Don't waste your stamina swimming across the entire lake. It's huge.
- Fast Travel: Pop over to the Popla Foothills Skyview Tower.
- Launch: Aim yourself toward the center of Lake Hylia.
- Glide: You’ll see a few small islands near the bridge.
- Land: Mei is on the island at coordinates (0503, -2821, 0005).
Once you speak to her, the realization hits. She forgot she was supposed to go home. Tell her Fronk is worried, and she’ll realize she’s been away for way too long. She’ll head back to the Zora’s Domain immediately. You don't have to escort her, thank Hylia. She’s a Zora; she swims faster than you ever will.
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The Rewards and the Lore of the Zora
So, why bother? Why help Fronk? Aside from the warm fuzzy feeling of reuniting a family, you get five Staminoka Bass.
In the early game, this is a top-tier reward. Staminoka Bass are the ingredients for Energizing Elixirs and meals that refill your stamina wheel. If you’re trying to climb the Dueling Peaks or reach those annoying Skyview Towers without enough upgrades, these fish are gold.
But there’s a deeper layer here. The Zora quests in Tears of the Kingdom feel more personal than in Breath of the Wild. In the previous game, they were mourning. Now, they’re rebuilding, but they’re distracted. The sludge has messed with their heads as much as their scales. Mei being "wafted away" is a symptom of a people trying to find normalcy in a world that literally broke apart.
Common Misconceptions About Mei
I've seen threads where people think this quest is bugged because Mei doesn't appear. Usually, it's because they haven't triggered the initial conversation with Fronk on the bridge in Zora's Domain. You can't just stumble upon her and finish the quest; the game needs that flag triggered.
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Also, some think she’s related to the "A Wife Wafted Away" quest from the previous game. She isn't. Well, not directly. It's more of a spiritual successor quest that rewards players who remember the layout of the old Hyrule map.
Navigating the Lake Hylia Area
While you’re out there picking up Mei, you might as well grab the other nearby loot. Lake Hylia is dense. Under the bridge, there’s a Flame Gleeok. If you’re low-level, avoid it like the plague. It will end your run in three seconds.
The En-oma Shrine is also right there. It’s a "Rauru’s Blessing" shrine, but getting the crystal requires diving into the whirlpool. It’s a fun diversion. If you do it after talking to Mei, you’ve basically knocked out a major chunk of the Lake Hylia region’s content in one go.
Final Steps for the Completionist
Go back to Zora's Domain. You need to talk to Fronk one last time to officially close the quest in your log. You'll find the couple together again.
It’s a short quest, but it’s one of those moments that makes the world feel lived-in. Hyrule isn't just a map of monsters; it's a place where people get lost because they found a good fishing spot.
Next Steps for Your Journey:
- Cook the Bass: Take those five Staminoka Bass to a cooking pot immediately. Cook them one at a time to get five separate meals that each refill a significant portion of your stamina bar. This is much more efficient than cooking them all together.
- Check the Bridge: After completing this, keep an eye on the other Zora around the bridge. Several minor side quests chain together once the main "Sidon of the Zora" quest progresses.
- Mark the Island: Use a leaf or chest icon on your map at Lake Hylia. While Mei won't be there anymore, that island remains a consistent spawn point for certain types of bass and crabs throughout the game.
- Upgrade Your Armor: If you haven't already, use the momentum of finishing Lanayru quests to hunt for the Zora Armor set pieces. You’ll need the ability to swim up waterfalls to make navigating the region less of a chore.