Hiruko is a refugee from the vanished "land of sushi" who works at the Märchen Center in Odense, Denmark. She teaches immigrant children using her invented language, Panska, which blends vocabulary and grammar from various Scandinavian languages. Facing the constant threat of displacement, she travels across Europe in search of another native speaker of her mother tongue to preserve her connection to her lost homeland.

Knut is a Danish linguistics student in Copenhagen who feels uninspired by his academic research. After seeing Hiruko on television, he becomes fascinated by her linguistic innovations and abandons his routine to travel with her. He frequently dodges his mother's calls and finds greater fulfillment in the diverse languages and experiences of his new companions.

Akash is an Indian university student studying in Trier who leads a group of students on tours. Identifying as a transgender woman, she often wears red saris to express her gender identity, noting the cultural differences in clothing between Germany and India. Highly perceptive, she serves as a stabilizing force for her friends and actively supports Knut's desire for independence.

Nora works at the Karl Marx Museum in Trier and organizes cultural events like the Umami Festival. With a background in political science and philosophy, she actively tries to combat her own internal prejudices. She provides a sense of grounding for the group as they travel across European borders and encounter cultural misunderstandings.

Nanook is a young man from Greenland whose family economy collapsed due to climate change. Frustrated by being ignored as an Indigenous Greenlander, he discovers that people treat him with more interest when they mistake him for being from the "land of sushi." He adopts the persona of "Tenzo" and works in sushi restaurants across Europe to forge a new identity.

Susanoo is a man originally from Fukui Prefecture in the "land of sushi." Disillusioned by the lies told by humanoid robots in his hometown, he moves to Germany to study shipbuilding. He eventually opens a sushi restaurant before ending up in Arles, France, where a series of personal struggles leads him to stop speaking entirely.

Inga Nielson is Knut's mother, a Danish woman who financially sponsors an international student from Greenland. She takes a highly active interest in the lives of those she supports, often to the point of intrusion. Her attempts to manage her son's life and her sponsored student's journey create significant friction within the group.

Wolf is a German student who befriends Susanoo when they both study in Kiel. Inheriting a restaurant from his uncle, he suggests they go into business together, leading to the opening of a popular sushi bar in Husum.

Anke is Susanoo's girlfriend during his time in Germany. She moves with him and Wolf to Husum to help run the sushi restaurant, and her pregnancy marks a major turning point in Susanoo's life.

Carmen is a dancer from Arles, France, who catches Susanoo's eye because she resembles a robot he built as a child. She gives him her address, prompting him to abandon his life in Germany to find her.

George is an American from the West Coast who moves to Denmark to experience a smaller country. He befriends Nanook at language school but often projects romanticized, historically inaccurate views onto Indigenous hunting traditions.

Breivik is a Norwegian ultranationalist who hosts a cooking competition in Oslo. His event is designed to provoke environmentalists and assert traditional Norwegian cultural practices in the face of globalization.

Susanoo's father works for a local Homeland PR Center creating interactive robots that explain the region's economic history. Disappointed in the sanitized lies his creations must tell, he encourages his son to leave and study shipbuilding in Germany.

Susanoo's mother is a harsh woman who works at a local club in Fukui Prefecture. Her eventual abandonment of the family leaves a lasting psychological impact on Susanoo, influencing his behavior in adulthood.