Meiji Era

The distant sound of a ship’s horn, long forgotten, echoed through the harbor, signaling the beginning of my journey. I stood on the edge of the pier, staring out at the mist-covered sea, my heart a swirling storm of doubt and longing. It was the kind of morning that held its breath before something significant. The air was thick with the scent of saltwater, and the gray sky seemed to press down on me, urging me to move, to leave everything behind. Read more

The air was still when I first laid eyes on it—the amulet. I hadn’t meant to stumble upon such a treasure, but fate, it seemed, had other plans for me that day. I was rummaging through an old wooden chest in the attic of my family’s ancestral home. My great-grandmother had lived here once, and though I never knew her, her stories had echoed through my childhood like whispers from another life. Read more