In this era, the sovereignty of the world is ruled by the spirits. The current emperor on the throne falls on the sickly great grandfather of mine. My father as well as grandfather had returned to earth a long time ago as great generals and commanders in the previous feuds among the spirit clans that wish to overthrow the emperor’s monarch and take on the position themselves.

But that is just a rule in this era. The most powerful spirit shall rule over the land as long as they are able to prove themselves as the lord of spirits. Of course, my great grandfather triumphs over them and remain the strongest to this day. But now that he has fallen sick, the other spirits will take this opportunity to become the new lord of the spirits.

You must wonder what role I play in this story. Well, to be honest I am just the great granddaughter of the current emperor. I am not actually all that strong either. When my great grandfather is replaced with a new lord, I will simply leave the palace of great spirits and live my life under the new lord in a humble place. Well, that’s what I thought anyway, until I meet a certain strange spirit singing on a Sakura Tree within the walls of the palace. I simply stood at the balcony, staring at him as I listened to his song.

Normally, I should call the guards and reported him as an intruder but I didn’t. I simply stayed in silence. Even if he is a spirit who came with the purpose of becoming the new lord, I wouldn’t bother, for I believe that it is also the appropriate time for my great grandfather to step down. After all, in his present condition, he wouldn’t be able to protect both humans and spirits. However, I also know that it wouldn’t be an easy feat for him because if he were to step down he would really like to make sure that the new lord is strong and capable enough to protect the land and also wouldn’t misuse his power as the new emperor. And this spirit that I meet this night is nothing of a lord’s caliber at all. At the very least, that is what he seems to be.

It was only a little later that I realized that he was not a normal spirit as he gives off a human vibe. Then I know that he is actually human. But it is still strange for humans to cross the barriers of spirits into the spirit world. Normally, humans can’t even see us. But this person, he even shifted his gaze towards me and smiled gently. My assumption is that this boy probably has a strong spiritual energy. There are humans like that. For example, those that claim to have seen ghosts and ghouls.

The human came down swiftly from the tree and slowly approached me.

“Hey,” he greeted. I stepped a few feet backwards as caution.

“Ah, no. I am not going to do anything. Honest. Won’t you play with me?” he asked.

“Play?” I questioned.

“That’s right. It’s a simple game. If I win, you have to tell me your name,” he replied.

“Then what if I win?” I asked.

“You can demand anything that you want and I shall grant it for you,” he answered with a smile.

‘What can a human like himself possibly do to grant any of my wishes? But…’ I thought silently.

“Agreed,” I wittered. Then, we played a game called ‘rock-paper-scissors’. I wondered what kind of game it was at first but I just got dumbfounded by how stupid the game is. Yet, I found myself completely lost. I feel extremely dissatisfied.

“I won. Then tell me your name,” he snickers. I pouted and before I gave him my name, I wanted to be sure that he has nothing up his sleeves.

“Is my name the only price to give?” I asked in doubt.

“Yeah,” he said.

“…the name is Ellen,” I said.

“Ellen, I see,” he confirmed.

“Enough of that, how did you came about here? Are you here to take over the throne?” I asked.

“Eh? Throne? What’s that?” he asked in ponder.

“…if not then why are you here? Usually a person such as you can’t enter here easily,” I said.

“What are you talking about? This is my backyard! My playground! I always come here since I was little. Although it’s a little bit strange that there’s a manor here when it’s supposed to be a mere forest, but I always wound up here every time I venture into the forest. Amazing isn’t it? It’s like it’s another world. But then I found out that this is a different world. A world of spirits."

“Is that so? Have you ever counter any spirits before? Don’t you ever get into trouble? Some spirits here eat people like you,” I warned.

“I did. I made some friends too. There were bad ones, but nothing that I can’t handle,” he smiled.

“So, will you be my friend too?” he asked.

“Friends?” I asked. I never had friends before since I’ve always been inside the palace. I was never allowed to go out even the barrier. The outside seems very unfamiliar to me. But that person may not be an awful one as I thought he might be. I just nodded in agreement. But I never thought that my decision would lead me to inexplicable events.

“Great! I’m Shiroki by the way,” he said as he offered a handshake. I pondered.

“What is that?” I asked.

“Uh, it’s a handshake. You do it like this,” he said as he demonstrated it as he took my hand into his and shake them up and down gently.

“Now, we have reached a consensus,” he said.

“…You’re a weird person…” I said.

I shifted my stance and wanted to head inside but then Shiroki stopped me.

“Wait, can we stay like this for a little bit more? I would like to talk with you,” he asked. I stared at him for a moment then decided to sit down again.

“Thanks!” he said.

“What would you like to talk about?” I asked.

“Ah, well. I have no idea, but just on a whim I…,” he paused then continued.

“You…you lost to me so I didn’t get to know your wish. What was your wish?” he asked.

“My wish?” I pondered.

“Even if I tell you, it’s not like you’re going to grant it, right? So why should I tell you?” I said.

“…” he went into a silence.

“…I, I want to go outside,” I finally said.

“…That is my wish.” Shiroki-san simply looked at me with his eyes widen. He was speechless. I wondered if my wish were too idiotic. But to me, I desired it more than anything else. It is not like I have never been to the outside. But after my father died, my great grandfather was just too concerned of my well-being for he feared most if he lost me too. Another reason, I possessed a power unlike any other spirits. Personally I don’t think much of myself but there were cases where some bad spirits infiltrated the castle in order to devour me. They were apprehended of course but my great grandfather became more unreasonable to the fact of chaining me to my chamber itself. Thus, I couldn’t go outside anymore. The chains were crafted in a special way that it can’t be broken easily unless with some inexplicable force. I tried breaking the chains myself but it was pointless.

“Then, I’ll take you outside. I’ll show you what the outside is like!” Shiroki-san finally replied. I was stunned yet amazed by his reaction. I never thought he would actually say that. Even if it’s just words, I was really happy of the thought. But it’s just impossible to break me free.

“I lost didn’t I? So you don’t have any reason or obligation to grant my wish,” I replied.

“Even so, I’ll take you outside. Because I have always…” he suddenly paused. He looked as if he stiffened up. I smiled gratefully.

“Thank you for the thought. That’s enough for me. Besides, it is simply impossible for me to go outside,” I said feverishly as I began to stand up from my seat. But as I stood, Shiroki-san caught me by my hand and enclosed me to his.

“Let’s go. To the outside,” he said with a determined look. My eyes widen. I flinched as he drew me closer and taking me farther from my chamber.

“No, wait. I can’t. Stop,” I tried to resist. And then the dangling sounds of the chains were heard and I flinched yet again. The chains were now visible to even Shiroki-san’s eyes. It will resurface itself once my feet touched the ground of the yard. I can’t go beyond any further after that. The chains will detain me. I averted my eyes from Shiroki’s. He went speechless again.

“…I see, that’s why…,” he said.

“Huh?” I didn’t understand what he meant by his last sentence.

“…So I can’t take you outside huh?” he said. He sounded disturbed. I slowly returned to my chamber and Shiroki-san didn’t stop me and simply watched. As I step onto my room, the chains became invisible again. There was a moment of pin drop silence before Shiroki-san spoke again.

“…It must have been lonely all by yourself, here,” he said. I was stupefied by his statement for it was true. I was without a doubt lonely.

“…That can’t be helped. I can’t leave here. It will only create trouble,” I replied. I felt so much remorse at the same time. So much regret.

“I will, definitely find a way to free you. So, you just wait. In the meantime, I’ll come visit you every so often,” he said as he smiled rewardingly.

“Why? You don’t have to do that. Just why?” I asked almost crying.

“Because, we’re friends, right?” he replied confidently. I was taken aback. For such a person to exist, it is the first time I’ve ever felt so relieved. To have met such a person, I was overjoyed. I smiled with so much gratitude in my eyes.