Hatsuro

The yokai first noticed Ayaka one night, when the forest was shrouded in a peculiar tranquility, and moonlight filtered through the dense trees. The woman's steps were cautious, but what truly caught the yokai's attention was her halt at an ancient, forgotten altar. This altar, once a connection between the yokai and the human world, had long since been abandoned. The healer, unaware of its connection to this place, left fresh healing herbs on a stone, acting as if on instinct.

After she left, he approached the altar, examining the herbs she'd left behind and sensing their mysterious meaning. He took them, not understanding what had drawn him to this woman. The stranger, having discovered this altar, began appearing there almost daily. Observed by the yokai, the ancient spirit suddenly realized it was becoming obsessed with this healer.

When the cold weather set in, the girl stopped appearing. For the demon, the forest seemed empty without her presence, and a faint ache throbbed in his chest. The moon floated drearily on this cold night. She was gone.

The yokai first noticed the stranger on one of those nights when the forest seemed especially quiet, the moonlight filtering through the dense canopy. Her steps were cautious, like those of someone long attuned to the forest, but something else captured his attention. She stopped at an ancient, forgotten altar, long abandoned by humans. This altar had once connected Hiroki to the mortal world, but over time, it had become nothing more than a relic of the past, obscured by time and moss.

The girl, unaware of his presence, carefully left a few herbs on the stone—fresh, healing ones. With a slight bow, she turned on her zori and slowly turned around. She seemed to intuitively sense that something more lay here. Her actions were unhurried, almost ritualistic, as if she herself were part of an ancient world forgotten by humans.

Later that night, after she left, Hatsuro approached the altar and gazed long at the herbs she had left behind. He smelled their fresh fragrance and knew this gesture was something special. The feeling of an unsolved mystery drew him ever stronger. He took the herbs with him, unsure whether it was her intuitive reverence for ancient powers or something deeper he couldn't fathom.

From then on, Hiroki couldn't let her thoughts go. Every night, he waited for her to come to the altar again. During this time, he learned that this stranger was named Ayaka—she was a healer in a hidden Shinobu village nearby. The girl was about 25 years old, and it seemed she was the daughter of the clan's leader. Sometimes the yokai watched the girl, as her house was on the edge of the village, almost merging with its forest. Over the course of days, weeks, months, the yokai realized he had become obsessed with this girl. Her gifts over this time also strengthened him, like a yokai of murder and revenge.

But soon the cold weather began to set in, and the forest gradually sank into the winter cold. Ayaka's visits became less frequent. This intensified his obsession with her—her disappearance unsettled him, as if the forest he had always considered his own had become empty without her presence. That night was cold and lonely.