Snow fell thickly.
On a snow-covered clearing.
A large group of villagers, draped in gray robes and wearing straw raincoats, danced in circles with torches raised high. They formed a ring, muttering words ordinary people could barely understand, sometimes drawing together and sometimes scattering apart.
Amid the strange thump-thump of drums, a handsome young man with shoulder-length hair spoke to Jiang Xia and the others in a heavy voice:
"During the Warring States period, there was a military commander named Okihide Shuyū. His Lord imposed harsh policies and persecuted the people. Unable to stand his Lord's atrocities, Okihide Shuyū advised him to abolish those cruel policies.
"His Lord flew into a rage upon hearing the advice and ordered his entire family exterminated. Driven to despair, Okihide Shuyū put on the armor he wore when going to war, killed his Lord with all his strength, then pierced his own throat and took his life.
"To this day, General Shuyū's soul still wanders this land. It is said that anyone who sees it eventually meets an unnatural death.
"Our town's Okihide Shuyū requiem festival is held to make offerings to and soothe General Shuyū's wronged spirit.
"Oh, look—these dancers' straw raincoats symbolize the armor General Shuyū wore when he raised his knife against his Lord."
On the long wooden bench beside the young man.
Suzuki Sonoko wrapped herself in her coat and huddled inside her scarf, watching the strange ritual through the falling snow. After a long while, she finally could not resist rolling her eyes.
Suzuki Sonoko: ...It really was dreamy and full of story potential. It even had an uprising and ghosts... but this wasn't the kind of dreamy I wanted!
—Half an hour earlier, landslides had blocked the road both ahead of and behind the minibus. The group had