The sea.
The boundless blue sea stretched to the edge of sight, merging with the equally blue sky at the horizon.
The sunlight was bright without being harsh, spilling warmly over the sea and setting off diamond-like glimmers.
The fine white sand stretched beneath their feet like the finest silk.
A few coconut palms swayed gently in the breeze, casting mottled patches of cool shade.
Waves lapped gently against the shore with a rhythmic rush, bringing a cool sea breeze.
This place seemed like a corner of some tropical holiday paradise, peaceful, beautiful, and cut off from the world.
But that was only the surface.
This was a "domain"-Dagon's domain.
Within the domain, the sunlight, the beach, the sea-everything was too beautiful to be real.
But with careful perception, one could sense the loneliness and sorrow permeating that beautiful facade.
A simple wooden lounge chair stood in the middle of the beach.
A figure sat on it.
It was a humanoid creature, about two meters tall, its entire body covered in slick red skin like that of a boiled octopus.
Its head resembled a squid's, with two eyes like black holes and a circular mouth beneath its head filled with rows of fine, sharp teeth.
Its torso and limbs were slender, with structures like octopus suckers at its joints and webbing between its fingers and toes.
The Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Dagon.
At that moment, it merely sat quietly on the lounge chair, its red body curled slightly inward, its eyes fixed on the calm sea ahead, giving off a dispirited air.
Someone stood beside it.
He wore a simple, dark monk's robe, with a conspicuous line of stitches across his forehead and a smile that seemed capable of embracing everything.
Kenjaku.
"It's all right," Kenjaku said softly, his voice