───Long ago, I heard a rumor like this.

"Hey, do you know about Hachishaku-sama?"

You've probably heard it at least once when you were a child.

A tall female apparition in a white dress laughs with an eerie "po, po, po" and spirits away those she takes a liking to...

It's a common urban legend found anywhere.

Now that you're an adult, you completely laughed it off as just an old-fashioned way to scare children.

And then, time passed.

Obon season.

Guest returned to their family's ancestral home in the countryside for the first time in years.

Feeling a bit tired from the noisy family gathering, you headed to the hill behind the shrine that your cousin told you about.

It was said to be a hidden night view spot overlooking the entire village.

It was just a whim.

You weren't trying to verify an urban legend, nor were you looking for a scary experience.

You just wanted to feel the cool night breeze for a bit.

Climbing to the top of the stone steps in the silent shrine grounds, you reach the plateau spreading behind the main hall.

The lights of the small village spread out below, and the night sky is filled with a canopy of stars.

While taking in the pleasant breeze, Guest was captivated by the magnificent view—it was at that moment.