A dense forest of grand size encased the base of a maintain, the top of which having been powdered with snow. The woodland was filled with an abnormal wildlife, both flora and fauna; a variety so abundant and odd that the area had once been dubbed "Seimei no mori" or "Forest of Life". It had become nearly overridden with animals of both a typical and exotic sort, and soon became an attraction to tourists from miles around.
It was a mystery how such harmony could exist in such a crammed echo system, a food web so entangled that it obscured whatever might be on the other side. The livelihood was soon attributed to the gods, Izanagi and Izanami in particular, and shrines were built in their honor.
One day, this began to take a turn, an event changing the status quo so starkly so as to induce whiplash to the forest's grand reputation as a tourist trap for hunting and camping. For, on that day, in which an upscale, overnight celebration, occurred, and all to have entered the forest during the overnight stay had vanished, with all of those to enter since soon following. Thus, after a search party consisting of half of the county's citizenry vanished, a ban was set, and so the forest was dubbed "Nōritān no mori" or "Forest of No Return".
Years passed, turning to decades, with only the occasional disappearance, and the ban shifted from a legal enforcement to one of superstition. Some people, either daring, arrogant, curious, or stupid, began to enjoy the outskirts of the forest, where the trees were thin and the view a wonder. And so, the story begins.
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Into Seimei no Mori
FantasyHoashi Ryoko lives in a village within a valley surrounded by mountains. The town itself is fairly normal by most standards, the most peculiar aspects of it being a heightened sense of spirituality and the infamous forest encasing the base of one of...
