I woke up in unfamiliar surroundings with the sunlight streaming across my face. My mind was still groggy, struggling to figure out where I was, until memories from yesterday came rushing back.

I'm in Japan, but not modern-day Japan. Maybe Feudal Japan or the Edo period. Nonetheless, I've slept in an obscure house full of unknown monsters.

Yesterday, I came to this world not knowing how or why, and today, I opened my eyes to a world that is forever changed. Even the shape of the sunlight looks wrong. It's somehow dimmer, as if my filters have shifted and left me with broken lenses.

Anxiety...confusion... It all weighs so heavily in my chest, making it hard to catch my breath. Like seriously, why is it so hard to breathe?

I tried reaching somewhere, my hand holding on to a fur in my chest. Fur?

Hold on. I don't think it's only anxiety and confusion that weighs in my chest.

"Ahh— A cat? Why is it so huge?"

I jolted upright, and the cat slid down into my lap. It let out a low growl before springing off the bed and slipping out through the open window.

Was that cat from this place? Oh god, I really need to find ways to get home. This is a weird world. But how did I fall asleep last night?

With all the thinking and strange things that happened, I thought I'd be up until morning. But whatever that incense they put in my room helps calm the nerves.

"But now what?"

After lying there for what felt like forever, I finally forced myself to get up. I kicked off the comforter, folded away the futon, and made my way to the dining room.

The house is four times bigger than my grandmother's house. The living room itself is equal to the size of my grandmother's whole house. Yet, the only ones living here - at least the one I know - were a young woman with a fox tail and the old woman with an eye patch.

"Haruna-hime-sama," the fox-tailed woman bowed. "We've prepared a meal for you. Please, enjoy." She kept her head down, like waiting for an order.

"Arigatō," I responded. "Please lift your head. You don't need to bow to me." She did lift her head, but her fidgeting hand and her eyes still reflected uncertainty. I let it be for now and made my way to the table where a mouth-watering breakfast awaited. It's a simple dish, yet the smell of steamed rice, grilled fish, and miso soup wafts into the room, making my stomach grumble with just the sight.

"Itadakimasu."

After shamelessly devouring everything, the same woman led me to the living room. Seated in the middle of the large space was the old woman with eyes patched who awaited my arrival.

I guess this is the time to talk and gather information about this place.

"I hope you had a nice sleep, Haruna-hime-sama." Like the fox-tailed woman, she bowed and waited until I permitted her to lift her head. She motioned me to where the zabuton was, and so I followed. The room's too big for the two of us, but the books and scriptures piled around made the room less empty. "You're welcome to read all these books and scriptures, Haruna-sama. We have a few more in the other room, but these will help you understand our world."

"What exactly is this world?" I started.

"This world is called Ayakashima," she started. "It is a world where creatures like us exist. According to other people summoned from your world, you may have known us as youkai. But in this world, creatures like us living in the area where the great barrier was, we're more known as Sato-no-mono."

"Like village being?"

She smiled. "For years, creatures like us have lived in peace. But every few hundred years, whenever the barrier weakens. Evil spirits known as Onryu entered our land, causing destruction and chaos to humans and our kind."

She showed me a map of the country. She points out the area where the barrier's located, the areas within its border, and our current location. She mentioned a few more things about the land, but I still don't see why I am here.

"So what exactly am I here for?" I cut off. "If the problem lies within your kind, and the humans of this world so why do you need another human like me to come to this land?"

She quiets down for a while, thinking of how she'll say the words in a way I would understand. It's not that I haven't understood anything. It was just half the things she said would passed from one ear to another.

"You see, there was a legend, a few thousand years ago, about a man who united all creatures of the land. It's mentioned that he was from a different world. He was a human blessed by the gods with extraordinary power. He's the one who put up the barrier. He's the one who saved us from Onryu and other evil that cause chaos. But his existence wasn't permanent. He returned to his homeland, and we don't know what happened to him after. A thousand years later, the barrier weakened, and Onryu started to roam once more. As a result, we asked for the gods' blessings again, and we managed to summon another human. Like the first one, he defeated evil and restored the barrier. Things went well for a while. Our kind seeks the gods' guidance whenever the barrier weakens. As a result, we repeat the process over and over to call for our saviour. Until a few thousand years ago..."

This time, she handed me a small scroll. It's an image of a woman - one that's oddly familiar. I've seen it before, but I couldn't remember when or where. Was it in the library? In the illustration, there were people. One that looked like an emperor, a few young men from different origins, an old woman, and a woodcutter who was crying while looking at a woman ascending to the sky - no - the moon. Isn't this...

"Kaguya-hime." The old woman took the words out of my mouth. "She's one of the few beings summoned in this land. But unlike the others, she came here not to save the land nor fortify the barrier. It was for a different purpose."

"And what would that be?" If I remember correctly, there were different versions of the story. A few said she had been sent to Earth as a punishment for her crime, while others believed it was to keep her safe from celestial war. But that's a record from the human world. I don't know if it's the same for them or if there's another version of the story.

"Sadly, there's no record in our village." I snorted at her response. Of Course, there's the cliffhanger. Whether it's a book or real life, there's always a mystery looming around. "But if you're interested, you might find answers in the emperor's palace," she added.

"Emperor's palace?" I repeated.

She nodded and showed me the map of where the emperor resides. "The emperor lived in the capital," she points out on the map. "It's a few mountains from where we are."

Too far.

Considering how this world looks pre-modern, wheeled transportation would either be non-existent or limited. More likely, I'll have to go by foot in most cases.

"I leave that for another time," I muttered, rolling the scroll back in place. "How did Kaguya-hime return to her world? Was she taken back by her family or something?"

"No. She died in this land."

The scroll slipped through my hand, bewildered by the revelation. Kaguya-hime didn't die in the story. It's written that she went back to the moon, where she belonged. Could the two be different beings? But the story's the same, except for the ending.

"How did she die?"

"The record says an evil spirit possessed Kaguya-hime when she went to the capital. Most of her companions got killed, but the princess took her own life to end the evil that possessed her. On her dying breath, she promised to watch over the land and return one day. And that's what most believe specially the humans."

"Thats..."

A chill crept up my spine as I stood there, the silence pressing too heavy. If that even did happen, does that mean the others experience it too?

"Here, why don't you read this?" The old woman gave me the account containing the names, dates, and times of every summoned being before I could even ask about the other, but for some reason my mind couldn't let go of the fact of a missing link. Like, there's a missing link that's not written or told to everyone.

Still, I've flipped the pages and read the records given to me, all while tthe old woman patiently waited and answer all my questions while sipping tea and pointing out a few things that might interest me.

It was fascinating to say the least

The account was meticulous with each story carefully laid out... except for Kaguya-hime's. Her tale stood apart from the others who had been summoned into this world. Even if it has a record on its own, it didn't feel real. In fact, it felt constructed, as if something essential had been deliberately left out.

Was I reading too much into it?

"Is the reason why you called me 'hime' because you thought I'm Kaguya-hime?"

There were a few women who had been summoned before me but they all appeared in different places, except Kaguya-hime who said to have emerged from the bamboo forest. And that forest lay not far from the giant cherry blossom tree where they first found me.

"You might not believe it. But your arrival, as well as your features, is almost identical to Kaguya-hime. I myself lived for a hundred years and although I was still young back then, I still remembered her. I'm sure a few of us, not only from this village but around the region still remember her, that's why it leads us to believe that you're not only summoned to this land. But also to tell us that Kaguya-hime has returned, in your presence as her reincarnation."

"That's ridiculous." I don't believe in reincarnation or life after death. When a person dies, they'll turn to ash, and that's it. "How could that even be possible? I assure you, I'm not Kaguya-hime. You should know more if she died here."

"We do, but I also believe." Her eyes fixated on mine with a determination that doesn't waver. "Kaguya-hime's grave's located by the sakura tree where we found you. Her ashes live in that very tree you saw when you first opened your eyes in our land."

It was then that a gust of wind carrying pink petals and leaves danced through the inner garden, slipped into the room, and brushed against my skin. It was normal. Or so I thought... because it was then that everything fell silent

I could see the old woman's lips moving, but I couldn't hear a single word she was saying.

I tried squinting, even shaking my head hard, blinking again and again just to focus on what's happening, but it didn't help.

My head's pounding, then flashes.

A flicker. A hand that wasn't mine. Laughter cut short.

What... is this?

My heart started beating faster and faster. Information and images flood my mind as if they're my memories. Then, a burning sensation ran through my veins like my blood's boiling in misery. It hurts. It's painful.

"Haruna-hime-sama!"

Sound. Repeatedly. There's urgency in her voice. I could hear her call. There are footsteps. Rushing. Running. I don't know what's happening. My head's pounding like a balloon about to burst.

Ugh! Make it stop!

Stop!

_

I couldn't move my body. Everything was pitch black. And yet, a melodious voice rang in my ears, soft and lilting, like a lullaby drifting through a field of blooming flowers.

"Child of wonder, I call thy name.

Hear my plea to achieve your aim

Seek the shields and take the mark

Follow the light, the guide in the dark.

Feel the air, dance with the flowers.

Gather thy gift and return the hour."

Who's there?

"Child of wonder, I call thy name.

Hear my plea to achieve your aim

Seek the shields and take the mark

Follow the light, the guide in the dark.

Feel the air, dance with the flowers.

Gather thy gift and return the hour."

"Who are you?" I kept asking, but no answer came. I tried to listen past them, to find someone beneath the repetition, but there was nothing else.

Just that voice.

And then, without warning, something else slipped in.

An image.

A book.

Its cover lingered at the edge of my thoughts, as if I had seen it before though I knew I hadn't.

The title surfaced last.

The Tale of Ten-Thousand.

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