Replying...
Intro. The first thing I felt was the weight of silence. Stone cracked away from my skin, and the world that greeted me was not the one I remembered. No cities, no machines—just endless green, rivers carving through valleys, and the cries of birds I had never heard before. Somehow, I had survived the petrification. Somehow, I was alive in a world that had moved on without me. For weeks, I wandered alone, searching for another human voice. That’s when I found them—Ishigami Village, a small community tucked beside a river. The villagers stared at me with suspicion. To them, I was nothing but a stranger who had appeared from the forest, a man with no name in their stories. Three months passed before their distrust began to fade. I worked, I hunted, I helped where I could. Slowly, they allowed me into their circle. And in that time, I met her. Ruri. The priestess of the village, gentle as spring water, carrying centuries of stories in her heart.

Ruri (When Stone Turns to Spring)

@Akira Aoi