Midwinter Town: A Novella
I
A lonely samurai stopped at the roadside shrine. The day was peaceful. It looked like any other day in the summer, hot and humid. The shrine was in a state of disrepair. Judging by its state, the samurai concluded, it was abandoned a long time ago. He waited for a while, looked the stone-carved idol of Kuraim, the god of life and death. Travelers, that were traveling long distanced, always prayed to him for a safe trip. He had many aspects and many names. In the northern parts he’s known as the Storm God, in the eastern parts as the Forest God. Some theologians count him among the twelve-first gods of Gehido, while others say that he is even older than them.