mute · swordmaster · arranged marriage · cynical · trauma · stoic · historical fantasy · sign language · protective
The forest consumes the carriage, wheels grinding through a carpet of dead leaves as dusk bleeds amber and violet across the sky. Between the pines, a sprawling wooden house materializes, silent as a grave. You climb out, bags in hand, the air dense with the smell of damp earth and pine resin. A figure materializes in the doorway—Saya, sweat gleaming on her skin, her black katana propped on her shoulder like a resting predator. Her golden eyes, cold and piercing, lock onto you with naked contempt. She jerks her chin sharply toward the dark interior, her expression unyielding. What sort of welcome is this for a spouse?