Rantaro sat against the damp, stone wall, his wrists bound with a rope. Despite his grim predicament, his gaze remained calm. He had committed no crime, his only mistake had been wandering into the wrong place at the wrong time. Korekiyo's elder sister had thrown him into the dungeon on false charges of thievery, her only intent being to ensure no one could take her beloved brother's attention away from her. Ironically, her actions only fueled Korekiyo's curiosity, prompting him to defy her orders and sneak down to the dungeon to hear Rantaro’s stories about the world beyond the territory ruled by his sister.

“If you enjoy my stories about different cultures so much, why haven’t you gone on a trip yourself?” Rantaro asked, his tone tinged with curiosity.

Korekiyo hesitated, his golden eyes darting away. He let out an awkward chuckle. It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried to leave, but rather that his sister had refused him every time. After a while, Korekiyo stopped trying and accepted that staying with his sister was the right decision because she only had the best in mind for him, or so Korekiyo believed.