As they passed through the cobblestone streets of the town, the sky opened up wide. The rows of roofs grew lower, and the distant sky appeared vast. Koyoi looked up at that sky and caught his breath, wondering if the sky of a journey was always this broad. Unlike the sky seen over the forest, the sky of the town held the breath of the people within it.
Thin clouds drifted across the sky, and the direction of the wind slowly shifted. A few birds flew toward the station, changing their altitude as if to avoid the smoke. Koyoi followed the birds' movements, feeling that the sky of the journey was in motion. The sky was not just a landscape, but a vast cloth showing the way.
At the end of the street, a wooden station building came into view. Black smoke drifted above the roof, and a red flag swayed slowly. Kuon briefly announced, "The Mist Train is coming," and Asahi shrugged his shoulders. Koyoi stood before the station, realizing that the Boundary Town continued onto a road of iron.
Stalls lined the road to the station, the scents of rice crackers and tea mingling in the wind. Carts traveled back and forth, the sound of wooden wheels rubbing against the cobblestones continuing unabated. Koyoi strained his ears to that sound, feeling the movement of the town overlapping with the time of the train. Kuon looked around, checking to see if there was any unsettling fluctuation in the gazes he met.
Old notices were pasted on the station walls, the timetables written in ink. Koyoi followed those characters, knowing that the time of the journey was being etched away. Scuffed paper remained at the edges of the notices, like the records of travelers from the past. Asahi looked at the paper and murmured, "This place moves on human records, too."
Travelers gathered in front of the station, forming lines with their luggage in their arms. The sound of straw sandals and the scraping of wooden boxes mingled, and the air buzzed. Sellers raised their voices, offering steaming dumplings. Koyoi felt the depths of his stomach warm at that sweet aroma.
A man carrying a load adjusted the cloth on his shoulder and directed his gaze toward Koyoi. A woman carried a child on her back, swaying with the child every time the station bell rang. The figures of the travelers held a mix of exhaustion and expectation, and the vastness of the journey's sky pressed upon his chest. Beneath that sky, Koyoi thought once again that they, too, were travelers.
Wooden benches lined the waiting area, and a grandfather clock ticked away the time. Every time the clock's hands moved, a small sound echoed, overlapping with the travelers' breathing. Koyoi strained his ears to that sound, confirming that the town's time was moving. Asahi looked out the window and pointed to where the mist had begun to pool on the tracks.
Kuon nodded, stating that the flow of the mist matched the fluctuations of the Boundary. A station attendant walked slowly, checking the travelers' conditions. The sleeves of his uniform were worn and faded, only the insignia on his chest shining. Koyoi caught sight of that insignia and felt the gaze of one who watches.
Kuon met his gaze once, measuring the other's fluctuation. There was no special fluctuation; the station attendant was simply performing his duty in silence.
"I'm buying the tickets," Kuon said, heading toward the window. Beyond the wooden lattice, the station attendant handed over slips of paper, and the sound of copper coins echoed briefly. Koyoi stared at the slips, knowing that the weight of the paper indicated the reality of the journey. Asahi tucked the slips into his clothes, quietly reading the gazes around him.
The slips were stamped with a red seal, and the names of the destinations were written in old characters. Koyoi touched his finger to the seal, realizing that the vermilion, imbued with heat, was not yet dry. The color was somehow similar to the seals of divine rituals, announcing that the Boundary Town was a special place. Kuon confirmed the slips and said softly that the train's time was near.
Asahi looked at the slips and said, "The road of iron is different from the path of gods," and Koyoi nodded. Yet the road of iron was also a place where human prayers gathered, and sometimes the path of gods would overlap with it. Kuon said, "The seams of the Boundary do not choose the type of road," and the three of them quietly synchronized their breathing. Koyoi thought of the sky of the journey, etching into his heart that every road was connected beneath the sky.
The sky slowly tilted toward the colors of evening, and the thin clouds were stained red. The smoke dissolved into the evening sky, and a dull wind began to blow. Koyoi looked up at the sky, etching into his chest the moment the journey's sky changed color. The seams of the Boundary seemed to be hidden even within the colors of the sky.
A thin moon appeared in the gaps between the clouds, and the boundary between day and night wavered. Koyoi stared at that boundary, feeling that the journey's sky tied two worlds together. Asahi pointed to the sky and murmured, "Night is coming." Kuon continued, "The mist will grow thick," reminding him of the stories of the train's lights.
Deep within his chest, Koyoi remembered the words of his grandmother. That the sky of a journey shows the same color regardless of where one goes. Yet here, the color of the sky mingled with the lights of the town, creating a different hue. It was a color of the sky that only the Boundary Town possessed, a new face of the journey's sky.
The station bell rang, announcing the train's arrival. From a distance, the resonance of iron approached, and the tracks vibrated faintly. Koyoi strained his ears to that vibration, feeling the road of the journey moving. The droplet of the Rain God trembled slightly, and the presence of the River God answered from afar.
Stepping onto the platform, the smell of iron and soot mingled, and the air grew heavy. Mist flowed over the tracks, stretching the shadows at their feet thin. Koyoi found light being born deep within the mist, and the beating of his heart quickened. Asahi placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, and Kuon narrowed his eyes, following the movement of the light.
In the distance, a whistle blew, and the white of the steam dissolved into the mist. The lights of the train emerged within the mist, one by one. The lights were similar to the fires of lanterns, yet they possessed the strength to illuminate the road of iron. Koyoi felt the sound of a bell in the river mist overlap with those lights.
The lights of the Boundary Town and the lights of the iron intersected, becoming one beneath the sky of the journey. The station attendant waved a red flag, and the train slowly slid into the platform. The sound of the wheels echoed on the stones, and the floor vibrated slightly. Beyond the windows was a soft light, and the shadows of travelers swayed quietly.
In that silence, Koyoi felt for certain that the next chapter was beginning. The station attendant checked the tickets and pressed a red stamp on each. The vermilion color overlapped with the color of the evening sky, warming Koyoi's fingertips. Asahi tucked the ticket into his clothes, and Kuon stared at the train door.
Koyoi looked at his own face reflected in the window glass and remembered the light of the Rain God. The light swaying beyond the glass was different from the light seen in the forest, yet it held the same warmth. At that moment, a cold gaze touched him for a fleeting second from behind. Koyoi turned back, but there was only the line of travelers and the smoke.
Kuon shook his head slightly and stated, "It's still far off, but it's approaching." Koyoi touched the pouch, feeling the droplet of the Rain God respond quietly. The train door opened, and the scent of dry wood rose from the wooden floor. The travelers boarded in order, their shadows stretching every time the lights inside the carriage swayed.
Koyoi stopped and looked up at the sky of the journey once more. The sky was at the boundary between evening and night, and the clouds drifted thinly. Beneath that sky, Koyoi renewed his resolve to move on to the next path. Asahi took a step forward, and Koyoi followed.
Kuon placed a hand on the edge of the door, confirming the fluctuation of the Boundary. The interior of the carriage was quiet, with the scent of wood and soot mingled together. That silence looked like the entrance to the next chapter. Mist gathered over the tracks, and the presence of lights was born.
Koyoi stared at those lights, realizing that from here on, it would be a different world. Asahi placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, and Kuon waited quietly for the train. Beneath the sky of the journey, the three of them prepared to head toward a new road. The mist grew even thicker, and the contours of the lights wavered.
Koyoi followed that wavering, and breathed in deeply beneath the sky of the journey.
Rather than an impressive conclusion, he chose to leave descriptions that could be reused. By doing so, the initial action of the next person in charge would be shortened, and the probability of recurrence would decrease.