Episode 1: The Day Yuto Found the Glowing Seed

It was an ordinary walk home. The town was slowly sinking into dusk, a time when the shutters of the shopping district were quietly closing.

Yuto was walking near the small temple where the famous writer Naoki Sanjugo rests. It was a road he had known since childhood.

He had no particular reason to be there that day. It was just a path he took to go home, walking it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Until now, nothing had ever happened. Today was supposed to be the same as always. —But today was different.

Suddenly, he felt a strange sensation at his feet.

Yuto noticed something faintly glowing right beside an old planter placed on the roadside.

As he drew closer, it looked like a "seed." It was about the size of the tip of his pinky finger, teardrop-shaped, emitting a soft light from within.

For some reason, Yuto couldn't bring himself to reach out immediately. Was it because he was standing near the temple where a beloved writer was buried? Or was it because he couldn't see this as a mere coincidence?

This was a town where people who wrote stories once lived, and where those who finished writing their stories now rest. Precisely because it was such a place, today's event didn't feel like a simple accident.

"...Why is it glowing?" Yuto murmured to himself without thinking. At first, he thought it was a reflection from the streetlights, but he was wrong. The light wavered from within, like a tiny heartbeat.

As he timidly picked it up, the seed carried a gentle warmth and glowed a little brighter. What washed over him was neither surprise nor fear, but a sense of calm, quiet relief.

And in that moment, a story quietly began.

"Did someone lose this...?" He looked around, but there was no one in sight. Though puzzled by the bizarre sight, a strange feeling began to bud in Yuto's chest. He knew he couldn't just leave it behind.

Somehow, Yuto gently slipped the seed into his pocket. He decided to take it home and see what would happen. It was a lighthearted decision.

On his way home, Yuto kept pressing his hand against his pocket over and over. The seed was still there. Warm, and faintly glowing.

Feeling the warmth of the seed, Yuto let out a small breath. "I don't know what will happen... but well, let's just wait and see first." Muttering those words as if to reassure himself, Yuto quickened his pace.

*The glowing seed is not named yet at this point. This scene serves as a quiet prologue—the exact moment of their encounter. In the next episode, the daily life of nurturing it through hydroponics will begin.