Six months after King Hyonjong ascended to the throne, the Dai Kingdom was on its way to revival. However, the king, who had gone to suppress a rebellion, did not return, and Taiki disappeared without a trace. The female general Yi Sai, worried about the loss of the king and the kirin, goes to Gyeongguk, risking her life to ask for help. (Source: Shinchosha, translated)

A collection of short stories about a king, a kirin, and the ideals and conflicts of a people. (Source: Shinchosha, translated)

The collection contains four stories depicting the lives of honest, ordinary people struggling to fulfill their roles, single-mindedly devoted to duty. (Source: Shinchosha, translated)

It has been six years since the king of the Hejong dynasty disappeared, six months after ascending to the Jade Throne. Taiki returns to save the devastated country. Believing that the king is still alive, and with a ray of hope in his heart, he begins his journey not knowing the destination! (Source: Shinchosha, translated)

When student teacher Hirose returns to his alma mater for a few weeks, he notices strange events that seem to revolve around a student, Kaname Takasato. As Hirose soon learns, Takasato was said to have been “spirited away” and then mysteriously reappeared one year later without any memories of where he had been or what had happened to him. While some students are fascinated with Takasato, others have taken to avoiding him, particularly as rumors emerge that bad things tend to happen to anyone who tries to upset Takasato. As Hirose tries to learn more about Takasato, he soon witnesses firsthand the strange occurrences surrounding Takasato as the consequences grow ever more severe and horrifying. Some events were later incorporated into the Twelve Kingdoms series. Takes place after the fourth book, Skies of Dawn, with some events covered in book six (The Shore at Twilight, the Sky at Daybreak).