MONAS | Tone 1 | Phrase 9: The Spectre of Chikubu Island

‘Star-Crossed Souls’ [Tone 1. Shiga: The Sea of Niho] 〜 This muddy vesture of decay 〜 

‘...There it is. That’s Chikubu Island.’

Forty minutes after setting sail from Hikone Port, Kaho, catching the sea-breeze on the deck, pointed ahead.

© kai hoshino

‘It’s smaller than I expected,’ Kai replied, leaning against the railing. ‘Since you called it the anchor holding down Lake Biwa with its four-million-year history, I’d imagined something as massive as Ynys Môn.’

‘Ynys Môn?’

‘An island in Wales. In England, they call it Anglesey. It’s a Celtic island, absolutely scattered with ancient ruins.’

‘Oh, I’d love to visit someday,’ Kaho said, her eyes shining. ‘Hearing about Cymric from you, Kai-san, has made me so curious. It’s a language with a history of at least two thousand years, just like Japanese.’

‘Yeah. Even J.R.R. Tolkien, when he wrote The Lord of the Rings, is said to have based the language of the Grey Elves—Sindarin—on Cymric.’

‘Ah, you mean Sindarin! Right... Tolkien was an Oxford linguist, after all. I absolutely adore it. The Lord of the Rings... how nostalgic. I actually went to the cinema to watch it.’

‘To gawk at Orlando Bloom?’

‘Of course not!’ Kaho flushed slightly at Kai’s teasing, giving a quick, defensive retort. ‘I’m team Aragorn! Viggo Mortensen was just so incredibly handsome...’

‘So you did go to gawk at a handsome bloke, then,’ Kai chuckled, a dry smirk playing on his lips. ‘Though I’ll give you credit for having good taste, President. He’s famous for putting his body on the line for his acting. Do you know the backstage trivia from the shoot?’

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