The world is filled with things that we can’t see even though they are there. A lone Japanese monk ventures through a mysterious forest. There are stone stairs leading up to a row of red gates at the top of the hill. The area seemed very clean for such a desolate place. Lost in thought, he notices a spirit house. He sets down his old wooden lantern and closes his eyes to pray for a safe journey. The sound of the birds and the animals fade away, and he opens his eyes to a masked spirit floating in front of him. The initially spotless stairs are now covered in vines and dirt. The day is suddenly night and the stone lamps glow with light. Fireflies emerge from the darkness. The monk grabs his lantern as the spirit goes up the murky stairs. He chases after the glowing apparition through the red gates.

As he passes through, he emerges somewhere else. The masked spirit is nowhere to be seen, as he looks confusedly upon an empty yet kept village. He looks up into the sky as the moon rises and the light fades to night. Under the moonlight, the city uncovers its true form which is abandoned, barren, and covered in vines. Phantoms begin to appear as he walks down the stairs of this village in awe. Unconventional paths may lead us to extraordinary places.