Elrihm; God of the forest, source of all life. He released his servants, the Divine Spirits unto the land. He spoke “I am that which has given you life”.

For a time, they brought life and happiness to the forest. But soon, the forest was visited by fate. The Divine Spirits created a beast in their own image. Elrihm warned “That is the beast of knowledge and it will someday bring temptation upon you; thou shalt not associate with it.”

The Divine Spirits so promised, and gave birth to the beast of their own image. Such was man’s beginning.

Time passed, and the forest was again visited by fate. A Divine Spirit was seduced by a beast of knowledge, and so the promise to Elrihm was broken. The Spirit lost its divine power, and by the child of man and Spirit, it was gained.

This new power threatened Elrihm, and so was divided into Light and Darkness.

It's the night before the village of Syrus holds its festival to honour and remember everyone's ancestors. We're introduced to Levant, the main character, and Mahbu, a Nagi woman who is fated to become Levant's wife. Levant is the son of the vanished Cocoon Master, Riketz, and Cocoon Masters always marry Nagi women who can perform purification magic to aid Cocoon Masters in their own journeys of purifying monstrous minions from the nearby Forest. Levant and Mahu are enjoying a moment of tranquility that they don't realise will be one of their last for a long time.

The morning after. A swarm of terrifying insect monsters known as Onibubu break through the Divine Barrier that protects Syrus and attack the village, locking most of the villagers in a deep sleep from which they can't awaken. This is remarkably similar to what happened in the fallen empire of Gehena Pale, and also what's described in legends of the Day of Judgment.

The village elders are of two minds as to what to do about this. Jibara blames the Nagi tribe for bringing a curse upon the village, and says that a human sacrifice to the Forest would have prevented such misfortune. Garai, an old Nagi woman, says that's ridiculous, and that the only help for the villagers is the fabled Calabas herb, which will bring the villagers' souls back to their bodies and allow them to wake up. If it exists anywhere, it exists deep in the Forest, and the only ones who can survive the Forest are Cocoon Masters.

Levant is the only one who can do the job, and so, he marries Mahbu so that they can both meet their destiny. He as a Cocoon Master, and she as his wife. Cocoon Masters have to brave the dangers in the Forest, with all the aggressive monsters, and Nagi brides have to endure painful scars every time they perform their magic to aid their husbands. Both have a pretty lousy deal, but it's vital that they support each other.

The next morning, Mahbu gives Levant a ring that was given to her when she was born, something that means a lot to her and she wants him to carry with him when he journeys. Garai tells Levant to seek out a man named Koris, another Cocoon Master who lives in the Forest itself. Koris might have info about where to find the Calabas herb.

Levant enters the Forest and finds Koris, explaining what happened to the people of Syrus. Koris tells Levant that if he can make it to Koris's home deeper in the Forest, then he'll give whatever information he has that might be helpful. This is part test for Levant, part way to Koris to have the time to research what's needed.