Niji Shinden

Sarnan Hashi, the orphaned son of a ministerial family, lives under the guardianship of his uncle Kiya. Passionate about ancient temples, he experiences a divine revelation during restoration work when the sky god Teselan speaks to him in a dream, leaving the temple’s blueprints imprinted upon his mind. Later, at an old town market, Sarnan encounters Shirato, a pickpocket who attempts to steal his wallet. When Shirato flees to the temple after killing a foreigner and his former wife, Sarnan offers him sanctuary. However, as Shirato assists with the restoration and undergoes a moral awakening, he is deliberately pursued and fatally shot by police officers. Witnessing this tragedy causes Sarnan to question his uncle’s strategy of modernizing the nation through coffee cultivation. Seeking guidance from Iwanaga, a Japanese economic advisor to the government, he chooses instead to pursue independent wheat farming. Concurrently, plans emerge to construct a direct road linking the trading port to the capital, requiring the acquisition of land owned by the Colors family. To secure this territory, Sarnan collaborates with his uncle to arrange a political marriage between his cousin Arsha and the Colors family. As Sarnan becomes increasingly entangled in political maneuvering, he gradually loses his connection to the sky god. Ultimately, he must confront fundamental questions: What is the true nature of the sky god, and what is genuinely required to bring prosperity to the nation?