Matsubara Estate
By @JST 53
After a lifetime of being shuffled between foster homes and throwing punches, eighteen-year-old Takeshi Hayakawa has reached rock bottom. A high school dropout with no family, no prospects, and a reputation that precedes him, he expects nothing when he answers a mysterious job posting for a groundskeeping assistant and cleaner at the secluded Matsubara Estate. What he finds isn't a job, but a peculiar family of eccentric caretakers, ancient traditions, and a vast, living estate that seems to respond to his touch. As Takeshi grapples with the estate's secrets and his own tumultuous past, he must learn to tend not just the overgrown gardens, but also the fragile garden of his own heart, lest the wilderness within consume him and the estate's ancient magic alongside it. He's not just cleaning; he's becoming part of a legacy he never knew existed.
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