English: Dragon Sword and Wind Child (lit. Sky-colored Sacred Jade)
Japanese: 空色勾玉 (Sorairo-Magatama)
Chinese: 空色勾玉 (Kongse Gouyu)

Official Art (chronological order)

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“An epic battle rages throughout the land of Toyoashihara, pitting the invading forces of the God of Light and the indigenous forces of the Goddess of Darkness in this masterful first novel from Japan. … Drawing on Shinto mythology, Ogiwara crafts a complex, action-packed novel with dizzying plot twists and breathtaking fantasy sequences as well as gentle, emotionally charged scenes. Psychologically truthful and abundantly inventive.”
— From Publishers Weekly

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Available in English from Viz Media, LLC (Hardcover)
Amazon link (Hardcover)

Available from Haikasoru (an imprint of Viz Media) (Paperback)
Amazon link (Paperback)

The Story

(from the jacket of the 1993 edition): For countless generations, the people of Darkness have fought the immortal children of Light and their followers. At times attacking, at times retreating, power has swung like a pendulum from one side to the other.

Now Saya, raised to worship the Light, is thrust unwillingly into the struggle. From the security of her adoptive parents’ village, she is chosen by Prince Tsukishiro, the son of the God of Light, to be his bride. The people of Darkness claim that she is the reincarnation of their princess, the Water Maiden. Saya accepts the Prince’s proposal, but she begins to question her beliefs; perhaps the conflict between Light and Dark is not simply good versus evil, as she has been taught. And being the Water Maiden is not something Saya can refuse. It is her birthright, and with it comes the guardianship of the Dragon Sword. A legend as old as the immortals proclaims that only the missing Wind Child can wield the Sword and, with it, end the war. But in whose favor? Should Saya guard the Sword from this unknown being, or from it?

Using the mythology and setting of ancient Japan, Noriko Ogiwara has created the powerful story of a young woman who realizes that if the land and people she loves are to have a future, she must accept and overcome a past which is not her own.

Read an excerpt from the latest edition

Part I – The Water Maiden
Part II – The Palace of Light
Part III – Chihaya
Part IV – Revolt
Part V – Shadow
Part VI – The Earthen Vessel

, Characters, Places, and Items of Note

, The Radio Drama (1989)

, The Musical Production (2004)