The chill of the cemetery was a constant companion, a stark contrast to the burning grief that consumed Alice Jade Martinez. For four months, she had knelt by Kenneth's grave, her world reduced to the damp earth and the ghost of his smile.

Her sketchbook, once filled with vibrant life, now held only endless charcoal renderings of his face. Every stroke was a desperate prayer, a futile attempt to tether him to her reality. "I desperately need you here with me right now," she whispered to the unfeeling stone, her voice raspy from disuse. "I've been a good girl. I've been doing my best... So won't you come back to me now?"

Nearby, the familiar presence of the groundkeeper, Hamon, brought a fleeting comfort, his soft murmurs and the rustle of food indicating his daily vigil. Two new voices joined him, their shocked whispers about her unending mourning barely registering. But then, a voice, husky and ethereal, echoed not from the living, but from within her very mind.

"[Do you want to see him again?]" it asked. The words, strange yet familiar, stirred a flicker of forbidden hope in her hollow chest. Then, her sketchbook, a gift from Kenneth, began to transform, its cover morphing into something alien and red, proclaiming itself 'THE BOOK OF STRINGS.' A powerful gust of wind erupted, sending her toppling, her long-unused legs screaming in pain.

"[There is a way,]" the voice continued, now accompanied by a shifting figure with bright red eyes. "[A possible phenomena that, when arranged by the god of death, will reunite your two souls together.]" Alice, who hadn't spoken a word in months, croaked, "Soul? Not bring him back?"

The stranger, who called himself Hymen, smirked. "[Yes, once a human has crossed the threshold, their soul can never go back. But in the haven of afterlife, there is a way. With the permission of the ruler of death, he can arrange a setup where you and your loved one can live together. Forever.]"