Aria the Benedizione

Aika S. Granzchesta, the heir and branch manager of the Himeya Company-one of several Undine associations that train female gondoliers-stuns everyone by turning her back on tradition and refusing to inherit the company's famed gondola. Her apprentice, Azusa B. McLaren, struggles to make sense of Aika's sudden choice and confronts her, but the answers she gets leave her unsatisfied. Determined to uncover the truth, Azusa and her fellow Undines quietly scheme to arrange another meeting with their mentor. As winter approaches, bringing quiet beauty to Neo-Venezia, Aika reflects on her years as an Undine and how they shaped her into who she is now. The memories of those irreplaceable moments stay with her, and she believes they’ll light her way forward, even as she steps into an uncertain but open future.