Black Sun, Silver Moon

Black Sun, Silver Moon
First English volume of Black Sun, Silver Moon as published by Go! Comi
黒の太陽 銀の月 (Kuro no Taiyō Gin no Tsuki)
Manga
Written by	Tomo Maeda
Published by	Shinshokan
English publisher	NA Go! Comi
Demographic	Shōjo
Magazine	Wings
Original run	26 July 2001 – 25 February 2006
Volumes	7

Black Sun, Silver Moon (Japanese: 黒の太陽 銀の月, Hepburn: Kuro no Taiyō Gin no Tsuki) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tomo Maeda. In Japan, she is the creator of several manga series in a variety of different genres.

The series tells the story of a boy named Taki Juhas who has taken the job at the local church as an assistant to the priest, Shikimi, to repay his father’s debt. By day, he does mundane chores but at night, Shikimi and Taki venture into graveyards to destroy the freshly risen dead.

It was first seen in Wings magazine in 2001. Since then it has been printed in Japan, China, Taiwan and the United States. To date there are seven volumes of Black Sun, Silver Moon that have been released.

Taki’s family was desperate for money after news reached of his late father's debt with the church. He accepts the position of assistant to Shikimi to pay off debt. Shikimi reveals to Taki that the dead have risen from their graves and have become quite a threat for those still living. Demons have somehow entered the dead. Shikimi has been searching for an assistant in destroying these demons for the past 3 years. He chose Taki because he is strong enough to strike down demons and has no fear when it comes to confronting evil. Shikimi reveals to Taki that one day he will become a demon and he needed someone who would not hesitate in killing him. Later in the series, the reader learns more about Shikimi’s past as well as to why he is turning into a demon .He confesses that he doesn’t have much time left before he turns into a demon and entrust Taki to kill him when the time comes. Until that time comes, Taki encourages Shikimi to resist the demon inside him. Taki swears to Shikimi “I’ll kill you cleanly, without any pain. And then…I’ll die right alongside you.”
A Silver hair dog appears at the church and refuses to leave Taki alone, this frustrates him because he hates dogs The silver dog continuously bites Taki. They return to the graveyard and Shikimi explains that the resurrected will try to return to the people they love. This brings back memories for Taki of an abandoned puppy that he took care of in the village. After being abandoned for several days the government killed the dog out of fear that it would turn feral and attack the villagers. Taki realizes that the silver dog is actually the resurrected dog that he took care of 10 years ago. Taki is happy to see his beloved dog again and unofficially adopts her, naming her Agi.