Curse of the Mystic Kingdom

Chapter One

An Unknown Voice

The first thing she noticed was the eye insignia on the castle walls.

It was the most bizarre sight she had ever witnessed: a green and white castle, looming thirty feet high, in the middle of the mountains. The thick fog made it difficult for her to see the details other than the green roof and dark curtains, but the bits of light trickling from the windows signified something lied inside. Goosebumps prickled her skin as she shivered. An ominous aura emanated from this castle, some eerie menace that made her gut scream that this was danger in front of her.

And yet, she continued walking towards it.

Her feet dragged across the dirt like lead. Everything about her body weighed her down, telling her to turn back and run, but she couldn't. Curiosity tugged at her like invisible threads that pulled her closer towards the entrance. The steps led to a stone door towering above her. Though it was sealed shut, she felt as if it would open any minute, swallowing her whole.

A voice echoed in the distance. "Come closer… closer…"

The doors began to creak open, and she saw darkness.

MC opened her eyes, waking up from the dream. Sunlight trickled through the flimsy tent she had set up the night before. It was so early in the morning that even the birds hadn't woken her up with their chirps yet. So what did? She thought she had heard a voice, but she wasn't sure.

She unzipped the tent and stepped outside for a stretch. Fresh air wafted into her nostrils as she exhaled with relief. This was why she loved camping in the mountains. There was something peaceful about escaping the city and getting back in touch with nature. She had spent most of yesterday afternoon hiking along trails and taking photographs of the breathtaking forests, and ended the night by setting up a campfire and falling asleep in her tent.

Fortunately, the castle she saw only turned out to be a dream. Real life returned her back to common sense - of course there wouldn't be something like that in the middle of the mountains. Especially with such a strange symbol of an eye…

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?"

A male voice echoed through the mountains, startling her. Goosebumps raised on her skin again as flashbacks of the castle fleeted through her mind. The voice was so familiar, just like the one that echoed through the fog, but that couldn't be possible. This was just her imagination.

"Please, someone help…!"

She snapped her head up at the cry, realizing the voice had been real, and must have trickled into her subconscious while she was asleep. She scanned her surroundings, but couldn't tell where the voice was coming from.

"Hello? Who are you?" she shouted.

"Is someone there? Thank God!" the voice cried. "I've been trapped here for the past three days. Please help me!"

MC narrowed down the direction of the voice to be coming from the east. Leaving her tent and belongings behind, she climbed down the mountain and shouted back that she was coming for him. She strained to keep yelling and maintain a conversation with him so that he didn't feel scared. He revealed himself to be a college student from Korea, traveling alone for a summer abroad trip, only to lose his map and cell phone during a landslide that trapped him underneath rockfall. The more they talked, the more she felt inclined to rush even faster to his aid and help this poor young man.

The voice led her off the main path. She found a hidden alcove near a secluded area in the mountains, past the winding trees where the sun no longer shed any light. The voice grew louder with each passing step she took to the point where she could hear even his whimpers.

She discovered the rock and debris that had piled together into a heap, where the stranger was muffled underneath. Rushing towards the slope, MC frantically dove into the avalanche and picked up the rocks, yelling that she was going to help him out. A minute of digging through the rocks revealed not a body, but a door.

The stone door had no knob, nor a lock. Strange markings had been etched onto the surface, almost like somebody had carved illegible numbers. She froze upon seeing this door and its strange placement in the middle of the mountains. Even stranger, the voice continued talking to her from behind.

"Are you at the door?"

"I am," she said. "Are you in there? How do I get through…?" Moreover, how did this person end up here in the first place?

"Trace the markings. Then you'll be able to get in and help me."

MC blinked at the strange etches on the door. Normally, she would have questioned the bizarre circumstances of this situation. But whenever it came to helping someone, she didn't hesitate.

She placed a palm on the symbols, and to her shock, they began glowing under her touch. She gasped.

"Yes, that's it. Good girl…"

The door began sliding down like a fortress. The stranger's voice turned hazy, echoing through her ears as if they stretched down a long hall. She called out to him, but the unknown voice began to turn quieter. Pushing herself forward, she entered through the door and stepped inside.

The other side revealed to be a room about the size of a studio apartment, but the antique decorations made it anything but that. Her sneakers squeaked against the old wooden floorboards as she gawked at the lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Rows of scrolls perched against the wall next to her. They were rolled up into cylinders and tucked neatly into compartments. She couldn't count how many scrolls there were, but it looked like hundreds.

A small desk sat in the corner of the room with blank parchment paper and a quill pen. Propped next to it was an even smaller altar. The candles had been blown out, leaving only dried incense sticks. Tiny frames were propped behind the clay pot, but there were no pictures.

It occurred to her that she was standing in the middle of a shrine, and that the stranger she just spoke with was nowhere to be found.

"Hello?" MC called out to seemingly nobody. She turned around to where she came from, but nearly hit a wall. Gulping, she placed her palms on the wall and began feeling it to find a switch, a lever, anything to bring her back to the mountains. Because this was not where she came from, not at all.

Where was she?

A ringing sound shot in her ears. She clamped her hands over them and spun around to face the standing mirror in the corner. The glass was blinking a strange light, and even though it wasn't broken, colorful cracks had formed across the surface like a kaleidoscope. The ringing died down as she heard a new voice this time, one from a crying boy who appeared in one of the glass fragments that glowed green.

He had a small face with blonde hair and purple eyes, welling up from tears. He wore a shabby hat and overalls, and when he rolled up his sleeves, dirt and bruises peppered around his arms.

"I can't believe I failed another test," he wailed. "Why does training horses have to be so hard? And why do they keep kicking me?!"

A separate fragment on the mirror glimmered, this time with a red color that matched the curly hair of a new face. He wore a pointed hat and round spectacles in an eccentric shade of yellow.

"That's 'cause you spent all day playing Dragonslayer," he snickered. "Your guild master expected you to read your books, not throw wooden swords with the other village kids."

"How do you know that's what I was doing? You don't even live in my village," the blonde boy pouted.

The redhead waved a wooden handstick in the air as if he were composing a symphony. "Legendary Wizard Seven knows all!"

A silver light shined as another young man appeared inside the mirror. He wore chainmail armor from head to toe, but took off his helmet to reveal a handsome face and starkingly red eyes.

"Tsk, tsk. What an irresponsible apprentice," he clicked his tongue. "Horses can sense when you're stressed, you know? You have to be suave, like me. A knight must lead the horse, not let the horse lead him."

A purple glow radiated as a dark-haired man joined the conversation. The crown sitting on top of his head was flashier than his passive, stony face.

"I disagree. We should let animals lead us," he said. "They have sharper instincts than humans like Zen do, therefore, it's up to us to cooperate with their needs accordingly. Perhaps Yoosung's horse has not enjoyed eating the hay that the commoners have been feeding her. She most likely is demanding more delicious treats, like apples, carrots, or… Nay, watermelon rinds."

Zen gawked at the dark-haired man's monologue. "Did you seriously just make a horse pun?"

"Neigh."

Yoosung started sweating. "Umm, I can't just bring watermelon rinds with me whenever I want," he said. "Those fruits take eighty days to grow... and my next exam is in seven days."

Zen nodded. "Seriously, a prince like Jumin should never give advice to commoners. You have no idea where we're coming from when you've lived your whole life in a fancy castle."

"It's not my fault I was born as royalty," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Wait!" The mirror glowed red as Seven waved his arms in the air, the long sleeves of his robe billowing. "I think someone is watching from Rika's mirror."

All of the boys' eyes widened. Yoosung's cap fell off his head as he jumped up. "What?! How? Is it a wizard?!"

Seven squinted as he peered closer. MC gulped as it felt like his own eyes caught hers.

"Looks like a girl," he said.

"Then a witch?!" Yoosung shrieked.

"Oh, she's a very cute witch," Zen cooed, a glimmer in his eye as he fixed his sight on her.

A ringing sound echoed as Jumin grabbed a bell and started shaking it. "Advisor Kang, your presence is needed."

A fifth glass fragment on the mirror glowed a warm, yellow aura. For the first time, MC heard a female voice. A woman with short brown hair tilted her glasses. "Yes, Prince Han, I'm here."

"Why is a stranger watching us from Rika's mirror?" he demanded, pointing at MC.

"No one can communicate with us through the mirrors unless they have the specific ones that Seven created with his magic. I'm not sure how this person has Rika's personal mirror."

Seven furrowed his eyebrows. "Huh. This is weird. They can't use it unless they're actually inside the shrine, which means they broke into it. But my spell was supposed to prevent anyone from coming in…"

"Um," MC cleared her throat and finally spoke up. "Who are all of you…?"

Yoosung screamed. "AHH! Jaehee! The witch talked!"

"I'm not a witch. My name is MC."

"M… C?" Jaehee asked.

"Er, it's a nickname," she replied. "I'm confused right now, too. I was camping in the mountains, and there was a landslide, and somebody needed help. I followed his voice through a strange door and ended up here."

"Somebody led you to Rika's shrine?" Zen asked. "Who was it?"

"I don't know. He said he was a student from Korea."

"Korea? I've never heard of such a kingdom," Jumin said.

"That's because it doesn't exist," Jaehee replied, eyeing the mirror with newfound suspicion. "I've certainly never seen it on any atlas."

MC blinked. How could Korea not exist? In fact, how could these five strangers be talking through a magic mirror in the first place? The whole experience felt so surreal. She was beginning to realize that this was a separate world, one that was completely different from hers.

"Should I send the guards?" Jumin asked.

"Hold on. I'm getting V," Seven said.

He began waving his wand and chanting under his breath while the other four scrutinized their own all held different expressions upon closer inspection. Jaehee's eyes still remained narrow with suspicion, while Yoosung's were widened with curiosity and awe, his mouth agape. Zen, on the other hand, had a smile stretched across his lips as he said that she did, indeed, look cute from the mirror. Jumin snapped at him to focus on the issue at hand as he kept his own face unperturbed.

MC sat still on a pillow perched in front of the altar. She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, feeling awkward at having so many pairs of eyes on her, let alone having all the chatter revolve around her sudden appearance. She didn't even know how she ended up here, and a small fearful thought popped up in the back of her mind that she might not know how to go back, either.

She was growing nervous in this strange shrine, surrounded by strange people, in this strange world. But then a soft azure light began to radiate from the mirror, and a man with striking blue eyes and hair materialized. He appeared calm and poised, yet there was something about his enigmatic aura that told MC he may know more than everyone else. And, if that was the case, maybe he would know how she could get back home.

"Hello, everyone," he greeted. "Seven informed me about what happened. MC is currently in Rika's shrine, and her clothes seem to indicate that she's not from this land."

"Seven's spell is supposed to protect the shrine from any outsiders," Jumin said.

"Yes," V replied, "no one is supposed to be able to break the spell, let alone know where the shrine is. Not even me."

Yoosung's face darkened. "I thought V knew," he muttered. "I'm her cousin, and I don't even know where the shrine is. Is there actually a spell protecting it, or are you just keeping it a secret from us because you don't trust us?"

V shook his head, remaining calm. "The spell is meant to protect the scrolls kept inside. I can't reveal the location because those scrolls contain personal information about the people of Mystic Kingdom."

"You mean everyone who has attended the ceremonies," Jumin clarified.

V nodded, paused for a moment, and then faced his mirror with a serious expression.

"For the sake of the kingdom, I urge everyone not to seek out the shrine. MC, please don't reveal your whereabouts, and refrain from touching the scrolls."

"I don't even know where I am," MC said, then pointed at her background, "or what these scrolls are supposed to be for. I was just trying to help someone and ended up here."

"But you were able to break the spell and enter the shrine," Jaehee said, keeping a cautious stare on MC. "That is truly unusual, let alone impossible for an outsider."

"If my hunch is correct… someone Rika trusted must have led her to this world. Maybe… Rika wanted her work to continue on."

Everyone fell silent upon V's words. Expressions of doubt clouded the mirror, as if no one could believe his theory.

"Are you saying Rika called upon this random person to break the kingdom's curse?" Jumin asked.

"I don't believe it," Yoosung argued. "There's no way Rika trusted anyone more than us."

"It's just a guess. MC is an outsider of the kingdom, but she could enter the shrine because she was resistant to Seven's spell. Maybe she is the chosen one to perform the ceremony, just like Rika was."

The awkward silence and murmurs proved that the others were still doubtful of V's words. Yoosung's face paled, as if he was getting sick. It was Seven who broke the reverie with agreement.

"If it's what V thinks, I won't oppose it."

Slowly, the murmurs turned into acceptance, even though hesitation still marred their faces. MC took this chance to raise her hand and interrupt the conversation.

"Um, I still don't know what's going on here," she said. "What do you all mean by curses and ceremonies? And who is Rika?"

Seven clasped his hands together. "I guess we should explain everything, right?"

Jumin nodded and was the first to volunteer. "I don't know where you came from, MC, but this land is the Mystic Kingdom, ruled by my father. For years we ruled the kingdom with prosperity, and that was thanks to working with Rika and V."

"Rika is a priestess, and V is a duke," Zen clarified. "When they were engaged, V had his servants build a shrine for her so that she could prepare for her ceremony every year."

"These ceremonies were for keeping peace within the kingdom," Yoosung added. "Rika wanted everyone to live a happy and full life without any trouble or sadness. Everyone would attend these ceremonies and be blessed by her magic. We didn't know how she did it… she was just amazing like that."

Zen took in a deep breath. "And now, Rika is no longer with us." The room turned quiet and still. "She passed away almost two years ago. Ever since then, without her ceremonies, the kingdom has been cursed."

MC stared at everyone's crestfallen faces. She clasped a hand to her chest, feeling a twinge in her heart. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "She must have been an incredible person."

"It's not fair," Yoosung said, and turned away from the mirror, his body shaking.

"What is this curse?" MC asked.

"It's a curse that affects everyone in the kingdom, but in different ways," Jaehee explained. "Sometimes they are physical, and sometimes they are mental. We're not sure how these curses manifest themselves, but we do know they seem to worsen over time."

"My father was one of the first to be afflicted," Jumin said. "He has always been a sensible king. But now, he is blinded by his lust for women, and let his own kingdom go to ruins with his foolishness."

Jumin had gritted his teeth as he said this, and Jaehee's dispirited expression proved his words were no understatement. MC gulped as she imagined the repercussions of a curse that could affect everyone's lives and each other's so drastically. She scanned the mirror, wondering what everyone's curses could be if they were all different. Her eyes met with Zen's, and he seemed to know what she was thinking right away.

He clasped a hand to his cheek and sighed. "And my curse, I soon discovered, was good looks. Ah, it's so unfortunate..."

"As you can see, Zen's curse is narcissism," Jumin said flatly.

"At least I didn't end up turning into a cold and unfeeling rock like you," Zen huffed.

Seven waved his arms in the air. "And these two are forever cursed with unresolved sexual tension!" He cleared his throat after they shot glares at him. "Alright, alright, if we actually go into detail about every single person's curse, we'd never have a ceremony again, would we?"

Jaehee nodded. "I'm shocked to be saying this, but Seven's right. Let's get straight to the point: MC, will you be willing to continue Rika's ceremonies and save our kingdom?"

All eyes fell on her. She gulped. She didn't want to reject their request, because of the horrible situation that all of these people were in, but she didn't want to accept it so quickly, either. She had her own life that she needed to return back to.

"I don't know," she admitted. "This is a lot to take in. I need to think about it."

Jaehee tilted her glasses. "I understand. Unfortunately, we can't spend much time waiting for your answer, since you are technically trespassing in a sacred shrine. If you're not willing to help, it would be ineffective for you to freeload there."

"Oh! I think Jaehee's glasses are tinting," Seven said.

"Aww, give her a break, Jaehee. The maiden must be overwhelmed by everything. Why don't we give her a day to decide?" Zen suggested. He met MC's eyes again and flashed a charming smile. "Although, I do hope you end up joining us. It would be lovely to have another pretty girl to talk to…"

Jaehee raised her eyebrow. "Very well," she conceded. "She will have the rest of today to think about it. By the end of sunrise, we will wait to hear your answer."

MC nodded in agreement, but wasn't sure what her answer would be in a few hours. Part of her wanted to wait and see if she would wake up and find out it was all a dream, but somehow she figured it wouldn't be that easy.

Jaehee was the first to bid goodbye and leave, disappearing from the glass fragments of the mirror as an orange aura faded away. The others began to depart one by one afterward: Zen with his knightly duties, Jumin with a royal court case to attend, Yoosung with another game of Dragonslayer, and Seven with a new task of figuring out where the unknown force who had brought her to this world came from.

The mirror was mostly empty, except for one face remaining, which she realized had been quiet for most of this time. She stared into V's eyes, blue and distant.

"I don't know whether you will join us or not, but… I want to thank you."

"For what?" she asked.

"For giving hope."

She continued gazing at V's face. She was perplexed by the way his eyes looked like glass, empty yet full of sorrow at the same time, staring at her but not truly looking at her. He was an enigma that she couldn't see through clearly like the rest of the people she met in the mirror- a glass that she couldn't tell was half full or half empty.

She didn't know if she could give the hope that everyone needed. She was just an outsider, after all.

But when she looked at V, she felt like hope was something he had already lost a long time ago.