ECHOES OF THE BLOOD-STAINED NIGHT

Episode 4 - Echoes of Fear

—your POV—

The air crackled with anticipation, pregnant with an uncertainty that mirrored the knot of worry in your stomach.

The path, overgrown and barely visible, snaked through a dense forest that clung to the side of a mountain like a shaggy pelt.

Before them, nestled amidst the trees, a lone cabin stood like a beacon in the night. Its windows, dark and lifeless, offered no clues as to its occupants, adding to the already pervasive air of mystery.

Suddenly, a hand clamped onto your shoulder, strong and warm.

"Listen, do not be startled,"Jimin murmured, his lips a fleeting heat against your skin.

His touch, grounding and familiar, anchored you to the present. His words, whispered with urgency, held a strange calm amidst the storm of your anxieties.

Across the room, a figure materialized from the shadows. Your breath hitched, caught in your throat. It was him, the former king, the once-feared tyrant whose name etched fear into the very stones of the palace.

Yet, as he stepped into the moonlight, bathed in its ethereal glow, something was different. The harsh lines of his face were softened, the steely glint in his eyes replaced by a gentle warmth.

Your knees buckled, and you found yourself bowing, hands clasped before you in a gesture of submission. It was an instinctual reaction, honed by years of living under his oppressive reign.

But before you could touch the cold flagstones, a hand, surprisingly gentle, lifted your chin.

"Look up," the king commanded, his voice a low rumble that resonated within you.

Trembling, you raised your eyes. The fear hadn't completely ebbed away, but curiosity flickered at its edges.

"Are you sure about this?" the man asked, his eyes turning to Jimin, who stood beside you, his expression unreadable.

Jimin took a deep breath, his usually carefree demeanor gone. "I am. She can be trusted."

The man nodded, his gaze returning to you. "Brace yourself," he said, his voice laced with a grim foreboding. "What we are about to tell you... what we are about to ask you... may change everything."

A tremor of disbelief reverberated through your very core as the words sunk in, heavy and unexpected, like a stone falling in a still pond.

Your gaze, already fixated on the figure before you, sharpened with incredulity. This man, his features a mirror reflecting the king's own regal visage, his posture echoing the monarch's every confident stride, could not possibly be...

"That," the voice beside you continued, low and measured, "is the spitting image of His Majesty, not merely in countenance, but in every nuance of gait and gesture.

"But he is, in truth, a different soul altogether. He is the king's twin brother."

Your eyes, wide against the onslaught of this profound revelation, flickered from the face that was so familiar yet somehow subtly different, back to the speaker, their words carrying the weight of a hidden truth finally exposed.

******

In the kingdom shrouded in superstition, a family haunted by ancient beliefs faced a dire prophecy.

Whispers of a doppelgänger phenomenon echoed through generations, painting the birth of twins as both a blessing and a curse.

As the royal family sought to avert the foreseen calamity, a grim decision emerged.