The Girl of an Old Mansion

15. Looking for a Bride

 At the palace, the King and Queens were fascinated by the Prince's skills. Be it fighting, poetry, or problem-solving he excelled at it all. The Prince had become the center for their world.

Later at night, Queen Iseul asked the King about Prince Jian's marriage.

"We should look for a suitable bride for our son. His eighteenth birthday is coming and it would be a grand celebration."

"Yes, I'll think about it," said the King and walked outside.

"It seems that the Queen has forgotten about the heinous crime she had committed for the sake of an heir. She had ordered Lord Yong to kill our daughter in order to end that curse. I'll always be grateful to Lord Yong, who told me everything about the Queen's and Mi-sook's intentions to kill the Princess."

"After coming out of the prison to kill the princess. Lord Yong carefully exchanged the Princess with a wooden doll. Lord Yong had sacrificed the doll instead of the Princess and managed to save the Princess. He knew that to kill Mi-sook, the Princess had to be alive. Only Princess could become the reason for her death."

"As for Prince Jian, the coming birthday might be the last birthday of his life. Mi-sook never wanted to see the royal family flourish. The Prince and Princess are the outcome of Mi-sook's dark arts therefore, to get rid of the dark arts and curse, the devil's book is the only solution."

"Lord Yong is my only hope, I'll pray for his success in finding that book. I had received the letter reporting that he'll be off to Xinjiang to look for the book. The Devil's book is the only thing that can save my kids. They say a curse from a pure soul is never wasted; it will do its work at any cost. But I don't want to see my kids die in front of me helplessly."

"Sometimes being a King feels like a burden, knowing that your enemy is inside your palace and can harm you and your family but still you couldn't do anything but to bear their existence silently. Problem arises here when enemies don't show their true colours but they are up to something big in their minds," the King thought to himself.

Later that night

Queen Iseul went to Prince Jian's chamber only to find him sleeping. She sits beside the prince and caresses him with love.

It is such a relief to see my son sleeping. It scares the living the daylights out of me recalling the sin I had committed. I knew it was one of the worst things I could have done as a mother but I couldn't lose both of you. I couldn't have handled it. But seeing you grow all these years and that smile on your face everyday, makes me feel it was worth it. Don't worry Jian, I'll go to any extent to save you."

"My son's eighteenth birthday is nearing and I can still hear her curse in my ears even today. I must talk to Mi-sook on this matter," said the Queen.

Queen's chamber

Mi-sook rushes into the Queen's chamber and greets the queen.

"Prince Jian's birthday is near. I just want to warn you if anything happens with my son you won't be able to see the next morning," said the Queen gravely with a tainted expression.

"Your highness! The curse is no longer effective. We sacrificed the Princess for the longevity of the Prince. They were twins, the cursed twins. This means that sacrificing one cursed child would make a way for the second child to live. Fire has been given a special place in our mythologies, it can turn anything into ash and it can completely end the existence of anything without any trace, it can even end a curse, so setting the Princess on fire was the only option left and we did that. Therefore, you don't need to worry, Prince Jian is out of danger now, and everything is alright." Mi-sook reassured the Queen.

After Mi-sook ensured the Queen that everything was under control and alright, she seemed to calm down a bit.

Mi-Sook walked out of the Queen's chambers and sighed before a mysteriously wicked smile slowly grew onto her face. A smile that would give chills to even the mightiest warriors.