Chapter Text
It was a bright day within the seas. The waves swaying smoothly throughout the vicinity, the sounds of birds crying out as the sun shines brightly above the clouds, glittering the waters with its light. A silent spectacle for such a peaceful hour.
“AAAAAHHHHH-“
Ruined by the sounds of a speeding yacht, combined with the screams of a certain girl.
“STOP STOP STOP! I’M GONNA DIE! I’M GONNA DIE! I’M GONNA DIE! AAAAHHH-“
Lee Jihye’s screams echoed across the oceans as our boat bounces out through the waves. The boat eventually slowed down, allowing her to finally catch her breath. Soon enough, the culprit was dragged out of the deck by Yoo Sangah; it was none other than Lee Gilyoung.
“You idiot! Do you have any idea how dangerous that was!?”
Shin Yoosung immediately scolded the boy as her eyes locked unto him, though she didn’t get to say more as Lee Jihye blitzed past her and grabbed the culprit by the throat.
“YOU F@#$%$@ IDIOT, I AM GOING TO MURDER EVERY CELL OF YOUR BO-“
“Ok that’s enough, I think he’s got enough punishment already”
Sangah-ssi luckily stopped the girl before she could actually kill Gilyoung. I couldn’t do more than just laugh at this amusing spectacle. It really has been awhile since she’s been to sea huh?
“Even with that much speed, aren’t you overreacting too much?”
Han Sooyoung spoke as she walked behind them with a snicker.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN OVERREACTING, DIDN’T ALL OF YOU FEEL IT TOO!?”
“Well yeah but you were the only one screaming about dying”
Lee Jihye couldn’t reply to that so she just stomped out to a corner while grumbling profanities along the way.
“Don’t worry about it Jihye-ah, you’ll get used to it again eventually”
I went ahead and voiced out some encouragement before she left even if it wouldn’t do much. As the yacht swayed peacefully, I once again looked out to the peaceful sight and breathed the sea’d refreshing air. It really has been awhile.
“How are you doing?”
Han Sooyoung stood next to me, taking in the same air.
How am I doing? It’s an intriguing question. Its been 7 months since the day I woke up from my endless dream, recovering was tough but I managed, especially when it means being together with everyone again, as a family.
Allot of things happened since then, allot has changed. We bought one big house for everyone as we’ve promised, the kids proceeded with their education, Jung Heewon and Lee Hyunsung got married and that bastard finally got himself a job as a chef (although I myself am still unemployed due to only fully recovering recently, though I am considering editing).
So how am I doing?
“If we’re talking about my thoughts then I feel great, otherwise I am a little dizzy because of Gilyoungah’s little stunt from earlier”
“Haha, is that so? Well that’s good to know”
Han Sooyoung too has changed quite a bit. Her hair now reached her shoulders and has been acting more open than when I remembered, though I guess that goes for everyone else too.
I turned to look at the woman beside me, and I can’t help but thank her everyday for the story she has written for me. After all, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for her. Though she has eventually gotten tired of hearing those same words every single day so I just do so silently from then on.
“That bastard’s taking his time with the preparations, I’m starting to get hungry from all the bouncing from earlier”
“Well he is making a full course meal for everyone in the ship and our number isn’t exactly that low.
Speak of the devil”
It was then that the door from the deck opened with the one and only Protagonist carrying plates of delicacies with Lee Seolwha tailing behind him.
Would you look at this guy? Many months ago, you wouldn’t expect him to ever show any other look than his stone faced seriousness but here he is with a rather cool looking smile as he placed his masterpieces along the open table.
“The hell are you looking at?”
Ok now he’s back to that stone face.
I could hear Jung Heewon laughing loudly from behind while Lee Hyunsung was holding his, it seems they’ve heard about Jihye’s story. They we’re helping out with the food preparations as well and setting out the meals unto the table.
“Gilyoung-ah, why don’t you call Jayoung-ah and Pildu-ssi so that we can start quickly”
Yoo Sangah politely asked Gilyoung, replying with an “on it” and rushing to the back of the yacht. The deck once again opened with the voices of familiar stars sounding out.
“Do I smell Yoo Joonghyuk’s cooking!?”
“Uriel- wait!”
Uriel was quickly held back by Gabriel before she could rush for the first bite, but then someone else was leaving behind trails of darkness as they rushed to the table.
“Dibs on the chicke-GAAH!”
“How about you slow down too?”
Black Flame Dragon too was quickly grabbed by the Sooyoung before he could make a sudden mess. The Great Sage then emerged last with Yoo Mia riding his back.
“Hey! Leave some for us”
Finally, Jang Hayoung and Gong Pildu joined in with the feast. All of them then sat on their chosen seat. With everyone finally gathered, I went ahead and declared.
“Well now that everyone’s here, why don’t we skip the long and tedious speech and just dig right in”
“Don’t mind if I do”
“Hell yeah!”
It was a beautiful sight, this is. The sight of everyone I know and love gathering in one place, producing the noises of clattering plates and utensils mixed with the various sounds of shouts and laughter as they gobbled up Yoo Joonghyuk’s cooking. The waves sounded out from the background as I look at this sight with fleeting eyes.
No more pain, no more dreams, this is all but a happy ending.
And there is nothing that could stop this lasting moment.
Rumble
Droplets of rain clattered outside the deck, the sounds of wind howling through the air with it. We all quickly gathered inside once we felt the change, It was a shame really.
“Aw man, I was looking forward to this too. Why does it have to rain now?”
Han Sooyoung was especially frustrated, after all, this whole thing was her idea. One day, she noticed a date where everyone didn’t have a schedule so she invited us all for this little trip. It was about time to fulfill Yoosung’s wish too. She even rented this yacht for us; do authors really get this much fortune?
“Well it can’t be helped, we could always do it for another time”
“Easy for you to say. Do you have any idea how expensive it was to rent this boat? And we can’t even use it for the whole day!”
Oh so they don’t actually get that much fortune. Why couldn’t she just ask us for help (Not me though, I use her money).
It’s gonna take awhile before we could reach land so I went ahead and grabbed some books to read that came with the boat. The rest didn’t have much to do either. Most of them were either sleeping or conversing with each other while the kids are playing board games with the Abyssal Black Flame Dragon of all people.
“This is taking quite awhile though”
“Well we wouldn’t have been stuck in the sea this long if it weren’t for a certain someone tampering with the wheels”
Jihye gave a Gilyoung a sharp glare as she spoke, causing the latter to retort.
“If it’s gonna make me less guilty, that wasn’t originally my idea”
He then aimed the same glare at Han Sooyoung. Oh so she was the real mastermind.
“Cough You know what, this is really taking awhile so I’m gonna go check on Yoo Joonghyuk”
With some very convincing coughs, Han Sooyoung left for the captain’s cabin. Although it was her guilty excuse to escape, I too should check on our travel status so I followed her.
We opened the door to the cabin and saw Yoo Joonghyuk navigating through the storm. He noticed our presence and started voicing his thoughts.
“I don’t think we’ll be able to make it to Korea’s shore at this state, It’s best that we find a temporary island to camp on until the storm passes”
“Have you tried contacting them?”
A fluffy ball of fur suddenly jumped out from the wheel and proceeded to transform into a dark haired girl.
“I’ve already informed them of our situation. Unfortunately, the storm is just far too strong for any rescue to arrive. But don’t worry! The boat wouldn’t be damaged too much with me around!”
That’s true. Biyoo did produce a protective barrier around the ship which was enough for us to not get flipped by the wind. Even with the Star Stream’s lack of probability these days, she’s still the Dokkaebi King.
“So our only issue now would be to find an island to park by. How long is that gonna take?”
Not too long apparently. As Han Sooyoung finished her sentence, a certain shape appeared from the distance. Perfect timing I would say, and looking at her, Sooyoung seems to be thinking the same thing. Although it is strange; I’m not all too familiar with Korea’s former and current geography but I don’t think there was an island like this around here.
With enough thought, we decided to just settle down in this land so I went back to inform the rest of the company and no one objected.
Boredom once again engulfed the area as I just continued to read whatever interesting book I could find in the bookshelves, while the others just continued with whatever they were doing.
There wasn’t much to see in this island after all, and we can’t even leave check it out due to the storm. Look to the left and you see trees, look to the right and you see more trees, everywhere you look is just trees, trees, rocks, and more tre-
“Hey…do you see that?”
Shin Yoosung suddenly spoke as she looked over the view. I was about to ask her what it was since there was nothing to see, but then I looked a little closer at a certain corner of the forest and indeed there was something. There was what looks to be a stone paved stairway leading up to somewhere like a pathway.
“Hyung! Let’s check it out!”
“Wha- No we can’t go out there in the storm!”
Gilyoung’s suggestions was quickly rejected by Yoo Sangah, but then Lee Jihye butted in, fully agreeing with the declaration.
“We’ll come back immediately if there isn’t anything to see. Besides, there isn’t much that we could do in here anyways. Plus a little cold isn’t gonna hurt so come on!”
“Wha- Hey!”
Jihye and Gilyoung already rushed ahead with umbrellas in hand before any of us could even say a word. Yoo Sangah quickly caught up to them while Yoosung tailed behind after much contemplating.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to just leave them alone like that”
Jung Heewon and Lee Hyunsung seems to have overheard the commotion and approached us.
“I suppose you’re right, should we go catch up to them?”
“Sweet! It’s been awhile since we went on a little adventure”
Sooyoung went back and fetched us some more umbrellas. We asked the others if they also wanted to come along but they didn’t have much interest so we just went ahead and tried to catch up with the initial group.
Jung Heewon sprinted ahead in excitement while Lee Hyunsung tried to match her pace. Sooyoung also tried to catch up while I tailed behind her at a slower pace. Eventually, we reached the stone paved stairway and started climbing up. But then-
“Huh?”
I stopped abruptly
“Is something wrong?”
“N- No. It’s nothing”
Sooyoung noticed my oddity but I simply shrugged it off and continued the climb. However it was strange, at some point I suddenly felt a familiar feeling, something similar to a sting from a probability storm. But that can’t be, right?
It wasn’t long before we were reached the top and what greeted us was a massive garden, only there were no flowers planted in the soil, even if there were, they were long rotten or swept out by the storm.
A little further in stood a massive mansion designed in western style architecture. Moving forward, we saw the rest of the group standing in front of what seems to be the entrance with Lee Jihye…uhhh, what is she doing?
“Took you too long enough”
“What’s going on here?”
“Well Jihye-ah suggests that we try to trespass this seemingly abandoned house and insists that she will open the door. But as you can see….”
Just as Heewon said that, Jihye suddenly went rolling back with a “GAK-“ while still holding the door handle. I guess her stubbornness eventually opened the entrance.
I went ahead and pushed the doors open, revealing what looks to be a fancy looking entrance hall, although it was too dark for us to completely discern anything due to the limited light from outside.
I turned on my smartphone’s flash light as we entered to explore the place, Lee Jihye quickly recovered and caught up with us too.
We split up for a bit and looked around the place but even with my smartphone’s light, there wasn’t really much to see in this entrance hall. The carpet had a western style design while further ahead was a stairway to the second floor. What I found odd however, is how seemingly well preserved the interior is compared to outside, as if someone had just recently cleaned the place.
“This is really creepy. I’m starting to think this was a bad idea. Huh?”
As Lee Jihye explored in her own corner, she bumped into a large solid object. She looked at it and noticed some words engraved on its surface like a plaque.
Lee Jihye leaned in as she tried to decipher what was written with the limited light. It was then that a chill ran down her spine as she felt something brush past her and stood behind the plaque.
“Hey guys! I think I found I found the light switches!”
As Lee Hyunsung declared, the hallway was immediately covered in brightness. Lee Jihye then suddenly looked up, it was then that she saw someone looking down at her, forcing her to screech.
“Hiii-“
Her fall attracted everyone as we all gathered to her location. I looked to the direction of her gaze and saw ‘someone’ or rather ‘something’. It was a large painting of a beautiful woman. Her hair was blonde, tied with a rose ornament; her eyes blue like the open skies and peaceful sea, adorned in a western style dress covered in brown-red palettes, along with gold stripes shaped like an eagle.
Many words could describe the beauty of this painting, but out of it all, the first word that came to my mind was that of a Witch.
“What a beautiful painting, could she be the master of this house?”
Sooyoung couldn’t be wrong about that. It’s the most common thing to assume. Yoosung went and helped Jihye up as we stared at the strange painting for a bit before looking back down to the plaque that Jihye saw.
“Huh? This is Japanese..”
Sooyoung leaned in to look only to declare a disappointing answer. None of us could read this language. But perhaps?
“Let me try, I’ve been learning some Japanese from Asuka Ren lately, I’m not fully an expert on it yet but I do know a few words”
Nice one Sangah-ssi!
Sooyoung cleared the way for Yoo Sangah as she leaned in and focused. The rest of us waited in anticipation and it wasn’t long before she spoke, prompting us to listen.
“’Behold the sweetfish river running through my beloved hometown. You who seek the Golden Land, follow its path downstream in search of the key.’
It looks to be some kind of epitaph”
“Golden Land? Does that mean there’s a treasure?”
“Eonni keep readinig!”
The kids felt some excitement from the possibility of a treasure hunt. Yoo Sangah then continued to read after a dry laugh. The rest of us also got intrigued by this so we all nudged a little closer.
“’As you travel down it, you will see a village.
In that village, look for the shore the two will tell you of.
There sleeps the key to the Golden Land’”
Now I may be a reader but I’m no expert when it comes to riddles. I tried to look and see if Sooyoung had any idea but she just replied with a shrug and went back into deep thought. Everyone else seemed to be doing the same.
Yoo Sangah continued.
“’The one who obtains the key must then travel to the Golden Land in accordance with these rules….’”
At this point, her face suddenly hardened as she abruptly paused at that sentence.
Heewon noticed the sudden change and asked.
“Is something wrong?”
“No…It’s just that the words suddenly got rather eerie from this point on”
What?
She continued.
“’On the First Twilight, offer the six chosen by the key as sacrifices.’”
Han Sooyoung voiced her thoughts.
“Sacrifices? What kind of sacrifices?”
“’On the Second Twilight, those who remain shall tear apart the two who are close.’”
Jung Heewon was next to speak.
“That sounds…rather cruel”
“’On the Third Twilight, those who remain shall praise my noble name’”
My brows twitched on this part. Now they’re asking for a praise?
“’On the Fourth Twilight, gouge the head and kill.
On the Fifth Twilight, gouge the chest and kill.
On the Sixth Twilight, gouge the stomach and kill.
On the Seventh Twilight, gouge the knee and kill.
On the Eighth Twilight, gouge the leg and kill.’”
Everyone’s faces suddenly hardened at this part, completely understanding what Yoo Sangah meant before.
“’On the Ninth Twilight, the witch shall revive and none shall be left alive.
On the Tenth Twilight, the journey will end, and you shall reach the capital in which the gold dwells.’”
“So in the end, no one survives? How are we supposed to get the gold then?”
“Shh- there’s more”
As Yoosung silenced Gilyoung, Yoo Sangah continued.
“’The Witch will praise the wise and bestow four treasures.
One shall be all the Gold in the Golden Land.
One shall be the resurrection of the souls of all the dead.
One shall be the resurrection of the love that was lost.’”
“So everyone just gets resurrected either way? Win-win I guess?”
As Jihye spoke, Yoo Sangah finally read the last few lines.
“’One shall be the Witch, put into an eternal sleep
Rest in Peace, my beloved Witch,
Beatrice’” ‘Beatrice’
Almost at the same time, Han Sooyoung looked back up to the painting and spoke.
“Could that be the name of this woman?”
It’s possible. Beatrice is an Italian name and her style seems to match.
Either way, the epitaph is seemingly unsolvable, disheartening everyone who was looking forward to the treasure hunt. So I went ahead and declared.
“Why don’t we go explore around a little more? This Mansion is already giving us shelter from the rain, I don’t see why we won’t take advantage of it. Plus, maybe we could find some clues along the way”
The mood was lightened a bit by then. With no objections. We all moved around the mansion and explored its corridors. I suggested that we should split up into groups but Sooyoung retorted saying that that’s how every cliché horror movie start and we wouldn’t want to become a victim of it.
The mansion was allot bigger than I anticipated, there were plenty of rooms around the place but all of them were locked. Eventually, we found what looked to be the servants’ quarters and with a bit of Jihye’s stubbornness, we were able to open the room and got hold of the servant Keys.
We went back and checked out the rooms that we missed and for the most part, it was all up to expectations. Just regular guest rooms with a few that differed. Qne that had a bunch of stuffed toys in the bed and another that was filled with a bunch of dolls; the latter especially creeped us out. Though what bothered me even more was the state each room was in. Much like the entrance hall, they’re oddly preserved despite how empty the place was.
Before long, we decided to check out the second floor. Upon reaching the top, what greeted us was two large doors in the middle of a hallway. Its design was allot different than the rest of the doors with its door knobs having a scorpion engraved as a design. None of the keys that we had could open the locks as well, it seemed like this room was a little special.
“HAAP! GWAK-“
“Guess it won’t budge”
Not even Lee Jihye’s persistence could open the door it seems.
“Maybe we could find the key around here, should we check out this floor as well?”
*BAM*
All of us flinched on the sudden sound of what seemed to be doors slamming shut. Moreover, it seemed to be coming from the entrance hall.
I went ahead and took the lead, cautiously navigating through the stairway to peek at the unknown visitor. The rest tailed behind me and took a look as well, but all we found was nothing more but empty space.
“Maybe its just the wind?”
Lee Hyunsung voiced out, which was a reason that we just took for granted. I was about to suggest going back to the second floor when we heard voices from the corridors. Now I’m sure that there’s someone else here other than us.
“Should we maybe leave? The entrance is that way”
“Why don’t we check it out?”
Sooyoung’s suggestion overshadowed Jihye’s with everyone tailing behind. We slowly passed by the painting and through the corridor where the voices were. The sounds of conversation were getting louder as we closed in on the corner.
Han Sooyoung had her back on the wall as her brow twitched up at what she heard. At a minimum pace, she turned her head to peek into the next hall. And then-
“GYAAH-“
“AAAH-“
“GA- wait..what?”
Sooyoung’s scream caused a chain reaction, causing everyone to scream along with her, and by everyone, I mean EVERYONE.
Apparently, the so called visitors that arrived within the mansion were none other than the rest of the company with Yoo Joonghyuk in the lead. Behind him were Lee Seolwha, Gong Pildu, Jang Hayoung and the Constellations, while Yoo Mia was clinging to his right arm.
“What the heck are you lot doing here!?”
“Uhhh…we were trying to find the bathroom…?”
Sooyoung, and everyone else, just started at Black Dragon’s cliché attempt at an excuse. Yoo Joonghyuk couldn’t help but face palm. He later took the lead to explain everything after we all settled down.
Apparently, we’ve been gone for longer than we’ve noticed so they all started to get worried and just decided to all go and fetch us, leaving Biyoo to guard the yacht. Poor girl.
Well, without much to do, the company went and gathered around what looked to be the guest room while the others went out in groups to explore the mansion. Most of them were just chattering with each other, mainly about the mansion, the painting and the Epitaph though none seemed to have come close to the answer for the latter.
Han Sooyoung sighed.
“I don’t think this storm is going to go pass today. We may have to stay in this place for awhile”
She was looking out of the window, up to the dark clouds where the lights had starting to dim. I checked my smartphone for the time and saw that the hour really has been late.
“I don’t think we have much of a choice. It’s honestly great that this place is allot cleaner than expected. At least we don’t have to worry about collecting dust while getting some rest.
Still don’t you find it strange how well preserved this place is? We’ve already looked around with everyone for awhile and haven’t found anyone else living here”
“Maybe because that lady in the painting actually comes out at night and stalks the mansion halls. Ooooooh~”
Sooyoung playfully wiggled her fingers in front of me as if trying to scare a child with cheap ghost stories. Of course, I’m no child so I playfully shoved her hand back and voiced my own thoughts.
“I’m more inclined to the thought that we may just be trespassing someone’s villa and the cleaners just left for the day”
“Tch- you’re no fun. The setting is allot more interesting this way you know”
We both just giggled at our stupid thoughts and looked back to see Yoo Joonghyuk with his back on the wall, seemingly in deep thought.
“What’s up with you?”
Sooyoung asked, snapping Yoo Joonghyuk out of his mind and prompting him to reply.
“There’s actually another reason for me to be here”
“Huh?”
Yoo Joonghyuk then approached us while his eyes cautiously scanned the surroundings. More specifically, for the others.
“Why are you being so creepy, just spill it already”
Yoo Joonghyuk sighed from Sooyoung’s insistence and spoke while reaching for his pocket.
“After you were gone, I suddenly found this in the middle of the yacht”
Scretching out his hand, inside was what looks to be a letter sized white envelope. Its design was rather peculiar. Gold strips were engraved on the surface shaped like the wing of some bird with a wax seal of red adorned in a similar wing design.
I couldn’t help but ask.
“A letter? From who?”
“That, I don’t know”
“Have you read its contents?”
There was a long pause as Yoo Joonghyuk seemed to go back into deep thought. He looked straight at me with his signature face and spoke.
“It’ll be easier to understand if you read it yourself”
Normally, I would complain about his reply but his face was more serious than usual. so I just stayed silent and did as he asked. The seal seems to have been already detached, indicating that he has read the contents. Within the envelope was a single folded piece of paper. I opened it to reveal the contents and, with it being my specialty, I started reading.
“Good evening dear humans.
Several years ago, I have granted my fortune to a certain individual, but now our contract has come to an end and along with it, their endless dream. It is no fate that you have come to this island, for I am here to retrieve back my fortune along with interest.
If you do not wish for your happy ending to sink into the abyss, then challenge my mystery and praise my holy name, for only then will you preserve your slumber and keep living within your dreams. And if you fail before the clock’s sound, then do awaken from your sleep, for the sounds of the chimes can do nothing more but snap you back to reality.
I wish you all a blessed witch hunt and hope that you’ll realize the weight of your debts.
Yours Truly,
The Golden Witch”
What the heck is this?
“Hey are you trying to pull a prank on us?”
Han Sooyoung looked at Yoo Joonghyuk with suspiscion. Though Yoo Joonghyuk pulling a prank? I know that he’s become more livelier in recent times, but I can’t imagine him going that far. It’s pretty amusing to think about. But…
“What makes you think I would do something like that?”
It doesn’t make any sense. For starters, Yoo Joonghyuk can’t write something like this. Plus how would he know about this Golden Witch before coming into the mansion? It was then that I started to think.
“Could it actually be that Golden Witch, Beatrice?”
But what exactly does she want from us? Who asked her for her fortune? What kind of fortune did they ask for?
Han Sooyoung looked at me with a bemused look.
“Are you seriously believing his antics? The scenarios are long over and witches shouldn’t exist anywhere in the star stream. Clearly he’s messing with us.
Hey, if it’s not you then who asked you to do this little act on us?”
“I told you everything I know. If you don’t believe me then that’s your loss”
Yoo Joonghyuk gave out a heavy sigh. His eyes moved to the window where the storm continued to rage under the night sky.
“I’m just a little worried is all. Our lives have been too quiet for a long time that I’m afraid something unexpected might suddenly happen. I suggest we leave this place first thing after the storm calms down tomorrow”
“What are you talking about? Now you’re just trying to scare us”
Sooyoung’s fist lightly tapped Yoo Joonghyuk’s shoulder as she laughed. She told us to not worry about anything at all and just take a break until the rain stops falling. With nothing else to say, she decided to go catch up with the rest of the company and left while waving her hand. Yoo Joonghyuk looked out the window once more before deciding to leave too. He asked me for the letter back but I insisted on keeping it so he just let it be. After all, something else is bothering me about this letter. I don’t exactly know what, but I feel like the words mean more than they looked.
An hour passed and I decided to walk around the mansion’s corridors again. There weren’t that many functionable lights so my only source of brightness would be the rays of the moon coming from the nearby windows. I liked the setting; it makes me feel calm and allowed me to think better. Though the only thing that’s filling my mind were the contents of that letter.
I looked at out the window again and thought.
“Looks like we’ll be staying here a little longer than planned. The rain doesn’t seem like stopping soon…”
It was then that a chill ran through my skin. I was not alone in this corridor. My body flinched at the sudden cold as I felt something, someone, lurking within the shadows behind me. My heart started beating faster than usual as I felt what seemed like their arm slowly approaching my shoulder.
A slight tap was all it took as I instinctively turned and backed off before I saw who they were. “Dokja-ssi? What’s wrong?”
Oh.
“Sangah-ssi! Don’t scare me like that”
It seems she was taking her own stroll as well. Since we’re already here, we decided to take a walk together and talk about stuff along the way, mainly about the company and some stories that we’ve recently read. Though, even with this little company, I still couldn’t get my mind off that letter. “Hey. There’s something I wanna ask you about”
“Hmm?”
The two of us stopped in front of one of the corridor windows, enough for Yoo Sangah to read what was written in the strange letter while I told her about Yoo Joonghyuk’s story and my own thoughts surrounding it.
“So what do you think?”
Yoo Sangah handed over the letter to me while her mind went into deep thought.
“Just as Sooyoung-ssi said, I think this is nothing more but a silly little prank”
“But there’s no way that bastard would ever make something like this. And as I’ve said before, some things just don’t align”
“Well, maybe he did. My theory is that he just wanted to set a little reminder, or its just his attempt in trying to make a prank, or both. Hehe. Even Yoo Joonghyuk can change his ways, especially now that he doesn’t have much to worry about anymore”
Maybe she’s right. That guy just wanted to try something new for once; just thinking about it makes it very amusing. Out of all the things he could have done, why go for a mysterious letter appearing out of nowhere?
“Though, if we consider the fact that it really was given by the witch”
Yoo Sangah added.
“Perhaps it’s a message for only one person”
“Huh?”
“The letter is using a strange way of wording out their message, so maybe it’s only meant to be decipherable by someone who understood something about them”
Ah, that makes sense. Though, I’ve been trying to figure out that message since I started walking and still haven’t gotten a clue about it so I guess it’s not for me. Weird. Guess I’m not the ‘one reader’ this time around.
I looked up to the window and saw a bit of the moon covered in the dark clouds. My eyes stared at the falling rain drops for a bit before I covered my mouth as I yawned. Now that I think about it, it is getting late isn’t it?
Yoo Sangah seemed to have noticed me and suggested.
“You should go ahead and get some sleep. I’ll keep walking around for awhile. This place feels really peaceful that I just can’t help but enjoy it”
“I see. You take care”
She pointed me to where the kids were already sleeping and so I decided to go and give them some company. It wasn’t long before I entered the room and just as I expected, Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyoung were already sleeping in the bed. Their positions didn’t leave me much space though, but there seem\ed to be another bed next to them so I just dropped down there.
As I lay in bed, I saw a wall clock hanging from a wall. Once again, I’m reminded about how preserved this place was since the time seemed to be accurate. My mind started to calm down as I saw the seconds hand slowly tick. And just as it struck twelve, the hour and minute hand aligned with it too, and along with that, I closed my eyes…
.
.
.
Yoo Sangah continued her walk and passed by a few of the others from the group. The Constellations were about to enter their respective rooms. Seolwha, Sooyoung, and Joonghyuk were hanging around the kitchen while the rest seemed to have already fallen asleep either in the guest’s lounge or within the other open rooms.
As she returned to the corridors, she found herself alone again, looking out at the pouring rain while seemingly thinking of thoughts unknown. Then she took a step forward and noticed something at the corner end of the halls.
“Huh?”
There was something glowing and moving; It was small, like a firefly just dancing within the darkness. Yoo Sangah was curious about the strange creature and decided to follow it. Though as she approached the glow, it too flew farther, prompting her to quicken her pace just to take a good glance at what it was.
It wasn’t long before she finally caught up to the little thing. Within the darkness of the halls, lit by nothing else but the rays of the midnight moon, Yoo Sangah’s eyes finally processed the flying creature’s features.
It was a golden butterfly….