Hopeful Days at Wolho Temple

Yina sighed; he was indeed a sight for sore eyes.

"Here," Seo Yul said, holding out a wooden box, "it's the shell relics."

As Yi Na reached for the wooden box in Seo Yul's hands, their fingers brushed - a small, accidental touch, but it lingered like a spark. Her breath caught. For all the chaos they had endured, that single moment felt impossibly still, suspended in warmth. She looked up at him, and in his eyes, she saw the same weight she carried - the burden of decisions, of losses, of unspoken longing. But beneath it, there was something else too. Something tender and steady.

He didn't let go immediately. His hand remained beneath hers, as if neither of them was ready to break the contact. Seo Yul took a slow step forward, the distance between them closing like a tide rolling in and hugged her.

"You've done more than anyone could have asked, Yi Na," he said, his voice low, rough around the edges. "I was not here but I see how hard you have been trying. How much you carry. You are doing so great."

She felt her throat tighten, words lodging in her chest. Instead of replying, she reached up and pressed a finger gently to his lips, silencing him. Her touch trembled slightly, but her gaze held firm.

"Tonight," she whispered, "let's not talk about sorrow."

He nodded, once. And that was all it took, but the hug lingered a bit longer.

Later, they shared a modest meal in her chamber - just warm broth, a few rice cakes, and a sweet drink he'd brought with him from Daeho. They sat close, shoulders nearly touching, laughter spilling easily between them. She hadn't laughed like this in days, hadn't let her guard down enough to feel the softness of joy. But with him, it was effortless.

When the meal was done, they sat in silence for a while, the soft rustling of the wind outside whispering through the wooden beams. The moon hung high and round beyond the latticed window, bathing the room in pale silver light.

Seo Yul reached for her hand, cradling it in his as if it were something sacred. He didn't say a word. He didn't have to.

She leaned in first. Their kiss was hesitant at first - a question asked in silence. But then his arms came around her, anchoring her to the safety of his heartbeat. The kiss deepened, not in urgency, but in trust - the kind that had grown between them like a secret garden.

As dawn painted the sky in muted silver, Yi Na rose quietly from her bed, careful not to disturb Seo Yul beside her, at least not just yet. The night had been full of whispered laughter, of warmth shared without fear, and for a moment, she allowed herself to hold onto the peace it brought. But duty called, as it always did.

She sat for a moment at the edge of the bed, listening to the steady rhythm of his breathing. The soft hush of the wind outside slipped through the paper screen, carrying with it the scent of pine and ash from the dying lantern. When she turned to look at him, Seo Yul's eyes were already open - quiet, steady, full of thought.

"You're leaving me behind already?" he teased softly, voice still thick with sleep.

She smiled faintly, brushing her fingers along the edge of his jaw. "No. You're coming with me."

They lingered a little longer than necessary - just breathing in the shared silence, the warmth between them a fragile thread neither wanted to sever too soon. When they finally dressed, it was in unspoken agreement, their movements quiet, companionable.

They walked together through the streets, the place solemn as expected, and the morning air crisp with lingering fog. Yi Na led him to the gates of Cheonbugwan, the magical order's sacred stronghold. At their approach, the sentinels in deep-blue robes bowed in recognition.

Inside, a quiet reverence settled over the ancient halls. Mages in training glanced up, some surprised, others clearly aware of Seo Yul's identity and reason for being around. He had once worked alongside them during a prior campaign, when dark forces had threatened the borderlands around Changwon, Wolho's smallest city. They remembered him.

The head of the Wolho Fortress chapter, a middle-aged gentleman named Yang Seok Jin, emerged from one of the interior corridors. Broad-shouldered and dressed in layered blue silk, he carried himself well. He greeted Yi Na with a polite nod and Seo Yul with a bow.

"Welcome, Lord Seo. Lady Yi Na," he said. "Preparations have already begun for tonight's ritual. We are at your service."

Seo Yul inclined his head. "Thank you, Yang Bugwangjunim."

Though the Cheonbugwan order was often assumed to be monastic, it was not without its families. The star-gazers - the order's scholars, spiritual mapmakers and readers - often married and raised children just like Jang Uk's family. It was the casters, like the young mages, those who wove magic with their own bodies, who took oaths of chastity and clarity until the age of 25 - their youth and chastity a blessing to the world of mages.

Yang Seok Jin was one such star-gazer, known not only for his mastery of celestial alignment rituals, but also for the kindness he showed his apprentices and his unwavering love for his wife, who lived with him and their three kids in the central area of the Capital like other noble mage families in the fortress. He had been a powerful caster in his youth and helped The Jang Couple in their quest for relics within Wolho Fortress. Cho Yeong had been the one to recommend him for the role of Bugwangju of Wolho's Cheonbugwan and he was forever grateful to the Jang couple and their friends.

As they exchanged brief updates, Cho Yeon emerged from a side chamber, a whispering shell in hand and brows drawn tight with worry. She paused at the sight of Seo Yul.

"Seo Yul, when did you come?" she greeted, inclining her head.

"Cho Yeon," he said with a nod, then reached inside his cloak. "Se Mi and the boys send their greetings. There's something else I brought."

He handed her a palm sized, dark-lacquered wooden box...

"Your mother said that if I gave you this, you would understand."

Cho Yeon froze. Her fingers hovered above the latch for a moment before she opened the box. Nestled within, cushioned by red silk, was a small compass-like relic. It resembled a sundial, but the needle quivered faintly with an unseen force.

Her face went still. "I remember this," she murmured. "My mother and I investigated a case like this, long ago. I was just a girl then."

Yi Na and Seo Yul exchanged a glance, silent but attentive.

"There were women," Cho Yeon said slowly, eyes never leaving the dial, "who couldn’t marry. Not because they didn’t want to, but because something followed them. Ghosts. Spirits of dead women who hated childbirth, who despised love. They would attach themselves to the living, poisoning their fates."

Seo Yul looked grim. "How did your mother treat it?"

"A ritual," Cho Yeon replied. "Dangerous. The requirements for each case were different but for the ones with child ghosts who prevented childbirth, it was even more dangerous." Cho Yeon sat down, her eyes fixed on some point on the wall but obviously unfocused, "The object of the sacrifice is human, almost always a woman. The woman must be a mage. Preferably pregnant — with a male child. And she must have living male protectors: her husband, father, father-in-law, and a son, even if unborn. Their lives anchor her to this world. If she's born in the Year of the Dragon or Tiger even better, the more the odds of her winning."

She held up the dial. "During the ritual, she offers her blood. She prays while mages form a circle around her and the affected women and summon the ghosts. Once the spirits are drawn out of the affected women, the dial reacts to the darkness — drawing the ghosts toward the light it produces and the spirits are decimated."

Yi Na frowned. "So the ghosts are not reincarnated? What if it fails?"

"She dies," Cho Yeon answered. "And the child dies with her."

There was silence, heavy and thick. Then Yang Bugwangju straightened. "Then we must ensure it does not fail."

*****************

Later that day, they brought the relic to the old shaman at Wolho Temple. Since he started the daily calming rituals, he had been hosted by the nuns. After listening to Cho Yeon explain, he examined it with reverent hands, nodding slowly. "This... this is old magic. Pure. Reminds of the Choi Shaman Family of Daeho."

Cho Yeon swallowed at that but refused to speak; the statement brought back painful memories of her father and his death.

Yi Na said worriedly, "the question remains; where can we find a woman that fits these requirements?"

Everyone paused; obviously no one would volunteer their pregnant daughter/wife for such a ritual. They may have to resort to requesting Imperial Support.

"Th-that" Yang Seok Jin's assistant a young fair-faced man spoke timidly after a moment of silence, "Master, we can check the constellation plates. A young lady who is a mage from a noble family will have her constellation plates at the Cheonbugwan, especially if she is already married."

Yang Seok Jin nodded and patted the young man's shoulders for his good work. "I will summon the star gazers to search." He turned to the old man, "Is there anyway to track this person?"

The old shaman’s hands hovered above the relic, fingers trembling slightly as the dial quivered from his infusion of energy. “To anchor the ritual properly,” he said, his voice rough with fatigue and reverence, “the woman must be born under a strong sun. Afternoon-born, when yang energy is at its peak. And she must be of the Dragon year — the only sign fierce and noble enough to draw and withstand the vengeful dead.”

"We’ll search the constellation tablets. Every noble family registered in the Capital and surrounding provinces. If such a woman exists, we’ll find her."

Two days passed in tense, restless waiting.

The fortress buzzed with whispered prayers and protective chants, but the dread never left — an invisible shadow in every hallway. The pregnant women, clutching their new talismans, moved in quiet groups, most of them refusing to leave the safety of the Temple, eyes darting to the sky. The relic, resting on the shrine in the temple’s heart, pulsed faintly with light, as if echoing their hope.

Finally, just after sunrise on the third day, one of the senior stargazers arrived in the Yang Seok Jin's office. His robes were crumpled, his hair disheveled, but triumph gleamed in his eyes.

“We found someone.”

Yang Seok Jin met him at once. “Where?”

“The Kim clan. Capital-based. Mage lineage, well-documented. The daughter-in-law of the current clan leader, Kim Jeong. She was born in the year of the Dragon — at exactly one quarter past noon, in the season of the high sun.”

Yang Seok Jin’s eyes narrowed. “And she’s with child?”

“Yes. A son, from all indications. But... she’s not in the Capital. Her mother requested she return home to Changwon for her safety and her in-laws agreed. The plague has already touched the outer districts, and they thought she’d be safer away from the city’s chaos.”

---

By late afternoon, Seo Yul, Yi Na and Cho Yeon stood outside the sprawling estate of the Kim family — a mansion built of ash-colored stone and fragrant wood, nestled beneath a swath of old plum trees. Kim Jeong received them personally in a garden pavilion, a pot of mountain root tea steaming between them.

“Yes,” the elder mage confirmed, his voice calm but firm. “My son’s wife meets all the requirements. Dragon-born, pregnant with her second child, and from a reputable magical bloodline. Her mother insisted she return to Changwon before the roads were sealed. That was nearly a month ago. She's from the Hong Magistrate Family of Changwon.”

Yi Na leaned forward, a strange chill trickling down her spine. “Who is her mother?”

“Her name is Madam Na” Kim Jeong replied.

Something inside Yi Na twisted sharply.

Na Joo Ah.

Her sister.

Seo Yul’s gaze flicked to her, noting the flicker in her expression. He didn’t speak, but his hand found hers beneath the table. Steady.

“Do you know her well?” Kim Jeong asked, glancing between them.

Yi Na exhaled. “She’s my older sister.”

There was a pause — not stunned, not awkward, just… fated.

The threads of their paths were pulling tighter, drawing the net closer. The woman who could anchor the ritual, the unborn child, the bloodline strong enough to weather the storm — it all led back to Yi Na’s own family.

And the cost of saving others might now come at a price steeper than she ever expected.