After Death
Cupid at Heart
When exiting the chamber of the King and Queen of the Underworld, Hyunmi realized she was surrounded by the same moss colored lake. Dead souls mourned a cry of agony as they floated by, trapped within the surface of the water.
“Excuse me, Charon?” She called out, attempting her earlier method.
Soon enough, the same creature appeared, riding on the same gondola. He appeared carrying a fog of mist behind him, announcing his arrival out of nowhere. Without saying a word, he stretched his hand out to her.
Hyunmi finally understood why she needed two obols. Had she brought only one, she would be stuck in the Underworld for an eternity.
“Get in,” he said.
The princess would never get over her fear towards his sinister voice that triggered her worst nightmares to resurface. She shook her head, getting rid of the thought as she sat down in the gondola.
The ride was disturbed by dead souls trying to enter the gondola. Charon never spared them a look. A soul without payment was forbidden from the ride. Hyunmi watched the souls with fascination, observing none of the human qualities they once had. A part of her secretly wished to spot her mother, but after reconsidering, hoped for her to have ended up in a better place.
They reached the shore where she had first woken up in at the beginning. Instead of solid walls, there was an ascending stairway leading towards the light.
“Thank you, Charon,” she said, jumping off the gondola unto the shore. She curtsied to him appreciatively and headed to the stairs. She sensed it being the gate to the world of the living. Using that conviction, she marched forward and climbed the stairs, greeted by a blinding ray of light. The light was too powerful for the mortal eye, forcing her to shut it as she blindly took a leap of faith forward.
“When do you think she’ll come back?”
“Fear not, Miss Nightgown. I am certain Apollo meant no harm.”
“There is a higher possibility of her not returning due to her bad sense of direction.”
“W-wait! She’s m-moving!”
Hyunmi blinked her eyes several times, adjusting her vision to the surrounding. The light wasn’t too bright in contrast to the dark Underworld. She lifted her body from the bench she was placed on, experiencing a strong force of vertigo at the smallest movement. Her journey defined both a dream and a nightmare, unable to decipher it as good or bad.
“Thank goodness you’re alive,” Seulyi shouted, jumping at the princess with arms circled around her neck.
The sudden jolt of movement sent another wave of pain rushing through Hyunmi’s head. She winced a little, kneading the top of her head to reduce it. The beat of the drum rang in her head, mentally slapping her sense of serenity. Everyone still celebrated the festival.
“Did you bring Persephone’s Box?” Sungyeol asked eagerly, staring at the princess’ empty hands. His excitement died down when he stopped hopping on his feet.
“I have to complete a mission before I may retrieve it,” Hyunmi answered, trying to adjust her eyes to her surrounding again. The headache was less imminent now. Her spiritual soul slowly settled in her physical body.
“What kind of endeavor is required of you this time?” Myungsoo asked, ready to offer his assistance.
“One that I’ve been struggling with my entire life,” Hyunmi answered, her voice soft, stripped away from any hope. “Find a cure to my father’s sickness.”
The others grew quiet, especially Seulyi and Sungjong who had known about her lifelong efforts to heal the King of Heart. None of her potions and breweries seemed to help, making it all the more impossible to carry out this final task.
“You have been trying that for years” Seulyi said, pointing out the fact that even the princess herself was aware of. But seeing the frown sinking on her friend’s face, she panicked. “B-but that doesn’t mean it won’t ever succeed.”
“They told me I have five days to complete this task,” Hyunmi added, letting out a deep sigh. She excluded the detail of her father having only five days left to live.
The others flinched again, feeling the burden of the task. Staying positive became a challenge of its own. The option to give up was much more appealing.
“Out of curiosity, have you ever tried curing your father since meeting Cupid?” Myungsoo suddenly asked, breaking the silence with the playfulness in his whimsical tone. Once again, he implied a bigger idea.
Hyunmi slowly shook her head, realizing how much of an unfilial daughter she had been, completely blinded by love. It was her first time experiencing such feelings, and she wanted to dwell in it.
“Well then, we may have a chance at finding a cure,” Myungsoo suddenly declared.
“On what basis are you making such promises? We don’t even know what the king is suffering from,” Sungjong interrupted. It was a disease that had taken the late queen’s soul too. They didn’t have enough time to stop the virus from spreading and ended up losing an important loved one.
“You see, before meeting Cupid, Sungyeol, or myself, you must not have been aware of the existence of magical creatures and enchanted items, correct?”
Hyunmi widened her eyes, slowly understanding the argument he tried to reason with. “I read fables, but never thought they proved to be true.”
“Exactly. As you have experienced the power of Athena’s Brooch of Wisdom and Apate’s Mask, mounted a pegasus and a chimera, you have now been exposed to a world you never knew existed before,” Myungsoo continued, stretching his smile when he saw the glint of understanding on the princess’ face. With the wisdom brooch still fastened against her dress, it was much easier to convey new ideas and thoughts.
“The cure to my father’s sickness isn’t one found in the ordinary world, but rather, in the magical one,” Hyunmi spoke, straightening herself on her seat. A sheepish smile hung on her lips, trying to think of answers while relishing in their accomplishment in finding a new possibility.
“Y-yes! What could it possibly b-be?” Sungyeol asked, cheering along without quite understanding why. He loved anything worth celebrating, hopping excitedly from one feet to another. His long brown rabbit ears bounced along to his movements.
“That is the mystery we have to solve, dear March Hare,” Myungsoo spoke. As he continued watching his friend, a frown of annoyance appeared on his face. “Good riddance, can’t you stop moving? You are inflicting me an ample dose of dizziness.”
“I can’t. I have consumed too much of my coffee beans.” Sungyeol snickered a laugh like a child being busted for stealing a cookie.
“I warned you to be more careful with those things. You should take a normal dosage of it.” Myungsoo continued speaking, his annoyance morphing into a tone of concern and panic. He deeply cared for his friend and was frightened of a possibility to get hurt.
Sungyeol never showed such concerns for the long term future, choosing to dwell in momentary happiness of the present. He cared not about his future health, knowing these beans were needed for his current survival.
“We could call it an addiction,” Sungjong remarked, watching the March Hare’s excessive movements. The hare had grown quite used to it, never seeing it as a potential life threat.
“They may energize you to the point of death. Do you not feel your heart rate quickening?” Myungsoo tried speaking some sense into his delirious friend.
As Sungyeol cackled away without a care, Hyunmi’s mouth fell open with a sudden epiphany. She got up on her feet, lifting her head to meet Myungsoo who was a feet taller than her petite frame.
“If your words rang true, could we reverse the effect of the beans?” She asked.
Myungsoo was awkwardly still, not daring to move when the princess was so close. “Pardon?”
Hyunmi moved back, turning to the others to share a newfound idea. “If the coffee beans bear enough power to energize the living to the point of death, could it energize the sick to life as well?”
“You’re planning to feed this to the king,” Seulyi muttered under her breath, immediately understanding the princess’ logic.
“I never thought of a coffee bean as a magical item. Would this be the right solution?” Sungjong asked, playing the devil’s advocate to ensure a situation was analyzed from multiple views.
“Judging on the effect it has on Sungyeol, there is a new sense of liveliness every time he consumes the beans,” Hyunmi said, looking at Sungyeol who perfectly supported her theories through his excessive movements. He was hopping in place, trying to see whether his rabbit ears could ever stay still if he moved.
“It is, alas, an ordinary coffee bean bearing no magical powers. Perhaps the answer you are looking for does not lie in these beans,” Myungsoo proposed another idea.
“But the princess has never tried brewing anything using the beans. I think it’s worth a try,” Seulyi said, grabbing Hyunmi’s hand in hers. “Maybe you can combine it with another item that bears magical power. I remember Princess Biah saying she possesses a magical item.”
“The caduceus? But we have already obtained it,” Hyunmi spoke, watching the wrinkles appear on Seulyi’s forehead as she fought hard to remember its name.
“No, it’s a different kind of magical item. Something with food? Or was it a drink? You mentioned it once before,” Seulyi said, knocking the side of her temples to retrieve the answer. “I recall the word mammoths? The water of the mammoths?”
Hyunmi gasped out loud. “The Well of the Mermaids!”
“Yes, that!”
Luckily, due to their long years of friendship, Hyunmi had learned how to deal with Seulyi’s poor ability to remember names. Sometimes it rhymed, sometimes it was an alliteration, sometimes it was a completely different subject. Being able to decipher it became a new skill.
Hyunmi turned to Myungsoo with a b smile. “Would it be possible to mix the coffee beans with mermaid tears?”
“It is quite a risk you shall be taking, princess. Are you aware of the consequences of using mermaid tears?”
“It can grant a humble wish in exchange of one’s life,” Hyunmi recited from her memories. “The mermaid tears shall weigh the humbleness or selfishness of each wish. Whether the requester deserves mercy or death, the tears shall judge.”
Myungsoo blinked his eyes in surprise. “My, you are quite knowledgeable on this subject considering you have never studied the magical realm,” he said, completely impressed.
“It was Woohyun who taught me about the mermaid tears.” Hyunmi smiled, thinking of the day when it was so easy to see him, to hold him, or to kiss him. How much she yearned for his presence.
“If it is as risky as the cost of one’s life, are you truly willing to go along with it, Hyunmi? You’d be putting your own life on the line,” Sungjong remarked. He playfully wiggled his tail, but his movements were more chopped and stiff compared to his usual elegance. The cat tried its best not to show any worries.
“Isn’t the wish to recover my dad from his sickness a humble one?” She asked, trying to plead with the cat instead.
“Yes, but it is also a gateway for you to meet Cupid, which would make it quite selfish,” Sungjong said realistically.
Myungsoo noticed the dejection in all their faces, as if they hit a barricade of steel, obstructing their path to success. “We are not the ones to judge. We haven’t known the outcome. I say it would be safe to try mixing the mermaid tears with the coffee beans.”
“Indeed!” Seulyi also raised her voice to peak through the noise of people celebrating in the back. “Princess Biah’s wish to be with Sir Hoya, which was quite selfish in my opinion, was granted. Perhaps these mermaids have a different standard of humility.”
“T-t-true! If these coffee beans could become a cure to death, how happy I shall be,” Sungyeol sang, dancing along to the beat of the festival.
Despite being the sole decision maker, Hyunmi turned to Sungjong for some sense of approval. She needed others to agree along to prevent herself from doing other irrational, irresponsible actions.
“Do whatever you please. I am fed well enough to survive without you here,” Sungjong said, clearly irritated by the entire idea. Though he put on such a tough front, he meant the exact opposite of his words. He did not want anyone discovering his true worries, or how lost he’d be without the princess he had grown to love and care about. Anyone could see through his pretenses, except the princess herself.
“Oh, Sungjong,” she sang, carrying the fat purple cat from the bench it rested on, and began swinging it in her embrace. “I can’t possibly leave you or anyone else. I am determined to make this plan work. Father shall survive, and Woohyun shall return. I am certain of that.”
Sungjong stayed quiet, feeling the princess’ arms over his body. As the others cheered and celebrated over the princess’ words, he was the only one who felt the trembling in her hand, and the abnormality in her quickening heart rate. Within their small embrace, Sungjong understood she was as frightened as he was. It was her life on the line, after all, and a mistake could lead to her own death. Her words were a conviction to herself. Out of everyone, she needed the most mental support.
“I believe you,” he whispered softly so that only the princess could hear. He was certain his sincere message was delivered, for her firm fingers loosened its grip around his body like a rope unwinding itself from a steady pillar.
“My dear friends,” Hyunmi spoke, the fear in her voice masked by great confidence. “We shall depart to Diamond and obtain the mermaid tears.”
Yay! Won the bid today! I hope you will enjoy the story~ Would love to know your thoughts, so please do leave comments too~ Thank youuu <3
Comments