The cut on her shoulder was beginning to sting from the sweat and the blood that seeped into the fabric of her favorite yellow sweater had dried, cracking at the slightest movement as she walked along an empty dirt path. She’d lost track of time, her watch was broken beyond repair. It must’ve cracked when she fell unconscious and her phone was nowhere to be found. The only thing keeping her company was the trees along the side of the road and the steady flow of water from the stream nearby. 

“I swear this day just gets weirder and weirder”

Lisa was starting to miss school, all she had to worry about was to make sure she passed. She went from wanting to finish an assignment to fending off crazies who carry around blades stabbing people they just met. She ran her fingers through her hair fixing her bangs along the way, it was a habit she had whenever she was stressed out. She barely finished combing through when she stopped in her tracks -- don’t those look like houses? Squinting, Lisa could barely make out straw hut roofs, and smoke that made the blue sky pale. She broke into a sprint, her shoes digging into the tender flesh of her ankles making them blister. 

She was panting as she reached the outskirts of the small village. Straw huts were clustered messily, the doors and windows shut tight. Lisa trudged slowly, trying to even out her ragged breathing. Where was everyone? Everything seemed out of place, this looked too primitive. Everything was made out of wood and straw, farming tools that looked quite like the ones she saw from the History books she spent hours studying littered the exterior of the huts and smoke was coming from what seemed to be the center of the village. She wanted to step back and leave, she’d seen far too many thrillers to know where this was headed. Not that she believed cannibals existed in South Korea, it was the most realistic, plausible explanation she had at this point. 

“Nu-i?” a tiny voice made her jump. 

“Are you lost?” she turned around and saw a boy looking up at her from an open window. 

“I -- uh, I guess I am. Can you tell me the name of this place?” Lisa walked closer, careful not to make sudden movements and scare the child away. 

“Dong-soo! Who are you talking to?” A girl, a couple of years older than the boy peeked, “Who are you?” 

“I’m Lisa, I … think I’m lost. Can you help me? I just need to know where I am.” 

She was answered with a closed window, the girl barely even looked at her.

“Hey! I… come on! Aarrgghh!” kicking a rock in frustration. What is it with people ignoring her questions? If only that girl hadn’t interrupted, the little boy would have given her the answers she needed. There was no point in getting mad at something she had no control over. She’d have to find for answers elsewhere.

Lisa stormed off into the center of the village. Following the source of the smoke, bit by bit pieces of hushed conversations rose above the stillness of the village. She could make out parts of the conversation.

“They’re coming… collect…” they sounded strained and anxious. 

“There’s no use in denying them what’s due.” an old man answered back. 

The huts were clustered closer to each other as you neared the village center, providing Lisa with enough room to hide behind. She was a couple of steps away from where people were huddled.

“I heard that the crown prince was with them. We’re lucky if he is.”

“I don’t think it’s wise to assume old man. Why would the crown prince waste time with us commoners? He has better things to do.” A gruff man answered, earning a couple of approvals among the crowd. 

Lisa could see they all wore hanboks in variations of white and light gray, most of which were stained with mud. The murmurs were silenced as sounds of horses approached. Men with elaborate headpieces and garbed in red robes appeared. Some of them armed with long spears circled around the vicinity of the village center.There was a sudden stillness that enveloped the villagers as the men on horses made way for a man in navy blue robes adorned with a phoenix crest. 

“Seja-Jeoha!” They cried out as they bowed. 

Lisa froze. She died. She probably died from that damn painting, she must have inhaled far too much mold, maybe the paint used contained too much lead. Yeah, that sounds about right -- lead poisoning, that’s why they kept them hidden all these years. They were dangerous and she was stupid enough to let a damn cat led her to that cursed painting. She was hallucinating, maybe even a NDE … those were the only logical things she can think of. She refused to believe she was transported back to the past. She found herself laughing, laughed at how stupid this was. Pfft the past? She had tears in her eyes from the laughter, she was gasping for air and couldn’t stop. Except… except the silence went on far longer than it should. Her laughter the only thing that broke through the tension. 

Lisa was suddenly aware of the looks, heard the men closest to her dismount their horses and pulled out their swords. She stopped, a lump in . They were looking at her, and the men in red robes closed in on her, their swords at the ready. 

“Who dares laugh at the crown prince?” She heard them whisper amongst themselves. 

“She dresses funny, she must be a foreigner…” Lisa could hear them above the pounding of her heart. She could see them exchange looks and the way they tried to avoid her gaze as if she was with a contagious disease. She felt strong hands on her arms, her wound throbbing against the warm grip on her shoulders as she was dragged towards the center. Forced to her knees before the man in blue robes and his beautiful chestnut horse. 

“Where are your manners girl? Kneel!” harsh hands on her head forced her to bow, her face almost kissing the dirt floor. 

“Enough!” The hands holding onto her let go at once, “Who are you and what brings you to Jiyulheon?” 

Lisa could not find her voice to speak, this was just too much to take in at such short notice. 

“Speak woman! Have you no tongue?!” This made Lisa flinch, she could feel the man closing the distance his hands on his sword hilt. 

“Cease, there is no reason to be violent Yong-Min. Let her be, I’m sure she has a reason to be silent.”

“But.. Seja jeoha... “ 

He held out his hand to silence his guard. 

“Lisa Manoban, my name is Lisa Manoban and I have no idea why I’m here.” She said meekly, she could still feel the animosity from the guy called Yong-Min and she wanted to avoid aggravating that. God knows she wanted to survive this ordeal in one piece.

“You wear clothes that are not from this kingdom, where are you from?” His voice was calm and steady with purpose

“Bangkok.. Thailand” There was no use lying to them, she knew she’d be in more danger if she tried to make up a village name. 

The person they called crown prince dismounted his horse, Lisa could see the tips of his blue robe between her bangs as she bowed. She felt the coolness of the silver before she saw it, nudging her face up with the tip of the blade, Lisa could finally put a face to the voice. For a brief moment, Lisa saw recognition in his eyes as he looked at her. HIs hair tousled from the wind. He smiled at her warmly and extended his hand, helping her to her feet.

“Yong-Min? Prepare a horse. She will be coming with us back to the palace.”

“Seja Jeoha?”

“Have you no ears? Prepare her a horse, we ride back to the palace today.”

“We... have no more horses to spare…” Yong-Min was eyeing her with a wary look

“Then she rides with me, either way she comes back with us.” The prince was already mounted and gave Lisa another warm smile. 

“But the taxes Jeoha, and we came here for the plant. We need that for the King --”

“You have your orders, let Jung-Ho take care of the taxes for now here.” He looked back at Lisa and offered his hand again. 

“Do you know how to ride a horse?” There was a certain tenderness in the question.

“No.. I’ve never had the chance to ride one before..” 

He flicked his finger and in a flurry of motions, strong hands had gripped her waist and hoisted her up on the horse. He took Lisa’s hands and guided them to his waist, 

“Hold on tight, it will be a long way back.” He chuckled as he saw Lisa’s surprised look, “Lisa Manoban, you may be what we’ve been waiting for a long time. My name is Jeon Jungkook, crown prince of Joseon.” He rode off with his men following behind. 

What have I gotten myself into?

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A/N: Sorry if the story is progressing slowly, I've always liked slow burn Historical fictions. We'll be meeting a lot of the characters on the next chapter. Comment, vote or subscribe :). Thank you.