CHAPTER I:

Gradian was a very remote village very far away from the city. It was cut off from any of the modern technologies that this century should have. They still practised the any form of black magic or arts and they were even associated with some kind of witch craft.

Even many people outside from these villages didn’t know that this kind of village was still existed. Even the location of this village was not even included in the map or satellite. The villagers of Gradian were very civil and vile. All of them believed that legends or mythical creatures such as werewolves existed.

It was because these mythical creatures liked to appear in front of the Gradian’s folk. They sometimes appeared in the form of demons or in the form of humans to deceive the poor heart of the villagers there to lure them into the darkness of the ‘Black Forest’.

Not all of them were dangerous but there were some creatures that were most feared by the villagers of Gradian. These creatures were ‘Werewolves’ and ‘Crow’. It is because that these two demons ate human flesh and they liked to appear in front of the humans almost every day.

Crow were those of the human who were cursed because of the sins they had committed in their past lives. They were called as ‘Crows’ because they had a big and black wings attached on their body and resembled a lot with the crow, animals that were despised by the human race very much.

They liked to hunt for young and beautiful women by making them fall for them and then ate their hearts. They often disguised as handsome men trying to attract your attentions with their beauty. Simply to say that they had very pretty face but heart filled with darkness and evil.

Werewolves were pretty much the same but they hunted for flesh, not caring if it was a male or female. They would also try to find a suitable mate for them by sniffing or tasting the blood of their prey. And once they found their mates, they would never stop trying to find them no matter what happen. They were called ‘The Moon’ clan in the ancient times.

They would try to find their mates from dawn to dusk and they would never stop. Werewolves tended to be in a clan rather than being alone. So when the people of Gradian went into the woods and stumbled upon one of them, they better run because when one of them, started to howl. It would try to call its other companion. And it would be a big and bloody massacre. They tended to change into human forms when they didn’t have enough food and when it was a full moon. And their beauties were like those of God’s level and their beauty couldn’t be resisted.

Many of the villagers of Gradian had fallen as their victims and this was the reason why the people of Gradian really despised the name called ‘beauty’. For them, beauty was a symbol of evil. And it would attract and lure the creations of god which did nothing but evil. For them, they were called ‘Demon’.

To prevent the same fate landing on their village, they killed all of the new born babies which held ‘beauty’ within them. And they would burn them alive and told the villagers that when their wives were having labour and they had a pretty baby, they should bury them so they wouldn’t feel guilty when they were going to kill their babies.

That was the thought of the ancient Gradian’s villagers. And there was one person who didn’t agree with the natives thinking of Gradian’s villagers. And that man was a family man. To him, family came first.

He lived furthest part away from the other neighbours but still lived in that very village. When his wife was pregnant, everyone in that village started to behave indifferently towards that man, afraid that his wife would bear a pretty being in that village.

After nine months waiting, the baby was on its verge to come out. The father took all the possibilities if his wife was to bear a baby. If she was going to have a cute and beautiful baby girl, he would try to hide them or he would have to hide his child so that the villagers wouldn’t know about it.

“Chagiya, the baby is coming out” said his wife as she gripped his hand tight. She was sweating pretty coldly. And the cries of his first baby rang to his ears.  He rushed hurriedly to get a look on his child and he was shocked and surprised in pure happiness when he looked at his child.

It was a girl. A beautiful and pretty baby girl. It was then when something struck his heart and he realised that his family was in grave danger. And he needed to do something about it.

“Mister Kang, open the door. This is headman’s villager, Lee Joo Min” there were heard voices from outside of their house in the front yard. Many of them were gathering outside the house. Kang Lee Seuk peeked from the small gap of the window from his bedroom. He was shocked to see that many people outside of his house.

Apparently the news of his wife having a labour, were spreading really fast and it scared him. He decided to do what was the best for his child and his wife. He needed to act that his child was very ugly that he couldn’t bear to see it even though the real fact was that his child and only daughter possessed the beauty of an angel. She had a very white hair like snow and very blue eyes like an ocean and red lips like a blood. He even doubt for a moment that this child was even his. She looked like a white demon fox from her look.

“Chagiya, I am sorry for something I will do next” said the man as he put a mask on his child’s face and a red mantle around her.

“What are you going to do?” asked his wife. She was very worried for her child’s safety.

“I’m going to make the other villagers stay away from our house. Just don’t let them see our child’s face and keep her face hidden. Do you understand?” said the man as he left to greet the villagers with the solemn feelings that he faked very well.

“I understand” said his wife giving him a weak smile.

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“Night, Mister Kang” said the headman of Gradian’s village. Lee Seuk greeted him with a weak smile on his face. “I heard that your wife is having a labour right now and I believe I heard it is a girl” said Joo Min as he was eyeing Kang’s face.

“Yeah. I even can’t bear to see her” said Kang as he acted that he was very depressed. “What do you mean, Mister Kang?” said Joo Min as he was trying to sooth the broken soul of Lee Seuk. Lee Seuk was sobbing as he said “She is so ugly that I can’t even bear to see her face. Her face is so monstrously ugly”.

Joo Min eyed him suspiciously whether to believe him or not. “So ugly that I have to cover her face with a mask so that people won’t see her face even though she was still a baby. I am afraid that if I didn’t do that, people will say bad things to her for having such a disgraceful face”

Joo Min somehow felt relieved that the child that was newly born today wasn’t pretty but rather ugly. They wouldn’t have to bury another baby today. “If it’s like that, then I and the others will have to leave. Thank you for sharing us your feelings. We understand” said Joo Min as he left with the other Gradiaans.

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“Chagiya” called Lee Seuk as he entered his bedroom. And he could see that his wife was sitting on their bed, trying to put his crying child to a sleep.

“How are we going to live right now?” asked his wife.

“How is she going to survive right now in this village without even getting killed by its villagers?”

“I don’t know, honey. I guess we must have her wearing a mask and tell her that she is very ugly that she has to wear it no matter what so that they won’t kill her”

“But for how long we are going to lie to her? Forever?” asked his wife as she raised her voice. His wife had a scar on her face and it made her look uglier. She actually was prettier before everything of this happened.

“None of this would have happened if I didn’t meet you” said his wife. Lee Seuk was trying to calm her down. “Seul Ah, I didn’t regret the time when I met you, the time when I fell in love with you. I’ll never regret all of that. It is because I love you very much”

“I know that even though you don’t say it” said Seul Ah as she cupped his face. Both of them were looking at the child that they had been waiting for all these times. They felt both happy and nervous at the same time.

“What should we name her?”

“I think we should name her after your name” said Lee Seuk as he carefully ran his hand over his daughter’s head. The baby didn’t even let out a single cry after she was born.

“Seul Ah?” asked Seul Ah. Her husband nodded in agreement and added “It’s because she will grow up to be a strong woman like you”

“She will be strong and not easily give up no matter what” said Seul Ah. The baby was looking at both of them. Both Lee Seuk and Seul Ah were swum in their baby’s blue and wide eyes.

The new born baby was staring at her parents as if she knew what had happened. It hurt their hearts that they had to use a mask on their new born baby.

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Twenty years later….

“Seully, where are you going?” asked a forty years old man. The girl, who wore a red scarf and a mask, looked at her father and said “I’m going to mom’s grave”