The Mirror Ghost Revealed
A three-way standoff, yet somehow, no answer came back. In the growing darkness, where Sohee's facial outline blurred faintly, I pressed her again.
"Sohee, why are you here?"
"We made a promise."
"A promise?"
I blinked, racking my brain for what promise Sohee could mean. The one about getting married in a hundred years? Her vow to beat Moyong Young at the Late-stage Disciple tournament with her skyrocketing skills? Or maybe Uncle's comment about how scenic the lake was for fishing?
"If something happens to you, Yohwan, I have to get revenge for you."
"What?"
Her firm, out-of-left-field answer left me dumbfounded. Was it from back when I took the Jugo pill and had to hand my body over to Dang Chehwan? I'd swallowed a spirit pill today too, just like then.
"Come on, how could you get revenge on the family elders!"
They were among the top experts in the Tang Clan, weren't they? Only then did it hit me—stunned as I was—that Sohee was joking.
"Yohwan, can I check?"
Sohee unfolded my hand and started injecting her qi. Warmth seeped in from her soft fingers.
"Wow, it's really grown several times stronger than your original inner energy."
I was amazed that Sohee, who hadn't even trained in martial arts for half a year, could scan my acupoints like this. Maybe our instructor just didn't teach stuff like that.
"Sohee, you didn't take any spirit pill?"
It suddenly felt like a waste—the unabsorbed essence that would just get taken by Father. We could've shared it.
"I'll steal some good spirit pills for you, even if I have to."
Plucking stars from the sky might be impossible, but swiping spirit pills? Totally doable.
"How much?"
"Huh?"
"How many years' worth can you steal for me?"
"Obviously, a gapja each, ten gapja if you want! One raid on the Demonic Cult's pill storehouse would net that much... Nah, why not just plow a whole spirit herb field? We could grow Millennium Flower Reeds in the lake!"
Whoosh— a bright smile spread silently across Sohee's face as she heard my plan. Seeing her happy made me happy too. We chatted like that for a good while before parting.
* * *
'I'm back!'
I hopped over the doorsill, feeling light in both body and spirit, and called out to the mirror.
It felt like I'd been away for days at the Emei Sect—like a long-overdue visit. A delightful detour. Is this why everyone loves traveling?
Far from welcoming me, the mirror spasmed in shock.
<You! What the hell did you bring with you?>
I thought for a moment, then pulled the dagger from my bosom.
"Oh, this sword? You know Gwangmyeongjwasa or something?"
<Gwangmyeong what? I don't know, and that's a Blood Cult item!>
Maybe because poison experts like us don't usually use swords, my little poison ghost didn't appreciate their coolness.
"No, it's not! I heard it's a sacred treasure of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."
<Heavenly Demon Divine Cult? You mean those One Moon Divine Cult heretics?>
"Yeah, that's the one."
<Those twin snakes engraved on it. That's the symbol of the Guyang Clan.>
"Really? Then it's even more obviously a Demonic Cult item, right? It's the Guyang Clan, after all!"
For reference, the founding Heavenly Demon was surnamed Guyang. The current one is from another family, but the Guyang Clan is still a powerhouse in the cult.
The family head and Bi Yeon Pavilion master had explained it clearly, but this ancient mirror might not have the latest info.
"It might've been Blood Cult back in the old days, but now it's Demonic Cult stuff."
I didn't want to correct her harshly, so I glossed over it. The Blood Cult had gone into hiding within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, so maybe the Demonic Cult had picked up their scraps.
<It creeps me out—put it away!>
"Hey, this is my room..."
<Did you steal that sword from that Bi Yeon Pavilion place too? Just return it where you got it!>
I'd told the mirror I was going to Emei Sect, but logically, it didn't make sense to find Blood Cult or Demonic Cult stuff at a righteous sect's stronghold. Good thing Father gave permission—the Bi Yeon Pavilion master clearly wouldn't have approved me keeping it. But if I handed it over, it'd vanish like New Year's money. Tough call.
Then, out of nowhere, the door flew open.
"Sohee?"
"What's with that mirror?"
I gulped nervously. Of course Sohee didn't know about the mirror. No reason for the Bi Yeon Pavilion master to tell her about a mirror haunted by a quirky ghost.
It was a Western mirror—not some ordinary bronze one, but a glass mirror even the Central Plains imperial ladies might only have glimpsed. The kind Snow White's queen would peer into after popping out three kids, wondering, "No wrinkles on my face yet, right?" Rare enough for the imperial jewelry collection.
"That mirror... Mother's keepsake?"
"Nah, nothing like that..."
One hand held the mirror, the other the dagger. No wonder it looked weird—I'd think the same if I saw someone clutching a mirror at night.
"Then why stare into it so lovingly in the dark?"
"Well, that's..."
Should I say I was yelling my head off in my mind to convince her about the dagger?
Sohee's eyes widened.
"A ghost!"
"No—well, yes! There is a ghost!"
"The spinster ghost that latched onto Elder Sister Yeong must've jumped to you, Yohwan!!"
Ignoring my explanation, Sohee rummaged in her sachet and pulled something out—a Buddhist rosary, a souvenir from Emei Sect. She yanked the string taut with both hands and whipped it across my body without mercy.
"Get out of my man's body, you filthy ghost!"
"Stop, stop! Enough!"
Sohee's hands were fast to begin with, and with inner energy behind the blows, it hurt like hell. Just when I thought the spots might swell, she stopped, grabbed my shoulders, and shook me.
"Yohwan! You with us? You don't prefer the ghost over me, right?"
'Prefer? What a ridiculous misunderstanding.'
How badly had the mirror treated me all this time? If I could've shaken her off, I'd have gifted that eyesore to Stepmother Yang by now! I'd never seen her face, but a spinster ghost had to be ugly!
"Sohee, with you around, you think any other woman catches my eye?"
"Yohwan!"
The mirror fired a sharp retort.
<You disgusting things, done making fools of yourselves?>
"That was a real woman's voice—"
The mirror's telepathy reached Sohee too, apparently.
"That... old antique from Myeong Gyeong Hall has a ghost attached? She claims to be some ancient Poison King. The Bi Yeon Pavilion master said it was fine, so I've been keeping her."
"Our family's ghost?"
"That's what she says!"
Seeing Sohee calm down and back to her usual self eased my relief. I vaguely recalled the mirror saying she wasn't a Tang, but whatever—not important.
<Thy name is Dang Sohee. I heard of thee from that fool. I am the Mirror Poison Spirit, also called the Poison King.>
"Poison King? Not Poison Beauty or Poison Fairy?"
Sohee whispered on purpose, even though she could transmit sound. Clearly intentional.
"Must be ugly. We'll be understanding about that."
<'Twas because I disguised as a man. What, can't a woman be Poison King? Poison arts are women's martial prowess to begin with! Men using poison...>
Her childish comeback about queens being kings too made me roll my eyes. In the wuxia world, even cross-dressing beauties get found out. Face veils spawn nicknames, but "Poison King" suggested no standout looks—though Sohee nodded seriously.
"That makes sense. Go on."
<Read the name engraved on the mirror's back.>
Dang Wol
"The heroine Dang Wol who fought the Blood Cult! Our second family head! Who knew our ancestor had a personality like Elder Sister Moyong Young!"
<Moyong Young? What's that child got to do with it... And Dang Wol Unni is my junior sister, not me.>
Hearing it twice made it sound somewhat like "yao gui." I asked her junior sister,
"So, not direct ancestor, but still Tang Clan? How'd you end up haunting this mirror?"
<Well, fighting those Blood Cult scum like mortal foes...>
"Yohwan, she must be from before the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's founding!"
That's why the mirror grilled me on Sichuan Tang Clan updates at first. Now Sohee was peppering her with questions instead.
"What's your name, if I may?"
"Can I call you Gyeong Unni?"
<No one's ever called me that... Permission granted.>
I was shocked.
'The mirror's name is actually Mirror?'
Not because I expected a person's name, but because it totally clashed with what the Bi Yeon Pavilion master had told me—Yang Gyeongseong.
"Wait, then is Yang Gyeongseong your real name or what?"
<You dolt, I said I cross-dressed how many times... Of course it's an alias.>
"Mirror, is that really your name? You keep changing your story!"
The mirror ghost snorted.
<So what if I change it? Why would I lie to a brat like you?>
"Yeah, Yohwan. She must have her reasons."
I was happy just listening to Sohee chatter as she spread out the bedding.
"Gyeong Unni, do you have someone you like?"
The mirror's private life, her love story! I couldn't care less, but Sohee was hooked.
<...Yes. I did.>
"A lover? Did you marry?"
The spinster ghost might be a widow? That felt oddly disconcerting.
Her wistful tone didn't bode well. Ending up a ghost in a mirror screamed 100% sad ending.
"Sorry, shouldn't have pried."
<No matter. I cast him out of my life—the fool who couldn't grasp a word I said.>
"What kind of guy was dim enough for that?"
<Handsome as a gisaeng's pretty boy... A swordsman, but an incurable playboy.>
"Playboy...! Good riddance, Unni!"
Sohee clenched her fists in shared outrage. I got that the guy was scum, but one nagging doubt lingered.
'If they broke up, he's not her lover anymore, right?'
Four hundred years ago or not, I wanted to cheer on the guy freed from her. Who dumped whom, I couldn't say, but marrying someone like the mirror would make life hell.
"Yohwan, wanna come to my room? This mirror Gyeong Unni's in is filthy—I wanna clean it for her."
"What?"
<This is why I swore off men. At least she's thoughtful.>
The mirror did have rust spots here and there, like an antique. Her inviting me to her room? My insides were melting just hearing it.
"It's pretty late... Or you could take the mirror? She knows tons of martial arts—surprisingly useful."
Sohee shrugged at my words.
"The Bi Yeon Pavilion master isn't in right now?"
"For real?"
"Yeah. She watched you take the spirit pill earlier, then headed right out."
That explained Sohee sneaking to my room—to dodge surveillance!
"Sweet, let's go."
I shot to my feet. Sohee grabbed the mirror and tucked it away. We stealthily killed our presence and dashed toward the Bi Yeon Pavilion master's quarters.
Crashing another room on a school trip? Classic. Even without a trip, no biggie! Happiness is all about mindset—you can live joyfully every day if you choose to!