Cheong widens her eyes. “Is it possible?”
“I have reason to believe it could be.” I turn toward Hyeri. “What do you know of Spirit House?”
Hyeri sits back on her cushion, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Out of all the houses, it is the largest. It lies at the bottom of the city, where the river begins. Spirits that manage to swim out of the river are brought to the house first, and then sent along, either to the home of their ancestors who are already living in the city, or to a guild master to seek employment. As it is, the best way to find your ancestors is to go to the house and present yourself to meet them.” Hyeri turns to Cheong. “Have you relatives? Those who’ve passed before you?”
“I only have my father, and he is living still.”
Hyeri sighs. “Well, not everything can work out perfectly.”
I smile, amused at this strange perception of things.
“I was thinking,” I say. “Perhaps my ancestors would help. After all, they are Cheong’s ancestors, too. By marrying Joon, she’s become a part of our family.”
Hyeri sits forward excitedly. “That’s right. Mina, you can go to Spirit House and arrange to meet with them. Ancestors are wise and have lived many years. Any knowledge they might share with you will be useful.”
I nod, then turn to Cheong. “Since I don’t know which of our ancestors will be at Spirit House, I think it best if I go alone. I’ll speak with them, and then come get you.”
“Thank you for this, Mina,” Cheong says warmly. “Although…” Her smile falters. “What about you? If I’m to return to the world above, I mustn’t go alone. You have to come with me. Your brothers are waiting for you, and your grandmother…”
My heart aches painfully at the thought of my family, our family. What I would give to see them all one last time. “I can’t. If I refuse to marry the Sea God and instead return to the world above, it’s possible the storms will start again.”
“Will you really marry him?” Cheong frowns. “But what about…” She never finishes her sentence, perhaps seeing the stricken look upon my face.
Hyeri and Cheong exchange a glance.
“I do find it odd,” Hyeri says. “Everyone says the curse is broken, and yet the Sea God remains in his palace. Nothing has truly changed, besides the ending of the storms.”
Hyeri is right, and it’s also something I noticed in my time in the palace. Just as he was before he awoke, the Sea God is melancholic, preferring to be alone.
“Why was the Sea God cursed in the first place?” Hyeri continues, her questions stirring up something inside me. “And if he was cursed, who was the one who cursed him?”
There’s a light knocking sound, and all three of us turn toward the entrance of the balcony where Shiki—god of death and Hyeri’s husband—stands, dressed all in black like the first time I saw him.
Bowing, he says, “I apologize for the interruption—I know you’d wish to speak longer—but three visitors have arrived to see Lady Mina.”
My heart stumbles in my chest.
I say my farewells to Cheong and Hyeri, and follow Shiki through the temple’s halls, coming out to stand on the stairs that overlook the valley.
Three figures stand among the wild azaleas. Namgi. Kirin.
And Shin.
* * *
I approach the three of them across the field of pink and purple flowers.
“Mina, the Sea God’s bride,” Namgi calls softly.
A rush of relief envelops me. Last I saw him, Kirin was dragging his nearly lost soul from the river. “Just Mina,” I say as Namgi reaches me, pulling me into a fierce embrace. I bask in his warmth. When his soul fled his body, he was so cold.
“Well, Just Mina,” he says after releasing me, “how does it feel to be the chosen bride of the Sea God? Do you think at all of us, your not-so-illustrious friends?”
“It feels no different than before.” I glance at Shin. He’s held back from the rest. He doesn’t look at me now, though I felt his eyes upon me as I walked through the field of azaleas.
“You look well,” Kirin says, drawing my gaze. “Your clothing is very fine.”
I peer down at myself. I’m wearing a simple pink-and-green dress, one of the many from my wardrobe. “Thank you,” I say, blushing. “How is Dai?”
“He and the rest of your spirit friends left the house this morning after I deemed him fully recovered. Unlike Namgi, who is still too weak to be moving about.”