Seoyoung and Minjeong were back from their taekwondo class, still wearing their uniform and newly earned black belt. But even with the proof that they were strong martial artists, they still had fear within their hearts. Even the quick footsteps that they seemed to hear scared them. Minjeong heard the footsteps first but did not dare to look back; instead, she whispered to Seoyoung. “Do you think we’re being followed, Seoyoung? Something seems weird. Seoyoung, let’s just run to your house. The last one is the rotten egg!” said Minjeong. As soon as Minjeong reached the doorknob, the two girls were blinded. They were surrounded by darkness, and they couldn’t see anything. After a while, their vision slowly adjusted to the dimness, and they realized that they were both in a car. Underneath them, they felt the harsh, torn fabric of the trunk of an old car. They were kidnapped and put in a bag with their arms and legs tied with ropes but not securely. It was easy to pull out of their restraints. 

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“What are we going to do now? Where are we going? We need to get out of here.” said Minjeong. They groped and felt for an opening. They reached forward to try and find any source of exit, but they miserably failed. The car started moving, with the girls helplessly inside. When they felt the car bump a bit, they immediately knew that it had stopped. Afraid to get caught and confront the kidnappers, they crouched down and got inside the black bag that they had been carried in. They felt them getting lifted up and carried by a man. Minjeong could not hold back her curiosity, so she poked the vinyl material of the bag using her sharp, edged fingernails and ripped a small hole out. At last, they saw some light peering into the bag. Seoyoung peered through the hole first and instantly recognized where they were. They were at the Incheon airport, the only biggest international airport in Korea. They saw people with luggage through a hole in the bag.

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They saw the faces of the man carrying them. Next to him, there was another man, both wearing the same attire; a black cap, black mask, a black shirt, and pants. They were speaking in a language they didn’t know. They just looked suspicious, and it was even surprising that nobody stopped them to interrogate them. When they reached the front desk to check in, the men said they were going to Japan. Seoyoung and Minjeong both wanted to tell the service assistant at the front desk that they desperately needed help, but they were too frightened of the consequences they might have to face.

 

The service assistant scanned the two men from head to toe, then eyed them in a skeptical manner. As the two men wanted to book a plane leaving on the day, the service assistant asked them if she could have a moment to search for a last-minute cancellation. After a few moments of typing, she apologized to the two men and said that the seats for today were all booked and the next flight would be, at the earliest, tomorrow evening. Although this is not completely believable, Minjeong and Seoyoung both let out a sigh of relief. One of the men cursed quietly, and they both turned away to exit the airport and go back to their car.

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After what seemed like an eternity, the two girls felt a poke on their shoulders and heard the rustling of the vinyl of the bag. They were soon greeted by two grumpy-looking men that they had had a glimpse of through the small hole. They looked even more fierce up close. The men started to speak aggressively at the girls, but they couldn’t understand a thing. Groaning in discomfort and impatience, the men shoved their phones in front of their faces which showed a translation of what they were trying to say.

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 It read, “Get Korea’s treasure, Sejong The Great’s Water Clock, the middle bowl on the center of the clock. The Korean goblins, Dokkaebi, and the Haetae will be sure to attack you, as the old legendary myth says. Use your Korean martial art skills. You have already achieved getting the black belt. If you are able to succeed in this mission we give you; we will leave you in Korea safely.” The girls looked at each other with insecurity, but they couldn’t resist the offer and nodded. They knew they would not be alive when they got to Japan. However, they worried about how in the world they would get the ancient water clock, a treasure of Korea secured by immense technology and guards.

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The two men did not spare a second as they opened the car’s door, pushed them out, and drove away. Seoyoung and Minjeong were left in front of the entrance of the Gwanghwamun Gate, where the water clock was located. As they went in the gate, they were surrounded by hanoks made of straw and dirt. They looked around and admired the beauty around them, but they soon came to the reality that they had a deadline for the mission. The two girls were busy searching for the water clock when Seoyoung pointed at a narrow road that led them to a secluded area. There it stood, the water clock, the treasure of Korea. A line was drawn with fading chalk to not step over, but this didn’t threaten the girls. Without hesitation, the girls crossed the line and headed toward the water clock. When they reached the water clock at a distance close to a stone’s throw, Seoyoung and Minjeong locked their eyes with each other and nodded. Seoyoung, who was the braver one of the two, reached forward for the center bowl of the water clock, and a haetae jumped right at them out of nowhere. The girls expected this to happen because of their previous warnings, but they were nowhere near ready. Their taekwondo skills couldn’t even match the physical abilities of the mythical scale-covered goat. Seoyoung read that haetaes were afraid of electricity, but they did not bring anything with them. Shaking in terror, Minjeong backed up, her eyes shaking with doubt.

Seoyoung, fortunately, ducked before the haetae could hit her, but she needed to find a solution fast. Anything close to electricity was her phone. She dug deep into her pocket, and when the haetae was ready to bite her, she threw her phone into its mouth. The haetae crushed the phone, and as soon as the teeth met the phone, the haetae roared in pain. Minjeong was out of her daze at last and hurried to grab the heavy metal bowl on the water clock and sprinted towards the exit.  Seoyoung didn’t have time to celebrate her victory and hastened to follow Minjeong. The haetae was recovering at a rapid speed after it had spat out the electric phone, but the girls were nimble as well. 

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They were already out of the path that led them to the water clock, but God was surely not on their side. They were stuck again with another obstacle. Not an immature little goblin, but the glorified and honorable military general Yi Sun Shin. They couldn’t believe their eyes and what was happening to them, but no event that they experienced today was probable in reality anyway. Seoyoung lost her balance as she saw the great and noble admiral and fell immediately to the ground in a position where it looked like she was bowing at the general. Yi Sun Shin’s face was filled with fury. “How dare you disrespect the treasure of Korea and the creature that represents the minister of justice!” exclaimed Yi Sun Shin. He held out his signature double-sided sword and swished it in front of Minjeong and Seoyoung once. “I will leave it up to the haetae’s decision to see whether you are guilty or innocent. Hail the minister of justice!” Yi Sun Shin called. 

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The haetae, which seemed completely normal, scurried towards the general to face the two girls. The haetae then showed a white glow in its eyes, which represented purity and innocence, then faced the general and changed the color of its orbs to red. “It seems like there has been someone behind all of this,” the admiral said in his deep voice. “Summon the two guilty souls and let the innocent ones free from torture,” the admiral commanded. Seoyoung and Minjeong bowed and acknowledged teh admiral with sincerity, then hurried home. The two Japanese stood where the two girls were original. Their eyes were filled with shock and horror, but without a mercy and any hesitation, the admiral slashed the neck of both men at once with both sides of his sword. The deep red blood dripped on the bowl that Minjeong left on the ground, but the liquid turned quickly into transparent liquid. Blood was not the only thing gathered in the bowl, but the remains of the corpse of both men gradually melted into the bowl. Everything went back to normal; the Yi Sun Shin general and haetae from the statue to the water bowl situated back to the center of the water clock. Although the water clock had long stopped its ring, Minjeong and Seoyoung could almost hear the faint gong of the clock as if it was congratulating yet another victory of Korea.