I stepped outside the K’urimja clan hall and into the clan garden. I stood momentarily looking at the statue in the middle of the garden, considering what to do next. I’d just lost a few million coins in a gamble against an acquaintance of mine? Well, to be completely honest he was becoming more of a nuisance than anything else. It seemed no matter what action I took that luck was just not on my side when it came to gambling with this man. Life was getting to a point where I felt like I simply had no purpose, no goals, and no dreams.
I sighed and turned to my right, entering the Dragon’s Head Pub. The room was dimly lit and there were just a few patrons beside myself inside. I took a seat at the bar next to an old man with long grey hair. He was slumped over the counter, arms around his drink. The bartender was cleaning off the table behind the bar when he saw me.
“Aphex! G’evenin’ my friend. It’s been awhile,” he said, a smile crossing his wrinkled face.
“Indeed. I suppose it has. I’ve been busy as I’m sure you’ve heard,” I replied as the bartender poured me a drink.
“Yes, quite busy from what I hear… the word is you found what you were looking for? however somethin’ tells me you’re not here tonight for any sort of celebration.”
He tossed his rag over his back and passed my drink across to me. I promptly emptied the glass and passed it back across the counter, wiping my mouth off with my hand.
“Aye, if you only knew. I just lost more money in one gamble than I’ve made in the past six months. I guess I figured I’d come here and finish off the rest of what I’ve got in my bank.”
The bartender’s smile slowly faded as he poured me another drink. It was about this time that a burly man came barging into the pub.
“Where is Horace!?” He yelled, catching the attention of all the patrons. He gripped a wooden stick in his right hand and slowly scanned the bar with a sneer. He began walking through the bar looking at each table, gazing at each face through the dim light.
Suddenly a skinny man in the back of the bar who was obviously Horace made a run for the door. The burly man quickly stopped him and pushed him up against the wall by his neck. A few men ran to help pull the men apart. The whole time the burly man carried on about how the other man owed him some money of some sort.
The bartender told the men to take it outside and he and another man dragged the two men outside. I continued working on my drink when I felt the stare of the grey-haired man next to me. I glanced over at him out of the corner of my eye and he continued to stare.
“Is there? something I can help you with, friend?” I asked rhetorically.
“Actually, there may be. I don’t suppose you know who I am do you?” He spoke slowly, and had an aura of charisma about him despite his frail demeanor.
I looked closer at him and felt there was something familiar about him though I couldn’t quite place where I knew the man from.
“Ah, no matter,” he said without waiting for a response. “All that matters is that I know who you are, Aphex, and I know what it is you do for a living. I overheard your conversation with the bartender which leads me to believe you may be just the man I’m looking for.”
I chuckled slightly, not quite believing that this stranger really knew anything about me other than my name which he likely knew simply because the bartender had said it.
“Alright then friend. What exactly is it you want me to do?” I said with a slight grin.
The man pulled a wrinkled scroll out of his pocket and opened it up. It appeared to be some sort of map. He dusted it off and laid it out on the counter.
“This, Aphex, is a map that leads to something very sentimental to me,” said the man, continuing to straighten out the map.
“I’m not much for sentiment,” I replied getting weary of the conversation that seemed to be going nowhere.
“Well, I wasn’t finished. Not only is it of sentimental value to me, it is quite valuable as well. In fact I’d say it’s worth triple what you say you lost today.”
I looked at the map; it appeared to lead past the Han River Valley and followed the actual river itself.
“Alright, so say I were to take the time to gather supplies and spend the days, if not a week it would take me to get to the Han River. Say I find what you are looking for, and I assure you? if it is where you say it is, I -will- find it. If I do all of that, what do you get out of it?”
The man turned his gaze from the map and looked up at me. I saw deep, deep, sorrow behind his eyes as he began to speak.
“My wife has been dead for thirty years Aphex. We both lived in Shilla growing up, and moved to the Han River Valley when we got married. I had been a gypsy, a wandering merchant most of my life and I had collected many items of great wealth. However along with these tokens of my travels, I made many enemies. Eventually, my greed caught up to me. A man who I had stolen a precious jewel from found where my wife and I were living. I had this jewel made into a ring and gave it to my wife not long after we were married. On our anniversary one year I took my wife out to the river, and we walked along the path to a waterfall. It was a place I had been to before, but not many people knew about. Behind this waterfall was a beautiful cavern. I took my wife inside to have a picnic. It was supposed to be a memory for us to keep for eternity, but instead it turned into a nightmare. The man I had stolen the jewel from followed us to this cavern. It was here that he entered the cavern and murdered my wife. He took the jewel and as he left the cavern I jumped on him from behind and we fell into the water. I was overcome with anger and I drowned the man. The jewel fell to the bottom of the river, but I did not search for it. My heart was broken and I could think of nothing else. I went into a deep depression that lasted many years. Since then I have become a drunk, and I am an old man now. I have lost much of what I once had, I have nowhere to live, and I lost the only person I ever loved. I cannot travel to Han myself, but you can. If you will do this for me and return with the jewel? I will let you keep it. I only want one thing in return. Along with this jewel, was a necklace that my wife wore. I had given it to her long before I was wealthy; it is worthless to any merchant but has great meaning to me. It is a reminder of a time in my life when I was truly happy. In this cavern the man tore the necklace from my wife’s neck and threw it into the river. I am sure it will still be at the bottom of the river along with the jewel.”
As the man finished talking he wiped a tear away from his eye. He turned his gaze from me back to the map. After looking into this man’s eyes I felt that I had heard enough. I felt he was telling the truth, and we both had a need that could be fulfilled. I needed a purpose, and he needed a reminder of his former life. I agreed to take on this journey for the old man. I told him that I would return in two weeks, and that I would meet him back at the Dragon’s Head Pub at that exact same time on the night of my return.
I returned home and got some sleep. I woke up with quite the headache from all the drinks I had the night before. I stumbled out of bed and rinsed some water over my face. I looked into a mirror. I desperately needed a shave but had been too depressed to take much care of myself. I decided not to waste any time and began packing everything I would need for the trip to the Han River Valley. I gathered my knives, food, water jugs, and some other various items. I stepped outside of my house in Kyongju, and started walking.
I spent the next four days traveling towards Han. For the most part there were trade routes that led directly from Nagnang to Han, though in some areas it was a bit more forested and harder to find a trail. I made camp every night, and spent the entire day traveling. I had brought along some of my wares to sell to passer-bys which turned out to be a good idea, because people in between cities are often quite un-prepared and in need of supplies.
Three days later I had traveled through Koguryo and arrived in a small town outside of the valley. Two guards stood at either end of the gate to the entrance of the city. It was truly a magnificent view. Behind the city were extremely high mountains, and below those mountains was the Han River Valley. I spent the night in the city, renting a room at a local inn. I stocked back up on supplies and the next morning I headed towards the river.
I walked through the city and felt somewhat insecure as the locals looked at me. They knew I was not from around the area and were I’m sure curious as to my motives of being there. I tried my best to pass myself off as a traveling gypsy, offering various items to strangers as I walked north out of the town and towards the valley. I eventually exited the town, though not without some distrustful glares from the townsfolk. I checked my supplies and headed toward the mountains where the river lay below. I arrived by sundown and set up camp along the riverside.
In the morning I looked over the map the old man had given me once more, and followed the river in the direction toward the waterfall. It appeared to be not more than a few hours away. If I was lucky, I could find this jewel and necklace and be headed back home in the morning.
I continued along the riverside, stopping occasionally for a drink of water. It was sweltering hot and there was no shade to be found, at least not yet. I traveled onward for about two more hours before I saw a large waterfall in the distance. It was absolutely magnificent. The mountains surrounded the waterfall and the river went under the cavern beneath.
I carefully approached the waterfall and began to wonder how I was going to get into the cavern behind it. Before I was going to begin diving into the river over and over looking for a jewel that may or may not be there, I wanted to be sure the man hadn’t dropped them inside the cavern in the chaos of his wife being brutally murdered. To my surprise, at the corner of the waterfall was a poorly built bridge from the land to the cavern behind the waterfall. I stepped out onto the bridge with one foot, giving it a little pressure to see if it would hold. It seemed sturdy enough so I entered.
I lit a torch and searched around the cavern. It was a fairly small, enclosed area. There lying on the ground was a skeleton. The skeleton of the old man’s wife I assumed. I searched around her body and saw nothing. The rest of the cavern appeared to be empty as well so I decided it was time for a swim.
I walked back across the flimsy bridge and to the other side right outside the waterfall. I removed my shirt and bent over the river, judging the power of the current and the depth of the river. The current appeared to be fairly slow. Slow enough for me to get down and back up fairly easily. However, I was unable to see the bottom, though the water was not entirely clear.
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I took a deep breath and dived into the river, swimming straight down to the bottom. It was closer than I thought. The water was much clearer than it had been at the top and I looked around frantically for anything that stuck out. That’s when I saw a glimmer out of the corner of my eye; there was something hidden in the sand. I re-surfaced for air. The waterfall bellowed loudly beside me and the current tried to pull me towards the waterfall. I took a deep breath and went back under, this time diving directly toward the glimmer I had seen at the bottom. I swam lower and lower until I could reach the sand. I cautiously reached under the sand and pulled out a small, beautiful golden necklace. I returned to the surface.
I climbed back up on the bank, dripping wet. I looked at the necklace carefully and exclaimed aloud.
“He lied to me…”
The necklace was certainly not worthless. He had told me it was purely of sentimental value and that if I brought it to him then I could have the jewel as my reward, however I had yet to see a jewel. Was this all a deception? I closed my eyes and prevented the anger from overtaking me. I still had not searched most of the bottom of the river where the jewel may have fallen when the old man pushed the killer out of the cavern into the river. That’s when it hit me. If I found the remains of the man that my acquaintance from the bar had drowned, then I would also find the jewel. The body inside the cavern was definitely female. Therefore the man’s story stood mostly true so far other than the necklace.
I spent the next two hours diving into the river, coming up with nothing. The sun was beginning to set and I knew I couldn’t do this in the dark. If I was going to find this jewel it had to be now, I just simply did not have the will to do this all over again the next day. I stood at the bank of the river and looked over the mountains as the sun slowly began to creep behind them. Time was running out. I took a deep breath and prayed that I found this damn thing and my trip hadn’t been for nothing.
I swam closer to the waterfall, scanning the bottom of the river. I scanned the sides, the middle, and just about everywhere else. It seemed that I had looked everywhere. I was running out of breath but I refused to fail, I had to find this jewel and I had to do it now. I swam under the waterfall and below the cavern. There, lying on the bottom of the river was a male skeleton. In one hand he held a beautiful, shining jewel. I quickly swam down and grasped the jewel from the man’s hand. My lungs felt like they were about to burst as I swam back up above the cavern and through the waterfall. I began to swim toward the top; I could see the waning sun glimmering on the surface of the river when I ran out of air. I gasped and inhaled water, my lungs begging for air. I made it to the surface at last and coughed, spitting water for what seemed eternity. A smile crossed my face as I held the jewel in my hand and placed it in my pack along with the necklace. I would set up camp for the night, and then it was time to go home.
I traveled back to the small town and purchased a horse from the stable. I was late; I didn’t have long before my meeting in the pub with the old man. I rode day and night for four days straight. I arrived in Nagnang on the fourth day and traveled to the K’urimja clan garden without stopping for food or to clean up.
I entered the bar, famished, weary, and on the verge of passing out. However, I had what I had gone searching for. I scanned the pub and saw the old man in the same spot he had been the first time I saw him two weeks ago. I sat next to him and shouted to the bartender,
“A drink please! One for my friend here too!”
The old man looked up at me with surprise. He looked at me as if I were a ghost, like he didn’t expect me to return.
“You… you found them, Aphex?” He asked, that same sorrow in his eyes.
“I told you if they were there that I would find them, and I held up my end of the bargain. However before I return this necklace to you, you will answer a question, and if I don’t like your answer? well, then you can forget I ever went on this journey and leave this pub with nothing but your shame and guilt.”
The man nodded, a look of remorse washed over his face. He fiddled with his mug of beer and looked back up at me.
“Aphex, I have heard tales of your travels. I know of your collection of ancient relics and things considered lost. I lied about the necklace because I was afraid. I know I shouldn’t have been afraid, but I was. I was once like you, I collected things of great value. I was afraid that if I told you about the worth of the necklace then you might not return it to me, that you would take it for yourself. What I was really doing was thinking about what my actions may have been if I were in your position. You are a kind-hearted soul Aphex. I knew this before I told you about the jewel and the necklace, but my own personal demons prevented me from telling you the truth. The fear of my past still has some control over my actions even to this day.”
The man looked back down at his drink and turned his head trying to hide the fact that a tear was forming in his eye. He looked back up at me and I stared into those eyes. I looked into that man’s soul and what I saw was a sad, worn out man. He was a man who had no purpose in his life. I saw myself in this man. I saw what my future could become if I didn’t change my views on some things. I finished my drink and handed the old man the necklace. I left the bar without saying a word.
I headed home and at last got a good night’s sleep in my own comfortable bed. In the morning I took the jewel to a friend of mine. He examined it and came to the conclusion that it was most certainly a one of a kind item. Apparently it had been crafted in Shilla, though how it got into the hands of the old man I did not know. It was worth a fortune, but as with all my treasures I did not look for a buyer. I took it to a place of safekeeping. A place where few had been, and even fewer would come in the future. It was, in essence, my sanctuary.
I took the diamond across the room and placed it on a pedestal I had crafted specifically for this particular treasure. I intended to share the information about the jewel with the community, and perhaps learn more about where it came from and who crafted it. I looked around the room at the variety of artifacts I had and let out a sigh. I was beginning to gain quite the collection. I looked down at the magnificent jewel and softly whispered,
“Paravi locum. Tibi gratias agimus monstrante modo.”
I gathered a few things and walked outside, removing my pipe from my bag. I lit it and took a long, intense puff. I felt the smoke go through my lungs and I blew it out as the wind swept it away across the valley. I looked out over the beauty in front of me and smiled slightly as I began the journey from my sanctuary back home.