The library felt colder as they moved away from the room with the mirror. The air seemed heavier, as though something unseen still lingered. Ji-eun's hands were trembling as they stepped cautiously down the aisles, their footsteps muffled by the weight of what they had just experienced.
"I don't understand," Ji-eun whispered, her voice barely cutting through the silence. "That mirror… why was it here? And those figures… what did they want?"
Joon-ho glanced over his shoulder, his eyes scanning the darkened rows of books as if expecting something—or someone—to be watching them. "That's what we need to figure out," he said quietly. "Mirrors like that don't just appear without a reason. There's something binding it to this place."
Ji-eun's mind raced as she tried to piece together the fragments of information. The mirror, the malevolent figures, the strange enchantment that seemed to pulse with an energy she couldn't quite comprehend—it was all connected, but how?
"Do you think it's related to the others?" Ji-eun asked, glancing nervously around. "The spirits we've encountered… could they be tied to this mirror somehow?"
Joon-ho's expression darkened. "It's possible. There's a lot we don't know about the supernatural forces at play here. Spirits aren't always random; sometimes they're bound by something stronger than death itself. If that mirror was a gateway, those figures we saw… they may have been trying to break through into our world."
Ji-eun shuddered at the thought. "But why us? Why now?"
Joon-ho stopped in his tracks, turning to face her. His eyes were serious, yet there was a softness in them that made Ji-eun's heart skip a beat. "I don't know why," he admitted. "But there's something about you, Ji-eun. Something that draws them in. We need to be careful from here on out."
Before Ji-eun could respond, a faint creaking sound echoed through the library. They both froze, their senses immediately on high alert. The sound grew louder, more insistent, as if something—or someone—was moving through the aisles behind them.
Joon-ho took a step closer to Ji-eun, his body instinctively shielding her. His eyes darted toward the source of the noise, and Ji-eun's pulse quickened as she strained to see what was coming.
A figure emerged from the shadows—a librarian, her gray hair pulled back into a tight bun, her eyes glazed over as if she was sleepwalking. She moved slowly, her body rigid and unnatural. Her hands clutched a thick book to her chest, the pages yellowed with age.
Ji-eun let out a small gasp as the woman stopped in front of them, her empty gaze fixed on something neither Ji-eun nor Joon-ho could see.
"Are you… alright?" Ji-eun asked hesitantly, taking a cautious step forward. The woman didn't respond. She stood still as stone, her eyes vacant and her lips slightly parted as though she were caught in a trance.
Joon-ho's hand shot out to stop Ji-eun from getting any closer. "Wait," he said quietly, his eyes narrowing as he studied the woman. "Something's not right."
The woman's head jerked suddenly, her neck twisting in a way that made Ji-eun's stomach churn. Slowly, the librarian's gaze shifted toward them, her lips curling into a twisted smile that sent a shiver down Ji-eun's spine.
"She's not alive," Joon-ho whispered urgently. "She's being controlled."
Controlled? Ji-eun's mind raced as she backed away from the woman. The librarian's movements were stiff, unnatural, as though she were a puppet being manipulated by invisible strings.
As the woman took a step forward, Joon-ho moved swiftly, placing himself between Ji-eun and the librarian. "Get behind me," he ordered, his voice firm but low. "We're not dealing with a normal spirit."
Ji-eun obeyed, her heart racing as she watched the librarian move closer. There was something deeply unsettling about the way she walked, her movements jerky and disjointed, as though she were struggling against whatever force was controlling her.
Joon-ho's expression grew tense. "She's under the influence of something powerful," he murmured. "We need to break the hold it has on her."
"But how?" Ji-eun asked, her voice trembling. "I don't even know what's doing this."
Joon-ho's eyes darted to the book the librarian was holding. "It's the book," he said quickly. "Look at the way she's clutching it. It's like she can't let go."
Ji-eun stared at the book, her breath catching in her throat. The book seemed to radiate an energy similar to the mirror's—a dark, pulsing energy that made her skin crawl.
"We need to get that book away from her," Joon-ho said, his voice grim. "It might be the key to freeing her."
"But she's dangerous," Ji-eun pointed out. "If we get too close, she could—"
Before Ji-eun could finish her sentence, the librarian lunged forward, her eyes wild and unseeing. Joon-ho reacted swiftly, grabbing Ji-eun's arm and pulling her out of the way just in time.
The librarian let out a low, guttural moan as she stumbled past them, her body convulsing as though something was trying to tear its way out of her.
"We need to act fast," Joon-ho said urgently. "I'll distract her. You grab the book."
Ji-eun hesitated, fear gripping her chest like a vice. But she nodded, knowing they didn't have a choice.
Joon-ho moved quickly, stepping in front of the librarian and waving his arms to get her attention. "Hey!" he shouted, his voice echoing through the empty library. "Over here!"
The librarian's head snapped toward him, her eyes locking onto him with a fierce intensity. She let out a low growl and began stumbling toward him, her movements growing more erratic with each step.
Ji-eun took a deep breath and crept around the side of the librarian, her eyes fixed on the book in the woman's hands. The energy emanating from the book was almost overwhelming, and Ji-eun could feel it pulling at her, drawing her in.
Her fingers brushed against the book's worn cover, and the moment she touched it, a sharp pain shot through her hand. Ji-eun bit back a gasp, but she didn't pull away. She knew she had to keep going.
With a sudden surge of strength, Ji-eun yanked the book from the librarian's grasp. The moment the book left the woman's hands, the librarian let out a piercing scream and collapsed to the floor, her body going limp.
Ji-eun stumbled backward, clutching the book to her chest as she watched the librarian's still form. The oppressive energy in the room began to dissipate, and the air felt lighter, less suffocating.
Joon-ho rushed over to Ji-eun's side, his eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Ji-eun nodded, though her heart was still racing. "I think so," she said, her voice shaking. "But what about her?"
They both turned to look at the librarian. She was lying on the floor, her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling with shallow breaths. The dark energy that had controlled her was gone, leaving her exhausted and unconscious.
Joon-ho knelt beside the woman, checking her pulse. "She's alive," he said softly. "But whatever was controlling her… it's not gone. It's in that book."
Ji-eun stared down at the book in her hands. The cover was old and cracked, the pages yellowed with age. The symbols etched into the cover seemed to pulse with a faint light, as though the book itself was alive.
"We need to find out what's inside," Joon-ho said, his voice grim. "But we need to be careful. This book is dangerous. Whatever's inside… it's powerful."
Ji-eun nodded, her grip tightening on the book. She couldn't shake the feeling that the book was watching them, waiting for the right moment to reveal its secrets.
As they left the library, the weight of the book seemed to grow heavier in Ji-eun's hands. The danger was far from over. In fact, it had only just begun.