Original subtitles

THE EAST PALACE

Crown Prince.

That spirit… That spirit took my son!

Your Majesty!

Silence.

Where is His Majesty?

His Highness the Crown Prince went out alone at dawn?

This will lead to greater chaos.

The court must not be the first to be shaken.

Chief Royal Secretary.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Proceed with the funeral rites at once.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

An incident has befallen the Crown Prince.

Are you aware of it?

I have heard.

And yet, how can you remain so unperturbed?

You may all withdraw.

-Yes, Your Majesty. -Yes, Your Majesty.

The Crown Princes are dying one after another.

By that pond spirit, Jangpyeong, Yunpyeong, and the current Crown Prince--

That is enough.

There is no such thing as spirits.

How could there be spirits in our Neo-Confucian royal house?

Have you forgotten already?

Thirty years ago, the Crown Princes died one after another, just as they do now!

Yes. Thirty years have already passed.

But this is not the same as it was then.

My first and second sons died of illness.

And the third Crown Prince,

being deeply tormented in mind,

chose to take his own life.

Such things as spirits do not exist. Speak no more of them.

Such talk would do Your Majesty no good, would it, Mother?

If that is truly how you see it, Your Majesty…

then just as you always have,

stay as you are and take no action.

I shall see to the safety of the princes myself.

I shall also find a way to ward off the spirit!

His Highness the Crown Prince!

Come back to us!

Come back!

Come back!

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Alas.

Stop the wailing!

Do you all truly believe

that spirits could kill the sons of the King?

That the late King and I lost our sons to spirits?

And that the King fears spirits?

What officials or subjects would ever follow such a king?

-Your Majesty. -Your Majesty.

Mere spirits cannot lay a hand on the royal bloodline.

No one can threaten the royal authority…

be it human or spirit.

Do you truly believe

the spirits can be subdued by that man?

He is the most renowned shaman in the capital.

I will eradicate the royal bloodline.

Your Majesty, Prince Yeongan is…

What is the matter now, Prince Yeongan?

Prince Yeongan!

What has happened?

Prince Yeongan has suddenly gone into a convulsion.

Prince Yeongan.

Prince Yeongan…

Did you see?

Did you?

I will take this one as well.

Prince Yeongan! No! Please, no!

Please stop!

Please save Prince Yeongan, Your Majesty.

I will wipe out every last seed of the East Palace!

What occurred 30 years ago

is repeating itself within the palace.

Therefore, I need you to come with me this time

and bring this matter to an end.

This humble monk is old and frail and can no longer shoulder such a task.

However, there is someone else who may serve in my stead.

Who is it?

A boy named Gu-cheon.

His mother was a shaman.

When she conceived a child,

the deity she served grew angered and laid a curse upon her.

In her agony, she threw herself into the river with her child.

Yet the mother, a shaman, died,

and the child survived.

The child had been underwater for over 15 minutes

and should not have survived.

Perhaps because he died and came back to life,

he has seen spirits ever since.

Gu-cheon.

You little rascal, get up.

Get up.

Get up at once!

Come now, get up!

Have you gone senile

in this temple of Buddha and the Mountain God?

Why do you keep sleeping here instead of your perfectly good room?

Things come out at night and torment me, so I sleep here.

For heaven's sake.

Gu-cheon,

someone of high standing has come to see you.

-Come with me at once. -No. What would you have me do?

Do not sleep the day away and earn your keep.

With that one thing you can do--

I told you I truly do not wish to do such work.

A Buddhist earning his keep?

-What a shameless monk. -What? Shameless?

Fine. I have been wanting to quit this shameless monk life.

You do not look well.

Is something wrong?

Worry about yourself. You look deathly pale.

-Enough. -What do you want with me?

I heard you can see spirits and even drive them out.

Good grief, you must be telling the entire village.

No wonder anyone and everyone comes to see me.

-Gu-cheon! -There is a reason spirits torment people.

It is because they did something foul.

Stop bringing me people who stink of such foul deeds.

Watch your tongue, you rascal.

He says his child is ill.

Afflicted by a spirit, he is in grave condition.

What does that have to do with me?

Do not summon me over such trifles.

I am going to get some sleep.

Gu-cheon!

What?

Do you see something in me?

Your right hand.

You cannot use it.

Why is that?

You have a bite mark left by a spirit.

Seeing that the flesh tore away,

a spirit of deep resentment has clung to you.

If only you had lived better.

Even so, it is none of my concern.

I beg your pardon.

I am at the palace.

King…

-You may all withdraw. -Yes, Your Majesty.

Do you know where this is?

Yes, this is the palace.

It is where Your Majesty resides.

Yes, it is a vast, beautiful,

and opulent residence.

At this pond, the Crown Prince was bewitched by a spirit and died.

It said, "I will wipe out every last seed of the East Palace."

Even my one remaining young son is now on the brink of death. So…

I need you to ward off that spirit.

What is the nature of that spirit?

That is none of your concern. Can you do it?

Can you find that spirit and get rid of it?

It is no longer present.

The spirit

has gone elsewhere.

I will have to look at other places as well.

Wait.

You should stay here.

What do you think you are doing?

If those with strong energy are nearby, the spirit will flee,

so I will go alone and see.

Do not attempt anything foolish.

That crazy, shameless monk sold me off to the palace.

I cannot. I must not do this.

No, wait!

The Big Dipper lies that way, so this way!

Good grief.

Well… my stomach hurt, so…

No, seriously…

This is unfair!

I did not choose to enter the palace.

However lowborn I may be…

Mark my words.

If you attempt to flee again…

I will sever both your feet.

If you tell others that you hunt spirits here,

I will sever your jaw.

If you fail to capture the spirit and my son is harmed,

I will sever your head.

They say that once you enter the palace, you leave only in death.

That is what the palace is.

If you wish to leave the palace alive,

then capture the spirit at once and get rid of it.

If you do so, I will grant you whatever you wish.

Do you understand?

From this moment on, by royal command, you are a feng shui master of the palace.

I will assign you someone who may be of use.

You are hardly recognizable.

It has been ten years.

Do you know why I summoned you?

You must have needed someone trustworthy to keep a secret.

To save your dying son,

you summoned your daughter, who was as good as dead.

I see you still carry what happened to you as a child.

How could that be?

I am only glad

to be of service to you, Father.

I have brought a spirit-catcher into the palace.

Be my eyes and ears, and keep watch on him.

Whether to entrust him with the task or put him to death,

I will decide through you.

Is anyone here?

"Someone who may be of use"? Who on earth is he assigning to me?

I suppose he will send some fearsome men.

There are fearsome men everywhere.

For heaven's sake.

That shameless monk…

Look here.

Look here!

Damn it.

Who are you?

Why do you not answer?

Why do you open the door without…

His Majesty sent me to assist you.

-What am I to do with someone like you? -Pardon?

I clearly said to change my room first, not to send me useless people,

yet he pays no heed.

I have not slept a wink all night.

I am truly at my wits' end!

You lose your temper the moment we meet. Do you have no manners?

Your quarters were chosen to avoid prying eyes, so do not complain.

Complain?

Complain? Ridiculous.

Look.

Do you know why there is no one here?

People keep dying here for no reason, do they?

It is because all the Yin energy gathers…

and things like that come to dwell here.

What?

Ominous.

What exactly is here?

Oh dear.

It must be comforting for you, seeing nothing at all.

I will just go to sleep.

-One cannot expect courtesy from a brute. -A brute?

In any case, this is our first meeting.

Let us exchange greetings.

I am Saeng-gang, an inspecting court lady.

They say you handle spirits as a shaman.

A shaman? Nonsense. I do not even serve spirits.

You are no shaman?

-Then how will you hunt the pond spirit? -None of your concern, so…

Just do as I tell you.

That thing on the ceiling kept me awake, so I will sleep for now.

-Much to be done. -What is the matter with you?

Come out!

There is no time to lose.

He must be the feng shui master.

-Where? -The one who just passed by.

Walk straight.

You are in the palace as a feng shui master.

Mind your conduct.

I know nothing about feng shui.

Good grief.

You insolent wench.

How dare you raise your head and look me in the eye.

Have you no manners?

My apologies, ma'am. I am a court maid from the inspectorate.

By His Majesty's command, I brought a feng shui master to Prince Yeongan.

Leave. Her Majesty the Queen Dowager has ordered that no one be admitted today.

Goodness.

After all that talk about manners, you came away with nothing but a scolding.

Good grief.

Well, have you had a look around? No sign of the pond spirit in the room?

How would I know? It is not as if I can see through walls.

Then what exactly can you do?

Please!

Why are you taking the scolding out on me? For goodness' sake.

You should at least feel some presence.

His Majesty has sent a feng shui master.

A feng shui master?

What on earth is His Majesty thinking?

It is said that he is staying in the quarters

at the far east end of the East Palace.

What?

Is that not the place long plagued by unnatural deaths?

Yes, Your Majesty. It was left vacant after so many sudden deaths at night.

A feng shui master.

What kind of man is he?

Are you all right?

Have you lost your mind?

You carry a great deal of Yang energy. A rare constitution, indeed.

His Majesty's judgment must have clouded

to entrust such a task to someone like you.

He assigned you to me because His Majesty does not trust me.

I am here

only because he threatened my life.

Damn, that bastard. He locks people up just because he has some power.

Are you speaking of His Majesty?

-That is high treason! -What?

I meant Chil-bok from the temple I lived in.

Heavens. Just my luck.

How long do you intend to keep walking?

Are you out for a stroll?

This will not do.

Let us go to the pond where the spirit appears.

There is no need.

I got there, and the spirit had already moved on.

It is not as if spirits are bound to one place the way gwi-mae are.

Gwi-mae?

What is that?

For goodness' sake. This is so bothersome.

Who would know anything about spirits?

Stop complaining and explain it to me. I can start learning now.

A gwi-mae

does not come from a human death, as spirits do.

It forms when sinister forces of nature

or the energy from human ill will gather in one place.

There was one on the ceiling of my room earlier

and another one over there.

It has no soul, so it cannot be driven out like a spirit.

It is more troublesome to handle.

They torment people with darkness in their hearts

and bewitch them.

Let us go.

It is best to avoid them.

Then is the pond spirit a gwi-mae as well?

Gwi-mae do not hold grudges against humans.

-It is most likely a won-gwi. -A won-gwi?

-What is a won-gwi? -Good grief.

Among the many kinds of spirits, common-gwi are souls lingering in regret,

unable to pass on to the afterlife.

They cause no real harm.

Won-gwi are the souls of those who died bearing deep resentment.

They torment the one who caused their resentment.

As the resentment grows and takes form,

it weighs down the soul and binds it to the earth,

keeping it from passing on.

Only by getting rid of that mass of resentment

can the soul bound to the earth be released to pass on.

And even that will be no easy feat.

The pond spirit… Prince Yeongan… The pond spirit…

Prince Yeongan is being tormented by a spirit.

I cannot believe she turned away people sent by His Majesty.

Does the Queen Dowager have any sense at all?

Huh? Well, well.

You speak ill of the Queen Dowager? You said it was treason for me to do so.

More importantly, why tear up all the perfectly good sheets?

None of your concern.

You seem quite at ease.

We must see Prince Yeongan to banish the spirit, yet you seem unconcerned.

Of course I am concerned.

If I fail to save the son of His Majesty, I will be the one to die.

It even leaves me sleepless at night.

What I mean is,

is it not pitiful that the child is tormented by such a grotesque thing?

I do not even know this child. Why should it concern me?

How can you think only of yourself?

If you have the time, look into that pond spirit instead.

Who it was in life and what grudge it bears.

Only then can I get rid of the pond spirit.

It will be difficult. Even if they know, they will not speak.

Then go fetch a peach tree branch.

One that grows eastward.

-What for? -You never simply say yes.

Fetch it at once.

This man, truly…

Ask again, with proper respect!

Be quick!

Assist me? Nonsense. She does not know a thing.

Why does it have to be a branch growing eastward?

Here. This should do, should it not?

I have heard that peach trees drive away spirits.

Well done.

-How will you ward off spirits with… that? -Oh, that feels good.

Much better.

-I almost died trying to reach it. -All this just to scratch your back?

I submit this report to you, Father.

You may set aside your concern

that he might uncover anything about the pond spirit

because he is doing nothing at all.

He stays in his room all day, speaking only of sleep.

-Why does this keep happening? -How many times has this happened?

I know. The rumors of a spirit in the East Palace seem to be true.

So it seems.

Prince Yeongan cannot take even rice gruel.

-Exactly. They say he is worse this time. -Pardon me.

What is going on?

What on earth is happening to him?

-Prince Yeongan! -What ails him?

Please come to your senses, Prince Yeongan!

-Do something at once! -Prince Yeongan.

-Come to your senses. -Is he truly possessed by a spirit?

What on earth should we do?

Prince Yeongan is gravely ill.

-Already? -What will you do?

No other choice, then.

What are you going to do with it…

So are you going to Prince Yeongan?

You should stay here. It is not safe.

You never listen, do you? I told you not to follow.

I said you must go to Prince Yeongan.

That is why I am here. I am going to Prince Yeongan.

What on earth are you trying to do?

I have no choice in letting you see me like this,

but you must not tell anyone what I am about to do.

Why are you putting blood on the branch?

So I may bring it into the other world.

The other world? You mean…

The Realm of Gwi.

The Realm of Gwi…

I may not come out of the water.

-Even then, do not pull me up. -Are you telling me to let you die?

Yes. That is how I reach the Realm of Gwi.

Oh, right. Since you followed me…

Spirits may be listening. Come closer so we can speak quietly.

I lack Yang energy, so it would be best for me to take something of yours.

Well…

You should go now.

Remember what I told you to do.

Look here.

What should we do?

What should we do about this?

-Prince Yeongan! -Prince Yeongan.

Prince… Prince Yeongan!

"I shall burn your vessel, shrouded in darkness."

-Your Highness! -Prince Yeongan!

-Lady Jang, summon… -Please come to your senses!

-Summon the physician! -Yes, ma'am.

If Prince Yeongan shows any signs of waking,

let it see your blood.

The window will be brief.

I knew it would not work,

not knowing the nature of that spirit.

He truly is here.

Who are you?

What grudge drives you to kill the royal bloodline?

Subtitle translation by: Yun-hee Jang