Alchemy of Souls (2022) s01e03 Episode Script

1
ALCHEMY OF SOULS
I forbid anyone from opening
his gate of energy!
Wait!
You cannot just leave like this.
What about this child?
Think about what people will say
about Do-hwa and this baby.
They will say he is not your son
and call him an illegitimate child.
He will be raised by the Jang family
since my wife gave birth to him.
I will send someone over
after his mother's funeral.
Are you abandoning this child?
Is he really
not your son?
Believe what you wish to believe.
If this child is
only going to cause trouble,
let us just end his life here and now.
See? He is your son.
A son you are willing to protect
even at the risk of your own life.
I am merely trying to keep him safe.
If his gate of energy remains closed
and he lives as my son, he will live.
However, if he chooses
to discover his fate instead,
he will not survive.
Who is the father
of that child?
He is the son of a dead man.
Not only does his birth make no sense,
but it never should have happened either.
Young Master, are you all right?
Why did you bring her out?
Let her go.
I apologize for causing trouble.
Why did you bring her out?
She tried to poison you.
She did not poison me.
I poisoned myself.
I did it because I hated that
I was incapable of casting spells.
My maid only risked her life
by doing what she was told to do.
It was all my doing.
-Jang Uk, how could you?
-Please save it for another time.
He still has not recovered
from the poison.
Punish him all you want,
but wait until he has fully recovered.
Uk almost died just now.
Please do not scold him like that.
Look at how pale he is.
Take him home for now.
Young Master, let us go.
Go to Sejukwon and receive treatment.
Mu-deok needs to go too.
Now is not the time.
Mu-deok needs to get treatment too.
Otherwise, I will not go.
Young Master.
Fine. Go ahead and die!
-Lock them back up!
-Calm down, Uncle.
If Uk is right,
that maid did nothing wrong.
She is severely injured.
Without treatment, she could die.
I am surprised she is still alive
even after all those beatings.
If she dies, I will allow you
to hold a funeral for her.
Please help.
Mu-deok risked her life
to do what I asked.
We need to treat her at Sejukwon
to save her life.
Please help her.
I want them out of my sight.
Take them both to Sejukwon.
Uk.
Young Master, go on ahead.
I will take Mu-deok there.
Mu-deok.
Mu-deok, wake up.
-I will take her.
-No.
I will do it myself.
You cannot even walk properly.
I can do it. She is my maid,
so I will take her.
But you are not well either.
You cannot take her there.
Do you think so? Then…
-You carry her on your back.
-Pardon?
Carry her on your back.
-You want me to carry her?
-Yes.
Why should I carry her?
-Come here.
-Young Master.
No, but wait. My goodness.
Oh, my goodness.
Hey, Yul. All right.
Help me instead of Mu-deok.
I do not have the strength to walk.
Take me to Sejukwon.
Do you want me to carry him?
-No.
-All right. Thank you.
Maidservant Kim, be careful!
-Be careful with her!
-All right.
-Goodness.
-What…
Be careful.
Oh, dear.
Uk has opened
his gate of energy in the end.
Right.
He was even willing to end his life.
I could not just sit back and watch.
I guess he knew that
we would never just let him kill himself.
He probably poisoned himself
knowing he would get saved.
Are you all right?
Opening Uk's gate of energy
and treating him
has probably cost me
ten years' worth of energy.
So you not only opened his gate of energy,
but you even gave him extra energy?
What good would it be for an old man
to keep his energy saved up?
He was poisoned,
so I gave him some energy
to speed up his recovery.
Once Uk recovers,
you must retrieve it no matter what.
Is that really necessary
now that his gate of energy is open?
He is at least 20 years behind
when it comes to knowing spells.
Even if he begins training himself now,
he will at least have to be 60
to do anything impressive.
That is the fate he was given.
We must make sure of it.
If that is what you wish,
then I will retrieve it.
You know what?
I am too exhausted. I need a break.
Bring me some wine.
Wine?
I mean…
Why would there be wine
in the room of a practitioner?
I saw it.
I saw it hidden in your room.
Come on. The wine you drink
whenever you get lonely.
-I am not lonely!
-My gosh.
I am merely…
Gosh, I have a headache.
It is because of…
What was it called again?
Right. Insomnia.
I have very bad insomnia.
I merely take it for that.
Loneliness prevents you
from falling asleep.
You should have gotten married
when you were young.
Are you still not over Do-hwa?
Is that why you are alone?
It is empty.
-What?
-You finished it.
That is not possible. What?
What in the world…
I guess you were unbelievably lonely.
I only had a glass
every time I could not sleep.
I only had one glass each time…
This is the wine that
my uncle hides in his room.
It tastes quite nice.
Anyway, Uk's life-long dream
has finally come true.
So let us celebrate.
That girl, Mu-deok…
He recently brought her
from a brothel, right?
She risked her life for him
even though they only just met.
It is strange.
Uk saved her
from having to become a gisaeng.
She hated it so much that
she even pretended to be blind.
Have a drink.
"Blind"?
Yes. According to Ju-wol,
she was blind when she came
but could see just fine when she left.
The wine tastes great.
She easily deceives people.
She lied about being blind
and even said she poisoned Uk.
She did not speak
even though she was tortured.
There is more to her than meets the eye.
On the outside,
she just looks cute and naive.
She seems to be hiding something.
-You finished it.
-What? What about it?
Your uncle is on his way here,
so I am guessing you are doomed.
-I did not drink any.
-Wait. Yul.
Yul!
-Oh, gosh.
-Dang-gu.
I am dead.
Dang-gu.
It was you, right?
No.
Come here.
-Dang-gu.
-Yes, Uncle?
Is she breathing?
You are awake.
You kept passing out,
so I thought you might die.
Gosh.
Does it hurt a lot?
I think I broke my bones.
They said you were fine.
-Really?
-Yes.
Then why does it hurt so much?
What a useless body.
Hey.
Why did you say you poisoned me?
If you pretended like
you did not know anything,
they would not have tortured you.
I had to make them believe
that you were dying.
Otherwise, they would not have
opened your gate of energy.
They just would have made an antidote.
So you really did risk your life.
I thought I might lose
at least an arm or a leg.
But I am surprisingly fine.
The people of Songrim are too nice.
If this is how they torture people…
By the way,
you still seem pretty sick yourself.
Why are you here?
Obviously to take care of you.
All the practitioners here are mages.
They cannot find out about you.
So I closed the door
when no one was looking,
changed your clothes for you,
applied ointment on your wounds,
and gave you a massage
whenever you passed out.
-You did?
-Yes.
I am the only person who is safe enough
to come this close to you.
All my life,
no one ever seemed to know
how desperate I was.
No one has ever risked their lives for me
like you did.
Since I survived as promised,
I will serve you as my master.
Up until now, I have served 12 masters.
People think I got kicked out every time,
but I was the one who left.
But now, I have
finally found my true master.
So I shall kneel before you
and swear to serve you
as my master forever.
On one condition.
Do not tell anyone about our relationship.
You will continue to be my owner,
and I will continue to be your maid.
Also,
our relationship as master and pupil
will only last until you become the best
and help me get my energy back.
Only until then.
The moment I get my energy back
and become Naksu again,
we will no longer be master and pupil.
Can you tell me why?
Because then,
you should no longer
have a reason to protect me,
nor should I have a reason…
to go easy on you.
So you want to part ways
once our business is done?
I see.
All right.
Once I am no longer of use to you,
you may abandon me.
Then I will respect your decision
and let you leave.
Now, kneel before your master.
I, Jang Uk, your pupil,
will serve and protect my master, Mu-deok,
with all my heart.
You have returned to your true self.
You will not run wild for a while.
Then I shall meet you in the royal palace.
Feeding human souls
to soul shifters who run wild
allow them to continue to be of use.
Did you kill the gisaeng
that Naksu's soul has shifted into?
Yes, we threw the body away
in Lake Gyeongcheondaeho.
Did you check for the blue mark?
There is no blue mark.
She is not Naksu.
Yes, I checked.
The Naksu I used to know
would not have lost to you,
but she must have lost her energy
due to the body she is in.
Do soul shifters sometimes lose energy?
If a soul is too strong,
it enters an unbefitting body
and cannot access its energy.
Have you seen that before?
Your Majesty.
I am Master Jang's pupil, Jin Mu.
I heard you asked for me.
Jin Mu.
Yes, Your Majesty.
I am not the king.
I am your master, Jang Gang.
Right now, my soul has shifted
into the king's body.
Master, is that you?
Yes, the king and I have switched bodies.
Then where is His Majesty?
His soul is inside my body.
I must get my body back.
But I cannot seem to retrieve my energy.
I need you to help me.
Master.
I do not know
how the alchemy of souls works.
Go to the Cheonbugwan Secret Room
and bring me the Soul Ejector.
I shall teach you the alchemy of souls.
He could not retrieve his energy
due to the weak body he was in,
which was why I was given a chance.
I was lucky.
Burn these bodies.
Search the brothel that
the dead gisaeng used to work at.
Find the owner of the Spirit Plaque,
and do it discreetly.
Yes, sir.
What are you doing?
It is cold.
It is freezing.
Of course, it is cold.
So why are you sitting there?
I have never felt this cold before.
I would easily collapse
because my gate of energy was closed.
Even though I am shivering, I can stand.
I guess my gate of energy
is really open now.
If you master your spells,
you will neither feel cold on ice
nor hot walking on fire.
What were you like
before you shifted souls?
I had heard many rumors
since you were so infamous.
But I never actually saw you myself.
I heard you were pretty strong.
I was not just strong.
I was extremely strong.
"Extremely"? I see.
In order to become the best mage,
you must go through several steps.
First is Jipsu, the ability
to gather the energy of water.
Second is Ryusu, the ability
to gain energy from the flow of water.
Then comes Chisu,
the ability to control the energy
in the atmosphere.
I am a mage
who has mastered all three steps.
Not many in Daeho have mastered all three.
I guess you really did
live up to your name.
Yes.
I moved silently like a shadow,
and the heads of my enemies
fell to the ground where I passed.
I was Naksu,
the Shadow Assassin.
I walked on water like I was flying,
and the wind blew as I passed by.
If I did this, it would rain.
I am Naksu, the best mage in this land,
who even has the ability
to create snow and rain…
Are you all right?
All I did was run for a bit,
but it feels like
my lungs are going to explode.
What is the matter?
I have cramps!
You have cramps?
These legs are short, skinny, weak,
and cannot stand the cold.
What a useless body.
Be careful. You are no longer Naksu,
the Shadow Assassin.
You are Mu-deok, our family maid.
You should not run around
like you did earlier.
You could get hurt.
I feel miserable.
Do not feel miserable. You have me.
Let us begin training
now that my gate of energy is open.
But first, put your shoes back on.
It is cold.
What was that for?
You are not agile.
Pick it up.
What are you doing?
Let me see how good my pupil is
so I can forget how miserable I feel.
What?
Why did you hit me?
You have no swordsmanship.
Then show me how you fight.
You little…
Gosh, that hurts.
You fight poorly too.
You are worse than what I had expected.
That is because I never learned properly!
You had 12 masters.
You may not have been able
to learn how to cast spells,
but you could have learned
basic martial arts.
I did not feel motivated to do so.
As you already know,
I need to feel motivated
in order to do something.
Because you are lazy.
I have noticed that
you never do anything around the house.
I know everything by heart. Test me.
How do you think I recognized you?
It was because I saw you using Tansu.
I know it all.
You are all talk.
I can do more than talk now.
Did you just see that?
I am a quick learner.
I will quickly master Jipsu.
How long does it take?
I was a fast learner,
but I took five years.
Those who are slow take 20 years.
As for you…
You may master it pretty quickly
since you are Jang Gang's son.
What does he have to do with this?
He was a genius
who only took a year to master Jipsu.
If you achieve that,
rumors that say
you are not his son will subside.
But of course,
I doubt it will be possible.
If he took a year,
I will do it in six months.
No, I will do it in three months.
You are bluffing.
I am determined, so do not discourage me.
Maidservant Kim asked me
to sweep the entire yard.
You have recovered a lot,
and you seem to be doing better,
so help me out.
What…
Mu-deok.
I am a lazy guy who does not do things
he does not feel motivated to do.
Good luck.
That little…
-That…
-It is cold. How chilly.
That lazy, useless show-off!
It is so chilly. It is way too cold.
Master Heo has made
herbal medicine for Uk.
It seems to be extremely effective
now that Young Master's
gate of energy is open.
Maidservant Kim, you seem very delighted.
Are you really that upset
that his gate of energy is open?
You did not do anything
even when he was about to die.
If not for Master Heo,
Young Master Jang would have died.
He should have looked for a way
to save him without opening his gate.
How cold of you.
You have always kept a distance
from Young Master Jang.
Is it…
because of the rumors?
What rumors?
Of course, you would know.
You know that there are
rumors going around
saying you are the father
of Young Master Jang.
Do not dare to speak of
such absurd rumors!
It is not completely absurd.
Let us be honest. We both know that
you used to fancy Madam Do-hwa
before she got married.
You used to write her poems
and give her gifts.
I am a living witness.
People say you are still single
because you are not yet over her.
What about you, Maidservant Kim?
Are you still head over heels
for Jang Gang?
Is that why you are unmarried
and still living in his house?
What?
I know very well
how much you used to like him.
When he told you that
he liked acorn jelly,
you climbed mountains to collect acorns
-like some kind of a squirrel.
-A squirrel?
I saw you going around collecting acorns.
What is your point?
Are you making fun of the fact that
I went around collecting acorns?
Fine!
I admit I went here and there
to collect acorns.
Making acorn jelly was the only way
I could express my feelings for him.
You can mock me all you want.
I am not mocking you.
Seeing you make all that acorn jelly…
made me feel sad.
I know how it feels
to be in a situation
where you cannot do anything
for the person you love.
Other people can say
what they want to say about us
behind our backs,
but let us not do the same to each other.
It is obvious to us both
that the passionate love we had
back when we were young
only ended up
leaving a scar in our hearts.
I got too worked up
about Young Master Jang
and said things I should not have said.
Forgive me.
I also care for Uk greatly.
I am just afraid that
opening his gate of energy
might have broken the barrier
that is protecting him.
It just makes me feel anxious.
I may have to break his will
and stop him in the future.
Please do not resent me for that.
Let us see how things go.
Young Master, this is wild ginseng tea.
Drink up.
"Wild ginseng"?
I will drink it after I return. Leave it.
Are you trying
to give it to Mu-deok again?
It is cold outside.
She deserves something nice and warm.
Why did you make her
sweep the yard out in the cold?
Wait.
That maid is getting treated for free.
So I asked her to do her part.
Why does it have to be her?
Could you not do it instead?
I need to heat up your medicine,
prepare your meals,
and take care of you.
Mu-deok will take care of me.
You do not need to worry.
Oh, I see.
So you only care about Mu-deok.
Since I am now considered useless,
I will go outside
and sweep the yard just like Mu-deok.
It is just that I feel like
I am putting you through a lot.
How long did it take for you
to boil this wild ginseng?
I boiled it for the entire day.
That is my point.
You did not get to sleep a wink.
How do you think that makes me feel?
-Not good.
-Right?
I know I put you through a lot
with all the trouble I caused.
Look at how tired you look.
You used to have porcelain skin.
You should be the one
drinking this wild ginseng tea.
So will you stop causing so much trouble?
I do not know what to say to the leader.
If he punishes me, so be it.
My gates are open now,
which means I will be a part of Songrim.
Are you that happy
that your gates of energy are open?
Yes, I am.
Once I enter Songrim
and become better than Yul and Dang-gu,
they will regret
not having taken me in sooner.
Maidservant Kim, you can have the ginseng.
Thank you for the ginseng.
I appreciate it.
-Sure.
-Thanks.
You must be the spiteful maid.
What are you doing? We gave you treatment.
Your wounds could get infected.
I got treated for free,
so I was told to work to show gratitude.
Maidservant Kim is a wise woman.
Sweep the yard nice and clean.
Then manure the medicinal herb garden.
All right.
You just wait, Heo Yeom.
Right now, I may be
sweeping your front yard.
But one day, I will get rid of Sejukwon.
Hey! Watch it.
Was that on purpose?
No.
I think it was on purpose.
That is absurd.
You are an odd one.
This ear…
I have seen this ear before.
Have I ever treated you before?
How would I be able to afford
getting treated at Sejukwon?
This ear looks familiar somehow.
Sweep the yard properly.
He almost ripped my ear out.
I know it hurts, but bear with it.
He is angry with Young Master Jang
and is taking it out on you.
It is normal to pick on the weak.
That is how the world works.
I will just stay quiet.
If that is the case,
try not to resent him.
He gave ten years' worth
of his torrent of energy
to help your young master heal faster.
Get some rest once you are done.
Ten years' worth of his torrent of energy?
What took you so long?
Come here. This is wild ginseng--
What is it, Mu-deok?
What are you doing?
Stay still.
This is not what I had in mind
when I brought you here.
Mu-deok, this is wrong.
I am your pupil. Stop it.
My gosh.
What are you doing right now?
I am checking the core of your energy.
Breathe properly.
It is there.
It really is inside.
You really are special.
Cut it out.
What is inside my stomach?
A great torrent of energy.
Heo Yeom placed a torrent of energy
in your stomach.
A torrent of energy?
Uk seems to have recovered now.
It is time you retrieve
the torrent of energy you gave him.
If it surges the wrong way,
it could make him go mad.
Uk will not be able to use it.
His gate of energy just opened.
There is nothing he can actually do.
You are worried for nothing.
He probably does not even know
that there is something great inside him.
Let us steal Heo Yeom's torrent of energy.
The core of your energy is filled
with the energy that Heo Yeom gave you.
You are now strong enough
to use Jipsu with ease.
I had no idea that
something so precious was inside me.
It takes ten years to gather
this kind of torrent. You got it for free.
And it is Heo Yeom's,
the best you could ask for.
You are one lucky punk.
I thought that old man hated me.
I am surprised he gave me this.
He probably gave it to you
to help you recover.
He will take it back soon.
He cannot do that.
It is in my stomach, so it is mine.
If you do not have
the power to control it,
it cannot become yours.
He can take it back whenever.
To keep this, I need to be able
to control energy,
which means I need to breathe
just like the source of the energy.
I guess those 12 masters
taught you a thing or two.
Correct.
The energy from your core
is controlled by your breathing.
However, every mage breathes differently.
There is a difference in how much air
one breathes in and out.
It is Heo Yeom's energy,
so we must control it with his breathing.
I doubt he will teach me.
Should we just try everything?
After all, it is just breathing.
If you use someone else's breathing,
you could lose control and go mad.
You will shed blood
from every hole in your body and die.
Should we still try?
No.
You are way too extreme.
Think of a way to keep me alive
along with this energy, Master.
The most basic breathing skill
is handed down to you by your family.
Heo Yeom is a member of the Seo family.
So anyone from that family
will use the same breathing technique.
-Seo Yul.
-Seo Yul.
Go ask him. You said you were close.
Yul is a careful guy.
If I ask,
he will catch on and tell Heo Yeom.
Just ten breaths…
No, seven will be enough.
I will be able to know
by putting a hand on his core of energy.
He will break your hand
before his first breath.
You have a point. He is not like you.
Me?
What is wrong with me?
What? What is with
that condescending look?
Anyway, I do not think
I can do to him what I did to you.
No, wait. Mu-deok.
Look at me in the eyes.
So you feel uneasy about touching him
unlike how you felt with me?
You are so immature.
How is that even important?
"Immature"?
Yes, it is important.
Are you insane? What are you doing?
I am sane.
-No, let us say I am insane.
-Let go of me.
What are you doing?
Hey.
Why do you keep badgering Mu-deok?
She is still sick.
I was not badgering her.
-Seriously?
-Goodness.
I thought you were being nice.
Mu-deok, are you all right?
Your young master expects
a lot from you, does he not?
You not only need to care for him,
but you must keep him amused too.
He asks for warm water,
but when I bring it,
he asks for cold water again…
-Hey, that--
-He says something is salty,
but later on, he complains it is bland.
-Me?
-He is immature and fickle.
He is lazy but full of himself.
But what can I do?
He is my young master,
so I have no choice but to serve him.
Mu-deok, you seem to know
a lot about him already.
I am embarrassed for you.
Anyway, what are you two doing here?
Why are you not at Sejukwon?
We were looking at Yul.
Mu-deok asked me to come.
Yul?
Why not go see him up close?
We were doing it in secret.
Mu-deok seemed to feel uneasy
about approaching him,
so I stayed with her.
Mu-deok, you must have feelings for Yul.
-No--
-Dang-gu.
You caught on very quickly.
This is making me blush.
-Young Master! This is a misunderstanding.
-Do not be shy.
Many women have fallen for Yul.
-It is natural you feel that way.
-It is not…
I will help Mu-deok.
Uk, go to the reception room.
Why?
Master Heo wants to see you.
Master Heo?
Goodness.
I heard you asked for me.
Yes.
The sound of your cough is nice and clear.
I guess you are feeling much better.
I still feel dizzy and nauseous.
I also keep fainting.
But I am getting better thanks to you.
I saw you and your maid
energetically walking around this morning.
How strange is that?
Hey, come stand here.
I need to take something from you.
Before you do,
I brought something for you.
For me?
Back when I was a child,
I let loose a bunch of goats
in your medicinal herb garden,
and I know you have hated me since.
Those goats ate all the medicinal herbs
and are still living to this day.
Even so, you still saved my life
and kept me alive.
I am extremely grateful for that.
I thought you were a complete lout,
but I guess you have learned
how to express your gratitude.
I have prepared something for you.
Maidservant Kim.
This wine was made with spring water
from a volcanic island in Southern Daeho.
It is dark wine,
the best wine you can find in Daeho.
Young Master Jang said
he wanted to thank you,
so I went through great lengths
to acquire it.
This is a rare delicacy.
But do I only get one bottle?
You are a man who knows
how to express your gratitude!
Maidservant Kim, you raised him well.
-You really did.
-Thank you.
Bring it here. Come on.
My goodness gracious.
Three bottles?
Mother.
Uk's gate of energy has opened.
We could not do anything until now
because of the Gwanju's orders,
but does this mean we can
accept him into the family now?
That boy called off the engagement
after he used you.
Yet you still like him?
I was the one
who used him to my advantage.
His gate of energy was closed,
so I used it against him
to try and make him live with us.
Do not distort the truth.
He offered to come live with us
if we helped him open his gate.
That is how he seduced you.
It ended up happening anyway.
If you had opened
his gate of energy back then,
you would have gotten a son-in-law,
and I would have married
the man I wanted to marry.
Cho-yeon.
The son of the Jang family
whose gate of energy is now open
will never become my son-in-law.
You will have to take your sister's place
and become the leader
that guards Jinyowon for the family.
Find a man who will support your cause.
If my sister had not died,
I would have gotten married
to the man I loved.
I apologize, Mother.
Go and see if Gwigu's pottery
is back in one piece again.
All right.
Uk even broke this precious Gwigu.
What if I ask him to marry me in return?
I bet he will refuse.
So Yul sleeps in the room
that is at the very far end?
Yes. He enjoys peace and quiet.
What time does he go to bed?
If he is not busy,
he normally sleeps early
and wakes up early too.
Why do you ask?
So you can visit him during his sleep?
No matter how much you like him,
that is wrong.
Here is a tip.
He always eats at the same hour,
so go see him in the dining hall.
All right.
I need to do more than just see him.
I need to touch him.
Mu-deok, are you all right?
Hey, Yul.
Outsiders are not allowed
to read the books in Jeongjingak.
She is only here to help.
Besides, they are all about magic spells.
She would not understand anyway.
You are quite nimble.
Do you know martial arts?
I learned how to dance at the brothel.
That is why I am nimble.
Where is Dong-i?
I need to ask for something.
Well, Dong-i is not here but Mu-deok is.
Mu-deok, come and help him out.
I will help you.
No, that is not necessary.
Shall I clean up, Young Master?
Young Master, are you going to eat?
What would you like to eat?
Young Master! I will…
This is where the Jeongjingak mages live.
Do not follow me any longer.
I heard he sleeps early.
I wonder if he is going to bed already.
Is this the bathhouse?
I told you to leave.
Why do you keep following me?
I still figured there might be
something I could do.
Is there
something you want from me?
I need to touch it. Now is the chance.
What made you follow me
all the way to the men's bathhouse?
This is my chance. Six breaths
and I will know how he breathes.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
What was that for?
I was so close to figuring it out.
I know you also stared at me
from afar with Uk.
Why did you follow me?
I just need him to take one more breath.
Give me an answer.
I am in love with you!
Are you all right?
It hurts.
You must be after my breathing technique.
You keep reaching for my core of energy.
But I am in love with you.
You are such an adept liar.
I bet that move earlier
was martial arts too.
I lived a harsh life,
so I learned a few moves
just to keep myself safe.
Are you doing this for Uk?
I guess he is trying to control
the torrent of energy inside him.
But Uk will not succeed
even with my breathing technique.
Stop wasting your time.
Just get treated and leave.
So you remember me,
Yul.
I did not ignore you because I hated you.
Your mother, Do-hwa,
was like a daughter to me.
I am pretty much your grandfather.
You little lout.
Right, Grandfather.
Your mother, Do-hwa,
was extremely kind-hearted.
Was she?
Yes, she was! You need to know that.
Always remember that
and ignore what everyone else says.
That poor kid…
The length and depth of how much air
he inhales and exhales.
That is hard to play. I am impressed.
I know how to do many things.
I would like it back.
It looks very old.
Why do you have something so old?
It belongs to an old friend.
Seeing that you have it
instead of your friend,
I am guessing that friend is gone.
Yes.
It belonged to that friend.
It means a lot to me, so give it back.
Then in return for giving it back,
teach me your breathing technique.
You said it was
going to be useless anyway.
To me, this is just as useless.
So let us trade.
This means nothing to me,
so I could even break it.
Only three breaths.
Where is she?
What is that look on your face?
That is no ordinary look.
I like him.
You set it up that way.
I followed Yul around saying I liked him
and finally found out.
I see.
You are a sensitive person
who kills everyone who gets near,
but you decided to fancy a guy
just so you could help your pupil.
What about you?
I hope you did not let Heo Yeom
retrieve his torrent of energy.
It is safe inside me.
I found out his breathing technique too.
So you wasted your time.
You found out? Do not lie to me.
I bet you are bluffing
just to act like
you did something important.
I breathed the way he did,
and I think I feel something
moving inside me.
The energy is surging inside you.
It worked.
Were you this close with Yul?
Be careful. I can still see
the mark in your eyes.
I kept using the eye drops.
I didn't see the mark in the mirror.
Do you still see it?
I can see if I look this close.
If you really like him,
this is how close you will get.
So be careful who you fall for.
Only I get to come this close.
Fine. I will only allow it to you.
I will try not to fall for Yul.
What?
Why does that require effort?
He is handsome.
It takes effort
not to fall for a handsome man.
What about me?
I guess you have been trying hard
not to fall for me as well.
Not at all.
Why not? It makes no sense.
-Just tell me it has been hard.
-Yes, Young Master.
-Say it like you mean it.
-Yes.
-Will you keep this up?
-Yes.
Come on. Humor me.
Your Royal Highness.
Judging by the energy on your sword,
you have reached the highest stage
of the second step, Ryusu.
It is all thanks to your guidance,
Assistant Gwanju.
The only person
who is on a similar level as you
is probably Seo Yul from the Seo family.
Her Majesty the Queen and Yul's father,
General Seo, are siblings.
Yul and I were close as kids,
but things changed
after he joined Songrim.
Seo Yul, Park Dang-gu, Jang Uk,
and Jin Cho-yeon are known
to some people as Four Seasons.
Let them have their fun.
But wait.
Why is Jang Uk part of the group
when he cannot cast spells?
He can now.
His gate of energy has opened.
His gate of energy has opened?
But there is not much he can do.
He is the son of Jang Gang,
Cheonbugwan's Gwanju.
Recently,
he came and asked me for Naksu's sword.
And?
Are you afraid I will do it?
So did you give it to him?
His Majesty ordered you
to keep it inside Cheonbugwan.
The Gwanju position belongs
to a member of the Jang family,
so I had no choice.
How rude of him.
He was probably looking down on me.
After all, I was his father's pupil.
If you think about it,
I was not even an official pupil.
I had nowhere to go
after I got kicked out by the Jin family,
and he took me in as his servant.
You are the teacher
of this country's crown prince.
How dare he look down on you.
That is the same thing as insulting me.
I just want to apologize that
your teacher is someone
who comes from a low status.
One of these days,
I must crush that Jang Uk.
That sword belongs to Gwanju Jang,
Jang Uk's father.
I once…
promised to take him in
if he successfully unsheathed
his father's sword.
Now that his gate of energy is open,
it will be possible.
Are you going to let Uk
become a mage of Songrim?
Go bring Uk.
What did you say?
The father of this child is whom?
The late king.
He is the king's son!
Are you saying he is the son
of His Majesty who died last year?
The late king
passed due to a severe illness
and could not even move.
So how is that possible?
The day this child was born,
a star that symbolizes the king
was found in the night sky.
The late king's brother
had already taken over the throne,
and he even has a son to succeed him.
If the royal family finds out that
this child was destined to be king,
they will see it
as treason.
His existence will bring chaos.
He should not attract attention
or challenge anyone.
We must make people think
that he is nothing special.
I sincerely apologize
for all the trouble and chaos
I have caused.
Songrim decided
to open your gate of energy,
so you will not be held responsible.
I, Jang Uk, the eldest of the Jang family,
am now ready to practice and learn.
If Songrim gives me a chance,
I will do my very best.
And to show my loyalty,
I will pass on Naksu's sword,
a sword I took from Jin Mu,
and keep it in Songrim's Sword Room.
I refuse the offer.
That sword was meant for the Jang family,
so your family can keep it safe.
You may take your father's sword as well.
From this moment forward,
I hereby banish Jang Uk from Songrim.
I allowed you to freely enter
as you were the son of an old friend.
But you have no right
to enter Songrim as a mage.
From now on,
Jang Uk will not be given access
to anything in Songrim.
Hand in the Spirit Plaque
that allows you to enter this place.
I do not have it.
What?
I lost it.
I lost the Spirit Plaque.
What kind of punishment is given
to those who lose the Spirit Plaque?
A hundred floggings, my lord.
Then I hereby order
a hundred floggings for Jang Uk
for having lost the Spirit Plaque.
He has Master Heo's torrent of energy,
so he will be all right.
If you get involved,
it will only make it worse for him.
Jang Uk, leave Songrim
and do not ever come back again.
Leave.
No.
No.
I cannot leave like this.
I was only flogged 99 times.
There is one more left.
As for the last one,
you should do it yourself.
I am merely trying to keep him safe.
If his gate of energy remains closed
and he lives as my son, he will live.
However, if he chooses
to discover his fate instead,
he will not survive.
Uk, just stand down, give up,
and live a quiet life.
That is the only way you can live.
Mu-deok.
Get the sword.
Let us go.
Subtitle translation by: Ja-won Lee
ALCHEMY OF SOULS
I want to unsheathe it and show them.
-Is that an act of stupidity?
-No, It is an act of vigor.
Stay strong.
There is another sword here that
you cannot unsheathe.
But that belongs to his father.
I must take it with me.
Whoever wins shall take the sword.
Going against you would be
an act of stupidity.
However, there is someone who sees it
as one of vigor. So I shall try.
My pupil is still too weak
to fight against you.
You have put him in danger once again.
And he will get what he wants once more.
Ripped and synced by
TTEOKBOKKIsubs