Scarlet Bond : Cursed to Love

Episode----- 16

Night fell heavy and restless, pressing against the stained-glass windows of the council chamber. Candles flickered in nervous circles, shadows stretching long across the stone floor.

Areum stood beside Junseo, pulse thudding in her ears. Park waited in the center of the room, a single scroll in hand — thin, yellowed paper that could unravel everything.

Junseo's hand brushed hers, a wordless promise of strength. She caught his gaze, dark and afraid, but steady.

Together, they turned to face what waited.

---

Park's voice cut through the chamber like cold steel.

"This document," he began, calm and certain, "details what Seo Junseo's father did twenty years ago: the death of Han Soyeon's brother. It was no accident. It was murder — to seal the curse and bind the heirs."

Gasps echoed off marble walls. A scribe dropped his brush; ink splattered across parchment like spilled blood.

Areum's breath caught painfully. My mother's brother… murdered so I could be bound? The thought coiled tight around her ribs.

---

Junseo flinched as if struck. "I didn't know," he rasped. His voice cracked, raw as an old wound. "Areum… I swear, I didn't know."

She stared at Park, words forming past numb lips. "And what do you want, Park? Power? Or blood?"

Park's gaze barely flickered. "The truth," he said, but his voice tasted of victory.

---

The head elder spoke, voice hard. "Seo Junseo. Han Areum. What answer do you give to this accusation?"

Junseo drew breath, shoulders shaking. "My father may have done terrible things," he said. "But the curse — and our love — are not the same."

"Easy to claim," Park sneered. "Harder to prove. Your blood is stained, Junseo. And hers will be too if she stands with you."

---

Areum stepped forward before fear could pull her back. "Then let it," she said, voice trembling but true. "I will not pretend to hate him to save myself. And if that dooms me… so be it."

For a moment, silence pressed the hall flat — even the candles seemed to hold still.

Park's mask shifted, something colder beneath. "Then you choose ruin, Areum Han."

"I choose love," she replied. "Even if it breaks me."

---

The elder's gaze weighed heavy. "We will deliberate. But know this: if your bond is born of murder, not love, the curse will not break — and both your names will be struck from every record."

The words fell around them like falling ash. Areum felt the old stone floor cold beneath her shoes, the chill crawling up her bones.

---

Outside, wind howled through the eaves. The ancient oak door groaned shut behind them as they left the chamber, sealing secrets inside.

Junseo exhaled, shoulders slumping. "Areum… if my family caused this—"

"I know," she whispered, throat tight. "And I still choose you."

His eyes met hers — pain and relief warring behind the mask. "Even now?"

"Especially now," she breathed.

---

They stood in the dim corridor, lantern light painting gold across ruined portraits. For a heartbeat, everything else fell away: the council, the curse, even Park.

Junseo's hand lifted, hesitated — then settled against her cheek. His thumb brushed her skin, rough and gentle at once.

Her breath caught. Speak the words you fear most…

"I love you," she whispered, barely louder than breath. "Not because I'm cursed. Because I do."

---

His eyes darkened, and his mask slipped away. "I love you too," he rasped. "More than I ever dared to want."

He bent, slowly, painfully, until their lips met — not in anger, not in command, but in choice.

The kiss was raw, broken, desperate. It tasted of rain and ashes, of all they'd lost and all they still hoped to save.

For a moment, it felt like enough.

---

They parted, breathless, trembling. Junseo's forehead rested against hers, eyes closed. "No matter what happens," he whispered, voice hoarse, "thank you… for choosing me."

"I always did," she murmured.

---

Behind them, Minho's voice cut the hush: "The council isn't finished. Park has something else — something even darker."

They turned, hands still joined. "What?" Junseo asked, voice like flint.

"I don't know yet," Minho admitted. "But whatever it is… it's meant to end you both."

---

Areum's pulse roared in her ears. The curse felt closer, colder, like breath at the nape of her neck. But Junseo's hand was warm, alive, real.

For now, that was enough to keep walking

---

Teaser for Ep 17:

Park reveals the final secret behind the curse.

Areum faces a choice that could break her heart or free them both.

And in the candlelit dark — a promise stronger than fear.

See you in Episode 17! Stay Tuned ....