"Mimana"

In the land of Mimana, on the ancient Korean Peninsula.

In the summer of the sixth century, in a village in a reed field, there was a family of indigenous shamans.

The daughter's name was Yona. She was 17 years old, with long, flowing black hair and eyes that seemed to harbor the spirits of the fields.

Her family practiced animism, accepting illness and death as the will of the gods. They did not use herbs or swords, but instead appeased spirits with prayer. The villagers feared Yona's family, and on her sickbed they begged for her incantations.

But Yona's heart was heavy.

By blood inheritance, she was tasked with the duties of a shaman and the survival of her family.

If prayer ceased, the family would perish. That was the law.

That summer, a family influenced by Silla arrived in the village from across the sea.

Armed with iron tools and writing, they boasted that they could cure diseases with medicine and ward off death through human power.

Taejun, a young immigrant, was the son of this family.

Tall with sharp eyes, he laughed at Yona's prayer, calling it a "barbaric curse."

In an attempt to gain control of the village, the immigrants plotted to ostracize Yona's family.

The village was split in two, and the seeds of conflict smoldered.

Yona and Taejun met by a river in a reed field.

Yona was praying to the water god, while Taejun was measuring the river's flow.

"Will your prayers heal the sick?" Taejun asked.

Yona quietly replied.

"Man cannot change the will of the gods, but prayer saves souls."

Taejun sneered, but his heart was moved by Yona's clear eyes.

Soon, the two began to meet in secret.

Yona was amazed by Taejun's knowledge of medicinal herbs, and Taejun was captivated by the beauty of her incantations.

But their love was not permitted.

Yona's family made her their next sorcerer, while Taejun's family entrusted him with rule of the village. The two were incompatible, and the conflict in the village deepened.

Yona's father shouted, "If you mate with the child of an immigrant, the wrath of the gods will destroy our family!" Taejun's brother coldly declared, "If you do not abandon your barbaric prayers and embrace civilization, your village will be destroyed."

One night, deep in the reeds, Yona and Taejun made a vow.

"There is no place for us in this village. Let's run away together."

Yona abandoned her family's rules, and Taejun abandoned his family's expectations.

The two held hands and disappeared into the night.

Their destination was a land beyond the sea, unknown to anyone.

But their escape did not last long.

The villagers closed in on them, and the two were cornered at the end of the reed field.

Yona took Taejun's hand and whispered.

"There is no place for us on this world. Let's go to the land of the gods."

Taejun nodded quietly, "If your prayers will save me."

The two threw themselves off the cliff and were swallowed up by the waves.

The sea quietly accepted them both.

In the village, Yona's family's prayers ceased, and the sorcerer's house was destroyed.

The immigrants took control of the village, but soon their medicines were no longer able to cure the illnesses.

Nothing remained in the reed field, not Yona's spell or Taejun's herbs.

The villagers whispered.

"Those two were loved by the gods."

But no one knew.

What Yona and Taejun sought was not the kingdom of the gods or paradise...

Simply, a moment when they could hold each other's hands.