KDrama: Mirror of the Witch 2016

Main Characters:

Yoon Shi yoon as Seo Joon

Kim Sae ron as Princess Seo ri/Yeon hui

Lee Sung jae as Choi Hyun seo

Yum Jung ah as Shaman Hong Joo

Kwnk Si yang as Poong yeon

 When I first found out that Kim Sae ron was leading in a new drama, I was instantly sold. I loved Kim Sae ron on High School Love On! so I was excited when Mirror of the Witch was announced. I started watching it when a subbed episode was uploaded on Dramanice and right then and there I was hooked. It has an intriguing premise but to be honest it was kinda scary to watch alone. 

The story focuses on Yeon hui, an unwanted and cursed princess, who is believed to be the cause why the royal family is cursed. It all begin swhen Queen Shim, a royal queen in the palace, finds out that she is unable to conceive a child and fearing that they won't have an heir to the throne, she seek the help of Hong joo, a Shaman who uses black magic. Hong joo tells the Queen she would help her but she needs to deceive a young shaman named Hae ran by telling her to sleep with the king to become pregnant. Trusting the Queen, Hae ran agrees and later on becomes pregant. Hong joo then uses her black magic to transfer the fetus from Hae ran to the Queen and plans on killing Hae ran. But Hae ran finds out about Hong joo's plan and before dying she senses that the Queen is carrying twins and as if it isn't bad enough, Hae ran curses both the twins. Later on, Queen Shim gives birth to the twins, Crown Prince Soon hwae and Princess Yeon hui but has to give up one because of the curse. Expectedly, the Queen abandons the princess and keeps the Crown Prince. The Chief of Imperial Taoist Temple, Choi Hyun seo, is tasked to burn the princess with his holy fire to end the curse. It is seen that he did but later on revealed that he actually saved the princess as per the king's request. Years after, Yeon hui grows up to be a beautiful young girl but is forced to live in the black forest alone, in a house surrounded by talismans. Aside from Hyun seo and the members of the Imperial Taoist Temple, Poong yeon, Hyun seo's son, is the only one who knew about Yeon hui's existence. He also develops feelings for her which his father greatly disapproves. Then a young scholar named Heo Joon accidentally finds Yeon hui's house when he is dared to get the kite everyone believes to be owned by a witch. Joon and Yeon hui's meeting doesn't end their because their fate seems to be tied together as things unravel and they work together to lift Yein hui's curse.

 Yeon hui's curse is that all the people she loves and all the people who love her will die when she turns 17. Hyun seo works hard to protect her and everyone who loves her but when Yeon hui crosses the talismans border and goes out with Poong yeon on the night of her 17th birthday to see a festival, the curse is activated and it immediately takes effect by marking Poong yeon and making him ill. Yeon hui still doesn't know about the curse but when the black magic starts to hunt her and her hair turns white, she realizes that something is wrong. When she finds out that Poong yeon fell ill, she asks Yoh kwang, a member of Imperial Taoist Temple, to accompany her to see him. But Poong yeon suddenly becomes afraid of her, telling her to go away from him. It breaks her heart and more when her mother, Hyun seo's wife, tells her it's because of her curse that she can't love him and now Poong yeon is ill because of her.

Meanwhile, at the palace, the Crown Prince's curse is also activated because Yeon hui is still alive. Hong joo feels it and her body weakens, letting her know that the princess is actually alive. The Crown Prince falls ill and the Queen asks Hong joo to cure him. But there's only one way to save the Crown Prince and it is to kill the princess, Yeon hui.
 

 Not sure how to find and kill the princess, Hong joo flees from the palace for now, taking the Crown Prince's spirit with her.

Another person who becomes close with Yeon hui is Joon. Before finding out about the curse, Yeon hui is used to being alone but when Joon shows up, saying he needs to take her kite, Yeo hui welcomes him to her house. It's an unexpected friendship with all the cuteness and banters and despite starting off on a wrong foot, they learn to like each other.

 
It is really heartbreaking how Yeon hui struggles to break the curse by distancing herself from all the people she loves. It hurts enough to be alone but knowing that people are dying because of her, it kills her that's why she's determined to break the curse. After Hong joo's attempt to kill her, she flees with Hyun seo while Yoh kwang tries to stop Hong joo and her female warriors. We then see Yoh kwang gets killed and later on Hyun seo dying in the hands of Hong joo. Before parting with Yeon hui, Hyun seo tells Yeon hui to go to Chungbing Temple and light all the candles there for it is the only way to break the curse.

Five years later, Yeon hui is now Seo ri, living in Chungbing Temple with Yoh Kwang. It turns out that Yoh Kwang was revived and was able to save Yeon hui when she was shot by an arrow and fell into the water that day when Hong joo's female warriors cornered her by the cliff. That same time, Joon also saw her and tried to save her by using his body to shield her from the arrow.

Now Seo ri is trying to break the curse by lighting candles at Chungbing Temple by granting a person's wish.

Due to some circumstances, Yeon hui happens to meet Joon again when Joon accidentally fell on a cliff but is saved by her. This time she tries to hide her identity from him but Joon surely remembers her.

Joon's mother is a slave and wanting to free his mother from their cruel master, he works hard to earn money. But knowing his plan, Heo Ok, his older half-brother, tries to stop him and tells his mother about it. They then scare Joon by showing him what they will do to his mother once they try to escape. But Joon can't take it anymore and decides to flee. He and his mother sneak out one night but while Joon is buying tickets for them to China, Ok finds his mother. His mother tries to explain to Ok, saying that it is her idea not Joon's, but Heo ok is nothing but heartless so he ends up beating Joon's mother which then leads to the accident of the place burning. Ok desperately finds a way out leaving Joon's mother inside. When Joon comes back, the place is still burning and he's able to get his mother out but it's already too late.

Five years later, Joon is busting bad people for Ok, who is now a public servant, which, it turns out, Joon is only doing just so he could expose how good for nothing Ok is. He's gathering evidences he can use against Ok like proofs of all bribes Ok received and the gifts he took in exchange of overlooking some incidents. It could've worked if only a murder didn't happen. Joon is accused of killing Man wol, a gisaeng who has a crush on him. Before Man wol is murdered, she leaves a note for Joon saying to meet her somewhere that night but that note doesn't reach Joon because Ok intercepts it. Later, when Ok is brought to prison for his wrong doings, he tells the head guard that Joon is lying and is the Red Gentleman's Robe who has been murdering people. With the note on his hand, Ok uses it as a proof that Joon met Man wol that night and killed her. It leaves Joon no choice but to run and that same day he meets Seo ri.

When Seo ri comes out of the temple, her curse is activated again, causing Poong yeon to faint because he is marked, and it also alerts Hong joo that she is near. Hong joo begins searching for her again but fails since Yeon hui comes back inside the temple where she also brings Joon with her. Yoh kwang asks if Seo ri knows Joon but she lies, telling him no. When Joon wakes up he wanders around the temple, reading the Grimoire of Curses which Seo ri uses to make elixirs, and accidentally burning it. Yeon hui and Yoh kwang become furious and decided to execute him but fortunately he drank the memory potion which enables him to remember everything inside the grimoire.Yeon hui and Yoh kwang then agree to give him a day to rewrite the grimoire. Along the way, Yoh kwang warms up with Joon and accidentally sees the mark on his chest. It is from a piece of some shield that he found years ago which has also saved him a couple of times before. Later on, Yoh kwang realizes that the mark is some kind of human boundary that they can use to protect Seo ri. Because of it,  Joon is tasked to always stay by Seo ri's side. 

After some time, Poong yeon, who is now the head of the Royal Guard, finds a lead about the Red Gentleman's Robe. The Red Gentleman's Robe has been murdering everyone whose wish is granted by Seo ri, including Man wol, Joon's friend, who wished to be beautiful. When a person's wish is granted, Seo ri is able to light a candle but when they get killed, the candle dies too. It frustrates Seo ri so much because it's been months since the last time she was able to light a candle. Little does she know that Hong joo is behind all this. Not wanting to give up, Seo ri decided to bring the next elixir herself to the person who wishes for it. It just so happens that the next person is Poong yeon. It surprises them both and remembering how her older brother reacted the last time he saw her, she runs away.

Poong yeon knew all along that Yeon hui and his father are still somehow alive and he's been looking for them all this time. And seeing Yeon hui now makes him happy. He genuinely cares for Yeon hui and since then he already liked her.

Meeting again after five years, they talk and Yeon hui tries to explain everything to him, telling him about the curse. But when Poong yeon sees Yeon hui's cursed form, he becomes scared of her again and, again, it breaks Yeon hui's heart. It then changes Poong yeon's feelings, making the mark of the curse disappear, meaning he doesn't feel the same way towards Yeon hui anymore. Soon after, Yeon hui brings him and Sol gae, his right hand woman, to the temple and shows them how she's been trying to break the curse by lighting the candles. And while Poong yeon is too busy looking for Yeon hui, he doesn't notice that Sol gae cares for him, too. She's loyal to him and Poong yeon trusts her.

On the other hand, Hong joo continues to hunt down Yeon hui by sending her female warriors to look for her. Eventually, one of her warriors locates the temple and they march right into it, catching Yeon hui, Yoh gwang and Joon off guard. Hong joo stabs Joon on the chest, on the mark that enables him to protect Yeon hui. It angers Yeon hui making her unleash her powers and sends Hong joo's warriors flying away while she holds Hong joo around the neck, lifting her off the ground. She's ready to kill her if only Yoh gwang doesn't stop her. They escape from Hong joo but now Joon has lost the human boundary mark and he's now marked by Yeon hui's curse. Somehow he develops feelings for her and is now suffering.

*Joon: The you that I met at the Black Forest that day and the you that I met once more... and... the you that's in front of me right now are all just Yeon hui to me. Whether you're cursed, or have a black or white hair, or are a princess or not... you'll always be just Yeon hui to me.

Not wanting to scare Joon like what happened with Poong yeon, Yeon hui decides to leave but as she does, Joon stops her and asks her to stay instead.

At the palace, King Seon jo is also suffering from the curse. He's a distant relative and became king when the late King Myeong jong chose him as his successor. But later on, it is revealed that Hong joo has actually planned it all and he was chosen because Hong joo knew he was weak and people will always judge him. As for the said curse, thorns are growing out of his body and no doctor can cure him. And when Hong joo approaches him and promises to cure him if he would just lets her back to the palace, he agrees. Queen Shim greatly opposes but since the King hates her too, he doesn't listen to her.

Hong joo also convinces the king that the curse is caused by the princess and she must be killed in order to stop the curse. So then he orders Poong yeon, his trusted and loyal guard, to bring the princess to him. Still caring for Yeon hui, Poong yeon refuses and is removed from his position.

When Hong joo and the Queen meet again, Hong joo tells the Queen that she's planning to give the Crown Prince back to her. The Queen, wanting to see the Crown Prince again, gives in eventually. But soon after, thinking that Hong joo must be planning something again, she decides to side with Hyun seo who turns out to be alive after all. He's been held captured by Hong joo and unfortunately, he's only alive because of black magic.

 While Hong joo tries to kill Yeon hui every chance she gets, Hyun seo tries his best to protect Yeon hui to the extent of sacrificing his life just to make a talisman that would keep Hong joo from harming Yeon hui. Hyun seo used to be Hong joo's teacher and thinking that he failed as a teacher because he wasn't able to stop Hong joo from using black magic, he feels like it's his fault. So now he's doing everything he can to help Yeon hui break the curse and stop Hong joo from destroying their country. But when Hong joo binded him with her just so he lives after sacrificing his life, he doesn't have a choice but to do everything Hong joo tells him to do.

Back to Yeon hui and Joon, they now look for a way to defeat Hong joo and break the curse. And since Hyun seo is now under Hong joo's black magic, they can't ask him for help anymore. So they try to convince the King that Hong joo is not to be trusted. They prove to him that the Red Gentleman's Robe is working for Hong joo and that Hong joo is the one who cursed him. Joon also tries to heal him by giving him the truth elixir. They believe that the only way to break the spell is to make the king be honest with his feelings and face his fears that make him doubt himself.

After breaking the King's curse, they capture Hong joo and imprison her. Now they think that things will be normal again since Hong joo with her black magic is locked away but little do they know that she has another plan. Just because she knew that they won't kill her because of the princess, she acts like it doesn't bother her being locked away.

Still working under her spell, Hyun seo does the dirty work now. He tries to give the Queen, who we found out earlier is pregnant, some black magic while sleeping but thankfully Yeon hui shows up just in time. Earlier, Yeon hui also dreamed of Hae ran, her biological mother, warning her that the baby is in danger. At first, Yeon hui didn't know what it meant but when she heard from Queen Shin that the Queen is pregnant, she realized that the baby Hae ran mentioned is the Queen's baby. Later, when a plague is threatening the life of the citizens, Hong joo's female warriors secretly put up posters saying that the plague is caused by the princess. Queen Shim then suggests that Poong yeon, who is now the head of Imperial Taoist Branch, to offer prayers to the gods together with Yeon hui so that the people will see that Yeon hui is not what they think she is. But while praying, Hyun seo and Hong joo's female warriors suddenly show up, pointing arrow at the royal family. Yeon hui is tempted to use her power but Queen Shim stops her, not wanting the people to see her with her power. But when Hyun seo tells them that he's there for Heo joon and Yeon hui refuses to let him go, Hyun seo orders to fire the arrows at them which gives Yeon hui no choice but to use her power. The people, seeing that Yeon hui has powers, become furious and call her witch. Hearing the cries of his people, the King decided to talk to Hong joo and find out what she's really planning this time. Hong joo, ever wicked and shameless, tells him that since the royal family is used to disposing people after using them, he should just let the people have the princess. And since he has so much to lose especially now that he's about to have a child, Hong joo tells him to give her Yeon hui and she'll take care of the rest for him.

After the incident, Joon grabs Yeon hui away from the people but Yeon hui pushes him away, telling him not to follow. She ends up at the Chungbing Temple where Joon follows her anyway. Back at the palace, the King now disowns Yeon hui and of course Queen Shim oposses but can't do anything about it. Poong yeon also tries convincing the King but it's already too late because he already made up his mind.

Yeon hui is still shocked from what happened and without thinking, she tells Joon she wants to run away. Joon, hearing from Yoh kwang that the royal family already disowned Yeon hui, suggests the same, that they run away.

 Yeon hui: I want to run away. To a place where I can be alone. I want to hide in a place where nobody can find me.
 Joon: Yeon hui. Let's run away. Run away with me. To a place that's far, far away.

Meanwhile, Hong joo is pressuring the King again, demanding that he lends her his soldier so they can capture Yeon hui. Hong joo also tells him to command Poong yeon to execute Yeon hui using his holy fire once they find her. Poong yeon asks the king not to command him to do that but the king tells him that his hands are bind too and he can't do anything about it. Then he asks Poong yeon not to disobey him this time because if he does, then he'll kill him with own hands.

*I'm yet to watch the last two episodes so I'll stop here for now. But I promise to come back once I finish watching episodes 19 and 20.*