Board :Inquiring Minds
Author :Librarian ZenRu
Subject :Tales & Legends - Iron Labyrinth [2]
Date :3/30
King Ugeo, who was lurking nearby, became enraged. He lunged at Gim-Yi with a sword made from the very iron Gim-Yi had crafted. In a moment of desperation, Byung-soon jumped in front of Gim-Yi. The sword pierced her heart and she fell to the cold floor.

Shocked, King Ugeo staggered backwards. He had killed the woman he loved. But his grief was little compared to Gim-Yi's who clutched her lifeless body and sobbed heavily. None could have suspected what happened due to his immense grief.

The magic in the iron statue he had brought with him reacted to his emotion. His sadness turned into a violent, animalistic rage that blackened the statue's magic and unleashed pure malice throughout the labyrinth.

The malice that filled the labyrinth animated the iron bears and tigers, turning them into fierce and vicious beasts. It fused the tiger mask to Gim-Yi's head, and made him something other than human. It changed him into a violent man-beast that would try to kill all who entered.

King Ugeo escaped from the labyrinth while the malice was overtaking it. He ordered all of his people to stay away from it, and eventually there were no traces of civilization for miles around the structure. It was not long before nature began to devour the labyrinth.

Time passed and the Gojoseon Kingdom fell and vanished into the mists of time. Jin followed suit, and over time our lands gave rise to our current kingdoms. However, one thing from Gojoseon remains: the Iron Labyrinth.

[Penned by Lady Zen Ru for Historian Qantao's Iron Labyrinth history contest, for which this was the winning entry.]