EPISODE SUMMARY
Jaeshin is caught completely off guard by the crown prince kissing him. He pushes Nok away and attempts to get an explanation out of him, but the crown prince just pulls him back in to kiss him. Able to feel the desperation coming from Nok, Jaeshin glances past the prince. He spots an apparition rushing towards them, calling out for her son. Ah, so that’s what this is about.
Lee Nok is in a state of terror: he’s trembling to his core and tears are rolling down his face. His mother’s ghost has been chasing him since he fled from the ritual. When the prince runs into Jaeshin, he instinctively knows he’s the only one who can save him. The crown prince begs Jaeshin for help. Jaeshin takes a second to weigh his options. He only has so much time during this eclipse to do what he came to do. Should he help his highness? After all, it was the crown prince who decided to avoid him in the first place. He brought this on himself. But seeing Lee Nok so panicked, Jaeshin decides it’d be best to do something.
He pulls Nok towards him, keeping the crown prince’s face buried in his shoulder. He explains to his highness that the apparition that’s chasing him isn’t really his mother. In fact, the spirit will disappear at the slightest touch. When the ghost finally reaches them, it dissolves into a dark wisp as it makes contact with Jaeshin’s outstretched hand. He continues to explain that the ghost the prince saw was just a cheap imitation. Someone created her with an object that once belonged to his mother. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t his mother.
With the apparition gone, the strength in the crown prince’s legs give out and he slumps to the ground. As Jaeshin picks the crown prince up off the ground, he wonders who would possibly do something like this. Once he’s upright again, Jaeshin encourages the prince to go back to the ceremony. His highness can repay Jaeshin for saving him later tonight. And as Jaeshin leans in to kiss the crown prince, he warns him never to avoid him again.
DISCUSSION
This might be my favorite episode of the series so far. Lee Nok is at his most vulnerable in this episode. From an outsider’s perspective, he’s just the crazy crown prince doing something strange again. No one understands that he’s being chased by his mother’s ghost, and he’s not only running away from her but from the guilt he feels over her death. Every time I look at the panel of the prince begging for help from Jaeshin’s POV, I can just feel his desperation. It’s heartbreaking!
And I’m so shocked by Jaeshin. Well, a part of me knew that he’d help Lee Nok (how could he not?), but I was still surprised to see it happen. I feel like season one Jaeshin would have left the prince to fend for himself, or he would have included an insult or two as he saved the prince. But no. I mean, he even explained to the prince that the apparition wasn’t really his mother. This might be a stretch, but I think because Jaeshin’s mother is also a sensitive topic for him (see the season one’s extra episode), seeing Lee Nok panicked over this fake ghost prompted him to help. Jaeshin may not feel guilt over his own mother’s death, but he certainly feels deeply about her. So it wouldn’t be too far fetched for that to have influenced his wanting to help the prince.
I love this episode so much. Just in this one episode, their relationship has grown, and it took just a few days apart from each other for that to happen. I mean, neither of them are aware of their feelings for each other yet, but this ship is really about to set sail. We love to see it!
Be sure to catch The Ghost’s Nocturne on Lezhin
Series Details
Original Title: 귀야곡
Author: Ananas
Artist: CR Jade
Publisher: Lezhin
Audience: NSFW
