Despite their growing attachment, our leads both have responsibilities in their respective worlds. Our heroine knows she has to go back to her life sooner or later, although a certain someone would prefer to keep her around. But a national emergency arises that demands the king’s full attention, and our heroine can do nothing but wait while she focuses on her own work matters.
EPISODE 6
Seo-ryung’s assistant notifies her that Gon just landed in Seoul. She’s surprised since it’s so late, and her assistant muses if it were someone else, you’d think he was picking up a girlfriend who missed the last bus or something.
When Seo-ryung’s car arrives, Tae-eul asks if Gon had an appointment, but he’s quick to assure her he came only to pick her up. Tae-eul worries since she’s supposed to keep a low profile and promises to not look suspicious. Gon smiles, remarking that the situation is already suspicious.
We hear more of the conversation this time, and Gon tells Seo-ryung this is a “very personal” situation. Tae-eul stands quietly while they exchange formalities. Seo-ryung then introduces herself to Tae-eul. After hesitating, Tae-eul shakes her hand and claims to be a fan. Gon watches the exchange like a hawk.
Tae-eul introduces herself as a traveler and avoids giving her name. Gon stares at her intensely when she says she’ll be leaving soon. Seo-ryung comments she’s awfully good at Korean for this being her first time in the country, and Tae-eul makes Gon laugh with her explanation that she studied liberal arts. Seo-ryung watches them leave, noting their closeness with an irritated sigh.
As Gon gazes unabashedly at Tae-eul on the plane ride back, Secretary Mo recalls his earlier comment about knowing someone way prettier than the prime minister. Her eyes bulge, and Gon answers her silent question: this is the woman.
Gon notices Tae-eul staring out the window. She notes the moon is the same here and starts to ask a question but stops since there are other people present. Secretary Mo and Yeong look on in shock – and in Yeong’s case, possibly horror – as Gon and Tae-eul write on each other’s palms to talk secretly. Secretary Mo’s reaction shots are gold.
Back in her office, Seo-ryung angrily reflects on all the times she simpered in front of Gon while he remained impassive, yet he laughs for this mystery woman. Meanwhile, once they’re back, Gon takes Tae-eul into the kitchen. She wonders if he’s making her sleep here tonight, but he laughs that he’d rather have her stay in his room. My oh my.
He makes her a proper meal since Yeong told him (begrudgingly, I’m guessing) she only ate a sandwich all day. Tae-eul speculates that he purposefully didn’t give her money. He admits he didn’t want her going far away and had Yeong watch her.
After going around by herself, she realized he must’ve felt lonely in her world. Gon concernedly asks if she was lonely. Tae-eul confesses it was frustrating to have no proof of her own identity and thanks him for coming to get her. He calls her over and taps his forehead on hers. He wanted to pat her head, but his hands aren’t free.
Tae-eul gets all awkward and observes it doesn’t seem like his first time. He teasingly asks if her search on his dating life was fruitless. She ignores that and says he seems to cook well. Ok-nam taught him; if he cooks his own food, no one needs to taste it first.
Gon brings up her search for info on Rim. “You really grew up well,” she praises. He pauses before turning to her. “I guess you now know which root [mathematical symbol] you are standing in front of.” Tae-eul stares at his scar which he calls the hell and history “that was engraved on my body by the greed of the person that killed my father and strangled me.”
He was raised in the shadow of that event through Ok-nam’s tears. Gon explains that’s why Ok-nam isn’t warm toward Tae-eul. She nods in understanding.
“Is that it?” Gon asks. Shouldn’t she hug him or something after his moving tale? Ha. She changes the subject. What about her ID? She feels it’s time for her to go. Gon vows he won’t let her go and can stop her with a single command. Tae-eul looks conflicted.
In the republic, Jangmi sweetly leaves a warm blanket for Shin-jae to use in the night duty room. He also leaves a lavender candle, which he uses every night to help him sleep. Shin-jae roughly tells him to get out but chuckles once he leaves.
Shin-jae flashes back to when he was viciously beaten up by six bullies in high school. Tae-eul stumbled upon them and fearlessly called the police. When one boy attacked her, she knocked him down effortlessly.
Outside the police station, Tae-eul brought a hostile Shin-jae a pair of sandals (his shoe was missing) and told him to train at her dad’s place. In the present, Shin-jae stares at the similar pair of sandals on his feet.
In the kingdom, Seo-ryung receives a call that leads her to call an emergency meeting of the National Security Council [NSC]. Elsewhere, Yeong broods over Tae-eul and her possible link to Luna before handing over her fingerprint to a cop. They both receive a text about the emergency NSC meeting that night.
In the kitchen, Gon promises to show Tae-eul the ID after she eats his “signature dish” that makes people fall. He’s disappointed she’s not jealous that he’s made this for other women, but she pragmatically points out she can’t compare with someone from his world.
Gon looks at her sadly and passes the ID over. He’s been afraid she’d leave once she gets it, but what can he do now that she’s retreated to somewhere farther than her world? She confirms the ID is hers but can’t fathom how it could’ve appeared 25 years ago.
His memories are fading, so he’s not sure he’d recognize the person who dropped it. He surmises that person must be the beginning or end of this all, and he’ll see them again. Gon calls Tae-eul his solution to the yet unknown formula that solves everything.
He’ll prove that no one else from any world compares to her and tells her not to unilaterally decide to leave. Before she can respond, Yeong rushes in to inform Gon of the NSC meeting. Gon is worried he won’t be able to see her off, but Tae-eul understands convening the NSC spells trouble.
Said trouble is that the there’s a fleet of Japanese ships heading into Corean territory, citing the ongoing rescue mission of the Chinese fishing boat as provocation. After a briefing, Gon sends Ok-nam to retrieve Tae-eul’s belongings. Ok-nam is alarmed to find Tae-eul’s ID is missing, and since she requested CCTV be temporarily disabled (likely to prevent Tae-eul from being discovered), there’s no telling what happened.
Meanwhile, Seo-ryung oversees the NSC meeting. The members counsel her to wait it out and tread lightly, but she’s ready to go to war. It’s the third time this has happened this year, and she won’t tolerate a fourth. Seo-ryung calls and briefs Gon since his approval is needed to take military action.
Gon gives his consent, but he wants to follow in his ancestors’ footsteps and handle it personally. Ok-nam informs a now uniformed Gon that Tae-eul’s ID was stolen, but he thinks it must’ve been meant to happen. He’ll explain more when he returns.
He asks her to wish him luck since her last talisman actually worked. Ha. Yeong brings Tae-eul in, and Gon asks for a moment alone with her. He returns her ID (the 25-year-old one). The mood is solemn as Tae-eul realizes this is what he meant by his country always being on the brink of war.
He vows to return with honor soon. Will she wait for him? Tae-eul nods and says, “Let’s meet again, Lee Gon.” He gets slightly choked up and remarks that he thought his name shouldn’t be called, but it appears it’s only meant to be called by her.
And just like that, Tae-eul returns to the republic. She finally replies to Shin-jae’s message with the excuse that she “went somewhere.” When she arrives home, she rushes to hug her dad in apology. He must’ve been so worried; she wanted to contact him but couldn’t. “You weren’t home?” Ha!
However, he did notice the horse was missing and asks what happened to it. Pfft. She pettily informs him they will not be speaking for the time being. He grumbles about how the owner didn’t say goodbye, even after their coffee and conversations.
Tae-eul says in voiceover that, although he said he’d be back soon, it’s been a long time. We see her and her team pursuing a criminal. She continues that she had to wait without knowing what was going on in his world.
We jump over to the kingdom where Gon and Yeong report for duty. Prince Bu-yeong is in China for a conference and tries to get a sooner flight back. Seo-ryung announces to a shocked room that Gon boarded the Yi Sun-sin Destroyer sent into the fray.
Gon commands the Navy to advance at full speed. The Japanese military spots Gon’s flag and realizes he’s on the ship. They decide to play chicken, pushing ahead into Corea’s territory to try to force the king to flee.
Ok-nam prays for success while the NSC frets over Gon’s safety. The Japanese ships don’t heed the warnings, but despite the danger, Gon warns the officers to focus solely on protecting their waters. Gon orders warning shots to be fired, but Yeong is worried it’ll be taken as an act of war.
Gon leaves the final decision up to his former superior Major Choi. He signs off on it, and the warning shots are fired. It works, and the Japanese fleet stops advancing.
In the republic, Tae-eul stares at a packet of flower seeds she bought in Corea. In a flashback, she sprinkles them in the space between worlds. Gon insists they won’t grow, but Tae-eul thinks you can’t know until you try. At home, she plants some in a pot and waits for them to sprout.
Seo-ryung announces their victory at a press conference in the kingdom. She thanks Gon and the soldiers. She declares Corea will temporarily halt rare mineral exports to Japan until an official apology is given.
The confrontation has worked in Seo-ryung’s favor with her approval ratings steadily increasing. Her assistant has a “gift” for her and shares he’s made a contact in the palace who told him Gon brought a mystery woman to stay. No one has seen her face. Seo-ryung’s face darkens as she admits she’s seen her, and she instructs him to dig for more info.
Tae-eul listens to the strange recordings from Lee Sang-do’s phone. In one, the building of “K Stadium” is mentioned; however, her online search comes up empty. Ah, so they’re from Corea? Her teammates come in as she spaces out at her desk. Moon-shik reminds her she’s only got a couple of days left to find evidence on the Lee Sang-do case.
She continues listening to the recordings at home and stares at Gon’s face on the Corean currency she had examined. Tae-eul reminisces about their (lackluster) kiss. We hear more of their conversation afterwards, and he admitted he’s dating her. Tae-eul: “Take off your clothes.” Whaat? Gon stares at her for a few seconds and admits this is unexpected. Ha.
But Tae-eul only wants to see the wound on his shoulder that Yeong told her about. He doesn’t hesitate to undo the buttons on his shirt, but she stops him. They argue about how many buttons to undo until he says forget it.
She pretends she was only interested since Yeong blamed her for it and tells Gon to leave so she can sleep. He puts his hand in-between them like a wall and sighs that it’s harder to cross that distance than universes.
In the present, Tae-eul brings her attention back to the recordings. She catches Prince Bu-yeong’s name and remembers reading about him when she was in Corea. Double checking the recordings, she hears the term Gon used to refer to the North and realizes these recordings are from Corea.
In the palace, the new attendant brings a hair tie to Gon, saying he found it in the dressing room. Why would he bring that personally to his study? Gon doesn’t seem to find it odd and is happy Tae-eul left something behind. He warmly thanks the attendant.
Gon finds Ok-nam in his room and hides his arm (on which he’s wearing Tae-eul’s hair tie) behind his back. Ok-nam is still worried about the possible thief and is distressed she can’t find them. She fusses over Gon, and he asks if Prince Bu-yeong called. Ok-nam had a brief conversation with him to let him know Gon was safe.
Gon acknowledges all the things Ok-nam does for him and brings up the flute. Why did she hide it in the riding crop back then? She figured she had to protect it since Rim wanted to steal it. She even looked for the other half when Rim’s body was found, but it wasn’t there.
Ok-nam assumed it went back into the sea where its legend began. Gon says he’s anticipating the legend, which is why he’s waiting on Prince Bu-yeong. He assures her he isn’t trying to hide anything from her; he just doesn’t know anything for sure yet. He asks her to keep searching for the thief.
Yeong is disappointed to hear there’s no match for Tae-eul’s fingerprint. He also asks about Luna, but the police haven’t made any progress yet. They can’t even catch her face on CCTV since she avoids the cameras.
Seung-ah walks by with a couple of palace workers, and Yeong stops them. He takes photos of the two women for “security reasons” and walks away. Seung-ah apologizes, claiming he obviously just wanted a photo of her. Pfft. The male colleague insists that’s not like Yeong, and Seung-ah is taken aback when he reveals he’s Yeong’s uncle.
Yeong mixes Tae-eul’s photo among the palace workers’, asking the gangster in prison if one of them is Luna. He unhesitatingly picks out Tae-eul. Yeong sinks into a chair looking dazed and says his world just collapsed.
Gon poses for a portrait in his royal attire, but he’s distracted by Yeong’s odd expression. He sends the painter out and tries to get Yeong to spill. Yeong freaks out when he sees a mark on Gon’s wrist (from the tight hair tie) and sighs in despair as Gon claims it’s a reminder of the one in his heart.
Before he can say anything, Secretary Mo announces Prince Bu-yeong’s arrival. During their conversation, Prince Bu-yeong is the first to bring up Rim’s autopsy. He knew one day Gon would ask about it. He hands over the real report and confesses someone snapped Rim’s neck and tossed him in the ocean.
Strangely, although everything from DNA to fingerprints matched Rim’s, the body had signs of polio. These oddities led him to falsify the report. Prince Bu-yeong understands the severity of his crime and wants to be free of the guilt. Should Gon discover the truth, he hopes he’ll share it with him.
In the republic, Jangmi reports to Tae-eul that Lee Sang-do’s missing wife didn’t transfer her kids to another school; they’re still registered in Seoul. Jangmi watches Shin-jae and Tae-eul share the popsicle that Shin-jae wouldn’t let him eat earlier and has an aha moment.
Tae-eul wants to share her discovery about the recordings with Shin-jae, but she chickens out. She promises to tell him when things are clearer. Meanwhile, Rim visits Na-ri’s café with the ominous comment that he plans to come more frequently. We cut to his photo development room and see a photo of Shin-jae. Oh, he’d better not mess with Shin-jae!
On Rim’s way out in the storm, two little kids bump into him. The little boy is scared to death when he sees a mark like burning vines running up the side of Rim’s face. Eun-seob comes up behind the kids and ushers them into the café after calming the boy.
In the kingdom, Gon holds the real autopsy as evidence that Rim isn’t dead and knows he’s in danger. Rim will undoubtedly want the other half of the flute and come to retrieve it.
Tae-eul arrives home and is stunned speechless to see Gon waiting for her. Gon asks if she’s been well, and she nods with a smile. Has she been waiting for him? There are tears in her eyes as she nods. Finally, Tae-eul runs and throws her arms around him to his surprise. Gon thinks that Ok-nam was wrong, “Jung Tae-eul is not a danger to me. I am a danger to Jung Tae-eul.”
COMMENTS
Oh no, tell me we’re not headed for noble idiocy. I’m surprised he’s only thought of this now. Even though Gon didn’t have evidence that Rim was alive, he’s suspected it for a while. Not that I necessarily agree Gon is a danger to Tae-eul. Their lives have been intertwined from the start, and she’s involved whether he is with her or not. I hope they work as a team to figure everything out, and we don’t get any of that leaving someone for their own good nonsense.
That said, this romance still confuses me. Tae-eul’s feelings seemed to come out of nowhere. Gon has liked her from the start, and even if I was never entirely clear on why, at least he’s been consistent. With her, she went from finding him a nuisance to liking him without anything in-between. It feels like we skipped the step where she falls for him and just flipped a switch from dislike to like. I’m supposed to believe they have these deep feelings, but it doesn’t feel grounded since there wasn’t any buildup. Also, she’s supposed to be keeping a low profile, but how is that possible when hearts practically shoot out of Gon’s eyes whenever he looks at her? Plus, although his obvious romantic interest in Tae-eul might not get him in much trouble seeing as he’s the king, it could negatively impact her. Curb your enthusiasm a bit, sir.
I haven’t talked much about the mysterious “savior” from 25 years ago, but the brief shots we’ve gotten do look like adult Gon. Wouldn’t it be fun if it were Shin-jae, though? Since he’s Tae-eul’s partner, it would make sense that he could have her ID. I feel like he has a big role here that we’re not privy to yet, and I’d love it if he got to play hero. We’ve spent a lot of time developing his character, and we had that hint a couple episodes back about him recognizing Corea’s symbol. Now, we know that Rim is watching him. I’m super curious about how he fits into everything.
Rim suddenly taking an interest in Tae-eul’s neighborhood does not bode well. It’s hard to say what he knows, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s aware of her involvement with Gon. Although, honestly, I’m mostly worried about what Rim wants with Shin-jae. If something happens to Shin-jae, I will not be happy. Just let him live his life and bond with Jangmi. Seriously, how is Jangmi so endearing? I could watch a buddy cop spin-off of him and Shin-jae just having adventures and bonding. Maybe Yeong could join them for some inter-world traveling. Now that Gon is preoccupied with Tae-eul, poor Yeong is getting third-wheeled. Of course, he now thinks Tae-eul is the elusive criminal Luna. He looked so torn up over having to tell Gon the woman he likes is bad news. He’s a good friend.
Okay, what was with the sudden almost war? We’ve already got a lot of plot elements we still haven’t gotten to, and instead we take a detour to watch Gon stare down some battleships. It felt really out of place to me and came across more like a device to separate Tae-eul and Gon than a necessary plot element. It was so dramatic, but it felt hollow because there was no buildup. I’m noticing a trend here…
Editor’s Note: Please don’t discuss spoilers because we really don’t want to have to redact and/or delete your comment. This includes anything shown in previews.