A mission of Love

Episode : 9

Kang-woo shows Myung-wol the incriminating video, and tells her it's time to take off her mask. He asks angrily if she approached him with this objective from the get-go, wanting to trade up on her fortune by seducing him.

He informs her that it's too bad, since he doesn't marry just anyone, adding that even hotel heiress In-ah can't manage to lock him down. "But a thing like you dares to dream of marrying me? You must not know me very well yet. Marriage is something that requires a match of levels. It might be a different story if you were a star like me. Stop dreaming."

Aargh, I know he's angry thinking she only saw him as money, and he's lashing out even more so because he's just realized his feelings for her. But he's being especially assy on purpose to cut deep. Also, I have a feeling she's going to take him literally.

He tosses her the ring and tells her to keep it, and sell if she wants to. Ouch. He leaves her shell-shocked, and she's still frozen like that when Hee-bok and Ok-soon run over to check on her.

He stops in his car to brood over it, and we flash back to earlier that night, where In-ah was the one to discover Myung-wol and Ryu together. She took the video and went straight to Kang-woo to announce triumphantly that he got played. As if I needed another reason to hate her.

Aw, now that I see his hurt puppy face, all cut up from his fight with Ryu, heartbroken thinking everything that Myung-wol said was a lie... WAH.

In a fit of anger, he figured he'd take revenge and mess with her too, which is when he planned the fake proposal. Back in the present, it weighs on him, and he sighs, "Rotten girl." Okay, I sort of love heartbroken Kang-woo more than any other version.

Myung-wol goes to Kang-woo's place to pack her bags per his orders. He'd told her that he wouldn't tell anyone if she just quit and left quietly on her own. She sighs that of course this is the outcome, laughing at herself for thinking that Kang-woo really liked her. Oh, if you only knew.

Kang-woo alerts the agency that Myung-wol quit, and tells them to fill his schedule with everything that comes in—another movie with In-ah, interviews, even variety shows. They wonder what on earth has gotten into him.

The mood is even worse at Covert Spy Central, as Hee-bok and Ok-soon argue over who's to blame, and devolve into wondering if anyone will care when they're executed for failing their mission.

Meanwhile Chairman Joo decides it's time to test Ryu once and for all, and tasks him with the sale of one of the ancient books. He completes the drop without a hitch, but then follows the man to a warehouse. No! Don't go in there!

He goes in, and is immediately surrounded by henchmen, as Chairman Joo comes out to greet him. Uh-oh.

Myung-wol looks at her ring from Kang-woo, remembering how happy she felt when he told her he loved her, only to have it so completely shattered in her face. Ok-soon and Hee-bok run in with more bad news — they've gotten word over the airwaves that if they don't succeed on this mission, it's not only their deaths on the line, but their families' honor and status at stake.

Basically either they succeed or their families get reduced to nothing. Myung-wol asks how much time they have left. One month. She gives a determined look, deciding that they can't give up like this.

Back at the warehouse, Chairman Joo tells Ryu that the jig is up, and asks whom he's working for. Ryu says he was acting alone, and advises them not to do anything to him, since he's the one in possession of three of the ancient books now, including the one Chairman Joo used to have... until Ryu swapped it out for a dummy.

He makes a deal with Chairman Joo to join forces, since all they have to do is find the last book, after which "the map of the Korean peninsula will be changed forever." Hm, what the hell is in those books?