If something slow becomes fast all of a sudden, or the fast one starts slowing down, what would you expect?

[EPISODE 9]

After the ‘introduction to her family’ part, Madam Bok wants to know how Cha-don will pay his debts to her, but she only need his help in some matters regarding her business and Jae-in will be the one who’s going to keep in touch with him. Meanwhile, the Baddie Team celebrates the victory against Mayor Jung and Se-kwang breaks the news that he’s going to be transferred to Incheon’s office. Prof Kwon assures him that he’s on his way to his promotion and Bi-ryung is happy that she’s going to take over the company ran by the deceased Mr Park, Jae-in’s boss.

However, others think it’s wise for them not to be too visible. Plus, Madam Park has been released from the prison, thanks to her parole, and they feel threatened with her presence. Se-kwang tells them not to worry as he’s going to solve the problem. Cut to Madam Park, who’s working at the orphanage that Cha-don suggested for her to go after her release. She’s cleaning the office when she sees a picture of Kang-seok with the orphanage director. Suddenly, Se-kwang comes to inform her that Kang-seok has been found.

Thanks to the recent changes in the management, Prof Kwon is appointed to be the Prosecutor General, a post higher than Chief Jo. He greets the prosecutors with three choices for them: to become a prosecutor that is intelligent, competent, or righteous. He asks the question to Cha-don, who answers with his choice: a righteous prosecutor. Prosecutor Kwon reminds him that it’s not easy to become a righteous prosecutor and Ji-hoo thinks that the choice he made is interesting. She looks forward to his achievement, whether he’ll be able to achieve what he said earlier. However, Cha-don can’t help but to ask himself over and over again: will he be able to do so, with his indebted self towards Jae-in’s family?

5 years later, we’re finally in the present, presumably in 2013 (since Cha-don is already using Samsung Galaxy SIII phone) . He’s gambling with few others and but soon, a little note comes along with a drink and he swallows the note after reading it. Attorney Hwang is also there, trying to win something out of his unseen luck. Cha-don reminds Officer Yang, who’s also there, to do something according to what they planned beforehand. So Cha-don enters a VIP room full of hoodlums, who’s gambling a huge sum of money.

His entrance is initially a nuisance to them but after a little introduction, the gamblers start asking for his mercy and Cha-don takes the opportunity to ask for the money as the exchange for the boss’ charge of illegal gambling. They mutually agree to it and Cha-don starts packing the money in a bag, but the police barges into the place along with Ji-hoo. Cha-don doesn’t have any choice but to hand over the money and the boss to her. He’s thinking about something and starts to play with the gold coin. The coin falls onto the floor and rolls towards Attorney Hwang. He immediately recognizes the coin that once belonged to Kang-seok and starts weighing the possibility of Cha-don being the missing Lee Kang-seok.

Se-kwang is still playing cool with Bi-ryung, who keeps bugging him with questions about proposals etc. He receives a call to inform him about a drug exchange that’s going to take place at a restaurant. Coincidentally, the restaurant belongs to Jae-in, who runs it in order to prove to her mother that she’s capable of running a business on her own and doesn’t need to inherit the private loan business from her mother. She starts imagining Cha-don will propose her after she becomes successful and giggles at the thought of having him chasing after her, pleading her to marry him.

The targets arrive at the restaurant and Se-kwang’s team doesn’t wait for too long to attack them. The drugs are scattered in the restaurant in the middle of the fight and Jae-in accidentally swallows some of it, causing her to get high from its effect. Madam Bok sees Jae-in in the news covering the ambush made by Se-kwang and looks like she has no idea about her daughter running a restaurant. Jae-in soon recovers from the effect and forces Se-kwang to clean the place as the compensation for her loss.

Madam Bok goes to hospital for a check out and while she assures Mr Kim that she’s fine, she doesn’t look that happy. She wants to see both Jae-in and Cha-don and it seems that the two of them are still in their bickering mode, even after five years. Madam Bok wants Cha-don to marry Jae-in and both of them don’t have any other option but to sign the contract for the marriage (without reading it!).

Cha-don and Jae-in both don’t like the idea of getting married with each other and Jae-in doesn’t even want to pretend that they’re in good relationship in front of her mother. Cha-don teases her with an ‘almost kiss’ but Madam Bok walks in, interrupting their moment. She tells them to continue what they’re doing but it soon turns into a pillow fight. Madam Bok wants to see them together as she can see their potential as a money couple.

At the prosecutor’s office on the next day, Cha-don is busy talking with someone on the phone when Chief Jo drops by to give him a warning. There’s a complaint filed to the Inspection Department on Cha-don, plus people are calling him ‘Master of Extortion’, probably because of his skills of extorting money from the people who want to escape the law. Chief Jo knows his activity well and he wants him to be careful. Cha-don goes to meet Ji-hoo, who’s upset that their department’s name is at stake because of the complaint. She decides to visit his house to check the truth of the report she received about him.

Off they go to Cha-don’s house in his old car and his house isn’t the best one available, located in the outskirts of Seoul. The house looks shabby and Ji-hoo is surprised to see a prosecutor like him is living in a rundown place like that. They talk about his life over the ramyun and he’s sad that Ji-hoo is suspecting him, even when he likes her. She leaves and Cha-don sighs in relief before opening his shed with a stack of money in it, almost similar to what Chairman Lee showed to the young Kang-seok. He reveals his shiny car and drives back to his real home. Enjoying the secret luxury he keeps to himself, Cha-don aims to save money in order to escape his controlled life because of his debts towards Madam Bok.

Attorney Hwang hears the breaking news about the money found in Episode 1 and remembers that the spot was where Chairman Lee’s secret vault was. He recalls that Se-kwang decided to ignore the money there as it’s been transferred to Kang-seok’s name. Attorney Hwang decides to investigate about Cha-don and he gets to confirm that Cha-don is indeed the lost Kang-seok after seeing his picture at the orphanage.

We get back to the beginning of Episode 1, where Cha-don receives a call from Attorney Hwang to meet him if he wants to know his real name. Cha-don keeps thinking about the possibility of knowing his real identity and while discussing about the money found earlier, he remembers that the money owner is Lee Kang-seok, Madam Park’s lost son. Madam Park suddenly disappeared after she went to the orphanage, but Cha-don is sure that she’s going to show herself after watching the news.

Madam Bok calls Cha-don for a dinner together with Jae-in and he complains about it to Jae-in. He doesn’t like the smelly fermented fish served but doesn’t have any choice but to eat when Jae-in keeps shoving it into his mouth in front of Madam Bok. As a payback, he decides to spend the night there together with Jae-in, in which Madam Bok have her full support. They keep bugging each other and Cha-don gives up on sleeping on the bed. He remembers the call he received earlier and decides to meet the person but doesn’t tell Jae-in anything about it.

Cha-don arrives at the meeting place, which is the hotel and waits for the person patiently. At the same time, someone jumps down an abandoned building and kills himself along with the scattered money in the sky. That someone is Attorney Hwang. Cha-don gets tired of waiting and thinks that someone is trying to prank him. Bi-ryung holds her fashion show, attended by Madam Bok and Mr Kim. Madam Bok knows that Bi-ryung holds some shares in the bank she’s trying to acquire and Mr Kim informs her that Bi-ryung is someone that’s not easily defeated in business. Prosecutor Kwon and Reporter Go also attend the show but they actually come to inform Bi-ryung about Attorney Hwang’s suicide.

Madam Bok decides it’s time for Jae-in to learn about the business and tells her to get a job. However, Jae-in still have her faith in her restaurant and keeps waiting for the compensation, but she finds out that Se-kwang has already being transferred from Incheon to Seoul. Cha-don gets a notice to transfer to the Investigation Department and he doesn’t look that pleased with the sudden transfer. The department receives a new chief, who is no other than Se-kwang. Se-kwang aims to investigate the prosecutors in their department before carrying out investigation outside in order to ensure that they’re ‘clean’ to do their work. The focus switches to the rumor of the Master of Extortion and Cha-don feigns innocence when asked about who’s that person is…

[END of EPISODE 9]

This episode feels like a lightning speed for me. Everything moves so fast and sometimes I do feel disconnected with the pace, because it’s too fast! The characters don’t really change physically but boy, they’re like different people even after only five years have passed! The change is most visible for Cha-don, who goes down the dirty road because of money. I’m actually surprised that he’s so smooth with his lies and he’s not a pure character. Instead of sticking in the common kdrama hero trope, he’s more on the dark side, though grayer and not yet pitch black.

At this point, the story will make Se-kwang as the good guy while Cha-don is the bad guy when it’s completely opposite of that. I like Se-kwang and his subtle gestures that makes him the clown to those who caught him doing the things out of his usual self. I’m still intrigued and I keeps questioning, whether he’ll return to his calculative self as the mastermind when they’re provoked. I assume he’s still black underneath the prosecutor badge he’s wearing all the time, flaunting the facade that he’s part of those who support justice.