KBS2 | Saturdays & Sundays | Episode 12 of 16
This episode was A LOT. Like genuinely, there is so much going on I need to process it all because between the coup, the body swapping, the gisaeng escape mission, arrows being fired at women, and a prince getting stabbed and thrown off a cliff — I am EXHAUSTED. But in the best way. Let me break it down.
The Prince Finds Out Everything
Prince Yi Yeol
So Prince Yi Yeol now knows. He knows about the planned coup — or should I say treason — and that the plan is for HIM to become king. He goes straight to Hong Eun Jo and tells her they need to run away. But she won’t leave. That’s when it hits him — she’s actually PART of it. She wants to overthrow the king. And you can see it on his face, this moment where the person he loves is telling him something he doesn’t want to hear. She’s not just going along with the rebellion, she believes in it.
This is where it gets really interesting for Yi Yeol because up until now, he’s been caught between loyalty to his brother and doing what’s right. But this episode? This is the episode where he finally sees the truth with his own eyes.
The King Is Absolutely Unhinged
Meanwhile, the King’s concubine Jang Geum Nok has been taken away by the Left State Councillor Im Sa Hyeong, and the King has been told she’s sick. So what does he do? He gets a group of gisaeng to entertain him. Normal enough for a king, right? WRONG. Because this man has them dancing for HOURS. Non-stop. We’re not talking a nice performance — we’re talking forced, excessive, relentless dancing until these poor women’s feet are bleeding, their bodies are giving up from exhaustion, and they’re literally collapsing.
This king is CRAZY. Like properly unhinged. And it gets worse because State Councillor Im Sa Hyeong isn’t stupid — he’s now using the head gisaeng No Eul to DRUG the king. So the king is being manipulated on top of already being a terrible person. But here’s the thing — even if the drugs are making him worse, he’s choosing to do this. He’s choosing to watch these women suffer for his entertainment. That’s not the drugs talking. That’s who he is.
The Concubine Gets Rescued
Hong Eun Jo (in Prince Yi Yeol’s body, remember — they’re still swapped at this point) and the real Prince Yi Yeol spot concubine Jang Geum Nok being held by State Councillor Im Sa Hyeong. So they rescue her. And fair play to the concubine because she doesn’t want to run and hide — she demands to go back to the palace. She wants to tell the king EVERYTHING. She wants him to know that he’s been drugged by Im Sa Hyeong this entire time.
When the king hears the truth? He has them all dragged to the woods to be punished. But even after learning he’s been manipulated, does the king change? Does he have a moment of self-reflection? Absolutely not. He STILL has the gisaeng dancing for him. These women are falling apart and he does not care.
The Gisaeng Escape Plan
This is where Hong Eun Jo (as the prince) step in. Hong Eun Jo goes into the King’s chambers trying to get him to stop this madness, but it’s not working — you can’t reason with a tyrant. So Hong Eun Jo realises she needs to find another way to get these women out.
Now here’s the moment that changes EVERYTHING for Yi Yeol. The king asks for Hong Eun Jo (who has the prince in her body) to come see him. When Yi Yeol — in Hong Eun Jo’s body — enters his brother’s chambers and sees what is actually happening, he is APPALLED. You can see the heartbreak on his face. This isn’t just disappointment. This is a man realising that his brother, the king, is actually a tyrant. He cannot let these women stay and die at his brother’s hands.
I think this is the turning point. Up until now, Yi Yeol has been resisting the idea of the coup. He didn’t want to betray his brother. But seeing this? Seeing the reality of what his brother does behind closed doors? That’s what makes him decide — these people need saving, and if he has to become king to do it, then so be it.
The king also tells Hong Eun Jo (prince’s body) that he wanted to see her because she reminds him of his teacher — Hong Eun Jo’s father. Which makes sense because I believe her father was the only person who could actually talk to the king. That’s why the king didn’t kill him during the uprising — he respected him, even if he didn’t listen to him. So there’s this twisted connection where the king destroyed her family but still misses the one man who told him the truth.
Operation: Get the Gisaeng Out
So the prince (in Hong Eun Jo’s body) decides to help the dancers escape. But for the plan to work, they need backup — specifically the Queen and Queen Dowager. The plan? Drug the King and everyone around him so the gisaeng can get out safely.
And they pull it off! The gisaeng get out of the palace. But because this King is stubborn and believes everything exists for his pleasure, he wakes up, realises they’re gone, and decides to go HUNTING for them. He starts shooting arrows at the fleeing gisaeng. At WOMEN. Who have been dancing until their feet bled. He’s shooting arrows at them.
The prince in Hong Eun Jo’s body then starts shooting arrows BACK — trying to block the king’s arrows and protect the women. This scene was intense. The imagery of it — a woman’s body (that’s actually the prince inside) firing arrows at the King to save innocent lives — that’s powerful stuff.
Im Jae I Saves His Father and I’m SCREAMING
RIGHT. When Im Jae I finds out that his father, State Councillor Im Sa Hyeong, is being held by the King, he goes to rescue him.
This had me SCREAMING at my screen. WHY ARE YOU RESCUING HIM?! This man HATES you! He sees you as nothing more than a pawn! You KNOW this! He has never shown you an ounce of love or respect and you’re risking your life to save him?! I get it, he’s your dad. But NO. Some fathers don’t deserve saving and Im Sa Hyeong is one of them. He uses people. He manipulates everyone around him. And Im Jae I knows this better than anyone and STILL went to save him. I was so frustrated.
Im Seung Jae Is His Father’s Son
Now don’t get me started on Im Seung Jae. This man really IS his father’s son. Rotten to the core. He’s planning to take out Prince Yi Yeol by telling him he needs to meet some relatives. But remember — Hong Eun Jo is in Yi Yeol’s body at this point. So it’s actually Hong Eun Jo being led into the trap.
Once they get to the top of the cliff, they stab the Prince (Hong Eun Jo’s soul inside) and throw him into the lake.
AND AS THIS IS HAPPENING — the body swap switches back.
So now the REAL Yi Yeol is back in his own body, stabbed, drowning in a lake. And Hong Eun Jo is back in her own body, alive but suddenly aware that something terrible has happened to the Prince.
The Body Swap Rule Finally Makes Sense
Here’s what Yi Yeol has worked out — and I think this is really clever writing. The body swap happens when one of them is on the verge of death. It’s almost like it’s designed to save their life. Every time one of them is about to die, they swap. So the swap itself is a survival mechanism.
But by this point, the Prince has already made his decision. He’s going to be part of the coup. Seeing what his brother the king was doing — the tyranny, the cruelty, forcing women to dance until they collapsed, shooting arrows at them as they fled — that was enough. He’s realised the only way to save the people is for him to become King. His brother isn’t a good person. He’s a tyrant. And someone has to stop him.
So now he’s drowning, the swap has happened, and Hong Eun Jo — back in her own body — knows what just happened. She runs to look for him.
And it ends with him looking like he’s dying.
CLIFFHANGER. Obviously.
My Thoughts on This Episode
This episode was the real turning point of the whole drama. Everything before this was building — the body swaps, the political scheming, the romance, the question of whether Yi Yeol would support the coup or stay loyal to his brother. And this episode answered it definitively. Yi Yeol saw the truth and made his choice.
What I loved most was HOW he got there. It wasn’t someone telling him his brother was bad. It wasn’t political pressure. It was seeing those gisaeng — ordinary women — being tortured for entertainment. It was visceral, it was personal, and it was the moment he couldn’t look away anymore. That’s good character development.
The Im Jae I situation still has me heated though. That man saving his father when his father has shown him NOTHING but contempt? That’s the kind of loyalty that will get you killed. And Im Seung Jae proving he’s exactly like his father by orchestrating an assassination? The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree with that family.
I also love that the body swap has a PURPOSE now. It’s not just a gimmick — it’s literally saving their lives. Every swap happens at the moment of near-death. The writing has been building to this reveal and it makes all the previous swaps make sense retroactively.
This King needs to GO and I need Yi Yeol and Hong Eun Jo to survive this. Please.
Quick Stats
Network KBS2 (Sat & Sun) Episodes 16 × 70 min Airing January 3 – February 22, 2026 Genre Historical, Romance, Supernatural, Political Thriller Director Ham Young Geol Screenwriter Lee Sun (Won Studio Dragon Script Contest 2020) Based On The legend of Hong Gil Dong Where to Watch Viki
Cast Reminder
Actor Character Nam Ji Hyun Hong Eun Jo / Hong Gil Dong — doctor by day, righteous thief by night Moon Sang Min Prince Yi Yeol — the prince who’s just decided to join the coup Hong Min Ki Im Jae I — second lead, saved his terrible father (WHY) Ha Seok Jin Yi Gyu — the King / absolute tyrant Choi Won Young Im Sa Hyeong — State Councillor, master manipulator Han So Eun Sin Hae Rim — second female lead
The moment a princes watches his brother shoot arrows at exhausted, bleeding women and decides “I will take your throne” — that’s not treason. That’s justice.
Two more weeks. Four more episodes. This king’s days are numbered.
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