Whirlwind

Dong‑Ho, now the President, has spent the series hunting the corruption that taints former President Jang’s administration. When every official avenue is blocked and his old ally Su‑Jin stands in his way, he decides that the only way to force the truth into the light is to become a martyr. He stages his own death as a murder, framing Su‑Jin, and then throws himself from a cliff. Before he dies he arranges a sealed will that declares he was not killed by Su‑Jin; the will will be burned with his body unless she quickly confesses the full list of corrupt officials.

The ruse works. In the interrogation room, prosecutor Choi Yeon‑Sook shows Su‑Jin a video of Dong‑Ho’s warning, and a call from Su‑Jin herself arrives, delivering the names of every conspirator. With the evidence in hand, the authorities move to arrest Su‑Jin, but she insists she must speak before being taken away. A hidden camera—installed by Dong‑Ho’s loyal assistant—records a second trap: a news report that Man‑Gil, Su‑Jin’s secretary, supposedly killed the President. Pressured by the looming public exposure, Su‑Jin finally admits her own role in the conspiracy, and the confession is streamed live to the nation.

The fallout lands Su‑Jin back in the same prison cell she occupied thirty years earlier, but this time she is confined for the very power hunger she once vowed to fight. In a quiet, heartbreaking moment she stares at the words “Long live democracy” she wrote on the wall as a young idealist, realizing how far she has strayed. Dong‑Ho’s coffin is burned alongside the flag he signed with the word “whirlwind,” symbolizing the storm he tried to unleash against the rot within the government.

In the series’ final breath, Dong‑Ho’s post‑mortem monologue reveals that his desperate act stemmed from an inability to tolerate injustice, even though the methods he used were morally ambiguous. His death forces the nation to confront the entrenched greed of its leaders, leaving his name tarnished yet largely redeemed as the man who, at great personal cost, finally exposed the truth.

Last Updated: September 17, 2025 at 06:57