Chapter 8

Now for some rich people. Inside his palatial estate, a media mogul takes a conference call with other media honchos. He's KIM MOON-SHIK (Park Sang-won), the chairman of Jeil Newspaper, and they're discussing how to handle the story of the mass layoffs at Samhan Group. Or spinning it, more like, landing upon a business-friendly angle that takes the blame off the corporation. Oh, something tells me we're in for some family strife over this, as Moon-shik is the older brother to our righteous star reporter Moon-ho.

Then Moon-shik hears from his secretary that "the item" has been transferred, having survived the attempt to intercept it. He guesses correctly who was behind that attempt—Moon-ho. Omo. Things just got more interesting.

Double S is reputed to be top-of-the-line, but even so, they weren't able to outwit the solo Healer. He's never been identified, and one of his hallmarks is discretion, in that he never asks for his clients' identities.

Jung-hoo takes his nervous client away to safety to complete the transaction, but the man is so scared that he begs for one more consideration—that they send him to America, which he can't do on his own without being caught. He adds that Jeil News should be able to manage it, and an email gets sent over to chairman Moon-shik.

That means, however, that the client knows that Jeil is involved, and Jeil doesn't like being thus exposed. Moon-shik files away the Healer's name and decides that this must be directly discussed with the Old Man; they can't risk anything going awry.

At the broadcast station, Moon-ho gets bad news from his boss, news desk chief KANG MIN-JAE (Woo Hee-jin), with whom he is very friendly and speaks to in banmal. They'll be cutting the interview with the burned protester, and he entreats her to help him honor his promise to the man.

Min-jae understands how he feels but she's also got higher-ups to report to, so she settles on a compromise to allow Moon-ho to mention meeting the man, but glossing it over in a pleasant fashion. Something tells me he's not going to let that be the final word.

Ah, and as the newscast prepares for broadcast, we see that the honchos who'd called in with Jeil's Moon-shik are executives at this station. Min-jae gives Moon-ho the extra warning that they're here to see his broadcast. "Don't cause trouble," she says.

At home, Young-shin makes kimchi with her father, chatting about her latest lead on the top-secret mercenary called the Healer. She knows that these kinds of services are employed by the rich and powerful to do their dirty work for them, and smells a top story, as well as all the riches she'll rake in by writing a bestselling exposé.

Young-shin wheedles Dad in her best aegyo voice to lend her the money to contract the Healer's services (in the vicinity of 10 grand), and he harrumphs that he'll do it when she brings home a marriageable young man. She picks up a cabbage head and "introduces" him to Dad, which is super cute for the way Dad just plays along like she's marrying Mr. Cabbage Head.

But then it's time for the evening news, and Young-shin leaps up to catch the broadcast featuring Moon-ho. From the way she grins up moonily at her television, I'm guessing she's a big fan.

Moon-ho goes off-script during the live broadcast to tell the man's story, to Min-jae's chagrin. Moon-ho gets particularly scathing, turning the criticism inward, saying that the man self-immolated because nobody would listen to his story otherwise. He acknowledges that truth—he didn't interview the man until he burned himself, nor did the station care for the plight of the workers—and states that the man's extreme act was driven first and foremost by "we the reporters."

And Young-shin's admiration of Moon-ho just balloons up in response—not to date him, but to be him. She explains to us that she wasn't so great in her studies, went to a mediocre university, and failed all the entrance exams for the major papers, which explains why she's toiling away at such a dinky tabloid. Still, she's confident in her drive and passion.

Next, we meet an elegant woman in a wheelchair, looking fondly at old photographs of her daughter and of herself with four university friends (a photo that's been spotted a few times now). She's CHOI MYUNG-HEE (Do Ji-won), and she sets out a lavish spread with those photos at the center—a memorial, perhaps.

She's joined by her husband, Chairman Kim Moon-shik, in a child's room that's been preserved. He grows sad-eyed at the friends' photo, but agrees that it's appropriate since their bygone friend was the father of the deceased daughter. Oy, these relationships seem pretty complicated. I mean, in a good way ultimately, but right now I'm just trying to keep 'em all straight.

Moon-shik calls his brother to wonder why he isn't here yet, but Moon-ho's in a heavy mood and says he won't be able to make it. Moon-shik guesses that it's because he got chewed out for making yet another live broadcast incident, and the brothers laugh about how nothing ever happens without hyung knowing.

It's particularly interesting given what we know about them outmaneuvering each other behind each other's backs, since they seem so affable to each other directly. Moon-shik ends the call with a warm "You know I'm always on your side," to which Moon-ho angrily flings off his headset.

Then Moon-ho calls a friend to inquire about test results yet again—and for the third time, the DNA has proved the two people unrelated. The friend wonders who he's looking for, and Moon-ho just replies, "Someone I have to find."

As he comes home to his spacious, empty apartment, Moon-ho thinks heavily that another day has passed in his life where every day feels like a homework assignment to be solved. He takes an apologetic call from the Double S Guard company for the failed task, and guesses that the job was interrupted by the Healer, "because I had initially intended to hire him." Looks like he'll be going there next… if he can beat out the competition, that is.

Moon-ho dismantles his coffee table to reveal that it's a functional chest, and inside is a briefcase housing dozens of cassette tapes and a note that reads "HEALER." The tapes date back to 1980, and he narrates that two points of time in his life are connected by a tough thread: 1980 and 1992. Every time he tries to move forward, he returns instead to those times.

He takes out that old photo of the five friends, growing emotional as it takes him back to being a young boy:

November 1980. Moon-ho rides shotgun in an old truck, his brother driving and listening to an underground radio broadcast. A young Myung-hee broadcasts from a cramped space with her (boy?)friend, talking about news and criticizing the media in that fearless way that idealistic students have.

The broadcast is enough of a problem that the police are busy trying to track its source and move out with sirens blaring. A friend on a motorcycle signals to Moon-shik, and ah! The pirate broadcast is originating from the back of the truck. The friends get the signal to cut out, and they quickly sign off.

The cops spot the antenna mounted on the truck and start to chase, while their motorcycle buddy does his part in running interference and heading off the police cars. The chase gets increasingly perilous, until finally the motorcyclist pulls off the awning covering the truckbed and flings it onto the cop's windshield, ending the chase.

They make it out today, and drink to the successful escape. That's when young Moon-ho picks up a camera, and the friends suggest taking a photograph together. Moon-shik is the most concerned of the five—he's rather dark, whereas his friends are freewheeling and ebullient—and I'm sensing more to the story than a mere love triangle between his old friend and his current wife.

In the present day, Moon-shik and Myung-hee hold the memorial, and Myung-hee grows teary as she asks her dead husband to look after their daughter. Moon-shik lends her his literal shoulder to cry on.

Moon-ho writes an email while narrating for us, "My time is caught on the past, and so, I had no tomorrow. If I find that child, perhaps I might have a tomorrow." We see him writing another request for help, and it's addressed to the Healer.

The Healer, meanwhile, sits down for to a dinner for one and keeps his eye on his goal of retiring to a private island. His plan sounds both outlandish and entirely feasible, given the way he's thinking out the details of all the supplies he'd need. He grimaces at a phone call from Ajumma Min-ja, and when he ignores her call (c'mon, do you not learn?), she hacks into his system to check on the latest request.