When her father (Ahn Suk-hwan) is obligated to send her into the royal palace as a concubine for the king, the two lovers try to elope but are caught after their first night together.

Hwa-yeon's efforts to free her father and rescue him from execution are sabotaged by Kwon-yoo, who directly undermines Sung-won's exoneration orders to ensure the man's death.

One night, Sung-won enters Geum-ok's room and is frothed into a rage when he sees her wearing the hair stick he had gifted to Hwa-yeon.

To save her own life, Geum-ok reveals that Kwon-yoo had a relationship with Hwa-yeon, and that the young prince had been born prematurely, making his parentage suspect.

After this incident, Kwon-yoo believes that he is the father of Hwa-yeon's child from the night they eloped together and has a change of heart about helping her, swearing to protect her and her son at any cost.

Keeping his promise to Hwa-yeon to protect her and her son, Kwon-yoo lies, saying the Queen Mother was behind Sung-woo's assassination attempt, with Minister Yoon providing the poison.

Sung-woo orders the men's execution and for the Queen Mother to be permanently placed under house arrest in her chambers.

The last scene shows Hwa-yeon smiling at her son playing on the throne in the empty royal court, before her face turns when the door shuts and she realizes she can't go back.

Promotion and hype had singularly focused on the film's graphic portrayal of sex and Jo Yeo-jeong's nudity,[17] which local critics found misguided and demeaning to a film that according to The Korea Herald "explores the theme of betrayal, revenge and obsessions, with much nuance and depth" and "offers substance and ample entertainment, as well as almost Shakespearean psychological intricacy."

Hwang Ki-seok's lush cinematography was praised,[18] as were the costumes[19][20] and the cast's excellent acting, particularly Kim Dong-wook's performance.

[22][23][24][25][26] Distribution rights have been signed with theaters in eight countries—New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Malaysia and Brunei.