My Demon Episode 2

This is a serious concern. If Gu-won fails to collect on deals, then the punishment won’t be pretty: he’ll spontaneously combust. How long does he have? Unclear. But hey, even without magic, collecting on souls is easy — right? Erm… cut to Gu-won getting squashed like a bug by an entire Olympic wrestling team. Dragging a star athlete to hell with his bare fists was a tad ambitious. What’s a demon to do? Beat a deeply dignified retreat by hurling himself out the window, landing in trash, and throwing up two — still very dignified — middle fingers. He is a terrifying fiend from the abyss, he’ll have you know!

Even terrifying fiends need a little help from their friends. Gu-won has accidentally picked up two human companions, whom he spends most days cold-shouldering. The first is JIN GA-YOUNG (Jo Hye-joo), whose terrifying skill in traditional dance (swords included) is matched only by the intensity of her crush on Gu-won. Meanwhile, there’s his butler, PARK BOK-GYU (Heo Jung-do) who made a demonic deal not once, but twice in a past life. Turns out, the only thing worse than being a starving Joseon fisherman is being a small tteokbokki business owner. Hell is a breeze in comparison!

Gu-won dispatches Bok-gyu to spy on Do-hee, who’s under considerable pressure. Due to the article, Mirae F&B’s numbers are falling, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned about numbers from recapping this year’s drama Numbers, it’s that when numbers go down, this is bad. Do-hee swears to Madam Ju that she can handle this alone. Still, her would-be assassin’s words haunt her — is Madam Ju hiding something? Madam Ju insists she isn’t, but the confession she makes to her priest suggests otherwise. There’s something weighing on her conscience about Do-hee — something to do with a very incriminating flashback. A burning car. A smashed-up mobile phone, with a call from “my daughter Do-hee.” And Madam Ju, lying next to the wreckage, with her knee a mess of blood — an injury that pains her to this day.

Do-hee tracks down the originator of the damning article, NOH SU-AHN (Lee Yoon-ji), one of Madam Ju’s children. Blackmail is such an indelicate term. In this case, it’s also beautifully apropos. Do-hee has evidence that Su-ahn has not only been having an affair, but technically broke the law by getting intimate with her boyfriend in a public car park. It’s the stuff that stock crashes are made of — and Su-ahn has no choice but to back down.

It’s at this point that Do-hee receives a phone call. Gu-won would like to register a complaint. He’s been feeling dreadful since their accident. And he’s adamant that she see for herself. For want of any other plan, he’s opted to turn on the demonic charm. I’ve never felt like this before, he murmurs to Do-hee, when they meet. I feel like a different person. And — here, he touches her arm — you’re the reason for my symptoms.

Do-hee had intended to fob him off with cash (lots). It’s in a moment of weakness that she instead agrees to go on a drive with him. This, she immediately regrets, as he speeds past the Olympic team who’d previously wiped the floor with him. He takes Do-hee’s hand, aims a cheerful finger-gun at the athlete who’d made the deal with him… and watches in relish as his victim collapses, just as planned.

Do-hee has no idea she’s been accessory to a soul-harvesting. All she knows is that this date has some really weird vibes. Look, she’s not shocked by the fact that Gu-won takes them to a car park where one of the cars is, uh, rocking. She’s just skeptical about the location! And is Gu-won saying they can do it outside? That — that’s a crime! Gu-won laughs: since when did they criminalize a stroll by the river? Do-hee actually looks a little disappointed.

They go for the stroll. Gu-won moves in close enough to kiss, placing a hand behind her neck… and then, with a grin that can only be described as devilish, hurls them both into the river. Underwater, he clings to her wrist, willing his powers to return. But when they surface, nothing changes… beyond the fact that Do-hee is incandescently furious. She almost drowned today! There’s still someone out there trying to kill her, and — and what did she do wrong? With visible effort, she collects herself, plus, the envelope of cash. The latter, she throws at Gu-won’s feet. I owe you nothing, she says.

Damp and disconsolate, Do-hee begins a long trek home. She stops before a news screen: Mr Cha, a financial chief, was found hanging in a public bathroom. Little does she know, he’s another victim of her would-be killer. He’d tried to contact her earlier, with information that could allegedly put her in charge of Mirae. As Do-hee’s back is turned, a motorcycle comes skidding towards her. Its rider hurls a flask of acid at her — but before it connects, someone throws himself in its path. It’s Gu-won.Now The lesson ends.

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