The First Night with the Duke- Episodes 9-10
Betrayals, Bloodshed, and One Dangerous Smile
Episode 9 of The First Night With the Duke is a full-blown emotional rollercoaster, loaded with tense reunions, secret schemes, and a killer reveal that flips the entire story on its head.
We pick up right where we left off, Sun-chaek missing, Yi-beon and her family frantically searching, and the kidnapper hiding out in a sketchy cabin in the woods. While the town buzzes with panic, Prince Lee-gyu mocks Yi-beon’s desperation, while Su-gyeom and Eun-ae react more quietly. Or so it seems.
Back at the cabin, Sun-chaek pleads for her life, but her captor refuses to let her go, claiming loyalty to an unnamed boss. Sun-chaek, in true heroine fashion, fights back, stabs his leg, and escapes. She races through the forest, makes it to the town’s emergency drum, and bangs it until help comes.
Cue Prince Yi-beon charging in like a one-man rescue mission. He arrives just in time to stop the attacker from choking her. Even as she passes out, Sun-chaek begs Yi-beon not to kill him. He listens and captures the man instead, hoping to get answers.
Yi-beon brings her home in his arms. Her family is relieved. The doctor reassures them that she only fainted from shock. Ho-yeol is so moved he invites Yi-beon to stay the night and even shares drinks with him. That’s when the real change happens, Ho-yeol finally gives his blessing, trusting Yi-beon to protect his daughter.
But not all is well. Yi-beon has a nightmare about losing Sun-chaek and wakes up in a panic. She comforts him, offering to share her luck with him to balance out the weight he carries. The moment is tender, but something lingers. Sun-chaek sees the returned bracelet with unease. Deep down, she fears the man she loves is becoming a killer.
Meanwhile, the town is buzzing about the kidnapping. All fingers point to Do Hwa-seon, but she swears innocence. Her father sends her away to a temple, just in case. Su-gyeom starts putting the pieces together and suspects Eun-ae after recognizing her contact as the man who kidnapped Sun-chaek. He pays her a visit, but Eun-ae plays the part of concerned friend flawlessly. She even offers tea and plans to visit Sun-chaek together.
Things take a dark turn when Su-gyeom stumbles upon suspicious papers hidden in her home. He leaves in a rush. Eun-ae later visits Sun-chaek alone, still faking concern, trying to dig for info about the attacker. She even tries to shift the blame to Hwa-seon.
At the same time, Yi-beon tries to interrogate the attacker. The man stays silent, even when offered his life. So Yi-beon turns to the letter that lured Sun-chaek and traces it to Eun-ae’s father’s company. But before he can dig deeper, the king summons him.
At the palace, the king is obsessing over getting China’s approval. Prince Lee-gyu steps in, offering a plan that appeals to the king more than anything Yi-beon or the ministers have suggested. Lee-gyu’s return is starting to tip the political scales. On his way out, he runs into Yi-beon and throws some casual shade, clearly enjoying the tension.
To “test” Yi-beon’s loyalty, the king hands him a hit list and orders him to carry out executions. Yi-beon accepts the task, but the burden is written all over his face.
Later that night, the drama reaches its boiling point. Eun-ae sneaks into the prison and helps the kidnapper escape, only to stab him in the back moments later. Yes, you read that right. Eun-ae, the soft-spoken “innocent” heroine, has been playing the long game. Through a flashback, we see the truth: she is the one who pushed Sun-chaek into the pond.
As she leaves the body behind, she runs into Lee-gyu. Instead of being alarmed, he helps her dispose of the body and suggests an alliance. This is no longer just palace intrigue. It is war.
The next morning, Deok-jeong starts planning the wedding and gives Sun-chaek some heartwarming advice. She sends her to the temple to pray for her marriage. There, Sun-chaek bumps into Lee-gyu, who is standing in the rain without cover. Concerned, she approaches him. He reminisces about their childhood and masks his growing suspicion that she no longer remembers him. In a strange twist, he asks to sleep on her lap, and they both doze off.
Meanwhile, Prince Yi-beon fulfills the king’s order and kills the former prime minister, even as the man pleads to delay his death until after his daughter’s wedding. It is a brutal, emotional scene that shows just how far Yi-beon is willing to go to protect his place at court.
Later, Sun-chaek and Lee-gyu walk back together and come across a body. It’s her former attacker. Sun-chaek is horrified. Yi-beon shows up to see her in Lee-gyu’s arms, and she immediately runs to him. Lee-gyu uses the moment to cast suspicion, quietly hinting that Yi-beon might be behind the death.
At home, Sun-chaek notices blood on Yi-beon’s sleeve. She confronts him, asking if he killed again. Yi-beon is hurt and asks if she truly doesn’t trust him. Sun-chaek doesn’t want him to be someone who keeps killing. She pleads with him to tell her she is wrong.
This episode ends with one question ringing in the air: Can love survive when trust is hanging by a thread?
Because after everything, Sun-chaek finally has Yi-beon's heart. But will he be able to keep it if his hands are stained with blood?
Bombshells, Betrayals, and a Wedding in the Shadows
Tensions are high in Episode 10 of The First Night With the Duke, and they only get higher. We jump right in with Yi Beon warning Sun-chaek to stay away from Prince Lee-gyu. He refuses to explain their shared history, and they part on icy terms. Yi Beon throws himself into investigating the murder, quickly realizing that the body’s two distinct stab wounds point to more than one culprit.
Meanwhile, Soo-gyeom confronts Eun-ae with the incriminating papers he found. He tries to appeal to her conscience, urging her to confess, but Eun-ae responds with an icy laugh. When she refuses to turn herself in, Soo-gyeom drops the hammer, he plans to tell Yi Beon everything. Just when we think we’ve got a loyal second male lead standing up for justice, Eun-ae lands a twist that flips everything. She reveals that Soo-gyeom’s father is a member of the Heuksa Clan, the same underground group the king has ordered Yi Beon to destroy.
As it turns out, the Heuksa Clan is led by none other than Prince Lee-gyu himself. And while he’s smiling his way into the king’s good graces, his true game is unfolding behind the scenes. First, he wins the king over with flattering talk about improving relations with China. Then, when it’s revealed that Yi Beon delayed killing the exiled prime minister to let the man attend his daughter’s wedding, Lee-gyu steps in and finishes the job himself. Cold and calculated.
While secret clan members are calling for Yi Beon’s execution, Lee-gyu plays the loyal advisor, whispering poison into the king’s ear. The king hesitates to pass judgment, but the pressure is mounting. Yi Beon, meanwhile, wastes no time. After learning from Soo-gyeom that Eun-ae orchestrated Sun-chaek’s kidnapping, he has her arrested and brought in for questioning.
Eun-ae stays calm through it all, knowing Yi Beon is not the same ruthless man he once was. She is confident he won’t kill her—not if it risks losing Sun-chaek’s trust. But he doesn’t need to. The threat of sending her to the Royal Investigation Bureau is enough to destroy her reputation and livelihood. He leaves her with that grim choice hanging in the air.
On his way home, Yi Beon is ambushed... not by assassins, but by the wife of the kidnapper, who pelts him with eggs and blames him for her husband’s death. Before another hit lands, Sun-chaek jumps in to shield him. As they wash the egg yolk off their clothes, they finally reconcile. Sun-chaek apologizes for doubting him. Yi Beon admits he kept his past from her out of shame and fear. He explains that Lee-gyu’s grudge is not without merit, but his fear was always for her safety, not his pride.
Sun-chaek, fully committed, promises to help him find peace. Her first move? She goes straight to Lee-gyu and drops to her knees, begging him to spare Yi Beon’s life. Lee-gyu agrees to speak to the king and succeeds in persuading him not to execute Yi Beon. Instead, he suggests an equally brutal alternative, sending him to the border to fight the barbarians troubling China. A death sentence in disguise.
Yi Beon accepts his orders with dignity, but he leaves the king with a final warning: Watch Lee-gyu closely.
Knowing he may not return, Yi Beon spends his final night with Sun-chaek. In a bittersweet moment, they hold a quiet, private wedding... just the two of them, no ceremony, no audience. It is raw, real, and deeply emotional. The next day, Sun-chaek tells her family the news. Her father is outraged, not just by the sudden marriage, but by the idea of her living alone. In true dad fashion, he insists on moving in with her.
Just when you think we might get a brief moment of peace, the show hits the gas. Sun-chaek faints after discovering a charm identical to the one she had in the real world. Eun-ae is released from custody. And Yi Beon is ambushed on his way to the border.
The screen fades to black, and just like that, we are left teetering on a cliff as the finale looms.
This episode is packed with emotion, power plays, and quiet heartbreak. The stakes are sky-high, and everyone’s cards are finally on the table. Two episodes left and no one is safe.
DramaZen's Opinion
Okay, The First Night With the Duke just blew the roof off with Episodes 9 and 10. I thought we were in peak drama before, but nope... they cranked it even higher.
Episode 9 had me on edge from the start. Sun-chaek getting kidnapped, Yi Beon running himself ragged to find her, and the moment she banged that town drum? Chills. Actual chills. And when Yi Beon carried her home and her dad finally approved their relationship, I nearly cried. Then came Eun-ae’s villain reveal and... wow. She really fooled all of us. Cold, calculated, and now a full-on traitor? Girl flipped the script completely.
Then Episode 10? Just pure emotional chaos. Yi Beon and Sun-chaek reconciling after egg attacks and heartbreak? Beautiful. Their secret wedding? Tender and tragic. But the moment Sun-chaek dropped to her knees to beg Lee-gyu for mercy? My jaw was on the floor. I wanted to hug her and yell at her at the same time. And don’t get me started on that cliffhanger, Yi Beon getting ambushed and Sun-chaek fainting after finding that charm? My soul is not ready.
These two episodes had everything: love, betrayal, secret clans, and a wedding I both adored and dreaded. If this is the setup for the finale, I am terrified and obsessed in equal measure.
