- The Savior's Identity: For 14 episodes, Lee Gon believes an unknown savior rescued him in 1994 and left Tae-eul’s police badge. In Episode 14, time travel proves that Lee Gon himself was the shooter who traveled back in time. He dropped Tae-eul's badge (which he took from her in 2019) during the fight.
- Shin-jae's Origin: Violent crimes detective Kang Shin-jae is actually Kang Hyeon-min from the Kingdom of Corea. Lee Lim brought him across dimensions as a young child to replace a comatose boy in Korea.
- The Yoyo Boy: The mysterious child playing with a yoyo outside the bookstore is the human embodiment of the Manpasikjeok flute's spirit, working to preserve universe balance.
- The Finale: Lee Gon and Jo Yeong travel back to 1994. Lee Gon successfully kills Lee Lim before he can split the flute or escape. Because Lee Lim dies in 1994, the timeline resets. All alternate-world swaps are undone. Lee Gon retains his memories using the intact flute. He spends years searching across time dimensions until he finds Tae-eul in 2020. They remain together by spending their weekends time-traveling through historical eras.
A grand romantic fantasy woven with quantum mystery, where tragic longing collides with regal elegance. Across a fracture in time and space, two lovers navigate a labyrinth of fate—their connection shimmering like a solitary eclipse bridging parallel worlds.
The King: Eternal Monarch
더 킹 : 영원의 군주
17 April 2020
— 12 June 2020
South Korea
1 season
16 episode
Ended
8.2
(911)
Cast: Lee Min-ho, Kim Go-eun, Woo Do-hwan, Kim Kyung-nam, Jung Eun-chae
Drama
Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Destiny vs. Free Will
The Weight of Duty and Sacrifice
Duality and Identity
Greed, Temptation, and Human Corruption
Love Across Time and Space
The King: Eternal Monarch — Ending Explained
⚠️ Spoiler Analysis
Alternative Interpretations
- The Psychological Reading (Grief and Trauma): Some critics argue the parallel world represents Lee Gon’s inner psychological realm—a coping mechanism created by a traumatized child who watched his father die. Tae-eul represents the grounded sanity calling him back to reality.
- The Temporal Loop / Quantum Multiverse Reading: Viewers interpret the realm between 0 and 1 not as physical space, but as a quantum consciousness state. In this view, Lee Gon and Tae-eul exist simultaneously across infinite timeline dimensions.
- Social Critique of Class: The contrast between Corea (prosperous, unified monarchy) and Korea (gritty, competitive democracy) serves as a subtle political commentary on governance, wealth distribution, and social mobility.
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