Nine Puzzles episode 8 begins quietly. Cheol-jin is on a yacht, drinking alone. He seems relaxed, but something feels off. He senses someone nearby, yet he’s too drunk to figure it out. That moment passes without answers.
Meanwhile, Chief Hogeun and Jung-ho meet with the Jeju police chief. They want the investigation paused. The prime suspect is I-na. Jung-ho openly tells Han-saem he doesn’t trust her. He also doubts Han-saem, simply because he’s close to her. The tension is real.
We then shift to a heavy scene. A therapist shares the story of a boy abused by his father. The boy was depressed, broken, and often tried to take his life. After moving to an orphanage, he met the therapist. They worked through the trauma together. But one day, the boy came back, saying everything was fine. The therapist thought he had healed. Instead, the boy had killed his father. His eyes were empty. It was chilling.
Han-saem contacts Dr. Lee, I-na’s therapist. I-na is quiet. She’s not sharing much and isn’t helping to clear her name. Dr. Lee visits her. She asks I-na if she’s trapped in darkness. I-na doesn’t say much but gives her another puzzle piece for Han-saem. It shows an obese man eating burgers.
I-na finally speaks. She gives a taxi company’s business card and says she’ll talk only after leaving jail. Han-saem checks the alibi. It’s true. When Cheol-jin died, I-na was in the taxi. The driver dropped her at a hotel. That clears her name.
But there’s more. She tells Han-saem she got the puzzle piece in the taxi. This means the killer is following them everywhere. It’s not random. It’s personal. I-na says she only stayed quiet to see who would help her. That would prove who’s on her side. The people who step up are Jung-ho, Chief Hogeun, Seung-joo, Dr. Lee, and Hwang.
Digging into Secrets and Finding the Killer’s Pattern
Later, I-na meets Dr. Lee again. She asks why both of them were in Jeju at the same time. She also wants to know why Dr. Lee treats her like a patient when her issue doesn’t feel curable. Dr. Lee says she’s not trying to treat her. She’s trying to understand why I-na keeps losing her memory.
Meanwhile, Han-saem uncovers a hidden detail. He finds Jung-ho’s personal record and checks with people at the Mapo station. They say Jung-ho was always distant. He avoided bonding with anyone and suddenly left one rainy night. He told them his sibling needed him. But Jung-ho grew up in an orphanage. That same night, Superintendent Dong-hoo was murdered.
Dong-su now leads the case. It’s officially a serial killing case. I-na confirms this during a meeting with the team. She reveals that only three more murders are needed to complete the full puzzle. They try to understand why the killer started leaving puzzle pieces in the Miyoung case. Before that, pieces were only left at the crime scenes, not given directly to anyone.
Jung-ho’s Suspicious Movements
I-na shares her last conversation with Cheol-jin. He built The One City building. He was scared. Cheol-jin thought the killer was coming for him. He also asked her to become friends with his son, Yeonghun. They’re the same age. That shocked I-na.
Han-saem checks flight records. He finds that Jung-ho was in Jeju a month before and again on the day Cheol-jin died. It’s suspicious. Very suspicious.
Han-saem brings in Choi-san. He’s the only one who saw the mysterious handkerchief the day Yoon-su died. They try hypnosis. Choi-san starts talking in his sleep. He remembers everything. A man in dark clothes picked up the handkerchief. He smelled like cigarettes. Then he confirms—it was Jung-ho.
The episode ends with a tense scene. Han-saem and Jung-ho come face to face. Jung-ho calmly pulls out the same handkerchief and shows it to him.
This episode leaves no room for rest. The pace picks up. Trust is thin. Clues are coming fast. And the killer? Still one step ahead.
Here is the recap of the rest of the episodes:
Kavita Mishra is a dynamic writer and passionate Korean entertainment enthusiast, combining her love for K-pop and K-drama with a flair for storytelling. With a keen eye for the latest trends, Kavita crafts articles that capture the pulse of K-pop idols, chart-topping hits, and the most buzz-worthy dramas taking over screens worldwide.
