Hotel del Luna

1,300 years in the past, Jang Man-wol travels through the wilderness escorting a cart that bears a coffin. She encounters an old woman and explains that she's seeking a guest house that comforts the souls of the dead. The old woman knows the place and Man-wol demands that she tell her how to find it. The old woman says that only the dead can go there — like the ghosts she sees following Man-wol. The woman vanishes and a large dead tree appears. A windstorm suddenly blows up and the debris it carries assemble into a large guest house. From a distance, the old woman, who is the deity Mago, announces that the Guest House of the Moon has a new owner. Mago brings the coffin to the house, followed by a swarm of fireflies.

In 1998, a young Koo Chan-sung and his impoverished father meet Mago in the guise of a flower seller. In front of them, the body of a murdered police officer, Detective Lee, is pulled from the river. Her ghost finds its way to the guest house, now the luxurious Hotel del Luna. Jang Man-wol is still the proprieter, now prosperous, and with a taste for champagne and luxuries. Most of the staff are ghosts who for their own reasons have not moved on to the next world. After awhile, Chan-sung's father, fleeing the police, falls down some stairs, and his ghost also finds its way to the hotel. Not realizing his circumstances, he wanders the hotel, looking for a place to hide and contemplating robbing it. He is caught in the garden by Man-wol, who returns him to the living in exchange for his son in twenty years. The tree has blossoms for the first time. Detective Lee explains to Man-wol that she's not ready to move on to the next world until the person responsible for killing her is brought to justice. She digs a bullet out of her head and gives it to Man-wol. Later, Man-wol walks into an award ceremony with an ornate rifle over her shoulder. Only the mayor can see her. She shoots him with the ghost bullet. He's not harmed, but he begins to see the ghost of Detective Lee whose death he had ordered.

In the present day, Gu Chan-sung returns to South Korea with a degree in hotel management and a Harvard MBA. He takes a job at a top hotel, but Man-wol finds him and tells him to work for her instead. He resists. Later he sees the ghost of an eyeless woman who begins to pursue him. Man-wol shows up and rescues him. The mayor, now a homeless vagabond, recognizes Man-wol and stabs her. As she lies on the street, she tells Chan-sung that this is his chance to walk away and be rid of her. Instead, he comes back with a cart to take her to a hospital. She reveals that she's not actually hurt, and that the mayor was a vengeful ghost whom she then destroys.

Mago appears, giving flowers to the recently dead as they begin their journey to the next world. The eyeless woman resumes following Chan-sung. The ghost of a tiger is haunting the city. Chan-sung visits the hotel, where he meets the staff, including Mr. Noh, the current manager who is retiring. Man-wol explains that the hotel needs a human manager to deal with the human world. Man-wol and Chan-sung investigate the tiger, which was brought to the city by Chairman Wang, owner of the hotel where Chan-sung currently works. The chairman is in poor health and haunted by nightmares of the tiger. Man-wol and Chan-sung visit him, and she offers to rid him of the tiger in exchange for a valuable painting of Baekdu Mountain. Chan-sung is put off by her averice.

Chan-sung meets Mr. Noh again, and over tea Mr. Noh explains that working at the hotel is worth it. Chan-sung realizes that Mr. Noh has died and he has been talking to his ghost. Mr. Noh returns to the hotel one more time, as a guest. He says his goodbyes to Man-wol and the staff, and departs for the next life.

Chairman Wang gives the painting to Man-wol; she uses it to give the ghost of the tiger a home. Chan-sung, having overcome his fear of the eyeless woman, brings her to the hotel and shows her that she doesn't need to be blind any more. The next evening, he is attacked by another vengeful ghost and is saved by Man-wol.

In a flashback, Man-wol is the leader of a group of bandits. The band robs a caravan belonging to Princess Song-hwa. She meets Go Chung-myung, the captain of the guard and they form a connection. In various flashbacks throughout the series, we see them falling in love.

Man-wol and Mago talk in the garden. After Man-wol leaves, Mago touches the tree and it blossoms again. She places the blossoms on Chan-sung as he sleeps, and he dreams of Man-wol when she was happy. Man-wol shows him the rest of the hotel and he decides to stay. She smiles and he knows for sure she's the woman from his dream.

A teenage girl, Jung Soo-jung, falls to her death from a bridge. Her ghost posesses the body of Kim Yoo-na, the girl who killed her in a fight over a necklace. Kim's ghost comes to Chan-sung looking for help to get her body back. Later, he accosts Soo-jung in Yoo-na's body and gets her side of the story. Man-wol visits Yoo-na's parents and sells them the necklace so they can destroy it and cover up the murder. She warns them that destroying the necklace will destroy their daughter's soul. Not understanding, they destroy the necklace anyway, and Yoo-na's soul turns to ash. Soo-jung continues to live in Yoo-na's body and assumes her identity.

Chan-sung worries about the eventual fate of Man-wol's soul. He tells her of his dream and she recognizes it as true. Chan-sung wonders if she stayed at the hotel for so long because she's waiting for someone.

Chan-sung touches the tree and it leafs out to Man-wol's amazement. She remembers Mago telling her that when the tree comes back to life, time will start flowing for her again. She becomes upset. She orders Chan-sung to go to sleep again to have another dream. Chan-sung wonders if he might be the man from the dream.

A bakery is visited by the eyeless ghost, causing a brief panic. Chan-sung's roommate Sanchez, who was out buying bread, comes home to tell the story to Chan-sung. The ghost has followed him and Chan-sung converses with her in front of Sanchez. Now that she can see, she wants to look at a baker who was kind to her in life, but she will only recognize him by touching his hands.

The staff sees the tree and become concerned that it means that Man-wol will leave soon, and that they too may be required to take the bus to the afterlife.

Chan-sung helps the ghost find the baker. Man-wol tells Chan-sung that he missed something important: the thing that ghosts remember best is how they died. The eyeless ghost remembers that the baker is the one who killed her in a hit-and-run accident. She gets onto his motorcycle intending revenge. Chan-sung saves the baker and convinces the ghost not to take revenge. She goes to the next life and Chan-sung sees to it that the baker goes to jail.

Man-wol and the staff plot to get rid of Chan-sung to stop the tree from blooming. They consider Yoo-na for his replacement. They decide to send Chan-sung to visit the ghost in room 13, the sight of whom will drive him mad. At the last moment, Man-wol appears and kisses Chan-sung to keep him from looking at the ghost. The kiss lingers.

Man-wol orders Chan-sung to flee while she deals with the ghost. The ghost tricks Chan-sung into thinking Man-wol needs to be rescued and he rushes back in, allowing the ghost to escape. The staff realizes their plot has failed disastrously.

Yoo-na and Ji Hyun-joong meet. He explains that she's being considered for the job of manager. They flirt and exchange phone numbers.

Chan-sung tells Man-wol about a dream where he saw her with Yeon-woo. They wonder briefly if Chan-sung might be the reincarnation of Yeon-woo, but decide he's not. Man-wol is sad as she remembers her time with Yeon-woo.

A grieving couple perform a ritual that will find a groom for their dead daughter Lee Soo-min. They send a red pouch off under a paper sky lantern. Whoever finds it will be tied to the dead bride's ghost. The ghost of Soo-min doesn't want this, but cannot stop them. She comes to the hotel for help.

Man-wol realizes Soo-min's family is wealthy and offers to host the wedding at their expense.

Chan-sung looks for the red pouch to prevent some innocent stranger from finding it. Man-wol realizes that if he finds it, he will be the groom and goes to stop him. She arranges for Sanchez to find it instead. Sanchez finds it and discovers a red string tied to his hand leading off into the distance. He sees Soo-min's ghost and faints. Man-wol explains that once the wedding is held, Soo-min will move on to the afterlife and Sanchez will be fine.

Chan-sung goes to Mago for advice and meets two of her sisters. They agree that the wedding should proceed, but suggest that another ghost could be substituted for Sanchez. Chan-sung begins the search for a suitable groom. Soo-min doesn't like any of the choices and instead gives the bag to Chan-sung.

Just before the wedding, Chan-sung has a vision: Man-wol from 1,300 years ago, wearing a red wedding gown, blood dripping from her fingertips.

The third Mago sister appears with a gift for the bride.

Man-wol sends Yoo-na to find the original groom. Yoo-na finds him in a hospital waiting room, tells him about the upcoming wedding and offers to help him stop it. She brings him to the hotel. Chan-sung hands him the red bag and the string now ties him to Soo-min. The wedding begins.

Man-wol explains that when the wedding is finished, the man will die and go to the afterlife with her. We learn that the grieving couple were the groom's parents, not the bride's. They tried to arrange for the ghost wedding to prevent Soo-min from taking their son with her to the afterlife. The son is actually in a hospital, dying, and it was his soul that came to the hotel.

At the last moment, Soo-min calls a halt to the wedding so that the groom may live. The wedding gift from Mago turns out to be a pair of scissors that can cut the string. In the hospital, the groom wakes up, tears in his eyes.

Lee Mi-ra, Chan-sung's ex-girlfriend shows up. She is the reincarnation of Princess Song-hwa.

Man-wol asks the Grim Reaper why Mago is helping Chan-sung, and he responds that Mago is helping her, adding that he will be the one to see her off.

The staff confer with the Grim Reaper over the escape of the ghost from room 13. The Grim Reaper says he will hold the hotel responsible if anything happens.

A man working late at the office receives a message that leads him to a spy-cam video of a woman in a bedroom. It is the ghost from room 13. She reaches through the screen and kills him. Later, she claims a second victim.

The ghost of a king arrives at the hotel and is given royal treatment. However Chan-sung becomes suspicious as nobody is entirely sure which king he was. The king turns out to be the actor Bang Tae-woo, who died before he had the chance to play his greatest role. The actor who replaced him is not up to the part. Man-wol and Chan-sung arrange for Tae-woo to briefly possess the younger actor, allowing him play the part perfectly, saving the younger actor's career and allowing Tae-woo to move on to the next life.

Man-wol and Chan-sung have plans to go to the coast, but she finds out that Chan-sung is having lunch with Mi-ra. We learn that Mi-ra and Chan-sung do not have a good relationship and that he is angry about their past. Chan-sung spots Kim Jun-hyun, a celebrity that Man-wol is a fan of, and gets an autograph for her. He calls her to confirm their trip to the coast and she tells him not to bother.

The next day, Chan-sung finds Man-wol sitting alone at the hotel beach and gives her the autograph. She's happy with his gift, and happy that he's there.

Yoo-na encounters another Mago sister, a stern woman in black, who intends to destroy her for inhabiting someone else's body. The Grim Reaper intervenes, explaining that Man-wol had given permission.

Man-wol and the staff discuss how to track the ghost from room 13. Meanwhile, the ghost claims a third victim. Chan-sung interviews the sister of the ghost and discovers that she had died after a sex video of her was distributed at college. The three victims are students who were behind the distribution of the sex video. The person who made the recording, Jeong Eun-seok, is now the CEO of a successful file-sharing site. Chan-sung and Man-wol confront him. Afterwards, Man-wol tells Chan-sung that there's no more to be done; Mago will take care of it now.

The ghost attacks Eun-seok but Mago in black intervenes, destroying the ghost. As the ghost's ashes ascend into the sky, Man-wol bears silent witness.

Man-wol invites Eun-seok to visit the hotel. Chan-sung shows him to room 13, which now looks like the room from the video. It is Eun-seok's room from college. Eun-seok wakes up in his car, stalled on railroad tracks. Man-wol is there. She forces him to remember what he did. A train comes. A moment later, he is alone in the car and the train is not there. Mago in black appears, and this time the train comes for real.

Out with Chan-sung, Man-wol sees Mi-ra for the first time and recognizes her as the reincarnation of Princess Song-hwa.

In a flashback, Man-wol murders Song-hwa on the night of her wedding to Chung-myung.

Man-wol obtains Mi-ra's purse and finds a number of personal items including a photograph of a happy childhood memory.

Man-wol and Mago discuss Mi-ra. Mago urges Man-wol to just let Mi-ra pass by, and warns her to not cause harm.

Mr. Kim and Ms. Choi tell Chan-sung about Man-wol's connection to the hotel. She can never leave; wherever she goes, the Moon Tree will set down roots and there stands the Guest House of the Moon. Man-wol nearly became a vengeful ghost, but Mago brought her to the hotel. The hotel is both a prison and a fence as it keeps Man-wol safe.

Mi-ra recovers her purse, but the photo is missing.

On a high balcony, Man-wol and Chan-sung talk about the day. He says they should do nice things together, adding that the view is much better now that he's with her. He promises that no matter what, he will stay.

Man-wol invites Mi-ra to visit the hotel. There, Man-wol uses the photo to recreate an unhappy childhood memory with the intent of taking Mi-ra's happiness away. Chan-sung appears, and unable to get Man-wol to call off the curse, he takes it onto himself to save Mi-ra. He collapses to the floor while Man-wol weeps, remembering his promise to never leave.

Man-wol sends Mi-ra home, unharmed and with no memory of what happened. She then burns the photo, releasing Chan-sung from the curse.

In a flashback, Man-wol and Chung-myung agree that they can never be together and depart, she to rejoin the bandits and he to marry Princess Song-hwa. The next day, he betrays them all and Man-wol is forced to watch as her friends are executed. Chung-myung tells her that he had used her to find the bandits. Later, she escapes, murders Princess Song-hwa on her wedding night and waits for Chung-myung, dressed in Song-hwa's wedding gown. He arrives and she reaches for her sword.

Chan-sung wakes up in his own bed, having been asleep for three days. Man-wol has left the Baekdu Mountain painting for him. Sanchez is concerned and asks if Man-wol is going somewhere. Chan-sung rushes back to the hotel only to find it gone.

Mr. Kim asks Man-wol if she's worried about going to the next life peacefully without Chan-sung to help. She replies that she'll never be allowed to leave peacefully and it's best if Chan-sung is not there when the time comes.

Yoo-na and Hyun-joong spot a ghost in the back of a car on the freeway, signaling for help. They follow the car into the woods and encounter several more ghosts. They realize that they've discovered a serial killer. The next day, police are at the site, uncovering bodies. One of the police detectives, Park Young-soo, is the reincarnation of Yeon-woo.

Chan-sung visits Mago and asks if she can help him find the hotel's new location. Instead, she offers him medicine which will take away his ability to see ghosts or the hotel. If he takes it, he will be free of Man-wol and the hotel for good. He accepts the gift, but decides to think about it first.

Walking near the hotel's new location, Man-wol meets the guardian spirit of the local well. He shows interest in the hotel.

Chan-sung gets Man-wol on the phone and offers to come back. She hesitates, but finally refuses.

Chan-sung encounters the ghost of Chairman Wang who has recently died. Wang tells him that his company will pay a good price for the painting to use in a memorial. He expresses an interest in seeing the hotel. Chan-sung quickly agrees and follows Chairman Wang to find the hotel. Man-wol becomes angry when she finds out that the painting will fetch a good price with none of it going to her.

The guardian of the well appears at the hotel, and mistaking him for a ghost, Chan-sung invites him in. The village well dries up while the guardian refuses to leave the hotel, claiming that the villagers no longer care about the well and he is unappreciated.

Sanchez and Mi-ra host a small school reunion. Seol Ji-won attends. He is the serial killer.

Man-wol asks Chan-sung why he came back. He tells her it's because she hesitated earlier when he offered to return. He knew that she wanted him back.

Chan-sung solves the guardian's problem by bringing him to the spring in the garden at Chairman Wang's villa. Chan-sung throws the medicine into the spring too, to demonstrate his commitment to stay with Man-wol to the end.

The guardian appears and returns the medicine. Chan-sung refuses it, so Man-wol takes it.

Chan-sung meets Chairman Wang's daughter and granddaughter. Chan-sung offers to let them write a letter to him which Chan-sung can deliver.

Mr. Kim and Chairman Wang decide that Chan-sung would make a good husband for Chairman Wang's granddaughter, and play matchmaker.

The third Mago sister also plays matchmaker and arranges for Young-soo and Mi-ra to meet.

Chan-sung and the granddaughter begin to go out together and seem to develop feelings for each other, but in the end Chan-sung tells her there's someone else.

Man-wol and Chan-sung investigate a ghost who is haunting the local library. Chan-sung discovers that it's his mother who had abandoned him as a baby. Man-wol brings Chan-sung's mother to the hotel and reinstates Chan-sung as general manager so he can see her off to the next life. The hotel returns to its previous location.

Chan-sung and Man-wol meet in the garden. She admits that she wanted him to return. She wants him with her until she vanishes. He says he won't let that happen. He brushes a tear from her cheek and takes her in his arms. She returns the embrace. The tree blossoms.

The staff see the tree and know they will have to leave soon. Later, a lone firefly is flying among the branches.

Young-soo and his team close in on the serial killer, but they have the wrong suspect. Yoo-na interviews the ghosts of the victims to attempt to track down the real killer. Meanwhile, Ji-won is tracking Yoo-na.

Chan-sung meets Hwang Man-suk, a powerful politician. She asks him to take her to the hotel to meet with Man-wol. She explains that she was the manager of the hotel before Mr. Noh. The staff are thrilled to see her again. She asks Man-wol a favor: during a lunar eclipse, humans can see the hotel and see the ghosts inside if they enter. When Ms. Hwang was the manager, a newlywed couple came to the hotel to get out of the rain, and Man-wol let them stay the night. The child they conceived became successful and famous, and is now engaged to Ms. Hwang's daughter. Ms. Hwang would like them to stay in the hotel during the upcoming lunar eclipse for good luck. Man-wol agrees and the staff are excited to be having human guests.

Sanchez is looking forward to a visit from his girlfriend Veronica, and plans to propose when she arrives. He wants to propose at Hotel del Luna, but Chan-sung tells him it's not possible. On the night of the full moon, Veronica fails to appear, and Sanchez learns that she was in a serious accident. As Sanches rushes to leave, Chan-sung sees Veronica's ghost at the house. He convinces Sanchez to come to the hotel so he can see Veronica while the eclipse is still ongoing. They manage to say goodbye before the eclipse ends.

Yoo-na tracks Ji-won down and calls Chan-sung to tell him. He rushes to the location. Meanwhile, Man-wol encounters Mago in black who hints that Chan-sung is in danger, and tells Man-wol that her flowers will begin to fall when she becomes afraid. Blossoms begin to fall from the tree as Chan-sung finds himself face to face with Ji-won.

Ji-won tries to kill Chan-sung and they struggle. Yoo-na returns to Ji-won's location to find it cordoned off with police tape. She calls the hotel and soon the staff is frantic with the news that Chan-sung is dead. Chan-sung arrives in the lobby dazed but alive. Man-woll is shocked by how much she worried. Chan-sung explains that he had alerted Young-soo before going, and Young-soo had arrived just in time. Ji-won is in custody now. Man-wol returns from the pharmacy stocked up on first aid and tends to Chan-sung's injuries. She admits how worried she was.

Man-wol tells the story of how she was a young child dying in the wilderness and was found by a passing merchant. She was then taken in by Yeon-woo's mother and they grew up as brother and sister. She says she's never talked about her past before, and adds that maybe it's time for the flowers to fall.

Ji-won escapes and makes his way to the roof. Chan-sung goes up to speak to him. Ji-won jumps from the roof and immediately becomes a vengeful ghost so powerful that even Man-wol cannot destroy him.

Mago and the Grim Reaper contemplate the Moon Tree. Mago says that when the flowers fall, Man-wol can finally go to the afterlife, as well as the person who remained as a small light. We see the firefly flitting among the branches. They reveal that the firefly is Chung-myung, who turned back when Mago was escorting him to the afterlife and chose to remain behind to keep a promise to Man-wol.

In flashbacks, we learn that Chung-myung betrayed Man-wol and the bandits because it was the only way to save himself and his people.

Sanchez returns from Veronica's funeral, not coping very well. Chan-sung is also having trouble coping with Sanchez's grief. Man-wol reminds him that he will have to be the one who sends her off, and if he cannot tell her he'll be fine when the time comes, she'll be too scared. He tells her that he knows this is the price he will have to pay for staying by her side.

Man-wol tells Chan-sung that the flowers are falling and she's scared. The petals vanish before they reach the ground and she's afraid she too will vanish without a trace. He tells her he loves her. They kiss. Petals begin landing on the ground.

A guest arrives at the hotel, and Ms. Choi recognizes him as the last descendant of the Yeongju Yun family. With his death, the family line is now finished. Her 200-year wait is over. Ms. Choi attends the funeral, but then a pregnant woman, Su-jin, arrives and Ms. Choi realizes the family line may not have ended after all.

Man-wol tells Chan-sung that as the dead cross the bridge to the next life, they lose their memories of their previous life one by one. She promises Chan-sung that she will remember him until the last step.

In the garden, the firefly waits in the tree. Chan-sung asks Man-wol if she is still waiting for Chung-myung to return. In flashbacks, we see the firefly staying near Man-wol over the centuries.

Su-jin begins to have a miscarriage. Her boyfriend's ghost begs Ms. Choi to get help, but she realizes that by standing by and doing nothing, she can see the Yun family finally end. Man-wol suggests she go and watch. Upon seeing Su-jin's suffering, Ms. Choi's heart softens and she gets help. Later, she tells Chan-sung the story of how she was cast out of the family for not bearing a son, and murdered alongside her baby daughter. As she died, she cursed the Yun family to also die out. By saving Su-jin's child, she prevented the family from ending.

Man-wol is shocked to discover that Mi-ra and Young-soo are dating — someone she hated and someone she cared for. In a flashback, we see a sword fight between Man-wol and Chung-myung. At the end, before she can kill him, he throws himself on her sword. He strokes her hair as he dies.

Ms. Choi asks Hyun-joong when he intends to tell Yoo-na that when his younger sister — now an old woman — dies, he intends to go to the afterlife with her.

Looking for a lost child, Chan-sung runs into the tunnel that leads to the afterlife and becomes lost. The firefly appears and takes the form of Chung-myung. Later, Chan-sung comes back out of the tunnel in a daze. Man-wol runs into his arms and he strokes her hair exactly as Chung-myung had done. Man-wol steps back, stares at him, and asks "Who ... are you?"

In a flashback, Chung-myung saves the bandits' possessions from being burned and has them collected in a coffin instead.

Chan-sung snaps out of his daze and asks Man-wol who was that man. They both wonder if Chan-sung is the reincarnation of Chung-myung. Chan-sung tells Man-wol of his latest dream, in which he saw Chung-myung waiting for her by the lake.

Yoo-na encounters Hyun-joong's sister in the hospital and chats with her. An older man arrives and identifies himself as Hyun-joong, her brother, and Yoo-na becomes confused. She says that she thought Hyun-joong died, and the old man becomes rattled. Hyun-joong whisks her away.

Ms. Choi speaks with Chan-sung. She realizes that Chan-sung has brought people from Man-wol's past life to her. She asks if Chan-sung is someone who knew Man-wol in that life, but Chan-sung says no. Ms. Choi wonders why Mago chose Chan-sung.

Mago asks Man-wol if she will let Chung-myung pass by, adding that he's already here, by her side. Man-wol asks if Chan-sung is Chung-myung. Mago refuses to answer, but asks if he is, will Man-wol see him as the man she hates and vanish, or the man she loves and be saved? Mago gives Man-wol the hairpin that Chung-myung had made for her but was never able to give to her. It is covered in Chung-myung's blood and is ill-omened.

Chan-sung asks the Grim Reaper who the first guest of the hotel was. The Grim Reaper only answers that he has not yet escorted that guest to the afterlife.

Man-wol gives the hairpin to Ji-won's ghost, making him more powerful. She explains that she knows Chan-sung is the reincarnation of Chung-myung, and since she can't bring herself to kill him, she will let Ji-won do it instead. She accepts that this will mean her destruction. She returns to the hotel and barricades herself in the garden. Mago in black appears.

Chan-sung goes to the second Mago sister to ask if it's really true that he is Chung-myung. She tells him no, and shows him the firefly, now trapped in a jar. She adds that he was the first guest at the hotel.

Chan-sung recovers the hairpin from Ji-won and the Grim Reaper finally catches Ji-won. Chan-sung arrives in the garden in time to prevent Mago from destroying Man-wol.

Ms. Choi brings Ji-won to meet the ghosts of the people he murdered. She stands outside the door as his screams are heard.

Man-wol invites Mi-ra and Young-soo to the hotel and Mr. Kim serves them drinks that will allow them to remember their past lives.

Mi-ra remembers herself as Princess Song-hwa telling Chung-myung that her father suspects him of being in league with the rebels and that he and everyone he knows will be executed. But if he captures the bandits, her father will no longer suspect him.

Young-soo remembers his life as Yeon-woo and the day Chung-myung captured him. Chung-myung explains that he's doing this to save as many lives as he can from being executed. Yeon-woo tells Chung-myung to save Man-wol and never reveal the truth to her.

In the garden, Mago tells Man-wol that Chung-myung was the first guest of the hotel and has always been there. Man-wol is not the only one who has been paying for her sins.

In a flashback, Man-wol swears to Chung-myung that she will kill him at all costs. He replies that to do that, she will have to stay alive. Later, he watches in shame as the bandits are executed.

Man-wol says Chung-myung's name for the first time in 1,300 years, and he appears. They talk briefly. Man-wol says she has finally freed herself and there is no more need for him to stay. The hairpin turns to ash and Chung-myung becomes a firefly again. Mago tells Man-wol that she needs to send Chung-myung off to the afterlife; that will be her last punishment.

Hyun-joong finally tells Yoo-na that he will be leaving soon, once his sister dies.

Man-wol takes the limo to the afterlife with Chung-myung to see him off. She asks Chan-sung to wait for her.

A month later, life at the hotel continues normally, but Man-wol has not returned and the tree is dead once again. Hyun-joong speculates that this means she won't be coming back. The staff tells the Grim Reaper that they want Man-wol back. They're sure she won't leave Chan-sung behind. The Grim Reaper tells them that if she has set foot on the bridge to the afterlife, she might not remember him any more. We see Man-wol and Chung-myung slowly walking across the bridge together. She stops, he reaches out his hand to her, but she turns around and heads back.

Mago's pharmacist sister brews the wine that will be given to the next owner of the hotel. One key ingredient is missing. Mago sends Chan-sung 200 years into the past to retrieve it, warning him not to eat or drink anything there or he won't be able to return. Knowing that he might be able to see Man-wol again, and missing her badly, he agrees to go.

Chan-sung goes to Joseon and visits "Man-wol Inn" where he meets Man-wol and the staff. Man-wol has a gambling addiction. As punishment, the Mago who brings poverty visits every day and now Man-wol is nearly broke. The staff hopes that Chan-sung has come to be the new human steward. Chan-sung challenges Mago to a game of baduk; if he wins, Mago will leave. Chan-sung wins, Mago leaves, and Chan-sung makes Man-wol sign a pledge to never gamble again. She invites him to stay on as steward. He seriously considers it as it will mean staying by her side, but in the end tells her he must go back to wait for someone he loves.

He returns and is greeted with the news that Man-wol has come back.

In a flashback, Hyun-joong is killed during the war by his best friend Tae-seok. In remorse, Tae-seok takes on the responsibility of caring for Hyun-joong's sister and takes Hyun-joong's identity. Tae-seok becomes a respected doctor and does many good deeds in Hyun-joong's name.

The ghost of an author comes to the hotel. From him, Mr. Kim learns of a book about to be published about a Joseon scholar who was disgraced for writing lewd literature. Mr. Kim realizes that the book is about him.

Yoo-na steals the wine from Mago's pharmacy and asks Man-wol to drink it so she will remain the owner of the hotel and stay. After discussing it with Chan-sung, Man-wol decides not to drink it. She and Chan-sung confess their love for each other.

In a flashback, we see Man-wol as a small child, lost and on the verge of death in the woods. The Grim Reaper appears, and then Mago, who convinces him to give the child a bit more time. A passing merchant and his small son pass by. The son spots Man-wol and convinces his father to rescue her. The boy is Chan-sung in a previous life.

Mr. Kim nearly leaves for the afterlife due to his humiliation.

Mago tells Man-wol that the Guest House of the Moon will shut down at the next full moon.

Man-wol and Chan-sung prevent the book from being published and asks Mr. Kim to explain what really happened. Mr. Kim relates the story of his life in a small village. When not studying, he watched the lives of the local villagers. To pass the time, he wrote stories based on what he saw on the streets. Man-wol and Chan-sung are shocked to recognize the stories as some of the greatest literature in Korean history; their unknown author is compared to Shakespeare. They are amazed to learn that Mr. Kim was the author. Unfortunately, writing stories about commoners was considered vulgar in his time and he died in disgrace.

Man-wol and Chan-sung convince the author to rewrite the book to portray Mr. Kim as the author of the famous stories.

With the new book published, Mr. Kim announces that he's ready to go on to the afterlife and says his goodbyes. After he leaves, Man-wol's reserve breaks and she sobs at her desk.

Ms. Choi meets Su-jin. Su-jin tells Ms. Choi that she intends to give the baby her own surname. Ms. Choi realizes that this means the Yun family has finally ended.

Hyun-joong's sister dies. Hyun-joong brings her to the hotel and then they leave for the afterlife together. He has a last tearful goodbye with Yoo-na.

With the last guest gone, Ms. Choi also leaves for the afterlife.

Chan-sung asks Mago why she chose him. She responds that there is one last dream for him.

Man-wol walks the empty hotel one last time. She and Chan-sung spend one last evening together. They agree to meet again in their next lives no matter what. She leaves for the afterlife alone. Piece by piece, the hotel fades from existence.

The next winter, Chan-sung meets Yoo-na to catch up. She thanks him for the medicine he gave her so she no longer sees ghosts. She asks if he took the medicine too, but he doesn't answer.

Epilogue: in another life, Mr. Kim, Ms. Choe and Hyun-joong cross paths in a park, unaware that they knew each other in the past. Koo Chan-sung and Jang Man-wol are a happy couple. There are multiple interpretations though, according to fans' perspectives. Some can say that it's just his imagination, and he's imagining a time and place when Jang man-wol and Gu Chan-sung finally reunites. But some may say that Jang man-wol reincarnated, and Gu Chan-sung and Jang Man-wol, become a happy couple and are reunited.