Quiet, intelligent, solemn and recently dumped by his girlfriend, graduate student Lee Weon-san takes a job at a literary magazine, ostensibly to supplement his income, but really to get close to the editor - the reason he’s now single. The editor, unaware of who Lee is, takes a shine to him and makes him his personal assistant.

Young-mi, the bookkeeper at a factory, is ridiculed for her dowdy appearance and called ‘Ms. Apocalypse’ by her colleagues. Do-young, a delivery driver, is the only one to show her any decency and kindness. As her feelings for him grow, Young-mi strives to get him off the hook even when she finds out that Do-young has been embezzling company money. It becomes the last day of 1999, and in the midst of people's fear that the world will come to an end, Young-mi gets arrested for aiding Do-young's crime. And thus, her new millennium starts wretchedly. As she walks out of prison after a few months, she comes across Do-young’s wife, Yu-jin, waiting for her and this unexpected visitor makes an implausible but compelling offer.

Ancient Korea, 17th century. The powerful Khan of the Jurchen tribe of Manchuria, who fights the Ming dinasty to gain China, becomes the first ruler of the Qing dinasty and demands from King In-jo of Joseon to bow before him; but he refuses, being loyal to the Mings. On December 14th, 1636, the Qing horde invades Joseon, so King In-jo and his court shelter in the mountain fortress of Namhan and prepare to defend the kingdom.

A case of the flu quickly morphs into a pandemic. As the death toll mounts and the living panic, the government plans extreme measures to contain it.

A corrupt prosecutor plans for revenge against Hyun-jung's crime organization by using her loyal partner, Sang-hoon.