The WORST episodes of The First Night With the Duke
Every episode of The First Night With the Duke ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of The First Night With the Duke!
For one superfan, waking up inside her favourite historical novel is a dream come true, especially when she finds herself inhabiting the body of Cha Sun-Chaek, a wealthy but completely irrelevant side character. With a VVIP ticket to watch the epic romance unfold, her simple plan is to stay out of the way and enjoy the show. But that plan is spectacularly derailed after a wild night of celebration ends with her accidentally stealing the male lead’s first night. She awakens in the arms of the cold and formidable Prince Yi Beon, whose romantic destiny is instantly rerouted from the novel’s intended heroine to her, turning the King’s deadliest warrior into her fiercely devoted protector. As her one mistake sends ripples through the kingdom, rewriting fates and throwing the entire plot into chaos, she is no longer a spectator. This accidental heroine must decide whether to fix the story she broke or embrace a dangerous and unpredictable new chapter of her own.
#1 - The Wounded Things
Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 7/9/2025
Lee Bun’s desperate rescue of Sun Chaek should bring them closer, but a new mystery tears them apart. When the kidnapper's body appears in public, Sun Chaek confronts a horrifying truth about the man she loves. She is safe in his arms, but she may be in love with a monster.
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#2 - A Dream or an End?
Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 7/16/2025
Sun Chaek seeks out Sul Ki to ask about the identity of the wooden doll. But Sul Ki draws a fortune that even she struggles to interpret. The king fears that the Black Gang might come after him while Lee Bun is away from the palace. While Lee Bun is away and the king grows weaker, Lee Kyu begins to undermine him.
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#3 - Into the New World
Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 7/17/2025
Lee Bun miraculously finds his way back to the Palace. Yet the King, shaken to his core, believes it is Lee Bun’s ghost that is haunting him. Meanwhile, Sun Chaek asks Eun Ae, her favorite character, when she started becoming so cruel, and Eun Ae answers without hesitation that this is who she has always been.
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#4 - The Inflection Point
Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 7/2/2025
Lee Bun creates a perfect romantic day for Sun Chaek, proving their love can overcome any obstacle thrown their way. Their fairytale moment is destroyed by the arrival of Lee Kyu, a charismatic stranger who claims a prior right to Sun Chaek's hand. He built a perfect world for her, only for another man to tear it down.
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#5 - The Shadow that has Returned
Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 7/3/2025
While sharing a moment of affection with Lee Bun, Sun Chaek is caught by her father and is promptly grounded. Meanwhile, the King grows suspicious of Lee Kyu's sudden return to Hanyang. Meanwhile, Bun makes every effort to earn the favor of Sun Chaek’s family. Bun’s first target is Sun Chaek’s brothers.
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#6 - Reading a Book is Inviting Another's Life into Yours
Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 6/11/2025
Sun Chaek hits the ultimate jackpot, waking up as a fabulously wealthy noblewoman inside a popular romance novel. All she wants is to stay out of the way and enjoy her cushy new life while the fated leads, Lee Bun and Eun Ae, fall in love as planned. Yet destiny seems determined to push her into the spotlight, forcing her directly into the path of the story's central romance. Her perfect life is on the line, and she's not even the hero.
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#7 - Something Always Happens on a Moonlit Night
Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 6/18/2025
To set her story back on course, Sun Chaek orchestrates a gathering to unite the intense Lord Lee Bun with his intended match. But her elaborate scheme hilariously backfires, only fanning the flames of his dangerous obsession with her instead. Now, she's trapped in a new chapter she never meant to write.
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#8 - There Is No Such Thing as ''As It Was''
Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 6/25/2025
Resolved to bet her fate on Lee Bun, Sun Chaek bravely enters the treacherous royal bride selection. Just as she commits to her path, Soo Kyum reels from the shocking news that Eun Ae is also a candidate. The game for Lee Bun's heart has just become dangerously complicated.
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#9 - Playing the Field and a Disguise
Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 6/26/2025
Bun gets close to Hwa Sun in order to enter the Do family’s house and snoop around inside to find evidence regarding the foreigner. Meanwhile, Sun Chaek feels lost about how to tackle the assignment given by the Queen Dowager, but after witnessing the struggles of farmers suffering from a bad harvest, she suddenly gets an idea.
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#10 - Once Again, Because of Fate
Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 7/10/2025
Soo Kyum confronts Eun Ae, asking if she’s the one who wrote the letter that led Sun Chaek into the trap. Determined to clear her name, Hwa Sun decides to find the real culprit herself. Bun presses Eun Ae to reveal who her accomplice is, but she refuses to give in easily. Sun Chaek asks Lee Kyu to step in and help Bun out of his predicament.
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#11 - The First Night in This Lifetime
Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 6/12/2025
By chance, Sun Chaek meets Bun and ends up spending the night at his place. The next day, Bun wishes to rush to arrange a wedding with Sun Chaek. But Sun Chaek has no intention of marrying him. She begins plotting clever ways to escape the situation. Will Sun Chaek’s plans succeed? Meanwhile, she finds herself threatened by thugs in the woods. That’s when a mysterious man suddenly appears to help her.
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#12 - We Need a Backup Plan
Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 6/19/2025
Bun shocks everyone in the Astral Philosophy Club by announcing that he’s going to marry Sun Chaek. To make matters worse, Bun goes to Sun Chaek’s family and claims that she took his innocence and that is the reason they must get married. However, Sun Chaek’s father firmly opposes the idea.
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