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월드컵로 서울특별시 마포구 합정동

The World Cup-ro area cutting through Hapjeong-dong in Seoul's Mapo District. A streetscape blending an indie-art sensibility with trendy cafes dovetails neatly with Baek Ah-jin's inner self, metropolitan, yet somehow precarious. The quieter lane that branches off, World Cup-ro 5-gil, strings together cafes hidden between buildings and served as the backdrop for the drama's emotionally charged moments. It's an ordinary neighborhood street you can wander with no admission fee, and it folds naturally into a Hapjeong-Mangwon cafe-walking route.

일산마샬빌딩 경기도 고양시 일산서구

The Ilsan Marshal Building in Ilsanseo-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. It appears as the headquarters of the entertainment agency Baek Ah-jin belongs to, its modern, sleek exterior mirroring her world of climbing to the top through calculation and manipulation. The building's image of coldly gleaming glass and metal transfers the tense atmosphere peculiar to the showbiz industry straight onto the screen. As an office building its interior isn't open to visitors, but the exterior alone is enough to summon a scene from the drama, a good stop to pair with an outing to Ilsan's Lake Park.

분당메모리얼파크 경기도 성남시 분당구 야탑동

Bundang Memorial Park in Yatap-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. A memorial park where quiet walking paths thread between well-kept lawns and trees, it becomes the stage for still scenes in which a character catches their breath and retraces their feelings amid violent events. The calm landscape lends added weight to the flashbacks illuminating Baek Ah-jin's past. As a space open to the public, anyone can visit, a good place to step back from the drama's tension and stroll slowly through the hush.

중앙고등학교 서울특별시 종로구 창덕궁길 164

Stands in for the high school attended by Baek Ah-jin (Kim Yu-jeong), Yoon Jun-seo (Kim Young-dae) and Kim Jae-oh (Kim Do-hoon), replacing the school of the original webtoon. The red-brick building you come upon while walking Changdeokgung-gil in Bukchon carries the quiet, cool tone of the drama's early stretch. The campus interior is closed to visitors, so view it from the front gate and fold the stop into a Bukchon walk.

평안교회 서울특별시 중구 서소문로 89-11

Baek Ah-jin's rooftop room was filmed on the roof of this church's education annex, and the decisive third-episode scene in which her father Baek Seon-gyu dies takes place here as well. Built in 1967, the Gothic red-brick church is designated a Seoul Future Heritage site, and its warm brickwork stands in contrast to the cold rooftop room. Services are still held here, so rather than heading up to the roof, take in the facade and spire from the Seosomun-ro side.

경희대학교 평화의전당 서울특별시 동대문구 경희대로 26

In the drama this hall serves as the venue for a film awards ceremony, and the opening of episode 1, with a now-famous Baek Ah-jin walking the red carpet through the cheers, was shot here. It genuinely hosts large awards shows such as the Blue Dragon Film Awards, so the scale you feel on screen is the real thing. Even without a performance you can see the cathedral-like facade and wide forecourt from the campus, reachable on foot from Hoegi Station.

도원장 서울특별시 은평구 가좌로7나길 4-1

The Chinese restaurant where Kim Jae-oh drops in on a friend's mother to collect a debt and eats jjajangmyeon in episode 1. It is an old neighborhood place tucked into an alley in Eungam-dong, Eunpyeong-gu, one of the few locations where the visit and a meal can be the same stop. It is a working restaurant, so coming outside peak meal hours makes it easier to take the room in.

파스쿠찌 라페스타점 경기도 고양시 일산동구 중앙로1275번길 60-14

The cafe where Baek Ah-jin, still in her school uniform, meets her father Baek Seon-gyu together with Yoon Jun-seo, and where she first comes face to face with the head of her agency. It sits in the middle of Ilsan's bright, busy LaFesta strip, yet the camera renders it oddly dark, which leaves the scene feeling like a reversal. The shop occupies the ground floor of a building right on the pedestrian street, so you can step in mid-stroll.

PRGC파주리조트골프클럽 경기도 파주시 교하로 1097-33

The outdoor driving range where Baek Seon-gyu (Bae Soo-bin) and Hwang Ji-seon (Kim Yu-mi) meet. Their exchange plays out across wide, open turf, so the frame looks calm while the words run cold, and that gap is what builds the tension. The range serves ordinary customers, so getting there is simple, though the course itself is for players and the open view from around the clubhouse is enough.

세이지우드 호텔 홍천 강원특별자치도 홍천군 두촌면 광석로 898-87

A resort that appears as both a luxury hotel and a character's family home. Set on high ground about 700m above sea level with forest and a lake around it, it changes the very temperature of the image compared with the Seoul city scenes, and it carries the conversations where characters let their real intentions show. The property runs mainly for overnight guests, so staying the night is the unhurried way to see it, and driving from Seoul is the practical approach.

공주경찰서 충청남도 공주시 백제문화로 2148-15

The police station exterior where Baek Ah-jin is taken in on suspicion of killing her father, and where she first crosses paths with Lim Rena (Lee Yeol-eum). The solid, matter-of-fact look of a working government building lifts the story's tension straight off the screen. It is an active police station, so keep clear of the entrance traffic and view the building from across the road.