Behind Five Willows

In a society where books are banned and censorship is widespread, Haewon secretly works as an illegal book transcriber, finding solace in the stories she copies—especially those written by her favorite anonymous author, Black Lotus. When she is tasked with chaperoning her older sister’s courtship with a wealthy young man, she finds herself constantly at odds with his reserved and frustrating best friend, Seojun.

As the son of a noble family, Seojun is expected to uphold tradition and respectability, while hiding his true passion: writing fiction. Under the pen name Black Lotus, he exchanges letters with a mysterious transcriber known only as Magpie, whose encouragement keeps him going in difficult times.

As Haewon and Seojun are repeatedly thrown together, their mutual annoyance slowly gives way to understanding. Unaware of each other’s secret identities, they begin to discover that first impressions can be deceiving—and that love may be found in the most unexpected of stories.