When you first came to me, you said my job here would be helping those who feel hopeless by putting them out of their misery. I trusted you. That's what I came here to do. You're the one who has changed.
Kang No-eul confronting the Masked Officer in "Six Legs"
Kang No-eul (Korean/Chosŏn'gŭl: 강노을 Gang No-eul?) is a North Korean defector who appears in the second season of Squid Game, where she becomes a soldier in the Squid Game competition in 2024.
While in the games, No-eul made an unseen connection with Park Gyeong-seok, the father of a young child whom No-eul had formed a bond with prior to entering the games. Her ultimate goal is to earn enough money to find and reunite with her daughter, whom she was forced to leave behind while defecting.
History[]
Backstory[]
No-eul was born on June 25, 1994 in North Korea. As an adult, she became a soldier and gave birth to a child during or before 2017. Soon after that, she defected to the South by killing her superior officer and escaping to the demarcation line, dispatching the pursuit team sent after her as well. She was forced leave to her newborn baby behind due to this.
She met the Masked Officer in the hospital afterwards, where he could not believe she was the strong soldier he had heard about. It is unclear if he recruited her as a soldier then or later.
In 2021 or 2022, No-eul began working part-time costumed performer in an amusement park to earn the money to find her lost daughter,[3] and lived and slept in her car. Her goal is to reunite with her child.[4]
2024[]
No-eul slept in her car outside the amusement park when a police officer woke her up and told her not to sleep there anymore, to which she reluctantly agreed. No-eul was in her bunny costume when she saw the young child Park Na-yeon, and gave her a lollipop. As her and her co-workers returned to their dressing room, Na-yeon appeared and went over to No-eul, giving her a sketch she made of the two of them. No-eul is flattered, but then the girl noticed scars on her arm, which she hastily covered up. Another co-worker entered, swearing and without the head of his costume, this caused Na-yeon to burst into tears and her father, Park Gyeong-seok, arrived, and left with her. No-eul learnt that Park Gyeong-seok was an artist at the park, and that Na-yeon has blood cancer.
That night, No-eul slept in her car again and was woken up, believing it to be the police she apologizes and goes to move her car, but instead the person hands her a Squid Game card and leaves. The next day, she quits her job and refuses her manager and co-workers offers of dinner. They wonder how she managed a job like a costumed performer with her personality, mentioning in all of the years of them working together she never spoke directly to anyone.
Leaving the park, No-eul sees Na-yeon being loaded into the back of an ambulance, and Park Gyeong-seok rushing to see her. In the confusion, her strawberry hat is left behind, No-eul goes to the hospital with the hat and returns it to the unconscious girl, then holds her hand, leaving before anyone sees her. That night, she calls the number on the card and gives her information, before burning it along with Na-yeon's drawing.
She headed to a parking lot in Songpa-gu and entered a semi truck parked there. Inside, she entered a small compartment labeled 011 before putting on her soldier uniform.
Kang No-eul during Red Light, Green Light
During Red Light, Green Light, she recognizes Park Gyeong-seok in the crowd, and is seemingly conflicted. Later, one of the other snipers intentionally only shoots an eliminated player in the leg to keep them alive for the underground organ harvesting operation. However she finishes the player off, this frustrates the corrupt guards although she seems indifferent.
Later, she is summoned to see the Masked Officer. She has a discussion with the officer and warns her to not interfere with their operation, mentioning their seven-year history with each other.
In the next game, another eliminated player that is barely alive is again finished off by No-eul. This infuriates the corrupt guards for disrupting their operation twice in a row. Later that day, two guards came into her room to harass and threaten her to stop interfering with their plans. They fight, but she is overpowered and they scar her face with a knife, the encounter leaves her shaken.
In the third game, she notices Park Gyeong-seok is still alive and watches him intently throughout the rounds. She doesn't interfere with the operation in this game; however, the officer still advises to keep an eye on her.
She is called as a response to the ongoing revolt organized by Gi-hun, in which she survives.
Trivia[]
- It's possible No-eul has worked for the game longer. From her conversation with the manager, he met No-eul seven years ago.
- Unbeknownst to them, No-eul has come into contact with both Seong Gi-hun and Park Gyeong-seok whilst in the outside world.
- Some think that she’s related to Kang Sae-byeok, having the same surname and born location. And "Sae-byeok" and "No-eul" in Korean mean "sunrise" and "sunset" respectively. Yet, there’s no direct evidence to prove that.
- No-eul is currently the only known female guard.
Behind the scenes[]
No-eul is portrayed by Park Gyu-young.
Murders Committed[]
| Episode | Character | Image/GIF | Method |
| 001 | |||
| Player 066 | 
|
Shot in the head | |
| Player 188 | 
|
Shot in the chest. | |
| Player 237 | 
|
Shot in the head | |
| Kim Nam-du | 
| ||
| Six Legs | Jang Do-yeong | 
|
Shot twice. |
Gallery[]
Promotional[]
References[]
- ↑ Revealed in "Halloween Party".
- ↑ Under the traditional Korean age system, which was changed in June 2023, a year is added to a person's age after birth, meaning she would've been 31 in 2024. Her age, as stated, is given in international years.
- ↑ Netflix (December 9, 2024). Squid Game Season 2 | World Premiere Event LIVE | Netflix. “See 37:41.”
- ↑ Koreaboo (December 6, 2024). Mysterious New “Squid Game 2” Character Reveal Launches Fan Theories.