How a Loan Shark Survives as an Actor – Chapter 33

Author: Cireng

Chapter 33

‘I’m tired.’

Over the past few days, all the attention pouring in had driven the people around me into even more of a frenzy.

My manager kept making a huge fuss, saying the internet was talking about nothing but Yoo Seulho right now, but I barely had the time to feel it for myself.

We still had footage to shoot before any editing could begin, and every day was packed to the brim.

If we failed to complete even a single day of filming, the entire schedule would immediately fall apart. On top of that, with the public’s attention focused on us, everyone was determined not to make any mistakes and poured all their concentration into filming.

Even in the middle of all that chaos, the production staff never forgot to shower me with kind words and gifts.

Of course, not everyone was treating me favorably.

‘Woo Junseo definitely seemed a little irritated.’

Ever since Episode 1 aired, all the attention and focus had shifted toward me. From the leads’ perspective, it would leave a bad taste in their mouths.

It wasn’t because Woo Junseo was a terrible person. Honestly, if I were the lead actor and everyone kept talking only about a supporting character, I’d probably feel annoyed too.

There was still a mountain of filming left to do, and if I ended up on bad terms with the lead actors, I’d be the one suffering for it.

So I carefully chose my words and gently soothed him, doing my best not to rub him the wrong way.

Thankfully, it never escalated into a major argument.

Choi Ran simply told me to stop worrying about pointless nonsense.

Woo Junseo, meanwhile, didn’t bother hiding his gloomy mood and responded with:

“At least the drama’s getting popular thanks to you.”

At that moment, his manager, who had spent the entire day nervously watching his mood, practically fled the scene.

I was debating whether it would be better for me to disappear from his sight as well when I noticed Park Sangin glancing in our direction from afar.

If I left now, it felt like Park Sangin would immediately seize the opportunity to latch onto Woo Junseo again.

In the end, I put on the mask Woo Junseo wanted to see.

“Junseo, I’ve got something that’s been bothering me. Can I ask your advice?”

“What is it?”

“My acting’s definitely improved, but… most of the comments I read yesterday kept comparing me to you. They were saying it’s pathetic to compare me to the male lead. Of course, I know I can never surpass your acting, but I still don’t want to drag the drama down.”

The more I spoke, the more the crease in Woo Junseo’s brow relaxed.

After mechanically repeating “stroking Woo Junseo’s ego under the guise of seeking advice” a few more times, he finally returned to smiling.

“Hey, why are you even worrying about that? If you were as good as a lead actor, you’d already be one. Stop overthinking stupid things like that.”

His tone had changed.

It had gone from wary and defensive to the tone of someone looking down on me.

It was as if he’d recovered his sense of:

“No matter what happens, you’re still a supporting actor, and I’m still the lead.”

‘Good.’

It didn’t hurt my pride in the slightest.

Whatever he chose to think didn’t change reality, so it wasn’t worth caring about.

‘I need to maintain this relationship until filming is completely over.’

More accurately, I needed to prevent Park Sangin and Woo Junseo from joining forces again.

If I was going to continue living as Yoo Seulho in the entertainment industry, people like them running around together would be incredibly irritating.

‘Better to cut the problem off early.’

As for Woo Junseo, I already had enough leverage over him to build a mountain.

It was only a matter of time before the power balance flipped.

I could already picture him trembling after a few carefully chosen threats.

With that in mind, there was no way anything he said now could genuinely anger me.

‘But Park Sangin is different.’

If I underestimated him, I might end up paying for it.

Ideally, it was best not to make enemies and to get along with everyone.

But Park Sangin was the one who had recommended that Woo Junseo bully Yoo Seulho.

It wasn’t some righteous sense of outrage like:

“How dare he do such a thing! Unforgivable!”

I wasn’t exactly a saint myself.

The problem was simply that the person he’d targeted was Yoo Seulho.

‘The kid already had it hard enough.’

He was the reason I’d been given the chance to live a different life.

At the very least, I ought to treat Yoo Seulho well.

‘I’ll have to keep thinking about how to deal with Park Sangin.’

If nothing else came to mind, I could always send him off together with Woo Junseo.

Anyway, I’d spent yesterday hovering around Woo Junseo and filming.

Today, however, was a rare day off.

Leaving my useless manager behind (who had gone golfing with Director Shin again), I finally took Yoo Seulho’s car out of the hotel parking garage.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve driven.’

Back in my previous life, I was used to having subordinates behind the wheel.

It had probably been nearly ten years since I’d last held a steering wheel myself.

For a moment I considered taking a taxi instead, but given where I was headed, it seemed wiser not to involve outsiders.

‘Maybe it’s because the car is so expensive.’

I worried someone might pick a fight over my less-than-smooth driving, but the concern proved unnecessary.

Thanks to Yoo Seulho’s luxury vehicle, I didn’t hear a single horn.

If it weren’t for the report I’d received from the private investigators earlier, I probably would’ve wondered:

‘How did someone with an empty bank account buy such an expensive car?’

According to the report, the moment Yoo Seulho became an adult, his parents gifted him five cars.

Five.

Yet he’d never actually driven those expensive vehicles around.

He’d simply ridden in his manager’s car between home and filming locations.

That was the extent of his outings.

Then, when he was kicked out of his family home a year ago, he left with only this one car.

‘Which means the other four are still at his parents’ house.’

If the opportunity arose, I’d have to sell them off quickly.

Paying insurance for cars that never moved was a complete waste.

To do that, however, I’d need a strategy for dealing with Yoo Seulho’s parents.

‘Today’s meeting will be the key.’

Thinking that, I headed toward Pyeongchang-dong, where the office was located.

Back when I was a loan shark, I’d visited this place almost daily.

Coming here in Yoo Seulho’s body felt strangely surreal.

As I approached the building, fortified behind high walls like a fortress, a security guard immediately approached.

“What brings you here today?”

The building carried the stern atmosphere unique to places with tight security.

The guard sounded polite, but there was obvious caution in his eyes.

I lowered the window slightly so my face wouldn’t be fully visible.

“I have an appointment. We agreed to discuss things in person.”

“May I have your name?”

“Just tell them someone came to see Hwang Taejun and Joo Gyeongbeom.”

The guard whispered something into his earpiece.

A moment later, the gate opened.

I drove into the underground parking garage and parked near the entrance.

As I carefully maneuvered into the spot, I noticed two people already waiting by the elevator.

‘Tsk. Just look at their expressions.’

The youngest member of the organization, Hwang Taejun, looked incredibly nervous.

Joo Gyeongbeom, who had been around much longer, looked completely rigid.

Both of them were tense, but I could tell that Gyeongbeom’s tension was mixed with irritation and anger.

‘The security guard must have told them.’

Knowing that someone they didn’t know by name or face had not only found their real office in Pyeongchang-dong but also knew both of their names had to be unsettling.

Thunk!

I briefly considered putting on sunglasses before getting out.

Then I figured I wasn’t filming a drama and didn’t need to act like an idiot in an underground parking garage.

So I simply stepped out.

Then I strode toward them.

“Hello.”

“Uh, yes. Hello–”

Hwang Taejun automatically returned the greeting.

The moment he got a good look at my face, however, his mouth fell open.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three.

Then he shouted:

“Yoo Seulho?!”

The voice was annoyingly loud.

Before I could react, Gyeongbeom jabbed him in the side.

Back when I was a loan shark, Taejun had always been a good kid.

The problem was that he was overly dramatic.

There were plenty of moments when that exhausted me.

Whenever that happened, Gyeongbeom was always the one who stepped in before my frown deepened.

‘It’s been a while.’

Seeing faces I’d looked at every day for years after several months apart felt strangely emotional.

Unlike me, however, Joo Gyeongbeom’s eyes held nothing but caution and suspicion.

“Nice to meet you.”

“…Let’s go upstairs and talk.”

I followed them into the office.

Since the building was used exclusively by Mindo Investigations and the Haru Financial Organization, privacy wasn’t a concern.

“Please have a seat here.”

Following Taejun’s guidance, I entered a large room containing nothing more than a table and a few chairs.

The office had never been intended for client visits, so there wasn’t a dedicated meeting room.

Judging by appearances, they’d hurriedly cleaned out the room where they usually sat around eating snacks and chatting.

That alone showed how unprecedented this situation was and how flustered they were by it.

“Would you like some water or a drink?”

“No. Let’s get straight to the point.”

At my words, Joo Gyeongbeom immediately shifted his posture.

As though he’d been waiting for this.

“Are you truly the client who requested the investigation into Yoo Seulho?”

“Yes.”

“And we’re supposed to believe that?”

“Why wouldn’t you?”

“Common sense says people don’t hire a private investigator to investigate themselves. Even if they’re a rich eccentric, you’d agree that’s excessive.”

“Maybe. Or maybe not.”

“…Haah. Let’s be honest. Who are you here on behalf of today? An individual? An organization?”

Beside Joo Gyeongbeom, who was staring at me hard enough to drill a hole through my skull, Taejun nervously swallowed.

The atmosphere felt like a wire stretched to its breaking point.

I silently looked at the two of them.

The longer I remained silent, the tighter the tension became.

“The truth is…”

After deliberately letting the silence linger, I delivered the line I’d prepared beforehand.

“I have amnesia.”

“…What?”

The moment their expressions crumbled, I seized the opening and continued without pause.

“I haven’t forgotten everything. More specifically, I’ve lost all memories related to ‘Yoo Seulho’. I wasn’t even in a major accident, but it happened overnight. I needed help, but there wasn’t anyone around I could really rely on. That doesn’t mean I forgot I’m a celebrity. I didn’t exactly want to announce to the whole world that I woke up one day with my memories gone. Maybe they’ll come back eventually, but sitting around waiting isn’t really my style. I figured I should at least try something, so I contacted you. That’s the background behind my request to investigate myself. So? Do you still find it impossible to believe?”

The uninterrupted stream of words left them visibly stunned.

I didn’t feel like saying anything more, so I shut my mouth.

After a moment, Joo Gyeongbeom finally managed to speak.

“No, but even if that’s true… wouldn’t a normal person go to a hospital?”

“I don’t like hospitals.”

“…”

For a long while, he looked completely speechless.

Eventually, he regained his composure.

As if guarding against the tendency of his face to relax into disbelief, he deliberately furrowed his brow again and glared at me.

“Then how did you know about our Pyeongchang-dong office? How did you learn my name and my colleague’s name?”

“Oh, that.”

I answered casually.