How a Loan Shark Survives as an Actor Chapter 71

Chapter 71

 

There were three major reasons celebrities in Korea got effectively expelled from the industry:

Drunk driving, school bullying, and gambling.

And Woo Junseo hadn’t merely gambled.

He had invested in an illegal gambling website.

He hadn’t just committed something morally reprehensible… he had committed an outright crime that warranted punishment.

 

➝ ‘It’s pathetic enough ruining your own life through gambling, but ruining other people’s lives too? Tsk tsk.’

➝ ‘As someone with a gambling addict in the family, I can never forgive this. Woo Junseo is basically a murderer.’

 

There was no such thing as an ordinary person making money through gambling.

The system itself was designed for people to lose money, meaning it inevitably ended in crushing debt.

And the scariest thing about gambling was that it didn’t destroy just the addict.

Spouses, children, relatives… the entire family could collapse alongside a gambling addict.

And illegal gambling sites, unlike legal ones, paid no taxes and used their profits to fund other illegal businesses.

Woo Junseo had poured an enormous amount of money into exactly that.

 

➝ ‘Seriously, I don’t get it……. He already made good money, so why?’

↳ ‘Because he wanted to make even more money, more easily.’

↳ ‘Fucking pathetic kekeke’

 

Celebrities lived entirely off how the public perceived them.

Without the public’s time, money, and affection, they couldn’t survive on their own.

And if it turned out they weren’t worthy of that support?

Then the public’s anger became uncontrollable.

Especially since Woo Junseo had spent years promoting the image of a diligent and upright young man, making the backlash all the greater.

At the same time, some people had questions.

 

➝ ‘Wait, does Woo Junseo even have that much money??’

↳ ‘He’s a rising star.’

↳ ‘Even considering that, tens of billions? He had that kind of money to invest there? I know celebrities make a lot, but it doesn’t add up.’

↳ ‘That’s true. He wouldn’t have put his entire net worth into it.’

↳ ‘Maybe his family is rich?’

↳ ‘Even if he came from a wealthy family, what kind of crazy parents would hand him money and say, “Here’s your allowance haha. Go invest in illegal gambling too haha?”?’

 

As netizens guessed, Woo Junseo simply didn’t earn enough to be moving tens of billions of won.

A normal person would have gone to a bank.

But Woo Junseo wasn’t normal.

So he had turned to a loan shark.

At that time, Haru Finance hadn’t merely lent him money… they had monitored everything he did.

And Yoo Seulho, the former loan shark who had once received all those reports, anonymously reported the case.

Of course, if the loan shark’s money hadn’t existed, Woo Junseo would’ve never been able to invest in illegal gambling sites.

In that sense, everyone involved had participated in the evil.

The loan shark’s favorite saying…

“Trash belongs with trash.”

…was impossible to deny.

Unfortunately for Woo Junseo, Haru Finance had erased all traces of themselves long ago, before the police could ever notice.

Which meant…

He alone would bear all the blame.

 

***

 

“What do we do…?”

At the manager’s question, the CEO of Woo Junseo’s agency sighed.

“What else can we do? Release a statement and lay low.”

The evidence the police had presented was airtight.

There was no room for excuses.

Losing future income was one thing.

The bigger problem was the brands currently using Woo Junseo as their model.

“Ha… how are we supposed to pay all those penalties…?”

No brand wanted a gambling addict representing them.

Any damage caused by a model’s personal scandal would fall entirely upon the agency.

The CEO’s vision darkened.

‘Should I just throw that bastard away?’

He’d be lying if he said the thought hadn’t crossed his mind.

But nobody brought the company as much money as Woo Junseo.

After much deliberation, the CEO finally sighed.

“Don’t do anything for now. Delete your social media and wait for legal punishment. I’ll assign you a lawyer first.”

If he’d actually operated the gambling site, things would’ve been different.

But simply investing in it probably wouldn’t result in prison time.

“If we’re lucky, we might end this with a suspended sentence. Let’s think about your comeback later.”

“Then what about Director Baek’s movie–”

“FUCK! What movie at a time like this?! Are you stupid, or do you think I’m a joke?!”

The CEO shouted as though he wanted to kill Woo Junseo on the spot.

Though his pride was wounded, Woo Junseo had no choice but to shut up.

‘If even the agency abandons me, I’m really finished.’

That afternoon, the agency released an official statement.

 

<Woo Junseo’s Side: “It Started as a Simple Investment, We Realized Too Late It Was Wrong>

<Woo Junseo Admits Investment in Gambling Site: “I Will Cooperate Fully With Police”>

<Woo Junseo Announces Suspension of Activities: “I’m Sorry for Causing Concern, I Will Reflect”>

 

It was a chaotic day for Woo Junseo, his agency, and his advertisers.

But no one was more shocked than his fans.

 

➝ ‘I feel so empty…. What have I been doing all this time….?’

➝ ‘There are tons of teenage fans looking up to him, and instead of setting an example, he goes around committing crimes?’

➝ ‘Anyone who makes me ashamed of liking them deserves to die……. Honestly, just die.’

➝ ‘Honestly, I’m not even surprised. How many people like him are there? Dig into everyone around Woo Junseo, and it’ll be a goldmine kekeke’

 

Naturally, the celebrities in the so-called “Woo Junseo clique” came under scrutiny.

Park Sangin, who had recently appeared on variety shows with him and whom Woo Junseo constantly mentioned, became the prime example.

After riding Woo Junseo’s coattails and gaining some recognition, Park Sangin was suddenly bombarded overnight.

In reality, Park Sangin had also invested in various things through Woo Junseo’s recommendations.

Which made him one of the people under investigation.

Netizens gathered every creepy or suspicious thing about Park Sangin and spread it around.

Some of it was true.

Some of it wasn’t.

But the public no longer cared.

“Ah, why won’t he answer his phone…?”

Park Sangin was terrified.

Unlike Woo Junseo, he didn’t have a powerful agency protecting him.

On the verge of tears, he repeatedly called Woo Junseo for help.

But no reply came.

“I’m going crazy.”

After hundreds of failed attempts, Park Sangin finally realized.

He’d been abandoned.

“…You son of a bitch.”

After everything I’d done for you.

I’m in this state because of you.

And you’re ignoring me now?

‘Who do you think has what?’

His body trembling with rage, Park Sangin voluntarily turned himself in to the police.

Many things he revealed there would later have a tremendous impact on Woo Junseo’s trial.

Meanwhile, while Park Sangin had fallen because of Woo Junseo, another person had ironically benefited from him.

 

➝ ‘How far ahead was Yoo Seulho thinking?’

↳ ‘He didn’t need foresight. He probably just talked to him and realized, “Nope, this guy’s bad news.”‘

➝ ‘Everyone called him a womanizer, but it turns out he just hated Woo Junseo kekekeke’

 

Yoo Seulho had never once associated with Woo Junseo privately.

They had attended a single cast dinner after filming ‘Wise Hot and Cold Bath’, but that had been a group outing.

‘They spent months filming together as same-age male actors and never hung out privately?’

And Woo Junseo had spent days publicly whining that Yoo Seulho was avoiding him.

With all the clues combined, people naturally concluded.

Yoo Seulho had a good eye for people.

 

➝ ‘Come to think of it, Yoo Seulho hasn’t had a single scandal in twenty years.’

↳ ‘No dating rumors or anything either……. People just hated his acting kekeke’

↳ ‘That’s impressive in itself kekeke. He literally got hated purely because of his acting kekeke. That’s not easy.’

 

People moved quickly.

They dug up behind-the-scenes footage from ‘Our Space’, highlighting scenes where Woo Junseo glared at Yoo Seulho.

Even Choi Ran’s behavior toward Woo Junseo… avoiding him like he was a cockroach… was reexamined.

 

➝ ‘Someone in the industry told me Choi Ran hated Woo Junseo so obviously that they intentionally put Yoo Seulho between them.’

↳ ‘Yeah, even during the press conference the MC kept sticking Yoo Seulho between them.’

↳ ‘Seriously? I remember cursing him back then;; saying he was clueless for getting between the male and female leads.’

➝ ‘Choi Ran and Yoo Seulho are both former child actors. They’ve been in the industry long enough to tell that guy wasn’t right.’

➝ ‘People criticized Yoo Seulho for getting between them, but he quietly endured it. He’s really generous.’

➝ ‘He’s two years older too, so he was protecting his younger colleague from a bad guy.’

↳ ‘Hmm~^^ That’s a bit too much glazing~^^’

↳ ‘Who cares, asshole? Try putting your own life down instead.’

 

And so Woo Junseo fell.

Onto a sinking ship that wouldn’t surface again for years.

 

➝ ‘Park Sangin? Won’t be seeing him again either. Ptooey.’

↳ ‘His physiognomy was suspicious from the beginning kekeke’

 

Together with his loyal lackey.

What a tightly knit downfall it was.

 

***

 

“Oh, Seulho! You’re here?!”

“Hello.”

The moment I entered the office, Director Baek greeted me with a beaming smile.

He grabbed my hand and repeatedly muttered,

“Thank you. Thank you so much…”

His sincerity was obvious.

“Thanks to you, I avoided having my movie blow up before it even started. It’s really all thanks to you, Seulho.”

“You worked hard too, Director.”

Truthfully, I wanted to leak the article about Woo Junseo immediately.

But the beer commercial had been bothering me.

I didn’t want the buzz around it stolen, so I’d let things sit for a few days.

Though I had wondered if Director Baek would be able to hold out that long.

“Did the investors give you a hard time?”

“Ugh, don’t even ask.”

Back when the contract with Woo Junseo was practically finalized, the investors had exploded at Director Baek for asking for just a little more time.

They demanded to know whether he’d take responsibility if Woo Junseo backed out.

Thinking it was all or nothing, Director Baek had agreed.

And then, a few days later, the article exploded.

‘Just like when he cast me based solely on Producer Jang’s recommendation, he’s surprisingly a gambler.’

Fortunately, because the contract hadn’t been signed yet, the movie production company was never mentioned in the press.

As a result, Director Baek had become a hero among the investors.

‘Good. It was handled cleanly.’

Woo Junseo wouldn’t be pestering me anymore for a while.

Of course, unlike Director Shin, who had murdered someone, this was different.

Eventually, after things quieted down, Woo Junseo would undoubtedly return.

‘Plenty of celebrities have resumed their careers after gambling scandals.’

Someday we’d cross paths again.

But just knowing I wouldn’t have to see him for several years made me feel refreshed.

‘And I got rid of Park Sangin too.’

I’d given them the greatest punishment a celebrity could suffer.

As revenge for handing Yoo Seulho over as prey, I considered it sufficient.

‘Whew.’

Now I just had to walk my own path.

“So, what are you going to do about the female lead?”

“Oh, that…”

Director Baek opened his mouth.