How a Loan Shark Survives as an Actor - How a Loan Shark Survives as an Actor – Chapter 001

— Did you guys hear? — They say Useless is joining a new drama again.

A single post uploaded late at night heated up the online community.

— Crazy, again? — He’s still acting after humiliating himself like that last time?? — Seriously, he has no conscience. If it were me, I’d be too embarrassed and just retire; — WTF, who even likes Useless? Why do they keep casting him? — Ah, I seriously hate him so much.

Furious comments piled up one by one.

— But does anyone actually like Useless? Seriously, I haven’t seen a single person around me who does. └ He probably hates himself too. └ Lmaooo that’s f*cking hilarious.

Since it was a community of drama and film lovers, the reactions were even more intense. These days, no one was ruining the acting industry quite like him. The subject of this post, which was full of mockery and contempt, was none other than…

Yoo Seul-ho.

An actor better known by his derogatory nickname, “Useless,” rather than his real name.

Twenty-six years ago, a male and a female superstar who shook the Korean entertainment industry met and held a wedding of the century that would go down in history. That fervent interest carried over to an ultrasound photo posted on social media. Yoo Seul-ho was someone who had been receiving the public’s attention since he was a mere embryo.

Inheriting the genes of blindingly beautiful parents, his outstanding looks stood out from a young age, and he naturally entered the entertainment industry. He became the ultimate icon of a “Nepo Baby,” easily succeeding through the halo of his parents.

Unfortunately, the only star quality he was born with was his face. The public’s reaction upon seeing Yoo Seul-ho’s first acting performance was as follows:

— Ah, are they crazy; — I could act better than that with my feet… — No, seriously, is this for real? lolllll

His talent as an entertainer was the absolute worst. Even those who initially defended him, saying that no one is perfect from the start, began to turn their backs on him one by one as the years went by.

There’s a saying that even a dog at a village school can recite a poem after three years, but after filming countless projects, actor Yoo Seul-ho’s acting remained perpetually abysmal. In response to comments saying he should just become an idol since he has a good face, a fan left a pitiful defense: “Our Seul-ho… is even worse at singing…”

Despite such atrocious skills, Yoo Seul-ho snatched up every decent role. Unknown actors lamented losing opportunities without even getting to audition, and audiences who paid good money only to watch the worst acting were enraged.

“Why on earth do they keep casting Yoo Seul-ho??” a staff member complained with a disgruntled voice. “I mean, what’s the point of having a handsome face? The kid stutters and can’t even deliver a line properly. Thinking about how our drama’s ratings tanked because of that one bastard pisses me off so much I can’t sleep.”

“Hey, knock it off.” It was a senior staff member who stopped the fuming man. With a tired face, the senior poured him a shot of soju and said, “Still, his parents cover all the production costs. The reason we can have team dinners this often is all thanks to his parents’ wallets.”

“Dammit, this is so dirty. If it’s about money, we can just find other investors!” “Is there any famous PD or writer in Korea who doesn’t have ties to that couple? They are both still top-tier, active figures, so what can we do? Do you know how many crumbs fall our way just for using their son once?”

The staff sighed at the dirty reality. The bitter conversation ended with the sad conclusion that they should just turn a blind eye and move on. However, Yoo Seul-ho’s acting wasn’t something that could be ignored by simply turning a blind eye.

— Gather here if you’re boycotting any project Yoo Seul-ho is in (1/NNNNNNNNN)

The situation grew increasingly serious until the word “boycott” was thrown around. It reached a point where production companies and investors could no longer feign ignorance.

But completely cutting Yoo Seul-ho out meant stepping on his parents’ toes, so they sought an alternative method. That method was creating a “character who appears on screen but isn’t really necessary for the plot” and handing it to him.

This was the background behind his derogatory nickname, “Useless.” It had been years like this, yet without any sense of embarrassment about playing useless characters every single time, he continued to smile brightly at public events. It was said that even his remaining few fans turned their backs on him due to his thoughtless demeanor.

‘Of course, none of this has anything to do with me.’

Why would I care whether men, women, young, and old across the country hated Yoo Seul-ho or not? I was too damn busy worrying about my own business to care about a celebrity who was probably living a cushy life. At least, that was the case exactly one hour ago.

“…What is this.” Holding my throbbing head, I stared at the mirror in front of me. Even seeing it with my own eyes, the unbelievable situation made me sigh. “Hah.”

Yoo Seul-ho was standing right there. When I blinked, Yoo Seul-ho blinked, and when I waved my hand, Yoo Seul-ho waved back.

“This isn’t a dream?” Even when I muttered in confusion, no answer returned.

Now, exactly one hour after waking up from a mysterious accident, I finally accepted reality. “F*ck…” I had woken up in the body of that damn Yoo Seul-ho.

‘To think something like this could happen in life.’

I aggressively scratched my head, feeling dumbfounded. Every time my fingertips touched the soft hair, it felt real—this wasn’t a dream.

‘First off, I remember getting into a sudden accident.’ It was a massive accident, one that made me think I was going to die right then and there. The moment I opened my eyes, I even muttered, “Wow, I survived that.” I looked around, expecting to be lying in a hospital ward, but I was surprised to find myself in some hotel room, and even more surprised when I looked in the mirror.

“Hmm.” I scratched my head while staring at the mirror. Deciding to ignore this stranger’s face that I just couldn’t get used to, I inspected the body first. I checked to see if there were any unexpected similarities to my original body, but seeing a clean body without a single scar only deepened my sense of cognitive dissonance.

‘…Ah.’ It wasn’t completely clean everywhere. ‘Did this just happen?’ A deep, dark blue bruise was wrapped tightly around Yoo Seul-ho’s neck.

It was a fresh mark that had clearly just been made, and looking at the rope sprawled on the floor, I could roughly guess what had happened.

“Tsk.” I clicked my tongue and picked up the rope by my feet. The rope that had been strangling Yoo Seul-ho’s neck just moments ago fit perfectly in my hand. Holding this heavy rope, which was thick enough that an average adult man would struggle to grip it with one hand, a feeling of pity naturally arose.

‘Pathetic.’ There are plenty of good pills out these days to die peacefully. It was a pity he chose the painful route of hanging himself. Dramas are the problem anyway. No one has any creativity.

[I can’t endure this anymore. I’m sorry. Thank you for everything.]

Reading the paper on the table made the situation even clearer. Anyone could see this was a situation where Yoo Seul-ho had written a suicide note and hanged himself.

Several questions popped into my head, but at this very moment, my biggest curiosity was this: ‘Then, is Yoo Seul-ho dead?’ I didn’t see any other injuries that would suggest that. I touched his neck bone, which was too straight to be considered broken.

How did I end up waking up in Yoo Seul-ho’s body? Is my original body dead?

‘I don’t know.’ I pondered for a moment before giving up. It wasn’t like anyone was going to give me an answer just because I was curious. I wondered if there was a way to return to my original body, but then I thought, ‘Why bother?’ Using someone else’s body felt a bit uncomfortable, but what was the big deal about taking over a body that its original owner had already thrown away?

Rather than wasting time trying to reclaim my messy original life, adapting and living as Yoo Seul-ho was much more profitable.

‘Yeah.’ Since things turned out this way, let’s use this celebrity body to make a fortune. I used to do all sorts of dirty work just to make good money, but with Yoo Seul-ho’s body, I could rake in hundreds and thousands just by showing my face on camera a few times.

‘This time, I’m going to make so much money I’ll get sick of it.’ Organizing my thoughts like that made my vision feel clearer for a moment. It was then.

— Riiing.

The phone resting neatly next to the paper vibrated. Seeing the screen read “Current Manager,” I pressed the button without much thought.

“Hello.” My voice sounded quite carefree, even to me. The other party replied with a loud shout after a few seconds of silence.

— Yoo Seul-ho, what the hell are you doing right now!!! “Excuse me?” — You stupid bastard, get a grip! Don’t you know today is the day we’re meeting Producer Jang? Are you trying to screw me over??

The other person was absolutely furious. I stayed silent, listening to his bullshit for a long time.

— Why aren’t you saying anything?! You son of a bitch, did you hang… “I didn’t hang up.” — …What the. Are you sick?

Only then did the other party pause and lower his tone.

“Yeah. My neck hurts a bit.” — No matter how sick you are, there are things you can’t forget! Where are you right now? It’s almost time for the appointment and you aren’t even picking up your pho… “Text me where I need to go. I’ll head out right now.”

I hung up, ignoring the other person shouting on the other end. Opening the built-in closet, I saw rows of expensive clothes hanging there. I changed into the most ordinary-looking dress shirt that buttoned all the way up to the neck. Only after confirming that the marks on my neck were well hidden did I head to the location in the text message.

‘Wallet in my pocket, no passcode on the phone. Perfect.’ When I got in a taxi, I felt the driver staring at me intently, but I didn’t pay it any mind.

The location the manager sent was an elegant teahouse in the suburbs of Seoul. The scenery of the pouring rain suited the teahouse quite well.

“I’ve arrived out front. Should I go in?” I called the manager since he told me to contact him upon arrival. — You know you have to watch what you say in there, right? Things ended badly with Producer Jang last time, but it’s not like you’re hot shit either. Cater to his mood. If he seems upset, unconditionally beg for forgiveness! “What did I do wrong?” — I told you not to talk back! Anyway, I’m busy right now, so call me when it’s over.

The call was cut off mercilessly. I stared at the phone for a moment before walking right into the teahouse.

— Ding.

“Seul-ho, over here!” I wondered if I’d be able to recognize who Producer Jang was, but thankfully, someone called out to me as soon as I opened the door. I walked over to the middle-aged man who called me and tactfully greeted him.

“Hello. I’m sorry I’m late.” “You’re not late. We just arrived early. Oh, this is your first time meeting him, right? Actor Woo Jun-seo. Say hello.”

The young man sitting next to Producer Jang jumped to his feet. With a good-natured smile, the man extended his hand.

“Hello, Yoo Seul-ho sunbaenim. I’m Woo Jun-seo, and we’ll be filming a project together this time. Nice to meet you.” “Yes, hello.” “I really wanted to meet you. I’m a fan. Haha.”

Contrary to his bright, innocent smile, the eyes looking at me were full of mockery.

‘This punk…’ The man in front of me and I were not strangers. Of course, it might be his first time meeting Yoo Seul-ho. But I had met him before. To the original me, he was…

‘Isn’t this the punk who borrowed money from me?’ He was a customer of the loan shark.