Byeon Hak-gyu
Yeon-woo and his party moved to a quiet waiting room inside the small theater and explained to Hong A-yun how they had come to find her.
"Director Lee Yong-su…?"
Hong A-yun had been wondering why Saebyeol — a company even established actors struggled to sign with — had sought her out at all. Hearing Lee Yong-su's name seemed to clear some of her confusion.
"B-but you're saying you want me as the female lead?"
"Yes. We'd like to cast you in the new romance film we're producing, Moon."
Executive Director Yoon Mi-yeon nodded as she answered Hong A-yun's still-bewildered question.
If Yeon-woo hadn't been sitting there, Hong A-yun would naturally have assumed the casting offer was a scam.
No matter that a director had recommended her — who would pick up a rookie actress, no, an aspiring actress like her?
And not just any company. Saebyeol.
This was no no-name production house that had never made a film or drama. Anyone with even a passing interest in the industry knew that Saebyeol Media was where LN's core talent had gone after resigning.
If only Yoon Mi-yeon had come with this proposal, Hong A-yun — burned too many times by the entertainment world — would have thought it was a scam using Saebyeol's name.
But sitting right in front of her, smiling, was the star Ryu Yeon-woo.
It was a soul-shaking offer, but she still had to ask what needed asking.
"Um, well…"
"Yes. Please, speak freely."
Hong A-yun hesitated, then continued.
"Earlier you said you'd also resolve the contract issue I signed…"
Yeon-woo smiled and nodded.
"Yes. I'll clean that up for you completely."
"How, exactly…?"
"By the book. Plus10 has unfairly piled debt onto Hong A-yun during her trainee years. We plan to pay the full amount cleanly, without any legal battle, and buy you out — transferring the actress Hong A-yun from Plus10 to Saebyeol."
Hong A-yun hesitated before speaking.
"It's just… I have more debt than you might think…"
"I'm aware. The debt accumulated over seven years and three months as a trainee comes to a little over six hundred million won. We're prepared to pay it — if you choose Saebyeol."
At Yeon-woo's words, Yoon Mi-yeon and Kim Min-su's eyes went wide.
"Six hundred million over seven years? Everyone knows Plus10 is garbage, but this is too much. How do you train someone and rack up nearly a hundred million a year? Are they raising a Premier League player or an Olympic athlete?"
Yoon Mi-yeon, as an industry insider, was furious at the transparent scam — but Hong A-yun shrank at her words.
"I-it really is too much, isn't it? I'm sorry. I was so stupid…"
Hong A-yun looked between Yoon Mi-yeon and Yeon-woo, then dropped her head.
The actor Ryu Yeon-woo seemed intent on casting her, but it didn't look like he'd cleared it with the executive. After all, the decision-maker at a company would be the executive, not an actor.
But Hong A-yun was wrong. Saebyeol was Ryu Yeon-woo, and Ryu Yeon-woo was Saebyeol.
If Yeon-woo said it would be done, it would be done.
That aside, Yoon Mi-yeon genuinely wanted to save the fragile young actress in front of her. She was by-the-book to her core, and her motto was handling everything fairly and justly.
Yoon Mi-yeon took Hong A-yun's hands in both of hers.
"Actress Hong A-yun. Accept the offer. Please."
"…What?"
"If you think for even a second that we're helping out of pity, throw that thought away right now. We need you, Hong A-yun. As an actress."
Someone needing her as an actress — she had never heard that in her life.
No — beyond being an actress, she couldn't remember anyone ever truly seeing her at all.
Hong A-yun's vision blurred and swam violently.
"…Yes. Please take me with you."
"What? Who?"
"Hong A-yun. She left four years ago. If you look at the trainee file here…"
Plus10's CEO Byeon Hak-gyu nodded as he looked at the profile and photo in the file his secretary handed him.
"Ahh, that girl? Looking at the face, I remember. The little bitch with no manners. What's so hard about pouring a few drinks? So who said they're taking her?"
"Saebyeol Entertainment."
At the secretary's words, Byeon Hak-gyu's face twisted.
"What are those bastards, a food waste disposer? Why do they keep picking up everything we throw out?"
Back when Kim Ju-seong was still LN's CEO, Byeon had had leverage on him and used it to force an unconditional contract termination for Jeong Su-yeon. A few years later, when she hit it big with White Blood, it had hurt so bad he thought his stomach would split.
And the ones who'd scooped her up were Saebyeol.
He knew perfectly well that Kim Ju-seong was behind Saebyeol Entertainment and Media, even if he wasn't officially active. And now they were taking some former trainee? It soured his mood completely.
Byeon Hak-gyu thought it over, then shook his head.
"Hmm, no. Any money coming in is good news. How much debt did we stick her with?"
"A little over six hundred twenty million."
Byeon Hak-gyu's eyes curved into crescents at the figure.
"Ohhh, really? That much? How generous of me. Tell them to round down anything under ten million and deposit exactly six hundred twenty million."
"Well… Saebyeol already deposited it. They said they didn't need change and put in six hundred thirty million."
"What? They said they didn't need change?"
"Yes."
Even though money coming in was always good news, something about it left a bad taste.
"Uh, sir. How should we handle this? Pass it to the finance team?"
"No, I'll take care of it myself. What's her name again?"
"Hong A-yun."
"Right. Destroy everything related to her. Leave no trace."
At Byeon Hak-gyu's words, the secretary bowed and left.
"Hmm, where should I spend this windfall…"
Byeon Hak-gyu was giddy again at the unexpected jackpot.
And on the table, the CPU of Byeon Hak-gyu's smartphone was still whirring furiously, running a hacking program even at that very moment.
"Did he take it?"
At Yeon-woo's question, Han Hae-un — who had been eavesdropping through Byeon Hak-gyu's smartphone — nodded.
"Yes. He took the bait for sure."
Until now, whenever unexpected income like this came in, Byeon Hak-gyu had always quietly embezzled the funds. This time, over six hundred million in blind money had been deposited — they had predicted Byeon wouldn't be able to resist.
"Time to take out the trash."
"He lasted a long time. Lucky bastard, in his way."
Yeon-woo grinned at Han Hae-un's words.
"Lucky? He's the unluckiest bastard of all. You know better than anyone how soft the Korean justice system is on criminals. He'll regret not turning himself in the moment we stop looking the other way — down to his bones."
So far, the mid-tier actor Jeong Tae-seon and Baeksol's lackey Jeon Gi-hun had both been exposed by the press first, then arrested by the prosecution, and ultimately faced the judgment of the law. With charges of large-scale distribution on top of simple drug use, both had been sentenced to real prison time and were currently serving.
But Byeon Hak-gyu would be handled differently.
If we keep using the press and prosecution to cut off their limbs one after another, they'll start getting suspicious eventually.
The plan was to let Baeksol's own hands deal with Byeon Hak-gyu. All they needed to do was lay a small bridge in between.
"All right. Let's begin. Ideally, wrap it all up before the agents and I leave for Brazil."
"Understood."
Prosecutor Kim Ju-a had been riding a fast track to success ever since a senior colleague recommended her and she joined hands with certain powerful figures.
She'd even been promised a transfer to Seocho-dong if she kept proving her loyalty. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-dong was the elite track — a stepping stone to becoming a chief prosecutor — and every prosecutor dreamed of the post.
Knowing she had the backing of the forces that controlled Korea's underworld made the ordinary prosecutors around her, who knew nothing, look ridiculous.
In the end, people have to know how to pick the right side.
Last time, when the actor Jeong Tae-seon was brought in on drug charges, simply scaring him into silence had earned her a considerable reward. What mattered wasn't the money — it was that she now had a rope she could keep climbing.
That guy's name was Han Hae-un, wasn't it? Completely stuck in a rut, just processing whatever work he's given, living without any sense of calling. A total fool.
She and Prosecutor Han Hae-un had exchanged names in passing and occasionally bounced ideas off each other when something was unclear. The Criminal Division 3 he belonged to specialized in violent crime — in plain terms, they hauled in gangsters.
But her own Economic and Fair Trade Crime Division investigated white-collar crime. Kim Ju-a considered herself a true elite, using her brains to catch white-collar criminals.
What a nuisance. What is he bringing me this time?
Kim Ju-a was drinking coffee in the break room when Han Hae-un approached carrying a stack of papers.
"Prosecutor Kim. There you are. I've been looking for you."
"Something you wanted to ask?"
"Ah, not today. While investigating the drug offenders under my charge, I ended up cross-checking some informants' account records, and I thought this should probably be handed over to your side."
She reviewed the documents Han Hae-un held out.
Huh…?
Kim Ju-a's eyes widened for a moment, then she composed her face and looked at Han Hae-un.
"Got it. I'll take care of it."
"Yes, ma'am! Have a good afternoon!"
Han Hae-un gave her a friendly smile, turned, and walked away.
Kim Ju-a looked over the materials he'd given her again.
Plus10 CEO Byeon Hak-gyu — Allegations of Slush Fund Creation, Tax Evasion, and Embezzlement
She'd picked up during the Jeong Tae-seon case that Plus10 was a business that laundered money for the powerful figures she'd allied with.
This is a chance to earn credit. I shouldn't open a formal investigation — I need to report this to them immediately.
After checking her surroundings, Kim Ju-a photographed the documents with her smartphone and began transmitting them somewhere.
In an utterly ordinary private office, a man sat with his legs crossed.
Beep—
"Kim Gye-sik here."
"Come in."
At the man's bone-chilling, metallic voice, the door opened and Kim Gye-sik entered.
"I have an urgent matter to report regarding Plus10."
"Plus10? Those entertainers?"
"Yes, sir."
Kim Gye-sik bowed and held out a report. The man took it with an indifferent expression, scanned the documents, then let out an amused snort.
"Look at this one. Quite the rabbit, isn't he. How swollen with guts does a man have to be to leave his liver on dry land and walk around without it?"
He continued flipping through the papers, then spoke again in that same metallic voice.
"According to the Tale of the Hare, the rabbit is supposed to go to the sea to meet the Dragon King. This fellow probably won't be coming back to dry land, though."
"Yes. I'll handle it."
The man added something more.
"Ah, that Byeon Hak-gyu fellow. He's an old one, so who knows if there's anything useful left — but before you throw him in the sea, you might as well pull out that swollen liver and take a look. You never know if something's worth selling. He should pay off at least a little of his debt before he goes."
"Yes. Understood."
"Good. Get out."
Holding Byeon Hak-gyu's life in one hand, Kim Gye-sik left the room.