The Shaman's Visit
"Ah, Yoon-gi! Welcome!" As soon as Choi Cheol-jae heard that Yoon-gi was visiting, he canceled all his scheduled appointments to greet him personally.
"I'm honored, really."
"Honored? Don't be. The fact that I can run my business without any trouble these days is all thanks to you." Choi Cheol-jae’s words were sincere.
"Is that so?"
"Of course. Because of you, those powerful bastards don't 'force' us to provide those kinds of services to our agency anymore."
Until recently, YK had maintained tight ties with JD, and even now, they held strong connections with N, the likely next presidential candidate, and JSD, the head of the ANSP. If some other power-hungry official were to call an entertainer from Choi Cheol-jae’s agency to a private party and demand 'entertainment,' they would, if lucky, end up under police investigation—or in worse cases, find themselves invited to a private dinner at the ANSP.
"Still, it’s a relief that JD is at least less of a tyrant than P was."
As they sat with cups of tea in front of them, Choi Cheol-jae naturally brought up a topic for conversation.
"You think so?"
Choi Cheol-jae nodded. "Yeah. I wasn't running an agency back then, but I was an aspiring actor, so I saw the reality of it. P was... oh, man... there was this married woman at the agency I was with, and P summoned her. Sigh..."
Choi Cheol-jae shook his head as if the mere thought was disgusting, then continued. "If you didn't provide the 'service' when P called, he made it impossible for you to live in Korea. In that regard, JD is relatively better. You just have to give up your career in the entertainment industry."
It might not seem like much of a difference, but in relative terms, there was a clear distinction. In fact, there were entertainers who refused P’s demands and effectively defected to the United States.
"As someone in the entertainment industry, I can't understand people who claim P was clean. Even when he was shot, he had a female college student right there next to him."
As Yoon-gi chuckled, Choi Cheol-jae, sensing Yoon-gi's interest in his story, became even more animated.
"Honestly, I can't stop the kids in my agency if they *want* to get cozy with powerful people. If they say they need money and are willing to do unethical things, I can't monitor them 24 hours a day, can I? Besides, that would be an infringement on their human rights."
In fact, one of the entertainers under Choi Cheol-jae had indeed been involved with the '3 Heo' faction.
"Come to think of it, wasn't there an entertainer who used to associate with the 3 Heo?"
Choi Cheol-jae gave a bitter smile. "That one ended up like a duckling in the Nakdong River. After the 3 Heo collapsed, she came looking for me again, but..."
"But?"
"I didn't take her back. The fact that she leaked internal information once means she could do it again, right?"
"You did well."
At Yoon-gi’s smirk, Choi Cheol-jae confirmed that his choice had been the right one. *She wasn't a good person just because she pretended to be pitiful. She wasn't actually kind; she was on the wicked side.*
Choi Cheol-jae figured it was time to get to the point. "By the way, is there something going on today? Since you came to see me, it seems like it’s related to the entertainment industry. Is it about Jung-ah?"
Jung-ah hadn't been very active in the entertainment industry since her last movie. There were various reasons, but the biggest one was that she wasn't desperate for money. The only reason popular entertainers had to work like crazy was money. If you look at the idol groups that became stars in Korea, starting with the famous 'J' known for his youthful looks in the 2000s, they were subjected to murderous schedules where they couldn't even sleep for two hours a day. Why? Because, with few exceptions, an entertainer is a job with an effective expiration date. Therefore, they had to generate maximum profit in the shortest amount of time. But Jung-ah? With Yoon-gi, a fountain that never runs dry, she had no reason to be desperate for money. Thus, she could do only the work she truly wanted to do, and thanks to that, she was guaranteed the most freedom of any entertainer in Korea.
"No, it's not about Jung-ah. By any chance, does your agency have a female trainee who specializes in 'acting' skills? Nothing else matters, she just needs to be the best at acting."
The late 80s was a time when the income of the South Korean people was finally becoming clearly better than that of impoverished nations. In the early 90s, many people would remember the female employees who would press the elevator buttons for you at department stores. If you think about it from the perspective of the 2010s, you’d wonder, 'Why on earth would they have staff for that?' but at the time, it was considered normal. Even if the wealth gap was severe, it wasn't as extreme as it is today, so it was the last era where, if you were born with a bit of luck, you could join the ranks of the chaebols within your own generation. That’s why, in the late 80s, Western-style restaurants were slowly starting to appear. Of course, the interiors weren't as definitively antique as they are now. Anyone who has been to a 'Pizza Hut' in the early 2000s can probably imagine it immediately. You can think of that kind of interior as the place where ordinary families went to eat on 'anniversaries' in the 80s.
"Hmm, I think it would be better to move to a different place."
It was a restaurant they came to for family anniversaries—birthdays or paydays—but Yoon-gi thought for a moment and stood up. Choi Cheol-jae and the actress he had called, Han Na-ra, also stood up. The place they arrived at after moving was none other than the Western-style restaurant at the YK Hotel. As she was seated in a spot that only chaebols could occupy, Han Na-ra was, frankly speaking, inevitably anxious in many ways. *Why did he bring me here? Could it be? Could it be? No, but I am...*
Han Na-ra was certainly young, but it would be hard to say her appearance was outstanding, even as a joke. However, her acting potential was so exceptional that Choi Cheol-jae was training her as a specialist in supporting roles for dramas. That was why Choi Cheol-jae had introduced her to Yoon-gi.
"What would you like to eat?"
"Yes? Oh... I... I don't really know..."
Choi Cheol-jae didn't prioritize money, as he could just ask Yoon-gi if he ever ran short. Therefore, the trainees at his agency were often relatively poorer compared to those at other agencies. Han Na-ra was the same. There was no way she would have had the experience of ordering something at a luxury hotel restaurant where only chaebols went.
"Ah, then let's order the most standard items."
Yoon-gi ordered standard dishes, starting with steak, and finally, the food was placed on the table. A feast that looked delicious just to look at. However, for some reason, Han Na-ra felt like this was her 'Last Supper.'
*What do I do? What do I do? Should I eat it? Ah, I want to try it... but if I eat this, it feels like something irreversible is going to happen...*
Yoon-gi, observing Han Na-ra’s behavior, smiled. And he clearly solved Han Na-ra’s dilemma.
"By any chance, would you like to try acting as a shaman?"
"Aaaaaaah!" Baek Seo-hong woke up screaming, gasping for air as he searched for water. Water kept sliding down his throat as he gulped it down repeatedly. But more than the water he drank, Baek Seo-hong was sweating into his bedding. It was to the point where the sheets were so damp you could wring them out. For the past few days, Baek Seo-hong had been having very intense nightmares. Nightmares where the people who had been subjected to forced labor and died at the Manse Welfare Center, which he had been in charge of, appeared before him.
"Ah, you son of a bitch, how many days has it been now?" The cell boss in the detention center, annoyed, struck the back of Baek Seo-hong’s head hard.
Thwack!
Even in prisons these days, the cell bosses are mostly gangsters or former gangsters. How much more so in the 80s? With his connections to the regime effectively gone and his hidden assets 'hidden' away by others, Baek Seo-hong was in the position of a weakling with not a single penny in prison, so he was being treated quite harshly even among the inmates.
"I, I'm sorry... sob, sob..."
"You dog, scream in your sleep one more time, and I'll shove this blanket down your throat."
At the cell boss’s chilling words, Baek Seo-hong could only nod while shedding tears. However, two hours later, Baek Seo-hong’s mouth was stuffed full of a dirty blanket.
A few days later. Baek Seo-hong was moved to solitary confinement. The reason was the sleep issues of the other inmates. In truth, a solitary cell is no place for a human to live. If a politician respected by the prison guards enters the cell, or if an inmate has money, the guards become their conversation partners even in solitary. But Baek Seo-hong? Because rumors about the Manse Welfare Center incident were circulating, even if not in detail, the guards loathed him, and because he had no money, he couldn't win their favor. Therefore, the level of loneliness he had to endure in solitary was truly extreme. The biggest problem with solitary confinement was having to endure the 'silence.' There was no sound at all, and he couldn't make any sound himself. The moment he made a sound, the guards would impose sanctions. While guards don't hit people much these days, in the past, the authority for corporal punishment was tacitly accepted, so acting out in solitary was not tolerated.
"Ughhh..."
Thus, Baek Seo-hong had no choice but to spend painful days in solitary.
"Number 3826, come out."
How many days had passed? Baek Seo-hong was finally able to receive a psychiatric evaluation.
"Y, you too...?" Baek Seo-hong discovered Go Yu-seung in the detention center vehicle heading to the hospital. Like Baek Seo-hong, Go Yu-seung’s skin was dry from sweating so much, and his face looked extremely haggard.
"Di, Director, you too...?"
They had been imprisoned at opposite ends of the detention center and hadn't known each other's situation, but now they knew. [Why are the two of us together...] However, both of them knew the answer. Or, to be precise, they guessed it.
*Could it be...?*
They didn't say it out loud, but they guessed that the reason they were having nightmares was because of the Manse Welfare Center. Which, in reality, wasn't wrong.
"It's strange. There are no problems at all."
At the doctor’s diagnosis, the guard struck the back of Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung’s heads hard.
"Ha, you bastards. Have you been acting this whole time?"
After that, their heads were slapped several more times. Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung were so aggrieved they even shed tears, but there was no way any guard would feel pity for them.
"Anyway, there is nothing the hospital can do for you. It would be better to handle it internally at the prison."
At the doctor’s cold diagnosis, Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung had to endure a significant level of beating from the guards on the bus ride back for the reason of 'bothering the guards.' It was a beating that felt like it would leave them with chronic illnesses. But no one heard their screams and helped them. Just like the people who had been tortured by the two of them at the Manse Welfare Center in the past.
A few more days passed like that. Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung were locked in a single solitary cell together, spending painful days. The nightmares were the same. In the midst of days that felt like their blood was drying up, suddenly, a guard spoke through the hole in the cell door.
"Are you two still having a hard time?"
Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung, with haggard faces, trembled and nodded. Bruises and scabs covered their bodies. On top of that, their physical strength was depleted from the endless nightmares. They felt like they were on the verge of death.
"Tsk tsk... because of you two, we're having a hard time too, so we've brought someone who can help you."
Suddenly, Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung’s eyes lit up. They were in a situation where they would sell their souls to the devil if it meant solving their suffering. Thus, the two jumped up and clung to the cell door. Through the small hole in the door, what Baek Seo-hong and Go Yu-seung saw was a shaman.
"Tsk tsk tsk, you two are completely possessed by demons!"
Han Na-ra’s thick, dramatic tone pierced right through their hearts.