Chapter 123
“Ha, this is ridiculous. What is he, some kind of professional scammer hurting himself on purpose?”
Do Kijeong sounded completely dumbfounded.
“He’s supposed to be a famous webtoon artist. Is he really willing to put his own body on the line just to avoid paying a few months of wages?”
“Seriously.”
I pretended to simply agree with Do Kijeong while subtly testing Im Seulgi.
“Then, Ms. Seulgi, did you also quit in the same kind of way as Geumbong or that Yoon Ilseop you mentioned earlier?”
“Huh? Ah, well... ahem...”
The moment I asked, Im Seulgi’s expression darkened.
Back in 2018, when Im Seulgi exposed webtoon artist Chopung through the MeToo movement, I had read the post she uploaded to social media.
According to that post, Chopung had repeatedly tried to touch her under the excuse of helping with work.
Whenever Im Seulgi rejected him, he responded with verbal abuse and humiliating remarks.
On top of that, Chopung secretly installed CCTV cameras inside the studio without telling her and recorded her around the clock.
When Im Seulgi eventually discovered the cameras and confronted him, Chopung threatened to make sure she would never work in the webtoon industry again.
Because of the social atmosphere at the time, which was often harsher toward victims, and because of Chopung’s threats, Im Seulgi ultimately buried the incident.
But after watching the MeToo movement spread, she finally found the courage to speak out.
She publicly released the secretly recorded footage she possessed and exposed Chopung’s shameless behavior to the world.
Back then, I had considered it something unrelated to me.
I had simply thought, What a terrible thing to go through, and moved on.
But now things were different.
To resolve what had happened to Woo Seungcheol and Noh Geumbong, I needed the evidence Im Seulgi possessed.
And for Im Seulgi herself, who would otherwise spend years carrying the emotional scars caused by Chopung, I believed this needed to be brought into the open now.
Of course, Chopung would eventually pay for what he had done in 2018 anyway.
But that was far too late.
Before then, it was obvious there would be a second or third Noh Geumbong or Im Seulgi.
If I hadn’t known, that would have been one thing.
But now that I did know, I couldn’t simply ignore it.
I needed to expose Chopung for what he really was and make sure he paid for his crimes.
To solve everything, I needed Im Seulgi to speak about what she had experienced in her own words.
But I also knew that something like this had to be approached very carefully.
Not because she was a woman.
Regardless of gender, this kind of issue could force someone to reveal memories filled with shame or humiliation.
I thought for a moment before speaking.
“Ms. Seulgi...”
She looked at me.
“Would you consider joining us in filing a lawsuit against Writer Chopung?”
I carefully suggested gathering the assistants who had been wronged by Chopung, just like Noh Geumbong, and filing a collective lawsuit.
Im Seulgi’s eyes immediately shook at my unexpected suggestion.
Do Kijeong, who failed to notice the change in her expression, reacted with admiration.
“Kibaek, is this what you meant yesterday when you said you’d explain after meeting Ms. Seulgi?”
He looked impressed.
“A collective lawsuit against Chopung?”
“Hah, how did you even think of something like this?”
Of course, I had brought it up partly because I wanted Im Seulgi to reveal what Chopung had done to her.
But separate from that, I really had been considering a collective lawsuit.
“If one person sues a famous person like Writer Chopung, there’s a high chance the victim will instead be accused of making false claims.”
I continued.
“But if several people file together, their statements can support one another and become much more credible.”
“Right.”
Do Kijeong nodded.
“With several people, the evidence becomes stronger too.”
“And more importantly, fighting together gives people a sense of solidarity.”
I continued.
“If Chopung countersues for defamation or his fans attack them publicly, it’ll be much easier to endure that as a group than alone.”
“Exactly.”
Do Kijeong laughed.
“Chopung has a surprisingly strong fandom too. If his fans start attacking, everyone can respond together. Hahaha.”
I stopped looking at Do Kijeong, who kept enthusiastically agreeing with me, and studied Im Seulgi instead.
She had lowered her gaze as if trying to avoid mine.
“Ms. Seulgi...”
“Yes?”
“What do you think about the proposal I just made?”
“Ah... well...”
She looked strangely uncomfortable.
Do Kijeong finally noticed.
“Ms. Seulgi, are you okay?”
He tilted his head.
“Your face suddenly looks really pale.”
“Huh? Ah, yes... I-I’m fine.”
She hesitated.
“But I don’t think I can file a lawsuit.”
Do Kijeong immediately looked disappointed.
“Why?”
Then he quickly added,
“If you’re worried about the cost or complicated procedures, we’ll support everything.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Im Seulgi shook her head.
“My situation is... a little different.”
“Different?”
Do Kijeong tilted his head again.
At that moment, Im Seulgi suddenly picked up the drink in front of her and gulped it down all at once.
Then, as if she had made a decision, she spoke.
“Actually... I got all my money.”
She paused.
“No. When I left, he even gave me an extra five million won.”
“Of course, I returned it.”
Do Kijeong looked confused by the mention of extra money and glanced toward me.
I ignored his questioning look and continued watching Im Seulgi.
Then I asked carefully,
“If it isn’t too difficult to talk about, could you tell us why you quit?”
“That...”
Discomfort returned to Im Seulgi’s face.
I spoke gently.
“No matter how your situation was different, all three of us already know that Chopung is a terrible person.”
“And all three of us want him to pay for what he’s done.”
I continued.
“We can’t just stand by while people like him crush and exploit young people who are chasing their dreams.”
Then I added,
“And more than anything...”
I looked at her carefully.
“You were hurt by Writer Chopung too, weren’t you?”
“If there’s anything we can do to help... wouldn’t it be better to let us try?”
Perhaps it was the fact that I said we wanted to help.
Im Seulgi’s eyes trembled.
Then, as though finally making up her mind, she opened her mouth.
“Actually, I...”
In a calm voice, Im Seulgi began telling us everything Chopung had done to her.
She occasionally paused to wet her throat with her drink.
But until the very end, she maintained remarkable composure.
While Im Seulgi herself remained calm throughout the story, Do Kijeong became angrier and angrier.
“Fucking trash.”
“That pervert.”
