Read 12 Hours After - Chapter 97 - Spider Hunting, Part II online free - Light Novel Full

Translator: Khan

Editor: Aelryinth

"Hoo…" I took a deep breath and sat down in front of the computer. As usual, I read the future news. In 12 Months After, there was good news in the Economy section.

'All right, the price of soybeans is plummeting, and the stock prices of manufacturers of cooking oil are soaring. The related stocks…'

I put some stocks in the calendar application and turned on the HTS. My account still contained $20,000,000 worth of shares: shares with a 35% return. I put them into the sell order at a moderate price, and I moved my gaze.

[Bisang Construction 1.8%]

[Jinyang Development 2.5%]

Both stocks rose steadily, rising nearly twenty percent from their low point. Now was the time for the theme stocks to move. Only alert institutional investors with fast information and quick-sighted ants were attached. The timing of the information which I had heard was fast enough. The media hadn't even announced that there were five candidates selected yet. Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk gave me a good bait, 'Try this one. If you come in now, you'll be able to take 10% profit easily.'

'The Old City Regeneration Project is a project worth hundreds of million dollars, and once selected as a business operator, people selling for several years will be negligible. In other words, even if stock prices more than double, it is not strange at all. Whether it is selected as a final business operator or not, just the expectation is enough to rise thirty to forty percent. Ten percent is an easy-to-take if the spider doesn't do anything strange…

'In this situation, these two stocks must be considered to have terrible spiders already camped out. It's easy for them to kill one or two people during the operation. They may lose money if they try to eat it at ten percent. In the case of such stock manipulators, they monitor who buys stocks and how they buy them, so they also have a system to lower the stock price if ants buy them and raise them if ants sell them.

'Basically, it's right not to go in. That's common sense. It's true that ants or anyone else should not buy them. If they can earn money by any means, they will lose in the long run. This is like a designed poker game. A fool plays an honest game, while a hoodwinker plays seeing all the cards. Once or twice, even if they are lucky enough to win, they are forced to lose all after all.

'But I'm different. I have a hidden Joker card which came from the last People Search, and even if they see my cards, they'll be damned if I take it suddenly. If only one condition is met… Once the 'one condition' has been confirmed, I can give these guys the big shit right away, though I don't know when right now.'

I continued thinking, twirling my mouse cursor.

'So, shall I go to war or not? All I have left is my decision. I don't have to do it for money. I'm making good money anyway.

'If I think about Director Tak Joon-gi who said, "Dog pigs, I'm not with those vulgar people…" and when I think about Lee Ah-young saying, "These men are my parents' enemies," I should go to war, not for money, but for justice.'

I pondered this and that scenario.

'Yeah, well, even if I'm not satisfied with that condition… There's no chance I'll lose money. If I can do justice without risk, it's right to join the war. Yes, no matter how much I have traded with future value, it's true that I've brought in the money of countless institutional, foreign investors and ants. Then, at least, at the level of reward, I need to correct the market order.'

Having made up my mind, I put just two accounts on my multi-monitor. Usually, I ran my eight accounts and used the undercover technique so that big hands would not know if I came in, but this time I decided to reveal my presence on purpose.

To let them know that I was in battle, I started buying both Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development with two accounts. Due to the recent surge, there was quite a lot of waiting to be sold, but I bought them all. '3%, 5%, 8%'

The two stocks, which used to run in the 2% range, jumped to 10% because I bought them like crazy. I stopped buying there and watched the trend for a while.

– Wow, today is the day to surge.-

As stock prices soared, ants stuck closer at 11%, 12%, 13%. But the stock prices didn't go up anymore, because I didn't buy them any more. The stock prices were back on track of 12%,11%, 10%. No one bought more, and no one sold more. But I was sure there was someone out there watching me over the monitor, watching my account.

'Well, they can't move with this?'

I stopped buying and called Vice President Jang. When the call-waits were about to come out three times, he answered my phone, "Yes, boss. Is there anything you want?"

"Vice President, how much money do we have available?"

"We don't have much money because we spent too much money on buying a stake in Kai Games…"

"Oh, then I'll give you a capital increase tomorrow. Please prepare a team for large short-stock-selling with the money. I want a few fast-paced traders."

"A large short-stock-sale?" Vice President Jang said in surprise. I'd ordered him to buy this and that, and find out which company to take over, but it was the first time I had told him to prepare for a large short-stock-sale.

"Yes, a large short-stock-sale."

"Yes, sir. I'll do as you say."

After the phone call, I looked at the HTS window again, holding my cell phone. The stocks were trading at 8%, slightly lower. It was a typical situation where only ants remained, and caused confusion after big hands came in and let go of them. I touched my cell phone and called up the phone book for Kang Joo-hyuk.

There was a phone number that I had exchanged during the last interview.

'I'm sure he's watching…' After a little thought, I sent a text message.

– Hello, reporter. Thank you for the article. You did a good job on my story. Thank you, and I also appreciate the information about the Old City Regeneration Project. I'm already making quite a profit, but it looks like it's going to go up further. I'm going to buy more watching the situation.-

I wrote it there, but after agonizing, I put in one more line.

– Please let me know if you have any more information. It's likely that the stock price will eventually change depending on who the final business operator is.-

Then I sent the text message.

'What's he going to say?' I looked up at HTS, thinking that. There was no rush to sell.

'Shall I go for lunch, then?'

I got up from my seat, got dressed quickly, and then stepped out the door. I was going to go in front of the elevator, and I was about to press the down button. The elevator just happened to open in front of me. Lee Ah-young who opened the door and showed up. I bowed my head and greeted her, "Hello!"

But at my greeting, she said in a business-like manner, "Yes, hello," and then passed me.

I looked at her back. Normally, a hip line that ran from the waist to the waist would have caught my eyes first. However, today, her drooping shoulders came into my eyes first. Somehow her shoulders looked lonesome.

'She's a single daughter, but her parents are dead.' It seemed to be because I knew such a background.

"Hmm…" I looked at her and turned to the elevator. The elevator door was about to close.

"Oh, my God." I quickly pressed the down button to open the door again and get into it. But then, my cell phone rang. It was a text from Kang Joo-hyuk.

I thought about Lee Ah-young who just passed me by. 'If she knows that I'm texting her enemy… What would she say?'

I checked the text. – Oh, no problem, CEO Han. It was nice to write a good interview. When they saw the CEO's story, everyone gave good comments. I'll let you know as soon as I get more information about the Old City Regeneration Project.-

"Bah! Are you going to let me know right away?" I grinned as I spoke to myself. He would not tell me right away. Or maybe he already held all the information. But it was okay. If it was a deceitful game, I was stronger. Just as they were hiding the real information from me, I would not tell them, 'I'm getting the future news.'Two weeks had passed since then, three weeks before the announcement of the Old City Regeneration Project.

The stock prices of Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development both were fluctuating. This was because the news had started to come out slowly, and all the ants were attached to the policy theme. When they heard there was a strong possibility of Bisang Construction in the market, the stock prices moved like that.

[Bisang Construction 7%]

[Jinyang Development -8%]

If they heard Jinyang Development was ahead, the stock prices were the following.

[Bisang Construction -9%]

[Jinyang Development 6%]

As such, stock prices turned around in just one day. By the way, I bet $10,000,000 each early, and I had a 10% profit in both stocks. It was as expected.

'If I eat here and go out… well, I'm a winner. It's a small win.'

It might be a bit demure, but I didn't sell. I didn't just come in here to make money. I watched it as I bought and sold other items on the calendar. But in the meantime, there was a text message, 'A reporter Kang Joo-hyuk.'

I thought, -Here you are!- I looked at the text;it was quite long.

– How's the CEO doing? I've been covering the Old City Regeneration Project in depth. These days, government officials are sensitive about leaking information. They really don't talk. But since I asked them persistently, one of the members of the selection team quietly said that Jinyang Development is more likely than Bisang Construction.-

I clapped my hands when I saw it. "That's enough."

It was the moment when the Big Fuck that was going to keep these guys in the deep water was loaded. I read more text messages.

– So, if you want to invest, you'd better invest in Jinyang Development. Of course, as you know, it's not 100% sure. CEO Han.-

I muttered on seeing it, "Yes, of course, it's not 100% sure."

'There's no 100% future in the world.' That was true for me and for them.

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Translator: Khan

Editor: Aelryinth

I watched the monitor gently. The HTS was on the monitor, and the stock prices of two were up on the HTS.

[Bisang Construction -2%]

[Jinyang Development 1%]

The two stocks were briefly flat after a sharp rise. I managed the HTS to find out the latest trading volume of Stock Lending and Borrowing in both stocks.

'Stock Lending and Borrowing is a preliminary process for a short stock sale, in which a person who does not have the shares borrows the shares from a person who has them. He has not sold them for public sale yet, but he will hit it if he keeps doing so. It's a gun that is supposed to be loaded before he shoots.'

"Umm…" Huge amounts of Stock Lending and Borrowing were piling up equally in both stocks, like a military base on the brink of war.

'The moment they fail to be selected as a business operator, mountains of bombs will be fired for a short stock sale. When bad news hits a short stock seller, stock prices will fall even further. It's like pouring oil on the souls who suffer in hellfire.

'It's quite cruel. Someone laughs, somebody cries. It's going to happen in three weeks.'

I picked up my cell phone and looked for the text message from a reporter Kang Joo-hyuk not long ago.

– If you want to invest, you'd better invest in Jinyang Development.-

I pondered, 'This guy… doesn't he expect me to think the other way around?'

'There is a story about the hero Cao Cao from the Three Kingdoms. When Cao Cao, who lost the battle against the Red Cliffs, retreated, there was smoke rising up behind him. Then his adviser advised him, "The smoke rising is proof that the enemy is eating. We have to go somewhere there is no smoke." But Cao Cao said, shaking his head, "No, the enemy would have predicted that I would think of it. The rising smoke is a trick, and we have to go where it isn't." So, Cao Cao went to a place where the smoke rose. But, unexpectedly, he met enemies there. Zhuge Liang predicted that Cao Cao would think too much into, and he simply deployed soldiers there.'

I recalled the meeting with Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk and the interview. The mood was good during the whole time, when I greeted, had an interview and said hello after I broke up with him.

Come to think of it, if Lee Ah-young hadn't told me, "This is the Newsmaker", I might have thought of him as a really just a reporter who wrote an article to spread my name.

I was sure he thought so too, and made sure that his information had not been exposed at all. He might think of me as "the hero Cao Cao" but he wouldn't think we were enemies'.

'So… maybe this information… is a sure dagger… No, it's a poisoned dagger.' I wrote a scenario: I didn't know how they got the inside information, but these people knew that Bisang Construction was a strong candidate for a business operator. They were trying to send me to the road of death, to Jinyang Development.

'All right, then…' I began to sell off my shares in Jinyang Development.

"Your sell order is completed…"

Jinyang Development, which used to play at 1%, fell to -1%, -2%, and -3%, unable to beat my selling power. I had so much in my hands that I got a reduced profit every time I sold. But it was okay. All-out war was in three weeks later anyway. It was just children's play now.

'All right… I'm going to have to get ready for the real fight.' I picked up the phone and said to Secretary Seo, "As soon as Vice President Jang returns from his business trip, call him to the president's office."

"Yes, boss."

After a while, I could hear a knock outside.

"Come in."

Soon Jang came in and bowed his head. "Did you call me, sir?"

I asked him, "Do you have the team I ordered set up the other day? A team for short stock selling. Did you arrange it?"

"I've prepared the fastest traders."

"Good job. Good job!"

"By the way, it's time for the Stock Lending and Borrowing… Which stock would you like to bet on?"

"Please apply for the Stock Lending and Borrowing at Bisang Construction."

As I said, he spoke with his head tilted, "Do you meant Bisang Construction?"

I nodded, "Yes, I'd like you to apply for the Stock Lending and Borrowing at Bisang Construction, just as much as you can."

"… Yes… but boss," he had a little bit talk on my words.

"Please tell me."

"I heard that Bisang Construction is also quite powerful… Don't you mind? If we put a short stock sale on it, but if it is selected as a business operator, our losses will be quite large."

It was an understandable concern. I said, with the utmost reassurance of him, "It's okay. Please be sure to prepare for it to go right away if I say 'yes'."

Jang seemed to be unsatisfied with my order, but he only said, "Yes, boss."

After Jang left, I sold Jinyang Development once again, not to have attention to me. The stocks in both accounts were dispersed through the transfer of securities. Two men came in, and eight went out. It was a doppelganger art, to hide who was moving.

'They don't know what I'm doing with this. No, even if they knew… they wouldn't know what I mean.'Three weeks later, Thursday, two days before the announcement of the selection of the Old City Regeneration Project, I started working in front of my computer as usual, as soon as it was nine o'clock.

'Let's buy now… and sell it a week later…'

The stocks we were trading now were neither Bisang Construction nor Jinyang Development. I was just trading by opening a treasure box on the calendar application. Of course, I did not let the stock prices of Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development out of my sight.

[Bisang Construction 2%]

[Jinyang Development -3%]

I watched the two stocks go back and forth with a sideways glance.

[Bisang Construction -3%]

[Jinyang Development 4%]

The two stocks were going back and forth between cold and hot water, as if they were playing leapfrog.

'Then let's get into the water…'

After I finished trading today, I moved my attention to two stocks.

[Bisang Construction 5%]

[Jinyang Development 4%]

Both shares were in the positive territory around 10 a.m. A day from now, one of the two would go to heaven, and one would go to hell, but they seemed fearless.

[Bisang Construction 9%]

[Jinyang Development 5%]

But Bisang Construction was going to hit a bit more.

'Are the forces showing up little by little?'

It didn't matter to me whether or not. No matter how the spiders were encamped, they were in my grasp. I poured out my Bisang Construction shares for now.

"Your sell order is completed at market price…"

The stock price fell on my selling power to 8%, 7%. And yet, there was someone who took it.

"Wow!" The guy took all the shares, ten million dollars worth.

'Certainly, they are sitting here.'

Even though the shares worth ten million dollars were poured in, it was still in positive territory, at 2%. It was not an amount an ant could take. I was sure that those, who were a hundred percent confident that Bisang Construction would be selected, took it. Having sold all the shares of Bisang Construction, I picked up the phone and called Vice President Jang.

Tiriri tiriri, he answered the phone on the second call. "Yes, boss." It was faster than before. He was nervous. He also knew the selection would be completed two days from now.

I spoke to him, "Bisang Construction. Please make a short stock sale today and fill it up to 0.5% of the total market capital." The price is, of course, at the highest possible one. Okay?"

"Yes, sir."

"And as I said… apply for a public announcement right away."

"Yes, sir."

After I gave the order, I only cared about selling my shares again. Around 5 p.m., an announcement was made for Bisang Construction.

[The announcement of a short stock sale: Invictus Investment holds 0.51% shares of all shares in the market for a short stock sale.]

'The announcement of a short stock sale is made when the share amount of a short stock sale is more than half a percent of the total market capital.'

Now the investors across the country would know that there was a short stock sale for Bisang Construction, including Director Tak Joon-gi and Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk. The stock bulletin board was a mess.

– What the hell? Some crazy guy put a short stock sale at half a percent of the total market capital.-

– Invictus Investment? What is that company doing?-

– Uh, this is a famous company for a good investment. We're fucked, aren't we?-

– That's right. This company has had a big hit on the Kai Games… but they put a short stock sale in here… and I'm nervous…-

I could see such a comment among them. – What's this? They know the inside information, and they put a short stock sale off. I'll check out Invictus Investment.-

I muttered at them, "Check it out. What's coming out of it…"

Then I picked up my cell phone, not another, but just before the battle, to make fun of them, I sent a text message. – Dear reporter Kang Joo-hyuk, if you have time, can I talk to you?-

But I got a reply right away. -Yes, I can, sir.'

I called right away and could hear his voice, "Oh, CEO Han, How are you?"

"Oh, yes, reporter. How have you been?"

"Yes, of course."

After the usual conversation, I asked him, "By the way, I'm calling to ask you one more time about the selection of a business operator for the Old City Regeneration Project. Do you have any more information?"

"Oh, no, except that Jinyang Development is the most likely one."

"Yes, I see… I've made a big bet on Jinyang Development, as the reporter said. I've bought a lot. Not only that, but… I've also put a short stock sale in for Bisang Construction. I thought this would be a good opportunity to double the profit."

"Oh, you did."

'Bah! You've already seen it.' The operating guy must have seen the stock announcement.

"Oh, but this isn't a hundred percent certain… What if Bisang Construction is selected?"

"Oh then this bet is a failure, and I would think I'm unlucky. Could it be anything, but I have a sense that the selection of this developer is Jinyang Development."

"Haha, really? Shall I buy some shares in Jinyang Development?"

"It wouldn't be a bad idea to go there together."

"Oh, I'm just saying that. I don't trade any stocks because I have no courage."

It was a lie. He might have put his money in Bisang Construction.

"Oh, really? Then, watch what kind of cards we will have."

"Yes, CEO Han, I hope you do well."

The phone was cut off as the last words were told. For a moment, I looked at the flashing cell phone of "a reporter Kang Joo-hyuk."

'I don't know what their tone will be like when I talk to him in two days.' As I thought about it, I put my cell phone in my pocket.

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Translator: Khan

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It was the last trading day, a day before the announcement of the Old City Regeneration Project on Friday. I was just looking at the calendar app today and paying attention to my money. I did not touch the two stocks, Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development. I just watched the movement, '6%, 2%, -4%, -7%, -2%, 3%.'

Both stocks went up and down and were seesawing violently. I saw the stock window of Bisang Construction once or twice in the meantime. As I looked at the stock window, there was a sale on every asking price. That was the short stock sale, the sale just over the asking price. It might not all be ours, but a certain portion would be the short stock sale being made by the team set up by Vice President Jang.

'Well… they're doing great.'

I went to Jinyang Development this time. There was a considerable amount of short stock selling in Jinyang Development. I didn't know who was there, but some people bet on the decline of Jinyang Development.

'Anyone who knows that Bisang Construction will be chosen will do that.'

Both stocks were now up nearly 60% from the start. If they were not chosen here, the lower limit price should happen twice. If anyone was betting now, he was a man of pretty strong mind. Or, he would know the result in advance. It was the closing time of the market.

[Bisang Construction -7%]

[Jinyang Development -9%]

Both stocks closed lower with adjustments. It seemed that the ants ran away because they were afraid that they might go to hell as a result of the weekend. Both of them also had a significant amount of short stock sales. With this, the betting was over. The city government's ambitious announcement of the first operator of the Old City Regeneration Project would be at 3 p.m. tomorrow. Depending on the name of the company standing there, the joys and sorrows of the two stocks would be mixed on Monday.I looked at the screen with popcorn in my hand.

Ewan McGregor, whose feet were caught in moving trees said, "I've seen my death. I'm not dying like this." Then the tree let him go.

The movie on the screen was Tim Burton's "Big Fish". It was one of my favorite movies. I'd seen it ten times so far, but I saw it again.

'It's a masterpiece.'

I was absorbed in the movie.

'Sometimes false fantasies are better than the truth. Especially when it is made of love.'

I watched it all until the end. I was touched every time I saw it.

"Hoo… Tim Burton is a genius." I came out of my private theater after I finished watching the movie. When I came out, I found out my cell phone was ringing.

Woo-woong. I received the phone call; it was Secretary Seo. He said in an urgent voice, "Boss, we're in trouble."

"What's the matter?"

"It was announced as Bisang Construction was selected as the business operator."

Pretending to be slightly surprised, I said, "Oh, really?"

I glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. It was 3:43 p.m.

"Yes! That's why Vice President Jang called you several times, but you did not answer the phone."

"Ahh… yeah. I turned it off to focus on the movie."

"No, we're up to ten million dollars in our short stock sale."

"It's okay. It's common to lose money on the stock market. A stumble may prevent a fall. Last month alone, the total market capital of Kai Games went up by twenty million."

"No, but…"

"I'll call Vice President Jang again anyway."

"… yes, boss."

After talking on the phone, I picked up my cell phone. I'd got four missed calls while I was watching the movie.

-Vice President Jang-

-Vice President Jang-

-Vice President Jang-

-Secretary Seo-

I guessed Vice President Jang was a little surprised… I called right away.

Tiriri. "Yes, boss!" He answered my call this time just before the telephone rang twice. I thought he'd been waiting for my call. "Did you hear the news?"

"Oh, yes. I heard from Secretary Seo. Was Bisang Construction announced as a business operator?"

"… Yes. What should we do about this? We have to buy back the shares we put out for the short stock sale."

'If someone borrowed other people's shares for a short stock sale, he has to buy them back and pay them back. The problem is that we can't buy back the shares of Bisang Construction as from tomorrow, the upper limit price will march continuously upwards.'

"Next Monday… No, I can't guarantee it on Tuesday, either. It may go straight to the upper limit price and we will not be able to buy it again."

'When such good news comes out in the market, it goes up two or three times. In addition, there are people who wanted to scam it openly here, so it will go up higher than usual. After going up further, they will pass over the rest to the ants, who then will make an explosion.

'But before that, surely, the forces that are driving up the stock price as they want to sell it at a high price, so they will lead the stock price to the upper limit. The forces are trying to monopolize profits by making it impossible for ants to buy even a hundred thousand dollars. However, our company made a short stock sale worth ten million dollars. This means that we have to buy while crying and eating mustard only after the stock price goes up a lot.

'What if there's no other variable…'

I said soothingly to Vice President Jang, "I bet, but I lost… It's common for investors, is it?"

"Yes, but…"

'Jang seems a little shocked by the fact that my decision was wrong. I am sorry for the fact that since stocks have been rising according to my foresight, he has trusted me wholeheartedly.

'Didn't we have to put in a short stock sale?

But if I thought about it later on, this was also a necessary process. I spoke to Vice President Jang, "A general can't win every time. Let's shake off this failure and focus on our next investment."

Jang spoke in a way that seemed helpless, "… yes boss, but the amount of money that we put up for a short stock sale… "

"Just buy it back at a reasonable rate… We could lose ten million dollars, but there is nothing to do. We have to put up with it."

'A short stock sale is a very burdensome investment for those who make it. If you buy a thousand dollars worth of stocks and then get delisted at worst, you could lose a thousand dollars, but if the stock price goes up higher, you can lose more and more money. That's why the situation could be twice as bad if it goes up to the upper limit price for two days or three days.'

Jang spoke in a sad voice as if he had suffered a loss himself. "… yes."

'He's also loyal.' I liked that. I liked the way he thought about the company money as his own money.

'I'll give him an extra raise when this is over.' He was still getting the highest salary in the industry, but I would have to raise it a little bit more here.

"Yes, then, that's what you know, and don't get too upset."

"Yes, boss."

After I finished my phone call, I let out a long breath, "Hoo…" I pretended to be surprised, to be sad, I tried my own way, but I didn't know how good it was.

Because I knew in advance that Bisang Construction would be chosen.

"It's hard to lie, but that reporter did it very well." I went over the phone records.

Two days ago, I still had a record of talking to the reporter Kang Joo-hyuk. Newsmaker, this guy was good at lying without changing his face, "I don't know much about Director Tak Joon-gi."

I thought about him. 'You must be very excited right now.' Maybe he was having a big party. The operation was going well, as I had made a big short stock sale for Bisang Construction, and I told him that I had also bought Jinyang Development, which I hadn't actually bought, because I'd taken their short stock sale for Jinyand Development. So far, everything I had done had been according to the scenario they'd mapped out. But they couldn't have known that the scenario they had put together was just part of my scenario.

'Then, when do I pull the trigger?' I sat on the sofa and thought for a moment, when it would be the most dramatic, which would be most effective in destroying my enemies…That Monday, at the same time the market opened, Bisang Construction ran to the upper limit price, 30%. Equally obvious, Jinyang Development came out at the lower limit price of -30%. It was no surprise as I watched it, hawking as I normally did. What I was worried about was that the forces in Bisang Construction were eating out of here, as Kang Joo-hyuk said, 'There's nothing one hundred percent in stocks.'

Bisang Construction hit the upper limit price, but they could sell it off here. But soon, I shook my head. 'No, that's impossible.' It was like not racing with a four-card, not getting a call with a jackpot, or not picking up a hard paddle on the floor.

When I looked at the volume of transactions, the stock was rarely traded. Even the luckier ants would not sell at this price.

'All right, so… I'll sign the queue today. Shall I watch tomorrow?' Thinking about it, I picked up my cell phone and sent a text message, 'Q'. Just one word to someone.Tuesday, it was the same. Bisang Construction was at 30% and Jinyang Development was -30%. If there was a slight difference, Bisang Construction was rarely sold, whereas Jinyang Development was being traded little by little. Now that the lower limit price had been hit twice, the price was back in its proper place.

I began to sweep up Jinyang Development here. Jinyang Development, which was at the lower limit price, fluctuated a little due to my purchases. They probably thought, 'Thank you for buying me at this price.'

The ants that had failed to make a bet put their shares right on my purchase. Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and today when the result was announced to them, it must have been a hell of four days to get here. Well, there was nothing they could do about it, as they had put their money into a contest they had not been sure about.

I saw the stock price of Bisang Construction. It was stuck at the upper limit price. 'They are going to eat it all the way to the end.' I glanced at the clock. It was 9:30 a.m., and it was show time in a little while. I picked up my cell phone and called Vice President Jang.

"Yes, boss."

"What's the team for the short stock sale doing?"

"Oh, they are watching… they can't buy it because it's at the upper limit price. If the upper limit price is broken tomorrow…"

"Oh, come on, there's still a large amount of Stock Lending and Borrowing left, right?"

"… Yes? Yes."

"Please tell them to get ready for another short stock sale."

"Yes?"

I said this honestly, "I overheard a story coming out of the media… Maybe the situation will turn around."

"… but the result has already been announced…"

"I can't go into details. Instead…"

But then, for a moment, the upper limit price on Bisang Construction was broken.

I said urgently, "Now, tell them to put more on the short stock sale."

Vice President Jang said, "… Yes, sir."

However, perhaps our team for a short stock sale didn't sell much today. The stock price of Bisang Construction, which had just been at the ceiling, fell vertically in just a few seconds and plunged into the lower limit price.

'It's unexpected…' I tilted my head. It was faster than I thought. I thought it was going to take a few minutes, but it turned off in a few seconds. It meant that the impact of the article was intense. I tried to log on to the Internet. At the top of the portal site, there was an article: [Joo Sung-won, Mayor of Seoul, announced that there was corruption involved in a project to select a business operator for the Old City Regeneration Project.]

I looked at it and put my lips together. "Oh, did the Mayor himself announce it?"

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I was rather surprised to see the title of the article. I already knew what was going on in the article. I was probably the first to know that there was corruption involved in the selection process. What was surprising was that Mayor Joo Sung-won, the chief of the Seoul administration, revealed the corruption in person.

'Well… it' wasn't an easy decision to make.'

I was going to click on the article to see more. 'No, this isn't the time.' First, I turned to HTS. Bisang Construction was at the lower limit price in a few seconds. On the other hand, Jinyang Development was hanging around at 14%, the lower limit price was lifted. If Bisang Construction failed to be selected as a business operator, the likely company would be Jinyang Development. It was a simple calculation, but the market participants didn't know it, or they didn't have money even though they knew it.

'I have the money.' I immediately started buying up Jinyang Development. I didn't have to look at the stock window of the asking price of the market.

'$1,000,000.'

'$2,000,000.'

'$1,500,000.'

'$3,000,000.'

I just shot the money in. The stock price went up and turned around thirty seconds after I had started placing the buy orders. Ants were creeping in. I put a buy order of twelve million dollars at the upper limit price. It was the end of Jinyang Development's price fluctuation. Opportunities wouldn't go round for those who had heard the news belatedly. There was no one to fight against my twelve million dollars in the first place. With this move, I picked up all the money off the street.

I turned my eyes again, with the article I had seen earlier. 'What the hell happened?' I wondered how it was different from the future article I had seen. The future news I had seen a month ago was this.

[They issued an arrest warrant for Jung Gi-woong, president of Bisang Construction. Is the Old City Regeneration Project disrupted?]

I searched for "Jung Gi-woong" by People Search, and in the news of 12 Months After, an article came out. I didn't know how he got through the competition, but the article said that in January next year, Jung Gi-woong, president of Bisang Construction, bribed Seoul government officials and won the Old City Regeneration Project. It was a typical corruption case in civil engineering, and only the CEO would be arrested, without business interruption.

With this article, it seemed that the forces who entered Bisang Construction would have made money, according to their own scenario. It would have been almost a year since the corruption would be uncovered, but it would take only a month until they disposed of shares at the abnormally-high price. That was why I decided to shorten the period of nine months to expose them.

I scraped the article, memorized it, discarded it, and reconstructed it, like a new article. Then, if I sent the data with a "Q" sign, it was ready to spread to every city government official. I was an anonymous contributor, but I had exposed who had been involved in the corruption scandal, and how the officials received money, and how much they received in detail. The Seoul Metropolitan Government had investigated because the contents were so detailed.

And if they investigated this case on the basis of the submission, they could not deny the question, "Did you ever receive gold bars worth three hundred thousand dollars as a bribe from Jung Gi-woong at the Carlton Hotel in Yeouido around December nineteenth of last year?"

There was no denying it, so this was the result.

[Joo Sung-won, Mayor of Seoul, disclosed the corruption involved in the Old City Regeneration Project business operator selection process.]

What surprised me here was that Mayor Joo Sung-won himself became the main disclosure. He admitted a case where his own men committed corruption. If it turned out poorly, he was bound to be damaged.

I read the article, just picking the important stuff.

[Today I found out that there was corruption in the selection process, and I confirmed who was involved and contacted the media right away… I wasn't directly involved in the bidding process, but I also felt responsible and…]

According to the article, he chose to make himself clear, even if he was damaged by the fallout. I thought he did a good job. If he came straight out with this, people who doubted him, asking, 'The mayor is the top official, and is he also someone who took the money?', would hesitate.

Since the disclosure came out three days after the business operator had been selected, there had not been a significant tax leak. Maybe this would be a blessing, just like the last fake Me Too case. 'The public's assessment of a politician's story is not always as close as 11=2, or A, B, C, and D.'

I looked at it and thought, 'He is a man with good political sense. Maybe he'll really be the next president.' I thought I was getting more connected to this guy.

Then, I got a call from Vice President Jang. "Boss."

"Yes."

"I've got the team running the short stock sale in a hurry… but they couldn't sell. It went straight down to the lower limit price too fast."

I said as if I was sorry, "Well, we can't help it, but it's okay. Don't we still have our shares to sell anyway?"

"Yes, we have."

We were still in possession of the shares we had sold off with a short stock sale since the greedy wouldn't sell at the double price. But now they were all too impatient to sell it.

"This will hit the lower limit price twice from now on… No… if the results of the police investigation show up wrong… maybe it's a delisting issue."

"Yes."

Bisang Construction was to be pressed down, and Jinyang Development was to be raised. Now, the forces that stuck to Bisang Construction were going to suffer from the situation we had experienced before. The shares of Bisang Construction they had bought a lot were heavily piled up at the lower limit price and they could not sell them, while Jinyang Development, which they had happily put a short stock sale on, was at the upper limit price, and they could not buy it back. Their speed on the road to Hell was doubled.

I made it clear to Vice President Jang. "Pour in all the remaining shares for a short stock sale. Do you understand?"

Now it was like the lion biting the gazelle's throat. Jang would pile up sales on the asking price so that the stock price of Bisang Construction would never rise. He would do it until the operational forces were completely out of breath.

Vice President Jang, who had been depressed only a few days ago, spoke in a lively voice, "Yes, sir! I'll do as you order!"After I finished talking to Vice President Jang, I thought of a few faces for a moment: Master T. Tak Joon-gi, Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk, Kaiji Lee Won-jae, and his brother, who looked similar to Lee Won-jae.

By now, their faces were probably as red as the stock window of Bisang Construction.

'You will have to vomit up all the money you have earned from sending others to Hell so far… You not only have to vomit everything you've eaten, but you'll also have to squeeze out the gastric juice, too. Not only me, but other institutional investors and foreigners are anxious to complete a short stock sale.'

I picked up my cell phone. If I could, I'd like to call and tease them. 'Ha-ha. Who's the loser now?'

Well, come to think of it, there was no reason I couldn't call. Kang Joo-hyuk and I weren't enemies on the surface. We were rather close friends, an informant and an investor. Even his advice was correct, "I think you should invest in Jinyang Development."

'Well, then, let's get on the phone.' I picked up my cell phone and pressed the call button to him. It was not out of line to thank him. Recalling the conversation he and I had, of course, I should thank him. There was a crisis, but I hit a grand slam to turn the tables around.

Tiriri… Tiriri… Tiriri… Tiriri… The call tone kept going on around twenty seconds.

'Is he not answering the phone on purpose?'

I didn't know why he did not answer the phone, but I was sure there would be a big fuss going on over there. I stopped calling his phone, just leaving a text message.

– Have you seen the news today, reporter Kang? I'm very lucky. I thought I'd lose a lot of money three days ago, but on the contrary, it's a big profit. Please call me sometime. I'll buy you a good meal.-

I texted him like that, but after sending him the text, I suddenly thought, 'No, by the way… if I buy a meal, can he even eat it? Because of this incident, reporter Kang Joo-hyuk may lose not only money but other things.'

As far as I'd been dealing with Bisang Construction, I felt the operational forces had put in at least thirty million dollars here. Considering their short stock sale of Jinyang Development, it seemed that they were running around with about fifty million in capital. At this rate, they wouldn't get half of half of their money. The money might be from Tak Joon-gi or the equivalent of a big hand in the shadows.

'They must be going insane after losing thirty or forty million dollars, because until just now, they thought they would make that much money. After they lost the money, the shock will be added. If someone has to take responsibility for the swing of sixty to eighty million dollars, maybe the arrow will go to the man who made the news.

'Where did this information leak out? How did you handle it? Did you bet on the other hand? Did you want my money?' That might be the case.

'Well, if that happens… These are people who think human lives are worthless. He may be buried in one of the nation's numerous mountains where no one knows, or he may have a swift suicide caused by the stock investment failure, and hang himself. Of course, someone else will stand by with a knife in the process. But what can he do? He gets what he deserves.

'Because of his manipulation, others have already hanged themselves. There is Lee Kang-san of the president of Go-young Food, Lee Ah-young's father. In addition, how many people across the country will die after their stock investments fail?' When I thought of that, I didn't feel sorry for him. It was only natural for a devil to go to hell.

But then, my cell phone rang. It was none other than Kang Joo-hyuk.

'Did he see my text now?' I wondered while I was lowering my cell phone for a moment. I didn't know what to say at first.

Saying, 'Poor reporter Kang', would be overly chatty. Or, saying, 'Thank you, Mr. Kang', I could get right to the point.

I pressed the call button and held it to my ear. But, unexpectedly, an urgent voice came out of him, "CEO Han, please spare me."

'What is it in such a hurry?' I could roughly guess, but I pretended not to know, "What's wrong with you, Mr. Kang?"

He spoke in an unbecoming rambling way. "No, this announcement…"

"You mean the corruption of the business operator?"

"Yes. Isn't that what you… planned?"

"What?"

He used his power of reasoning as a Newsmaker. "No… you put a short stock sale on Bisang Construction… After all, you're the winner."

But there was no evidence. "No, I just… I heard what you said, and I thought Jinyang Development has a high possibility and I did it…"

He took a breath for a moment, then told me, "Are you serious? You prepared a short stock sale of nearly twenty million dollars just after listening to me?"

I answered calmly, "Yes, I thought Jinyang Development was a strong candidate. I just found out that there was corruption in Bisang Construction. As you know, the only companies we have are a game company, an entertainment company, and a private broadcasting station."

He clicked his teeth and replied, "Ah… yes, I see. I see…" He seemed to be frightened.

'At least… now that it's gone wrong… he knows a problem is coming.' I thought at this time, 'If this guy's dead, is that an ending? That's a little bad ending. The main body of this case is in a deeper side: Daewon Daily News and Suyeon Group.'

I pressed the recording button on my cell phone and said to him, "Well, what's wrong? Please be honest with me, Mr. Kang."

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I listened intently. If reporter Kang Joo-hyuk said something here, I might ferret out a dark secret above it.

Reporter Kang Joo-hyuk said in a trembling voice, "No, I don't know… I don't know, but CEO Han…"

Maybe because of his fear, I thought he was a little out of his mind.

I spoke in a calm voice as much as I could, "Yes. Say it."

"Could I… see you in person?"

"In person?"

"Yes."

"That's nice. I was going to buy you a meal, but…"

"Where… where there are many people… did you say you live in Gangnam?"

"Yes, it's near Gangnam Station."

He continued to speak in a trembling voice, "Oh, I see. I see. Gangnam Station is crowded. That's great. That's great. I'll get back to you. Let's meet and talk in person."

"… yes."

After I finished my phone call, I looked at my cell phone for a moment. 'A devil must be afraid to be dragged down to Hell.' However, there was not much I could do to help him. The corruption had already been exposed, and investors across the country were rushing in with knives and forks for Bisang Construction. The stock price of Bisang Construction would inevitably be expected to fall for some time even after hitting the lower limit price.

That was not the only thing.

'Jinyang Development, where they made a downward bet, would bring in not only institutional investors, foreign investors, but also ants who smelled the sweets. In this case, ants are scarier because they irrationally buy the stock and hoard it until it the bubble bursts.

'The losses are fixed. This is already spilled water. There's no way I can help him…

'Of course, I may spare him if I pay my own money to make up for the losses on the other end. But that's ridiculous. With that money, I would rather give support to children starving to death in Africa on the other side of the world. Even if he stretches over my trouser legs, there is no turning back. He knows that, too, if he's sane.

'Now that I heard his voice, I think he's out of his mind, and he's calling me… It doesn't mean anything. The only way he can live is to turn himself in and go to jail. That might be better. He could at least save his life if he were in jail.

'In American drama, when they go to prison, they die by another inmate. Well, our prisons aren't that bad. The next time I meet him… I'll have to try and persuade him that way, "Turn yourself into the police and confess everything you have done to manipulate stock prices in the past. Tell them who the owners of the money are and pay for the price of sin. Then at least you won't be buried in the hills or forced to kill yourself."

'Then, Lee Ah-young's parents will also be able to recover their honor. She may also shed the depression caused by her parents' death.

'The news must be a better gift for her than any flowers…'

I put down my cell phone, thinking pleasant thoughts."Mayor Joo Sung-won himself said that there was corruption in the selection process of a business operator."

I lay on the sofa and watched the news with my chin up. In the end, the corruption news on the selection of the business operator was carried by the nine o'clock news. As a political magnate, the focus was more geared toward the Mayor Joo Sung-won and who had taken bribes, rather than Bisang Construction and Jung Gi-woong, who had given them.

It was all done by subordinates of Mayor Joo Sung-won, but the news reported the reaction of politicians and the ones of the public.

"The opposition parties have strongly insisted that Mayor Joo Sung-won is responsible."

"Joo Sung-won, the mayor of Seoul, should take responsibility for the incident and step down on his own…"

"People are showing some mixed reactions to the incident."

"Maybe the mayor is responsible, too."

"There are a lot of Seoul government officials, and he can't know everything, can he? I think it's more believable that he exposed it on his own."

I looked at it and thought, 'That's what I expected, too.'

Mayor Joo Sung-won's move, where he hit first, was not bad. I nodded and found the remote control. Well, I'd seen all the news I wanted to see, so…

"This is the following news. There's a disclosure that stock price manipulators have intervened in the stock of Bisang Construction, in the corruption case of the Old City Regeneration Project. I'm a reporter, Jeon Gook-jin."

Such news came out. '… what?' I watched more alertly.

In the news, a modulated voice and the reporter's voice alternated.

"After all… it's going to be Bisang Construction. Let's buy it for six months, pass it on to the ants and leave."

"You've known this since six months ago?"

"Yes. Yes. … since six months ago…"

But I was familiar with that modulated voice.

"One informant, who asked for anonymity, revealed the specific operation schedule and methods."

"It was all… it was all a squeeze-and-pitch go-stop. It was done by talking to government officials. Being selected as a business operator… Competitors should also be invited to become bridesmaids, and then choose Bisang Construction, so let's double the share price and come out. Like that."

'… this guy… reporter Kang Joo-hyuk?'

Reporter Kang Joo-hyuk, who had talked on the phone earlier, was overloaded despite his voice modulation.

"He said the corruption case turned the operation into a blister."

"It… should have gone to the upper limit price today, but it went to the lower limit price, so it was ruined. Who's going to take responsibility? Who's that?"

I thought he was the one who stammered his voice and repeated the same thing twice.

'Has he made up his mind to expose it all to the media?'

Perhaps this was wiser. The last time, we looked at the case of Go-young Food, where public power did not protect citizens, either. It would have been difficult for the forces to use its power if he were to make the matter public this way. He was a reporter, so maybe this side was easier and more comfortable…

"In addition to the case of corruption, stock price manipulation… There's a constant stream of noise surrounding Bisang Construction. I'm reporter Jeon Gook-jin, for BKS News."

I watched all the news with my eyes wide. At the end of the news, my cell phone rang. It was Secretary Seo. I took it.

"Yes, what?"

"Boss, we're in trouble." Secretary Seo made a slight fuss.

"Why?"

"The prosecution says… our company will be investigated about the stock price manipulation as well."

"Ah." Come to think of it, our company was also involved. Our company also traded Bisang Construction, although we moved in the opposite direction from the operational forces. I said bluntly, "Yeah. Okay. So when are they coming? The prosecutors."

"They'll be here tomorrow."

"So I'll see you tomorrow when I get to work."

As I spoke calmly, Seo's voice was also slightly lowered, "Yes, boss… By the way, are you okay?"

"Well, our company… almost lost it."

Our company was clean. I'd already anticipated this scenario. We had also sold all the shares of Bisang Construction before the surge, like we didn't know there was going to be a spike.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yes."A middle-aged man asked me, "So, CEO Han Sang-hoon, you ordered a short stock sale because you didn't think Bisang Construction would be selected?"

His eyes glared at me.

'You are the prosecutor and your look is great.' I said, thinking about that, "Yes. I thought Jinyang Development and Hanbit Construction were much more likely than Bisang Construction. Therefore, it was too much to expect the share price of Bisang Construction to rise by fifty percent. It was definitely a bubble and I wanted to make a falling bet… I ordered a short stock sale."

He said, looking at the share price of Bisang Construction, which was at the lower limit price of -30%. "So you did it. You must have made a lot of money today, right?"

After all, we were the final winners.

"Yes, but… until yesterday morning, it was a loss. And then the corruption news broke, and I was lucky to make a dime."

I turned my head and looked at Vice President Jang beside me, eye to eye. "That's why I've been discussing this with Jang all weekend. I told him what to do when the loss got bigger. Isn't that right, Jang?"

Vice President Jang also nodded and carried on, "I really thought we were going to lose money. After the announcement of the business operator selection over the weekend, I thought we were in trouble. So I talked to the boss on the phone and discussed how to reduce the loss. If you look it up, you'll have the call record. It's okay for you to listen to the conversation."

We had certainly exchanged such calls on the weekend.

'What should I do with the short stock sale, boss?

'It's okay. Sometimes we lose money when we invest.'

It was hard to believe that someone who lost on the gambling used such a trick. The prosecutor also confirmed the point and nodded.

A man, who appeared to be an investigator for the prosecution, brought in a lot of papers and said, "I've talked to the team about the short stock sale, and they said they were still waiting on Monday afternoon to buy back. They tried to buy back after the news on Monday, but they couldn't because it went to the lower limit price so fast."

Upon receiving the report, the middle-aged prosecutor nodded, "Yes, I see. You almost lost your money, but the disclosure came out and you made a fortune…"

The disclosure was done by me, but that process was beyond anyone's knowledge. They would not look for me when I exposed massive corruption in the first place. Mayor Joo Sung-won, the leading candidate for the next presidential election, was protecting me.

"Yes, thank you."

This was going to be neat. I watched them go out of the company with my arms crossed. Vice President Jang went after them. I watched him for a moment.

'What's wrong with him?'

Then, about ten minutes later, he came back and told me, "I don't think it's going to be any problem at all. The prosecution has decided to devote its energy to tracking down those who bought stocks rather than us."

I guessed he had followed the prosecutor and been told that. "Really?"

"Yes. He said those who have manipulated the stock prices this time are quite a big force. I think the prosecutor is very interested in them."

That was great. In fact, Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk was nothing more than a long-term horse. Tak Joon-gi, Lee Won-jun, and Lee Won-jae should be brought up, so the case should be solved properly. I thought of the three men in a prison uniform. It was quite a contrast to holding a glass of champagne at Garden Envy.

'They have to pay for their sins.' That was when I was thinking about it. My cell phone rang once more. When I looked at it, the caller was Lee Won-jae of Daewon Daily News.

It was Kaiji.

'Oh, I am a popular man.' With such a thought, I took my cell phone and headed for my office.

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I came into the president's office and looked at my cell phone. I didn't know what this guy meant or what he was thinking, but he was most likely connected to this case.

'… why the Hell…?'

In any case, there was no reason not to answer the phone. I pressed the call button.

"How have you been, CEO Han? I'm Lee Won-jae of the Daewon Daily News."

"Yes, Mr. Lee. Long time no see."

"Yes, it's been a long time. How have you been, Mr. Han?"

The voice of Director Lee Won-jae was nowhere near as bad as Kang Joo-hyuk's.

I answered implicitly, "Yes, of course. How are you?"

"Yes, I've been doing well, too. Haha."

I was slightly surprised to hear a laugh coming over the phone.

'Are you laughing?' He might not have touched on this case. 'If it's not, then why are you calling me?'

I asked him, "By the way, what made you call me?"

"It's just…" He blurted his words out, "I'm calling to thank you."

I asked back, "Thank me?"

He brought up words to me. "Yes, well, this is about Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development."

I spoke in the most obtuse tone of voice, "Ah, yes. But why… are you saying 'thank you'?"

"Isn't this a painting done by Mr. Han Sang-hoon?"

As expected, this guy thought I was behind the scenes, like reporter Kang Joo-hyuk, the prosecutor, and so on. I couldn't help it.

'In a mystery novel, people who benefit from a person's death are the most likely to be questioned. This incident has resulted in tens of million dollars of profits for our company and me. It's just that I screwed up the operational forces.'

I just hit them with the money they hit me with, and that was all that happened. I was as consistent to him as I was to others I didn't know. "No. How did I, the president of an investment company, find out about the corruption and know the information in advance? I was lucky to make a bet on the wrong side."

"Ah, was it that so? I thought it was unlikely, but you are the one the money went to. Haha. I'm sorry, I just doubted."

He said so, but he didn't seem to believe me 100%.

'Bah, you are the man of a fox.'

But I had a question: why did he say "thank you" to me? I asked him, "But why… did you say 'thank you' to me? Did you buy Jinyang Development, too?"

"No. I bought Bisang Construction, not Jinyang Development. I should've sold it when it went to the upper limit price yesterday. I was so greedy that I got the lower limit price. I put in a million dollars. I don't know how much I can get back."

He bought the stock of Bisang Construction worth a million dollars, but he still thanked me. It didn't make sense.

I asked him, "So, how come you're grateful to me?"

This fellow said something I could not understand. "Oh, I made more than a million dollars."

"What are you talking about…?"

Director Lee Won-jae told me, "Haha, well, it's difficult to say right now, but read the article later. Ah, CEO Han, will you keep hitting the short stock sale for Bisang Construction?"

"… I'm sorry to tell you, but it's about our company's profit. I'll keep hitting it."

"Oh, I see." That was also a strange reaction. He was happy the price of his stock would go down. It was quite strange. He left a strange remark until the end. "I see. It was nice to talk to you on the phone after a long time. I think our relationship is a good one. I don't know what CEO Han might think, but… If you have any further requests for us, please contact us immediately. I'll send out a well written article."

I answered briefly, "Yes."

After I finished my phone call, I put down the cell phone.

'I got the loss, but made a bigger profit; thank you for hitting the short stock sale to the stock I bought.'

There were a lot of strange words. I thought of them in silence. 'What is a possible scenario for this…?' Come to think of it, there was only one. 'Don't tell me… Is that it?'That evening, there was an article on the Internet.

[Jung Gi-woong, president of Bisang Construction, confessed to all charges.]

It was as expected. Since the data I had circulated was so accurate, there was no way out.

I read the article.

[… He has been acquainted with Seoul City Hall for ten years, and when he was among the selected candidates for this project, he was in contact with them.]

'With the mayor admitting this, the lower limit price for Bisang Construction is fixed again tomorrow. It has hit the lower limit price twice so far, but there is a long way to go down, since it's risen so far. It is nothing more than a bubble bursting. Now that the CEO has committed a crime, it's proper to go below the usual price.'

I looked further down the article.

[… However, he has denied any recent stock price manipulation. President Jung gi-woong says he expected the stock price to rise if Bisang Construction was selected, but he didn't really share the information with anyone.]

He denied stock manipulation. I looked at it and thought, 'He is lying.'

'In the case of the stock price soaring with a good source, such as Bisang Construction, it is usually required to be approved by major shareholders. When its stock price soars, and major shareholders sell off their shares, the operational forces have a burden, too. Of course, some stocks go even higher after major shareholders sell their shares, but most of them take the same steps.'

I thought of the presidents of the small and medium-sized construction companies who had bowed and scraped to Tak Joon-gi at Seoul City Hall.

'President Jung Gi-woong must have known that if his company was chosen as a business operator, the stock price would rise even more than normal… I don't know what the price would have been…'

I read all the articles to the end. In the comments of the articles, in general, political ones were the main focus.

– Mayor Joo Sung-won, who is the main hall of bribery, step down!-

– The mayor himself revealed the corruption and had no sin. I think he's stopped the wrongdoings of Seoul Metropolitan Government.-

The public seemed to be interested in this.

'What I'm curious about is how the stock manipulation scandal is going on.'

Suddenly, I picked up my cell phone and searched for reporter Kang Joo-hyuk. I recalled the conversation I had had yesterday, 'CEO Han… please spare me. Gangnam Station? It's nice to have a lot of people. I'll call you back.'

He said he would contact me again, but I hadn't heard from him.

'What's going on?'

He seemed to have contacted a broadcasting company last night, but it was not enough to get a clear pass.

'He might have stimulated the upper line…'

Come to think of it, it was a game-changer of his own: "Look, I can expose myself to the press, to the police. Don't touch me."

'But… what if they ignored that message? I have an ominous premonition. I hope that no matter how evil he is, he will not be buried in the hills or thrown into the West Sea with stones in his boots. I want him to go to the police station, court, and prison, and pay for his crime. In the process, it's good if he says the name, Tak Joon-gi. But somehow… I don't think that's going to happen.'

Considering Lee Won-jae's strange phone call today, it was clear that something was happening below the waves. 'Read the article later.' However, it should be said that his decision was already made. Whether it was the police or the media, it was about the timing and how it would be revealed to the public.

'Well… what the Hell… what's going on?'It didn't take long for my question to be solved. Around 8:30 in the evening, I waited for nine o'clock without playing a game or watching a movie. It was to watch the nine o'clock news from BKS. I was hoping that something more might come out today. However, there was some news on the main screen of the smartphone and portal site, which was picked up without much thought.

[Kang Joo-hyuk, a reporter for Jaeil Economy, committed suicide after disclosing about the stock price manipulation in Bisang Construction.]

I saw the title, and I groaned a little. Ah…

'Is this what happened in the end?' I thought the disclosure yesterday might have killed him. There would have been no guarantee of living if he hadn't made the disclosure. I read the article.

[Kang Joo-hyuk, a report at Jaeil Economy, wrote a suicide note revealing stock price manipulation, and lit charcoal in his car.]

If it were as usual, I would've thought, 'That's how he went.'

However, this time, I thought, 'Did they give him sleeping pills and light charcoal to kill him?'

I continued reading the article.

[… According to the suicide note, he was the brain of the stock manipulation team, and he planned what businesses they were going to manipulate, how he would run the news, how he would run the funds…]

I scrolled down further and looked at it. His death was sorry, but more important was the upper line. I found a name, a cash cow at the heart of stock manipulation. I soon found a familiar name.

[… he conspired with Executive Director Lee Won-jun of Daewon Daily News, and Park Soo-young, president of Seree Investment, to collect Bisang Construction shares…]

Looking at the name, Lee Won-jun, I thought, 'The reason why Lee Won-jae liked it is this…'

When I spoke to him earlier, there was only one scenario that brought to mind his elder brother, Executive Director Lee Won-jun of Daewon Daily News. I didn't know him well, but Lee Ah-young had pointed to Lee Won-jun, not Lee Won-jae, as her enemy, so it would have to be true that Lee Won-jun was closer to the stock manipulator. Lee Won-jae heard the story and invested a million dollars. But Lee Won-jun, the center of the forces, might have invested nearly ten million dollars, possibly more.

'He lost more than ten million dollars and he's caught in stock price manipulation… If so, he is likely to be excluded from succession to the Daewon Group. The chances will be much greater for the third son, Lee Won-jae. If such stakes are raised there, a million dollars is a very small amount of money.'

He knew his brother was going to be arrested away, so he liked it. As expected, they didn't have close relationships in a rich family. I saw the following name. 'Seree Investment? What's this?'

I searched the name in the portal window. It was actually near my company. It was an investment company located in Gangnam. 'Seree Investment, total market capital, five million dollars.'

By the way, I didn't know anything else, but looking at it just one time, it gave me a rough idea: it was a lizard cutting off its tail.

Five million dollars? More than fifty million dollars had been transferred, just looking at what I saw. I came back to the article again. In the will, there was no such thing as Tak Joon-gi or anything like that.

'Did they manipulate the will… or…?' Nothing was left to write a novel now. I read the article to the end.

[Police say he appears to have committed suicide because he couldn't overcome his guilt.]

I repeated that when I saw it, "He couldn't overcome his guilt?" I was dumbfounded. Anyone who couldn't overcome his guilt never did this. It was definitely a fabricated situation, maybe even by the police who had done the investigation. Suddenly I recalled Director Tak Joon-gi, who was making a mean smile and him saying, "I'm not with those vulgar things…"

He had never been mentioned in this case of the dead reporter Kang Joo-hyuk and Director Lee Won-jae. I looked at the clock. It was 8:45, five minutes before the second future news would come.

'… this guy… even if he didn't get caught now… Let's see what will happen in the future.' I sat down in front of the computer, thinking about that.

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As always, there were four emails today. I clicked the one, D. 12 Hours After, on the top of the list.

[Politics Economy Society Life/Culture…]

Under the following news, there were two People Search slots.

[Personal search – please write a name.]

[Personal search – please write a name.]

I searched for Lee Won-jun first.

[Lee Won-jun, director of the Daewon Daily News, denied involvement in stock price manipulation.]

There was an article like that. It would come out within twelve hours from now. It was supposed to be an article that would come up tonight or tomorrow morning.

'His name was in the will… but he denied it. However, can he deny it in the prosecution's investigation, if it starts?'

I followed up with a search for Tak Joon-gi.

'No news is found.' It was said that there was no news, which meant that there was no news of the same name.

'I don't know the search result for the name Joon-gi, but Tak is not that common a surname.'

I did the same search for Lee Won-jun on 12 Days After.

[Lee Won-jun, executive director of the Daewon Daily News, was arrested without bail.]

Lee Won-jun was finally put behind bars. I followed up with the name Tak Joon-gi.

[Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel supports the travels of children of multicultural families.]

But oh my! On the other hand, good news came on the side of Tak Joon-gi.

'Has he… escaped from this?'

I searched for the news 12 Weeks After.

[Lee Won-jun, the third generation of Daewon Group, was sentenced to five years in prison and five million dollars in fines.]

Director Lee Won-joon was eventually sentenced to prison. On the other side, Tak Joon-gi was in the news for going abroad.

[Director Tak Joon-gi, visiting Chengdu, China, leading the travel business for China.]

I entered the last email, 12 Months After, drumming the chair with my finger.

[Lee Won-joon, the head of the Nam-gu office in Incheon, visits a restaurant for senior citizens.]

Lee Won-jun was completely replaced by other people's news. It was a common name, so it was appropriate.

[Director Tak Joon-gi visits his grandfather's grave.]

There was news that Tak Joon-gi had visited his grandfather's grave. I clicked on it. There was a picture of Tak Joon-gi getting out of the car.

'If it's his grandfather… the chairman of Suyeon Group, Tak Jin-woon…' This day seemed to be a memorial day for Chairman Tak Jin-woon. There was a row of black luxury cars around the so-called 'Chairman Car,' as if it proved the power of Suyeon Group. I looked at it for a long time and then closed the email.

'All right, That's it.' I didn't know what was going on in the details, but in any case, the true secret seemed to have ended without being revealed.

'However, more than 90%, it is Tak Joon-gi… or 99% sure, if I think of what Lee Ah-young said.' The black secret was not revealed and it seemed to have ended in a state of indeterminacy. Although Lee Won-jun of Daewon Group, one of the heirs of the media conglomerate, was arrested and sent to prison, Tak Joon-gi was not mentioned at all.

'Is this the power of the Suyeon Group?' I didn't know how far they were connected to the prosecution, the police, and the media. I was angry right now, but I couldn't do anything about it.

"That bastard needs to be fully destroyed… but he is protected by the Suyeon Group. Is there any proof that he can't get out of?"

I had a sudden idea: an active skill worth seven points, "An Investigating Correspondent" which could be obtained when I attained the Master Class. Last time, I'd put it off to get the news of 12 Weeks After and 12 Months After, but if I had that skill, I might be able to dig up the dark side of something.

'Our investigator is very competent', the Customer Service said, and so it must be…

'So… let's take over two more companies as soon as possible. If I get that skill… something might unravel.'

There had been many things going on, but I'd been trading, writing down the good news on my calendar. Even I paid ten million dollars for the monthly subscription fee, I earned at least twenty million, or as much as forty million, every month. My cash was nearly two hundred million dollars at this point. In addition, Invictus Investment, which had a sprawling sixty percent stake in Kai Games, had nearly three hundred million dollars in assets.

'Vice President Jang said there were no proper sales, but…' It would be done if I could buy one business, whether there was a proper sale or not. Now was the time to assess efficiency; I'd have to raise the class at the cost of more money.

'That's what I am going to do later… and all I can do now is…' I could squeeze out the money he had tied up in Bisang Construction, and the short stock sale in Jinyang Development. Even if he was a third-generation chaebol, tens of millions of dollars was not small money.

'Bah! Even if the law was avoided, the money lost could not be avoided as long as it entered the market.' I closed my email window, thinking about that.The next morning. Bisang Construction began the day at -27%. I got a feeling that someone was trying to prop up the starter with money. Soon, however, the bomb of a short stock sale fell on top of the asking price, because our company, Invictus Investment, and other companies didn't let it go up. Therefore, Bisang Construction went directly to the lower limit price within one minute.

'This will hit the lower limit price from now, until it's cut in half.'

Our funds for a short stock sale were already making more than a thirty percent profit, but I was going to keep the reins on. I would let those who loved money taste Hell here. I went on to look at Jinyang Development.

"Uh?" Jinyang Development was fighting a battle around the upper limit price of 25%. I understood. Even if Bisang Construction was undertaking a great fall, it didn't mean Jinyang Development would be selected as a business operator. It would take at least a few months to re-select a business operator. Perhaps Jinyang Development might be excluded from the next selection. Their construction capability was excellent, but the impact of the Bisang Construction corruption case had been so great that the new candidate group was likely to be completely new faces.

'They think that the upper limit price twice is a little bit too much.'

I roughly calculated the amount remaining to the upper limit price. '$50,000,000… or about $60,000,000.'

Betting this much wasn't too lethal. I swapped my accounts and quickly bought the shares. $500,000, $700,000, $1,000,000….

The stir was transmitted to the market right away.

'Is this going to the upper limit price or not?'

The long-suffering ants were right back on my buying spree. I was just looking for the right timing, and then I put in the buy order of $5,000,000 in the upper limit price. Of course, all the remaining shares were sold out, and Jinyang Development hit the second upper limit price. It was a bit of a forced upper limit price, but it was not nonsense. Ants would understand, a big hand was pushing up.

But the ones who had put a short stock sale here would suffer saying, "No, some bastard pushed the price higher…"

'If I lose a little bit here, I will still push it to the upper limit price once or twice…'

They must have been excited when they had made a short stock sale, but now it would be quite painful to try to pay the shares back at a price that had more than doubled. The buy orders were piling up on my five million dollars: thirty thousand, sixty thousand, one hundred twenty thousand dollars… These ants were also enough to torment the forces behind the short stock sales.

So, after all, Bisang Construction hit the lower limit price again today. Jinyang Development did not move on the upper limit price. Tak Joon-gi and Lee Won-jun, who had poured money into this stock, must be in great pain.

"Okay, well, that's enough…" I decided to return to my usual routine and trade other stocks. I thought I would make tens of million dollars this time, but what I usually earned was actually more. I called up my mobile phone calendar app and found a code that was used as an initial consonant. 'TSJS 120% SC'

'The total sales of Jangsung Steel were 120% higher compared to last year with the supply contract.'

In the meantime, the doorbell of my apartment rang.

'What is it?' The bell rang in broad daylight. I pondered it. I didn't order a package. My parents came and went last week. I didn't even call Secretary Seo. Then only one person who came to mind: Lee Ah-young. It seemed to be her.

'She must have seen this article… because there was some big news yesterday.' One of her three enemies committed suicide and pointed to the other in a suicide note. She must have felt something strange.

I went up to the front door. When I opened the door, there was Lee Ah-young, of course. She wore blue jeans and a white T-shirt, and looked really pretty. As expected, the completion of fashion was appearance, but it was not the time to indulge in her good looks.

I asked her, "Why are you here this morning?"

She said to me in a direct way, "I saw the article."

I had a rough guess, but I asked back, "What article?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Don't have an air of innocence. I've looked up all the details of Invictus Investment's short stock sale for Bisang Construction."

That was the story, too. She said, standing in front of the front door. "What the hell did you do?"

For a moment, I looked behind her. There was no one in the hallway, but her voice resonated well. I gestured, "Come in."

She stared at me for a moment, then came into my apartment.

I spoke cliche, "Would you like something to drink?"

"No thanks. Tell me more than that. What's going on?"

I lowered my eyes and stroked my chin. 'Do I have to tell her the story?'

There was no possibility of her telling this story to anyone else. They were her enemies, but I was afraid she would do something dangerous after hearing the story. That was what worried me.

I said in an indirect way, "… it's a long story to talk about…"

She said, standing next to the sofa in the living room, "Tell me the long story. I don't have class today, anyway."

"… don't you think I'm busy?"

"You don't usually go to work." She also knew I wasn't very good at going to work.

'What, do you watch me commuting?'

I told her, "Traders like me… often work at home even if they don't go to work." I pointed to my computers with a look.

She glanced at it and turned back as if ready to leave. "Then next time you're free…"

I caught her like that, "No, I'll tell you. Sit down. Instead…"

She gave me a slight glance and said, "Instead?"

"Never talk to others."

"I can't talk to anyone, if it's not Sarah in the U.S. and Sarah can't speak Korean. You saw that, right?"

Sarah? The white beauty's name must be Sarah. I approached the refrigerator with a nod. "Do you really want nothing to drink? It's a long story."

"Well, I'd like a glass of juice, please."

I took the grape juice out of the refrigerator, filled a glass and handed it to her. Suddenly, I remembered her getting drunk after drinking two glasses of wine. I wet my throat first with juice and then began to talk. "So this story starts… when I went to Seoul City Hall to accept a prize."

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Lee Ah-young was sitting on the sofa listening to me.

I looked at her and said, "It was Newsmaker Kang Joo-hyuk who appeared at the time. I could recognize him at a glance by the photos you had showed me. A lizardman-like impression."

She said with her eyes wide open, "Lizardman?"

"Oh, he looked like a lizard."

"Aha…"

"So I listened to him, and he leaked some information about Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development, saying Jinyang Development had a strong possibility. So I thought it was a trap." I told her the story that had been going around so far, except for the fact that I'd been receiving the future news. "In the meantime, I overheard rumors elsewhere."

"What rumors?"

"During the project, a construction company presented bribes to Seoul government officials. When I heard that, I assumed it was Bisang Construction and they were trying to tie up with the stock manipulators."

"So you put a short stock sale for Bisang Construction?" She seemed to know basic stock concepts, such as a short stock sale.

'Think of it… Go-young Food had huge short stock sales before it was delisted.'

I said, nodding my head, "Yes. If it was heard even in my ear, I was sure there would be trouble later… That was what I thought. So I ordered my company to make a big short stock sale on Bisang Construction. First of all, I thought we were going to make a big profit, and second of all, I was to fuck up the stock manipulators who'd bought a lot of these shares. Of course, everything didn't work out as expected. I thought the corruption would come to light before the announcement of a business operator."

She listened to me, her eyes blinking. She seemed to believe everything I said.

"With the announcement of Bisang Construction at the end of the week, our company began to suffer huge losses. I thought, 'Should I come forward and make a tip, even if I take a little bit risk?' But fortunately, it seemed like a righteous man reported the corruption to the Seoul City."

Of course, "a righteous man" was me, but I kept it a secret. No matter if Tak Joon-gi was the enemy of her parents, there was no need to give out unnecessary information. That was a problem for me, and it would be a burden for her, too. It was better for her not to know.

"So… after everything, the forces that invested in Bisang Construction suffered huge losses… They're fighting among themselves…"

I said, nodding my head, "Yes, it seemed that way. As a result, the most powerless Kang Joo-hyuk died, and then the next weakest, Lee Won-jun, was arrested, and the strongest, Tak Joon-gi, is… Well, he's going to lose a lot of money."

Listening to me, she asked, "…will Lee Won-jun be arrested?"

Oh, I unknowingly told her future news. I made a rough excuse, "That's what it's going to be. If you watch this… It looks like that's how the traffic is organized. Kang Joo-hyuk, his tail was cut when he died, and Lee Won-jun… he's trying to deny it, but he will fail, and Tak Joon-gi has been protected by Suyeon Group or something."

"Yes… I see…" Lee Ah-young was lost in thought as she looked at the glass of grape juice she was holding. She was thinking of complicated thoughts. One of her three enemies died, and one would be in a cell, but she was not excited.

'And revenge… of course.'

I looked at her like that and told her, "One of your enemies is dead anyway, and the other is going to jail… There's a good chance… and I'll squeeze blood out of the other one. He's a third-generation chaebol, so he's not directly harmed, but he'll be financially hurt this time. He can't do that for a while."

Not only that, once I got my Master Class, I would crush him completely, so he could never make a complete comeback.

Lee Ah-young, who was listening to me, nodded silently and asked me, "Yes, but… why did you help me get my revenge?"

I was talking excitedly so far, but I was slightly speechless there. "Well, first of all, it was helpful for our company. And after hearing your story, I've wanted to fuck up these guys at least one time. I didn't know who was going to die, and who was going to be taken to the police station."

She smiled at me a little. Then she lifted up her glass and drank all the remaining grape juice, stood up and said, "I see. I'm sorry I came all the way not giving you any notice. I was so surprised to hear the news. And I was curious. I had to come."

I gathered my lips slightly and said, nodding agreeably, "No, it's okay. The story of your parents' enemies was on the news… I'm sure if it was me, I would be here too, especially we… live right next door."

"… Thank you for your understanding, oppa. This… this is the revenge you've gained for me."

Listening to that, I opened my eyes wide, and looked at her and asked, "Well, you're not drunk after drinking grape juice, are you?"

"What?"

"It's the first time you've called me oppa while awake."

She exclaimed, her eyes jumping, "Oh, did I? Did I?"

Did the question refer to 'Did I call you oppa after drinking now'? Or, 'did I call you oppa last time?'

I didn't know what question she was asking for, but I simply answered, "Yes."

She flushed slightly, then lowered her head for a moment, then lifted it up and said, "I'm not drunk. I'll just call you oppa from now on. Is that okay?"

I liked it better, too. "Yes, please."

"Yes, oppa. I'll call you oppa from now on. When you call me, please take out Ms."

"What? You want me to take out Ms.?"

"When you call me, you say Ms. Ah-young. It's so awkward. Just make yourself comfortable and call me by my name."

"Ahah… I'll do that. Ms. Ah-young. No." I filtered her request for a moment, then corrected it. "I will, Ah-young."

She smiled at my words. At this time, when I thought about her, who had been arrogant and overbearing when I had first met her in real estate under this apartment, she really changed a lot.

"Then I'll go. I came over at night and asked… Thank you for being honest with me, oppa."

Not everything was honest, but she seemed to believe so. That was good for me and for her. I told her at the door, "Anyway, what I said today is a secret."

"I know. I… I don't talk about my parents. Don't worry about that."

She seemed to be honest. 'Usually, it's hard to share a sad story, even if we can easily share a good story with others. It's hard to bring up a story like that, because others feel pressured unless they are really trustworthy.'

'But why am I…?' Suddenly, that question came to my mind, but as she said, maybe the three times she was drunk had played a crucial role in gaining credibility. I saw her off at the front door.

"Then go in."

"Yes, oppa." She gave me a very polite and formal bow, and went right into her apartment next door. I peeked at her back and shut the door. In the corridor, I heard the sound of pressing the keypad and then the door closing.

I came back to the living room and lay down on the sofa. I could feel the body heat from the seat where Lee Ah-young was sitting just now. I thought about her for a moment. Two out of three of her enemies died or went to jail. The other one was fatally wounded.

'Will she feel a little lighter now that I've avenged them?' Come to think of it, when she left, it seemed that her shoulders were slightly raised from behind.

'Yes, not a hundred percent, but she'll feel a little less heavy about her parents.'

When I was thinking about that, my cell phone, laying on the table, rang. I went there and picked up my cell phone. There was a text message. The sender was Lee Ah-young next door.

– Oppa, I just said thank you. It's practically like you've avenged them. I'll buy you another meal. Just say anything about the menu. I've been to some famous restaurants with my friends these days.-

I looked down at it and sent a reply.

-All right, if you don't drink.-I heard a knock on the door.

"Yes, please come in."

Vice President Jang opened the door and came in. Sweat was beaded on his forehead.

"Oh my! Did you walk?"

He took out his handkerchief and said, tapping his forehead, "Yes, the meeting place was a nearby cafe, so I thought I'd walk a little bit, but… I am sweating like this."

I glanced out of the window. The sun was shining. "It was hot last summer, and I think it's hotter this year."

"That's right, sir."

July 2019, it was pretty hot these days. I told him, "By the way, what happened? What did they say?"

"They didn't say yes right away, but I could see they were shaken. As you said, research and development costs were so high that the deficit was huge and there were no results… I guess it was a situation where the stock price fell and bonds weren't sold. I think they'll accept our investment, if we preserve the independence of the researchers."

"Yes, I want you to be clear about that. We're not going to touch any of the research, and we're only going to focus on profitability; show them the examples of Kai Games, OH Entertainment, and Blue EM."

"Yes, sir."

After Jang left, I patted the chair and thought, 'All right, if only these couple of companies come to me, it's Master Class…'

The aggressive search for a company to take over in order to get a Master Class had paid off. We'd done enough research, so they would take in our investment. It would give me a lot of benefits.

'All right. Everything goes on smoothly.'

After the incident of Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development, I made up my mind. It was the first achievement in two and a half months.

'Two and a half months. It is usually about ten weeks. Well, then…'

I remembered searching for the news in the past. I did a search for Lee Won-jun.

[The court sentenced Lee Won-jun to five years in prison and a fifty-million-dollar fine for manipulating stock prices in the first trial.] Information that was searched for in future news was similarly posted.

For Tak Joon-gi, similar news was on the air.

[Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel is visiting Chengdu, China, and does a direct inspection of the travel business in China.]

'Bah! No matter how good you pretend to be okay on the outside, I know that it's rotten inside.'

Bisang Construction and Jinyang Development, as I had painted, one crashed, and one soared. My company and I had doubled our money, and by that amount, Tak Joon-gi would have lost twice as much.

"But this is not all, you son of a bitch. You did such an awful thing, and you're going on a trip to China?"

'If I get Master Class, I'll give you one more spanking. So I'm going to put you in the same prison as Lee Won-jun. Even if you went on a trip to China, you won't be able to go to your grandfather's memorial service, you son of a bitch.'

I looked out the window thinking that. And then, there was a phone call. I answered the phone, "Yes, Secretary Seo, what?"

Beyond the phone, I heard Secretary Seo's voice, "Boss. Your girlfriend's here."

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I lay on the bench and looked at the Wi-Pad. What was on the screen was the company that would be my fourth takeover target.

[Semi-annual Report of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical]

It was a mid-sized pharmaceutical company with a total capital of one billion dollars, listed on the KOSPI in 1985. However, the semi-annual report was very unfavorable. The financial statements were loaded with red numbers indicating a deficit. Although its operating profit was still ongoing, the expense of the research and development budget was going to be enormous.

'But… that is until this year.' Joint therapy, which had in development for five years at a cost of hundreds of million dollars, would be approved by the U.S. FDA early next year. It was widely believed that their market capital would be at least double. That widely-accepted theory would come true. I knew that.

'Chairman Shin Jae-eun and his family's stakes are 25.4%… If they are roughly converted, that will be about two hundred and fifty million dollars. So I need to have more than that to be recognized by 12 Hours After as a major shareholder… A foreign investment firm, JM Partners, has 9.8%, Duri Investment Securities has 7%, and pensions and funds have 3%…'

We had already talked with JM Partners and Duri Investment Securities. From the two investment firms, we would buy up their shares with a five percent premium, while the remaining shortfall would be increased with a third party-allocated paid-in capital increase. The only problem was that Chairman Shin Jae-eun was worried about management interference. "I know CEO Han Sang-hoon is a good investor, but we don't want to be under anyone."

I understood that. It had been listed for fifty years, in business since the time of the Japanese colonial rule, when it had sold an ointment in Hanyang. If a complete stranger came in here with his money and said, "Hand it over," they would not hand it over easily. So, we had to sweat quite a bit to explain that we would not touch management and it was just for investment purposes.

However, Chairman Shin Jae-eun held out to the end saying, "I can't believe it. You're going to spend over $300,000,000, and just let it go?"

'Whew! Should we buy it at market price? Shall we fight it out with a real hostile MA?' We'd been through a crisis like that.

"Look at Kai Games, Blue EM, and OH Entertainment. We have never touched their management." Thanks to Mr. Jang's persistent persuasion, we finally got his consent, "… Let's do it, then."

It was a relief. If we had tried to do a hostile MA, we would have paid at least double the money. If we fought with the collateral of Kai Games, which was running toward a market capital of a billion dollars, we would have won in the end, but only the others caught in between would have gotten good things.

'All right, then, as soon as I take this over, I'll be in the Master Class…'

There was one more good thing about Hyun Young Pharmaceutical; it had another forty-million-dollar subsidiary called Hyun Young Bio Farm on the KOSDAQ. Although it was a small company, it was still a listed company. Hyun Young Bio Farm's major shareholder was Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, and I was Hyun Young Pharmaceutical's major shareholder. Naturally, I became the one who ruled the two companies. This point was clearly approved by the Customer Service.

'Okay, then, this is done.' I picked up a glass of green mojito from the small podium beside the bench and took a sip. Then, I turned on the MTS.

'Let's see how it's going?' But then, two white hands with red manicures came down on the Wi-Pad.

"Ah…" The moment I was checking, the Wi-Pad disappeared from my hands. As I lifted my head, there stood Lee Ah-young, wearing a red bikini, with her hand on her waist.

"You decided not to work here, oppa."

I naturally shifted my eyes to her fantastic figure. Even in plain clothes, she was super glamorous, her body having excellent lines. As she was wearing a bikini, she was a beauty herself. In addition, the emerald beaches spread out in the background, and looking at the seagulls flying around was a gorgeous picture.

She was right. It was not good to be here for summer vacation and think about work. I had to rest when I took a break, and I would be able to work well when I went back to work. I stood up from the bench and said, "Ahh… Yeah. Sorry."

She spoke to me with her hands on her waist, "One more time, and it'll be confiscated."

She had a slight frown on her face; it was rather cute. I stood up and said, "I got it. I got it."

She said, pulling my hand, "Let's go play at the beach, together."

I headed for the beach, which was naturally lit up by her gentle touch. This was Hawaii. It was a place with a beautiful view of heaven and earth, and I had fun with Lee Ah-young, who had become my girlfriend here, leaving things off my head. It was simple to explain how she became a girlfriend.

At that time, she had said, "I'll buy you another meal." And I had said, "All right, if you don't drink." We met again with text messages, ate and talked together, and became more and more friendly. Living right next door, we sometimes visited each other's place, exchanged texts, dated again and again, and ended up like this.

"Oppa, borrow that one, a couple-tube, that will be fun!"

I didn't know it until we got to know each other, but she was a brighter person than I had thought. On purpose, she had a high-handed attitude for strangers. She told me that she was shy and that she was wary of the people she met. She had been arrogant when she wanted to be close to someone.

Well, it was okay. She was good to me anyway, and she was cute and charming. Of course, she was the peak of her appearance and physical beauty, which kept other women out of touch. I jumped into the sea with her, holding a couple-tube.

Above the sky was a warm sun and blue sky, and below was a clear sea where starfish could be seen. The waves went up and down pleasantly. I mumbled, holding Ah-young's hand, "Ha, I think this is heaven."

It was true. The place was good, and a person with me was good. I felt as if I was in heaven. I heard her voice in my ears. "Me too, oppa."I walked through Honolulu with pineapple juice in one hand and Lee Ah-young in the other. As a world-class resort, there were plenty of things to see in the city. I looked at it and asked her, "So, what do you want to eat for dinner?" I was pretty hungry after playing in the water all day.

She asked me the other way round, "Oppa, did you happen to see that program? Do you know Gourmet Street, which was broadcast some time ago? The edition in Hawaii?"

I tilted my head. "Well, I think I've heard of it…" I didn't know what it was, because there were so many Mukbangs (eating shows) going on these days.

"It's a delicious restaurant, and it cooks all kinds of fresh seafood in Hawaiian style."

"Oh, really?"

Most of the trip schedule had been arranged by her. I had been busy trading and working at the company every day, but she had a lot of time, because it was her vacation. She didn't complain about scheduling the trip by herself.

"Then, I'll arrange all the hotels and restaurants, oppa." She loved to choose such things. That fit me well, as I was annoyed with doing such things.

"They mix tuna that they caught up the same day in Hawaii with a special sauce to make Poke."

She was very aware of gastronomy and knew what was delicious and so on. If I thought about it, it was fair to say, it was gone now, but when she was a child she was the only heir to Go-young Food. What was surprising was that she was also a glutton. She hid it a little bit for a while, whether she was ashamed of it during the first half of the romance, but she soon revealed it.

"Do you want me to order this one, too? I think you're going to feel it's a little bit short."

She ate more than a man, using my excuse. It was amazing to watch her eat a lot, but she didn't gain any weight even though she ate so much. I thought it was important to be born in shape.

She said to me, hopping in place, "It's expected, isn't it?"

'Whatever I eat, it's delicious to eat with her.' Then, while we were walking toward the restaurant, she paused for a moment. She raised her head and looked from place to place.

"Well, this is it, you see it?"

I said while picking up my cell phone, "What did you say the name of the restaurant was?"

'Turning on Google Maps, I'll know where it is.'

But instead of giving me the name of the restaurant, she approached a lady on the street and asked in perfect native English, "Excuse me, is there a Nicor's Peer 38 around here?"

"Thanks. Bye." After chatting with the local lady for a long time, she wrapped her arms around me again.

"Let's go, oppa. We'll be there in a few minutes."

I told her, "I envy you."

"What?"

"Your fluent English."

I heard that she went to America to study, not only in college but also in elementary school. Four years in elementary school, four years in college, eight years in total. When she was in college, she went to America to study art, but when she was in elementary school, she went there to learn English. As she learned it when she was young, her pronunciation was really good.

I helped out with chores at my father's training center at that age. She was born to a rich family, but I was born to a poor family. Now I had more money, but some things would not change for life.

"Well, you'll do well after a few months."

I shook my head and said, "Well, is it even possible in a few months?" I'd already tried it in the hope of advancing into the U.S. or abroad in the future.

"I'll teach you. I'll stick around you like this."

I said with a slight smile, "Huh… Yeah."

I walked down the street with her again. She peeped at the cell phone I was holding. I put my cellphone in my pants, which I had turned on to look for Google Maps earlier. She didn't really like me looking at my cell phone. It was my fault. I kept checking stock prices even after I had come to Hawaii. Although it was a habit of stock investors, I felt sorry about that, too. I thought while putting my cell phone in, 'Well, I made an algorithm to trade automatically, so it'll work, but…'

Before I went on vacation, I had programmed the stocks to be traded automatically without me. Even without me, my computer would buy stocks according to the good news written in my calendar and sell them when they went to a certain price. Of course, it was not as good as doing it myself, so I was giving up about a hundred thousand dollars a day.

I was rich, and Ah-young was rich, too. Therefore, we did not spare any travel expenses from hotel to eating and playing, but in fact, the biggest expense was that I didn't trade the stocks myself. However, I decided to take it. If I did care that much for the money, I wouldn't be able to take a vacation for the rest of my life.

'A hundred-thousand-dollar per day vacation… What an expensive vacation.' But it was cheap at the price. There were a fancy Honolulu City and an ultimate beauty holding my arm. For this, a hundred thousand dollars every day was cheap at the price.

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The alarm rang. I opened my eyes, stretched my hand and turned off the alarm by grabbing the cell phone that the alarm was ringing on. If I turned off the alarm, today's date would come out: July 12, 2019.

'Well… I have to go to work today.' Today, I had an important item, the regular report of Invictus Investment, to review and evaluate the investments made by it.

I got out of bed. The blanket rolled up, and I felt a sense of resistance. Looking next to me, Lee Ah-young held my blanket like a baby. I lifted the quilt, covered her bare shoulders, and stood up from my side.

At that time, a sharp pain went past my waist. "Ugh…" I got out of bed, patting my back like a 90-year-old old man. I'd been on vacation for a week, back for two days. I'd been doing too much lately. I looked at the clock. It was 7:40 and I saw Lee Ah-young still lying on my bed. No matter how romantic we were, I should have my own time at 8:55.

'I'll go to work early and get an email from work.' Thinking so, I went to the bathroom and took a shower first. When I came out of the living room, Lee Ah-young was rubbing her eyes. I asked her, "Are you awake?"

"Uh… are you going to work today?"

"Yes. I have something important to do today."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, I'll go to work first, so get some more sleep."

"What about breakfast?"

"There's a toast house in front of the company. I'm going to eat there."

"Toast? Wait a minute. I'll do it for you."

"What? We don't have bread or a toast machine in my apartment."

She got out of bed and said, packing her underwear, "It's all in my room."

"… yes."

I went to the dressing room, got dressed, picked out my watch, put on my skin lotion and roughly styled my hair, and packed my bag with my Wi-Pad and laptop. I was ready to go to work, and looking at my watch, it was 8:30. It was only two blocks from the office. It was very close, but now I had to leave to get an email.

As soon as I thought, 'I have to get out of here now,' my room's keyword was pressed. Soon the door opened, and Lee Ah-young brought a toast cut for good use on a plate, and a cup of strong coffee.

"Not late, oppa."

"Oh. I think I can eat this and go."

But toast was a bit unique. Bread was the same bread, but the toppings were sp,e that I couldn't see in Korean franchises. There were things like strawberries and blackberries on the nuts.

"What's this? It's unusual."

"It's original Chicago style."

Chicago was where she had been studying abroad. I took a bite of it and it was delicious. The maple syrup on the bread went well with toppings.

"Well, it's delicious."

"That's it, right?"

Whether the Chicago style was compatible with my taste, or it was because of the sensibility of the only daughter of a food company, anyway, it was really delicious. Thanks to the taste of toast, and the short time, I quickly finished the toast.

"It's delicious. Thank you. Thanks for setting it up."

Lee Ah-young curled up and smiled cutely.

I drank all the remaining coffee and told her, "I'll go. You're going to…"

"I am on vacation."

"You are a student; that's good. I'll get out."

She kissed me on the cheek and said, "I wish you a pleasant day, oppa." She acted like she was trying to see me off at my house.

"… Aren't you going home?"

"Ah… I thought I'd watch the drama of a newly married couple."

She smiled and walked out the door with me. Then she went into her room and said, "Well, I hope you do well."

I said to her, reaching out my hand, "Yes."I went to work at our office after a long time. Secretary Seo was in front of the door of the president's office, as usual. When he saw me, he stood up and asked, "How was your vacation?"

"I got a little tan, right?"

"Yes. And…" He glanced up and down at me. "You went to rest, but somehow… you look more tired than usual."

"Hmm? Really?"

As I asked, he said, with a slightly insidious smile, "It seems that your energy has been sucked out…"

At times like this, He was Seo Ji-hoon, my junior in college, not Secretary Seo.

"You…" I slapped him on the shoulder with my fist.

He said, running away, "Hahaha, I'm joking. I'm joking."

I also smiled and said to him, "What about you? Where have you been on vacation?"

"Bangkok."

"Bangkok? Thailand?"

"No. Just in the room. I was just at home."

"Why? You'd better go abroad when I go out. I gave you enough of a bonus, right?"

That was true. I gave my entire staff a vacation bonus for this holiday season. Vice President Jang and Secretary Seo were directly given thirty thousand dollars each.

"Oh, that's well saved for my future."

I said with my arms crossed, "What's wrong with you? You should use it. Do you have any problems with your family? Did your parents give security for someone?"

Secretary Seo shook his head at my words, "No."

"Let me know if there's anything like that. I'll take care of it all if it can be solved with money."

"No, that's not what happened. You know that. I prefer playing at home to going somewhere."

Well, he'd been a houseboy for a long time. I had raised his salary from five thousand to ten thousand dollars a month. His annual salary had already exceeded a hundred thousand dollars. Of course, I paid a lot of year-end bonus and vacation bonus. I was very careful not to cause any problems by skimping on money.

"… yes. But don't stay home too long and get out of there. You should go out and have a new experience."

He smiled and said, "Yes, boss."

"So, when is today's meeting with the presidents?"

" At eleven o'clock."

"Well. Yeah. Don't make the presidents who come in advance wait too long… Just call them into the president's office. I will have a little talk with them."

"Yes, boss."I spent my time going into the president's office, getting emails as usual, and trading by myself. Before eleven o'clock, the presidents of our subsidiaries arrived here, one by one. The first to come was Ahn Yong-kyun, president of Blue EM. He came half an hour earlier than his appointment time.

"Hello, CEO Han. How have you been?"

"Oh, yes. How are you?"

We greeted each other. More than that, I could see a little box he was holding.

"Yes, it's… it's red ginseng. I was worried that you might be sick in the summer heat."

"Ah… yes."

He humbled to himself the most among the presidents of subsidiaries I'd ever invested in. I thought it was because he was in the most financially demanding position.

"Secretary Seo." I made a gesture for Secretary Seo and received the red ginseng gift. I was not interested in these things, but if I would give it to my parents, they would like it.

"How are you doing these days?"

"As a result of intensive pushes of Fantasy War Ground, the share of our company in the game market has jumped from 7% to 12%."

"Oh, that's great!"

The Internet broadcasting market was growing every year. Top company European TV had also had its stock price go up a lot recently. Blue EM also rode the wave and recently watched its share price soar.

"Sit down." I offered him a seat, but a second visitor Shin Dong-woo, CEO of Kai Games, came in.

"How have you been, CEO Han?"

"Yes, you're busy these days, right?"

He said with a big smile, "Yes, a little…"

He had to be pretty busy, not a little bit. Fantasy War Ground was such a big hit that it was booming all over the world. He must have been very, very busy managing the company or traveling abroad. There was nothing to say about the stock price. The company's market capital, which was only a hundred and twenty million dollars when I had taken over, was now eight hundred million. It had risen more than six times. As a result, it had become the best investment for me and for the Invictus Investment.

CEO Shin Dong-woo also shook hands with Ahn Yong-kyun, who was first here. "President Oh is here, too. How are you?"

"Oh, yes, I'm doing great, thanks to you."

The two had already been acquainted: one was making games and one was broadcasting, as I had instructed, so I arranged the collaboration earlier.

"You two are here, and we'll soon have three more. Let's go to the meeting room." I led the two to the ready-to-be convention hall.

On the way, Vice President Jang joined me, too. "Ah, you are here, presidents?"

At 9:45, the third person, my personal best friend, Kwon Oh-hyuk, president of OH Entertainment, arrived.

"How are you?" He came up and bowed his head to me. He looked at the two presidents who were there first. "Oh, I'm late. I'm sorry. Presidents." He said hello to me one more time.

"No. You're early." He was not late, but two other presidents came very early.

I greeted him, "How are you these days?"

"You know, boss. The preview of "I'm Going to See You Tomorrow" was very good. The audience liked it, and the critics raised their thumbs."

"Oh, really?"

"I'm Going to See You Tomorrow" was a melodramatic film starring Oh Hyun-joo, the star of OH Entertainment. The movie they had cranked in last year was about to be released.

I nodded, "That's great! How is Ms. Oh?"

"Yes, of course. She's greatly looking forward to this movie. She thinks it will be the most successful film of her own career."

"Oh, really? I'll see it to fill her expectations."

He lowered his head several times and showed me his shiny bald head. "Oh, thank you very much, boss. I'll give a word to Hyun-joo."

I nodded, "Yes, please."

After the three existing presidents took their places, I looked around them and said, "Oh, I don't know if you've heard, but there are two more people coming today. First is Chung So-young, president of the media company Oracle News, and next is Shin Jae-eun, chairman of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical."

Everyone had no response when "Oracle News" came out, but when it came to Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, their eyes changed slightly. To be sure, the ten-million-dollar Internet newspaper company and a billion-dollar mid-sized pharmaceutical company seemed to have different weight. Around 10:50, two CEOs appeared in the conference room, as I had predicted.

A woman in her forties was first, contrasting with three middle-aged men. Chung So-young, CEO of Oracle News, greeted me in a lively voice, "Hello, CEO Han!"

She had something mature sexy to fit in her forties. Red lipstick and red suit looked really good on her. It was also fair to say that the three CEOs who were here first couldn't take their eyes off her.

'Everyone has a wife and children… Come to think of it, President Kwon is single.'

She just happened to sit next to Kwon Oh-hyuk. I thought they looked good together.

'Is CEO Chung married?' I was not sure.

Finally, at 10:55, Shin Jae-eun, chairman of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, in his sixties with perfect gray hair, made his appearance. The contract with Hyun Young Pharmaceutical was not yet finished, but since the agreement had already been reached verbally, he decided to come to greet me and other presidents. "Hello, CEO Han. And a lot of bosses."

When he came in, Ahn Yong-kyun, president of Blue EM, quickly stepped aside and said, "Sit here, Mr. Chairman." Then he went to the last seat and sat down.

Chairman Shin Jae-eun sat in the seat without saying a word.

With this, the CEOs of a total of five listed companies and one media company I invested in, gathered together. I said, gathering my hands together, "Good to see you, ladies and gentlemen."

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"So … as a result, we've made a three hundred and sixty percent return on Kai Games, eighty percent on Blue EM, and thirty percent on OH Entertainment in the first and second quarters of this year," Vice President Jang explained by turning the point beams around, and as he spoke, the five company presidents never took their eyes off him. In fact, Jang was as powerful as me in our company, just as the Emperor's second man had more power than the king of other kingdoms; his title was Vice President, but he had to be virtually above other presidents.

"As a result, the assets of Invictus Investment have also risen by two hundred and sixty percent, and I think this is due to all your hard work."

Clap clap clap clap… Each president gathered their hands and applauded. They would all be applauded in their company, but here they were applauding. By the time the applause had died down, I had words for them.

"And as I said, two more companies have become our subsidiaries. First, as you know, Hyun Young Pharmaceutical is a long-standing and traditional pharmaceutical company that has achieved long-term results in the Korean market. Recently, they've been knocking on the international pharmaceutical market through new drug development. I've decided to invest this time as I highly approve their growth."

Chairman Shin Jae-eun and his white hair rose slightly and greeted me and other presidents who were younger than him. "Nice to see you all. As CEO Han Sang-hoon said, our company Hyun Young Pharmaceutical has been leading the way to the international market from Korea. During the process, we met CEO Han Sang-hoon and Invictus Investment, who have made successful investments, and made a decision to work with them."

Clap clap clap clap… The audience applauded again, especially Ahn Yong-kyun, president of the Blue EM, Sapphire TV, applauded a little too much. He clapped overlong and applauded. He seemed a bit of an idiot.

Shin Jae-eun, who had been solidifying his face all the time, laughed a little. He turned to me and said, "To be honest, there was a bit of doubt when I first got the offer, but I'm relieved to see the presidents who are doing so well. I'll ask you for your help."

I bowed my head a little bit and extended my hand. I hurried to stand up and received his greeting. Clap clap clap clap… Once again, the applause echoed. From what he said, he didn't seem to be sure what the development of their new drug would be like. I knew they were doing their best, but they would have to get the approval of the FDA in the US, which was famous for its strict screening standards.

If they had known about the success of their new drug development, they would have bought their own shares to the best of their ability. As was the case with the Kai Games, I was more likely to believe in the success of the company than the owners of the invested companies were. No, to put it right, I knew more than to "believe."

"The next announcer is President Chung So-young of Oracle News, the new leader of the Internet news industry."

Chung So-young got up from her seat. At the same time, the eyes of the other presidents turned to her. The mature sexiness flowing out of her seemed to attract their attention.

"Hello, presidents. I am Chung So-young of Oracle News. We received a large investment from CEO Han Sang-hoon last month and became a subsidiary. Please take good care of us from now on."

It was a short greeting, but it seemed to attract more attention from the three middle-aged men.

I said afterward, "You know, I want to create some synergy between the companies I've invested in. Wouldn't it be better if we could invest in and help each other from an investment standpoint? Blue EM is playing the role of the bridge now…"

At my words, President Ahn Yong-kyun bowed deeply.

"I want my subsidiaries to create some synergy together, with games and Internet broadcasting, and Internet broadcasting and OH entertainment, in that way. In that sense, I'm not saying it directly, but the reason I invested in Oracle News… You know that."

Everyone nodded at what I said.

'Whatever they do these days, the news soon becomes an advertisement. As a game is released, when a new drug comes out, and as a new drama is released, they put a great deal of energy into the advertisement.'

"I've already talked about the advantages with President Chung So-young when I invested. Share your contacts today, and be sure to help one another do business."

I didn't say it directly at the end, but I made it clear: If anything happens, give the news to Oracle News first!

It was also good for me to see the future news. 'The more news comes from our company, the more likely it will be to appear in future news. If anything is in the news of the future, we can deal with it, good or bad.'

"Then, let's finish our regular report, and go eat together."During the following meal time, I talked with Shin Jae-eun more closely than the other presidents. As I had already had quite an acquaintance with other presidents, I thought that I should get acquainted with Chairman Shin Jae-eun.

"Well, I see. Your father ran a Judo training center?"

"Yes, I suggested he retire, but… even now, he's almost sixty years old, and he's still motivated to work. "

"Oh, I see."

"Yes, so I recently bought him a building that he had rented… He has been bothered by the building owners all his life, but now he is the owner of the building."

"You are a devoted son, CEO Han."

I smiled and nodded. "I've received something, so I have to answer for it; it's a son's responsibility."

"Oh, I see. CEO Han Sang-hoon, what's your age this year…"

"I'm thirty."

"You are very young, and you are very successful."

"Don't mention it."

But then, Shin asked me with his eyes glinting. "I'm sorry to ask you a personal question, but… are you married, by any chance?"

"No. I'm still single."

"Then the woman you're dating…"

This was a real personal question. I hesitated for a moment, then said, "Recently, I have had one."

"Ah… I see."

Chairman Shin Jae-eun licked his lips with his tongue, as if it was a bit disappointing. I didn't know what it was. But if I had said no, he would have taken a picture of someone from his phone and shown it to me, a daughter or a niece. Now that I had invested three hundred million dollars in Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, if I would enter his son-in-law, I would gain more than that. I watched him sipping soup.

'I thought he was just talking to me as an acquaintance. He is not just an old man.'

I turned to President Kwon Oh-hyuk on the other side, for fear of further stories coming out that way. "President Kwon."

"Yes, boss."

President Kwon Oh-hyuk was actually a bit down today, because it recorded the lowest return among the three companies. The thirty percent rise in the first and second quarters was also quite high, but it looked relatively less since even Blue EM, let alone Kai Games, had elevated like a rocket. But that would also be different in a little while.

"The… Idol Management 108 is about to start filming, right? What about the trainees' practice…?"

"They have been practicing hard for this program. You can look forward to it."

'The upcoming Idol Management 108 is a TV show that creates idol groups through Internet voting, making it one of the hottest topics in the entertainment industry this year.'

"Okay. If two or three of our people are finalists in the last group, it's a big hit. Please pay as much attention to that side as possible."

"Yes, boss."

'In particular, the program is designed to bring together Korean, Japanese, and Chinese trainees from all three countries at the same time, so it will be very popular during the selection process in the Japanese and Chinese markets, as well as the Korean market. If it succeeds here, it will be a dramatic turnaround for OH Entertainment, which has had a bad result for years in the idol business.'

"And because it's a public event anyway… Even with Ahn Yong-kyun…" That was what I was saying.

"Yes, sir. Did you call me?" President Ahn Yong-kyun, who was at the next table, ran up and stuck close to me. I had talked low, but he heard it.

I said with a dingy smile, "Oh, you've been listening. You know about Idol Management 108, right?"

"Yes, of course, sir."

"Is there any way Sapphire TV can push them?"

"There's a lot were can do. I'll try decorating the main banner and famous BJs with this content."

"Yes, then, especially…" I glanced at President Kwon as I said that.

President Ahn Yong-kyun continued, "Of course. We'll do our best to support OH Entertainment's trainees. Our BJs have amazing skills at gathering public opinion."

"Yes, then…" I glanced at Chung So-young. She nodded like the president of the media company, blinking even if I didn't say a word. In a few weeks, she would put out the news like this:

[A fresh look at Heo Yoon-mi from OH Entertainment]

[Special event launching at Sapphire TV for Idol Manager 108]

At the end of my talk, Chairman Shin Jae-eun also said to President Kwon Oh-hyuk. "Oh, Hyun-joo is from OH Entertainment?"

"Yes, Chairman. Our company name is OH, which is named after my name Oh Hyuk, but it also means Oh Hyun-joo's. She is a key representing celebrity."

"Oh, I see. I have to choose a new advertising model for our company's eye drops this time, and Oh Hyun-joo seems to fit in because she has a bright and positive image. There is an audition next week. If you have free time, come and take the audition. I'll inform them as well as I can."

"Oh, of course. I'll surely send her, Chairman!"

Upon hearing that, I saw President Chung So-young once again and she nodded once again. From the time the ad was released, it would now appear in a banner ad for Oracle News.

'The more companies, the more synergies we have. If there's more to come….' But suddenly, I had an idea, 'When this thing gets bigger… it's a whole chaebol system, right?'

'All the nation's chaebols are tangled up like cobwebs in this way. It seems to outsource to another company, but it is outsourced to his son's company. It seems to put an advertisement with another company, but leaves the ad to his daughter's company. In the end, even though it seems to be investing, it doesn't spend money, and ends up forming its own league with its own money.

'As our five companies are together, it is like this. There is no need to mention chaebols, which have hundreds of subsidiaries in terms of equity ties. Maybe that's the future of Invictus Investment: an emerging tycoon.

'… and then, when I am a Master Class… then the Grand Master Class… What's the condition? If they ask me to rule ten, not five…

'If we go that way, our company may turn into a kind of Invictus Holdings, a holding company, up from a general investment company. I will become a chairman, and Vice President Jang will become a new president who will manage the subsidiaries.

'Well… what will happen?

'Investment in Hyun Young Pharmaceutical will be completed next month. The future news will be upgraded and become a Master Class. There's no justification for upgrading all the time, but experience has shown that the higher the class, the stronger my power becomes. I want to hold the stronger power.

'Grand Master Class… and then like xxx… That's the unknown class…

'According to Customer Service, the unknown class has a much stronger skill than the previous classes. I don't know what it is, but I really want it…'

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I carefully took the soup to my mouth. I was a little nervous, as I was not very good at lying. But if I ate it, I had to say it was good whether it would taste good or not. By the way, I said it from the bottom of my heart, "It's delicious!"

Lee Ah-young, who was watching my face carefully, smiled brightly, "Really?"

I said, nodding my head, "Yes, where did you learn to do soybean paste soup while you were in America?"

"I just learned from the Internet."

I'd been living on my own for almost ten years. 'It never tasted like this when I tried…'

She certainly seemed to have been born with a gold hand in cooking. I had breakfast with a simple side dish, including soybean paste soup, sunny-side-up fries, and kimchi.

"It's all good. Did you learn all this by yourself when you went abroad to study?"

"No. I bought most of my food when I went abroad to study. I liked the American style. But when I came back to Korea, I remembered the home meals my mom used to cook… and I've tried this and that."

"Well… I see."

I had breakfast with her like that. It was good to have a girlfriend right next door. Of course, sometimes it was a little burdensome. I even drank coffee from her mixer. In the meantime, the alarm went off. It was 8:50 a.m.

"I'll go. It's time to work."

"Can't you just take a day off and hang out with me?"

I shook my head, "No, I can't."

'If I don't work, I miss a few hundred thousand dollars a day. Even though I've already become wealthy, with hundreds of millions of dollars, I can't afford to let go of my work. Will I be able to give up this even if I become worth a few billion dollars? Probably not…'

Consoling her, as she was slightly downcast, I said, "When the market ends, let's go to the movies in the afternoon."

"Really?"

"Yes, the movie theater is right next to us anyway."

"Then what will we see? What kind of genre do you like, oppa?"

"Anything. I don't care much."

"Then I will choose what I want to see."

"Yes," I agreed thoughtlessly, then left her room and came back to my own apartment. The computer was already on. I sat down and accepted the email, 12 Hours After.

"Umm…" These days, I did not take the news 12 Hours After into account much. The running money was so big that I didn't pay much attention to the short-term news 12 Hours After. These days, my main focus was on the news 12 Days After or 12 Weeks After. They would give me enough time to analyze the power of the news and to gather more shares.

I was humming and pressing the news 12 Days After. By the way, some interesting news came out.

[Politics – The constitutional amendment should not be delayed any longer. A proposal was made for a simultaneous vote with the general election.]

[Economy – The stock price of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical surged according to the change in the largest shareholder.]

[Society – An intensely hateful society. What's the problem?]

On the Economy category, there was news about Hyun Young Pharmaceutical.

"It's our news, isn't it?"

I clicked on it.

[Hyun Young Pharmaceutical has been on a sharp rise on news that it will change its largest shareholder. Invictus Investment (CEO Han Sang-hoon), a mid-sized investment company, recently completed a large-scale stock purchase, followed by a third party-allocated paid-in capital increase to become the largest shareholder of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical…]

I could see my name in the news, too. I grinned. 'Now I'm also in the future news.'

I felt like I was becoming the main character in the world. If I made ten, twenty, fifty, and a hundred companies that I could rule here, I would be on the news even if I didn't like it. If I searched for myself in People Search, I might be able to get some news like [CEO Han Sang-hoon's business trip to China…] and [CEO Han Sang-hoon's investment is on the right track again.]

'Not only that, right now I am young, and I see only 12 Months After, but when I get older, if I receive the news 12 Years After, I may get the news like [Chairman Han Sang-hoon dies of lung cancer.]

'Then, twelve years early, I can take a lung cancer test, prevent it first, or have surgery. In the case of lung cancer, the survival rate is more than seventy percent if found in Stage One, but less than five if found in Stage Four. I'll live a few more years than I originally could. It's easy to avoid a traffic accident by simply changing my schedule for that day.

'All right. All right. It's going well.' I also typed in my name in People Search, with that idea.

[Han Sang-hoon, the representative of a party, says the Blue House has to show willingness for the constitutional amendment.]

However, I was still behind a politician Han Sang-hoon. In terms of recognition, he seemed to be a mountain which I needed to cross over.

'A politician versus a businessman… I can't help it, but… As a CEO of a company, if I were compared to the representative of a party, I will have to become a chairman of the nation's top five conglomerates. Will it take ten years?

'It won't be that far. No, ten years is just the time it takes in light of what I have in terms of my current Diamond Class. The higher the class, the shorter the time it will take to establish my empire.

'All right, two weeks from now, it will be done.

'The contract will be concluded next week, and the paid-in capital increase will be completed next week, too. When I consider the last time, when I got to Diamond Class, I will receive a "Class Notice" twelve hours from the time the stock is fully transferred. I'll be stronger when I get the Master Class.'"All right, here… I am going to buy six hundred thousand dollars worth at the closing price, and it's over."

I got up from my seat with my last order today. I was supposed to go out with Lee Ah-young after the market closed: a movie theater date. I opened the door right away and rang the doorbell next door, Lee Ah-young's. In fact, I knew her password thanks to her friend Sarah, but I didn't let her know that because she had never told me directly.

"I am done with my work today."

"Really? Let's go right away. It's a 3:50 movie."

"What kind of movie?"

"It's 'I'm Going to See You Tomorrow,' a romantic movie."

When I heard it, I said, slightly opening my mouth, "Ahh… I'm Going to See You Tomorrow…?"

"I'm Going to See You Tomorrow" was a film starring Oh Hyun-joo. A few days ago, it was mentioned by President Kwon Oh-hyuk at the regular report. He reported that the preview was good. Oh Hyun-joo was my favorite actress and I said to President Kwon Oh-hyuk, "I'll make sure I see it." But for some reason, I felt uncomfortable going to see it with my girlfriend, Lee Ah-young.

Lee Ah-young, who looked at my eyes, said to me, "Don't you like romantic movies?"

"No… No. It's okay. Let's go see it."

"Uh…" She looked up at me like I was strange, but she didn't ask me any more questions.Oh Hyun-joo was up on the big screen. She looks back at the male main character with a pure face and speaks her lines, "Tomorrow… I am going to see you tomorrow."

I watched the movie without touching the soda I had bought. I had two thoughts while watching the movie.

'First, Oh Hyun-joo's beauty is great, and she's really good at acting. I've known her since she was unknown, but she seems to be doing better recently. She plays the main character of the tragic actress, and she seems to have become the character herself.

'The second thought is rather a snobbish one: "No, this…Who is the production company? If it's a listed company, the stock price is going to jump." This is definitely a big hit. Just as I benefited from the zombie movie "Train to Seoul" in the past, I can earn a few million dollars if I invest in the production company. Oh's agency, OH Entertainment, is also likely to rise a lot, before the surge of Idol Manager 108. It's amazing.'

After the movie, the lights came on and the ending credits went up. I saw Lee Ah-young sitting next to me. "That's funny, isn't it?"

However, she was not able to answer at all. She was covering her mouth and crying a little. I looked around, found a napkin that came with the nachos I had bought when I came into the theater, and handed it to her. She wiped it around her eyes and told me. "It's so… moving, oppa, isn't it?"

"Sure."

I thought I was being a little bit parched. With a tragic story of lovers, a touching reunion, and a break-up again, the wonderful story, I just thought about who the production company was…

'Now I can't cry at anything…' I waited for her to stop crying, thinking about it. After a while, I left the theater with her arms crossed. She still didn't seem to be out of touch.

"It was really fun, oppa!"

"Yes, let's come and see it again."

"Yes!"

It was only 5:30 now that the movie was over. Now we would have to go to dinner.

'What shall we have for dinner?' I was thinking of it, but she asked me. "By the way, the actress was really good at acting. What's her name, oppa?"

"Ah… Oh Hyun-joo." For some reason, just saying the name to a girlfriend next to me made me feel a little guilty. Maybe it's because she was my ideal type.

"Really? I've only seen her in commercials… and I've never seen her act before, but she's quite good at acting."

I nodded. "Uh… she's famous."

"Really? What else did she shoot? Do you know her well?"

I already knew her personally and I decided to speak frankly, "Oh… That's right. She's actually a member of OH Entertainment, our subsidiary. The old drama, 'The Uncle of You and I' is also famous."

Of course, I did not say either she was my ideal type, or that I had saved her from danger.

"Oh, I see… She is from your company. The Uncle of You and I? I'll have to see that, too."

I nodded, then quickly turned the subject around. "Yes. By the way, where are we going to eat today?"A week later, a public announcement was finally made.

[The third party-allocated paid-in capital increase is completed, accompanied by a change in Hyun Young Pharmaceutical's majority shareholder.]

At the same time as the disclosure, the stock price of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical jumped twelve percent. I went to the stock bulletin board.

– Wow, is this investment of Invictus Investment real? Let's go to the double.-

– Who is Invictus Investment? What is it?-

– This is the company that earned a lot with the reverse betting on Bisang Construction.-

– They had a big hit with Kai Games. That's great.-

When we took over a company before, they used to say -Who the hell is this company we have never seen and heard about?-

And the stock price did not go up, but it fell. Compared to now, it had totally changed.

– Is this the company run by the stock genius, CEO Han Sang-hoon, right? It's already fixed to earn double.-

-Han Sang Hoon must have smelled money again. But it's not a game company or an entertainment company, but a pharmaceutical company?-

– He's a real genius. He doesn't seem to care about what the company is.-

There were many comments praising me on the bulletin board. Now, my reputation seemed to be spreading to stock investors as well. It should be, because Invictus Investment was becoming an investment company which had never lost since I first set it up.

'OK, now I'm slowly gaining fame.' I laid back a little in the chair while watching the bulletin board.A week later. I finally got it: the Master Class Guide!

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I took a shower early in the morning, got dressed, and left the apartment. As I walked out of the apartment, I saw Ah-young's apartment next door.

'She is sleeping now, right?'

I'd been in and out almost every day lately because I'd been eating breakfast, but it was a pass today. I told Ah-young, "I'm afraid I'll have to go to work early tomorrow, because I have something important to do."

Ah-young sometimes wanted to be with me, but she didn't protest when I said, "It's important." That was a good thing, it was cool. I took the elevator down to the basement and drove my Bentley out of the underground parking lot. The intersection of Gangnam Station was quiet at 6:30 a.m. Gangnam Station, where my apartment was located, and Nonhyeon Station, where the company was located, were just two blocks away. If there was no traffic, I would be there in ten minutes.

Hmm~ Hmm~ I hummed and drove Bentley. On the other side, a yellow Lamborghini passed me by.

'Well… is that low car worth driving?' I didn't know because I'd never ridden one. 'This time, my class will be raised… Shall we buy one?' I changed my mind after thinking about it. 'Yes, if I get the Master Class today, I'll go with Secretary Seo and book a Lamborghini.'

What I felt from my recent relationship with Ah-young was that my consumption pattern was still unchanged. Of course, as I got more money, I bought this and that without looking at the price tag, but I didn't spend much money on the luxury items as I just thought, 'Why do I need that?'

Since I was a child, the DNA from growing up in a poor family was so deeply embedded that it was not easy to spend money. Ah-young, on the other hand, knew a lot about luxury goods and bought them with the monthly rent she received. She'd learned to spend money reasonably since she was young.

'Yes, I'll spend some money, too… I make too much money, but I don't spend it.

'The rich are good at spending money. If the rich earn money and do not spend it, the money will not circulate in the market. Of course, I'm paying money in the form of "salary employment," but that's a little short of it. I have to spend more money to feed others.

'I will buy a Lamborghini… the one I saw at the Bentley store the other day. What was it? Flying Spur? I'll buy another one, too.

I thought of things to spend more money on while waiting for a short signal.

'Money… where should I spend it?' Come to think of it, there was one thing I wanted to try since I was young: owning a club.

'I've seen that in a web novel before. The main character who returned to the past became the owner of a club and managed a soccer team. Was it… "A Club Owner from the Future?"…'

I used to go to K-League soccer field with my family. I didn't know about our Chungcheong-do team now, but it was still quite weak at the time, so I remembered that they had lost the game helplessly to the Seoul metropolitan team that day.

'Wait a minute… If I get the news in 12 Years After…' I had a rough idea of the sports category in the news 12 Years After-the list of 2030 World Cup national team.

'If I get a piece of that news, I can set up the future national team players to our team in advance. Of course, the growth process is important for athletic ability, but we can't deny that talent takes precedence.

'If I do that, it would be a lot like holding onto a big stock.'

'No, it might be better to advance to the EPL like the novel. If I get an article or two, like [2034 FIFA Best 11] or [2038 Ballon d'Or Winner, I can order a scout, "If you go to a place called Santa Fe Rosario in Argentina, you'll find Lionel Messi. Get him." or "If you go to an island called Madera in the west Atlantic, not mainland Portugal, you'll find Cristiano Ronaldo. Bring him in."'

I might be able to build up a team that way.

'They say that since Juventus hired Ronaldo last year, the stock market in Italy has increased by 30%.

'Then I can sweep up rising stars with a small amount of money. I'll just need the club to have a perfect youth education facility. How much does an EPL club cost?'

I had such fanciful thoughts as I arrived at my company. I was trying to get into the basement parking lot of the company, and I saw a car which I was used to: a Genesis, the most expensive Korean-made large car. It was my car when I was a working stiff. I pulled over and waited for a moment for the car to stop.

Soon Secretary Seo came out and told me, "Oh, boss. You came to work early?"

"Yes. I have something important to do today."I took the elevator with him. Secretary Seo pressed the seventeenth floor with the president's office. The fourteenth to the seventeenth floor were all embedded with the logo of our company, Invictus Investment. Originally, only one floor was used, but it increased as the company grew and had more employees.

'Oh, yeah, before I buy an EPL team…'

"Secretary Seo, does the landlord still want to sell this building?"

"The last time Jang asked indirectly, he said he wanted to sell it at a price higher than the market price."

"Really?"

"Our company is so popular that… He thinks this would be an opportunity and he is asking for ten million dollars more than the market price."

"Well… that is a little bit detestable."

"Right."

"We'll move out of here. There are vacancies in Gangnam these days."

"That's right."

I arrived on the seventeenth floor while I was talking to Secretary Seo. I spoke firmly to Seo, who sat down in front of the president's office. "Today, I don't want to see anyone before 9:10."

"What about Jang?"

I shook my head and spoke decisively, "Not even Vice President Jang. Today, if he has a report, just let him wait."

Secretary Seo nodded, "Yes, boss."

As soon as I entered the president's office, I turned on the computer and took a seat.

I'd been eating the breakfast Ah-young made every day, and so I felt a little hungry, but I held back. Today was an important day. At 8:00, the email arrived.

[Master Class Skill Guide]

I clicked on it without hesitation. There was a familiar phrase inside.

[Congratulations, Han Sang-hoon, who has been promoted to Master Class. Master Class can also be used and enhanced by investing points in each skill.]

It was repeated, but I still read it carefully to see if there was any difference.

[The cooldown time of an active skill is based on the same thirty-day as the subscription period. There are currently four different skills available for the Master Class. There are ten skill points that are not currently allocated.]

I'd been given ten points this time. 'Ten points.' I looked further down the scroll, rethinking the number briefly.

[People Search Lv3 (Active skill – three points required)

There is one more slot for searching for people. It will be available with other passive skills applied.

Ranking News Lv2 (Active Skill – two points required)

In a specific category out of the news, you can receive first and second place news with high cumulative view counts. It's available twice. It will be available with other passive skills applied.

Future News Lv5 (Passive skill – five points required)

You will receive another news 12 Years After with the existing news. Its format is the same as the existing news, and active skills are also available the same way. This passive skill is overlaid with other passive skills.]

[Infiltration Report Lv1 (Active Skill – seven points required)

We will send a reporter to a specific target. The reporter will conduct a thirty-day intensive

investigation into the target and bring in one article that will not be reported to the established

press after thirty days. When you are sending a reporter, you can specify what to

investigate.]

There was nothing really new or different in the skills. There was nothing to worry about. I made a quick decision. 'Let's get this straight. Tak Joon-gi is a problem, too. I don't know what kind of obstruction I'm going to have from him.' Come to think of it, I was a little lucky in the last Bisang Construction, as the future news had an article about the corruption case.

'If Jung Gi-woong had been caught a little over a year later, not next February, I wouldn't have been able to implement justice. If I have this news, I can even get "the news that doesn't appear in the article." I now have the power to make news and articles that don't appear in articles through Oracle News.

'Okay, let's take Infiltration Report, investing seven points. I'm still using the others enough.'

What was a bit disappointing was that I wanted to get the news 12 Years After. I was curious, but it was simply a matter of curiosity.

'It is a far-fetched future thing like science fiction news, and it won't make money. Of course, it will be necessary to plan for a long time, but it won't be too late when my assets are over a billion dollars, after I get my Grandmaster Class later.'

I took the Infiltration Report right away. Then, its description was changed.

[Infiltration Report Lv2 (Active Skill – ten points required)

We will send a reporter to a specific target. The reporter will conduct a fifteen-day intensive

investigation into the target and bring in one article that will not be reported to the established

press after fifteen days. When you are sending a reporter, you can specify what to

investigate.]

Nothing else had changed, but thirty days had been shortened to fifteen. I knew it would be getting better, but I didn't know how much it would be getting better.

'Let's use it once.' My remaining points were three. The remaining skills were People Search and Ranking News.

'These three points are… for People Search.' I invested them in People Search to match my score. Ranking news had been used every month, but it didn't work often, because there were times when it became money and times when it didn't. On the other hand, People Search was useful in one way or another. The slots were not short, but they might not be enough if I thought about them in the future. Now there were thousands of people I had directly or indirectly hired.

'All right, then, like this.'

A congratulatory message came out when I took a skill, [Congratulations. You've been promoted to Master Class.]

And a follow-up notice was there, [Upgrade your news to Grandmaster Class! A ten-million- dollar subscription fee is required for the promotion to Grandmaster Class.]

Fortunately, the subscription fee did not change, either. Ten million dollars a month was not a small amount of money, but it was fully affordable now. The next thing that mattered followed.

[In addition, as a qualification, you have to govern more than ten listed companies in your own country, with the combined market capital of the listed companies exceeding ten billion dollars.] Now, it was demanding specific market capital, as well as the number of companies I would have under my wings.

I made a rough estimate. 'What I now control now is one billion dollars of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical and eight hundred million dollars of Kai Games. If I add up the rest… will it be approximately two billion dollars?'

That was about it. It meant I would have to put more than eight billion dollars more under me in the future so I could go up.

'Well, it's not very difficult. It'll just take a while. I thought I could make it in a few years. In a year or two, if I did well…

'All right, all right, then…' I went down the scroll further, thinking about it. But it finished with a phrase that I had never seen before.

[You have selected the Infiltration Report skill for the first time. Reporter Crow will come to see you. Please specify the place and time to meet.]

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I read it again with my lips gathered. 'They're sending me a reporter?'

It was a little strange to me, who had only been receiving emails online since I first got 12 Hours After. I would meet someone offline!

'Crow? Is the reporter a crow? Does he fly over to me and give something? I didn't think so. The Customer Service said, "Our reporter is a very competent person."

'Then… this Crow… is it some sort of nickname?'

I looked a little more down.

[Please specify the place and time to meet.]

The cursor glittered down. I didn't think much and I tried to write, 'Invictus Investment Headquarters. President's Office.' But I took my hands off the keyboard, stroked my chin, and looked at it.

'This guy's from 12 hours After… I'll keep him as secret as I can… like the email 12 hours After.' I thought for a moment, and then I wrote something down on it.——–

At 10:30 a.m. I left the president's office.

Secretary Seo asked me, "Are you going out? Do you want me to help you?"

I shook my head, "No, it's personal."

"Oh, okay."

I went to the underground parking lot alone and drove a Porsche west. After passing Banpo Station and Express Bus Terminal Station, I stopped at the National Library. I parked at the side of the road and went up on the hill next to me. Under the hot, sweaty August heat, I arrived at Montmartre Park. I settled on a shaded bench and looked at the clock.

10:55 a.m. It was just five minutes until the appointment.

I looked around. There were few people in the park in broad daylight, except for some of the residents who were taking their dogs for a walk. There was no chance of me encountering someone I knew here. When the Crow came, we would talk and part like strangers in the movie "Mission Impossible," like the cool spies who hid each other's identity.

I sat on a bench and recalled a scene from the movie. After a moment, a black figure began to approach in the distance, and I had to give up such expectations. 'What's that…?' I could see a tall man walking toward me, wearing a black suit and a black overcoat. The coat was made of some materials, its surface covered with irregular fur. The word that came to my mind when I saw him was "Crocodile."

Good. The concept was right. But the problem was that it was in the middle of a heat wave that was over thirty-five degrees. I was about to die in a half-sleeve right now, but the man was in a full suit and black overcoat.

One woman who was taking her dog for a walk saw him and said, "Minky. Don't go that way. Let's go home. Let's go. Quickly." She caught up the leash. The dog leapt up and down in surprise.

I stood firm for a moment and watched him. 'No, no way…' The moment our eyes met.

He was tall, about 190cm. His skin was white and his face was odd. The eyes were black and long like Asians, and his nose was high and big just like Europeans. Up and down, his lips resembled those of Africans.

'What, is he a mixed-blood person?' Thinking that far, I suddenly felt fear beyond the sense of wonder. A mixed-blood foreigner in this heat was dangerous. I tried to leave, but as soon as I got up from the bench, he said in a deep, low voice, "Is this Han Sang-hoon?"

I spoke to him, not trying to leave, "… yes."

Then, as if he were a medieval knight, he said, kneeling before me on one knee, "Hello, I am Crow. I've been ordered to be the servant of Hang Sang-hoon from today on."

His manner was excellent. I put my fists on my head. It was the picture I had seen in the spy movie.

'Is this Crow?'

'Are you Han Sang-hoon?'

'All right, let's start the story.'Sitting side by side on a bench, looking into the air, my idea of having a private conversation with him was completely shattered.

I didn't have the confidence to look around, but at the same time, I was sure everyone would be watching me like, 'What the hell are those crazy people?'

'If I had known this would happen, I should have asked him to meet me at 4 a.m.' I spoke to him with my hands on the brow, "Yes, nice to meet you. Please sit down."

I offered him a seat next to me, and he just sat right next to me. The hairs surrounding his coat touched my skin. Apart from being hot, this was like we were mad coworkers. I gestured and pushed him to the edge of the bench.

"Sit a little bit far away, all the way to the edge."

"Yes." Fortunately, he followed me well. "Master." He even used the title of master.

'Oh, my God, is he a madman from another dimension?' I glanced at him, thinking that in my mind.

He was staring at me hard. I said, gesturing forward this time, "Look up ahead. Don't look at me."

"Yes, master." He turned his eyes forward.

Now, there was a painting I wanted. I, like him, turned my eyes forward and said, "Okay, let's talk like this."

"If the master wants it…"

Now, the word "master" kept bothering me.

"And… instead of the master… please call me boss."

"Yes, boss."

'All right. He's a good listener.' This was good. He corrected himself right away.

I spoke to him without turning my eyes, as if speaking to myself from afar, "Isn't it hot?"

"It's very hot."

"By the way, why are you wearing such a coat?"

"This is our basic dress, boss."

"Who's chosen that basic outfit?"

"My boss." He must have a boss.

"… That boss is a strange man…"

He spoke in a very obtuse way, "Yes, I think so."

"What's the boss doing?"

"He's in charge of us."

"We…?"

"Crows." Crow seemed to mean group rather than name.

"Are there any more crows besides you?"

"Yes."

I asked in amazement. "Are you saying that there are more people in action now in this world?" In this question, there was a nuance, 'There's another madman like you?'

But he continued to speak in an obtuse tone, "I'm the only one in this world who's ever been sent."

"This world?"

"Yes."

There was a conversation going to Andromeda. I remembered the conversation I'd had with the Customer Service. I knew from experience that this question was pointless to pursue. I turned the subject around.

"The… about the basic dress, if I told you not to wear it, you might not wear it, right?"

"Yes, of course, sir."

"Then… …next time, don't wear that coat. Just wear a suit."

"Yes, sir."

I glanced at him, and he was looking forward, not even giving me a glance, as I commanded.

'Isn't this a person? Really? Is he a robot?' At the moment, he took a white handkerchief from his coat and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"That… If it's hot, take it off. That coat."

"Yes, sir."

"Umm… that shirt, too."

"Yes, boss." He took off his coat and shirt and put them on the bench.

Looking closely, it was the feathers of a bird hanging on his coat, a crow's feathers. I thought I had taken the wrong skill.

'Can this slightly broken robot investigate something well? I'd rather get the news 12 Years After and plan a long-term corporate investment.' I asked him, thinking about it, "Are you a reporter?"

"Yes. A reporter, that's what they call me in the world. When I am paid for, I do the work of providing information, Boss."

"Price? What's the price?"

"That's a secret." This guy also used the same words. I thought it had something to do with Customer Service.

"… that's what I'm paying for?"

"No. It's the employer's responsibility. I understand you're already paying a large subscription fee to our employer."

The employer was like the side sending emails, including Customer Service.

"Well, yes…" I muttered to myself.

Then he said, "Yes, boss." That was how he took my words to himself. He was very polite.

'If I say, "Go ahead and do three back-dumblings and push-ups at the handstand a hundred times," he will at least try.

'I like that point… but I wonder if he'll do a good job of investigating…'

I asked him, "Do you know about stocks or the economy?"

"What are you asking…"

"If I ask you to find out what a company's performance this quarter is like…"

To my question, he spoke in a confident voice, "Of course. I'm competent." That was what the Customer Service said, and he said that he was capable of it.

I looked around from here. Everyone who was going to run away in amazement earlier had run away, and the newcomers were just walking around the park in a free and easy way. Now we looked like just an ordinary businessman and a tall foreigner.

I spoke to him, "Well, then, I'll ask you this: During the recent Bisang Construction scandal and stock price manipulation, who ordered the stock price manipulation; how did they launder the money and spend it on stock price manipulation; is there any evidence of collusion with the president of Bisang Construction, Jung Gi-woong; how was reporter Kang Joo-hyuk killed, and how are they related to the delisting of Go-Young Food. Please investigate all the information about them."

I said this and looked at him slightly, wondering if there was any chance he would say, 'There are so many things you want at once.' So I added a word after putting it together. "In a word, I want you to investigate everything about this Bisang Construction and the stock price manipulation case." I looked at him.

He told me without turning his eyes to me, "Is that your request this month?" He was serious.

I turned my eyes forward again and said, "Yes. Please organize the details and let me know."

"Yes, boss." The answer was refreshing.

I didn't know what the result would be. For a moment, silence ensued, and I asked him in a vague question. "By the way, how the hell can you tell me about the findings? By email or do we meet again like this?"

By the way, there was no answer coming back. I looked sideways, but he was gone. The coat on the bench was gone, too.

'What is it?' I looked around the park. I couldn't see the black clothes.

'I only looked away for a few seconds… How come…?' It was like a scene from a spy movie. I looked around for a moment as if possessed by a ghost, and finally gave up.

'He appeared briefly and then vanished… well… I'll have to ask Customer Service.'

I stood up thinking about it. Now I saw a black feather left on the spot where his coat had been placed. I lifted the black feather of a crow. I thought of the name while touching it with my hands.

'Crow…'

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After Crow left, I came down the hill again. I drove away the Porsche that I had parked in the parking lot of the National Library, and went back to my apartment, passing through Seoul National University of Education Station. I threw my sweaty clothes into the laundry basket and took a shower. I washed away the sweat and turned on the air conditioner. The cool breeze of the air conditioner blew away the remaining water from my skin and made me feel a few times cooler.

"Hoo… it was hot last year, and it seems like it's getting hotter every year."

Well, if I thought about it, one of the most recent stocks I'd been trading was that kind of stock. [Due to the scorching heat, demand for air conditioners has soared. The stock price of Ilsung Electronics hit the upper limit price.]

And the theme stocks also occurred. [Increase in demand for power due to heat. Blackout related stocks are all up.]

On reflection, I had known in the spring that this summer would be very hot.

'It turns out I've been thinking about buying stocks and memorizing the names of the stocks… Even though I've earned tens of million dollars, I've not thought much about the stories behind them.'

As I lived on numbers, I tended to overlook the side that touched my daily life. I stood in front of the air conditioner for a long time, cooling myself down and thinking about Crow. Strange things abounded. First of all, apart from his clothes, I couldn't know whether he was a white, a black, or a yellow man, along with his mysterious words and his appearance. 'He's… that's really weird.'

I sat down at my computer desk. The computer for trading was still on. Today was the day I received the Master Class Guide, so instead of trading myself, I set the automatic algorithm trading system and went to work.

'… It's all going well.'

I left the computer alone, slid over in front of the game computer and turned it on. I opened the mailbox by floating an Internet window and opened a link to Customer Service through the email 12 Hours After. The chat window appeared soon.

– Hello, customer Han Sang-hoon. How may I help you?-

The Customer Service welcomed me with its usual kindness. In any case, the greeting was friendly.

'The problem is that their answers are unkind.' I asked what I was curious about, thinking about it.

– How do I get the results from the request I made to Crow?-

As expected, the answer came in 0.1 seconds.

– After thirty days, you will meet face to face and receive a report when the investigation is complete. Please specify the time and place to receive the report through this email.-

I guessed I would have to meet like that every time and get the report.

'This is burdensome to me… But if that strange basic outfit is somehow resolved, it won't be too difficult to meet.'

I decided to ask them something else.

– Is there any possibility that Crow can get caught while he's working? For example, as he investigates someone, getting caught by the target.-

– That's not going to happen. Crow is a very able reporter.- There was a firm answer.

I looked at it and thought, 'He's a very able reporter… but he seemed unfamiliar with the word "reporter" itself.'

He had said to me, "I'm a man who sells information for a price."

When I heard the explanation, I felt more like a spy than a reporter. At any rate, he seemed to be professional as far as his job went. I took the mouse cursor to the top of the chat window. I had asked everything I could ask; I didn't think I'd get a proper answer if I asked more. But I decided to turn the cursor and just ask the Customer Service things that came to my mind. No matter what I asked them, they would answer.

– What kind of country is Crow from?-

There was a longer answer than I expected.

– I understand that when Crow became a Crow, he destroyed all his identities, such as age, name, and nationality. His nationality is now meaningless.-

It wasn't exactly an answer which resolved my question.

– He said that he's been sent to this world, and isn't he a man of this world?-

– He is a man of this world and he is not.-

It was a biggie, a secret of the Customer Service. It was answered to a certain extent.

'So he's not an ordinary person.'

The one sending this email certainly seemed to be on the border between reality and unreality, like Crow was rather unrealistic.

– Who is Crow's boss?-

– Crow's boss is Master Crow.-

'Master Crow?' Crow's boss name seemed to be Master Crow, the man who put him in the odd coat of fur, the one even the strange Crow said was strange.

– What the hell is this Master Crow?-

This time there was an even stranger answer. -Master Crow is the owner of 'Darker Dan Black' and one of the strongest in the world.-

'Darker Dan Black? Master Crow? The strongest in the world?'

Those words were a little funny.

– What's strong?-

– People who know information are strong. He has a lot of crows and a lot of information about the world.-

'It is not likely to be wrong, saying that he is strong. The reason why I'm strong right now is that I know the future. It doesn't mean simply being socially strong.'

I followed that point. – Is he physically stronger than me? If I shoulder throw him in the Judo training center…-

– He won't be beaten by you. He will know which way you'll jump if he plays Judo with you.-

– Oh, really?-

I felt as if I was in touch with something outside the world. I asked one last question out of curiosity. – The Master Crow, can I see him?-

– I know that he is very busy at this moment. I don't think you'll be able to meet him.-

When I looked at the reply, I felt a little bit disconcerted and scrolled up a little bit.

– I understand… he destroyed all his identities.-

– He will know which way…-

– I know that he is very busy.-

– I don't think you'll be able to meet him.-

There were all speculative answers.

Usually, this Customer Service had spoken conclusively.

– It is…-

– Yes.-

– No.-

Customer Service was secretive and looked completely innocent, but it seemed to be unsure here.

'That's unusual…'

I turned off the chat window here, and for a moment I leaned back in the chair and thought about Crow.

'I was so embarrassed when we met, and I didn't think… Now that I think about him, I feel a little sorry for him. He was wearing that kind of outfit in the world these days, and he followed as I ordered… Maybe he has been working under some strange contract.

'If Crow brings the result a month from now, I'll buy him a nice meal and talk with him. I don't know the Master Crow, but I want to be a good boss. After all, this is the end of the Master Class adaptation.'

I caught a glimpse of the automatic trading program on the computer next to me.

'Today, there is nothing to sell, but something to buy' The split-buying actually made little difference, whether I was forced to touch it or not. Sometimes the computer was better than if I did it myself.

'Then today… shall I take a break to call Ah-young and go out for a date with her?' Come to think of it, Ah-young said she was going to her relatives' house in the countryside today.

'Well, then…' Ah, there was one thing I was going to do today: buy a new car. I'd received the Master Class and I would buy another car. I picked up my cell phone and called Secretary Seo.

"Yes, boss."

"Secretary Seo. Take the car and come to my apartment. Let's go buy a new car."

"What kind of car… do you mean?"

"This time, I'm going to buy a sports car, like a Lamborghini or Ferrari."

"Oh, yes. I'll be right there, boss!" Secretary Seo answered jubilantly.

In fact, I just thought myself, 'Shall I drive a sports car this time?' but Seo Ji-hoon was more interested in cars than I was, so if I wanted to buy a car, he would like it more than I did.

'By the way, when I had started my company, I had told him I'd let him have a Porsche in three years.' There were two years left. Thinking about his salary now and his salary going forward, he would definitely have Porsche in two years.

'No, at that time… I'll just buy it for him as a celebration of three years' service… and I'm sure he'll be very happy.'

I waited for Secretary Seo to come, thinking about it. Not long after, the cell phone rang. I answered and told him, "Yes, I'll be right down."

He came really quick. It was close by, but he must have been excited to buy a car.I looked around the dealership of the Lamborghini with Seo. Sometimes in Gangnam, I'd seen them go by, motor rumbling, but it was really pretty seeing them shine like this.

"This is an Aventador, sir."

"Oh, that's?"

"It's a Uracan model."

The salesman was a handsome man in his thirties. He was no older than I was, but he followed me and explained everything in detail.

"This model is a Midship equipped with a 6.5-liter natural intake V12 engine. The power output is 700 horsepower. It takes 2.9 seconds to get up to 100 kph. You can get up to 200 kph in 8.6 seconds and up to 350 kph…"

When I heard that, I thought frankly, 'There's no place to drive at 200 kph… no, it's illegal to speed in the first place.' There was no place in Korea to drive a sports car like that. I could only drive slowly between cars in Gangnam. It was the irony of a sports car.

'But I didn't buy it to run.' The reason for buying it was that it had beautiful colors, smooth curves, and strong angles. It was purely aesthetic.

Secretary Seo came up to me and whispered, "It's the hottest model in the world, Boss."

It looked like it. It was really pretty. If I put it next to the Porsche Panamera and Bentley Bentay, it was going to be another good addition to my collection.

"So how much?"

"The factory price is five hundred and fifty thousand dollars…"

I didn't listen to the numbers after that. I nodded and said, "I'll buy this Aventador."

My words brightened the salesperson's face. Secretary Seo seemed to get vicarious satisfaction. I would let him do the test drive.

The salesperson gestured into the store, "Would you like to come over here for a moment?"

It must have something to do with the paperwork. I started to follow him in, but someone greeted me. "CEO Han, I am seeing you in a place like this. It's been a long time."

It was a familiar face. This was the third Lee son of the Daewon Daily News, Director Lee Won-jae, Kaiji.

For once I felt nothing wrong with him on the surface. I said to him with a slight salesman's smile, "Yes, Director Lee, long time no see."

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Director Lee Won-jae said to me with a big smile. "Are you here to buy a car, CEO Han?"

I nodded slightly, "Yes."

The woman standing behind him stole my attention. She had white skin, round eyes, and long eyelashes. Even if I didn't want to look, her own color was so intense that I couldn't take my eyes away from her. I would rather ask openly than pretend not to know. "Who's this behind you?"

"Ah… this is my secretary. Secretary Kim." He looked back and gestured, "Say hello. This is CEO Han Sang-hoon of Invictus Investment."

At his words, the woman, Kim, approached and greeted me and extended her hand. "Hello, CEO Han. This is Kim Soo-ah, who is serving CEO Lee Won-jae."

I shook hands with her. I didn't think this beauty was chosen solely for her job as a secretary. She was wearing a suit now, but the skirt was very short. I felt like she'd been chosen for something more. I introduced my secretary as a courtesy, "Have you seen Secretary Seo before?"

"Ah… Yes."

Lee Won-jae nodded at Secretary Seo, but he seemed not to remember him. Secretary Seo approached him and greeted him first, "I have seen you for the second time. I'm Secretary Seo Ji-hoon."

"Yes, Secretary Seo."

As I was looking at the two of them greeting one another, I felt a strange sense of change. 'What is this?' After a moment's reflection, I soon realized what it was: Lee Won-jae's title had been changed to CEO!

I turned my head and asked him, "Did you become a CEO?"

"Oh, yes. I just became the CEO of Daily Sports, where my older brother used to be. My older brother went into the headquarters of the Daewon Daily News."

I nodded, "Oh, I see. Congratulations!"

"Thank you, CEO Han." He smiled at my congratulations. The person that came to mind at this time was his other brother, Director Lee Won-jun. He must be suffering from this scorching heat inside the prison now.

'The second one's lost and the first and third one have moved on.' Something seemed to be changing in the Daewon Daily News after Lee Won-jun was put in jail for the Bisang Construction stock manipulation scandal. Maybe he was thinking, 'if only my older brother were gone as well…'

I asked him, "CEO Lee Won-jae… are you here to see the cars?"

"Yes. Because I'm the head of a company now, I'm here to buy one that matches my position." He looked quite happy. He kept on laughing and telling me, "Ah, if you have time, would you like to have a word with me?"

This guy was unreliable, but sometimes he was useful.

"Yes, I will."

As I nodded, he gestured to the beautiful secretary, "Secretary Kim." It meant, 'don't follow me'.

I thought he was trying to have a secret conversation. I also winked at Secretary Seo.

The secretaries were left behind, looking at each other furtively.

I also spoke to the dealer in the distance, "I'll finish the contract in a little bit."

He bowed his head without a word. He seemed to be well aware of how powerful his clients were.The two of us settled in chairs outside the Lamborghini store.

"By the way, you've been doing really well lately. Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, I never imagined it."

"We were only right to ask each other."

"Yes, but now the assets of Invictus Investment are… a billion dollars, right?"

I turned my eyes to the cars on display without affirmation or denial. I just thought, 'What's he trying to say?'

"That's great, CEO Han. How did you make such a sudden growth in assets…"

I answered without much thought, "Well, I was lucky."

However, he spoke with a strong denial, "No. I don't think so. I think CEO Han Sang-hoon is the most talented person of our age."

Someone might be flattered by these compliments, but I was not. To be honest with myself, I'd been proud a little bit at first, but after the time I'd had with Vice President Jang and with some presidents under me, such praise was familiar enough to me. I replied with a smile, "Am I?"

"Yes. Since I was a kid, I've met a lot of business people… I've met a lot of successors from big companies like Susung, Mirae, GL, and Suyeon Group. When I was young, I was brought to meet them by my father, and later, I met them because of business."

"… I see." I looked at him. I thought his words were true.

'Well, Daewon Daily News is one of the top four media outlets in Korea. The collusive ties between the media and chaebols are painful to talk about. His father must have been close to the chairmen of the conglomerates, and he seems to have made his son familiar to them, just like Lee Won-jun and Tak Joon-gi… It may be one of the examples where the friendship between chaebol heirs ended badly.'

He went on, "But… in my opinion, they were not capable… but they seemed to take advantage of their parents. I think they don't bet. They all know only how to maintain what they inherited."

I listened carefully to what he was saying.

"Their families are in their third and fourth generations now. Even if the founders are giants who accumulated wealth themselves in the Sixties and Eighties, their grandchildren are not. Well, frankly, they're the lucky ones."

He was making quite a dangerous remark.

'Why is he saying that? If I think about it, he is the same…'

I was thinking about it, he said as if he were reading my thoughts, "I know that I might be seen as a person like that, but… I actually think I have only one ability."

"What ability… do you mean?"

"The ability to see people."

I laughed a little bit inwardly, 'Hmm… really?' Still, I didn't express it.

He went on and on, "In my eyes, CEO Han Sang-hoon is very special. You are betting on success, and you're betting again. All the other chaebol's sons and daughters are busy taking care of themselves… but CEO Han Sang-hoon is different. I don't know if it's because you were born in a poor family." As he said that, he looked into my eyes and waved his hand hastily, "Oh, that is a compliment. To be honest, I'm also from a rich family, so I don't understand everything. I think that mindset is really different from the third or fourth generations of chaebols. CEO Han Sang Hoon is different. You are brave and the results… continue to come out."

I didn't know if he was good at discerning people, but I thought he was right about me. I was brave because I knew the future. He had known me before I had set up Invictus Investment. So even if he didn't know the existence of 12 Hours After, he would have known that I was doing things like miracles.

'There's nothing I can do about it. Even if I hide 12 Hours After perfectly, I can't hide the results that come out, especially to people who have been watching me since the beginning.'

"That's too much."

He continued speaking, "So, my conclusion is that CEO Han Sang-hoon… is more competent than the children of other conglomerates. And… I think his future is brighter."

"Thank you for your kind words." I continued to be modest.

Kaiji kept on, his long, thin eyes even thinner. "I've been sure recently. CEO Han Sang-hoon will probably become a bigger person than the chaebols now. So…."

It was a familiar pattern. Too familiar, bringing up the main idea after cheering the other up with compliments. I looked at him and thought, 'What do you want?'

However, there was an unexpected answer.

"From now on, I'll be under CEO Han Sang-hoon."

"Yes?" I spoke to him with my eyes wide. "What does that mean?"

"It is as I said. As you know, our media company should always have connections with big companies. That's what I've learned from my father since I was a kid."

"… so?"

"I told you last time, I want to be more friendly, and beyond that, I think that the Daewon Daily News will be my company, and I should go under CEO Han Sang-hoon in the long term."

I studied him. Certainly, from a long time ago, I had been eager for his ability, and moreover, his background: the name of Daewon, one of the four major domestic media companies. I recently acquired Oracle News, but it was just a small company working Internet news. No matter how much I grew Oracle News, it was just a commercial success.

I would not be able to surpass the Daewon Daily News, which had dominated the four major media positions for more than fifty years. If it were listed in the market, I would buy it. However, all four major Korean media companies were unlisted. It was justified on the basis of keeping the neutrality of the press, though that was a lie. I looked him up and down.

'This guy's got a good sense. No… Should I say he is lucky? He met me at Garden Envy, which I attended for just one day…'

It was not a bad deal. If the Daewon Daily News came under me, I could be more powerful than I had. There was one more thing that needed to be decided before that.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think you've been chosen as the successor to the Daewon Daily News."

"… that's true." He looked around for a moment. There was no one around. But he lowered his voice anyway. "So, I have something to say. Recently, my second brother went to prison, and the power structure has been reorganized inside the Daewon Daily News: the people on my brother's side, and the people on my side. Of course, there are more people on my brother's side. But if CEO Han Sang-hoon helps me a little, it will not be so difficult for me to take over the company. "

'In the end, that's the story.' I didn't think he would have sat down with me to praise me, either.

He kept talking. "I was born in a rich family, but I was born as the third son. Because of a wall that couldn't be overcome no matter what I did, I was desperate, until recently, my second brother was defeated. Then I saw hope. I want to step aboard the ship with CEO Han Sang-hoon. Please help me, and I'll help you."

His motivation was understandable, and the outcome of the deal was not bad… if I could trust him.

"I understand what you are talking about. If there's anything we can help each other with in the future… we'll help each other and talk more." I spoke to him like that, but it meant 'I'll act according to your wishes'.

But he brought up something right away, "Yes!. For that reason, I'm going to help you first."

"What kind of-"

He said, "Director Tak Joon-gi is moving."

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Translator: Khan

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I opened my eyes wider and looked at him. 'Why did the name Tak Joon-gi come out here?'

So far, his name never came out, like Voldemort in Harry Potter, but now it came out of his mouth. It was like admitting that Tak Joon-gi was a wire-puller for the Bisang Construction.

'This is news that has not been reported in the established media. It means he is going to take risks, too.'

But he was also mindful of the fact that I designed the plan. I said, without admitting anything. "What the hell does that mean?"

Director Lee Won-jae replied after a moment of silence, "Well… during the incident of Bisang Construction… it was Tak Joon-gi who led the stock manipulation with my younger brother. I received the information indirectly and joined it with a million dollars."

"… I see."

As I said that, he hesitated for a moment and asked me, "Didn't you already know that, CEO Han?"

"Yes. I didn't know." I said firmly. The path I got the information from was my girlfriend Lee Ah-young, and then it was from the future news 12 Months After. These were factors that I couldn't reveal to anyone.

"I see. Anyway, they say that Director Tak Joon-gi lost nearly a hundred million dollars in this Bisang Construction case. He was convinced that the business operator was going to be Bisang Construction… He bought lots of shares for Bisang Construction and made a massive short stock sale for Jinyang Development. He suffered huge losses."

He spoke down as if the words were very secret, but I knew all about them, too. Only the hundred million dollars was slightly higher than I expected.

'Someone was greedy for stock and his predictions went wrong, he lost everything he had. He must have been very greedy.'

"Although he has not expressed his anger outside… he's been looking for whoever uncovered the corruption in the Bisang Construction. He seems to think of CEO Han Sang-hoon as the prime suspect."

"Me? Why?"

'He will not find any evidence. To find the evidence from Mayor Joo Sung-won, who exposed the incident, he has to chase down the exposer Cho Sang-wook, who reported the contents of 12 Months After, and find out the delivery man who delivered the data to his mailbox, and a person who made a secret request, hiding his identity. That way, he'll find out he's a Chinese. I know that the Chinese man, who came to Korea from Jilin Province to study, is a friend of Seo's, but even if it's me, it would be hard to find him!'

"He didn't find any evidence, but… he's firmly convinced, because Han Sang-hoon who made the most money from the incident."

"That's… That's right, but it's just a coincidence…"

"I don't think he believes in the coincidence. That's why he thinks Han Sang-hoon planned this… and he is trying to retaliate."

"To retaliate?"

"Yes."

"What kind of…?"

"Well, I don't know, but you have a few companies and he's trying to scam one of those companies."

"Ah, I see, I didn't see Director Tak Joon-gi like that. He is more unusual than I thought."

"He hates to be a loser, so… after this incident… he seems to think that he has failed, he has lost…"

"Hmm…"

'I have already told Crow to find out what happened in the incident, and he is going to do it. Tak Joon-gi has bad luck. I don't know what he is trying to do, but as soon as we get some information from Crow, I will have to take his hands and feet out, before he does anything strange.'

I nodded, "I see… Thank you for the information."

He added a word to my reply. "CEO Han, be careful. I've known him since I was a kid, but he is a man who is really greedy, and could be quite brutal if he wasn't occupied by his own greed. The hundred million dollars he lost this time was a lot of money for him. I understand he even used private debts, with the shares of Suyeon Travel as collateral this time."

I wrote down one point in my head here, 'He used private debts as collateral with the shares of Suyeon Travel.

'If a major shareholder uses private debts as collateral… if the stock price plummets and the mortgage was short, it will have to be paid back, even by giving up the shares. Maybe I can make a huge profit at the same time that I put Tak Joon-gi in prison.'

I spoke to him, "I don't know what's wrong with him, but… anyway, thank you for letting me know. I'll pay attention."

"Yes, CEO Han."

I looked at him. As I had seen him so far, he was a bit pompous, but not a villain like Tak Joon-gi.

'Maybe he can be my colleague, if he builds up more trust with me.'

As I was thinking of that, he suddenly spoke up again, "Well, by the way, CEO Han Sang-hoon. Our Daily Sports is making a corporate announcement at the end of the year. It's KOSDAQ."

"Oh, really? Congratulations!"

"Thank you, but I don't think there's going to be any kind of trouble with demand. I think it would be better if CEO Han Sang-hoon invests. These days, Invictus Investment is very popular among investors. The price of the offering will be higher just with the CEO Han's participation."

That was true. Now that Invictus Investment was on a roll of success, if our company bought some stocks, there were investors who would buy them.

"Well, maybe I will."

"So, I'd like you to go over it."

I looked at him. 'Yeah, well, you want me to spend some money… you think you have given me a lot of information.'

Unfortunately, I also knew most of it already. It was a little short of being favored. However, it was true that a name, which no one had brought up, was on the table, so it might be appreciated. I nodded, "Please send us a proposal. We'll check it out."

He bowed his head, "Thank you, CEO Han."

Finally, we got up from our seats.

"I'm sorry I took so much of your time. I was going to come and talk to you about this in person around next week, but I happened to meet you in a place like this."

"No, that's okay. I came here to see a car because I had time to spare. I've already chosen one. Please have your time and take a look around."

"Yes, CEO Han."Two more days had passed since that day. I went to work two more days in a row, checking the subsidiaries. I was wondering if something strange might happen. But there were no signs of that. Fantasy War Ground was cruising on and on, and "I'm Going to See You Tomorrow" starring Oh Hyun-joo was on the rise. My subsidiaries' stock prices were also a bit on the rise. I didn't smell anything strange.

'What can he do if he gets busy?' Although Tak Joon-gi was a third-generation chaebol, he was behind in his succession process. If the entire Suyeon Group, which had a combined market capital of fifty billion dollars, moved on, it would hard for me to handle, but the one who controlled only Suyeon Travel was no match for me. My assets were already heading toward a billion dollars… of what was known. He used to look pretty strong, but it was just because he was with the name Suyeon.

'He was no match for me in the first place.' I decided to spend a little more time thinking about it. In a month, Crow would bring the information. Then I would get him out of the capital markets completely.

'Lee said Tak used private debts with his own shares. Well, then I'll press the counter-deal again.' I picked up the phone and called Secretary Seo.

"Yes, boss."

"Please call Vice President Jang to come see me."

"Yes…" Secretary Seo tried to answer me, but changed his words, "Ah, Vice President just came by."

"Oh, really? Please let him in."

"Yes."

Over the telephone, I heard him say, "Come in."

Jang came in with a knock. I told him, "I was going to call you, this is good."

"Oh, were you? I have something to report, boss."

As he told me he had something to report, I thought, 'What happened to the other company?'

Vice President Jang asked me politely, "What do you have to say?"

"No. Tell me first. What report?"

When I asked, he held out the report he had brought to me and said, "I haven't been looking for a long time, but recently, a good sale came to the market and I wanted to let you know."

"Really? What is it?" I accepted that and there it was written: Report on Jiwoo Entertainment.

'Jiwoo Entertainment?' It was an unforgettable name to me. The company that had once been sold to a Chinese company and given me a huge return when I started getting the news 12 Hours After. It was an orphan adopted by a chaebol family.

'Did I make about a hundred thousand dollars?' Now it was a small sum of money, but it had been a huge sum for me, who had been unable to pay back my student loans at that time. It was one of the first contributors to my quitting the company.

I pretended to know something, "But wasn't this company sold to a Chinese company? Is it on sale?"

"Yes, sir. It was sold to the BEU last year, but the situation in China is not good, so I guess it came back on sale."

Fortunately, it did not seem that there was anything strange or wrong with the company. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, from the BEU standpoint, they were going to create synergy in both the Korean and Chinese markets with this company, but… the situation in China is so complicated these days… they've decided to reduce their overseas investment and collect the amount invested."

"But in only a year?"

"I don't know anything about it, but they are showing a rush to sell it regardless of the price. That's why I said it was a good opportunity, since Jiwoo Entertainment is stronger than OH Entertainment in boy and girl groups. I thought it would be nice to buy it and connect it to OH Entertainment."

The Chinese financial market was fluctuating these days. There were strange signs here and there in the wake of the prolonged trade war and exchange war with the U.S. The BEU seemed to be trying to dissolve the adopting an orphan a year after it did so.

"First of all, I'll review it."

"Yes, boss."

I accepted the report. In the meantime, Jang added another word, "Boss, by the way.. what were you trying to say?…"

Come to think of it, I had something to say to him, too. "Ah… you're right. We still have a team for short stock sales, right?"

"Yes, boss."

"Please get the team ready again."

As I said, Jang blinked for a moment, then bowed. "I'll do as you say, sir."

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Chapter 114. Screening

Translator: Khan

Editor: Aelryinth

I sat at my desk and reviewed the Jiwoo Entertainment report sent by Vice President Jang. The stock price of Jiwoo Entertainment recently had been in a downward spiral. According to the report, "They have been looking for activities in China ambitiously since they were acquired by the Chinese firm BEU, but they have performed worse than expected in the aftermath of recent changes in the stance of investment companies in China and the prolonged Hanhanlyeong."

'Their market capital is $25,000,000? It was like $30,000,000 when I bought it…' I searched the stock price when I had been an employee, not a CEO. It was about $30,000,000. Then, it rose to $80,000,000 at some point. The move came shortly after it was acquired by BEU.

'Ah, I sold it at this time.' I looked at the chart and recalled the past for a moment. Now, even when I made $5,000,000 or $6,000,000, I was not impressed, but I cheered like I had the whole world when I earned $100,000 at that time.

'It's the greed of men…' I tried to move the graph further with a smile on my face. Jiwoo Entertainment had been falling ever since it had hit $80,000,000. It was not very strange. No matter how the major shareholder changed, if it did not generate synergies, the value of the same company could not be maintained at more than twice as high. The stock price, which had soared, had fallen to $50,000,000 and stayed around the price for a while, and then it continued to fall again, until it reached $25,000,000 after half a year.

'It's way down from the time BEU took over.'

I guessed it didn't work out really well. Jiwoo Entertainment's main stars were a girl group, Nine Tales, and Ha Yeon-seo. They were famous for their visual appearance and ability, but they were not supported by the agency. It might not have improved since the owner changed to a Chinese company. I remembered that the CEO was abused, "Kim Dong-il, you son of a bitch! Don't you feel sorry for Ha Yeon-seo?" Once again, I went to the stock bulletin board again.

– Jang-shin, you son of a bitch! Ha Yeon-seo is so poor since she was sold to China.-

There were some similar curses written. Only the name of the abused changed.

'Jang-shin? Is this the president of the company?'

Listening to the story, the girl group Nine Tales seemed to have gone to China to release an album in Chinese and run events here and there across the continent. However, there wasn't much success.

'They have no luck… if we take over this company and let President Kwon take care of it… I think it's not bad. President Kwon Oh-hyuk is famous for caring about his agency's celebrities. If they get new management, they'll be able to shine again.'

'All right, then…'

However, I had a sudden thought: 'Tak Joon-gi is moving.' It was the advice Lee Won-jae had given me. If it had been the same as usual, I would have approved this deal without much thought, but now that I heard about it, I was ready to check everything.

'What's the probability that Tak Joon-gi is involved here? Is this is a Trojan horse?' The probability was not that high, since this was a Chinese-based company, so it was going to be hard for Tak Joon-gi to touch.

'I'm afraid it's a little difficult… let's be careful for now, but let's pay more attention to the internal controls.' I decided to do so. If he attacked our companies, there was a possibility of doing something about it with the existing companies. I had to stop that. I brought a notepad up on my cell phone. The notepad had three names on it: Jang Sang-jin, Shin Jae-eun, and Shin Dong-woo.

The three were none other than the main people in our companies: Vice President Jang of our company, Shin Jae-eun of Hyun Young Pharmaceutical, and Shin Dong-woo, CEO of Kai Games, were the most important people. I searched these people twice in a row yesterday evening and this morning. I might get some news because of the same names. As a result, the three men were clean. There was little content.

[The hidden power of Invictus Investment.]

[The little giant who leads a mid-sized pharmaceutical company.]

[The person who represents the creativity of the Kai Games.]

There were only good articles about them.

'All right, I'll search for these people tonight, and I'll be starting on those people from this evening.' They were the presidents of OH Entertainment, Blue EM, and Oracle News. 'Kwon Oh-hyuk, Ahn Yong-kyun, and Jung So-young.'

What really bothered me among those was President Kwon Oh-hyuk and OH Entertainment. Since the entertainment business was a business about people, there were times when they were greatly shaken by small issues, especially if the entertainer who was responsible for most of their good fortune, like Oh Hyun-joo, was shaken, the stock price could collapse.

'After those three, I'll scan the entertainers of OH Entertainment again. I'll see what's going on.'

Of course, I'd searched all of them in the past, but I'd overlooked one thing: the Butterfly Effect. I'd been watching the future news and making changes. If I hadn't seen the news of the future, I wouldn't have been playing with Tak Joon-gi, so I'd say that the present was the future I'd changed.

And the future would continue to change, because of me. So even if I'd already seen it, I needed to re-check it periodically. The good news was that the number of slots had increased to three by raising the level once this time. For that reason, I was able to search fifty percent more efficiently than before.

'No matter who tries to attack me, I have the best shield.' By the way, as I thought that, I suddenly got a strange idea, 'Wait a minute, is he going to do something physical?'

I didn't know, but there were still violent organizations in our country. Although they weren't as open as they once were, it was true that they still existed. This Tak Joon-gi was a person who could have a connection with such people. Kang Joo-hyuk wrote a suicide note and committed suicide, but there were some things that were not clear.

I wandered around the office and thought, 'Is it possible for Korea in the twenty-first century? A normal person would not do such a bold thing … but he's lost a hundred million dollars… he'll lose his temper and do something strange …'

I was suddenly worried about that. I could defend the CEOs by searching in People Search. But people like my family were not famous, and I could not search for them in People Search. If they were killed in a strange way, it would be news, but if they disguised it as an accident, they would not come out in Person Search.

'What do I do then?'

There was also my girlfriend, Ah-young. Because of Go-young Food, she had a grudge against them. If Tak Joon-gi knew she was with me, he would think she had asked me for revenge. Actually, it was true, but it wasn't just because of her request that I had trampled on Tak Joon-gi. She was not one that would get on the news if I searched for her name, either.

'It'll take a month. If a month passes…' I was thinking about it, I had another thought, 'Oh, by the way, Ah-young was supposed to go to America…'

Come to think of it, she was originally scheduled to go to the United States this August. Sarah and Ah-young would travel across the United States, from New York to Los Angeles. However, as she recently started dating with me, she was almost inclined to cancel it. I picked up the phone right away and dialed.

She answered my call before the phone rang three times. "Yes, oppa. What's for? Aren't you working now?"

"Ah-young, you are scheduled to go to America for the rest of your vacation, right?"

"Yes."

"I think you'd better go anyway."

"Really? Are you sure you're okay with it?"

I liked being with her because we were in the middle of a fire of love, but I thought it would be comfortable to send her to the U.S. right now.

"No, I'm afraid I won't be in Korea, because I have a business trip abroad in the middle of the month. If I don't send you to America and I go abroad, it doesn't mean anything." I made an excuse that way.

"Okay…" She gave it a little thought, but soon agreed. Breaking the promise with her friend Sarah must have bothered her, too. The trip would go until fall, when a new semester would begin. By then Crow would bring me some information.

'All right, this is enough.'

I went on to call my sister.

Turr, turr, turr… My sister really didn't answer my phone. Fortunately, when the connection tone was repeated around ten times, she answered the phone, "What?" She got the phone in a slightly sleepy voice.

When I had started giving her an allowance of a thousand dollars a month, she said, "brother, just tell me," but these days she had returned to her original position.

I said, scratching my forehead, "Sujin, what are you going to do for the rest of your vacation?"

"Well, I have no plans."

Last time, I had heard from my parents that my sister, who was an elementary school teacher, had broken up with her boyfriend, a doctor, and was staying in the house with nothing to do during the vacation.

"If you don't have anything to do, why don't you take our parents to Europe for the rest of your vacation?"

"Europe?"

"Yes, you can go to the south of Italy, France, Spain, or Russia, Finland, and Denmark, and I'll pay all the expenses."

My sister changed her voice. "Really?"

"Yes. It's vacation season anyway… and take our parents to Europe as soon as possible. I'll pay the plane tickets and even the cost of the hotel… I'll give you a Visa card, and can you handle everything?"

My sister was completely restored to life, "Yes! I will, brother!" Anyway, she was only nice to me when I gave her money.

"It's a condition to take our parents with you. You can't go alone, and only if both our parents want to go…"

My sister said, cutting off my words, "Don't worry! You know dad can't say no to this, right? It's my daily routine to hang out with mom these days, so I'll take both of them along!" she declared in a confident voice.

"Yes. Then I will rely on you."

"Yes!" My sister hung up with a lively voice. That was it. Those who could be exposed to physical danger would be abroad for the next month.That night, I met Ah-young and set up the schedule for the United States.

"Are you sure it's okay?"

"Yes, have a good trip.""Brother, I got three tickets for a flight to Rome. I was sorry for the first class, so I bought the business class." I received a report from my sister, and I felt so relieved to send the four abroad for a month.

I decided to concentrate on the presidents for the rest of the period. It was actually this way that the possibility was high. 'Kwon Oh-hyuk, Ahn Yong-kyun, Jung So-young.'

The first day passed without much trouble.

[President Kwon Oh-hyuk announced Vision 2019.]

[Ahn Yong-kyun is aiming for a gold medal in freestyle at the championship.]

[The announcer Jung So-young looks elegant.]

It was a little bit sad that the two behind were not famous or had common names, and they were pushed away by others. But the more there were, the more I put their names in People Search the next morning: Kwon Oh-hyuk, Ahn Yong-kyun, Jung So-young.

Out of these three people, one person had a strange piece of news. I looked at it for a long time. "What's wrong with him? Why is he…?"

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I read the title of the article once again.

[CEO Ahn Yong-kyun of Blue EM sold his 7% stake in the market.] The content was simple and clear: Ahn Yong-kyun, the head of Blue EM, Sapphire TV, sold a 7 percent stake.

I clicked on the article. It was quite empty like a public statement. It only included just the title.

[He sold 7% of his shares on Aug. 25, the company said in a regulatory filing.]

'Sold 7%?' CEO Ahn Yong-kyun had been invested by our company at that time, and his stake had become very low. He was a CEO, but in fact, he kept his position because I retained it, and his shares were very small.

'I know his current stake is under 10%.' I floated another window and quickly saw Blue EM's financial statements. It was simple to check the major shareholders' stakes.

Invictus Investment 34.4%

Ahn Yong-kyun 9.2%

It was as I remembered. CEO Ahn Yong-kyun had only 9.2%. I reflected about back when I had taken over. Blue EM's total market value was about sixty million dollars at the time of acquisition. At that time, the company acquired seven and a half million, half of his fifteen-million-dollar stake, from Ahn Yong-kyun, and twenty million was made by a third party-allocated paid-in capital increase to become a major shareholder.

As a result, our company held twenty-seven and a half million of the total market capital of eighty million dollars. Ahn Yong-kyun had about seven and a half million. The share ratio was thus 34.4% and 9.2%, and that was what had been coming down so far.

'But he sold 7%… If 7% is sold, Ahn Yong-kyun's stake will sink to 2.2%. Of course, many hired CEOs don't have even one percent. However, he is a founder, and his stake rate is going down to an embarrassing level. Why the hell…?'

That was what I was curious about. Why did he sell it?

'Usually, the sale of stakes in major shareholders or CEOs in all companies is bad news. If the owner of the company sells the shares, the individual investors will naturally think, "Do they know it's going to fall, so are they selling it?" It is common sense to give it a suspicious look.'

I tried to think of other reasons. 'Maybe he's selling because he needs quick cash, like Kwon Oh Hyuk, who bought a house in Gangnam.'

But I didn't think so. Blue EM's share price had recently risen so much that its market capital was around a hundred and sixty million. So, Ahn Yong-kyun's shares were worth roughly fifteen million. Even if he needed quick cash, he could take out a loan against the stock. It wouldn't have been necessary to sell the shares.

'He wants to stay out of company management, or… is it because there is a really bad thing coming? … or maybe?…'

There was one more scenario that would create bad news.

CEO Lee Won-jae had warned me, "Tak Joon-gi may go into one of the companies you have."

And I thought about Ahn Yong-kyun.

'Would you like to sit here?'

'Do you have anything to say?'

He was the one who showed a peculiar weakness to strong arming. I thought of the construction company president bowing to Director Tak Joon-gi. 'Hello, Mr. Tak. Hehe, I used to play golf with your father…'

A scenario popped up. A servile person to a strongman, and a third-generation chaebol of Suyeon Group…

"Umm…" But it was just a hypothesis. So far, nothing was certain. I had a conviction but there was no evidence. I only checked the date he would dispose of his shares. 'August 25th.'

It was still almost a month away. In the meantime, I had to get more information. If there was something harmful to our company going on, I would block it before then.The next morning. I got ready to go to work and went into Ah-young's apartment. She prepared breakfast for me as usual. I spent time having breakfast and drinking coffee with her before she would leave for the U.S.

"So what time is the flight?"

"11 A.M."

"Then there's not much time left?"

"Yes, I'll send you off and get my things sorted, and then go out."

"Really? Um…" I stared at her, in case someone was trying to do something on the way to America. "… Do you want me to give you a ride?"

"No, oppa, didn't you say you have to go to work today?"

"But I can drive you to Incheon International Airport for a while."

"It's okay. The limousine bus is coming right by my door anyway."

That was right. If she walked about a minute from her apartment, there was a limousine bus stop to Incheon Airport. Considering her movements, Gangnam Station, Limousine Bus and Incheon Airport were all crowded with people. It would be much safer than driving her myself.

"Yes. Then… have a good trip."

Ah-young didn't know what the reason was, but she seemed to know that I was worried about her. "Yes. Don't worry. I'll stay in touch with you."

I got a kiss from her and left her house.

'Yeah, well, if I think about it… Ah-young and I haven't been together long, and we've barely been exposed.'

That was how it was. Even my parents recently called me on the phone and asked, "Have you been seeing anyone lately?"

The only person who saw me with her and knew I was dating her was Secretary Seo, who was on my side. Even if Tak Joon-gi tried to do something strange, it would be difficult to target her.

'Yes, I'm sure everything's okay. My family will leave the day after tomorrow…' I took the elevator down to the underground parking lot, thinking about it. There were three cars in the parking lot: the Porsche Pana Mera, the Bentley Bentay and the recently bought Lamborghini Aventador, worth over a million dollars in total. I took the Bentley car key out of my pocket and got in.

Lamborghini was not often taken care of, even though I bought it not long ago. Especially when commuting to and from work, our employees came to work and decided to work hard, so they might be a bit disappointed if the owner was riding in a sports car. Bentley was expensive, too, but there was a gentle side to it.

Br-br-br- I started the car and left the parking lot. As I got out, a black Korean-made SUV followed from the parking lot. Normally, I wouldn't have thought much, but the car caught my eyes. The first was that I hadn't seen it very often in my parking lot. To be honest, there were few Korean cars in the parking lot. Most of them were large cars. But that was a medium-sized SUV. It was not a car I could see often. The second was that it had a very strong sun-tan. It was broad daylight, but only the shadow of the driver could be seen. Of course, if it were normal,

I would've thought, 'Who's here to visit?'

But the warning of CEO Lee Won-jae made me a little sensitive.

'No way, it might not be.' I drove the car thinking that way. From Gangnam Station to Sinnonhyeon Station, Sinnonhyeon Station to Nonhyeon Station, but the car kept coming into my rearview mirror.

'… is it the same way to go?' It was no wonder. The road I was going to work, was the one they would take if they were going to go to Cheongdam-dong or Dongho Bridge or Seongsu Bridge.

"Umm…" I turned my car slowly towards the parking lot of our company but kept an eye on it. But somehow, the car passed behind me rather slowly than the others. It didn't follow my car to my company, but somehow, I felt like it was watching whether my car went into the company.

"Huh…" I got out of the car, clicking my tongue. This was the first time I'd ever imagined someone would follow me on my way to work. I had thought this could happen when I had fucked up Director Tak, but… I should have finished him with Joo Sung-won last time.

Last time was the problem. The prosecution had only caught people around him. They had not caught the biggest fish.

'I don't know if they didn't catch him or they could not, but…' Most of the world's affairs were vaguely bounded by what they did not and what they could not do.

'It only takes a month to arrive at the final destination…' Actually, a month was enough. The current situation was a time limit game, on the assumption that Crow was competent.

'A month…' I came to the president's office on the top floor of the company, thinking about that.

Secretary Seo looked at me and stood up to greet me, "Are you here?"

"Yes."

Suddenly I looked at him and remembered Director Tak Joon-gi and the big man who was guarding him. For some reason, I could imagine a two vs. two tag match between a certain CEO and a secretary, and a director and a secretary.

'I think I can suppress Tak Joon-gi lightly, but the secretary's a problem… he's ten centimeters taller than me. If somehow I took him down and if I use the tightening technique… No, but the strength… his body is too big.'

No matter how hard I tried to calculate, I didn't get an estimate. And at the heart of the matter, there was this guy with his eyes wide.

"Umm? Aren't you going in?"

I spoke to him, "Secretary Seo, have you done any physical training lately?"

He smiled at me and said, "Haha, you know, boss. I don't like that kind of stuff by nature."

That was right. He was a typical nerd who had been digging books and computers for a long time. His relations to sports and violence was close to zero

"Ha… Okay."

I walked into the president's office and looked at my chair for a moment. However, there was someone who came to mind suddenly. I picked up the phone and called my father.

"Yes, son, why did you call me?"

"How are you getting ready for the trip?"

"I am going to be with your mother and sister, like a bodyguard."

Just in time, that word 'bodyguard' came out.

"… I wish you could come with us, by the way."

"I'm sorry, I'm busy."

"Well, yeah… I understand. There are hundreds of people who get paid by you, and I can't help it."

"Yes… but dad."

"Yes."

"You know Jang Geun."

"Jang Geun? Why?"

"Didn't you say he quit coming by to be a bodyguard or something?"

"Yes, he's doing it. Sometimes when he comes home from Seoul, he drops by the training center."

"Oh, that's great, dad. You know his number, right?"

"Yes, shall I get it for you?"

"Yes."

"Yes, just a moment…"

Jang Geun was the best fighter our training center had ever produced. He won a silver medal in the world championships in his early twenties. He was a heavyweight monster. However, a car accident broke one of his hands unfortunately, and he retired.

"If it hadn't been for the accident, he would have gone to the Olympics."

He might not be as good as he had been at his peak, but that was a problem at the world-class level, at the Olympic level. I went back to the simulation, 'Not Secretary Seo… but with him?'

There was no need to stay together. While I was behind him, Jang Geun would blow through Tak Joon-gi's guard on his own like a sheet of paper, and would easily subdue the magnate standing behind him.

"Yes, here's his phone number. I'll tell it to you now."

I answered with a big smile, "Yes, dad."

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I looked at the monitor, my chin on my desk.

[The opening of Fantasy War Ground with Sapphire TV is successfully completed.]

[Sapphire TV will support Idol Management 108]

I had read so many articles over a year, I didn't need to click them; I could grasp the contents in my mind. Then I changed the search terms to 'Blue EM'

Soon there were a few more articles.

[In the era of one-person media, European TV and Blue EM are skyrocketing in anticipation of a growing market.]

[Blue EM hit a new 52-week high. How far can it go up?]

They were about Blue EM stock about to go well. There was no problem on the surface. No, to be precise, there was no problem at present.

'But why …? Why? Really personal? Does he need $15,000,000 for personal reasons? Or just for profit? Or is he afraid that it will go lower than now?'

Blue EM's shares had nearly doubled since I had invested in it. Although there was a connection between Kai Games and OH Entertainment, Blue EM rose because European TV, the frontrunner, went up. I checked the latest short stock sale through HTS. Certainly, the number of short stock sales had increased slightly in recent days. It might be said that it was simply betting on overheating, but it seemed that the timing was something strange.

'Well, if there's a good reason, he'll report to the major shareholder, our company first; but if he doesn't report… I'll find it out myself, faster than he does.'

I have drawn up a list of names of the major directors of Blue EM, including President Ahn Yong-kyun. Now, these people would all go up to my People Search and be searched for a few days.

'Okay, so from this evening…'

It was then that the phone rang. It was Secretary Seo.

"Yes, why?"

"Well… boss." By the way, Secretary Seo's voice sounded a little strange.

"Why? Is something wrong?"

"No, I have a visitor. His name is Park Jang Geun."

I spoke in a good tone, "Oh, let him in."

Soon the door opened and a 190-centimeter tall man came in. I looked up at him. The two of us, eye-to-eye, grinned.

I said with my arms open, "Wow, Jang Geun! How long has it been?" I approached him and hugged him. But because he was so big, it was like hugging a statue. I patted him on the back a couple of times. His whole body was like steel. "How are you?"

He looked down at me and said, "Yes. How have you been?"

"Yes, it's as you can see." I beckoned to the inside of the president's office, especially the front window, which had a good view outside. Beyond that, we could see the scenery of Gangnam district at a glance. It was a symbol of success, and I turned my head and looked at him. I was not short, as my height was nearly 180 centimeters, but I needed to look up this guy.

"By the way, when did you grow up like this? When you were a middle school student, I thought you were similar or a little small…"

"Well, since I was in the third grade in middle school… after you stopped coming to the training center. I've been growing ever since."

"So… I remember you… when you were in elementary school, you fought with Sujin." In elementary school, he was also on the list of who my sister used to beat. Now he weighed more than twice as much as my younger sister. That was as it had happened.

Jang Geun smiled at the same time. "I did. Back then."

Looking at his smiling face, he looked just like he did when he was in elementary and middle school.

"But it's nice to see you after such a long time."

"So am I, brother. I really envy you being so successful like this."

"Haha…"

"No. Every time I drink with my friends back home, we talk about you. You are the richest man in town. Everybody is saying that you bought a building for your dad. The coach, your dad, bragged and talked a lot."

"Ah, yes. It was a filial duty. Sit down." I offered him a seat.

In the meantime, the door to the president's office was closed. It looked like Secretary Seo was watching us secretly. 'Ah, a muscular man over 190 centimeters came in… he might wonder who this is.'

I opened the door he had closed, and called Secretary Seo, who was about to sit down. "Secretary Seo."

"Yes?"

"Come in, you too."

He was going back to his original position, but he listened to me and came into the office. "Yes, boss."

"Secretary Seo, sit down."

Secretary Seo stood uncomfortably, perhaps because of Jang Geun's presence, and then sat down slightly away from him.

I introduced him to Jang Geun. "This is Park Jang Geun, my hometown junior, who used to go to my father's training center. And… What year was it? The championship?"

"It was 2011."

"Oh yeah. He was the silver medalist at the World Judo Championship. He's working as a bodyguard now, and this is…"

I then introduced Secretary Seo. "He is my colleague. We were in the same club in college, and we were trying to start a business, and… then, this is Seo Ji Hoon, who came in as my secretary."

They had been close to me for a long time, but each of them had a different time zone. According to my introductions, both of them greeted one another.

"Good to see you."

"Good to see you."

They shook hands with a short greeting. It was a perfect contrast between the two now. One was a study bug who had never missed being at the top of the class from college admission to graduation. The other was an athlete who has been evaluated as a promising athlete since middle school and had reached the world's top level.

'I wonder how the king in old times used to feel when he saw a warrior and a civil servant.' I thought that in my mind, and spoke out to my secretary, "I've already told Jang Geun… I called in Jang Geun as a bodyguard. I don't know what's going to happen, but just for a month."

Secretary Seo asked me, "A bodyguard?" he asked me, with a glance at Jang Geun. "Why…? You've never said you needed a guard before?"

"Oh, well, I was just wondering if I needed something, just to protect myself." I didn't say anything specific. It was just my conviction, and I didn't need to make Secretary Seo nervous.

I turned my head and said, "So… Jang Geun. I want you to guard Secretary Seo and me for a month."

As I said, Jang Geun said in a loud voice, "Don't worry about it."

At the same time, Sed pointed to himself with his fingers, "Me too?"

I nodded, "Well, you're all following me all the time. If danger threatens me, it could threaten you, too."

'In fact, if something is threatening us, this guy will be in more danger. To be honest, I have the confidence that I could protect myself. It's been a while since I put on my Judo suit, but I still have the skills that were drummed into me. The reason I hired Jang Geun is that it's a more sure card. By breathing for ten seconds, I can earn enough to pay his salary.'

Secretary Seo scratched his forehead with his mouth closed for a moment and might be thinking, 'I could be in danger?'

I said with my hands crossed, "That's what happened anyway. I hope you two get to know each other. I think… you're about the same age?"

The two looked at each other and exchanged words.

"I'm 29."

"Oh, me too."

"You're just the same age. Have a good relationship as friends."

"Yes, brother."

"… yes, boss."

"I'll start working today. Brother, how should I call you from now on?"

"Boss or CEO… call me one of the two."

"Yes, boss." Jang Geun had seen me since he had been very young, so the title seemed to be a little awkward, but he soon got used to it. "What's the traffic like on your way to work? What about the car? What about the number of cars? What about your car?"

"Porsche, Lamborghini, and Bentley."

"Yes." He'd started to take full charge of security.

'There's an old saying, "If a man loses his money, there is no good person." If it is a money-obsessed person like Tak Joon-gi, he might have a strong grudge against me, strong enough to do something illegal. Jang Geun will protect me from him and be a good shield.'Two more days had passed since then. Jang Geun naturally melted into the role of my bodyguard. He followed me wherever I went, and he guarded me unseen. I felt much more comfortable in his presence. Jang Geun was powerful from practicing judo, but I also liked that he was reliable, because he was my hometown junior.

I had known Jang Geun since I had been in elementary school, and his parents too. Likewise, with the opposition, Chang Geun showed a similar loyalty to me, as he regarded my father as a master and spiritual leader. I thought he was a little awkward with Seo.

And, sometimes he talked with Secretary Seo, "What's your major then?"

"I'm in economics. So Jang Geun hasn't competed again since the accident?"

Later, I saw them talking.

"It's better to eat with the boss anyway. It's mostly expensive and delicious."

"Oh, I see."

"Yes, but the boss doesn't save any money on that, so don't feel pressured."

"The boss may feel a little burdened if I decide to eat fully."

I'd even seen them talking like friends. That was good. In the past, I was sorry about leaving Secretary Seo alone, but it would be nice if the two of them got together and got to know each other.

In addition, I got a call from Ah-young from abroad.

"Oppa, I didn't think much of it, but now I'm on Wall Street in New York, and I'm thinking of you. I'm renting a car from here to Los Angeles tomorrow."

And I got a contact from my family. "Son, it's mom. I am very happy. Rome has so much to see. Even if I stayed here for a month, I would not see everything. It's fun to see everything and the food is so good. Thank you, son."

This ensured the safety of those offline. What was left now was an online fight.

'It's August 25… when the blue EM shareholder's sale is announced…' The second-largest shareholder was required to issue a public notice within five days of the change in his stake. That meant he could sell his shares Tuesday. The 20th was not far away.

'What the hell is his reason to sell?' I went on to track down President Ahn Yong-kyun and the directors of Blue EM through People Search on the future news. Sometimes I wrote down my name, and on the off chance, I wrote down the name Tak Joon-gi. I was in the process of doing so when an article was caught in my hand.

"Aha, this is it!"

It was Season Two of spider hunting. Last time he cut the tail and ran away, but this time I would really be putting an end to him…

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Tiriri, tiriri. The alarm went off. I got out of bed, rubbing my eyes. After taking a shower, I took the milk out of the refrigerator, poured it into the bowl, and then took the cereal out of the cupboard and started eating it. Normally, I wouldn't have done this.

'Eat this while I'm away.' It was the cereal that Ah-young had bought for me. While I was eating cereal, I picked up my cell phone for a while and texted Ah-young, who was on the other side of the globe. -How are you? I miss you.-

And for about ten seconds, I looked at it. Seeing that the number "1" next to the letter was not erased, it seemed that she was sleeping or driving.

'Where is she now?'

Ah-young was on a transcontinental trip with her best friend Sarah, like Thelma and Louise, from the east to the west of the United States. Every time she left one town, the time difference changed, so it was hard to tell what time she was at now.

'She'll reply when she sees my text.'

After a quick meal, I brushed my teeth and put on my clothes, and arranged my head. Wi Yi-ying, just in time, the phone rang. I got it, "Yes. I'll come out now."After I got ready to go to work, I went out of the apartment. In the hallway of my apartment stood a 190-centimeter-tall giant, Jang Geun.

He looked at me and greeted me, "There's nothing wrong, boss."

I gave Jang Geun a pat on the shoulder, "Yes. Good job." I took the elevator with him.

When I arrived at the underground parking lot, Secretary Seo was waiting for me with the engine running. "Are you ready?"

"Good morning."

After I got in the back seat, Jang Geun looked around from up there and then got in the passenger seat.

"I'll leave then."

Secretary Seo drove out of our parking lot. In the meantime, Jang Geun kept looking around. Watching him do his job, I turned to my cell phone. I didn't need to check if anyone was watching me or if any car was following me.

'It was good to hire him.' A week after hiring Jang Geun, three of us were going to work together. I might behave fastidiously, but I was going to do this for a month, until Tak Joon-gi was behind bars. Of course, all this was done under the assumption that the Crow was doing a good job. If he were to squint his eyes, and say, "I'm sorry. I failed to collect the information you requested," all would be for naught. I might have to fight a long battle with Tak Joon-gi, constantly gripped by anxiety. Only if he was successful would my attack be possible.

'I hope he's doing well…' Instead, I had almost perfected my defense. I'd hired Jang Geun, and I'd already blocked all attacks that would come based on the future news.

Upon entering the company, I called in Vice President Jang and confirmed, "How is everything about what I told you going?"

Jang bowed his head and said, "I've prepared everything you said, boss. Just give me the order."

I went into the president's office with a nod. The showdown would take place two weeks from now.I watched HTS with my arms crossed; to be precise, I watched the stock window of Blue EM. 'Normal trading volume. No unusual buying agents, no selling agents…' I peeped at the clock with a slightly sleepy eye. It was 11:30 a.m. on August 21, and the day of the showdown had finally come… but it was quiet.

'There's supposed to be a sell-off today.' After I saw on the news 12 Weeks After, Ahn Yong-kyun, president of the company, had announced on Saturday that he had sold his shares. Under a related law, the first major shareholder was required to make public his shares as soon as they were sold, while another major shareholder was required to make a public announcement within five days. In short, if he sold his shares, he should clean up his shares from today. But the stock window was quiet, as if nothing happened, but I was still sure.

'Well… let's wait a little longer. The correction news has not arrived yet. The deadline for correction news is one month before or after the incident. So, as soon as there's a change in the news within a month, there's correction news. The news was reported to me about twenty-four days ago, so if the future changes, there must be correction news.'

'Yes, more than that…' I checked how much the volume of the short stock sale had increased recently. The volume of the short stock sale, which had been increasing slowly since the beginning of the month, had been increasing quite recently. The picture fitted perfectly enough to impede normal stock price rises.

'Why doesn't this guy change his ways… After starting a short stock sale, he created bad news and dragged down the stock price. From Go-young Food to Jinyang Development and this one, they were all the same pattern. It was natural for stockpickers to have a chance to earn money according to the rise and fall of the stock price, but the point was that I'd already figured it out.

'If I know where to come in, it's easy to use that power against them, like judo.'

I suddenly recalled the description that the Customer Service had used when describing the Master Crow: He would know where you're going to grab him…

It was something magical, but it was good anyway. All I had to do was to wait for his subordinate, Crow, to do a good job.

Then, suddenly, the stock price of Blue EM started to fall, because of the bomb that went off somewhere. 'Yes, he is moving.'

On the surface, it looked like a tired ant had fallen out of the short stock sale, but knowing the background, it seemed to me that CEO Ahn Yong-kyun, who was working with Tak Joon-gi, was selling his shares. It might be 99%. What was unique about this case was that the company's CEO, Ahn Yong-kyun, was holding his hand.

They had done the same thing during the last Bisang Construction. When they were working the stock, they usually joined hands with representatives, or at least they implicitly allowed them to participate. I was the de facto majority shareholder of Blue EM now, but as CEO Ahn Yong-kyun was working instead, that was why they seemed to hold hands; the two joined hands and would fuck me up and take my money.

'I don't know why he made that decision, but… he didn't pick the right owner to wag his tail in front of.' Of course, he thought otherwise. Invictus Investment was still an emerging company, although it had recently grown rapidly. In his eyes, the name Suyeon, which had been one of the pillars of the Korean economy for fifty years, must have been looked bigger than the new rookie. It wouldn't be long before he realized his choice was wrong.

I watched the stock window and checked the stock price to be pushed. I picked up the phone and directly called Vice President Jang.

"Vice President Jang, as I said, secure our stake in Blue EM."

"Yes, boss."

'Stock manipulators usually want to paint their own way. To raise, lower, and repeat it, they make individual investors uneasy, greedy, and drive them into hell. But this time it will be different. Blue EM is my company, my playground, although I don't manage it myself. I won't allow them to play with fire here, even if he is the founder of this company.'On August 25th, I left the president's office.

"Let's go."

"Yes, boss."

Standing behind me, Secretary Seo and my bodyguard Jang Geun followed me. On the way, Secretary Seo made a phone call, "Yes. I'm Seo Ji Hoon, secretary of CEO Han Sang Hoon of Invictus Investment. Yes. The CEO said he's visiting the company today. Yes. Oh, no big deal. He's just coming to get a report."

Secretary Seo said so, but Ahn Yong-kyun, who heard it, must be distracted. He'd already sold out his shares, but he suddenly heard that the owner was coming. The owner usually didn't even go to work at his own company.As expected, he asked, "… What brings CEO Han here?" His face was a little pale.

I spoke to him, "No, I was passing by, and I'd like to say hello."

"Yes, I see." He uttered a slightly reassuring remark, but all the anxiety didn't seem to go away.

'Huh, it seems like a guilty conscience needs no accuser.' I went around the company once, thinking about it.

In the meantime, Blue EM's major directors came to me and bowed their heads.

"It's been a long time, CEO Han. What brings you here?"

"This is Kim Seok-hyun, the financial director. Do you remember me?"

I'd never showed my face before, but it revealed who the real owner of this place was. I looked at them and said to President Ahn Yong-kyun, "Oh, while I'm here, I'll talk to the directors. I'd like to talk with you about the current situation."

"Ah… Yes."

I sat on one side of the conference room like a boss who had come out for a random check. The other directors rushed in and sat down. They were not too many, as it was a small company.

I told them, "Nice to meet you, Blue EM directors. I'd like to say 'thank you' to you all first. We've almost doubled our revenue in a year since we invested in Blue EM, even though we've been a little slow lately."

I glanced at Ahn Yong-kyun when I said, "even though we've been a little slow lately."

Ahn Yong-kyun, who had caused the stock price to slow down for a few days, quickly rolled his eyes to the left and right. He looked anxious about what I was going to say.

I kept going on and on, leaving him alone, "The Idol Management 108 seems to be going well. The ratings are good and the Idol support is good… President Kwon Oh Hyuk of OH Entertainment is also satisfied. I don't know if I said it myself, but I also appreciate your efforts."

"Don't mention it…" They were at a loss on how to answer my compliments.

Here I brought up the subject, "And the next project… My Big Television."

'My Big Television is the first big project of Sapphire TV, created by connecting with one of the comprehensive channels. It is a format in which celebrities are invited and send private broadcasts through Sapphire TV. Here, famous BJs from SapphireTV will also join in. The program will provide fresh content, while Sapphire TV provides platforms and BJs. That is the agreement.'

"I think this is one of the most important things to do with the future of Sapphire TV… Did you get the BJ list?"

One director answered me quickly, "Yes, CEO Han."

"Please show me the list."

"Yes, sir." He lowered his head, went out of the meeting room like a shot, and came back with a piece of paper.

I accepted it. There was the ID at the top: his real name was Jung Chil-yeon, known as BJ Kippa. A week from now, during a live broadcast with a girl group, and when girl group fans as well as other viewers were gathered, he would make a big problem that I didn't even want to talk about. So, the company's operations would be paralyzed for a while, there would be a strong sanction from the Korea Communications Standards Commission, and the human nuclear bomb would cost the company tens of millions of dollars of total market capital.

I held it with one hand, snapped the index finger of my other hand and said, "Isn't this BJ Kippa… a little bit of a problem?"

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Two weeks ago, I set up a list of directors for Sapphire TV, including CEO Ahn Yong-kyun, and wrote down the names on a daily People Search: Ahn Yong-kyun, Kim Jung-kyun, and Park Kyu-seok.

But there was no news related to it. Only articles regarding CEO Ahn Yong-kyun were there.

[CEO Ahn Yong-kyu sold all the shares he held.]

[Ahn Yong-kyun, the founder of Blue EM, will leave the company.]

Only such news came out.

'It's obvious that something's happening…' That was what I thought, and I changed the direction. 'Blue EM's main business is Internet broadcasting… Did they get into trouble with Internet broadcasting?'

The answer came out soon. I picked some of the best BJs on Sapphire TV. Then I tried to put the real names of the BJs in order by fame. BJ Won-kyu, Lee Won-kyu, BJ Night Princess Han Chae-young… and around tenth place, BJ Kippa Jung Chil-yeon.

Then came the answer. Early next month, on a general programming channel, BJ Kippa, who had been popular for his usual violent broadcasts, would have a collaboration with the "My Big Television" program, and he would sexually harass a girl group in front of a thousand viewers. It was radical. Somehow, the details were not given. The article cut some content and showed the only part of the rest… [He exposed his penis…]

That was how it was described. Of course, it went crazy. In the past, when a band did similar things on live television, all live broadcasts were turned into delayed broadcasts, but there would be no such device on Internet broadcasting. Why did he do this all of a sudden? The guy must have conspired with Tak Joon-gi and Ahn Yong-kyun.

In the past, when someone had paid him tens of dollars on the Internet, he had shaved his head with a hair trimmer, or he had quarreled with people on the street, or he had done a crazy broadcast. By that standard, if someone would pay a few hundred thousand dollars for something, he would do it without hesitation. If he was a BJ in the top ten on European TV, the number one in the industry, he might refuse, saying, "I can do it in a few months." But Sapphire TV was smaller than European TV. This lunatic was not in the top ten.

"I'd like to take BJ Kippa off the list, and BJ Cherry Hyang, and BJ Bbakbbak."

I tackled all the BJs in the list, even the problematic or alternative BJs, in front of the board of directors, including President Ahn Yong-kyun. They seemed a little surprised at my remarks. In particular, Ahn Yong-kyun's face was slightly pale. It seemed his card was blocked.

Another director who didn't know the circumstances asked me, "What's this about, CEO Han?"

"I sometimes watch Sapphire TV, too, but these guys… a bit messy. BJ Kippa usually does a lot of strange things. The show of BJ Cherry Hyang is too erotic. BJ Bbakbbak has been swearing too much. So I hope you will take them off the list. I'm sure a lot of viewers are going to come over to us. I'm afraid something bad will happen."

"Oh, yes, but…"

I turned my head and said, looking at President Ahn Yong-kyun, "President Ahn, how do you think? Let's get these guys out."

It was a little cruel, but I decided to ask him openly and waited for his answer.

"No, I think it'll be fine. These guys are usually violent, but… I've talked about it enough in advance." He said so in a cold sweat. It seemed that he decided to keep his path to the end.

"Hmm… really? Are you thinking like that?" I was a bit blurred. Everyone would say nothing if I went strong from here, but I decided to let it go. I was still not supposed to know the news about the CEO's stake sale. "What do you think, other directors? I still want to be safe."

At my words, the directors rolled their eyes fast. 'Who would they choose, the founder or the first major shareholder?'

They might be worried between their CEO or an investor. But that was just for now, because CEO Ahn Yong-kyun had already sold most of the shares he had. He was just waiting for a public announcement. Then the force would be turned on me rapidly. I kept it for now without a final blow.

"Then please talk to one another and report back tomorrow. I'd like to change the list. I prefer more gentle and comfortable ones than the ones who do the provocative broadcasts."

That was all I said, and I got up with Secretary Seo and Jang Geun. I was just passing by today, so there were only a few board members present.That afternoon, there were two news stories at Blue EM. The first one was one that I'd seen, [CEO Ahn Yong-kyun's 7% stake was sold.]

The second news was the new one, [The stake of CEO Han Sang-hoon of Invictus Investment is 6.7% and Vice President Jang Sang-jin has 0.3%.]

The reactions of the investors who saw it were mostly like this:

– The stake of a major shareholder has increased. Why did CEO Ahn Yong-kyun sell? Is it personal?-

– CEO Ahn Yong-kyun must have handed over his shares to CEO Han Sang-hoon and Vice President Jang Sang-jin… Whether it's bad news or good news? Anyway, Investment genius CEO Han Sang-hoon has increased his private stake. It's good news, right?-

Individual investors seemed to think that this was simply adjusting our holdings in the company. Vice President Jang and I had only picked up what he had sold, but there was such an opinion among them.

– Maybe Han Sang-hoon tried to kick Ahn Yong-kyun out of the company, and this happened.-

In some aspect, their guesses were right, like the net of the sleeping man catching fish. It was not a very wrong guess. No matter how he started a business, no matter if he was a CEO, his power was much lower if he didn't have a stake in it. His position could be changed by me at any time. There was a real reaction from Blue EM.

"Boss, you have a call."

"Who?"

"This is Kim Jung-kyun, vice president of Blue EM. He wants to talk to you secretly."

"Really? Put me through to him."

When I answered the phone, he said in a bright voice, "How are you, boss? I'm Blue EM's Kim Jung-kyun." The voice was familiar, and I matched it with his face.

"Oh, yeah. I saw you this afternoon, right?"

"Yes, boss, nothing but, I agree with what you said today."

He clung to me quickly and told me such a story. It was a kind of loyalty pledge. CEO Ahn Yong-kyun sold his stake and he was no longer at the CEO level. If he disobeyed me, I could change him any time.

'You're a quick-witted man.' It was not a bad thing to be quick to notice, if he had proper judgment.

"When I heard about it, other directors felt the same way. Everyone's saying you're right."

"What did CEO Ahn Yong-kyun say?"

"I'm not sure. He left work early today because he was sick."

'Did he go to report to Tak Joon-gi?'

"Yes, I see. Anyway, I really want the BJ list to be changed a little. I want them not to be on the show. I'm a little…"

"Yes, I think so, sir. I'll try to make sure that's the case."

"Thank you, I'd appreciate it."

"Yes, boss."

'In any case, that BJ Kippa won't be on the show in the end. If Kim Jung-kyun can't do it, I'll do it myself. In addition, if this is done, I'll ban him for the rest of his life. I don't want him to be on Sapphire TV again.'The next morning, at 8:55 a.m. I had some correction news when I received the emails.

[The sexual harassment scandal of BJ Kippa we sent you on August 7th has been corrected by the involvement of a reader…]

Kim Jung-kyun, vice president of the company, must have gathered the directors and confirmed he was out, as I had said.

'All right, I've stopped this…'

I then turned on the HTS and saw the chart of the Blue EM. Perhaps today was supposed to be a decline in the stock price. The sudden sell-off of the CEO's stock would be a surprise to the ants, and they would dump their shares, too. Vice President Jang and I took the entire stake and offset the concern. The asking price was at the range of 4%.

'It was traded at -4%. Then, Tak Joon-gi would have done a huge sell-off with the short stock sale since the short stock sale, which bets on falling stock prices, would benefit from lower stock prices. The short stock sale that has proceeded over the last month is probably the work of Tak Joon-gi. But from today on, he won't be able to benefit any more. Both of the planned bad news are blocked.

'That's not the only thing. If stock prices go up, he should suffer another loss.'

As the market opened, Blue EM started trading at 4%.

– Han Sang-hoon bought this stock. It should be a big hit.- The news brought a lot of people to buy the stock.

'Now Tak Joon-gi has to buy back shares that are more expensive, eating mustard in tears. He has been fucked twice, and he must be getting feverish.' As I thought about it, the phone rang. I answered the phone and heard Secretary Seo's voice, "Boss, CEO Ahn Yong-kyun is here."

I thought he'd call, but he came to see me himself.

'Hmm… what will he say?' I told Secretary Seo with such thought, "Let him come in."

Soon, the door opened and Jang Geun came into the president's office with CEO Ahn Yong-kyun. Jang Geun was supposed to come in together with anyone, for whatever reason. Most people wouldn't be able to do anything stupid when a 190-centimeter muscular man was watching them from behind.

CEO Ahn Yong-kyun said to me, lowering his head, "Well, I've decided to do what you wanted."

I had already known through the correction news. "Oh, that's great."

"And… selling that stake of mine… was because of my personal circumstances. I should have told you in advance. I needed quick cash in a hurry."

As I listened to him, I thought, 'He's lying to the end…'

In fact, I thought he could speak plainly, because I had known all along. I had come all of a sudden and stopped BJ Kippa, and I had bought back all of his stake. I didn't say anything, but all the circumstances were in my favor, like the case of Bisang Construction. But the difference from the last time was that I no longer intended to be consistent with my ignorance.

I spoke to him, "Yes, I see. Let me ask you just one question."

"What?"

"How much did Tak Joon-gi say he would pay you?"

His face was pale when the name came out, and he couldn't say anything. In fact, it was just a bomb. I already knew. I meant to shut him up.

I continued, "I don't want to talk too long. You can leave the company by yourself next week… or I'll open an emergency board meeting next week and fire you."

When I invested in any company, I had said 'I don't touch management or personnel management', but there was only one exception; when they did something wrong that would obviously result in a loss to our investment. This time, he had nothing more to say, as I had caught him conducting just such an operation.

Ahn Yong-kyun, who had received a fatal blow, answered, his body shaking, "No… what the hell… how…"

I said to Jang Geun with a nod, "Jang Geun, take him outside. I don't want to see him any more."

"Yes, boss." At my words, Jang Geun approached him, grabbed his armpits and almost carried him out of the president's office.This was the end of the defense. Now it was time to attack. That afternoon, a message came at just the right time-Crow has completed his mission. Please decide where and when to get the report.-

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Tiriri, my cell phone rang. I went through my pants and picked up my cell phone. It was Vice President Jang.

"Boss."

"Yes, Vice President Jang."

"Blue EM CEO Ahn Yong-kyun has just given us his resignation. He is going to quit his job and live in seclusion."

"… I see."

In the end, Ahn Yong-kyun seemed to have decided to leave the company on his own. It was late, but it was a reasonable choice. There was no point in enduring it. If he had had a stake, he could have persuaded directors and investors to resist, but he couldn't do anything with a two-percent stake.

"Yes, but it's strange that he quit so suddenly…"

Vice President Jang was also not aware of the situation of Ahn Yong-kyun. Well, there would be only a few people in the world who knew: me, Ahn Yong-kyun, and Tak Joon-gi, who had designed the scheme.

"But… there was a rumor."

"What rumor?"

"The CEO Ahn Yong-kyun regrets being invested in by us… That's the story."

"Really? Why?"

"At the time, didn't he sell us half of his stake, seven and a half million, when we invested in him?"

"Yes, he did."

"But now that it's doubled… it's a pity for him. I guess that's what he thought. That's fifteen million now."

I snorted, "No, he was short of money in the first place, so he asked us to invest… but did he say so?"

He hadn't had any money then. Now that the company was doing well, he must have thought, 'If I hadn't sold out then it would have been worth twice as much as now…'

I had saved him from the sea, but he would have turned into my enemy.

Vice President Jang spoke to me in a cautious tone, "… people are cunning animals, boss."

"That's right."

Until a few minutes ago, I thought, 'Even Vice President Jang doesn't know why he really quit.' However, he might know the more important reason: money. It might be the main reason he had joined hands with Tak Joon-gi. Blue EM's stock price had doubled since I had taken over, so it had been walking on the flat rates. Although he used to say, "This is what I like," in the end, he seemed to think, "If I work hard for a company with a lower stake… it will be only good things for others", and so he had decided to do the stock manipulation.

'Well… that's what it was…' I was thinking about it, but Vice President Jang told me, "Then who should we appoint as the next CEO?"

The next CEO? I briefly recalled the vice president, Kim Jung-kyun. When he had seen the situation had changed, he had called me quickly, and said, "I support your opinion, CEO Han." However, I couldn't give him the CEO position right away. I had also felt something through the case of Ahn Yong-kyun: people couldn't be trusted completely.

"… let's run the company through the acting vice president… but we will open a board meeting and talk and pick him to manage it slowly."

"Yes, then… do you want me to send you a list of directors?"

"Yes, and if there's anyone outside who's okay, please check that out, especially among those who have experience from European TV or YouTube."

"Yes, boss."

While talking on the phone with Vice President Jang, Seo's car arrived in front of the National Library of Korea.

Seo said, "We've arrived, boss."

I put my cell phone in my pocket and said, "Yes, this will take about half an hour."

"Yes, boss."

I nodded and stepped out of the car. Jang Geun followed me like a shadow. I said to him, "As I said… everything you hear from now on… is a secret, okay?"

"Don't worry, boss. That's basic as a bodyguard."

I clasped him on the shoulder with a smile, "Yes."

To be honest, I didn't believe him, as this guy just because he was my bodyguard. He was a junior of the training center I had known since elementary school, and he had been a pupil of my father, so I only believed in that. If he had been another bodyguard, I wouldn't have brought him here at all. I told him ahead of time on my way up to Montmartre Park.

"Oh, and… I'm going to meet someone now… Don't be too wary of him."

"What kind of person do you mean?"

"He's a foreigner, similar to you. He's a little odd-looking, but he's not a weirdo… No, he's weird, but he's not dangerous. Don't worry too much. Just mind someone else."

"Yes, boss."I went up to Montmartre Park with him. I briefly recalled my first encounter with Crow in late July, when it had been so hot. But now in August, the trees, which had been scorching hot, were gradually changing color.

'It's almost autumn.' But before the summer was over, there was something I had to do: send Tak Joon-gi to jail. I looked at the other side of the road for a moment, instead of going up to the park. There I could see the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office, the very building that often appeared on the nine o'clock news when political bigwigs or conglomerate heads were taken away. It was not long before Tak Joon-gi would be coming in and out of the place.

I sat on the bench in Montmartre Park. It was the very bench I had met Crow the other day before. Not long after, Crow appeared. Fortunately, the stupid furry clothes were not there. Nevertheless, he was still visible. So was his race's strange appearance, and he took the same action.

I thought he'd come close to me, when he suddenly kneeled down and said, "How have you been for the last month, boss?" performing the classic subordinate greeting.

Come to think of it, it'd been like this before. I stood up from the bench and spoke urgently, "Get up… get up."

Crow then stood up, as if he had not done anything. I caught a glimpse of Jang Geun, who was standing slightly away. Jang Geun, who usually didn't change his facial expressions, also looked a little surprised when he saw Crow. I nodded slightly and marked OK with my fingers. I said to Crow, "It's been okay."

"Next time, you know that modern greeting, just a quick nod?"

"Yes, boss."

"That's how we say hello to each other."

"Yes, boss."

"Sit down." I pointed to the bench with a gesture. Crow sat in the same place. I also sat down and said to him, "So, how was the investigation? Did it go well?"

As I asked, Crow took a brown envelope out of his arms and handed it to me instead of answering. It was thick, almost bursting. I opened it for a moment. There was a pile of A4 paper inside. Originally I was going to check the contents right here, but that would be too much. It would take me hours to read all of this.

'I think he's capable, but his sense is strange.'

I told him, "First of all, thank you, but… Do you know how to write emails?

He answered, "Yes, of course."

'Of course,' it was a natural story, but I didn't think it was natural for him.

"Then, I hope I can get it by email instead of doing this next time. It's a little… cumbersome, it's a waste of paper."

Crow, for the first time, rejected my request. "I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Why?"

"We have to meet our client in person and deliver the information. It's a rule."

"Oh, really? A rule?"

"Yes. We have some rules to follow. Master Crow has chosen them… and he likes things a little classic. So, when we give information, we need to meet the information requestor in person and deliver the information. Not just emails, but even handwritten mailed letters… everything like that is impossible."

"Well… I see. That's a very… like a crow."

At my words, Crow lowered his eyes for a moment, and said, "I see. I've… I've just realized that."

Either way, I couldn't help but accept that the rules were like that. It was me who felt sorry. I turned my head back to the report. Despite the large amount of paper, the title page read: 'The outline of the Bisang Construction stock price manipulation case. P11.' 'The circumstances of the reporter Kang Joo-hyuk who killed himself. P132.'…

The table of contents was arranged that way. If I only wanted to see what was needed, I would find it in no time.

I said, putting the documents back in the envelope, "Thanks for all the work you've done, Mr. Crow."

"Yes, boss. Is there anything else you are requesting this month?"

"… No, I haven't thought of anything yet." That was what it was. It was just when I started the war with Tak Joon-gi, and I'd have to figure out what was lacking. There was no such thing yet. I would read this report and call him back.

"I'll be sure to call you by the end of this month. Please take a break."

"Yes, boss."

I picked up the envelope. But then, I remembered my thought of last time, 'Next time, I'll buy him something delicious and talk about it.' So I turned to him again and tried to speak, "Oh, by the way, if there's anything you want to eat…"

Once again, he had disappeared from the scene. There was no sign of him at all. I turned my head. Again, he was not anywhere in the park, it was like I was haunted by a ghost. I got up from my seat. Then I called Jang Geun, who was standing far away.

"Jang Geun."

"Yes, boss." Soon Jang Geun came running fast.

"The man I was with… Did you see where he went?"

"… no, I was on lookout for a moment…"

"Well… yeah…"

He was already gone like a ghost. It was all right. I'd already got what I wanted, so I could ask him slowly next time if he wanted anything to eat. I was sure I would be calling him once a month anyway…When I got home, I spent my time analyzing Crow's report. Crow's report had two surprises. First, the report's letters, which I naturally thought was printed out, were not printed at all, but written by a pen-and-pencil. The letters were neat, but slightly different from one another. All of them looked to be written by a pen.

'What the hell is this? Is this the classic rule?' It would have taken several more times to write all of this with a pen than to type.

'Huh, he is literally a reporter; a reporter in the classical sense.' These days, a simple sports article was completely human hand-operated, compared to an AI's use.

'That's great… but what's greater…' The second was that the contents were vast but accurate. He was truly very capable. Some of the things I had asked were there. 'How did he know this?' It was an extraordinary level of information compared to his bizarre appearance and behavior.

'Customer Service was right…' I couldn't help but accept it. With this information, it would be very easy to send Tak Joon-gi to hell. It wrote about his crimes in detail. It would be difficult to write this accurately even if Tak Joon-gi were asked to confess everything.

'It's strange in many ways… although this one is strangely excellent.' When I read the report, I thought about it and laughed.

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Tadak tadak tadak. I quickly moved my fingers, and then got up from my chair with my eyes blinking.

'Hoo, this is work.' For three hours, I'd been writing a document. It was a contribution article to the press. As the material that Crow had given me was so large, it was quite difficult to abbreviate it into a contribution article. But still, I'd done this over and over again.

My motive was twofold: first, there were elements in this report that I was curious about. Among the reports, there was the following content.

– President Jung Gi-woong of Bisang Construction has been making contacts with Seoul City officials for many years, and he knew it would be advantageous while selecting the business operator. However, he could not afford to buy stocks due to his personal debt. At that time, stock price manipulators, including Tak Joon-gi and Kang Joo-hyuk, came into contact with him. President Jung Gi-woong was offered $5,000,000 in gold in exchange for allowing them to manipulate stock prices. $300,000 was paid in advance, and changed in the Sun Precious Metal on Jongno three-ga to gold bullion and distributed as bribes to Seoul City officials.-

It contained information on the connection of Tak Joon-gi and Jung Gi-woong.

– Reporter Kang Joo-hyuk threatened to expose all the facts on Tak Joon-gi to the BKS network. However, Tak Joon-gi responded with a photo of his daughter returning home and threatened him back. Kang Joo-hyuk, seeing the photo of his daughter, surrendered and accepted the suicide offer. Instead of taking the blame for the stock manipulation, he signed a contract not to touch his family. The contract and Kang's original will are in Kang Joo-hyuk's Google Mail account.-

It also included the process of Kang Joo-hyuk's suicide. I could write a document without getting tired while reading this long report, because it was so fun.

The second reason I stuck to writing this document was that I was running out of time. I could see from the inside story of Kang Joo-hyuk's suicide that Tak Joon-gi was someone who could actually kidnap and kill someone.

It was obvious when he had threats, and it had worked. A day or two from now, my parents and Ah-young who had gone abroad would return home. I wanted to make Tak Joon-gi a national star before that, able to do nothing. I took a cold bottled water out of the refrigerator, gulped it down, and sat down in front of the computer again. I would finish this work today, and I would send Tak Joon-gi to hell tomorrow.Tiriri tiriri. I opened my eyes to the ringing alarm. I had been working on the document until late yesterday, so I had a slightly sore back and my eyes, but I got up right away. I had a lot of work to do today. I washed, ate, put on my clothes as usual, and said to myself, "Let's go."

I went to work with Secretary Seo and Jang Geun. On my way to work, I talked to Secretary Seo, "Check Oracle News CEO Jung So-young's schedule today and ask her to come see me in the morning if she's free."

"Yes, boss."

I opened my mailbox as soon as I entered the president's office. There was an email that I had sent to myself yesterday. Attached to it was a document that would destroy Tak Joon-gi. I downloaded it to my desktop for now. I could throw it right into the media if I wanted to, but I decided to put up with it a little bit. Because this document I had written contained not only Tak Joon-gi's name, but also high-ranking officials of the prosecution, police, and media who had protected him.

I didn't know that when I started writing it yesterday, but this document was not a sniper rifle, but a mortar that would sweep away everyone in the vicinity. So I decided to discuss it with Jung So-young and let it out. If I had sent it out, I wondered whether Oracle News would be able to manage it, so there was a little bit of a question.

"Boss, CEO Jung So-young will be here as soon as possible, before ten o'clock."

"Yes."

At 8:45, upon receiving the report, I turned the HTS on as usual and read the future news.

'Well, yeah, Sung A has an earnings surprise…'

Then suddenly I had a strange idea, 'Wait a minute, what happens if I search Tak Joon-gi today?'

I was going to publish an article about Tak Joon-gi. Meeting with Jung So-young to discuss the matter was just a matter of procedure, and he should be a star on the nine o'clock news today, if nothing unusual happened in the middle. I tried writing 'Tak Joon-gi' in the People Search of 12 Hours After. There was an article.

[The key person to the corruption scandal in Bisang Construction and manipulating stock prices is Suyeon Group's third generation, Director Tak Joon-gi.]

That was just the article I wanted to see. I clicked on it. The content of the article was not much different from what I had put on the desktop yesterday. It was only rewritten so that everybody could have a clearer picture of the proceedings.

It was a little funny that the future I made was on the future news. I read more of it. The prosecution, the police, and the senior press officials I'd been thinking about a little bit, were all real names. It seemed that the mortar must have gone out instead of a sniper gun.

'That's what happens in the end.'

It was decided after half an hour.

"Are you calling, CEO Han?" Wearing a soft beige suit, CEO Jung So-young of Oracle News visited me. She looked over the documents I presented her.

"Oh, my God… What is this?" At first, she was a little surprised, but soon, she recovered her composure and told me, "I'll… I'll get it out there, sir. Of course, it's not that it's not a burden to our company, but… We need to be able to get this out. It's the press."

I agreed, nodding to her, "That's good. Don't worry too much about external pressure. If Oracle news gets stuck somehow… I'll use another means."

"Yes, sir."

"Then I will send you an email as it is written. Please let the article out today."

"Yes, sir." After the meeting with me, Jung So-young opened the door and left.It was time. Secretary Seo grabbed the door of the president's office and told me, "Well, boss."

"Hmm?"

"While you were just talking to Jung So-young, another person asked for a meeting."

"Who?"

"Well… Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel. He wants to come and meet you around eleven o'clock."

"Really?" I was a little surprised. He was moving himself.

'Hmm…' If I thought about it, it was no wonder. Last week, I said to Ahn Yong-kyun, the former head of Blue EM, "How much did you decide to receive from Tak Joon-gi?" Now that I had said that, he must have known that I knew all his intentions and strategies. He must have been certain about the Bisang Construction.

'The man who's going to jail tonight… is coming to see me?' I thought of it, but nodded to Secretary Seo, who was about to close the door. "Yes, let him come."

"Yes, boss."

"Oh, wait." I stopped him.

"Jang Geun. Come in for a second." Instead, I called Jang Geun into the president's office.

Jang Geun replied to me in his peculiar, masculine low voice, "Did you call me?"

I felt somewhat relieved to hear his voice. I spoke to him, "At eleven o'clock, there'll be someone who looks like a very skinny person, someone who seems to have money from foot to head."

"Yes."

I swallowed and said, "That's my enemy."

Jang Geun lowered his eyes for a moment, then nodded slightly and said to me, "Yes, boss. Don't worry."Tiriri tiriri. I got a call from Secretary Seo. I didn't need to check who came.

"Let him come in."

The door opened and Director Tak Joon-gi came in as usual.

Before he'd say 'Oh, who is this,' he had been overly chatty… but he was keeping his mouth shut today.

It was worth seeing. So I did it this time, "It's been a long time, Director Tak."

In the meantime, there was a commotion in the back.

"You can't get past me."

"If I have to?"

"Do it if you can."

Jang Geun and Tak's secretary, two giants were facing one another. To be honest, I was more interested in it than I was in Director Tak Joon-gi. Tak's secretary had a huge body size, but he had a small head compared to Jang Geun. In addition, Jang Geun was a master at judo, and had won a silver medal at the World Championship. The giant's secretary was wearing a suit, a shirt and a tie, which was no different than saying "kill me" to a judo expert. Without recognition, I was thinking, 'Once they fight…'

Unfortunately, Mr. Tak intervened, saying, "That's fine. Get out." He waved, and it ended.

The situation was settled, and only Jang Geun entered the president's office. Jang Geun stood behind our visitor.

Mr. Tak told me if he felt burdened, "Can't you ask him to stay out of here?"

I shook my head, "No. Something might happen. I'm confident that I will not lose fighting you one on one, but I don't know if you are going to use anything weird…"

Tak said with a frown, "You mean I'm wielding a knife in someone else's office?"

"I thought you might," I said right after. "As far as I investigated."

As I said that, Tak's eyes grew bigger. No wonder. That must have been the biggest question he'd ever had, 'How did he know?'

I told him, "The more I know about you, the scarier you are. My first impression was a little bit like that."

Whatever I said, he told me, "When I came here today, I came here for a truce."

"A truce?"

"… Yes. A truce, I won't touch your company any more. The short stock sale that went into Blue EM will be returned at a higher price at my own expense."

"That's a matter of course. You bet, and if you lose, you throw up. If you're a stock trader, you should accept that." I added one more word to that, "Didn't you go through Bisang Construction already?"

He lost his composure by bringing up the story of Bisang Construction. "What?" He got up from his chair, as if ready to beat me up at any moment.

But then, as Jang Geun came forward, he had no choice but to sit back down, his face flushed. That big man's secretary was no match, and if it was a normal-sized Tak Joon-gi, Jang Geun could throw him up in the sky and play with him.

I said pointedly, "Don't be angry. If you get angry here, only you will be hurt here."

He sat back in his seat in a fit of rage. He had lost a hundred million dollars, but he had to come down from his anger himself. Jang Geun's forearm was the size of his leg. It was very reliable.

"Let's do it anyway, let's call a truce. I won't do anything that will do you any harm in the future. Let's make sure we don't care about each other again. Let's live without knowing each other, and let's stop the bad relationship."

I clicked on the table for a moment and said to him, "It's not a bad story. I don't want to get involved with Mr. Tak anymore. I made some money, but there is not just Mr. Tak's money in the market."

Then I mumbled my words and added some more, "But… there's one thing I need to do. I'm afraid I'm going to hurt you."

He replied curtly, "What's that?"

I said with a big smile, "Implementation of Justice."

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Tak Joon-gi furrowed his brow and blurted out, "What?" He must have understood, but he pretended as if he hadn't.

I once again said, "Implementation of justice."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

I glanced at my monitor. There on the desktop, there was a file of Tak Joon-gi. He would not know, even if he died, that the file with his name on it was now on my computer's desktop.

I spoke to him, "I'm going to expose all your misdeeds to the press today: deflecting corruption charges, managing stock manipulation funds, tailoring and encouraging suicide in the midst of it. In fact, it was just murder. I will expose everything that happened in the past in Go-young Food and Bisang Construction.

When the name of Go-young Food came up, his eyes bulged, "No… that's… how…" 'How did you know?'

But it was my secret, getting the future news, to get a glimpse of everything that had happened in the past. It was my secret, my own power.

Mr. Tak was shaking before that power. Fear had dampened his spirit. "Don't do that. What the hell… Why… why would you do that? What are you getting from… Is that what you…"

"Well…" I chose something to tell him for a moment, but somehow, it was like what I had said to the Customer Service before. -Why did you give me this power?-

-Think of yourself.-

It occurred to me to think of myself. It was strange. So I told him, "Maybe it's like… the nobility's duty, noblesse oblige. I think it's like that. As it's usually the nobility who have power, it takes more power to implement justice…"

"What the hell are you talking about?" There were many questions with "what" that he had been repeating.

Therefore, I let him know exactly. "Tak Joon-gi, you were born rich in Suyeon Group. Money, of course, is power. You could have done anything with it. If you had had a little good heart, you could have lived by the code of noblesse oblige. Don't you think so? Huh? You could have helped the helpless with money, and no matter how much you ate, no matter how much you used, you could have spent your whole life using it."

I went on. "If not, you could have lived for yourself. If you had studied, you could have studied abroad; if you had exercised, you could have hired the best trainer, and you could have done the arts, couldn't you? You had plenty of time and money, but instead, you used that power to rob weaker people in a very mean way."

I swallowed once and then said last, "And yet, you don't know you were blessed, yet you've treated people who were born poor like dogs. No, you should not. You must not. A lot of people aren't given the least chance; they're struggling to catch the least chance. But have you taken away even that? I can't stand to see it, so I'm going to fix all that for you. That's the implementation of justice."

He shuddered. "Even if you do… what do you think will change? It's a world of the law of the jungle, anyway; nothing will change just because you're doing it!"

"Yes, you might think so. The world is different for everyone who sees it. But even if you think so, you shouldn't have attacked me. The law of the jungle? That's good. Do you think the man you're looking at, sitting in front of you, is weaker than you are?"

I glared at him as I said that. He did not say anything. I shook my head and said, "I'm sorry, but no. Considering what's happened so far, you will know. You and I have fought, and who's been winning? You've always won before, and you thought you'd win again… However, you picked the wrong opponent this time. You picked the wrong one! You chose me.

"So. I mean, let's make it something that didn't happen. I picked the wrong one, so let's make it as if it did not happen."

I laughed dumbly at his remark. "No. What do you mean, if you fail to bet, it's common sense that you pay. If you're a stock trader, take it for granted. Don't beg me! What else have others, who you have taken all their money and life from, had to complain about? I don't think so."

He spoke with a complete abandonment of his face, "I… I did wrong. So forgive me. Let's just… let's make it something that never happened. Huh? Everything that's happened so far…"

-It is too late for you to plead now. President Jung So-young has already received the data from me. It could be floating on the Internet even now.-

I replied to him, "I'm sorry, but it's already too late. Go find a lawyer. Well, you might avoid life imprisonment. The courthouse is loose these days. You might get out when you're seventy."

When I said that, he seemed to be tearing at his face with both hands for a moment, then leapt to his feet. His face was flushed with anger. He had been asking for forgiveness just now, but the sorrow was not there any more.

"All right, the implementation of justice, whatever… let's see if it works! I know that Oracle News is under you. Do as much as you can, even I don't know how much you've got, son of a bitch…" he trembled and cursed.

When he spat out a curse, Jang Geun took another step forward. I raised my hand to stop him. Today was not a day for physical struggle.

Tak Joon-gi opened the door and left my office.

After he went out, I thought for a moment about him and President Jung So-young. Although Jung was a strong woman, Tak Joon-gi was a tough opponent too. 'Well, if there's any chance that Oracle News can't let it out…'

Oracle News had some stake in the Internet, but that was it. It was not treated as a major yet. 'If Oracle News is interrupted… maybe it'll take longer…'

I didn't like that. That madman was crazy and I didn't know what he would do. I rolled my head for a moment. 'In the 12 Hours After of today, there was news about him…'

But I couldn't be sure a hundred percent sure about that. Even if the news was up, it might not be headline news. Director Tak Joon-gi might once again use his power to escape like a loach, like a lizard. It was a matter concerning several important people, including prosecutors, the police, and even media conglomerates. If they cooperated and played defense, Oracle News might end up fighting alone.

'It should not be this time. I'll definitely cut off his breath this time.' I picked up my cell phone and found the phone number of Lee Won-jae. I tried not to get him involved, but this couldn't be helped. I called him right away. Tiriri Tiriri Tiriri. As soon as the call waiting was over, I spoke in a low, solemn voice, "CEO Lee Won Jae."

"Yes, CEO Han. What's the matter?"

Before I went straight to the point, I brought up the old conversation. "Do you remember what you said before? Do you still think I'm going to be stronger than the third generation of other chaebols?"

"Yes, of course."

"Then come and prove it."

"Yes? What is it?"

"Come and bet. Show me all the chips you have, and bet where I want you to bet as a sign of loyalty."

"I don't know what that means, but… I'll be there soon."Opening the door, CEO Lee Won-jae came in. Maybe it was because of the rush, and his face turned red, so he looked more like Kaiji.

"CEO Han."

"CEO Lee."

I showed CEO Lee Won-jae a file of Tak Joon-gi on the desktop. He understood me right after he saw it.

"… it's a bomb, a nuclear bomb." He was sensible enough to read it and call it a nuclear bomb. I said mortar, but it was a similar nuance.

I spoke to him, "So, are you going to help me drop the bomb?"

He looked at me and said, "What do I get from this?"

"My trust."

"Trust…?"

I nodded, "Yes. If you do this, you might go head-to-head fighting with Suyeon Group. I'll trust and support you. You chose me over Suyeon Group."

"… can I have a moment to think about it?"

"Sure."

He stood for a moment in front of the glass with a panoramic view of Seoul outside the president's office. Perhaps that was the most important moment, for him to choose me, or the Suyeon Group. If he failed in this bet, he would lose his chance to make his way to the majors. I watched him for a moment. He was in the greatest agony of his life.

He came to me about three minutes later.

'Three minutes… a little short for a life bet.'

He said, "Let's do it. No, I'll do it. Based on this data… I'm going to publish an article through all the media that I control."

He made a good choice. There was also a saying, 'They think for a long time, and they make a wrong move.' However, if it was a good decision, what about three months or three minutes?

I spoke to him, "I'll email you the file."

He nodded, his mouth tight, "Yes."

"Yes, then. I hope you will take good care of it."

"Yes. In return, I hope you'll take good care of me from now on."

I nodded, "Yes, of course."

'There is a famous quote by French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre: "Life is the C of B and D." Life is the Choice between Birth and Death. Life is a choice every time. Whether it's stacked or not, people go on choosing their own life every time. Of the choices, one of the important things is when you choose a person. Who are you going to be friends with, who are you going to be courting, who are you going to marry? One's life fluctuates as one decides.'

Today was the day when the lives of the two people who chose me changed a lot. I approached the window and looked outside. I thought, 'The fate of the two men is divided here. One chose me as his enemy, and one chose me as his companion. Since the two men's choices are the opposite, the results of the choices will be stark as well. I'll bring one down, and one up, like the god of fate holding the scales of balance.'

I looked at my palms, and opened and closed my hands twice, before looking out the window again.

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I stood and walked around the president's office with my arms crossed. "Umm…" I picked up my cell phone. When I looked at my watch, it was 12:30 p.m. It had been about three hours since Jung So-young had taken the file on Tak Joon-gi.

'It's about time it got out…' I searched for 'Tak Joon-gi' while thinking about it. 'Oh!' It was up.

[The hidden wire-puller of the Bisang Construction corruption case is the third generation of Suyeon Group, Tak Joon-gi.]

It was a special article from Oracle News. Looking at the posting time, it was 12:26 p.m. It was a hot article that had been posted less than five minutes before. I went through the contents quickly. To be honest, I had nothing to read. It was practically as good as the original article. I looked for more comments that were lower than the article.

'Is it too early to run comments…' But it was baseless anxiety. There were already quite a few comments on the unconventional title, as it had surprising contents.

– Wasn't this the case that ended in spring… but the hidden wire-puller is from the Suyeon Group?-

– Why don't the third generations of chaebols have the right conscience?-

– The reporter who killed himself was murdered, too. Huck! It's too scary.-

– He seemed to be caught last time, but as he was from Suyeon Group, the prosecution hid it.-

– The prosecution is a party to a plot, too. Let's lock them up all.-

Director Tak Joon-gi was also listed in the real-time search. It started in eighth place. It was a good debut. By this evening, he would definitely be in first place, so that people all over the country would know his name. 'Just as vampires die when they see sunlight, villains naturally perish when their misdeeds are revealed to the public.'

I waited a little while with my hands together. But about half an hour after the story came out, more news was posted on the portal's main website.

[Close-up coverage: Kang Ha-joon and Han So-jin are colleagues and lovers.]

'What?' Kang Ha-joon was famous for his looks and so-called comic strip, and Han So-jin was a beautiful actress who was famous for being a natural beauty since she was a child. But both of two were dating. It was an amazing story. 'Really?'

It was an attractive title. To be honest, I had no choice but to click on it. The article showed two people wearing black masks and getting into the same car. It was definitely 100%. In fact, the two were a little short on acting skills, so they were treated like B-list actors, but one was from an idol group, and the other was a child actor, so their recognition was high.

'I think I saw two of them starring in a mini-series… Did they start dating each other during the shooting?'

I looked up at the article. It was written by Today S., a celebrity gossip news company. It was a well-known media company and rival of Keystone Media, which was run by CEO Lee Won-jae.

I was just looking at it and suddenly, I thought of a conspiracy theory, 'They put this out to cover it up.'

'No. Is this done by what Director Tak Joon-gi orders?' When I heard that story before, I was half confident, 'Oh, I guess it just happened.' However, the timing was really weird.

I saw the picture again. The photo showed both of them in a long-sleeved, thin shirt. I looked at the bottom of the picture, and it was written, 'At the office where Kang Ha-joon lived around March…'

'They had covered it in March, and yet now they showed it. Why so? Maybe they received some money to do so.' I could not think of another reason. I came back to the portal site and looked at the ranking list, "First place Kang Ha-joon, second place Han So-jin, fourth place Han So-jin, and seventh place the passionate love of Kang Ha-joon, and tenth place Today S."

Five of the top ten were search terms related to two people. Tak Joon-gi was way behind in the push. He didn't even appear on the portal's main news.

'He is not going to die as it stands.' It was somewhat expected. Tak Joon-gi was very used to playing with the public in the media. It was strange to be beaten to death by sitting there. But the method he used was just unexpected.

'How much money did he spend for the passionate love of Kang Ha-joon?' The bitter smoke screen was quite thick. I suddenly thought of the worst scenario. 'Maybe… the Oracle news article was forced to drop…'

I wrote Tak Joon-gi in the search box.

[The hidden wire-puller of Bisang Construction corruption is the third generation of Suyeon Group, Tak Joon-gi.]

Fortunately, there were still Oracle news stories left. But it was weird. Usually, when there was this big article, other articles were lined up like those.

[Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel is the real controller of Bisang Construction Stock Price Manipulation.]

[There was separately an influential person behind the stock price manipulation of Bisang Construction-the black shadow of the Suyeon Group.]

[The third generation of a chaebol who manipulated the stock price! The secret hobby of Director Tak Joon-gi.]

That was how they were supposed to send out the replicated news. Now that it was all money, but it was quiet this time.

'Is it because the source is limited or… Where and how does the external pressure come from?' If I thought about it, Tak Joon-gi might not be the only one trying to cover up this article. It contained a prosecutor, a high-ranking police officer, and two media executives. There were quite a few people who didn't want the truth to come out to the world.

I was going to ask Secretary Seo, but I picked up my cell phone myself. I then found the number of Jung So-young, president of the company, and called her. However, the recording was heard, "I am on the phone right now," and the beep sound followed.

She was on the phone somewhere: whether she was calling or taking a call from. Either way, she was busy.

'President Jung So-young is doing her best.'

I thought CEO Lee Won-jae should come forward to end this game. I went to the homepage of the Daewon Daily News and the Daily Sports website to check if there was any news on this side. But there was no such news yet. I felt uneasy. I had just seen him saying in front of me, "I'll do it myself."

That was what he had said right here, but on his way back to work, he might have changed his mind, 'The Invictus Investment is a rising sun… However, it is not enough to compete against Suyeon Group.'

Ahn Yong-kyun, former CEO of Blue EM, betrayed me for that reason. But I decided to trust him, because he was born a third child and grew up under the yoke of his brothers.

Even he had said, "There's a chance of a fight with my elder brother," but objectively, it was true that he was behind his elder brother, Lee Won-sang, who was seven years older than him, and had much more experience. Lee Won-jae's seat as president of Daily Sports was inherited from his elder brother. Even if he tried, his father and countless other directors who had supported the first son were unlikely to regard his potential as high.

'A person with an inferiority complex has to make an adventurous move.' I thought so and decided to wait calmly. In fact, it had only been about an hour since he had left here. Considering that President Jung So-young had taken the file of Tak Joon-gi and had aired the news three hours later, he should be given a little more time.

Soon after, there was a phone call from President Jung So-young, "Did you call me, boss?"

"Yes. I was wondering if there was any external pressure coming from somewhere else."

She was silent for a moment when I said, and then she went on, "I can't tell you, I don't have much, but… Anyway, my staff and I decided to fight back."

"Really? Um…" I thought for a moment and said to her, "It may be a little hard on your mind, but please wait. I'm sure reinforcements will come."

"Reinforcements?"

"Yes."

"… Yes. I see."

I said one more word to her, "By the way, please make a list of all the people who have pressured you today, including their names and titles."

"… Oh, yes."

It was a war. Last time, I told President Ahn Yong-kyun, "How much did Tak Joon-gi give you?" Ever since I had said that, I'd already prepared myself. I would not hide myself any more. I would go out into the world and smash everything, whether it would be prosecutors, police, media, or chaebols, if they did something harmful with their dirty work to Invictus Investment and me. I had the will, and the power to do so. It was 1:00 p.m.

"What about your lunch, boss?"

"Buy me a hamburger, a Big Mac set."

"Yes, boss."

I ordered a hamburger instead of going out to eat, and I kept monitoring the Internet. Still, the portal site was occupied by "Kang Ha-joon, Han So-jin," and Tak Jun-ki had no follow-up stories.

"Hmm…" I was a little bit nervous, around 1:50 p.m., at last, a new article came out on the main screen of the Daewon Daily News.

[The dark shadow of the third generation of a chaebol. The hidden wire-puller of the Bisang Construction stock manipulation is Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Group.]

This was a bit unexpected. 'Huh, I thought it would be from Daily Sports.'

CEO Lee Won-jae must have persuaded his father. The fact that the Daewon Daily News published such an article was effectively a declaration of war, and showed determination to get through the pressure of Suyeon Group. Apparently, because it was a major article, it went directly to the portal's main site.

Director Tak Joon-gi climbed back up the search word list, starting at tenth, then seventh, fifth, and eventually was ranked third. He was right after Han So-jin and Kang Ha-joon. It was a bit disappointing that it didn't get first place, but I was convinced as I had also tried to put my name on the news in 12 Hours After. Without a big accident, it was hard for a business figure to become the top in a real-time search list.

'It's easy to win the top spot just by manipulating stock prices because the image of a third-generation chaebol is so low.'

Somehow, the article appeared in the Daewon Daily News, and a series of follow-up articles came out looking for a click count.

'When the Oracle News sent it out, they kept quiet, but…'

It was amazing. There were thousands of comments in an hour. If I had used the Ranking News on the political side this morning, it would have been showing this article.At 3 p.m., Director Tak Joon-gi finally topped the real-time search list. In both politics and economics, Tak Joon-gi's face came out. By the way, in the meantime, there was more news.

[Director Tak Joon-gi denied allegations of manipulation stock prices.- the last time I saw Kang Joo-hyuk, a reporter who committed suicide, was three years ago.]

I clicked on it. There was also an interview with a leading media outlet.

[The reporter Kang Joo-hyuk came to the travel agency for an interview three years ago, so I only answered after lunch.]

[I have an acquaintance with Jung Ki-woong, president of Bisang Construction, and no direct contact.]

[Operators who have invested in Bisang Construction have nothing to do with me.]

In that way, everything in the article was being negated.

I grinned at it. "As expected…."

In the first place, in the file, there was only information Tak Joon-gi could deny. There was a conviction of ninety-nine percent, but there was no clear evidence to confirm whether it was real or not. However, there was separately physical evidence.

I went into my mailbox and downloaded file two of Tak Joon-gi to my cell phone. Here was where it would turn up everything he had denied.

'Pictures of evidence of Tak Joon-gi and Kang Joo-hyuk's contact.'

'Messages exchanged with President Jung gi-woong in advance.'

'Evidence of direct control of operators involved in buying shares of Bisang Construction.'

It was all in there; the evidence that the strangely competent Crow had brought with him. I sent it to Jung So-young and Lee Won-jae, attached to emails.

– Finish him off with this.-

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The incident went dynamic. Another counter-article came out two hours after Tak Joon-gi's counter-interview at 5 p.m.

[I don't have any acquaintance.]

[I never did.]

[I can't remember.]

However, an article with evidence contradicted everything that Tak Joon-gi had said. The Internet comments went crazy.

– Wow, this son of a bitch is lying without licking his lips.-

– He's a real jerk. He thinks common people are pigs and dogs, so he is lying like that.-

– Wow, is the third generation of Suyeon Group manipulating stock prices? We need bamboo spears to kill him.-

– We don't have to pick up bamboo spears. I think the judge will take care of it.-

– I think there are murder threats and conspiracy to commit murder… I'd like you to make a stern judgment, Your Honor.-

At this point, he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. These days, Internet public opinion was very scary. If the people's court went like this on the Internet, the judiciary would be affected as well. I scrolled down and read them one by one.

– I'm mad hearing this. Let's boycott the Suyeon Travel.-

There was also such a story written. We had never done a boycott properly in our country, but it was still interesting. If people went so far as to boycott Suyeon Travel, Tak Joon-gi would lose all his remaining money.

'Oh… yes.' I checked the stock price of the Suyeon Travel, long after the stock market was over. Today's trading was generally good. Shares of Suyeon Travel, which had been rising in the plus or minus two percent range early in the day, plummeted by -6% at around 12:30 p.m on the news of Oracle News. Even a small Internet news article would have done the same because of the words "stock manipulation." On the KOSPI and KOSDAQ, it would cause a delisting without allowing any excuses if the owner manipulated stock prices.

'Even Tak Joon-gi didn't manipulate the stock price of Suyeon Travel.' If he had done something strange with Suyeon Travel, he would be dead. Investors must have been scared, too. However, after a while, the stock price bounced back a little, as there was no follow-up article. There was low-cost buying in a situation where the truth was not known. It stayed level a moment, and around 1:50 a.m., at the same time that the article appeared in the Daewon Daily News, it plunged to -18%. There was also a difference in public confidence. Suyeon Travel shares ended with a -24% plunge.

I suddenly remembered the conversation I had had with Tak Joon-gi: 'What do you get from doing this?'

At that time, I had confidently said, "implementation of justice," I made a lot of money, too. This was because Vice President Jang had put up a short stock sale on Suyeon Travel.

'Well, if the Suyeon Travel itself doesn't have any big problems, it'll rebound, but…' However, Crow's report said Tak Joon-gi secretly used his shares of the Suyeon Travel as collateral when buying Bisang Construction shares. The embezzlement and breach of trust were also scary negative factors that could cross the threshold of delisting. It was highly likely that it would also be revealed if an investigation was launched.

I picked up the phone and called Secretary Seo, "Get me through to Vice President Jang."

"Yes, boss." As requested, Secretary Seo connected the phone to Vice President Jang, who was sitting in his office.

"Did you call me, boss?"

"Vice president, how's the short stock sale team doing?"

"They have made a big profit today."

I didn't mention the name of the stock, but Vice President Jang knew. They'd been putting a mark on the Suyeon Group since almost a month ago.

"Let's go a little stronger. I read the article and I don't think it'll be able to rebound until next week, at least."

"Yes, boss."

Come to think of it, it was quite similar to the tactics of Tak Joon-gi. It was a way to make money by putting in a short stock sale, making news, and plunging stock prices. However, there was a fundamental difference: Tak Joon-gi had manufactured bad news that was not true and had sent it out to the world, and I had revealed the bad news that had been hidden.Tiriri, tiriri, tiriri. I opened my eyes. When I got out of bed and looked at my watch, it was an alarm ringing for me to see the email at 8:50 p.m.

'How long have I slept?' This evening, I had dinner with Secretary Seo and Jang Geun together, and as soon as I got home, I fell asleep. It must have been because I had been worried about handling the case against Tak Joon-gi all day. Still tired, I stood up, rubbing my eyes.

I had to go to the computer as intended by the alarm, but instead, I sat on the sofa and turned on the television. I wanted to see what the nine o'clock news said. I put the afternoon email news off a little bit, because it didn't hurt much if I watched it a little later.

'I'll look at it as soon as it's over, though.' I watched the news with such thoughts. As it became a hot topic, the first item was naturally the news about Tak Joon-gi.

[In April of this year, there was an incident that shook Seoul City. It was a stock price manipulation case, a breach of trust by Bisang Construction. Three months after the case was closed, a new suspect is in the spotlight. Kim Yoon-soo reports.]

I watched it with my hands behind my head and my legs crossed.

[Tak Joon-gi, a director of the Suyeon Group, has been a very active individual investor and…]

The nine o'clock news clearly listed everything that had happened today.

[Director Tak Joon-gi denied the article, but it turned out that in the following articles…]

I had two thoughts when I saw it. The first was that now Tak Joon-gi was done. As his evil deeds were so starkly exposed on the nine o'clock news, he was completely done. He wouldn't make it back. Even if it was the Suyeon Group, they couldn't stop this.

The second thought was, 'This… what I did is on the nine o'clock news.' Thinking about it, it was true. The start was just fucking up Tak Joon-gi, but now it was on the nine o'clock news. And was the nine o'clock news the end? Every Internet community was making the best of the articles in which Tak Joon-gi's bad behavior was being denounced. The event I had planned was becoming a hot topic for the country. I didn't mean it to, but it happened.

'Well, the power of the media is sure strong…'

In the past, I had met with Lee Won-jae in the president's office for the second time.

"First time seeing you. I'm Han Sang-hoon of Invictus Investment."

"I'm Lee Won-jae of the Daewon Ilbo."

Since then, I'd been thinking that as my power to know the future and the current power of the media met, they could display tremendous synergy. If I intended to do so, I might be able to sway public opinion.

"… We are afraid that he's going to run away. We are determining who will have custody of the investigation."

While I was thinking about it, the news on Tak Joon-gi finished up. I was watching the news, but it didn't stick with me, probably because I knew everything, or I expected it.

'Of course, he should be in custody. We can't let that trash in human form walk around.'

I turned off the television and walked toward the window. If I looked outside the window from my apartment, I could see Gangnam. There were so many people coming and going. All of them must have known what happened today, what happened to Tak Joon-gi…

Someone was with a family and someone was with a friend, and they might have talked about it.

'Did you see the news, Mom?' 'Yes, it was scary. That's what the third generation of chaebol did.'

'Wow, he is a son of a bitch. But even if he had so much money, would he still want more?'

As I thought about it, suddenly, I felt a little scared. 'Maybe… all of them… I can instill my thoughts in… I can falsely deceive the public, if I want, or I can honestly guide them. It is easy to release future information through the Daewon Daily News and Oracle News.'

Once again, I returned to my question and the answer from Customer Service.

'Why did you give me this opportunity?'

'Think of yourself.'

I muttered to myself, "Think of yourself…"

Perhaps it was not just evading an answer, but a reply to inspire me to ask questions on my own. 'Surely this is such a great force, letting me see into the future. I can have goodwill without limit, or with an evil will, I can bring about great destruction. If I don't think for myself, it could be a catastrophic event.

'Tak Joon-gi was a piece of filth, so it is natural to bury him… but I'll have to be as careful as I can when it comes to other things. Especially when I spread the news of the future on modern media…'

As I was thinking about this, the cell phone on the sofa rang. Wi yi-ying. I went and picked it up. There was a message from Ah-young. The long text said, "I arrived in LA after a month and I am enjoying my last few days of vacation with Sarah. Many men have made passes at the two of us, but I have turned them down. I miss you." I grinned at it.

'By the way, she doesn't know the news about Tak Joon-gi yet. What will she say when she sees the last enemy go to jail?' I started to reply to her with such thoughts.

But there was another text message. The sender was surprisingly Tak Joon-gi, and he had sent a text himself at 8:42 a.m.

'What is this?' 8:42 a.m.? It had been before the alarm woke me up. He had sent a text message, but I didn't see it because I was sleeping.

I opened the text. It was as long as Ah-young's, but I didn't want to see this very much. From beginning to end, it was full of vicious curses and threats and abuse. I scrolled down quickly. It was a fine-grained text, so I could see the speaker's intentions just by looking at the last sentence.

'… Watch what will happen. I will avenge myself. You son of a bitch!'

I guessed he had not been under arrest because he had texted me on his cell phone. I was looking at the text. 'Do it if you can in jail.' I was going to reply, but I didn't want to send it.

'Shall I classify it to the spam mail?' I thought, but I decided not to. Only one text came at 8:42. After tomorrow, he would not be able to send a text message anyway. He could not take his cell phone to prison.

'Well, I'm a little nervous, though.' I thought he might do something strange before he went to prison tomorrow.

'… Do I do a search on the news in 12 Hours After?' This was what I was trying to prevent something. I turned on the computer, got the email and wrote 'Tak Joon-gi' in the People Search.

"Hun?" Something surprising happened, different from what I thought. I clicked on the article right away. After reading the article carefully, I bit my lower lip and thought, 'This… this can't be right?'

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I read the title of the article again with my eyes blinking.

[Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel jumped to his death.]

It was a shocking article. I read it slowly, swallowing.

[Director Tak Joon-gi of Suyeon Travel, who was accused of manipulating stock prices and murder, jumped from the top of the headquarters building of Suyeon Travel and died.]

After seeing the first line, I found my cell phone instead of reading the article. The news I was watching was news in 12 Hours After. Tak Joon-gi would die within twelve hours. No matter how evil he was, I could not make a man die.

'Do I have to call Tak Joon-gi to convince him not to kill himself? No, he will not listen to me… Then, should I call 119?' To call 119, I needed to know the exact time when he would be going to make the jump. I read more about the article, especially the time he jumped off. He had died at 9:18 p.m.

[Police said Tak jumped off from the roof of his own Suyeon Travel building at 9:18 p.m. today and died.]

I felt a slight chill in my body. I was just watching the nine o'clock news. I picked up my cell phone, and it was 9:24. It was already too late. Six minutes ago, Tak Joon-gi was already dead.

'Even he threw himself off, if I had reported in a hurry, he would have been able to survive, wouldn't he?' I thought of that, but it was written in the article.

[119 crew members, called by a number of passers-by who were traveling around the Suyeon Travel Building, were dispatched to check his condition, and deduced that he had immediately died after the jump…]

They said that he had jumped from the roof of the building, so he must have died immediately. I put my phone down.

'Huh, of all occasions, at that time…' 12 Hours After did not match its name. Sometimes it would release the news of 6 Hours After, 3 Hours After, and 1 Hour After. That exactly extended up to the news of twelve hours, but it aired the future news from less than thirty minutes this time. Because I watched the news late, the future news became the past news.

'… if I hadn't seen the nine o'clock news…' If I had read the future news as soon as I had woken up at 8:55, I would have known twenty minutes before Tak Joon-gi died. Now, it was too late. Tak Joon-gi died six minutes ago. This was not the future news, it was the reality.

I went back to the portal site and searched for 'Tak Joon-gi.' The news of his death hadn't come up yet.

'If it's six minutes, they will collect the body soon.'

He was dead. I thought about him for a moment, leaning back in my chair. 'He didn't even raise his eyes to kill anyone… I'm not sorry to hear that he is dead, but he should have been sentenced by the law.' However, whenever I thought that Tak Joon-gi had committed suicide, I felt a strange sense of resistance, a strange sense of conflict in my mind.

'What is it…? Why…'

Strange as it was, I picked up my cell phone and saw the text sent by Tak Joon-gi once again. This seemed to have been sent by himself. It was a text full of curses and malice, '… I'll pay you back. You son of a bitch.'

I read the sentence over again. 'A man who is going to take revenge on me… committed suicide?'

That was the source of my sense of conflict. I checked the time the text had been sent: exactly 8:30. He had killed himself at 9:24, less than an hour since he had sent the text.

'He was determined to avenge himself, but within an hour, he killed himself. Revenge is a powerful motivator for a person.' I was a little unconvinced.

'Too angry? Did he jump off since he couldn't handle it anymore?' I didn't think so. He wasn't such a man. He had a style that was cold to others, but very attached to himself. Reporter Kang Joo-hyuk, likewise, chose to kill himself after being cornered, but Tak Joon-gi was not a man to commit suicide.

'Maybe… it's not a suicide, but murder?,' I thought. He had many enemies. If others found out that they had lost all their money because of him, there were those who would go after him with a sword. My girlfriend Ah-young was so weak that she could not think of doing it, but she also brought up revenge when she was drunk.

'If someone called him to the roof and pushed him off… Maybe…?' There might be more written in the article. I read more articles.

[The police found a suicide note on the rooftop of the Suyeon Travel…] So, there was a suicide note. If there was a suicide note, it only meant that there was a suicide, or that it was disguised as a suicide.

[The will contains an apology for all the victims who suffered losses due to his stock manipulations…] By the way, the contents of the suicide note were strange.

'He wouldn't say he was sorry to anyone. What a lie! Of course, he was good at lying and it might be… ' But the thought was awkward. I thought about his death with my arms crossed. Some time later, even in reality, there was news around 9:50.

[Breaking News – Director Tak Joon-ki jumped to his death from his own company building.]

It appeared twenty-two minutes after his death, and was fast enough to be "breaking news." However, it wasn't that fast for me.The next morning, as usual, I put on my clothes and left the apartment.

Jang Geun was waiting for me, and said, "Let's go, boss." I took the elevator with him, but the silent Jang Geun first brought out the story as he pressed the button on the first basement floor. "Boss, did you see yesterday… the news that Director Tak Joon-gi died?"

'Of course. I'd have seen it the fastest in the world!' Thinking so inwardly, I answered briefly, "Yes."

"… I see." Thanks to the words, "Tak Joon-gi is my enemy," Jang Geun must have been paying attention to him.

The enemy was dead, and it was very awkward.

Secretary Seo, who was waiting for us in the parking lot, also brought it up, "Did you see the news yesterday, boss? I was surprised."

It was not too much. Yesterday, Tak Joon-gi climbed to the top of the real-time search list; one for the article of his corruption at 4 p.m. and one for the article of his death at 9 p.m.

"When I saw him before, he was really… never going to kill himself…" Secretary Seo had seen him several times before. Tak had always maintained a strong and arrogant attitude.

I told Secretary Seo, "… I think so, too."

Secretary Seo replied, turning the wheel, "Is that right, boss? Well, he had lived in luxury as a third-generation chaebol, and if he went to jail and sat there, it would be hell for him."

"… Yes…"

Then, suddenly, Secretary Seo said, "Ah! Don't tell me… it might happen to be!"

I asked him, "What is it?"

"Maybe… he didn't want to go to jail, and he disguised himself with a pinch hitter. He might turn himself into someone else."

I shook my head, "I don't think so."

It was once said that a notorious con artist, Cho Hee-pal, died in disguise in China, but that was only possible in a foreign country. No matter how weak our nation's public power was, he could not change and kill a person.

"He could find a similar person…"

"There was no time to pick a man. The article was at 12:00, and he died at 9:00."

"Oh, I see."

Jang Geun, who was next to me, also said a word, "Maybe if he were going to take that route… he was not going to be thrown down, but burned to death. But if they check his dental history, they'll find it."

Tak Joon-gi was surely dead, but I suspected more than that, that he was intentionally killed, a case of him being murdered. There were a lot of people who would be damaged if Tak was left alive. Perhaps there were some people who were at ease after his death.

Moon Hee-sang, a prosecutor at the Seoul District Prosecutor's Office, was a representative of the case. He was the very person whose real name was written on the information Crow had brought; he was the person who had investigated and reported the case of stock price manipulation in the Bisang Construction to the upper managers of the investigation. He was supposed to get $700,000 in cash secretly from Tak Joon-gi. However, now that Tak Joon-gi was dead, it was highly likely that the investigation would be disrupted if prosecutors started to investigate one another.

'I'd like to see the suicide note of Tak Joon-gi directly…' I was very curious about the suicide note that had apologized to someone. However, the suicide note was not released to the press. If it was not released to the press, I couldn't get it from the future news."Hmm…"

"We are here, boss." The car that Secretary Seo drove arrived at the company in no time. I decided to put aside the business of Tak Joon-gi and focus on my work. I had work to do today.

I spoke to Secretary Seo in the elevator, "Call Vice President Jang and tell him to come to the president's office."

"Yes, boss."

I called Vice President Jang about Suyeon Travel. With the bad news, the man that held 30% of the company, being resolved, it might rebound.

Secretary Seo brought Vice President Jang to the president's office.

"Did you call me?"

"Yes, Vice President Jang. Did you see the news yesterday?"

Tak Joon-gi's name didn't come out, but Jang replied immediately, "Yes, I saw it. I ordered the short stock sale team to wait and see."

"Good job. Please be flexible about the short stock sale, whether you will buy back or watch, when you see the market."

"Yes, boss."

To that end, I turned on the HTS when I finished responding to the death of Tak Joon-gi.

'Yes, let's forget about Tak Joon-gi, I'm sorry to hear that he is dead, but… Now that the man who's gonna die is dead, that's enough. Let's earn money as usual.' To make money as usual, but the mystery of Tak Joon-gi's death lingered in my mind. I hit the desk with my fist. 'I wonder…'

A person worthy to die was dead, but it was so strange to think about it. I picked up my cell phone and turned on the calendar app. Once I unlocked the complex patterned lock that only I knew, it was heavily illustrated with when to buy and what to sell, and the road map to make money. This month was packed to the point where there was nothing more to fill.

'Yes, this is enough money this month.' Thinking so, at 8:55, when I received the email, I scrolled right down to the bottom without even looking at the title of the article. There was a phrase written there, "Do you want to call Crow? (One time remaining)."

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I sat cross-legged on the bench and looked up at the sky. The sky seemed to be high today. I felt that autumn was coming.

'Autumn…' While I was looking at the sky like that, Crow, who had appeared before me, bowed his head at me. "You called for me, sir?"

It was a perfectly normal greeting. Wearing a plain suit, he just looked like a foreigner on a business trip abroad. At this point, I thought I would meet him elsewhere, where there were a lot of people. I said to him, recommending a seat next to me, "The last survey was really good. The quality of the content, the quantity… was impeccably good."

He said, with a slight bowing of his head, "Thank you."

"I have to appreciate it. I've been able to handle a lot of things thanks to the data."

"I'm glad I was of help." He seemed to be a modest sort.

"What have you been doing for the past two days?"

"I worked."

"Work?"

"Yes."

I said with my head tilted, "Really? Aren't you supposed to rest when you don't have a request?"

"No. Master Crow doesn't really like Crows playing. We have to keep working."

"What do you do?"

At my words, he lowered his head slightly and looked at the ground and said, "Everything that's going on in the world is our job."

"Really? Without a break?"

"Yes, we don't rest, like the world is running nonstop."

'Umm… It's a pity that he can't rest and work. If I were a boss, I would've given him a cool reward vacation.' Come to think of it, there was nothing I couldn't give.

"Then I won't give you a vacation, but would you like a separate reward?"

He smiled, his white teeth exposed at my words. His brown skin made the teeth stand out. "It's all right. I'll take only your words."

I was going to give him about ten thousand dollars. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, it's okay. I can't even use it if I get the money."

"You can't use it?"

"Correct."

"Then… where did you sleep and what did you eat?"

"There's a separate sleeping area, and there's food."

"Is that so?"

I lowered my eyes slightly and blurred my words, and he said, "Don't worry, sir. I'm getting enough of a reward for my work as a Crow. No, that's too much."

"Enough of a reward?"

He said, looking at the different grasses in Montmartre Park, "Yes. Enough reward."

"What's the reward?"

"That's… that's not mine to say."

I guessed I went too far without realizing it. I wasn't going to pry anymore. "Yes, I see. By the way, I have a new request."

He looked at me as if he had waited for this. "What is it?"

"The man named Tak Joon-gi, who I asked you to investigate before… He's dead."

Crow acknowledged bluntly, as if he had guessed it, "I see."

I kept saying, "But the death… is a little strange. The media and the police say he committed suicide, but as far as I know, he wasn't someone to do that. He texted me before he died, and it wasn't a text that anyone who had decided to commit suicide would send. And the letter he wrote… I'm not convinced."

Crow was listening to me silently. I went straight to the point, "So, I wonder, if he really committed suicide, and if it's not a suicide, who killed him? If he was killed, why? And… I want to see if it's related to me."

"… Yes, sir," Crow nodded.

I saw him and said hurriedly as he had a habit of disappearing at the mere mention of a request. "Well, by the way, Mr. Crow."

"Yes, sir."

"Is this request going to take a month, too?"

"Yes…"

It was rather simpler than the previous request, so I thought the investigation period would be reduced. I spoke to him, "I see. Okay. Please take care of it. Oh, and…"

"And?"

I said one last thing, "What kind of food do you like? Let's eat together next time."

"… I eat anything."

"What do you like more than just eating?"

"I don't know. Not really…"

"Then I'll take care of it. Let's not meet in the park next time, let's have a meal together at a restaurant."

He nodded, "Yes, sir."

Now it was time for him to disappear. I looked at him for a moment. By the way, he just got up from his seat and walked across the street. I thought it would be one of the two, flying up into the sky, or hiding out into the ground, or something, but it was normal.

'Huh, that's… that's weird… He is gone if I don't see him, and if I am watching him, he walks away. Is he a spy of Schrodinger?'

There was something mysterious and unknown about him, but there was one thing for sure: he was competent. In a month, I would know the truth about the death of Tak Joon-gi.I returned to my daily routine after I left the job to Crow. Unlike me, public attention quickly faded away from Director Tak Joon-gi. It took only one day to get there, and the stock manipulation incident, which had shaken the Republic of Korea, cooled down in just one more day as he had committed suicide, and written a suicide note in which he had admitted his guilt. No matter how evil he was, it was not in our country to point fingers at a dead person.

The angry public quickly disappeared. Tak Joon-gi, the name went up and down for another day, but that was it. If anyone really killed him, it would be fair to say that he achieved his intended purpose. His death eliminated many things that had to happen. First of all, the investigation of the people on the list was lost. Some of the conscious reporters wrote, 'The Tak Joon-gi incident didn't end in death.' However, it would be impossible to conduct a proper investigation. Even if they were investigated, it was enough to evade in the way of denial…

'I don't know.'

'That's a one-sided claim.'

'Tak Joon-gi did it by himself.'

It was not like they could take a dead person and ask him questions. The stock price of Suyeon Travel also rebounded. Tak Joon-gi's death was a good cleaner. The stock market was such a scary place. It was ironic to think that Tak Joon-gi himself was a man who shook stocks while shaking others' lives.

I thought about the stock price of Suyeon travel, which plunged -24% yesterday, but was able to rebound by 15% today. 'If Tak Joon-gi himself saw this, what would he say?…'

The short stock sale volume would have been repurchased by the team in a moderate way. We didn't get much profit, but it was okay. It was one of those devices meant to fuck up Tak Joon-gi, rather than make money in the first place. The man who I was about to shaft was dead. There were a variety of opinions about this on the stock bulletin board.

– Wow, I'm glad Tak Joon-gi that son of a bitch is dead.-

– I sold it yesterday. I had to last just one more day.-

– The bet I had yesterday at the closing price went off. Honey.-

– But he had a conscience, since he was dead and he preserved the shareholder's value.-

– No, he wouldn't have done it in the first place if he had had a conscience. The son of a bitch was a dog. It's a clean ending because he killed himself.-

There were many stories about Tak Joon-gi. There was such a story in the middle of it.

– By the way, who's going to get his stake in Tak Joon-gi? He's not even married.-

– I'm a little curious about that. I'm not sure of the correct answer. Maybe the Suyeon Group has taken it back. He was a son of the Suyeon Group anyway.-

There was such a story written. It was natural to think that way. In the first place, they threw a travel agency at Tak Joon-gi, who was low in the order of succession of Suyeon Group.

In addition, the official announcement was also made in Suyeon Travel.

[Suyeon Travel has nothing to do with the deviations of Director Tak Joon-gi. There will be a public announcement soon regarding major shareholders.]

That was about it. I looked at the announcement and thought, '…This is how it ends. Is it…?'

That was how the world seemed to forget him in just one day. I didn't forget. The day Crow would return, in just a month, would be the twenty-ninth of September.The last two days of August, I visited Incheon International Airport for two days in a row, to greet those returning home. First, on August thirtieth, my family returned home. My family gave me gifts that they had bought from all over Europe.

My mother had bought a perfume from Italy. "Son, this is the one most Italian use. Italian men are the most popular in Europe. So I bought it."

"I'll try it, Mother."

My father had bought a wine bottle from France. "They only sell it locally, so we couldn't buy it in our country even if we pay. I bought this because I thought this would be good for my rich son."

"Thank you."

And my sister gave me a soccer uniform that she had bought in Spain as a present. "My brother, this is a Real Madrid uniform. I got the best-looking one, Gareth Vale."

"… I like Barcelona."

"Hmm? What's the difference?"

In any case, I was glad they returned safely. Tak Joon-gi, who had been a threat, was dead, so my family would be safe.On August thirty-first, the second day, Ah-young also returned home. She had bought a pair of luxury sunglasses for me. "I bought these from a duty-free shop… because I thought they would look good on oppa."

"Yes, thank you." She had bought something just as nice as a rich daughter.

Come to think of it, there was also a present I had prepared for her. "Oh, Ah-young. I guess you didn't know because you were in America… about him."

"Who?"

"The last remaining one, Tak Joon-gi, is dead."

Ah-young covered her mouth with both hands as her eyes grew bigger. "Why?"

"At that time, he got away in the spring… but this time a scandal sheet exposing all his past evil deeds came out. So he jumped from the roof of his building and killed himself."

I excluded mentioning what I had done. As usual, Ah-young didn't need to know everything. It was rather good for her.

"Really?" It must have been a little strange for her, too. "Oh, he… he didn't seem to die… but he killed himself."

"No matter how bad a man is, if his sins are exposed to the world… By the way, there was a story about Go-young Food. The police are also going to re-investigate."

"Really?"

"Yes. If it goes well, you'll get your parents' honor back."

When she heard that Tak Joon-gi had died, she didn't look happy, but at the remark, she had a pretty bright look. "Yes… That's great… good!"

Ah-young's father had written such a will after he died: 'I'm innocent, my daughter.'

It was a suicide note, which, if I thought of it now, was truly desperate, unlike Tak Joon-gi's. When the results of a re-examination of Go-young Food came out, everyone would know that what he had said was true.

As I left Incheon International Airport with my arms linked with Ah-young, I thought, 'It is a natural result.'

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"Well, so… in your opinion, it's better to go with this person than an outsider?"

"Yes, we don't have enough veterans because it's only been ten years since the Internet broadcasting business was created. It's hard to say that it's been verified, even if we hire a person from another company. So even if someone comes, it's hard to say that it's a sure thing. If you pick Kim Jung-kyun, you'll at least feel secure."

Kim Jung-kyun was the one who had come and stuck to me when the position of Ahn Yong-kyun had been shaken. But I couldn't pick him for being good at flattering. Ahn Yong-kyun had used to crawl in front of me like a dog.

I nodded for now. "Well, then I'll search for him… no, I'll think about him and let you know as soon as possible."

"Yes, boss. And about the acquisition of Jiwoo Entertainment?"

"Yes?"

"The price has been agreed upon at the price we talked about. On the Chinese side, it seems like they need something to show to the Communist Party, rather than the amount. So I think I can carry it at a low price."

"It's good."

"This side needs a new CEO, too. The Chinese CEO will go back to China as soon as the investment is over."

"Let President Kwon have an additional position, or have one of the OH Entertainment directors be the president and give him a promotion."

"Yes, then I'll do that, boss."

"Yes."

After lowering his head, Vice President Jang left the president's office. I folded my fingers over my head, then breathed a sigh and muttered, "There's no end to this. It's endless."

In September, after the incident of Director Tak Joon-gi had finished, I had thought I could relax a little, but instead I had been busier than usual. I saw the calendar on the desktop. If what was stored in a cell phone was a secret treasure trove, this was my true schedule. Other than the "Blue EM's new CEO appointment ceremony" and "Jiwoo Entertainment's merger and acquisition," which had been discussed just now, the entire schedule was set in succession. The next schedule was 'IPO Institutional Investment Briefing of Lee Won-jae.' However, the name was not properly written.

'What was the name of the company?' I couldn't remember it very well, but I had to go. This was a promise. CEO Lee Won-jae had sided with me in an important match-up, so I would go out and give him an investment commitment. The reputation of me and Invictus Investment had increased in the investment world these days, and they would have the potential to get a good price just by showing off my face. If someone did me a good thing, I would pay him back. It was about keeping my trust.

'Ah, I'd like to take a break… but I'll have to go to this one.'

But then, the phone rang. I answered the phone.

"Boss."

"Yes?"

"I got a call from MBE. They're asking if you can make another appearance in 'Meet the Super Ant.'"

"Ah… that?"

"Yes."

Come to think of it, I remember having a fight with a male announcer in the past.

"I'll think about it if it's over one billion dollars.

"Oh really? One billion dollars? Hahaha, if that happens, I will invest first."

One billion dollars. A few days ago, my assets were at that level, because the value of my Kai Games' stake had grown. I wanted to go out and press his nose. 'Look, it took less than a year, didn't it?'

"You first appeared in the new year… It's been just eight months. You go out in front of the camera again. It wouldn't be a bad idea to show off that you made a breakthrough."

"Yes… when is that?"

"It will be filmed on the first Wednesday of next month. It will be aired on the last Thursday of next month."

"… yes. I'll do it." The schedule had increased by one more.

"Yes, boss. I'll tell that to the television producer."

"Yes."

In the early days of investing, there had not been much to do. There was a lot to do these days because of the increasing number of subsidiaries and our reputation. Even leaving miscellaneous affairs to Vice President Jang as usual, it would be difficult to make hundreds of thousand dollars by clicking a few times at home without going to work. It wasn't a good thing to do.September fifteenth, 8:55 p.m., I sat on the couch watching television without getting an email today. The emails had killed Tak Joon-gi, but it wasn't something to regret about.

"BKS Nine o'clock news."

I looked at the familiar logo. My chest was supporting a pale face with long hair. I asked, stroking the long straight hair from top to bottom, "It sounds fun, doesn't it?"

Ah-young, who was in my arms, looked up at me and said, "You have to come out well."

"I'll be fine. Don't worry."

Originally, the nine o'clock news wasn't something for couples to watch, but there was something special to watch for today, Ah-young's interview.

A day before, Ah-young called me. "Oppa, I got an interview request from a broadcasting station. Shall I go?"

"Interview? Where?"

"BKS. It's the nine o'clock news."

"Oh, really? Is this about your father?"

"Yes, they wanted to ask me how I felt at the time."

The re-examination of Go-young Food was quickly over, as the information Crow had brought was so accurate. Police conducted a reinvestigation based on the information, and the innocence of Go-young Food and President Lee Kang-san was quickly revealed.

"It wouldn't be bad to go out and talk about it. You wanted to get your parents' honor back. BKS nine o'clock news is public television's main news. Don't you think a lot of people all over the country will see you there? I think it's a good opportunity."

Ah-young listened to me and thought for a moment, "Yes… I do. Okay, I'll do it, oppa."

She had decided to do it. The result was what was coming out today, now.

"Here's the next news: the controversy over the delivery of food and garbage food of Go-young Food, which made the world buzz four years ago. But it turns out it was actually a victim of stock manipulation. Oh Jae-min has covered it."

I was excited to see it. "Oh, yes."

Ah-young covered her face with shame. "What do I do?"

Ah-young's interview scene was inserted around the middle of the news clip. "It's a good thing the truth has come to light right now. I hope it doesn't happen in the future."

About fifteen seconds, it was a short interview, but I couldn't take my eyes off it. My girlfriend on TV was so pretty. I looked down at her face, ignoring the television. But she wasn't turning her head towards me at all.

"Why don't you look at it?"

"I can't see. How's it going? Did it come out well?"

I smiled instead of answering. It was very unrealistic of me to think that the beauty on television was buried in my arms. I told her, "You're good. You're prettier than an announcer."

Although she didn't see herself because she was so embarrassed, Ah-young said, "Most of all… people should have seen it…"Her wish became a reality, more intense than expected. The next day, there was a commotion on the Internet because of Ah-young, who was called 'The Go-young Food Daughter' or 'The Manipulation Interview Girl.' The TV clip which was seen most again was Go-young Food news. It was a strange phenomenon that the nine o'clock news overtook other entertainment programs to top the list of views. I'd watched it several times, too. "I'm glad the truth is revealed now. I hope it doesn't happen in the future…"

There was a commotion when I saw the comments.

– Wow, the real goddess, the goddess.-

– This is nine o'clock news? Not a drama? That's a normal person? Not a celebrity?-

– I think she can slap a female celebrity on the cheek with her beauty.-

– Let's stop interviewing and do acting.-

– Go-young Food? Where is it? I'll eat all three meals with it in the future.-

There were some comments saying, 'Have you seen the news?' but happily, many people had found out that Ah-young's parents were innocent.

'Good for her.' I scrolled down, thinking about it. By the way, those comments were noticeable.

– Wow, goddess, let's be mine, Ah-young.-

– Don't talk bullshit. She's already my girlfriend.-

"These bastards…"

When I used to do mergers and acquisitions and sell-offs, I'd received countless bad comments.

'Who is Han Sang-hoon?'

'The bastard's buying this?'

'You son of a bitch! Take out your short stock sale.']

However, even more than those, these comments were worse. It didn't seem like it was very pleasant to have a girlfriend on and off the Internet.On September twentieth, I visited a mausoleum where Ah-young's parents were buried. I didn't want to, but she asked me to come with her. If I thought about it, it was less burdensome than in visiting her living parents. While she burned incense and prayed, I also joined my hands by her and prayed silently, 'I've avenged. Please watch your daughter from heaven and protect her.'

After that, I went out of the place with her in my arms. Suddenly, she asked me, "What did you pray for?"

"There's nothing to say to dead people. I told them to get along well in heaven and take good care of their daughter."

"Umm… really?"

I nodded. Then Ah-young said, "I told my parents that the man next to me is my boyfriend and… I told them he is the one who avenged them, and he's a grateful person."

I did not tell her I was the one who sent off Tak Joon-gi, but she seemed to know it intuitively. At the time of Bisang Construction, it was she who had come to visit and asked what was going on.

I didn't tell her I did it, but she knew it. She didn't ask me outright, either. If we fully understood each other, we didn't have to say it.

'You knew about it, too.' By the way, I thought of it, but she added a word, "And I also told my mom and dad, 'Maybe… I don't know yet.'"

"About what?"

She tapped me in the chest with her slender arms. "About what?"

The only word that came to mind was 'marriage,' which she seemed to be thinking about already, even if we had been together for a while. I didn't force myself to say the word. This, too, should be something we should think about, but not talk about for a while.September went on and on, and it was finally September twenty-eighth. At last, the day came. In my busy September schedule, it was a special day. It was the day Crow would report, the day to solve the mystery. I booked the most expensive room in the deluxe hotel buffet and waited for him.

'I'm good at eating anything.' For someone who answered like that, I didn't know what he would like, so I prepared everything. It was a response to his words.

At the appointment time, Crow appeared before me, "Hello, sir."

I greeted him more warmly than ever, "Welcome, Crow."

He was holding a large envelope at his waist. I looked at it and he held it out to me.

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"How do you like it?"

At my words, Crow nodded, "It's delicious, sir. It's really good."

I smiled in satisfaction. "Oh, good."

"It's an amazing place. I can take and eat as much food as I want."

He seemed to have never had such a buffet before. I told him, "You can have it any way you like. Take it easy."

He filled almost six or seven plates, and finished them all. It was a great amount of food. What was interesting was that at first, he took seafood, sushi, sweet and sour pork, dried pollack, bulgogi, pizza, spaghetti, various dishes, and in the second half it was all reorganized with spicy chicken.

Watching it, I told him, "Do you think the chicken is right for you?"

"Yes. This is… delicious. It's a sweet, sour taste."

"Well, let's have Chi-Mac next time."

"Chi-Mac? What's that?" He was familiar with other people's secrets, but he didn't know that.

"Chicken and beer."

"Oh, I see. I'll have to eat whatever the boss buys me."

Crow finished speaking and ate the chicken as well. Secretary Seo and Jang Geun tended to eat pretty well, but Crow seemed to be totally different. After a long meal, I broke up with him in front of the front door of the hotel.

"I had a good meal today. I'll leave."

I nodded, "Yes, Crow." I slapped at the envelope I was holding. "Thank you for your hard work on this."

"Yes, boss. I hope you call me again next month."

Crow bowed to me as usual. But his form was a bit awkward. He'd eaten so much that even if he was a giant, he would feel a little uncomfortable.

I smiled at him and started to turn back. But then Crow caught me, "Ah, boss."

"What?"

"You must use the eye patch, according to the usage."

"Eye patch?"

"Yes. It's in the envelope. I've attached the instructions for use, so be sure to follow them."

I looked in the envelope. There was an eye patch, as he said. "Ah… Yes…" I looked up, but he had vanished at that moment.When I got home, I took out all the contents of the envelope. Inside was a pile of A4 paper, a little thinner than the last one. The amount was a little small, but it was the same report, a report in the self-written style that Crow seemed to use.

'This is it…' I then lifted the black eye patch. I didn't know the black one, but now I saw three black crow feathers on each side. It was like a mask. I felt like I was going to have a nightmare if I slept with this on. There was a brochure next to the eye patch that read 'Description'. I opened it up.Dream of Black-feather

Legendary Jewelry

Passive Skill

Dream of Crow (I) – It shows what you want to see in time and space that has passed. It will only be activated during a seven-hour sound sleep.

If reality is a dream, and a dream is reality, all that remains human is a story.I read it and blurted out, "What?" It was a strange manual for someone who was familiar with such instructions as 'Please be careful when using this device.'

I looked at it alternately with the eye patch on it. Except for the strange words, the point was that it would only be activated during a long sound sleep. I thought the instructions Crow had mentioned probably meant this. When I slept with this on, it was like it would show me what I would like to see.

'Then I have to get a good night's sleep'

I turned the manual around. At the back, it said, 'All dreams come true only once.'

"I know that, man."

I lay on the bed with the eye patch and report, putting the manual aside. Then I read the report one page after another.

'Report on the death of Tak Joon-gi.'

It went directly to the point. I started to read it slowly.I'd read all the reports.

"Huh… oh…"

I put it by my bedside, then picked it up again and put it under my bed. I thought I would have to read it one more time tomorrow, and burn it right away. This report was too dangerous. Just because of my curiosity, I had Crow find it out, but it was too dangerous.

"It wasn't… it wasn't suicide, either."

I looked out of the window. Nine in the evening, the buildings in Gangnam were emitting brilliant lights. It was my favorite view of the day. But even today, it felt creepy that someone fell from a building like that and died. Just then, my cell phone alarm went off.

Wi yi-ying. I was slightly surprised at the sound. I was so nervous. I looked at my cell phone. There was a text from Ah-young.

– How was the meeting? The French wine your father bought for you, shall we drink it today?-

I looked at the text and thought, 'It's nice to have a romantic night after a long time, but I have to sleep well today for about seven hours.'

I answered her.

– I'm sorry, I have something important today, so I don't think so. Tomorrow… or the day after tomorrow, let's drink it then.-

I deliberately stressed the word "important" so Ah-young would not stubbornly persist. Fortunately, it worked. Perhaps thanks to her father, who had been a businessman, she did not disturb me when I stressed that it was "important."

– Okay. Let's drink it when you have time.-After exchanging text messages, I came right into the living room, did fifty squats, a hundred buffet tests, and thirty push-ups. Then, I took a half-bath, heated up the milk, drank about half a cup, and lay down on the bed. It was ten o'clock. I usually went to bed around eleven or twelve o'clock. I didn't know if I was going to fall asleep, but I tried to go to sleep wearing the eye patch Crow had brought me.

But, of course, I couldn't fall asleep. Maybe it was because of the shocking story I had seen earlier, or because I ignored the usual sleep cycle and went to bed early.

'Ha… shall I count sheep?' Come to think of it, it'd been a long time since I tried to force myself to sleep. Instead of counting sheep, I thought of my sister. I'd always indulged in quarreling with my sister, but I'd never had a real hard time fighting. I thought, lying on my bed. 'What a scary world… money…'

By the time I thought about it, I could feel the wind blowing. There was no draft coming in from somewhere. I could feel the wind blowing all over my body.

'What is this?'

As soon as I thought, I realized that the wind was not blowing. I was going through the air, the black sky. Looking down, there were shiny buildings in Seoul. I could see long stretches of streams and bridges, and the lights that lit it up.

'Cheonggyecheon?' The moment I thought that, I was sitting somewhere on a small tree. Looking around, there was a garden below me. It was also a small garden, suitable for the size of a tree. Beyond that was dark air. This was the garden on the roof of the building. I realized, this was the roof of Suyeon Travel. I also realized the fact that I was dreaming. It must have been the eye patch right that Crow had handed me.

'This… this is a lucid dream?' I looked around, thinking about it. I could not move my body, but I could look around. There was a man in a suit on one side of the garden, of well-heeled stature and well-balanced figure. Even though he was in his forties, he didn't have any fat.

I thought, 'He's more handsome than anyone I've ever seen on the news. He's a little cold, though.' Soon the roof door opened and two men came in: Tak Joon-gi and his secretary, a big man. Tak Joon-gi got red in the face and approached the man.

"Brother!"

The man called "brother" looked back on him, and he said, "Did you have to call me, too, Joon-gi?"

"I'm sorry. It was so… the situation was so urgent."

I was slightly surprised to see this. It was the first time I'd ever seen Tak Joon-gi say, 'I'm sorry,' sincerely.

The man nodded and said, "Well, I heard the story, but I can't help you. According to the article, you can't get out of it. I can't help you on this one. I'll give you the best lawyer possible. The judge was …not easy to choose. Anyway, if you go to trial again, it'll be like ten years. I'll adjust it, and you'll be able to get out in about seven years."

"Seven years? Seven years! It will be the end if I'm in prison for seven years, brother!"

At his words, the man shook his head, "It's not the end. After prison, go abroad and live there, whether it is America or Europe. My father is going to do that for you, but it seems like your father wants to kill you. But I'm sure he'll let you roll in the dumps. You are his son."

Here the relationship between the two was revealed. They were cousins.

Tak Joon-gi even knelt to his cousin brother. "That can't be true. Please, brother, I'll ask you this. You can do it for me. You can do it for nothing!"

The cousin brother shook his head, "I'm sorry, Joon-gi. I told you before. The prosecution and the reporters are not that different from all of us businessmen. I can save you if I want to, but then, wouldn't I owe them too much?"

"I'll pay you back for that. I'll live somehow…"

At his words, the cousin replied with a smile, "You're going to pay me back? I already know you're a debtor. It's rumored in Myeong-dong. I heard a person from Suyeon Group does not pay back his debts. Do I have to listen to that story? Fuck you!"

The cousin, without changing his face, cursed. That was even scarier.

"Because of you, Suyeon Group already owes a lot all over the place. That's because your mother covered you up. If it had not been for your mother, you wouldn't have inherited this place and you would have just been thrown out."

When he said 'this place,' he thumped the garden with his shoes. This place seemed to mean nothing but Suyeon Travel.

"But I gave you one for letting it go, and you have hurt the name of Suyeon Group, and you've been doing this shit? No, let's say that's the case, but you used to be a son of a bitch. By the way, did you expose it all?"

Tak Joon-gi pleaded with him after he heard the words, 'son of a bitch.' "I'm sorry… I'm sorry, brother. It's… It's… It's because I got caught once by a weird guy."

"A weird guy?"

Then, my name came out. I gulped and looked at them. I didn't know if Crow swallowed.

"He is Han Sang-hoon, who set up an investment company. He is a lowly person, but he has some connections…"

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"Han Sang-hoon. He… he made me do this."

His cousin spoke with his eyes squinted, "Well… Han Sang-hoon… I think I've heard of him."

"It's Invictus Investment. He is a guy who is running a little company."

Now that the Invictus name appeared, the cousin only pretended to know. "Ah, Invictus? Is that an invincible investment or what? I've heard about it, too. They're making a lot of money as soon as they touch something? A game? With that kind of thing, he's an ordinary person?"

An ordinary person? I guessed there were other people who were not ordinary people.

"Yes. He is just a son of a country hick who runs a training center; I don't know how he grew up."

I regretted when I heard it. The last time I saw the news 12 Hours After, I thought, 'If I call now, he might live…' Just for a moment, I had been trying to save him.

His cousin received my name and asked Tak Joon-gi, "How did you end up with that country boy?"

"… It's a long story. I met him the first time at Garden Envy…"

At that, the cousin said with a big smile, "Are you still doing that? The copy show?" He called Garden Envy a copy show.

'Then, is there an original?'

Tak Joon-gi mumbled. He seemed to be angry at his cousin's constant disregard, too. He just couldn't express it.

'He must have had a hard time holding back what he wanted to say when he was acting like a king everywhere.'

"… whatever it is. Yeah. That lowly bastard fucked me up."

"Well, Mr. Tak Joon-gi from heaven has been punished in the information war by an ordinary person… That's strange to me."

"He's hiding something. How did he handle the prosecution, how did he handle the reporters? He knew all the information I thought I was under perfect control."

"Hmm, really? Han Sang-hoon… he's a funny guy. I'll have to meet him, too." His cousin was more interested in me than in the begging Tak Joon-gi.

Tak Joon-gi told him again, "Just save me. I'll pay you back soon. You know I'm good for it. It's just this once… that I made a mistake."

His cousin retorted coldly, "Two times. One at Bisang Construction, and another at Blue EM."

"The second time… I was in such a hurry. I was blinded by revenge… I was pushing ahead with my work so quickly…"

"Whatever the reason, isn't two enough? What if grandfather was alive and saw you now? For the first one… maybe grandfather would forgive it. Of course, if you were an ordinary person, you'd be out in one shot, but he'd have forgiven it once, but twice… not twice. If grandfather saw this, maybe." He raised his right hand and tapped on his left wrist. "He must have sent me a sign."

Tak Joon-gi's eyes opened wide. I didn't know what it was, but it was likely cutting the relationship or the equivalent.

He went on, "Joon-gi. Grandfather has always won since the Japanese colonial era. He always won against the Liberation Army, the U.S. military, the military dictator, and the democrats. And that's what has made Suyeon Group what it is. We were born with the DNA of victory. But defeat… defeat is only for an ordinary person. Now, you're not the right person for Suyeon."

Tak Joon-gi finally couldn't stand it any longer. He looked at his cousin with a spiteful glance and said, "Stop talking about that floating cloud! You'll help me or not, tell me!"

But his cousin brother didn't bat an eyelid at the sight. He just shook his head and said, "Good lawyer. Seven years including probation. That's it."

"If I can't accept that?"

His cousin replied with a smile, "If you can't accept it, do you have another option?"

Tak Joon-gi said, flashing his eyes, "You know, listen up. You're mistaken if you think I've been digging around for any other company's information. It's our company that I've been researching more closely than any other company over the last twenty years. It's Suyeon. The reason why I raised so much money in the first place was to make Suyeon mine. My last target was Suyeon."

'Ah…' I opened my mouth wide when I heard that. 'Did he try to swallow Suyeon?'

I was spreading my beak because I was in a crow's state. Tak Joon-gi was a man even more ambitious than I thought. It was understandable since he was born in a rich family and raised money like that. It was for the prince's rebellion. If he had truly tried to attack Suyeon, he would have needed much more money in the end.

"But I'll give it up here. I'll give Suyeon's seat to my brother, and I won't cross it again. Just help me this time."

"If I refuse?"

"I'll tell all about the vice chairman of Suyeon Electronics before I stand in court. All I've investigated!"

At the words, the one eye of the vice chairman of Suyeon Electronics, Tak Mun-su, grew larger. He had never revealed his feelings before, and his eye was filled with anger. But it was only for a moment. He came back to his original face and unfastened his arms and approached Tak Joon-gi. Then he slapped Tak Joon-gi on the shoulder and said, "Joon-gi. Let's just say one thing. That's probably why you lost. Talking about how you feel, and shedding all your feelings, you were struck by an ordinary man. You must not be exposed when you have a winning card, or you could face a counterattack."

I suddenly thought of Tak Joon-gi, who had been speaking so openly in front of me. 'Dogs! ' Perhaps, if I hadn't heard that, I would have regarded him only as a third-generation git of a chaebol. Tak Mun-su's words might not be very wrong.

He went on, "It's the same now. If you wanted to threaten me, you should have prepared some more certain measures and then made a threat. Like a rough-and-tumble amateur, if you thrust your sword at me in anger, would I be afraid? It's funny."

After speaking, Tak Mun-su walked up to him and stood opposite him. Then, Tak Joon-gi's secretary, who had been standing motionless behind him, walked over behind Tak Mun-su, like a guard.

Tak Mun-su said to Tak Joon-gi, "The hostility is to show itself in a perfectly victorious state like this."

Tak Joon-gi alternated between Tak Mun-su and his secretary in amazement.

Tak Mun-su now spoke frankly, "Have you ever thought it was strange? Why did the vice chairman of Suyeon Electronics intentionally come to the rooftop of the Suyeon Travel building? Because of you? Because I feel sorry for my cousin who was going to be in court?"

He shook his head and said, "No. I haven't liked you since I was a kid. If you don't want to roll in the dumps, you'll have to go to the next world. Goodbye."

After he finished speaking, he gestured to Tak Joon-gi's secretary who was standing next to him, the very hand gesture of his right hand tapping on his left wrist. The big man walked straight toward Tak Joon-gi.

Tak Joon-gi alternated Tak Mun-su and his secretary in amazement. "No… well, this is… you…"

Nevertheless, his secretary continued to walk toward Tak Joon-gi.

"Bo… Bosung, come on. You're my secretary, you're my bodyguard. Why…?"

Tak Joon-gi took a backward step, but his secretary caught him by the neck and lifted him up. He grabbed him and brought him to the railing.

Tak Joon-gi spoke to him in a voice that didn't come out very well, "Bo… Bosung… please… please."

But then, the secretary said just one word. "Let me say one thing too, Mr. Director. When did you ever treat me like a man?"

"Ah…" Tak Joon-gi tried to say something, but the secretary threw him over the safety bar on the park's rim without waiting for more.

"Aaaargh!" A high scream reverberated through the air, then quickly subsided. It was a terrible thing.

Tak Joon-gi's secretary came back to Tak Mun-su and lowered his head. "I've taken care of it, as you ordered, Vice Chairman."

"Yes. I saw it, too. Good job. You sure you turned off the camera?"

"Yes. I've checked it several times."

"What about a suicide note?"

"I've prepared it."

Tak Mun-su clapped him on the shoulder and said, "Yes. You've been working hard as a secretary under such a bastard. I'll compensate you properly."

Tak Joon-gi's secretary bowed to Tak Mun-su. "Thank you, Vice Chairman."

"Now, let's get out of here before it gets noisy."

"Yes, sir."

Tak Mun-su started to turn his head. Then, he looked at me and stopped for a moment. "Huh?"

Tak Joon-gi's secretary asked him, "What's wrong, Vice Chairman?"

Until now, I didn't think he saw me. But then he asked, "No, why… is a crow here?"

I realized then that he was looking at me. I opened my eyes wide with astonishment, and at the same time, I fell out of bed.Thumping… I gasped, my heartbeat sounded in my ears. I took off the eye patch, and I swore without knowing it, "Oh, my… fuck." Maybe it was the shock of seeing the murder with my own eyes, or the side-effect of the eye patch. I looked out the window and the darkness was subsiding outside. I picked up the cell phone on my bedside and looked at it. The time was 6:48 a.m.

At 10 p.m. I'd tried to fall asleep, so it was about seven hours' sleep. I lifted the eye patch. 'It's… it's real.'

I didn't know if it was real or made, but it was a really vivid dream, to the point of being indistinguishable from reality. I recalled the phrase that was written in the manual. 'If reality is a dream, and a dream is reality, all that remains human is a story.'

I got up from my seat, shivering. Then I picked up the bed sheet and lifted Crow's report under it. 'Report on the death of Tak Joon-gi.'

There was a self-written version of what I had just seen.

'The person who ordered the murder, Vice Chairman Tak Mun-su of Suyeon Electronics.'

'The person who executed the murder, Jung Bosung, secretary of Director Tak Joon-gi.'

'Killing place. – On the roof of the Suyeon Travel.'

'The time of the murder…'

Not only that, but all the conversations were recorded like a script in a movie.Tak Joon-gi: You know, listen up. You're mistaken if you think I've been digging around for information on other companies. It's our company that I've been researching more closely than any other company in the last twenty years. It's Suyeon. The reason why I raised so much money in the first place was to make Suyeon mine. My last target was Suyeon.

Tak Mun-su: Joon-gi. Let's just say one thing: that's probably why you lost. Talking about how you feel, and shedding all your feelings, you were struck by an ordinary man. You must not be exposed when you have a winning card, or you could face a counterattack."By all appearances, this was too dangerous. It not only listed the facts, but this document was too detailed, as if looking at the situation and recording it.

'This document… may bring a deadly threat to the viewer.' I decided to dispose of this document. I picked up my cell phone and only wrote down the key things, specific places, and times in the notepad, and brought it to the kitchen. I lit a gas fire on the stove and ignited the document. Before the smoke came out, I ran to the bathroom with it.

I turned on the ventilator and waited for the burning document in front of the toilet. The fire that had started on the top of the document burned it all down. I held it until it was all burnt and threw it in the toilet when only the tip was left. I went back to the bed, having handled the document with speed.

The eye patch was still on the bed. I lifted the eye patch. On the surface, it was just a rustic eye patch. I looked at it for a long time, and put it in a drawer.

"Whew…" I didn't know why, but I had to sigh. I burned the report away, but what I had seen in my dream was not so easily forgotten. I picked up my cell phone and unconsciously typed in 'Tak Mun-su.' It came up right away.

'Vice Chairman Tak Mun-su of Suyeon Electronics. Suyeon Group's first heir.'

It was a photo of the man who had directed the killing with an indifferent face. I looked at the face and suddenly remembered what he had said: 'Hmm, really? Han Sang-hoon… he's a funny guy. I'll have to meet him, too.'

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