Seoul, Mapo District, Daeheung Group Headquarters.
"Is the Chairman inside?"
As Secretary Gil Seong-ho entered the anteroom with a stern expression on his face, Manager Chu Se-yeong hastily stood up and replied.
"Yes, he is."
Hearing this, Secretary Gil quickly walked toward the inner door and knocked. Manager Chu, who had been holding his breath until Secretary Gil entered the Chairman's office, finally let out a sigh of relief as the door closed.
"Phew, sothing must be up. His expression didn't look good."
"Yeah, I've hardly ever seen him look that serious," Se-yeong agreed, nodding.
Assistant Manager Jeong Yoon-kyung, who had been sitting at her desk, glanced at the tightly closed office door with concern and adjusted her horn-rimd glasses.
"It seems like sothing important. Let's be careful not to disturb them until they call for us."
"Yes, Assistant Manager."
The youngest in the office, Lee Chae-yeon, aware of the tense atmosphere, shrank back and remained uncharacteristically quiet.
anwhile, inside the spacious office, Chairman Park Tae-hong, who had been reading a docunt at his large mahogany desk, leaned back in his chair as he saw Secretary Gil entering.
"I have an urgent report."
Secretary Gil stepped forward, his tone grave. Sensing sothing serious, Chairman Park put down the docunt he was holding.
"What's happened for you to look like that?"
Secretary Gil's voice was somber as he delivered the news.
"This morning, Army Chief of Staff Yoon Jin-woo and Director of the Defense Security Command Do Gyeong-tak were suddenly replaced."
"…!"
The unexpected news left Chairman Park wide-eyed in shock.
"Is that true?"
So surprised that he lifted himself off the back of his chair, Chairman Park's voice carried a note of disbelief, to which Secretary Gil solemnly nodded.
"Yes, sir. I couldn't believe it at first either, so I confird it several tis. It's true."
"This is…"
Chairman Park was unable to hide his astonishnt. The ousted Army Chief of Staff Yoon Jin-woo and Director of the Defense Security Command Do Gyeong-tak were such prominent figures that their sudden dismissal was indeed shocking.
"The dismissal process has already been completed, and senior officers without ties to Hanahoe have received their appointnts and taken command."
"Wow, they didn't waste any ti, did they? They really went through with it, start to finish, in a flash."
"It seems they acted quickly out of concern for a backlash from Hanahoe."
Chairman Park, sharing the sa thought, nodded slightly.
"Indeed. Removing those two is tantamount to the President declaring he will not recognize Hanahoe."
"That's correct. In fact, I've heard that the 30th and 33rd Guards Battalions stationed at the Blue House have been placed on high alert."
The 30th and 33rd Guards Battalions, part of the Capital Defense Command, were responsible for guarding the outer periter of the Blue House, as well as the surrounding areas of Bukaksan and Inwangsan. The alert status indicated the Blue House was on edge.
"They must be worried about a repeat of the December 12th Incident."
"If Hanahoe decides to rebel, it's certainly within their power to stage a military coup."
Chairman Park picked up the teacup in front of him, but when he realized it had gone cold, he set it down again.
"The commanders of the Capital Defense Command and the Special Warfare Command are both Hanahoe mbers, aren't they?"
"Yes, sir. And it's not just them—many of the key positions at the corps and division levels are also held by Hanahoe mbers. There are more than enough of them to fill two hands."
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Hanahoe had a stranglehold on the entire army.
"The President can't be unaware of this situation. Yet he still pushed ahead with the purge… is he that confident?"
"More likely, he's acting out of fear that if he doesn't deal with Hanahoe now, he could beco their puppet."
"You're referring to the remarks made by forr Defense Minister Choi Gu-chang before the inauguration."
"Yes."
Chairman Park, arms folded, leaned back and nodded gravely.
"They did overstep their bounds."
Even if he were the President, he couldn't just sit back and watch as Hanahoe openly challenged the military commander-in-chief's authority.
Letting out a low sigh, Chairman Park comnted,
"Regardless of the outco, the political landscape will be walking on thin ice for a while."
Chairman Park then recalled the conversation he had with Seok-won the other day, and his expression darkened.
"I had a feeling… things turned out just as the youngest one predicted."
Secretary Gil, rembering that conversation as well, nodded in agreent.
"The foresight of the young master is truly remarkable."
"Since he predicted Hanahoe's downfall, it's likely that the financial real-na system will be implented soon as well."
"That's…"
Secretary Gil's expression grew serious. If the dissolution of Hanahoe was a major political event, the implentation of the financial real-na system would directly impact the group.
With Secretary Gil standing before him with a grave expression, Chairman Park tapped his fingers on the desk for a mont, deep in thought. Then he looked up and spoke.
"Rember the plan I told you to prepare last ti."
"Yes, sir."
"Put it into action."
Receiving the order, Secretary Gil's expression hardened slightly as he replied.
"The situation with Hanahoe alone is already a shock. Do you really think they'll also push for the financial real-na system?"
"If they've already started dismantling Hanahoe, what can't they do? And have you forgotten what the youngest said—that this isn't just about making financial transactions more transparent?"
"You an using it as a tool to deal with the previous regi and Hanahoe figures."
"Exactly. There's nothing as powerful and popular as the pretext of cleaning up corruption."
Recognizing the logic, Secretary Gil, who had initially been skeptical, couldn't help but agree.
"Make sure everything is wrapped up within three months."
Secretary Gil looked at Chairman Park with a troubled expression.
"The costs involved in converting the shares and slush funds held under borrowed nas are already significant. If we rush, the losses could be even greater."
"It's unfortunate, but we'll have to accept the losses if we want to finish before the storm hits."
"Do you really think they'll implent the financial real-na system within this year?"
Despite thinking it might be too soon, Chairman Park's perspective was different.
"Yes. Unlike in the U.S., where a President can serve two terms, here it's only five years. So they'll likely want to tackle all the difficult and burdenso tasks while their power is at its peak in the first year."
Speaking with conviction, Chairman Park provided another reason.
"Besides, if they want to use this as a ans to purge the figures from the previous regi and Hanahoe, the sooner they implent it, the better."
"Listening to you, it does make sense."
Secretary Gil had to admit that Chairman Park's reasoning was plausible.
"So to avoid getting caught in the crossfire, it's better to take so losses now and have everything sorted out beforehand."
"Understood. I'll proceed with the plan right away."
Secretary Gil straightened up and responded firmly.
"Make sure that no issues related to the borrowed-na assets make it into the newspapers or get the group's na involved. Handle everything discreetly."
"I will."
"And keep a close watch on how the Hanahoe situation develops."
"Yes, sir."
With that, Secretary Gil promptly turned and left the Chairman's office. Alone now, Chairman Park let out a low groan, placing his hand on his forehead.
"I wish he hadn't been right about this… but once again, things are unfolding just as Seok-won predicted."
The more he thought about it, the more it made his head hurt, and he couldn't help but sigh.
"I suppose the best strategy is to lie low for a while."
Chairman Park sank into deep thought, pondering how to not only survive the impending storm but also co out ahead.
***
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
"Here's your Aricano with two extra shots!"
"Thank you."
With the weather warming up in the spring air, Seok-won, dressed in a light windbreaker, took the tumbler handed to him by the female barista and sat down at an outdoor table.
March was almost over, and the sunlight was warm enough to feel slightly hot in certain spots.
"Only two months left until graduation."
Unlike others, Seok-won had already earned enough credits and was replacing his thesis with his work assisting Professor Frank, so he was feeling relaxed and carefree.
Compared to other students who were too busy preparing their theses to catch a break, this was an enormous luxury.
With only two classes left to attend, Seok-won had plenty of free ti, allowing him to leisurely focus on other pursuits.
"Let's see."
Taking a sip of his Aricano, Seok-won pulled out the Korean daily newspaper he had received in the mail earlier that morning and began to read.
An article on the front page imdiately caught his attention.
[
Sudden Leadership Change Shocks the Army
The sudden dismissal of the Army Chief of Staff and the Director of the Defense Security Command two days ago has left the Army in shock and confusion. The dismissal was carried out so swiftly that the individuals involved were notified almost simultaneously with the Ministry of National Defense's announcent, leaving Army Headquarters completely blindsided.
Today, in his first press conference since taking office, Defense Minister Jeon Deok-jae stated that the decision to replace the Army Chief of Staff and the Director of the Defense Security Command was made after a breakfast eting with the President at the Blue House.
He emphasized that this change was part of the current plans for military reform, including the eradication of irregularities within the military.
When asked by a reporter if this was aid at targeting Hanahoe, Minister Jeon responded, "It's ti to move beyond factionalism and conflict," avoiding a direct answer.
anwhile…]
"They should have known when to step down. They were far too greedy from the start."
With the military regi coming to an end and the civilian governnt beginning, the very idea that Hanahoe, a faction within the military, could continue to hold power was sheer arrogance.
Contrary to the nation's concerns, Hanahoe, intoxicated by long-held power and believing they were untouchable, had been purged with surprising ease.
For a mont, Seok-won felt a twinge of unease, wondering if history was veering off its original course. But he shook his head and muttered to himself.
"I haven't done much in Korea, so there's no reason for things to go differently."
Then, thinking of his father in Korea, he murmured,
"If he didn't dismiss my warnings, he should be preparing for the financial real-na system now that he's seen Hanahoe being dismantled."
Hopefully, that was the case. But if his father ignored the warnings and did nothing, he would be in for a rude awakening later on.
Just then, his phone rang, interrupting his thoughts. Seok-won took it out of his backpack and answered.
"Hello?"
[Boss, it's Landon. Is now a good ti to talk?]
"It's fine. Go ahead."
[I wanted to talk to you about a potential bond investnt opportunity that just ca up.]
"What is it?"
Landon quickly responded to Seok-won's question.
[Several senior traders from Salomon Brothers' arbitrage team recently went independent and founded a hedge fund. They've reached out to us with an investnt proposal.]
"…!"
The mont he heard this, a na flashed in Seok-won's mind, and he straightened up.
"What's the na of this new hedge fund?"
[Long-Term Capital Managent.]
Upon hearing the na, Seok-won instinctively tightened his grip on the phone.
TL/n -
Long-Term Capital Managent (LTCM) was a hedge fund founded in 1994 by John riwether, a forr bond trader at Salomon Brothers, along with a team of partners that included several Nobel Prize-winning economists.
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