“...What the hell is this.”
Yoo Seon-jun was speechless after looking into one of Daehwa Securities’ deepest secrets.
It was even more shocking because he wasn’t stupid. He’d accumulated a fair bit of financial knowledge, and he understood just how absurdly sophisticated—and impossible—this entire system was.
“You... you knew the Japanese bubble would burst, didn’t you? No, fuck... of course you knew! That’s the only way you’d make a scam contract like this, right?”
“Scam? Co on. It was all mutual consent. I even gave them another chance after the bubble burst, you know? There aren’t many people as generous as .”
Yoo Ha-yeon just grinned slyly, giggling.
“....”
Yoo Seon-jun thought to himself.
‘How much... is this even worth?’
If you knew in advance that the Japanese bubble would burst... how much could a skilled financial firm make?
Especially if the owner was a monster with absolute trust inside the company—and overwhelming genius?
‘If it were ...’
First, I’d set up shell companies in Japan or the U.S. to ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) bypass dostic regulations and funnel money offshore. Then I’d short everything.
A plan this refined ant she was sure of the timing of the crash. Which ant she went long until right before the pop and shorted right after—aning she probably doubled her gains...
Even without knowing the exact figure, it had to be at least tens of billions of won.
His mind reeled. Just how far ahead had this once-little cousin of his gotten while he wasn’t looking?
“...I really suck at gambling, don’t I.”
Should’ve bought in at a lower point?
“So, what now? You’re going to help , right? Oppa?”
Yoo Ha-yeon tilted her head, puffed her cheeks, and did her best cutesy act.
It wasn’t cute at all. It was terrifying.
“What do you an, ‘what now’? There’s no turning back. I’m already in—might as well see it through.”
With a long sigh, Yoo Seon-jun took his first steps into the depths of Daehwa Securities.
“Ahaha, thanks! Oppa~!”
Yoo Ha-yeon bead.
***
Fwooo...
I looked at Yoo Seon-jun chain-smoking with a dissatisfied glare.
“Didn’t you say you were quitting? That smoking’s bad for your health?”
“...I’m stressed right now, Ha-yeon.”
Tsk.
I snatched the cigarette from his mouth and stubbed it out in the ashtray.
“Hey! That was a fresh one...”
“What are you talking about? If we go by that logic, we’ll never stop. Doesn’t even feel rude to . Now hand over the rest.”
I snatched every pack he had and shook my head with a grumble.
“This is exactly why your health’s a ss. What if you collapse from lung problems after working your ass off? And think about the people around you, too.”
“...Didn’t expect you to care so much about soone else’s health.”
“What do you an ‘soone else’? We’re in the sa boat now. It’d be a real pain if you suddenly dropped dead from lung cancer at a critical mont, got it?”
Well, he talks a good ga at least.
Yoo Seon-jun mumbled and then blurted out,
“So... how much did you make?”
“Hmm... it’s a secret?”
Honestly, even I don’t know exactly how much I have. It’s not like Forbes is keeping track of my assets.
And I broke everything up into so many tiny parts. So in Eastern Europe, so in the Alpha Fund, so in Daehwa Electronics stock, so in Daehwa Securities shares...
At this point, even I can’t tell what’s liquid, what’s spent, and what’s just sitting there waiting.
And most importantly, my money was still growing—right now, in real ti.
“I can at least tell you when I made it. Rember that Europe trip? I made a killing then... let’s just leave it at that.”
“...Did you play around with Eastern European governnt bonds?”
“Close enough. Ah, speaking of, I’d actually like you to take a trip to Europe after this is done. There are so companies in Eastern Europe I want to acquire, and I think you’d be the perfect proxy.”
Yoo Seon-jun closed his eyes tightly, took a deep breath, then exhaled and spoke.
“Fine, let’s say I accept that. I don’t know how you did it, but whatever. Still, Dad’s people and Uncle’s people are watching constantly. How the hell am I supposed to pull this off?”
It was tricky. Yoo Seon-jun was definitely useful, but the risk of being caught by the uncles was also high.
“I’ll assign soone to you. Maybe Si-hyun? If it’s her, she’ll avoid surveillance and do fine.”
“...You sure about that?”
I smiled sweetly and nodded.
“Totally. You saw the vibe around here, right? No one dares defy anymore. Just pretend you’re taking a trip to Europe together and get it done. Oh—and don’t touch her, okay?”
They’re both unmarried, so it wouldn’t be awkward. Besides, Si-hyun’s not even his type, so no risk there...
More importantly, it’s about ti I promote Lee Si-hyun to chief secretary and set up an actual secretariat. I can’t stay by her side forever.
Even if distance strains loyalty, as long as I manage it right, it’ll be fine.
“Hah, like I’d ever. She’s got, like, a dozen snakes in her belly. What do you take for...?”
Yoo Seon-jun shook his head in disgust.
“Ehhh, that’s kinda harsh, oppa.”
“....”
After a long sigh, Yoo Seon-jun fell into so unknown train of thought, then looked back at and asked,
“So, Ha-yeon. Are you confident you won’t get caught? You’ve kept it secret from until now, but no matter how careful you are... you won’t be able to hide it from Grandpa forever.”
“We’ll see.”
I gave a vague smile.
Will I get caught?
Probably, soday. But—
“As long as I can hold out a few more years, it doesn’t matter.”
By then, even Chairman Yoo Seong-pil, not just Jin-ha, won’t be able to touch .
“That’s... a pretty scary thing to say.”
But Yoo Seon-jun didn’t deny it.
***
October 1990, Budapest, Hungary.
While the privatization of state-owned enterprises was in full swing, a decadent-looking East Asian pretty boy sat on a hotel bed, gazing out at the Budapest skyline.
“...Seriously, this is impressive. You spent that much money in Poland and you still have tons left?”
Lee Si-hyun, who was accompanying Yoo Seon-jun as his bodyguard, responded with a reluctant expression. She was holding a large suitcase in her hand.
“Well... I don’t really know, sir. I’m just following the young lady’s orders.”
“Of course you are.”
He flipped through so papers and reviewed the companies they were supposed to acquire.
“All of them are financial firms, huh. Is my little sister trying to beco an honorary Jew or sothing? If she spends another 200 billion here...”
Once he arrived in Europe, for so unknown reason, several of the paper companies that had only existed on docunts were running like legitimate businesses.
And not just one or two—several.
“Haah... If this gets out, I’m dead. Not just because Grandpa would kill ... Europe itself would freak out and slap Korea in the face. If this goes wrong, it’s not just Daehwa Group—we’re talking the whole Republic of Korea going up in smoke.”
“...Is it really that serious?”
Si-hyun asked, alard. Yoo Seon-jun let out a long sigh and answered.
“Of course it is. I don’t know what kind of trick Ha-yeon pulled, but this is financial cri. It’s not just that she disguised paper companies as real ones—she outright bought the history of a few companies and made them look like fully native enterprises.”
If that were all, it might’ve been okay. That sort of thing happens quietly here and there.
But...
These weren’t just one or two firms. And they were clearly under the control of a private individual with intent to intervene in financial markets.
If soone controls several of the largest banks in Eastern Europe and subtly tweaks a few policies under the radar, it could shake Europe’s entire economy.
“...Still, isn’t that a bit odd? I an, the young lady is amazing, yes, but that amount of money isn’t exactly huge, right? I’m not saying hundreds of billions of won is small, but... Daehwa Group alone makes over 10 trillion annually.”
“That’s not the point. She spent 300 billion in Poland... 200 billion in Hungary... so including the rest, we’re easily looking at over 1 trillion. And I’m talking in cash, not assets. Hiding that kind of liquid money and making it instantly usable across Europe—that’s what’s insane.”
“....”
Even if she raked in a fortune through investnts in Japan and the U.S.... sneaking that money out is a different matter entirely.
It would’ve required a massive network, expert-level finesse—and above all, a lot of ti.
“This just ans she already knew everything. If Yoo Ha-yeon already knew the future of Eastern Europe... then it makes sense. Ti solves everything, after all.”
Smuggling 1 trillion won in one month is nothing like doing it over a year. She must’ve prepared everything in advance and worked on it slowly.
A monster.
Even the one thing most child prodigies lack—patience—she had in full supply.
“Yeah... a few years ago, didn’t she say sothing like this? That Eastern Europe would collapse? Or that we suddenly needed to set up a local corporation overseas or sothing like that...”
Eastern European countries aren’t stupid. They place restrictions on foreign capital acquiring their dostic companies. Most will only allow sales to locals or other European firms.
So setting up a local branch at the last minute is useless—there are usually conditions like having to operate the business for several years first.
But... if she predicted even that—
“...!”
Si-hyun’s eyes widened.
“Hah, of course.”
With a chill running down his spine, Yoo Seon-jun furrowed his brows. He couldn’t even begin to guess how far Ha-yeon’s influence had spread.
“You... okay?”
Si-hyun asked, suddenly sounding worried.
‘Is she afraid I’ll bolt out of fear? Or the opposite?’
It was true—now that he understood the extent of it, fear was creeping up the more he learned. It felt like walking up to a promising sprout only to discover it was a towering fifty-ter tree.
But still...
Yeah.
He couldn’t deny it was thrilling.
“It’s a gamble... but screw it. Let’s give it a shot.”
Life is just one giant casino anyway.
Might as well bet on the pot with the highest stakes.
***
After becoming the largest shareholder of Hungary’s top state-owned bank, Yoo Seon-jun found himself with a natural question.
Is she planning to emigrate to Europe or sothing, with how much she’s investing here?
Since he didn’t know who really ran the Alpha Fund, that was a logical guess.
He assud all those carefully-crafted paper companies were Ha-yeon’s creations.
Of course, contrary to his guess, Yoo Ha-yeon—while a genius—was no miracle worker. This was the work of skilled professionals employed by the Alpha Fund.
The nearly one trillion won she’d invested was just part of the overall plan—sothing Yoo Seon-jun didn’t know.
He smiled faintly and nodded.
“Guess I need to work even harder, then.”
A bird that doesn’t fly or cry for three years... when it finally flies, it pierces the heavens; when it finally cries, it shocks the world. A man should be the sa.
Scratch scratch.
For the first ti in a very long ti, Yoo Seon-jun picked up a pen of his own will and began to study.
***
.
.
.
“Miss, is there a reason it had to be Europe?”
“Hmm? Why did I send Seon-jun oppa to Europe? Well... I just figured he should do a little traveling too, and there were errands to run, so I killed two birds with one stone. It wasn’t even that hard a job.”
“Ah, I see... I was worried you might overwork your cousin. Not everyone’s built like you, Miss.”
I chuckled quietly.
If you throw too much at a sheltered chaebol heir from the start, he’ll bolt.
You’re supposed to start them slow, then gradually pile on the tasks.
Once he cos back from working comfortably in Europe, he won’t complain when things get more demanding, right?
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