Chapter 101
Chapter 101
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 101
Chapter Title: Snap Out of It, Kim Cheolsu
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Get it together, Kim Cheolsu.
On the bed where Chaewon had turned her back and fallen asleep, I mulled over what Yura had said earlier.
"Honestly, you know you're going overboard lately, right? You've gotten so caught up in the success story of genius investor Kim Cheolsu that you're just blindly taking on everything. Don't you realize it?"
She wasn't wrong.
Ever since graduating from the crypto market and diving into stocks, I'd definitely changed.
Before, it was just about "making money." Now, it had turned into "building the Kim Cheolsu brand."
Power from Shilla Biotec,
a compelling story from Blue Sky Games,
fame from Star Maker Entertainment...
Each one had its own logic, but overall, I was biting off way too much at once.
Chaewon's steady breathing filled the room.
Looking at her peaceful sleeping face, Haneul's words suddenly came to mind.
"Is Uncle Cheolsu gonna be my daddy?"
At some point, I'd truly become the head of this household.
I was a source of stability for Chaewon and Haneul, a business partner for Yura, and a boss for Choi Yang.
But what about me?
I was still fucking floundering.
23 years old—just a couple weeks shy of...
24.
Honestly, that's ridiculously young.
How many people in their early twenties amass hundreds of billions in assets?
Unless you were born with a silver—no, diamond—spoon, it's damn near impossible.
But that might have been the problem.
I'd succeeded too fast, too easily.
An orphan raised in a home, fresh out of the military with no job—I'd rocketed to this position in just months.
Without any real experience or know-how in handling success, I'd suddenly gripped massive wealth and power.
So maybe this confusion was natural.
Shilla Biotec,
Blue Sky Games,
Star Maker Entertainment...
Trying to juggle all this at once? It might stem from anxiety like, "When will I get another shot like this?"
Was it too big a success for a 23-year-old Kim Cheolsu to handle?
Chaewon stirred in her sleep.
The tattoo peeking over her shoulder stood out vividly even in the dark.
This woman had given birth at 17 and raised a kid alone for six years.
She'd faced reality way earlier than I had.
The fact that she could sleep so peacefully beside me...
It meant at least that I wasn't completely on the wrong path.
Post-Nut Clarity isn't omnipotent.
My brain mimics AI processing, sifting through endless data in seconds to spit out near-prophetic results.
But like any AI, Post-Nut Clarity Kim Cheolsu runs on prompts from "idiot Kim Cheolsu."
If I feed it the wrong goal from the start, it'll just efficiently chase that flawed target.
Post-Nut Clarity, running on "Build the legend of genius investor Kim Cheolsu," pushed me into Shilla Biotec, Blue Sky Games, and Star Maker all at once.
But maybe that's not what really matters.
I quietly gazed at Chaewon's face.
Her sleeping expression was utterly serene.
The happy smile she wore around Haneul lingered faintly even in her dreams.
Is there anything more important than the legend of Kim Cheolsu?
Protecting this peace.
Creating a safe space where Haneul can call me "daddy."
Helping Yura chase her own dreams.
Maybe that's true success.
Obsessed with the grand illusion of a success myth, I'd been signing contracts that were basically handouts.
100 billion into Blue Sky Games?
Even if Post-Nut Clarity confirmed the growth potential of their game, burning 100 billion on a basement-dwelling, club-level indie studio? And pandering to their egos on top?
As Yura said, pure charity.
Yet Post-Nut Clarity had deemed it a minor concession for the "benevolent investor" title.
Completely wrong calculation.
Post-Nut Clarity me was smart, sure—but the input was fucked from the start.
Captured by the vanity of "building the Kim Cheolsu brand," I'd missed the essence of business.
Shilla Biotec was the same.
50 billion initial investment plus monthly research funding...
Honestly, in Post-Nut Clarity mode, piecing together published studies, I could've nailed it in a week.
Did I need to pour this much cash just to snag Dr. Kim Seolgi?
Yeah.
This was total overkill too.
The Alzheimer's new-drug roadmap I'd mapped in Post-Nut Clarity was just an extension of existing research.
Yet I'd structured it to make Dr. Kim Seolgi indispensable, like I couldn't do without her.
Why? For the title of "visionary Kim Cheolsu who discovered a genius."
With 50 billion, I could've built my own team and gotten faster, surer results.
Yeah, that was the core issue.
The real goal was the Alzheimer's drug, but I'd fixated on the story of "investor unearths unknown researcher."
Seducing Dr. Kim Seolgi, securing her loyalty, dominating internal info...
All that was unnecessary detours.
If Post-Nut Clarity me had designed the research direction myself and scouted talent for a team?
Way faster and more efficient.
But that wouldn't yield a "captivating Kim Cheolsu success tale," would it?
No headline like "Orphan youth discovers obscure doctor and strikes gold!"
In the end, pure vanity.
Choosing romance over pragmatism, drama over efficiency.
This was 23-year-old Kim Cheolsu's immaturity showing.
Subconsciously, did I want to advertise that the "loser" you all discarded had become this hotshot?
The orphan label.
The whispers from childhood: "That kid has no parents."
High school homeroom teacher saying, "Think realistically," and pushing me to skip college.
In the army, awkwardly dodging "Where's your family from?"
Post-discharge interviews tanking because I couldn't answer "What do your parents do?"
All that baggage piling up, making me want to flaunt this success.
"See? The loser you ignored is this big now."
Maybe that's why I obsessed over "story" instead of just making money.
Chaewon probably has similar scars.
Getting pregnant at 17, enduring the finger-pointing while raising a child alone.
But she doesn't cling to the past—she savors this present peace.
I'd been thrashing to prove those old wounds wrong.
What a childish 23-year-old.
Get it together, Kim Cheolsu.
Those words lodged in my chest.
Yeah. I'd completely lost my way.
Drunk on success, lost in vanity, missing what truly mattered.
100 billion into Blue Sky Games?
50 billion plus monthly funding at Shilla Biotec?
Acquiring Star Maker Entertainment?
All overreaches beyond my league.
Forced moves way outside what 23-year-old Kim Cheolsu could handle.
Yura was right.
I was overdoing it, lost in the empty dream of "genius investor Kim Cheolsu's legend."
Not too late to course-correct.
Cut what needs cutting, focus where it counts.
Like turning 5.2 billion in the mini bull market—go all-in on one thing for solid wins. That's my style.
Better than juggling multiples and crashing them all.
Chaewon's warm body heat seeped into my arm.
Start by protecting what's already here.
23-year-old Kim Cheolsu, snap out of it and restart.
First, hand Blue Sky Games fully to Yura.
100 billion? Overkill, but coverable with stock market gains.
Call it the cost of her "growth"...
Not a big loss.
Plus, seeing the charismatic career woman turn into my "pussy slave" is fun.
More rational this way, honestly.
Yura's fluent in English, sharp business sense.
Starting a publishing division needs someone dedicated—no reason for it to be me.
She wants her own turf anyway.
My Post-Nut Clarity unlocked thanks to her, so call it loyalty and done.
Star Maker? Let Choi Yang keep managing as is.
Bought it for peanuts anyway.
Occasional treat: fuck some aspiring idols...
Last, Shilla Biotec.
Tsk... that's the headache.
Shilla Biotec's the biggest mess.
Already dumped 50 billion, Dr. Kim Seolgi's head over heels girlfriend-mode, and the oust-the-president op is underway.
How to unwind this?
Build my own research team sans Post-Nut Clarity for the drug dev?
Not realistic. Even knowing the path, execution needs experts.
But scrapping everything now? Too much sunk.
Relationship with Dr. Kim Seolgi's awkward too...
She seems genuinely in love. No clue how to handle it.
This is where Post-Nut Clarity's limits shine.
Can't calculate human emotions...
Plus, if the Shilla Biotec scheming goes as planned...
Feels like sister rice bowl might actually happen...
Tsk...
Hold off on that for now.