Chapter 114
Chapter 114
Translation: Godtl
The advisors were getting headaches.
Because that lunatic old man Trent had issued yet another absurd directive.
Hadn't he already been talking about nuking North Korea since the beginning of his term?
And now he was talking about withdrawing U.S. troops?
Even though it was blatantly obvious that South Korea was the best option for keeping China and North Korea in check, he kept thoughtlessly issuing orders, making everyone from the Secretary of Defense down to the generals break out in cold sweat.
And now, he was trying to push national issues onto foreign institutions and corporations.
Even for the U.S., there was absolutely no reason for them to comply with such irrational and unreasonable demands.
And that wasn't all.
The other side had vaccines in their hands.
This was practically an asymmetric weapon.
Wasn't the one holding the vaccines now the ultimate power?
"So, what happened?"
"W-well, you see..."
But even the advisors delivering the report couldn't believe what had transpired.
"They agreed."
"Gwangun did?"
"Not just Gwangun. The National Pension Service also responded that they'd comply with whatever the U.S. government wants."
Hearing that, Trent clapped his hands with a loud smack.
"I told you, didn't I? Those bastards have no choice but to do as we say. How dare they try to threaten me—no, the United States? Not a chance."
Honestly, the advisors were baffled too.
If the National Pension Service and Gwangun entered the stock market now, they'd inevitably suffer massive losses.
The market was in freefall, wasn't it?
Putting money in now would be like watching it drain straight out of the account.
"See? We just saved a ton of taxpayer money. This is how you do politics. Now we can use the funds we saved through Gwangun and the National Pension Service elsewhere."
"Wh-where do you plan to use it...?"
"Where else? The Mexico border wall, of course."
"..."
That damn wall again.
The advisors could only stare blankly at Trent, who was brimming with self-satisfaction.
"Mr. President, isn't this all a bit too strange?"
It was the Chief of Staff who finally mustered the courage to speak up.
"What?"
"Anyone can see the market is a losing game right now. Isn't it suspicious that they'd just roll over and comply without any resistance? Especially when we're talking about Gwangun of all entities."
Gwangun's investment track record was nothing short of terrifying.
In other words, they were the kind of people who never took a loss.
And now they were just charging into this market without a second thought?
Alongside the National Pension Service, no less?
"We're talking about over a trillion dollars here. Even a 1% loss would be catastrophic, yet they're jumping in without any conditions. It's too bizarre."
"No conditions? They shorted the U.S. to make money, then got cocky because they had vaccines and dared to threaten me. They talked about withdrawing troops, slapping on tariffs, scrapping FTAs, and even sabotaging negotiations with North Korea. They've just tucked their tails between their legs, that's all."
On the surface, that's how it looked.
The U.S. government had strong-armed Gwangun and South Korea into investing.
But who was Gwangun, really?
They were the kind of people who never backed down, no matter the opponent.
The kind who would ram headfirst into a nation without hesitation—no, the kind of lunatics who'd trigger a financial crisis just to cripple a government's ability to function.
"The EU got the exact same reaction when they forcibly dismantled Gwangun's shipping division. They didn't resist at all and sold it off at an exorbitant price. And you know how that turned out, don't you, Mr. President?"
Gwangun was in the process of buying back the company for less than 20% of what they'd sold it for.
"This situation is different from back then, isn't it? All those highly educated experts came and told me so. They said investing in the stock market now would only lead to losses."
"That's true, but..."
"And what else did they say? That injecting a massive amount of capital might temporarily boost the market, but unless you invest only in stocks that are guaranteed to rise, you're bound to lose money?"
"..."
"You think I don't have a plan? I'm doing this deliberately. The global stock market is a minefield right now. Do you really think those bastards can navigate through every single mine and invest safely?"
There's a saying.
Fear the market.
And everyone knows it.
That you must fear the market.
But when faced with real fear, 99 out of 100 people hesitate.
Because they're terrified of losing everything if they invest wrong.
Even institutions are paralyzed by fear, dumping their holdings left and right.
Even if a trillion dollars were injected all at once, some stocks would rise, but others would inevitably crash.
Just as Trent said—it's a minefield.
Hundreds of companies are shutting down every single day, aren't they?
"In the end, they'll lose money, and we'll win again. Just like we always have."
Trent gulped down his drink with a satisfied smile.
Truth be told, not a single word Trent said was wrong.
How could anyone possibly navigate this minefield of a chaotic stock market, dodging every explosive trap while making investments? No matter how hard you try, you're bound to step on a mine eventually—unless you have the ability to see the future.
But of course, no such person exists in this world.
"······"
His advisors forced themselves to match Trent's jubilant, self-congratulatory mood while simultaneously wrestling with a peculiar sense of unease.
The U.S. stock market was being dragged into an abyss—a black hole that would suck you in the moment you dipped your toes in.
But... surely Gwangun would be different?
＊＊＊
"Chairman, here's the current overview of the entire U.S. stock market."
When it comes to the U.S. market, three major indices tell the whole story:
The Dow Jones, S&P, and NASDAQ.
These were the three to watch, though breaking down the data beyond this point would require diving into more advanced analysis.
"Market capitalization data, sector-specific indicators, internal market metrics, investor sentiment indicators, bond market fluctuations—we've extracted everything relevant to liquidity."
Perhaps it's because I've gained enough experience by now.
Even a quick glance at the data was enough to grasp the market situation.
"Well, to put it bluntly, it's a literal hellfire. Not the kind where prices are soaring and burning bright—but actual money being set ablaze and vanishing into thin air."
Investing in the U.S. market right now was like tossing cash into a bonfire.
In fact, hundreds of billions had already been poured in to salvage the collapsing market, only to evaporate almost instantly.
"If you want the bills to survive the flames, the key is selection. You have to distinguish whether something is a ticking time bomb or a golden ore waiting to be mined."
"So if we pick the right ones, they'll turn into money?"
"Correct. The problem is how incredibly difficult that is. The one silver lining is that no matter how much capital we inject, they won't interfere on their end."
Normally, dumping massive amounts of money into a market would trigger trading halts by financial regulators like the Financial Supervisory Service.
But under the guise of a bailout, the U.S. has granted us unrestricted freedom to inject funds.
In other words, just as the U.S. government once pumped hundreds of billions into the financial system at once, we could do the same without repercussions.
"Honestly, it's absurd."
While governments have intervened before by flooding markets with trillions, this was the first time in history a private institution was stepping in to execute a bailout.
"But if we can separate the wheat from the chaff, this could be a golden opportunity for us. Haven't you been waiting for this moment, Chairman? More eagerly than anyone else?"
Now that the watchful eyes and shackles were gone, we could finally unleash the pent-up hunger for investment we'd been restraining all this time.
"Here—these are the preselected and organized listings."
I took the document and flipped it open.
"······"
The first page was engulfed in roaring flames.
Every inch dyed crimson red, the paper itself seemed to radiate scorching heat.
I hurriedly turned to the next page.
This one was slightly better.
"Instead of letting us dump money indiscriminately, the U.S. imposed conditions, right?"
"Correct. Since we could engage in day trading, their stipulation was that whatever we buy must be held for at least three months."
If we poured in too much capital too quickly, it could severely disrupt the market—and we might start repeatedly injecting and withdrawing funds. To prevent this, the U.S. set a hard condition:
Minimum three months.
A fatal constraint for securities firms specializing in day trading—though personally, I was eyeing a six-month horizon.
'From here onward, it's a whole different game.'
As the pages beyond clearly showed:
The U.S. market would hit rock bottom, rebound, and enter an unprecedented boom.
In simpler terms—a golden age unlike any before was coming.
The data alone suggested it would break through the mantle, and at the very least, my instincts agreed.
'First, we need to secure all the large-cap stocks.'
Unsurprisingly, the blue-chips still gleamed temptingly.
There was a reason Warren Buffett advised investing only in companies that would never fail.
Page by page, I methodically checked each listing.
Anything remotely questionable got cut—only the surest bets remained.
This wasn't just about our corporate funds; the National Pension Service's money would be riding on this too, so I exercised extreme caution.
By the time I neared the final pages—
"...?"
Among all the colors I'd seen so far, one was shining the brightest.
"Zoom?"
"Ah, Zoom. It's a video conferencing program. With the COVID-19 pandemic leading to more companies adopting remote work, various video platforms have been gaining traction—Zoom is one of them."
As remote work surged dramatically, video conferencing programs had become wildly popular.
The problem was that even within this sector, fierce competition was unfolding.
"But Zoom's stock price has dropped significantly, hasn't it?"
"Yes. There are many other chat platforms available, and above all, the entire market is in a steep decline right now. They likely had no choice."
Yet, despite everything, this one in particular was glowing with an exceptionally dazzling light.
I circled the stock multiple times.
"Please review the stocks I've checked and determine the appropriate allocation ratios for investment. Once you're done, forward the analysis to the National Pension Service."
"Ah, yes. Chairman."
Zoom, huh...
Its market capitalization isn't even that high.
For it to shine that brightly...
'Could the stock price surge three to four times?'
***
The executives at the National Pension Service were initially overjoyed.
After executing massive short-selling, their funds had ballooned to 1,000 trillion won.
Moreover, with news that major powers, including the U.S., were closely monitoring the National Pension Service and Gwangun, they had been holding onto nearly all their funds, making only minimal investments.
Naturally, they assumed all of the National Pension Service's money would flow into bonds and safe assets.
"Chairman! Th-this is insane!"
But then, something completely beyond their expectations happened.
"Deploying 1,000 trillion won into the U.S. market all at once?!"
"Exactly! This isn't about building a position over several months—it's dumping 1,000 trillion in one go. The U.S. stock market might not even be able to absorb that volume. The biggest issue is that it's blatant market manipulation!"
The Chairman was well aware of all this.
After all, he was the most seasoned among them.
"That's why I told you—the U.S. approved it. And not just anyone—the White House itself."
It was mind-boggling.
The White House was actively encouraging the National Pension Service to disrupt the market as much as they pleased!
"But if we jump in now, it could be disastrous. We might lose all the money we worked so hard to earn."
"That's why Gwangun sent us a curated list of stocks. Just follow it."
"But, but—!"
Before the uproar could escalate, the Chairman raised his hand to silence them.
"So, what do you propose? Will you march into the White House and negotiate? They'll just bring up issues like U.S. troop withdrawals, the FTA, the South Korea-U.S. alliance—everything that could damage our diplomacy. Can you handle that?"
"..."
"I know what you're all worried about. But if we've decided to trust Gwangun, we should see it through. It seems they've prepared for this situation in advance."
"Are you saying Gwangun was waiting for this madness all along?"
"It's just my gut feeling... but yes, I think so."
Had Gwangun been waiting for this exact moment of insanity?
Given their track record, it was entirely plausible.
But the market was terrifyingly volatile right now for such a move.
"So hurry up and prepare. Gwangun also instructed us to deploy the funds as quickly as possible. Everyone knows this, right? In financial markets, timing determines victory."
The executives had nothing more to say.
The government, upon hearing about these results, had already decided to keep the Chairman in his position for now.
They would hold hearings to assess accountability only after the situation stabilized.
For now, wasn't making money the top priority?
In other words, there was only one person who could overturn the Chairman's decision:
Jeong Jin-ho.
But Jeong Jin-ho was, in fact, urging them to do something even crazier.
"Are we really going through with this?"
"Ha. This is beyond ridiculous... Is Trent out of his mind too? Giving us a free pass for this?"
After the meeting, the executives were left reeling.
A series of events had unfolded that defied all their common sense.
"But what happens if we really inject 1,000 trillion all at once?"
"What happens? It'll be a bombing—no, a carpet bombing! Not 100 trillion, but a full 1,000 trillion?! There's no precedent in financial history for this."
If the U.S. government had spaced it out gradually, maybe.
But dumping 1,000 trillion into the financial market in one go? Unheard of.
"And it's South Korea's National Pension Service doing it—with the U.S.'s explicit permission?"
It still felt like a lie.
"Frankly, isn't this just a large-scale airstrike?"
It was an extremely accurate description.
A massive airstrike.
Except now, with dollars as the payload...