Chapter 33
Chapter 33
Translation: Godtl
A fund is essentially a system where we entrust our money to be managed by the fund managers who operate it.
But there's one drawback here.
With stocks, we can withdraw our money immediately after selling, but with funds, we have to wait at least three days to get our money back.
This is precisely why ETFs were created.
ETFs have the advantage of allowing us to trade directly on the exchange, and we can deposit or withdraw money anytime.
However, the majority of our current investments were in funds.
While we had taken short positions using prime broker securities lending services, the amounts invested in various funds were far greater.
And not just any funds—these were funds with beast-like aggressiveness.
Their risk levels were at their peak, but if you hunted well, the returns were guaranteed.
If I had been the one choosing, I would never have picked them, but my intuition had selected them. And now, the reason for that choice was finally revealed.
[Stumbagen CEO Winterkorn admits to all manipulation allegations and resigns. Dieselgate fallout is expected to worsen, with the Stumbagen Group recalling a total of 11 million vehicles.]
Dieselgate.
It was revealed that Stumbagen had been selling vehicles for years while falsifying emissions output by a staggering 40 times.
As a result, the CEO resigned, a recall was issued for affected vehicles, and fines amounting to trillions were being imposed.
But the fines weren't the only problem.
Compensation had to be paid to the buyers as well.
However, as always, it was clear they would lobby fiercely to ensure the compensation amounts ended up being pitifully small.
In other words, only those who owned Stumbagen vehicles were left in a miserable position.
"······."
I examined the status of each fund where our money was spread.
Usually, when you invest in a fund, you often have no idea where your money is actually being invested.
But that depends on the contract.
If the securities firm directly connects you with the management company, the contract allows you to periodically check the trading volume—though not in real time.
"It's like running a bot farm."
In gaming, there are people who operate dozens of computers running bots professionally.
They're called bot farms.
But in a way, what I was doing now felt exactly like watching a bot farm in action.
It was as if I had scattered bots named "funds" everywhere, letting them automatically scrape together money for me. In gaming, it's illegal, but not here.
Here, automated hunting is considered wise investing—and completely legal!
"But damn, their aggressiveness is no joke."
I had deliberately chosen only those kinds of funds.
In a normal exchange, I might have lost money, but in a situation like this—where Stumbagen had taken a massive hit—it was like hyenas quietly waiting for their opportunity.
Since they knew their opponent didn't even have the strength to fight back, they were striking with extreme aggression.
"Seems like they've already taken a big bite out of it, though······."
Wouldn't it be better to stop the hunt now and withdraw the money?
I checked the list of funds I had invested in, one by one.
"······."
Not a single one gave me the feeling it was time to pull out.
Even though Stumbagen's stock price had already dropped by 20%.
In other words, the hunt wasn't over yet.
This was just the beginning.
＊＊＊
Watching the Dieselgate scandal unfold, CEO Hwang finally thought, So this is what was coming.
There was a reason Jin-ho had invested in short positions—he must have been certain something like this would happen.
At the same time, another thought crossed his mind.
"Executive Director Tak. Did you sell your car?"
"Yes. Sold it right at the peak. It's practically worthless now. Hehe."
"If only you could sell at the peak like that all the time."
"If you're going to hit me where it hurts like that, I don't know what to say······."
Today, President Hwang had gathered the executives for a reason.
"You all know the current situation, right? Those Stumbagen bastards screwed up, and now their stock price has plummeted by 30%. The problem is that German financial authorities are closely scrutinizing this incident."
Bafin is known as the strictest financial supervisory authority in Europe.
Dieselgate had shattered Stumbagen's stock price.
As a result, the German stock market was in turmoil.
The real issue was that someone was feasting on profits amidst this chaotic market.
Precisely those who had taken short positions.
"What's the public sentiment like in Germany?"
"Even before the Dieselgate scandal broke, there were rumors circulating about a significant volume of short positions being taken. While we don't know which institutions or what specific positions they hold, you can get a sense just by looking at the overall short selling trends or the concentrated positions in certain areas."
"Many are saying someone must have had insider information to take such short positions. Bafin is investigating this too."
That was precisely the problem.
In the stock market, when the majority suffer while a select few feast, the witch hunt begins.
Financial authorities inevitably get pressured by public opinion to investigate.
They might even fabricate reasons to find fault.
And the biggest issue was that the culprit they were looking for happened to be Gwangun Securities.
"What are the chances of Gwangun Securities becoming a problem?"
"You can consider it practically 0%."
Despite having taken a staggering 700 billion won in short positions and feasting on profits, there was almost no way Gwangun Securities could be implicated.
"Manager Jeong Jin-ho designed it all with terrifying precision. He diluted our presence across multiple fronts so our colors wouldn't show."
"To Bafin, it'll just look like aggressive funds doing their usual high-risk investments and getting lucky this time."
Jeong Jin-ho's choices were truly masterful.
Instead of investing directly in Germany, he funneled money into high-risk, gambling-like funds, making the source untraceable.
"It's frightening how meticulously he planned this. He's literally plundering the German stock market. Honestly, our country has always been the one getting plundered by foreigners—now that we're doing the plundering, it feels thrilling yet strange."
With Korea's stock price upper limit recently increased from 15% to 30%, there was a time when foreigners briefly swooped in to raid the KOSPI.
Everyone knows how they freely manipulated stock prices up and down, fleeced retail investors, and then vanished without a trace.
No wonder domestic communities joke that when foreigners invade, the best strategy is to raise both hands in surrender and stay still.
Those forces are spread across the U.S., Europe, China, Hong Kong, and beyond.
Yet now, Germany was getting thoroughly plundered by dark-haired foreigners and couldn't even gather its wits.
"Of course, compared to foreign capital, 700 billion is still a tiny amount..."
"But the scary part is that this is just the beginning."
Right now, it's in the billions, but once it scales to trillions and starts making waves across global markets, the ripple effects will be incomparably massive.
And even then, no one will be able to trace the money's origin.
Just imagining it sends shivers down the spine.
"But President... Did Manager Jeong Jin-ho... know in advance that Dieselgate would happen?"
This was what everyone had been wondering.
They all turned their eyes to President Hwang.
"Whether Jin-ho knew beforehand or not—that doesn't matter. Our only job is to make sure no harm comes to Jin-ho. That's why we're sitting in these executive seats in the first place."
They nodded in agreement.
After all, the financial market was ultimately a war of information.
Though they claimed to prevent insider trading, in the end, those who had advance information were the ones who made money.
The financial market required luck, but one couldn't survive long on luck alone. That's why they needed to obtain information and know how to utilize it well.
In that sense, whether Jeong Jin-ho had prior information or not didn't matter to them.
As President Hwang had said, all they needed to do was focus on how to protect Jin-ho and how the company could act as his shield.
"Everyone, keep your eyes and ears open. If anything threatens Jin-ho, we step in to block it."
"Yes, sir."
"We'll stay vigilant, President."
Keeping Jeong Jin-ho safe—that was now their top priority.
＊＊＊
"Huh? Bodyguards?"
[Yeah. We're setting up a security team this time. For our company's VIPs. For now, it's just you and me.]
"But... I get why you'd need it, hyungnim, but why me...?"
[Of course you're a VIP too. Haven't I told you this repeatedly? In a securities firm, the one who makes the most money is the top dog. From the company's perspective, you're more important than us, got it?]
"Ah, come on. Of course you're the most important, hyungnim. What good is a body without a head?"
[Heh. This kid, always knows how to move people. Ah, but Jin-ho, I wasn't going to ask, but I'm a little curious...]
"Yes. Ask me anything."
[So... when are you planning to retrieve the money you've spread out?]
The investment funds, currently split into dozens of fragments, were still lying dormant.
Like a well-oiled machine, fund managers were diligently earning profits in his stead.
"I'm planning to leave it for now. Since it's the weekend, I'll observe the market and move when the time's right to sell."
[Alright. I'm sure you've thought it through. Sorry for calling suddenly on the weekend.]
"No, of course I should take your call. Ah, but right now, I'm out with my family, so I might log into the game a bit late today."
[Take your time. I'll catch up on some overdue quests in the meantime.]
"Wait, you're already logged in?"
[Of course. This game's the worst—if you slack off even a little, the guys below will climb right over you. What good's a guild leader weaker than his own members? Gotta set an example. Anyway, I'm off to the game. Enjoy your time with your family.]
"Yes. Go ahead, hyungnim."
After hanging up, I returned to the waiting car.
"Sorry for calling you out on the weekend, driver."
"Not at all. We work in shifts year-round without holidays, so you can call us anytime. Honestly, we feel more guilty getting such a high salary for doing so little. Haha."
In the car, my mom, dad, and younger sibling were already seated.
"Thanks to our son, we get to ride in such an expensive car too."
"Did the company really arrange all this?"
"Yeah. They insisted I shouldn't drive as a courtesy."
When my parents first heard I'd received billions in incentives, they thought I was joking.
But when they saw the amount in my bank account, my mom froze on the spot, convinced something had gone terribly wrong.
"I still can't believe it. What on earth did you do to get incentives like that...?"
"Tsk, it's because our son's just that good. You think the company would hand that out for free if he wasn't? I always believed in our Jin-ho. You've been special since you were a kid. Hahaha!"
"Right. Oppa was always good at studying too. He's just blooming now."
The best part of my success is right now—being acknowledged by my family.
I often think about it.
Where should I spend all this overflowing money?
I never imagined the day would come when I'd be troubled by such happy worries.
Honestly, I never had those typical fantasies—collecting all kinds of luxury brands or amassing imported cars.
I just enjoyed the dopamine rush from nonstop deals at work, then coming home to game with my hyungs.
Ah, and it felt good to finally indulge in proper in-game purchases after all those years of holding back.
But there was something that felt even better.
Spending for my family.
And doing it in the grandest way possible!
"No way. Are we really moving to a place this huge?"
"Yeah. You saw the news, right? It's set to be completed next year—it'll be the tallest building in Korea. Plus, residents get full access to all the hotel services. So everything, from cleaning to cooking. The whole package."
LK Group is famous for LK Hotel.
As Korea's top hotel corporation, they promised the pinnacle of hotel services when constructing the new LK Tower.
The units ranged from 48 pyeong to a whopping 250 pyeong.
The 250-pyeong units were penthouse suites—only two available in the entire LK Tower.
Since it wasn't completed yet, we couldn't tour the actual units, but we could check out the model home to see the layout.
"Wow. The modeling is seriously well done."
"Right? I heard they went all out this time."
"The prices start at 5 billion and go up to 30 billion?! Are they out of their minds? Oppa, are you seriously buying here?"
And not just here.
I was also planning to buy a separate building and entrust its management to my parents, who stubbornly refused to quit working.
This way, they'd have no choice but to accept.
Just like Hye-rin and I had discussed before—real estate was the best asset in our country, wasn't it?
Even if I poured all my money into property, there was nothing to worry about.
"Whoa, have you seen the hotel service list here? Just call anytime, and they'll deliver stuff all the way to the underground parking lot. Pickup services, and—wow, there's so much. Plus, each unit gets 5 to 10 parking spaces. Money really is the best. It's a whole different world."
"Then you better start adjusting. We're moving in here next year."
"Crazy. What am I gonna tell my coworkers when they see my address change to LK Tower?"
Judging by my sibling's wide-eyed expression, they were already lost in wild fantasies.
They'd said it was too expensive, that there was no need to spend this much—but it looked like they were sold after all.
"It might be good to reserve a unit early. Demand is incredibly high. Some buyers have already secured three units in advance, expecting prices to skyrocket after LK Tower's completion."
I nodded at the staff member's kind explanation.
Maybe I should buy one more.
Even to me, it was obvious prices would shoot up later.
'But... something's been bothering me.'
Subtle signals had been coming through since the staff's explanations.
But they were too faint.
I couldn't even tell what they were trying to signal.
'It was like this when I talked to Hye-rin last time, too.'
Back then, a weak signal had brushed past me.
Could it be because of this tower?
'Don't tell me... shoddy construction?'
But this is LK Group's make-or-break project.
Or maybe the signals were about LK Group itself.
"..."
While my family was busy looking around, I searched LK Group on my phone.
[LK Group Chairman Oh Dong-young. Succession process finalized. Eldest son Oh Seung-hyun to inherit everything.]
[Oh Seung-hyun named next chairman of LK Group?]
Right now, LK Group was in the middle of its succession process.
Chairman Oh Dong-young was passing the reins to his eldest son, Oh Seung-hyun.
That part was fine—but the next part was the issue.
[LK Group's second son Oh Jae-hyun states no interest in chairmanship.]
["I will actively support my hyung as chairman." — Oh Jae-hyun's aspirations.]
The moment I absentmindedly clicked on an interview article with Oh Jae-hyun, the second son of Chairman Oh Dong-young and president of LK Hotel—
"!?"
A tremendous tremor began to shake my entire body.