Chapter 39
Chapter 39
Translation: Godtl
The center of culture.
Paris, France.
For a country with France's international standing, there was an implicit belief that it would naturally be safe from terrorism. In fact, wasn't France ranked exceptionally high in terms of national security standards?
That's why the recent terrorist attack sent shockwaves across the globe.
It created a pervasive fear that no country was safe from terrorism anymore.
People weren't calling it "the second 9/11" for nothing.
"What... what the hell is going on?"
But for Hwang Dae-un, CEO of Gwangun Securities, the news from France wasn't what made his drowsiness from staying up late gaming vanish instantly.
"You're saying we can issue a margin call?"
"With the terrorist attacks, French tourism is effectively finished. The problem is, LK Group was about to open hotels in France. They'd launched massive promotions and planned to use this as a springboard to enter the entire European market."
"And then a terrorist attack happened right at this moment?"
"Exactly. France has already closed its borders, and companies relying on French tourism are suffering catastrophic losses. Stock prices have plummeted."
Lecor Group, France's largest hotel chain, had taken a massive hit from this crisis.
If even Lecor was struggling this badly, there was no way LK—just beginning to expand overseas—could avoid the fallout.
"They were preparing to open hotels in multiple countries—starting with France, then the UK, Germany, Spain, Belgium, and so on. But after this attack, tourism across Europe has temporarily ground to a halt. For LK, this isn't just a fire at their feet—it's a meteor crashing down on their heads."
IS, the group behind the attacks in France, had issued a statement declaring that this was only the beginning and that they would deliver even more horrific "divine punishments." The entire European continent was now in a state of emergency.
To block potential terrorists, countries had temporarily barred foreign entries.
LK had been preparing to open hotels sequentially across Europe, starting with France. But now, even in countries where construction was nearly complete, they couldn't proceed with openings.
"And as if things weren't bad enough, there's another problem."
"What now?"
"During LK's management succession battle, it came out that their roots were actually in Japan. Everyone assumed they were a purely Korean company, but when it was revealed they were controlled by a Japanese holding firm, public sentiment turned sharply against them."
"So?"
"LK Department Store used to win duty-free shop licenses without fail. But with public opinion so negative, the government excluded them for the first time. Duty-free shops were a major revenue stream for them, so losing that is going to hurt."
Duty-free shops were synonymous with LK.
And now even that was blocked.
But the government had no choice but to respond to public sentiment.
Losing duty-free privileges was a devastating blow.
"Their reliable duty-free business was suddenly cut off. They poured all their resources into building a global hotel brand overseas, only for that to be halted by terrorism... Rumor has it they can't even cover their immediate liquidity needs."
In other words, LK Group's debt was likely to skyrocket, leading to a credit rating downgrade. And if that happened—
"So we can move in?"
"Exactly. With the acceleration clause, we can really shake things up."
This meant Gwangun Securities could aggressively demand repayment from none other than LK Group itself.
"And that's not all. With the payment-in-kind agreement and call options in place, if LK can't resolve their liquidity crisis, LK Tower could end up in our hands."
"Is that even legally possible? No matter how favorable the contract terms we pushed for, there must be limits, right?"
Just because they signed a collateral agreement doesn't mean LK Tower automatically becomes Gwangun Securities' property.
After all, it's a monumental asset bearing the title of South Korea's premier skyscraper.
Swallowing it whole for just 900 billion won was, of course, impossible.
"Our legal team followed the CEO's instructions to make the terms as favorable to us as possible—that's precisely why we secured the right of first refusal and call option clauses. Especially with payment in kind, setting the price too low could lead to legal issues. However, if we establish a certain ratio of the collateral value as the acquisition cost, there won't be any legal problems."
At those words, CEO Hwang Dae-un swallowed dryly.
"How much did we set it at again?"
"Two trillion won."
Two trillion.
It was the minimum price the legal team had determined—one that wouldn't raise legal issues while still reflecting the asset's value at the time of contract.
Of course, even the legal team never actually expected Gwangun to take possession of LK Tower. They had simply structured the most favorable terms possible for Gwangun Securities while setting the lowest plausible price, which naturally led to that figure.
"Even for our own company, this contract is downright predatory."
"If they had a problem with it, they should've gone to a bank instead of a securities firm. Or begged private equity funds. But since neither worked out, they had no choice but to come to us and sign this deal."
Alternatively, if they had held out without selling their shares, LK Group would have naturally fallen into Oh Jae-hyun's hands when Chairman Oh Dong-young collapsed.
But because they couldn't wait that little bit longer and signed the agreement, this whole mess unfolded.
"Not to mention, LK's European venture was originally supposed to launch later, but Chairman Oh Jae-hyun rushed the opening to speed up cash flow—and that's when this disaster struck."
At that, Hwang Dae-un felt heaven itself was on his side.
Conversely, Oh Jae-hyun must have been seething, wondering if the universe could possibly screw him over this hard.
"If things go well, we could snatch LK Tower for two trillion..."
"LK won't just roll over at that price—they'll fight tooth and nail."
True. How much did they sink into construction costs? They'd never hand over LK Tower for a measly two trillion.
But human affairs are unpredictable.
Honestly, who could have imagined things would escalate this far?
Above all, public sentiment had already turned its back on LK Group.
They were, quite literally, prey surrounded by predators.
"But, sir..."
"Hm?"
"Didn't you say Deputy Director Jeong Jin-ho was the one who selected this collateral?"
"That's right."
"...Could Deputy Director Jeong have foreseen things unfolding to this extent?"
"!?"
Everyone should have laughed it off as absurd.
But...
"..."
At the mention of Jeong Jin-ho's name, no one could.
＊＊＊
"Director. Still no updates?"
"No. They're doing their best to persuade them, but..."
Chairman Oh Jae-hyun's lips were parched all day, his throat dry no matter how much water he drank.
"Are they out of their minds? Do they seriously intend to hand over LK Tower like this? If they just cover the 900 billion, this whole thing ends!"
The problem was that 900 billion won wasn't an easy sum to secure.
Someone had to provide that 900 billion, but even private equity funds were hesitating.
Even if they were to fork over the entire 900 billion, the dilemma remained—could the company realistically recover that kind of money?
In their eyes, this was a game of hot potato.
That's why none of the funds had approved the 900 billion loan yet.
They were all just watching each other, waiting.
To see who would ultimately take the bomb.
"Above all, the main trigger seems to be LK Department Store losing its duty-free shop license. It's a sign that even the government has turned its back on us."
In the U.S., lobbying is legal, but not here.
Though technically illegal, everyone knows politicians and business leaders dance together behind the scenes, striking deals in harmony.
This was the survival strategy of a conglomerate.
To create legislation as favorable to themselves as possible and grow the company with government support.
But now, that connection to the political sphere had been severed.
Because public opinion had completely turned against LK.
If any politician dared to side with LK Group now, they would face fierce backlash from the public.
Moreover, Chairman Oh Dong-young—who had been holding onto those political ties—collapsing had also played a major role.
"That's why investment funds are now starting to pull out one by one. Public sentiment toward LK is just that bad."
There were also businesses with roots in Japan, but the stigma of betraying their father—branded as unfilial—had dealt a heavy blow.
Frankly, public outrage like this would fade with time.
The problem was that they didn't have enough capital to last until then.
"Keep persuading them. Even if France is blocked for now, the UK and Germany will open up soon, followed by Belgium and Spain in sequence. Border closures aren't permanent, right?"
"Yes. I'll do my best to convince them."
"You have to. You absolutely have to. If those people truly want to invest in LK and siphon money out, we must protect LK Tower at all costs!"
He pressed them relentlessly, but the unease refused to fade.
If only I had kept my cool back then.
Then I wouldn't have signed that damn contract.
But if no one stepped forward now—if everyone turned their backs—LK Tower would truly be snatched away by those bastards at Gwangun Securities.
No. To be precise, by the unknown shadow pulling the strings behind Gwangun Securities.
"Don't you dare lie to me."
No matter what, that was the one outcome he had to prevent.
Even if France was out of reach, LK Group had extended its influence far beyond just there.
After France, a significant amount of capital had been poured into the UK, followed by Germany, Spain, Belgium, and more.
If they could proceed with sequential openings, there was still plenty of money to be made.
So this wasn't the end.
Not yet—!
＊＊＊
For Europe, could there ever be a year as horrific as this one?
"Chief, another one just hit. This time, it's Belgium, right after Germany."
The chain of terror attacks that had begun in France.
After the explosion in Berlin's market, this time, a terrorist attack struck Brussels Airport in Belgium.
Europe, once believed to be safe, had its security completely breached by terrorist forces.
As a result, the entire European Union had temporarily closed its borders in a joint counterterrorism effort, with the EU officially declaring that it would strike IS strongholds in Syria and Iraq.
"Thanks to that statement, defense stocks are skyrocketing right now."
"Wow, they've already surged by 20%. Even TS, where we've invested heavily, shot up by 30%."
"It's good that we're making money, but... I don't know, it feels heavy. More than anything, the terror attacks are terrifying. How can all these advanced European nations be attacked like this?"
War presented opportunity for some.
Especially for defense contractors—there was no better opportunity than this.
Just the surge in their stock prices was proof enough.
At the same time, it was also terrifying.
Because it proved that no country under this sky was safe from terrorism.
"That's why conspiracy theories are running wild right now. Since Europe's security was breached so easily, some are saying defense contractors might have aided IS."
There were other conspiracy theories floating around too.
That France deliberately orchestrated the attacks to justify intervening in Syria's civil war.
That Israel planned it to fuel anti-Islamic sentiment.
Just like with 9/11.
Whenever a shocking event occurred, conspiracy theories always followed.
"The problem is that the French government is cracking down on the financial sector to appease public opinion. With the French stock market plummeting across the board due to this incident, they're apparently investigating who might have profited by shorting the market in advance."
"Seriously? What crime did those who made money commit?"
"They suspect it might be aiding and abetting terrorism by indirectly funding IS through profiting from the attack. It's practically a witch hunt, really."
When such national crises occur, governments often respond emotionally, swayed by public sentiment. In that regard, we were fortunate.
Every time I looked into matters related to France, I felt such intense disgust it nearly made me nauseous—so much so that I didn't even glance at their stock market.
Had we shorted the market there with billions, we'd probably be in deep trouble by now.
There was a reason my instincts had rejected that option.
"The real chaos is with LK Group. They staked their survival on European expansion, and now this happens."
"France is one thing, but what about Germany and Belgium ending up like this?"
"So now the only place left to rely on is the UK? I heard they invested the second largest amount after France."
It's true that LK Group's situation is spiraling strangely.
But that wasn't our concern.
The legal team would handle it.
Our focus now had to be on the funds we'd spread across defense contractors.
"First, let's liquidate the stocks we've distributed."
I examined the various stocks we'd scattered across the market.
Most of them were signaling sell orders every time I hovered the pen over them.
While European war declarations against IS had sent stock prices soaring insanely, this ultimately meant it was just a bubble reacting to the news.
"For now, NIX seems likely to rise further, so hold onto those. Let's also keep an eye on AERO briefly. Liquidate all other positions immediately."
"Understood. I'll get right on it."
It would be a lie to say my heart wasn't heavy.
I didn't cause the terrorist attacks, but it was true I was profiting from them.
"Let's forget about that quickly."
Maybe if the opportunity arises, I could make some donations later.
To shake off these heavy emotions, I turned to reviewing research materials.
The current research focus was on overseas assets.
Wasn't the global economy being shaken by this terrorist incident?
"So safe assets are skyrocketing again after all."
Another day of consecutive gains for safe assets.
The EU's war declaration had oil prices rising, and gold prices were soaring in tandem.
An inevitable phenomenon driven by war anxiety.
Moreover, concerns about the European economy were growing.
Going to war means spending money—especially since the EU was acting collectively, requiring member states to pay their share of contributions.
"Britain's paying the most among them."
The UK was contributing the highest share within the EU.
One could say Britain represented the EU.
Yet Britain had been struggling with immigrant issues for some time.
Domestic backlash was far worse than expected, making it the biggest political issue.
Then these attacks occurred amid that situation.
Public sentiment toward immigrants was bound to worsen further.
On top of that, they had to pay high contributions too.
Even if I were British, I'd probably be furious.
"So right now, putting money into safe assets is the safest bet."
I didn't particularly want to park money in low-volatility safe assets.
As I was reviewing these comprehensive circumstances in the report and preparing to turn the page—
"...?"
The hand holding the edge of the paper wouldn't move.
"Wh-what's wrong with this?"
Even when I applied force, it remained immobile.
What? Paralysis?
Why suddenly?
Is something wrong with my body?
Just as a wave of terror began to creep in—
My gaze locked onto the text written at the tip of the frozen finger:
[UK, EU Exit Scenario]