The True Players
Several days had passed since our flashy debut at COEX, but the world's frenzy showed no sign of cooling down.
If anything, it was burning even hotter.
Yet despite being right at the center of the storm, we had taken a step back, calmly watching the commotion from inside the eye of the typhoon. As for what we were actually doing at this very moment...
“Aaaah... Being CTO is the sweet life.”
I was practically melted into the sofa, crunching on potato chips and milking the easy life for all it was worth. Well, me and me alone. Certainly not Hyung-jun.
Our poor CEO was currently locked in mortal combat with a mountain of proposals piling up beside the printer.
“Hey there, Mr. Chief Executive Officer,” I called out. “Any fruitful results? Found anything worth keeping?”
“I'm busy as hell, so shut it.”
“Aww, why so prickly? You look parched. Want me to bring you a nice cold Coke?”
“I said don't talk to me. You're giving me a headache.”
“Just looking at all those stacks of A4 paper makes me feel full,” I teased. “We haven't even signed a deal yet, but I already feel filthy rich.”
“If you're not going to help, don't talk to meeeee!”
Krrraaaagh!
Hyung-jun let out a roar like a rampaging kaiju.
Hmm, right on the verge of critical mass. Pester him any further, and he'd blow his top. For the sake of my own long and healthy life, I figured it was best to quit teasing him. I got up from the sofa, walked over, and tapped the paper stacks.
“Are all these reviewed?”
“Yeah. This side is discarded, that side is pending.”
The pile Hyung-jun had marked for consideration was laughably small compared to the discard mountain.
“Hmm.”
Curious as to why they had been tossed aside, I picked up a few documents from the reject pile.
• KF Ventures: 100% Acquisition, 100 Billion KRW (~$75M USD)
• Woolim Energy: Outright Technology Buyout, 230 Billion KRW (~$170M USD)
……
Yeah, entirely worthy of the shredder. Having zero regrets, I set the papers down and turned to Hyung-jun.
“Why are these on hold, then?”
“They're unacceptable as they stand, but these players actually have the weight class to match the terms we're looking for.”
Hyung-jun swiveled his monitor toward me. Spreadsheets were filled with the names of prominent domestic and international conglomerates, alongside staggering, unprecedented terms.
• Suseong Battery: Exclusive Technology Licensing Agreement — 1 Trillion KRW Down Payment + 10% Royalty on Gross Revenue
• Quantum Dynamics: 51% Controlling Stake Acquisition at a $10 Billion USD Corporate Valuation
• Oasis Capital: Unconditional Equity Investment — Immediate Wire Transfer of $5 Billion USD
• Wolfwagen Group: Next-Generation EV Battery Joint Development and Production Partnership
“Well, damn. Look at that scale. Heavyweights really do play in a different league of zeroes.”
As I marveled at the figures, Hyung-jun shot me a flat look.
“The problem is that none of these match what we actually want. Regardless of whether these numbers reflect fair value or not.”
“Is that so?”
When I tilted my head, Hyung-jun elaborated.
“We have no intention of selling the company, nor do we intend to transfer the technology.”
“Right. Well, it's less that we won't, and more that we literally can't.”
At its core, Zero-Interface technology was rooted in my magic. Handing over a license meant teaching someone the magic. But teach whom? Finding someone with the requisite mana talent was an impossible hurdle to begin with. And the even bigger obstacle was that I had zero intention of teaching magic to anyone in the first place.
Selling the company was out of the question for the same reason. Zero-Interface was bound entirely to my person. If anyone bought Arcane Technology, all they would get was an empty corporate shell. Buying a company for its proprietary tech only to find out it had nothing would not be an acquisition—it would be criminal fraud.
Well, whatever the case.
“Still, you can't really blame them,” I said. “We never told them what we're actually selling.”
“True. We didn't show them the underlying technology itself; we just threw a finished solid-state battery at their feet and bolted. It's only natural they'd jump to conclusions.” Hyung-jun scratched his head.
Granted, we had our excuses too. Who could have predicted such a monstrous mob would form right after the demonstration? Our original plan had been to demo the finished solid-state battery, move to a separate conference hall, introduce the company, and display automated electrode bonding using a Magic Circle.
Instead, the sheer, absurd performance of the finished battery backfired on us. The press swarmed the booth, turning the hall into complete bedlam in mere seconds. In the confusion, we had no choice but to pack up and flee. The inevitable result was the festival of wild assumptions currently flooding our inbox.
“On top of that, why are there so many vultures begging for battery samples? South Korea, the US, Japan, China, Europe—people from every corner of the globe are screaming for us to ship them one.” Hyung-jun sighed, his voice thick with irritation. “Especially these guys. Hwaseong. They didn't even submit a formal offer, yet they won't stop clinging to our coattails. How many identical emails have they spammed us with? Don't they even know basic business etiquette?”
Snatching a paper from the reject pile, Hyung-jun ripped it to shreds and slammed it into the trash can.
Oh, ruthless. I like it.
“So what's the play now?”
“If the misunderstanding came from our silence, then we clear it up with words. I'm calling them all to Seoul.” Hyung-jun lifted a titanium alloy plate sitting in front of his monitor, caressing it like a priceless artifact. “Now that the real contenders have separated themselves from the chaff, it's time to show them what we're actually selling.”
Hyung-jun opened a fresh PowerPoint file. Beneath his flying fingers, crisp letters materialized across the blank slide.
“What we're selling isn't a finished product, and it isn't the core science,” Hyung-jun declared. “It's the manufacturing equipment.”
Gangnam, Seoul.
A long procession of luxury sedans pulled up to the entrance of the five-star Ambassador Hotel. An unusual tension hung over the hotel staff lined up to greet the VIPs. Today, all eyes across the globe were focused on this venue, host to Arcane Technology's closed-door technical demonstration.
Reporters staked out around the lobby perimeter leaned forward, their eyes gleaming every time a sleek sedan or armored SUV arrived.
“Isn't that... the Chief Investment Officer of the Saudi Public Investment Fund?”
“The guy next to him is the Director of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority! The big spenders of the Middle East joined hands?”
Even though it was a strictly private event, the journalists had caught the scent of something historic and dug in. Their instincts were entirely on the mark. Every time a car door clicked open, the names echoing through the crowd were nothing short of jaw-dropping.
The titans who commanded the desert's black gold had arrived en masse. Led by the Saudi PIF and ADIA, top officials from the sovereign wealth funds of Qatar and Kuwait stepped out in rapid succession. True to people who embodied unlimited wealth, their expressions were remarkably buoyant, radiating the serene confidence of men who believed they could never lose a money game.
The next group to arrive, however, carried a vastly different aura. Their faces were set like stone, their gazes razor-sharp. It was the President of the China Investment Corporation, accompanied by the Chief Technology Officer of CETL, the world's number-one battery manufacturer. Behind them marched representatives from BID and EVA Energy—the vanguard of China's so-called 'Battery Rise.'
Portfolio managers from Norway's sovereign wealth fund, renowned for their quiet yet colossal capital power, joined the procession alongside figures representing the major financial powerhouses of Britain, Germany, and France.
The domestic attendees were no less illustrious.
Chairman Lee Chang-ryong of Suseong Group, one of South Korea's foremost chaebol titans, appeared in the flesh. Beside him walked Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Jin Tae-yoon, accompanied only by a minimal security detail.
The reporters were dizzy trying to keep up with the parade of luminaries.
“Does Arcane Technology really have something that huge?”
“How should I know? There's zero public info, just rampant rumors. The prevailing consensus was that this was just another superconductor circus, but could that take be dead wrong?”
Just then, the final guest arrived, instantly stealing every camera and pair of eyes on the street.
A sleek electric sedan, a Teslam Model S, glided to a silent halt. The rear door swung open, and a tall Caucasian man stepped out. Slightly disheveled hair, an expensive casual suit that cared nothing for formal decorum, and eyes that glittered with an enigmatic mix of playfulness and sheer madness.
“Nylon Musk!” someone gasped under their breath.
The 'Techno-King' of Teslam, CEO of SpaceZ, eccentric owner of the social media platform Z, and Special Advisor to the US Department of Government Efficiency, the D.O.G.E. A man wielding vast wealth and absolute influence, rocking the world with every unpredictable move he made. For him to personally fly across the Pacific to attend an event like this was practically unprecedented.
His arrival obliterated the presence of every tycoon who had entered before him in a single stroke, commanding an overwhelming, blinding spotlight.
“What the hell is happening...? Arcane Technology really has the real deal!”
“If Nylon Musk showed up in person, that wild battery demo had to be legit!”
Amid the murmuring crowd, the reporters felt a chill of certainty. Something monumental was about to be decided here today—something that might fundamentally reshape the future of the world. And at the center of it all stood a fledgling, enigmatic startup: Arcane Technology.
Inside the Grand Ballroom.
Beneath the opulent glow of crystal chandeliers, delegates representing nations and mega-corporations took their seats, discreetly sizing one another up. An invisible, razor-thin tension crackled through the air.
The President of the China Investment Corporation made no attempt to conceal his disdain, speaking loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear.
“I fail to understand why so many people were summoned here for a trivial sideshow. At the end of the day, it's just a tiny company from a small country. There's bound to be nothing of substance.”
The Head of Investment Strategy from the Saudi PIF responded with a smooth, effortless smile.
“If that is how you truly feel... I assume we can count on China to remain mere spectators today?”
The Director of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority sitting beside him chimed in with a dry scoff.
“Well, can you blame him? They staked their entire national industrial capacity on semi-solid-state batteries, only to wake up and find the rug pulled from under their feet. It's only natural he'd be in a foul mood.”
“Hmph!”
The CIC President turned his head away, treating them as beneath his notice. Yet his tightly clenched jaw and the slight twitch near his eye laid bare the anxiety simmering underneath. In contrast, the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund's table remained utterly composed throughout, quietly reviewing documentation and whispering observations among themselves.
Chairman Lee Chang-ryong of Suseong Group and Deputy Prime Minister Jin Tae-yoon sat side-by-side, conversing in hushed tones.
“Considering they had the audacity to summon such heavyweights, they must have something real in their hands, Chairman Lee.”
“It certainly means they aren't run-of-the-mill con artists.”
“Are you confident they truly developed this Zero-Interface technology?”
“Even if they can replicate half of the data they presented, it's an industry-shattering breakthrough,” Lee Chang-ryong murmured. “If it's genuine... we cannot allow it to be siphoned overseas. It is a technology that will determine the very standing of South Korea's battery sector.”
“In that case, the government must step in with all its resources to protect it. We ought to consider designating it a National Strategic Technology immediately.” Deputy Prime Minister Jin glanced around the ballroom. “By the way... I don't see anyone from Hwaseong Group.”
“Now that you mention it... For Hwaseong, the domestic industry leader, to miss an occasion like this... Did they fail to secure an invitation?”
While the murmurs of speculation rippled through the hall, Nylon Musk was slouched in his chair, nonchalantly tapping away at his smartphone with a look of utter boredom.
His aide leaned down, whispering anxiously. “Nylon, was it truly necessary for you to attend in person? They haven't filed a single patent, nor have they disclosed a shred of theoretical principles behind this technology.”
Musk offered no reply.
Complete silence.
The aide swallowed a sigh and tried again. “...Techno-King.”
Only then did Nylon Musk speak, his eyes still glued to the glowing screen.
“Stupid question.” He finally raised his head, his tone crisp and unwavering. “The world has always been altered by a handful of eccentric geniuses. People exactly like me.”
At that exact moment, Park Ji-hyuk and Kim Hyung-jun stepped onto the raised dais at the front of the ballroom. Musk locked his eyes onto the two young East Asians, a spark of genuine curiosity dancing in his pupils.
“I came here for one thing,” Musk continued. “To confirm whether those boys are cut from the same cloth as me.” His gaze hardened with sudden, sharp intensity. “Right now, my EV empire—and America's entire industry—is facing a brutal siege from China. To crush that challenge, we need a seismic inflection point that flips the board entirely.”
His eyes remained pinned to the two figures on stage.
“Whether they turn out to be our game changers, or just a cheap burst of fireworks... Let's see it with our own eyes.”