Yoo Ha-yeon's Daily Life (2): Dizzying Chaos
Spinning, spinning. In a haze of chaos where she had no idea how many hours they'd been driving or even what time it was now, Seo Ji-yeon barely managed to steady her dizzy head and sit up. Her stomach was churning like it might flip inside out, but she couldn't let herself look pathetic in front of the young lady. After all, she was someone who loved beauty more than anyone.
"Hehe, Ji-yeon. Having fun?"
"Ugh... not really. Anyway... where, are we? What is this place?"
"Vladivostok. A lot of Koreans who were forcibly relocated here by the Soviets during the old days have been resettling around here since the Soviet collapse..."
Seo Ji-yeon reacted with surprising calm. Maybe it was because everything still felt so unreal.
"Ah, so this is that mafia's home base."
"Yep, yep. Si-hyun's talent farm. Strictly speaking, the main base is in Moscow, though."
"But why'd we come here? All of a sudden..."
Yoo Ha-yeon blinked, then nodded to herself.
"Oh, I didn't mention that, huh."
"You didn't say a word..."
"There's a civil war going on in Russia. That's why we're here."
"...?"
For a moment, the words didn't compute, and Seo Ji-yeon tilted her head. Then she freaked out, flailing her arms.
"C-Civil war?! I-I don't wanna die! No, more than that, why would you come to a hellhole like this..."
Tap, tap. Yoo Ha-yeon grinned playfully.
"Aw, you're such a scaredy-cat. It's only noisy in Moscow—this place is fine. It's not some full-on bloody civil war; it's just an extension of political infighting."
Of course, as Clausewitz said, all war is merely the continuation of politics by other means.
"Still, it's a civil war..."
As Seo Ji-yeon asked in a near-whimper, Yoo Ha-yeon looked at her with pity. But in that gaze, there was a faint glint of mischief and just a hint of reassurance. Or at least, that's how it seemed to Seo Ji-yeon—whether Ha-yeon actually meant it was anyone's guess.
"To be precise, it's not a real civil war... more like a power struggle. President Yeltsin and the parliament are duking it out over who's the real boss of Russia. There's still a ton of Soviet remnants hanging around."
The moment she heard that, Seo Ji-yeon nodded instinctively, as if it were etched into the DNA of every Korean citizen.
'Ah, that kind of political activity.'
Soldiers briefly taking over a city to 'restore order' amid gunfire... well, wasn't that just a natural part of the political process? When the higher-ups debated the nation's future with such passion, a little chaos was bound to ensue.
"It's only rowdy around central Moscow, especially near the White House—the parliament building. Russia's not on fire nationwide or anything. That's why I keep telling you to read the news, Ji-yeon."
Finally convinced, Seo Ji-yeon rationally accepted the utterly surreal situation.
'Yeah, that makes sense. Just roll with what's already happened. Like I learned watching the young lady.'
Come to think of it, when big shots disagreed, solving it all with peaceful talk would probably be the weird thing. There weren't many people in the world as intelligent, cool-headed, and beautiful as Yoo Ha-yeon. Sometimes, that called for a bit of 'direct communication.'
As long as the ripples from that 'lively debate' didn't reach Vladivostok, there wasn't much to worry about.
But one thing still puzzled her.
"Hmm... so you came to deliver democracy?"
Her overtired brain grinding slowly, Seo Ji-yeon asked. It was a pretty dumb question. Yoo Ha-yeon's motivations were usually pretty consistent, after all.
"What? No, we gotta make money. I told you—we're heading to New York, and this is just a pit stop. If it weren't for Si-hyun having trouble getting out, we wouldn't even be in Russia."
"...Ah, right. That's you all right."
They hadn't been in Vladivostok long when a group of suspicious-yet-familiar bodyguards—god knows where they'd been waiting—approached Yoo Ha-yeon and greeted her. Seo Ji-yeon didn't speak Russian, but it was probably something like 'nice to see you.'
Feeling guilty for only showing her sloppy side since boarding the plane that day, the antsy Seo Ji-yeon slurped her coffee furiously and kept thinking.
'If Russia's got this much political upheaval...'
Ah.
Her little mouth dropped open in admiration.
"Credit ratings are gonna tank, huh. If we knew which way the civil war's going, we could predict it even more accurately... That's why you're here?"
Yoo Ha-yeon flashed an angelic, pure smile to encourage her.
"Wow, our Ji-yeon's grown up so much. Exactly. CDS rates will shift, and Russian companies' stocks will drop too. I can't predict the winner for sure either, but with Si-hyun's help, we can at least get a rough read—even if we can't fully control it."
She clicked her tongue, as if bummed she couldn't fully dominate Russia's political scene, but to Seo Ji-yeon, the current setup already felt like a dream. A random Korean student manipulating foreign politics? Come on.
She'd sworn after meeting her liege and being inspired that nothing would surprise her anymore—but that resolve shattered daily.
"Get ready. Si-hyun's on her way soon. To me, she's an adorably loyal subordinate, but to you... eh, who knows."
"...You can try scaring me, but I won't freak out. I've met her a few times as a kid."
Of course, like always, Seo Ji-yeon's resolve crumbled in under ten minutes.
Chief Secretary Lee Si-hyun. Seo Ji-yeon had heard the name plenty. If anything, her dad—the director at Daeha Securities—probably knew her better.
'...No, but this is different from what Dad said. I was prepared since she's mafia, but! Ugh...'
She was supposed to be a nice, slightly bumbling but super competent secretary. And yeah, the overall look matched: long hair neatly tied in a ponytail, a tight black suit hugging her solid, voluptuous figure...
'Whoa, those boobs. At least twice the young lady's... Ah, not the time!'
Anyway, despite the familiar appearance... something was off.
"Oh, young lady. I'm deeply touched you came all the way to Russia yourself. And this must be... Seo Ji-yeon? Wow, you're suffering a lot at such a young age."
Somehow, her chilling gaze made Seo Ji-yeon's body freeze. She reeked of blood, like she'd just buried a few people.
"Uh, y-yes...! H-Hello!"
Yoo Ha-yeon snickered at the sight of them.
"Loosen up, loosen up."
"Y-Yes! Um, Secretary Lee Si-hyun...? N-No, Si-hyun auntie?"
Oh crap.
'Shoulda said unnie...!'
Seo Ji-yeon went wide-eyed and clapped her hands over her mouth.
Thud.
Lee Si-hyun, propping a long sword—god knows where she'd gotten it—like a cane, tilted her head.
"...Kids these days all like this? No manners. You catch it from the young lady?"
"Ahaha. Is our Si-hyun jealous? It's fine, it's fine. I just got called auntie myself not long ago, so for you..."
Whatever was so funny, Yoo Ha-yeon cackled and pulled Lee Si-hyun into a tight hug, burying her face in her chest. Si-hyun looked a bit displeased but bit her lip, then ruffled Seo Ji-yeon's hair.
"Consider yourself lucky. If you weren't Director Seo's daughter, I'd have you flat on your face right now..."
Having instilled some filial piety in Seo Ji-yeon, she pulled a notepad from her pocket—a symbol that she was still Yoo Ha-yeon's chief secretary.
"Anyway, I sorted out the kids in Moscow. As you ordered, we're prioritizing public sentiment first... and I've poached what's left of Yeltsin's supporters. Any further instructions?"
"Good work. You can buy off most with money or honors, but real top talent and the masses? Nah, takes more. This is when we push hard. So, Yeltsin wins, right?"
"Just give the order, and I can flip it..."
Yoo Ha-yeon waved her off at Si-hyun's resolute expression.
"Nah. Russia's got more chances later, but if you die, your life's over. For now, get your friends to talk Yeltsin out of full dictatorship. You know what I mean?"
"...I do think turning it into a dictatorship and controlling the dictator is viable. Not my taste, but a few oligarchs are pushing certain politicians."
Yoo Ha-yeon recoiled and shut it down immediately.
"Si-hyun, could you be Russia's president? If not, don't."
"...Yeah, no. I'm a foreigner and a woman. I could launder my identity, but not my skin or gender."
"Exactly. That's why I'm saying no. Power's tricky like that... some nobody rides the wave right and boom, they're president. The politician you back wins, then purges you and throws you in jail. I can't save you then."
"...Understood."
After a long chat—full of complex topics Seo Ji-yeon couldn't follow—the two women parted. Standing there awkwardly, wondering if she should learn Russian, Seo Ji-yeon flinched as Lee Si-hyun strode up.
"S-Sorry about earlier! Si-Sihyun unnie..."
Snort.
"Whatever. Here, the notepad's a gift. Serve the young lady well in private too... You get it? Sigh, must be nice being her age."
Seo Ji-yeon nodded vigorously and looked to her liege, who beamed refreshingly and pointed to the plane.
"Yep, all checked out. Let's head to New York. Ha Young-il's waiting on Wall Street."
"...Already? Now?"
Everything was a blur. Wh-What time was it even...?
"About nine hours since you woke up."
Unlike Seo Ji-yeon, who'd catnapped on the plane, Yoo Ha-yeon had spent the high skies above plotting money-making schemes while overlooking the masses below. Astonishingly, her face was serene. No doubt, even now, she was mentally crunching numbers.
"...Couldn't you do it over the phone? Do you really need to rush around like this? Huh? Travel time's wasted anyway."
The exhausted Seo Ji-yeon asked, and she smiled sweetly.
"Absolute time's the same either way, right? Travel time's waste—good point. But if you use it fully, it's not wasted at all. I was flipping through docs the whole flight."
...She was right. Yoo Ha-yeon always lived with excessive diligence.