The Taste of Short Selling
Before the afternoon session opened, the analysis was already complete.
All three companies had stunk up the morning market. Stocks that had slammed repeatedly into a wall of highs, failing to break through time and again — these were the targets chosen for the day.
"The afternoon trades won't be handled by Miyeong alone. Each of you will take one stock. Man-to-man."
The employees' faces went blank with bewilderment, and Siyun continued.
"Miyeong."
"Yes."
"You'll take SmartLink today."
"Understood."
"Guhyeon, your stock is Core Metal Company."
"Ah— got it."
"And Myeonghan Mobility goes to Hyeoksu."
"Yes, sir."
At the mere assignment of their stocks, the employees' faces flushed with color. Getting everyone involved in the trading was today's goal. The ultimate objective was for each of them to earn profits on their own — and today was the day they would take that long-awaited first step.
What these three needed was experience. There was only one way to get stronger in live markets: actually placing the trades themselves.
You could spend a hundred days analyzing charts and still come away with less than a single real trade could teach you. That was the nature of trading. It was one thing to watch money being spent — unless you'd personally moved billions of won, observing from the sidelines meant next to nothing.
"Miyeong will manage, since she has trading experience. But Guhyeon and Hyeoksu might be nervous — this is your first time. Five billion won is no small sum."
"F-five billion?!"
Go Guhyeon's eyes went wide.
"Each trade will be placed at five billion won a pop."
"Considering the risk... to average down, wouldn't five billion be too much to work with?"
"Betting on a decline means you're already shouldering the risk from the moment you enter. You know that, Guhyeon."
"I mean, yes, but..."
"There will be no averaging down today. Stop-loss is set at two percent. Take profit when you're up five percent or more. These rules apply equally to all three of you."
"Haah..."
Go Guhyeon's eyes glazed over as though his soul had left his body. Siyun watched that face for a moment, then spoke.
"Guhyeon."
"Yes..."
"If you want to give up, stand up right now and walk out of this office. No one will stop you."
At that, Guhyeon snapped his back straight.
"N-no, sir. I'll do it properly!"
"Then get your head in the game."
"Yes, sir! Fo— focus! Lock in!"
Siyun shifted his gaze to Ahn Hyeoksu.
"How about you, Hyeoksu?"
"I... it wasn't billions, but I managed up to twenty million won at my previous brokerage. I'll stay focused and give it everything."
Hyeoksu was, comparatively, the least rattled of the three.
"Good. When the entry point comes, I'll give you the signal. Once the signal comes, place your order at the ask. In the meantime, watch the charts and read the flow."
"Yes, sir!"
Somewhere along the way, the SST staff had gone quiet. Like Siyun, each of them now tracked the price movements of their assigned stock with total concentration.
The first signal came for Myeonghan Mobility.
"Hyeoksu."
"Yes."
"Enter now."
"Understood."
The order filled, and he reported immediately.
"Myeonghan Mobility. Average entry price, 17,400 won. Short position established."
"Good. Now focus."
"Yes."
He had caught the timing perfectly — the exact moment the stock topped out and began to slide. Myeonghan Mobility started falling without hesitation, and Siyun's eyes went to the profit window.
As the profits stacked up, Ahn Hyeoksu's eyes grew narrow and deep.
His hands began to tremble. The mouse clenched in his grip was slick with sweat.
"Team Leader..."
"Wait."
"..."
Once the profit crossed four percent, Hyeoksu found the tension almost unbearable. And every time it threatened to overwhelm him, Siyun's voice cut through.
"Not yet. Wait."
"Hoo..."
Five billion won was on the table. Even a four-percent gain meant two hundred million won. The urge to close out right now was entirely understandable.
The moment the profit shrank, Hyeoksu's pupils wavered. This was a man who normally never wavered — but with five billion won on the line, keeping his composure was easier said than done.
Siyun's voice came out flat and dry.
"You'll regret missing that seat, but whether you want it to or not, the market always offers it again."
"...Yes, sir."
Five minutes of waiting. And then Myeonghan Mobility resumed its descent.
They had blown past the five-percent target. From here on, the hunted, cornered feeling gave way to breathing room.
"Team Leader... I think it's time to prepare to close."
"Yes. The target's been hit, so the exit is your call, Hyeoksu."
"Then..."
Hyeoksu stared hard at the chart — and his whole body flinched. The falling price had just shifted direction.
Click—!
With the last of the position closed, the tension drained out of him and he let out a long, shuddering breath.
"Hoo... position fully closed. Average price, 16,310 won. Return of 6.48 percent... total profit, 324 million won."
"Well done."
The moment the words left his mouth, Yang Miyeong spoke up.
"Team Leader. Eyes on SmartLink, please."
With everyone focused on Myeonghan Mobility, SmartLink's sudden spike had slipped past them. The price had kissed a resistance level several times over — and was now turning downward.
"Go. Enter."
Miyeong placed the order without hesitation.
"Average entry price, 21,310 won. Five billion won short, position established."
The price began falling the moment she entered — faster than expected. It blew through the five-percent target in the blink of an eye, then reversed trend just as quickly.
"Team Leader. Closing now?"
"Yes."
Miyeong's trade was over in minutes. She reported her numbers.
"SmartLink closed. Average price, 20,196 won. Return of 5.23 percent — total profit, 261.5 million won."
"Good work. SmartLink flips trends fast, so you should be able to trade it again."
"Understood. I'll watch the chart and report anything that develops."
Myeonghan Mobility and SmartLink both kept sliding lower — ideal conditions for short selling. But Core Metal Company simply drifted sideways the entire session, offering no opening at all.
"Guhyeon."
"...Yes."
"You can relax. Core Metal has no entry point today."
He answered with unmistakable impatience.
"There is an entry point. There's a resistance line formed at 15,000 won. If it hits the wall one more time, then..."
"You didn't check the chart properly, did you? What did I tell you? I said the target is five percent. Is there five percent of downside left below here? The risk-reward ratio is already broken."
"That's... even so..."
"Failing to trade today is not the end of the world. Hasty decisions invite disaster. Remember that."
"I'm— I'm sorry."
Guhyeon bowed his head clear down toward the keyboard. He'd spent the entire afternoon glued to the charts, and the opportunity had never come for him.
"Good work today, everyone."
"Good work, sir!"
Siyun's eyes went to the profit window.
Yang Miyeong had turned three trades into 780 million won. Ahn Hyeoksu had logged 570 million won across two trades.
Total profit: 1.35 billion won.
The money was welcome, of course — but what stood out even more was how visibly the SST staff had sharpened.
Except for one man.
Go Guhyeon still looked unsettled.
Before the end of the workday, Siyun headed for the lounge where the trading teams gathered.
He set two coffees on the table and had barely taken a seat when the lounge door opened and Team Leader Oh appeared.
"What's this? A busy man graces us with his presence? What, ordering me around now — come here, go there?"
Grumbling, the man took his seat.
"I never ordered you anywhere. I asked if you had time."
"Same thing, you punk."
Siyun held out a coffee.
"Appreciate the coffee. I was actually trying to wake up."
And with that, Team Leader Oh began slapping his own cheeks with hands like pot lids.
"You're going to draw blood doing that."
"Mind your own business if I do. So what do you want? A man who shows up with coffee in hand didn't just drop by for the weather."
Siyun took a sip before answering.
"You said I reminded you of your teenage son, remember?"
"Yeah, I said that. The way you act, you're a pubescent kid with a full case of eighth-grade syndrome."
"So, playing the son — I came because I'm curious about something."
"...?"
The man cocked his head.
"Say an employee with no ability joined your trading team. What would you do?"
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
"You hired him because he looked like he'd do the job, but it turns out he has no aptitude at all. An employee who's useless anywhere... what would you do, Team Leader?"
The truth was, Siyun had come because of Guhyeon. Now that hiring was done, the man had turned out to be a completely different animal from his interview. Whether he made money or not was one thing — but his impatience and emotional reactions made Siyun question whether he had the makings of a trader at all.
"Why? One of your warehouse boys stirring up trouble?"
The man pressed him. Siyun wanted nothing more than to lay it all out honestly, but nothing could be said about a team operating in secret. He took another frustrated sip of coffee and tried again.
"It's a hypothetical. Just — an employee who seems hopeless no matter how you look at it. Is it right to keep him along as is?"
Team Leader Oh scratched his head, deliberated, and answered.
"What do you do with an employee who's got no answers and no talent? Simple. You look in the mirror."
"...Sorry?"
"What, you were a natural from day one? Since you joined my team, when exactly did anyone ever acknowledge you? It took eight months before this company even noticed you existed — and even that would've been impossible without one hell of a fluke. Am I wrong?"
"..."
Siyun could shrug off Team Leader Oh's usual abuse without blinking, but for some reason, these words cut to the bone.
"And if you were still scraping bottom right now, would that be my fault? My fault for picking the wrong man?"
"..."
The words simply wouldn't come. Come to think of it, he was the one who had hired Guhyeon — which made this a case of spitting while lying down. Had he really been holding a first-time trader to a standard far too harsh for someone with zero live experience?
The moment Siyun fell silent, Team Leader Oh stood straight up. He headed for the door, then stopped mid-step and turned back.
"You don't know what's in a hand until you flip the cards over. Wasn't it that way for you too?"
The next morning, Siyun walked into the office and was heading for his booth when Choi Tae-wook approached.
"Director, about today—"
"Never mind. Just bring me some coffee."
"Yes, sir!"
While Siyun sat down and booted up his computer, Tae-wook pushed a coffee into the booth.
"Coffee service."
"That thing you were about to say earlier — what was it? Do I really look that troubled?"
"Huh? How did you know?"
"I know my own moods well enough."
"Haha. Fighting, sir!"
And with that, Tae-wook was gone.
Siyun logged into the SST system to find the three employees seated side by side.
And sure enough, Guhyeon stood out. For some reason, his eyes were rimmed with fresh red streaks.
"Guhyeon."
"Yes, Team Leader."
"Are you feeling all right?"
"I'm fine. I was up late analyzing charts after work yesterday..."
Something churned hot in Siyun's gut. What kind of work could a man do in that state?
"I take it your analysis of Core Metal Company is complete?"
"I can't say perfect, but I finished a thorough analysis."
"Good. Then today, Guhyeon gets the chance. When the market opens, find your own entry point."
"I'll try. Although, Team Leader — I don't think we can make a profit on Core Metal Company today."
At that, Siyun looked up from his chart. Guhyeon, brimming with conviction, spread out the papers he'd printed in advance and began his explanation.
"Yesterday's close for Core Metal Company sits right on top of a short-term support line and the previous day's low. The downside is still blocked, so five percent profit is a tall order."
Siyun found himself nodding before he realized it. The analysis was sound.
"Go on."
"So I picked two other stocks. Yangil Paper and Daeho Tech. Both of them broke support at yesterday's close."
Siyun pulled up both names. Just as Guhyeon said, both looked well-suited for a short bet.
Well, this is a surprise.
"With your permission, Team Leader, I'd like to run the shorts on those two stocks today."
Having said his piece, Guhyeon waited for Siyun's answer. The nerves must have been getting to him — he swallowed hard.
Siyun had decided to trust him. He'd promised the kid a chance, after all.
You don't know what's in a hand until you flip the cards over.
Siyun drummed his fingers on the table, then looked up at Guhyeon.
"Let's see what you've got."