Grand Strategy (2)
'This is doomed.'
The cry of instinct overriding reason. Seong Ha-yun, raised between a politician father and a hospital director mother, was a woman who could instinctively sense the whiff of impending doom before any calculations kicked in.
Nebula was the undisputed titan of the supercon industry, while Atlas was little more than a toddling infant just learning to walk. Sure, they'd secured a strength by monopolizing Ignis technology, but adding a hammer function to your phone didn't mean people would ditch Samsung for Nokia.
Seong Ha-yun's judgment was swift.
Bam!
"Alright! Let's talk business!"
She flashed a business smile and hurled herself across the desk. One hand slammed down to grab attention, the other crumpled the cursed mad baldhead's face like clay dough for toddler playtime.
"Hrm."
Even as his face twisted like baby-safe putty, the mad baldhead let out a genuine sigh of regret. She'd known it before, but this guy was certifiably insane.
Seong Ha-yun realized that if she stayed hidden behind the wall over there, the hard-won Nebula-Atlas joint front might melt away like cheap patbingsu on a hot day.
'This... this lunatic bald bastard!'
She'd been thrown into the fray without a moment to catch her breath, all because this idiot had blurted out "How about trying idol work?" to Nebula's chief secretary out of nowhere.
Seong Ha-yun shot Namgung Jun a glare without making it obvious, grinding her teeth, but he remained utterly unfazed, like a dog barking at nothing.
Considering that "madman" was a title reserved for those with ideas so wildly original no normal person could dream them up, or for those who ignored the wailing train whistles and ear-piercing brass bands around them and plowed ahead anyway—Namgung Jun had clinched joint first in the madman category, proudly claiming the moniker of Mad Baldhead.
Seong Ha-yun brushed back her ear hair to hide cheeks burning with fury, transforming into the picture of a poised career woman.
"I'm Seong Ha-yun, head of Atlas's Strategic Business Division, in charge of this joint project. We're acquainted, right?"
"...Indeed. Your company and off-duty looks are quite the contrast."
"No need to state the obvious. We're here for business, so let's leave the private chit-chat at the door."
"Agreed."
Seo Han-gyeol Macro 2 activated. Seo Han-gyeol nodded calmly. By chance, the fluorescent light glinted off his glasses lenses.
'...Tch. No private feelings right after saying we should keep it professional? Mana detection already?'
No matter how close they got, work and personal were different—or so she thought. Seong Ha-yun mistook the shine for a mana scan attempt.
Of course, she hadn't sensed even a hint of the telltale presence unique to detection skills... but
'PEB agents must have their ways.'
The Punishment Enforcement Bureau's extreme info lockdown shone once more. Seong Ha-yun chalked it up to some mystical PEB detection secret sauce.
Today, Seo Han-gyeol's karmic debt to the imagined PEB agent deepened yet again.
Whatever the case, even in her half-submissive position, she might've been miffed at the sudden scan, but Seong Ha-yun genuinely didn't mind. Namgung Jun—already smitten(?) with Seo Han-gyeol in his own twisted way—accepted it without a word too.
The reason was simple. Rebellious by nature, Seong Ha-yun had fallen hard for Seo Han-gyeol under a special pair of rose-tinted glasses. Stubborn types like her only reinforced those lenses; nothing short of a miracle would pry them off.
'Yeah. That's the elite flavor I'm talking about.'
She barely suppressed the urge to snap a pic with her new phone's ultra-HD camera for posterity.
'Still, he's less rattled than I expected?'
A convenience store clerk suddenly showing up in semi-formal wear declaring "Actually, I'm a major corp division head" should've shocked anyone, but Seo Han-gyeol barely raised an eyebrow before letting it drop.
Whatever his circumstances, transferring from PEB to Nebula meant there was solid reason behind it. People with firm resolve didn't waver easily.
In truth, he did have a rock-solid mindset. If you cracked open Seo Han-gyeol's skull right now, you'd see "business as usual" and "safe resignation" etched boldly inside.
Anyway, Seong Ha-yun's faith in Seo Han-gyeol grew stronger.
Of course, inwardly, Seo Han-gyeol was sweating bullets at the thought of her spilling his true colors(?) to Yu Seo-yeong or CEO Seol Hwi. But as the saying went, even a temple dog learns the ways of the world after three years. He still had two years, ten months, and twenty-three days left, but
"No issue. Share the latest intel and let's set goals right away."
Now he could at least fake reciting worldly wisdom!
"...I didn't misjudge you. Let's get started."
"With you, we'd have a once-in-a-century idol—"
You mad bastard. Shut that disaster-summoning mouth—!
-Crunch...!
"Ahem. Division Head Namgung overworked yesterday. He's off his game today."
"...I'll handle it."
Seo Han-gyeol impassively picked up the receiver and asked Kang A-ram for three drinks. Raised hearing that discriminating against grannies when handing out treats was the gravest sin, he even told Kang A-ram to pick her favorite.
Inwardly, he prayed she'd come save him pronto.
But Seo Han-gyeol was a man who knew his duties now.
"Drinks are coming soon. Wait a moment."
"Thanks for the courtesy. Mr. Namgung? Feeling better?"
"...Hrm."
He'd been sane since morning—his default was just "eyes glaze over at pretty girls." Lips puffed from Seong Ha-yun's next-gen physical therapy(?), Namgung Jun nodded solemnly once more.
His passion for beauties wasn't dimmed, but one more peep here and he'd be eating dirt forever.
With Namgung Jun tabling the Seo Han-gyeol Idol Debut Project for frontline duty, he swiftly set up the beam projector.
-Flash.
"A quick briefing."
A presentation embodying minimalism and business perfection slammed into Seo Han-gyeol's retinas.
'?'
What? Why is this so good? Why can even an outsider like me follow it easily?
Seo Han-gyeol was left dumbfounded as Namgung Jun—who'd opened with the idol pitch—showed an unexpected side. With just a casual warm-up presentation, spouting geezer lingo and flaunting his girl-craze openly, he proved why even Atlas's division head wouldn't fire him.
Namgung Jun spoke steadily.
"First, the core point. Inside the BU-F Gate you're overseeing—the so-called Busan Oncheon Gate—lies a massive mana stone vein."
"......Understood."
"Hrm. You're wondering why we're sharing such premium intel directly with Nebula of all places, right?"
He was curious, yeah.
'I was just planning to barely break even. Mana stones? Hell no, I figured geothermal turbines for electricity bills.'
But what was this? A mana stone vein? Seo Han-gyeol nearly tumbled into solo S-rank hunter training mode.
He'd been diligently studying the world's lore, especially lately with Kang A-ram joining the secretary office—out of responsibility, if nothing else. So he vaguely grasped what Namgung Jun's words meant.
Mana stones. From wood to coal, coal to oil, and finally oil to mana stones. They hadn't fully replaced petroleum in synthesis industries yet, but in energy? Overwhelming efficiency. A miracle material with zero power generation byproducts!
The philosopher's stone of the modern age, rivaling the mythical El Dorado sought by that old captain who dreamed of endless growth.
And it was buried in the Busan Oncheon Gate.
"For Atlas, with Nebula's preemptive buy-in, jumping into competition is tough. Specifically, your CEO wouldn't stand for it."
She was the type who never let go of treasures once clutched. Seo Han-gyeol shivered reflexively at Namgung Jun's mutter.
Why the killing intent...?
Namgung Jun continued.
"Thus, we judged it's better to develop jointly and split profits than leave the gate undeveloped. That's the primary reason."
Polite packaging, but there was a secondary one too.
Seo Han-gyeol, who'd rocketed up lately, finally decoded the subtext and puffed up with pride.
"Got it."
Still, he replayed the macro.
Duty first...
"Truth is, the Busan Oncheon Gate's interior has highly nonlinear terrain. Even after decades of advances in mana engineering and interpretation, full decoding's impossible—but in interpretation specifically, Atlas's Ignis is the best."
"Get to the conclusion."
"...You're straightforward."
Dizzy. Seo Han-gyeol, who'd planned to just boil geothermal water for turbines, felt the world spin.
Namgung Jun swallowed hard watching him.
'Division Head Seong said his name wouldn't leave her lips without reason.'
Truly a man like that.
Atlas had been keenly monitoring the Busan Oncheon Gate. Naturally, they'd gathered recent intel too—when an urgent report pinged from the info guild.
He'd dismissed it as typical modern fantasy thief hype at first, but
'It came straight from [ShadowEater].'
[ShadowEater]. Among freelance hunters, a top dog in intel gathering. Or more precisely, a free-agent paparazzo-slash-industrial spy.
In an industry where scammers laughed at marks more than victims, he'd built real trust—no way he'd peddle total BS.
'A Nebula hunter dispatched to Busan Oncheon Gate single-handedly stabilized a 150-ton anchor.'
And recently dispatched from Nebula, solo-stabilized a mega anchor without leaking a peep externally, with impeccable taste—and endlessly hyped by eagle-eyed Seong Ha-yun.
The circles overlapped too neatly to ignore.
'It's that guy.'
But that only made him more intriguing.
'If we could reassign that perfect elite secretary to a (fe)male secretary role...?'
-CEO. Today's schedule includes a site visit.
'Urk.'
Namgung Jun pictured it: those sharp eyes in a haughty beauty, glasses clicking as she recited the itinerary. Lost in ecstasy, he swallowed drool threatening his lips and steeled his resolve.
'Finish the mission first. Maximize cooperation beyond business to boost personal goodwill with Atlas.'
Then casually ask for a one-day trial—nay, bribe with gold if needed...
Perfect. For such delicacies, no hardship was too much.
Resolve surged in Namgung Jun's heart.
"And now, we reach the point where we need your cooperation."
"Requesting your assistance, Chief Seo."
"?"
Sudden shift to solemnity. Caught in the hot stares from Namgung Jun and Seong Ha-yun, Seo Han-gyeol went with
"Understood."
And replayed Macro 1.
A display that put human recorders to shame.