Champagne Confidences
At the same hour.
On the second floor of a luxury brand flagship store in Cheongdam-dong, soft jazz drifted through the VIP lounge. An assortment of exquisite confections and champagne sat arranged on the table.
Two women faced each other across a cream-colored leather sofa.
One was Kang Bitna; the other, her older sister, Kang Hanna.
Kang Hanna radiated the unmistakable aura of a chaebol family's eldest daughter. Her long natural hair was sleekly arranged, her skin flawless without a single blemish. Her lips were filled with a lipstick of restrained tone—neither too red nor too pale—and the high-end suit that hugged her figure accentuated the elegant line of her shoulders.
Even in silence, a quiet pressure of presence emanated from her.
Beyond the frosted glass, two fitting models continued their quiet runway walks, each wearing different outfits and accessories.
Yet today, Kang Bitna was staring blankly into space, somehow distant.
"What's wrong, Bitna? You're not yourself today—so quiet."
Kang Hanna set down her champagne flute and asked with cool elegance.
Bitna drew a short breath, then smiled as if nothing were amiss.
"Just… my head's a mess. Unnie, when you look at a man, what do you notice first?"
"Men, all of a sudden?"
"Yeah. Men."
Kang Hanna arched an eyebrow slightly.
"What's gotten into you? Hmm… for me, potential, I suppose?"
"Potential?"
Kang Bitna frowned as she echoed the word. Kang Hanna continued.
"Better a man who shows promise than one who's already living off his own self-importance. There's a certain pleasure in cultivating him, too."
She took a languid sip of champagne as she spoke.
"What, like people are tools or something…"
Kang Bitna shook her head and turned her gaze away again.
Kang Hanna's lips curved faintly upward.
"Then what kind of answer were you hoping for? Kind, diligent, honest, smart… something like that?"
"No, not necessarily that…"
"Right. There was a time I hoped for the same things you do."
Kang Hanna spoke as if she had lived through everything the world had to offer, almost complaining.
"But the world we live in… it doesn't run on feelings alone. Everyone has clothes that fit them. Ah, but today's outfits are all disappointing."
She clicked her tongue with a dissatisfied expression, then suddenly looked at Kang Bitna and asked,
"By any chance, are you seeing someone these days? Or is there someone you like?"
Kang Bitna averted her eyes, looking at the models beyond the glass wall. Only after a long moment did she speak again.
"Just… there's someone who's caught my interest a little. But I feel like I shouldn't say who."
Kang Hanna's eyes flashed sharply.
"'Shouldn't say' means it's a relationship that would be troublesome if someone found out, I take it."
Her voice was quite animated, and her face showed keen interest.
Kang Bitna deliberately did not answer.
"Bitna. You were born into a good family, so you're entitled to enjoy a great many things. Feelings are free, but choices must be careful."
Kang Hanna set down her glass and spoke quietly.
"So instead of fretting alone, why not take my help? As you know, I'm rather good at romance. Who knows? I might clear up your worries completely. Just who is it?"
"Hmm…"
Faced with Kang Hanna's proactive words, she deliberated for a long while.
In truth, the one person in the family she trusted and relied on most was her own older sister.
At last, as if steeling her resolve, Kang Bitna turned her body to face Kang Hanna squarely. Kang Hanna, equally serious, nodded as if to say, go on and tell me.
"You have to keep it a secret, okay?"
"Of course."
Kang Hanna nodded with a solemn expression.
"Well… the person is…"
Kang Bitna finally began to speak, little by little, about the one who occupied her heart.
In that instant, Kang Hanna's eyes sparkled.
A few days earlier, A-Tech Solution's stock price, which had risen as high as 230,000 won, surged once more.
Current price: 320,000 won.
The price I had bought at was 122,000 won, quantity one thousand shares.
The calculation was simple.
Profit of roughly two hundred million won.
Since it had begun consolidating again at 320,000, I had sold half—five hundred shares—two days in advance.
Of course there was a chance it could climb higher still, but it had risen so quickly that profit-taking sell-offs could pour in at any moment.
Already in the final stretch of the trading day it had shown a brief wobble, the kind of correction signal I had grown thoroughly familiar with.
Beyond that, various other signals registered in my mind.
An opportunity to invest briefly in crypto had arrived.
I redeposited the roughly 160 million won withdrawn from stocks into the crypto exchange. Combined with Junseok's seed money, it came to about 200 million.
When night fell, I headed to Junseok's room.
Junseok already had everything prepared.
"Time to get started, Junseok."
"You're really going to do it the way you said?"
"Of course. I've already loaded the ammo."
I logged into the dedicated crypto trading computer as I continued.
"I already gave you the account and password. Every time you log in, I just have to press the final confirmation button on my phone. Not that we'll be logging out much anyway."
Once logged in, dual monitors filled with every kind of trading window.
And the wall-mounted monitors broadcast news and crypto specialty channels.
Junseok looked dazed at first, but soon his eyes changed.
"Real-time fluctuation alerts, indicator-based auto-trade notifications, metadata analysis—all set up. You just need to make good sell decisions on the coins I pick. Here."
I held out a sheet of paper.
On it were listed a total of ten coins.
The crypto investment method was simple.
Or rather, it looked simple on the surface, but behind it lay the extremely precise computational power and information-filtering system that had come with my brain awakening.
I had meticulously checked volatility and trading volume over set periods, as well as the developers.
I selected only coins with high technical completeness that presented a meaningful long-term vision.
In short, I excluded every pie-in-the-sky coin.
I also factored in news analysis and correlations between coins.
"Distribute the seed money evenly across the ten coins, watch, and just dump them at the right timing. And if the market suddenly shakes, one-shot full liquidation with a 'full sell' command. Even if there's a loss, retreat fast—okay?"
At my words, Junseok nodded and answered seriously.
"Yeah, it's a decent method… but there's a premise. Those ten coins you gave me have to be solid."
"Just trust me for now. It's solid intel."
I said with a grin, and Junseok nodded.
With his own money invested as well, caution was necessary.
"From now on, we're rolling money together. Let's do well."
And so our first joint management began.
Early the next morning.
After a rare full night's sleep, my head felt light.
Sleeping deeply once every few days might not be a bad idea.
Constantly turning things over in my mind sometimes made my head throb as if overloaded, so resetting it now and then seemed worthwhile.
I finished a quick shower, got ready for work, then went up to the second floor. I knocked on Junseok's door and stepped inside.
"You pull an all-nighter?"
Inside, Junseok with messy hair was staring hard at the monitors, busily working the mouse.
"Yeah… almost wrapped up."
Junseok answered without taking his eyes off the screen.
I approached behind him and looked at the trading windows.
Of the ten coins I had told him about yesterday, seven were already closed out.
The remaining three were in the red, and Junseok had cut his losses boldly.
"Whew, roughly done. The last three looked like they might rise or not. Better to cut here. Market's too shaky."
"What about the other seven?"
"Heh! Look at this. All seven taken profit!"
When Junseok clicked the mouse, a screen summarizing the returns appeared on the trading dashboard.
+14.8%, +12.1%, +9.7%, +10.3%, +11.5%, +7.2%, +10.4%
I looked at the screen and nodded.
"Returns average around 11%… excluding the cuts, about 8%. Not bad."
The seed money that had started at 200 million was now 216 million won.
Junseok made an incredulous face and practically shouted.
"Not bad? It's insane! In one day, this is practically a miracle. You really did have something up your sleeve. Only the coins you told me about jumped overnight. How the hell did you know?"
"It's complicated to explain in words."
"Are we really… about to hit it big?"
Junseok eyed me with a slightly flushed face.
But I fell silent for a moment, staring at the quotes on the monitor, then spoke quietly.
"This is where it really starts. Don't get excited over one day's profit. We have to keep investing steadily and build our own data."
I lightly patted Junseok's shoulder and added,
"Returns matter, but probability can't be ignored either. Every time the same situation repeats, we accumulate what choices we made and what results they produced, and build an effective investment method."
"Yeah… that's true too."
Junseok nodded and stretched once. After sitting so long, his joints cracked audibly.
"Get some rest for now. You overdid it."
"This is nothing. I do this every day."
Just then, a familiar voice floated up from downstairs.
"Hyungs, come eat!"
It was Beomjin.
"Eat and get some sleep."
"Maybe I should…? Haha… staying up all night does make me hungry."
Junseok said with an awkward smile.
Even saying he was hungry seemed unfamiliar to him. Still, having an appetite was a relief.
Maybe making profits on crypto had brought back an appetite that hadn't been there.
Is this what they call financial therapy?
We both rose from our seats at the same time and headed downstairs.
On the table was a neat spread: steaming seaweed soup, freshly cooked rice, rolled omelet, kimchi, and stir-fried anchovies.
"Oh, living large first thing in the morning."
"Thanks for the meal, Beomjin."
I sat down, mouth watering. Junseok naturally took the seat beside me.
"Junseok hyung, you stayed up all night?"
"Ah, yeah… I'm more of a night owl by nature."
When Junseok spoke sheepishly, Beomjin let out a short sigh and replied.
"No one's home during the day, so sleep well."
"Got it. Thanks for looking out for me, Beomjin."
"Sure. And speak comfortably."
"Haha… yeah. Once I get used to it…"
"Eat up quick. You must be tired."
What is this sense of being left out?
"Am I invisible?"
I said with a sour expression, but my little brother didn't so much as flinch.
"When you're done, put the dishes in the sink. I'm heading out first."
"Already?"
"Lots to prepare today. Take your time eating, Junseok hyung."
"Ah, yes. Be careful."
Beomjin smiled brightly, put on the outer coat he'd left in the living room, and hurried out of the house.
I stared after my brother's retreating back until he completely disappeared, then picked up my chopsticks.
"Beomjin really works hard."
"Yeah. Unlike someone."
I said, staring pointedly, and Junseok frowned.
"I live intensely too, you know?"
"Just kidding. Eat, eat."
We sat around the table and began breakfast.
One spoonful of the seaweed soup broth and my insides felt instantly soothed.
The rolled omelet looked good enough to put on a restaurant menu, and it tasted excellent with a fine texture.
Even Junseok, who had no particular appetite, reached for the omelet quite a bit.
After finishing breakfast, I picked up my bag and headed for the front door.
"See you this evening."
"Yeah. Oh, can I do a bit of scalping this afternoon?"
Junseok asked casually.
Looking at his expression, I could see the college student who just wanted to game overlapping.
"Go ahead. Just don't lose any."
"Geez… that's basically telling me not to."
Junseok snorted and turned his head.
"Haha! Just kidding. Kidding. I'll give you a list this evening, so do as you like until then. Or use your own account a bit."
"Nah. I made money thanks to you too. I want to chip in as well."
"Well, all right then."
At my words, color returned to Junseok's face.
"Got it. Don't worry too much. Just small change, to hone the feel."
"But get enough sleep first."
"Got it."
"I'm off."
I gave Junseok a light wave, opened the door, and stepped out.
The morning air was sharp with cold wind, yet the sunlight poured down warmly.
Today, too, a new day had begun.