Chapter 104
Chapter 104
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: The Handshake with Bill Gates
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Bill Gates and the hand he clasped.
Through that hand flowed an immense amount of information and emotions.
The great achievements that Lee Dae-hyuk already knew about.
And the deep worldview and myriad emotions possessed by the man named Bill Gates.
If Steven Jobs's inner world was lightning, Bill Gates's was a calm, vast ocean.
In the depths of that profound sea sparkled countless inspirations directed toward the world.
'I still have a long way to go.'
Steven Jobs, Bill Gates.
Through them, and through Robert and Jonathan, Lee Dae-hyuk glimpsed an even broader world.
'After my revenge is over...'
He wanted to do something for a slightly better world, just like them.
Though he didn't yet know what that something was.
Having finished the psychometry, Lee Dae-hyuk released Bill Gates's hand.
"It's an honor to meet you."
"You really are a first-timer at Silicon Valley—no, at Investor's Night."
"Do I look that green?"
Lee Dae-hyuk's face flushed at Bill Gates's remark, delivered with a smiling face.
Bill Gates waved it off.
"No one here uses the word 'honor.' They're all proud folks. And they see each other as competitors."
"......"
At Bill Gates's observation, Lee Dae-hyuk realized his mistake—not quite a mistake.
There was a difference in market cap, but everyone here was a CEO of their own company and a massive asset holder.
No need to bow their heads or speak of honor to others.
But Lee Dae-hyuk was different.
It wasn't just because Bill Gates was a successful billionaire that he bowed his head.
"Competitors... I see. But I think Mr. Gates is someone worthy of respect."
"...What do you mean?"
"You've done countless donations and good deeds over the years. You more than deserve to hear that. You deserve respect."
"Haha. You seem to know a lot about me. But hearing that is a bit..."
"Those aren't easy things to do. You deserve to hear it."
Lee Dae-hyuk said firmly.
Unlike himself, who had lived by shedding blood, Bill Gates had made the world richer.
Of course he deserved respect.
Perhaps sensing his sincerity, even as Lee Dae-hyuk raised his voice a bit too emphatically?
"...Ha. Haha. Thank you. That kind of recognition feels good. Haha."
Bill Gates's face broke into a broad smile.
"Mr. Lee is pure. And he has excellent insight too. Right?"
In his eyes, there was something different in Lee Dae-hyuk's gaze from the others gathered here.
A pure will?
Or a burning fighting spirit?
It was a look different from those who came to Investor's Night.
The other investors, excluding himself, came here driven by greed for money, no matter what flowery words they used.
'But that's not my goal.'
What Bill Gates sought was not money, but pleasure.
Imagining the world transformed by the new products from Silicon Valley companies was sheer delight.
But today was a little different.
The ePhone.
The moment he saw the revolution that would change the world, his chest tingled as if he'd taken a solid counterpunch from Steven Jobs.
And there was one more thing that had stunned Bill Gates.
'No one else recognizes the true value of the ePhone.'
But Lee Dae-hyuk was different.
"Mr. Lee, you've been observing the investors here. The reason you caught my eye isn't just because I'm Bill Gates."
Lee Dae-hyuk flinched at his words.
Bill Gates had seen through his intentions.
Yet Bill Gates looked at Lee Dae-hyuk with friendly eyes.
It was a sense of rapport.
In this vast space filled with the wealthy, only Bill Gates and Lee Dae-hyuk shared that rapport.
"I'd love to move somewhere and chat, but my next schedule won't allow it. My company is busy preparing for Investor's Night too."
No sooner had Bill Gates finished speaking than his aide approached.
"Chairman."
"Yeah. Time to go."
As he started walking at the aide's words, perhaps feeling a bit regretful, Bill Gates handed Lee Dae-hyuk his business card.
"I'll be waiting for your call. Let's chat about the ePhone sometime."
Lee Dae-hyuk nodded as he took the card.
"Thank you, Mr. Gates. Here's my card."
Bill Gates's face lit up with a broad smile as he took Lee Dae-hyuk's card.
"See you again, Mr. Lee."
.
.
.
"Wow."
As Bill Gates exited the venue, Yoon Tae-ho, who had been keeping his mouth shut tight, let out a sigh.
"Steven Jobs and Bill Gates... Meeting in person the people we've only seen in biographies or news..."
"Were you that shocked?"
When Lee Dae-hyuk asked, Yoon Tae-ho shook his head.
"More amazed than shocked. I never even imagined our Young Master exchanging cards with someone like that."
"Honestly, I was a bit surprised too."
As a regressor, he knew the impact of the ePhone.
But Bill Gates had grasped its value through his own intellect and judgment alone.
'Definitely, in that aspect, he's on another level from me...'
The same went for Yoo Jae-man.
'He succeeded through his own abilities too.'
To surpass Yoo Jae-man.
He couldn't rely solely on future knowledge; he needed to cultivate the intellect and judgment of an entrepreneur.
It wasn't impossible.
Using psychometry, he could glimpse the know-how of Steven Jobs or Bill Gates.
Of course, since it was just 'seeing' rather than experiencing, it might not help immediately.
But if he accumulated this information and experience...
Becoming a proper entrepreneur after revenge wouldn't be out of reach.
'Whew! Alright.'
Feeling a sense of relief, as if he'd found an answer, Lee Dae-hyuk turned to Yoon Tae-ho.
"Let's head out too."
The study session was over.
Rather than watching other new product unveilings, finding Steven Jobs came first.
'He's probably... there.'
Right now, Lee Dae-hyuk had a good idea where Steven Jobs was.
***
Thud thud thud-!!!
Near ePl headquarters, an outdoor basketball court.
A middle-aged man in training clothes was tossing a basketball toward the hoop.
Thud thud thud-!!! Thwack-!!
'No matter how many failures.'
Swish-!
'As long as you don't give up... the ball goes in eventually.'
A game of endless success and failure.
That's why Steven Jobs loved basketball.
Success and failure repeating every minute, every second.
Because it mirrored his life.
Whoosh-!!
Swish-!!!
The crisp friction sound every time the ball passed through the net.
It felt like it cleared his chest right out.
Thud thud thud-!!
Steven Jobs dribbled while looking up at the hoop.
He'd been smiling pleasantly until moments ago, but suddenly anxiety reared its head.
'Can the ePhone become the game-changer...'
The game-changer that would change the world and lead ePl to victory.
Thud thud thud-!!
For a moment.
The corners of Steven Jobs's mouth curled up.
There was no 100% success in the world.
"At best, it's 99.9%."
Whoosh-!!
Swish-!!
Steven Jobs picked up the ball again, his face still shadowed by anxiety.
That 0.1% chance of failure, the fear of it being exposed, was why he hadn't gone to Investor's Night.
Swish-!!
The basketball passed through the rim again, making that crisp sound.
Thud thud thud-!!!
Sweat beaded on his forehead before he knew it.
Strangely, just a few drops of sweat lightened his heart.
Step step step-!!
As Steven Jobs wiped the sweat from his brow and went to retrieve the fallen ball.
"Were you here?"
A young man's voice came from behind.
"No way?"
"Long time no see."
"...Ha, haha."
Turning at the voice, Steven Jobs let out a hollow laugh.
Lee Dae-hyuk and Yoon Tae-ho in fine suits.
His personal bodyguard Michael was blocking them.
"You can't come closer."
"Hm... Steven?"
Lee Dae-hyuk's voice came again from behind Michael's massive frame.
"Ha... It's fine, Michael. I know them. No need to worry about assassination or anything... right?"
Lee Dae-hyuk chuckled at Steven Jobs's teasing question.
"Of course."
He had crossed the ocean to the US to save him, after all.
He'd throw himself in the way if anyone tried to kill him.
Steven Jobs scratched his chin at Lee Dae-hyuk's reply and said.
"Do you play basketball at all?"
***
Lee Dae-hyuk prided himself on having athletic abilities several times better than average.
This 'body' had grown enough to handle Kim Gun-woo's movements in just a few months, after all.
The problem was...
'I'm terrible at ball sports.'
He couldn't even dribble properly and kept getting steals from Steven Jobs.
On top of that, he couldn't land a single jump shot or layup.
In the end, 10 to 0.
Lee Dae-hyuk's utter defeat.
"Haa..."
Lee Dae-hyuk let out a deep sigh.
Meanwhile, the winner Steven Jobs leisurely drank water from a PET bottle and grinned brightly.
"You're really bad at basketball. You don't do business like this, do you?"
"...Not this bad."
Lee Dae-hyuk gave a wry smile and shook his head.
Looking at him, Steven Jobs said.
"You went to Investor's Night after all. Was it fun?"
Lee Dae-hyuk struggled to find an apt answer to Steven Jobs's question.
Investor's Night was a business venue.
Hard to find fun there.
But.
'For people like this, the business itself is the fun.'
Lee Dae-hyuk thought of Bill Gates.
In a business scene utterly devoid of fun.
The giant of the IT world laughing as if he'd been gifted a new toy.
"Yes. There was something very enjoyable."
"Something enjoyable? Now I'm curious. Did you like ePl's new product that much?"
"The ePhone... it was impressive, for sure. And there was one other person as impressed as I was."
"Hm?"
Steven Jobs's eyes widened.
Even within the company, many didn't grasp the ePhone concept.
From the reports, the shareholders at Investor's Night hadn't reacted much either.
But that was already.
'Something I'd half-expected.'
In truth, the rich might not even need the ePhone.
They could buy whatever they wanted on a whim.
MP3 players, ePads, internet, computers—all separately if they wished.
But the common people were different.
Those who couldn't afford everything would have no choice but to buy the ePhone.
And this young tycoon at Investor's Night today had realized the ePhone's power?
In a way, it wasn't good news—it was dangerous.
A company run by someone with that kind of insight might one day block ePl's path.
"One is Mr. Lee... Who was the other?"
At Steven Jobs's question, Lee Dae-hyuk smiled meaningfully.
"Bill Gates."
"...As expected. Kehahaha. How'd that guy's face look?"
"He was whining that he'd taken a solid hit."
Steven Jobs burst into pleasant laughter at Lee Dae-hyuk's answer.
"Hahaha. He said that? Hahaha."
Genius is lonely by nature.
But Steven Jobs had a rival to soothe his deep loneliness.
Bill Gates.
Genius and genius.
ePl and Micro Maniac, dominating the IT industry.
Their founders were destined to be lifelong rivals.
But in this moment.
Bill Gates wasn't a rival—he was the one friend who understood Steven Jobs's vision.
'I wasn't wrong.'
If Bill Gates felt that way, the answer was clear.
Brushing away the last trace of anxiety, Steven Jobs spoke in an excited tone.
"This is fun. Life really is entert—Huh?!"
Steven Jobs's face suddenly paled as he tried to continue.
'Why... what's happening?'
A pain like his guts were being torn struck him abruptly.
"Grgh... Urrgh?"
His chest tightened, as if someone's hand were squeezing his lungs, choking his breath.
As Steven Jobs groaned in agony, his eyes rolled back.
"Guh!"
Thud-!
He collapsed forward.
"Steven!"
Startled, Lee Dae-hyuk caught the falling Steven Jobs in his arms.
At the same time.
Tadadak-!!
Yoon Tae-ho and Michael, who had been watching the match from the side, came running.
"I'll take him."
Michael lifted Steven Jobs from Lee Dae-hyuk's arms.
In that instant.
Lee Dae-hyuk's hand brushed Michael's.
Flash-!!
Psychometry activated.
.
.
.
'Ex-Marine, former pro wrestler... bodyguard.'
That was the brief info on Michael.
But what shocked Lee Dae-hyuk was.
'......!'
The 'vision' that flowed in afterward.
Already aware it was the evolved psychometry's effect, Lee Dae-hyuk wasn't greatly surprised.
'That's not the important part.'
Instead.
"......"
Lee Dae-hyuk focused on the vision unfolding before him.
[A secret organization's executive issuing orders to Lou Wilson.
Echenlian hands Michael a vial.]
"It's a specially refined painkiller. It's been perfectly tested on live subjects, so mix it into Steven Jobs's water."
"Live tests, you say..."
"Want to know more?"
[At Michael's question, Echenlian glared.]
"Ah, no."
[Feeling the threat to his life, Michael bowed his head.]
.
.
.
The vision ended there, but Lee Dae-hyuk knew what the vial Michael held was.
Refined, live-tested...
'Drugs, of course. This damn bastard's been feeding Steven drugs all this time!'