Chapter 60

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Translator: Wjin

Chapter: 60

Chapter Title: Bitcoin's Second Profit

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Early 2013 was abuzz with noise.

The main reason was North Korea.

In February, they abruptly notified the United States and China of their intent to conduct a third nuclear test.

'Korea gets ignored like a straw dog left out to dry.'

Unlike before, they widely announced the successful completion of a nuclear test using an atomic bomb with greater explosive power, yet miniaturized and lightweight.

Korea, as expected, was excluded from those notified.

But contrary to many people's expectations, the nuclear test turned out to be real.

Not only was a massive artificial earthquake detected at the North Korean test site, but voices even emerged from the U.S. acknowledging North Korea as a nuclear state.

Yet Korean society remained quiet.

The vibe was that no matter how much North Korea raged, it'd fizzle out like always.

Then, when Korea announced joint military exercises with the U.S. (Key Resolve training), North Korea went berserk.

'Full abrogation of the non-aggression pact between North and South?'

Day after day, they blustered about tearing up the armistice and turning Seoul and Washington D.C. into seas of fire.

Once Key Resolve actually began, they went dead silent like cornered mice.

'No way war breaks out that easily.'

Everything unfolded just as it had in the past.

The changed future, if any, was that MBC Game was still around.

Having gained traction from broadcasting Sudden Attack, the MBC president's attempt to shut it down failed.

Thanks to that, it remained gamers' favorite channel.

Kangyul watched with his brothers whenever their parents were out.

'Midas A Team, huh. Will they win again?'

Though Kangyul had stepped back, Midas A Clan—including Onceona, Jang Seongtae, Tteutteutteut, and new faces—was thriving.

They dominated tournaments, undisputed strongest clan.

"Yawn."

Once Midas A Clan's victory was certain, Kangyul grabbed his phone and flopped onto his bed.

Lately, chatting in community cafes was more fun than games or TV.

In fact, a 2020 UN Security Council expert panel report stated that North Korea had stolen at least 2.4 trillion won through 35 cyberattacks on crypto exchanges in at least 17 countries.

They also reportedly operated several large-scale crypto mining facilities.

'Who knows. Maybe the 2014 Mt. Gox hack was them too.'

Hearing the front door open, Kangyul quickly turned off his phone and hid it.

He missed ContrarianBoy's reply.

And soon after, the post was deleted.

Kangyul grew close with cafe members, chatting whenever he had time.

The cafe drew all sorts: finance workers, students, office workers, even a major shipping company president.

'The shipping prez went all-in.'

Bitcoin hovered around 98,000 won.

It had peaked over 120,000 then dipped.

Pessimists parroted that it was all downhill now.

'Still far from the top.'

On November 20th, China's central bank governor approved Bitcoin investments, unleashing huge capital.

Price would hit 1.4 million won in under two weeks.

'Nearly 40 trillion flowed in, I think?'

Time flew, late November as Kangyul predicted approached.

Kangyul huddled under the covers, clutching his phone.

He was careful not to let light leak.

'Today's the promised day!'

He stared at the Bitcoin price chart.

No big moves yet.

Cafe was business as usual.

'No way the future changed and they banned investments?'

The lack of change made him antsy.

But instantly, posts flooded the cafe.

From members who knew Chinese or did business with China.

Like the exploding comment section, the price chart started ticking faster.

[89,150]

[89,250]

...

...

[89,320]

It teased upward, agonizingly slow, even dipping at times.

'Then it'll rocket all at once.'

Kangyul was calm, knowing it would.

Ten days after the announcement, the chart shot straight up like a cliff.

Too steep to buy at listed prices.

[678,190]

[689,240]

[700,680]

At 700,000 won, it pulled back sharply.

Believers it'd peaked or profit-takers cashing out.

The cafe was party central.

As profit-takers multiplied, membership surged—nearly 3,000 newbies in two weeks.

Kangyul began gradual sells.

'Sell slow to avoid shaking the chart.'

Buy pressure was insane, but he held over 2 million BTC—10% of supply.

'500k per day.'

[1,203,190]

[1,202,200]

...

...

[1,202,980]

It held 1.2 million for days, then climbed again.

'Yes!'

Kangyul clenched his fist and swung at the air.

The number was too long to read easily.

Still, he checked the balance over and over, grinning ear to ear.

'Haha. Wonder if bank chatter starts if I deposit?'

But he couldn't leave it in overseas accounts anymore.

Mt. Gox was about to get hacked—too risky.

He transferred everything to his personal account.

'Bank's gonna freak.'

Luckily, inbound remittances from abroad didn't trigger taxes just yet.

And his account was at Midas Mutual Savings Bank.

A word to Jang Deokcheol, and he could keep it from his parents.

'Perfect! This is the Bitcoin thrill!'

Cafe went mad at 1.3 million, screaming "buy all!"

'Five days left.'

On December 5th, Chinese financial institutions would ban all Bitcoin activity.

Kangyul doused the frenzy with a post.

'Tsk. Loans are tragic.'

Kangyul posted no more.

Post-ban announcement, Bitcoin plunged.

'Won't see this price for another three years.'

Without looking back, Kangyul deleted the Mt. Gox site.

Next time, he'd use Korean exchanges anyway.