Chapter 25

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Sweat’s pouring after a long time.

It felt like heading a raid that just came out with the hyungs.

“That was fun.”

It was fun, but there was one problem.

“My head hurts too much.”

Think about it.

If shivers that make your whole body tremble keep coming in units of seconds, later even when trying to drink water and grabbing a cup, you can’t even feel the sensation of holding the cup with your hands.

You can’t even feel water going down your throat there.

Is that all?

My temples seemed to be puffing out smoke like a burned engine.

That’s why I stopped.

Though time remained before the market closed, I stopped because it seemed like something would really happen at this rate.

“Team Leader. You worked hard today.”

“Ah. Deputy. You still haven’t left work?”

I told team members who followed my commands and jumped into the market like running a raid to leave work since organizing materials can be done later, as they were exhausted.

“Team Leader hasn’t left yet, how can I? Other team members also can’t leave.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“Ah. And Team Leader. This.”

Deputy Lee Hye-rin handed me two pills with water.

“It’s headache medicine. I keep it at the company as emergency medicine, but today you kept pressing your temples.”

“Ah. Thank you.”

As expected, only the deputy.

I’m not really the type to take medicine well, but I should take some today.

“And Team Leader. You take vitamins well, right?”

“.I don’t.”

“What! Really? Hmm. Won’t do. I’ll order and buy some, so take them every day.”

“You don’t have to go that far.”

“Headaches, concentration decline, eye fatigue are all from nutrient deficiency. There’s a reason office workers take supplements. I’ll choose ones that match men well, so please take them.”

I’ve heard plenty that you should take supplements well as you age.

Especially guys like me who were unemployed long, didn’t they say I’m more vitamin deficient from not seeing sunlight?

But actually trying to take them, there’s a lot to care about and it was bothersome, so I didn’t.

But if the deputy prepares them directly.

“I’ll gratefully take them.”

“Yes. I’ll prepare them well balanced. I’m an expert at this. Oh right. But Team Leader. Do you exercise?”

“..”

I slowly shook my head.

“Team Leader. For office workers, stamina is life. I know it’s tiring after work, but you must exercise.”

“Deputy. Do you?”

“I do almost every day.”

As expected, beauty is partly innate, but there’s also managing through effort.

“The gym here at the company is really well equipped. So I do it here every day.”

So that’s where she rushed off to every day after work.

The gym.

“Perfect timing. Team Leader. Want to go to the gym together today?”

“What?”

To the gym with the deputy?

Of course I’d like that.

“I don’t have clothes to change into right now.”

“That’s okay. If you go to the gym counter, the staff will rent out athletic wear matched to your size. Indoor shoes too! Our company values exercise, so that system is well set up.”

They say the ultimate company is benefits.

Seems the guild master paid good attention.

‘But. It’s really been a while since I exercised.’

At most, walking subway stairs was the end.

Lately I’ve been taking taxis occasionally, so I haven’t even been doing that.

“Then let’s go together when we leave, Team Leader.”

“Ah. Yes. Let’s do that.”

Feeling a bit excited.

But I wonder how much exercise she does.

I don’t know anything about lifting weights.

Honestly, exercise is bothersome.

Exercise after work!

Isn’t that crazy!?

If it wasn’t going with the deputy, I wouldn’t have gone near it.

But today in the raid. No. Jumping into the market and fiercely day trading, I realized one thing.

That to trade longer from now on, stamina is an essential element.

Isn’t this overload on my temples like burning also ultimately a stamina problem?

“Health is most important.”

Even if bothersome and tiring, I should exercise.

So I can play in the market longer!

“Wow. More people than I thought.?”

“So many people exercise these days. Working office life, you gradually feel it. That I’ll die if I don’t do it.”

Is that so?

Not dying from exercising?

First time knowing the gym is this wide.

First time knowing office workers are this diligent.

Among them, the most noticeable was exactly that place.

Thud! Thud!

Where monster-like breathing and iron-lifting sounds echo.

One person doing weights with muscles ready to burst, showing this area’s king is me.

“Hm?”

“Ah, hello. Team Leader.”

A man born for fitness, Team Leader Park Hong-seo.

“What. Team Leader Jeong? First time seeing you here?”

“He decided to exercise with me starting today.”

“Yeah? Have you exercised before?”

“No. Complete beginner.”

“Is that so?”

Why?

Team Leader Park Hong-seo who’s always quiet suddenly started grinning.

“Then by any chance, do you want to learn exercise?”

“Since I’m doing it anyway, wouldn’t it be good to learn well?”

“Is that so?”

This time his mouth corners rose to almost touch his ears.

I felt I got caught in something wrong, but it was already too late.

Following China shock, Greece default situation too.

Not a single day passes peacefully in the market.

“People doing stocks must feel like the world is picking on them.”

That’s why the Financial Supervisory Service must watch the market well in times like this.

A difficult time for everyone.

Can’t help but have bad thoughts.

Forces doing brainless stock price manipulation like early 2000s have disappeared now due to tight financial surveillance, but actually it’s not impossible.

Just a matter of courage.

The problem is that courage is recklessness.

Early 2000s average annual stock manipulation cases: 500.

But as regulations gradually expanded, the number decreased to around 100.

Even those 100 cases weren’t actually large amounts.

So they often just end as suspicion cases.

“But how should I interpret this.?”

Team Leader Yu Sang-gu was looking at trading records from just a few hours.

The 250 billion that moved from some team at Gwangwoon Securities.

At first he thought they were just burying the money, but these guys started day trading with this amount.

At this level, it’s market disruption.

But is it really market disruption?

Just hearing the amount seems like market disruption, but looking at their activity records, it was ambiguous.

Eventually Team Leader Yu judged it beyond his judgment domain and moved to the bureau director’s office.

“Oh. Team Leader Yu. What’s up?”

“I came to report something.”

Team Leader Yu explained what happened in the domestic stock market during that time after Greece default burst.

“What? 9, 90 billion!?”

“Yes.”

“Wait. Isn’t the data wrong? Even day trading with 250 billion. How can a unit of 90 billion come out? Huh? Didn’t they manipulate by suddenly increasing order volume before market close?”

“I checked several times. And looking at trading records, 90 billion is correct. They made about 35% profit. They didn’t trade at all before market close, probably because it could affect stock prices.”

Financial Supervisory Service Bureau Director Lee Heung-won checked the trading records Yu gave him several times.

“You know about the previous DH Securities manipulation case, right?”

“Yes.”

“There are guys still not caught there. Those bastards prepared for 2 years and burst it. By throwing 2 trillion at market closing time. Do you know how much those scumbags earned?”

“About 50 billion?”

“Right. 50 billion. But those guys barely earned 50 billion while circling for 2 years and are either on wanted lists or caught in prison. This team earned 90 billion in a few hours. Do you think this makes sense?”

“That’s why I came to get help from Bureau Director. It didn’t seem like an area I could judge.”

The bureau director checked trading records once more.

“These guys were in before Greece situation burst.”

“Yes. Then the moment the incident burst, they repeated pulling out money and putting it back in, aiming for day trading profits.”

“Ha. Really ambiguous. Plus these guys are those guys from China shock? That everyone in Yeouido searched for?”

“Yes. That’s the team.”

There was a reason the team leader came to the bureau director agonizing over what to do.

Usually guys called manipulation forces start from places called leading rooms, gathering funds in pyramid scheme fashion, repeating transactions with borrowed-name accounts causing stock price manipulation.

A step further developed from there is exactly overseas funds, these guys try to openly work even with official badges clearly attached.

But this is Gwangwoon Securities.

And a team belonging to a securities firm.

Though internal employees occasionally participate in manipulation, there’s never been team-unit manipulation holding hundreds of billions like this.

“But isn’t it ambiguous to call this manipulation? Anyone can see they traded legitimately.”

“Yes. It’s legitimate, but the problem is weight class. Everyone else is lightweight, but this one alone is super heavyweight.”

“Then can you generate this level profit with such weight class? Purely only with day trading?”

“.No.”

“Right. That’s the problem. No. Whose design is this really? Does this return rate honestly make sense?”

These two also know.

That Gwangwoon Securities has no fault.

They just rode the waves like everyone else and alone made money and came out.

If there’s a problem, it’s the return rate.

And the problem was sweeping 90 billion alone in a short time.

So-called audacity crime.

Of course, it’s not that the Financial Supervisory Service thinks so, but public opinion could.

Isn’t there nothing more painful than others making money?

“Right now there’s no problem, but what if these guys do this with not 250 billion but 2.5 trillion next time?”

“That. Even thinking about it is horrible.”

A team that day traded around with 250 billion today, stirring up not just KRX but the Financial Supervisory Service. But they come out with trillion-unit money from here?

Truly a disaster.

“Watch for now. It doesn’t seem like these guys will end here.”

“Yes.”

Did someone say that?

That the Financial Supervisory Service is a place that sharpens swords.

To cut down opponents with one stroke when swung.

Cleanly, without aftermath.

That’s why justification and evidence are needed.

I don’t know who this team’s leader is, but they definitely did something.

Whether they manipulated or traded on inside information.

Otherwise, this return rate can’t happen.

“But what if this is really purely skill?”

“Then the world’s richest ranking changes within a few years.”

A moment of deep silence continued between the two.

“What are we even saying?”

“Right. Haha. It’s definitely manipulation. Skill. Doesn’t make sense. I’ll watch until evidence is caught.”

“Yeah. Report immediately if anything comes out.”

“Yes.”

World’s richest person.

The bureau director soon shook his head.

That can’t come out from our country.

“Hey. How do you keep generating such nonsense return rates? Did you really get possessed?”

“Just lucky, you know.”

“Lucky? Hehe. Our Jin-ho, now knows how to lie. How is that luck? With that kind of luck, you’d have won lottery first place ten times.”

The guild master and I were filling our hungry bellies with pork belly at a meat restaurant we often go to.

Since tomorrow’s the weekend, while tilting a glass too.

“Really awkward.”

“What is?”

“I put you in the company purely thinking to help Jin-ho. But somehow I’m receiving all the help.”

“Oh. What are you saying? Just pulling out an unemployed guy stuck in a small room, I’m grateful for that.”

“No. Truly really thank you, Jin-ho. Looking at times like this, I have good fortune with people.”

“Ugh. Again with the embarrassing words. Please have a glass.”

“Hehe. Who’s pouring for me? Should gratefully drink then. Ah. But what happened with this patch? I heard my class got nerfed.”

“Ah. That. It’s an indirect nerf, but you did get hit kind of hard.”

“These developer bastards slashing only my class again.”

“Hyung-nim’s class was seriously OP.”

“What!?”

The president and I briefly pushed work talk aside and talked only about games like true gamers.

After chatting like that for almost two hours, the president came to his senses first.

“Oh no. Talked only about games again.”

“Honestly it’s the most fun.”

“Hehe. It is, but today I also called you because there’s something else to say.”

The guild master showed me a document on a tablet.

[New Prime Grade Department Development]

“I’m thinking of making a department.”

“Department?”

“Yeah. Once that department opens, you’ll enter as department head, Jin-ho.”

“What!?”

No. How long has it been since team leader?

“Is that okay to do?”

“It is. No executives oppose. Like I said before, your return rate is your business card. Plus this new department’s nature is different. You applied to open FX market before, right?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Usually each department does different things. FX, market, bonds, stocks, derivatives etc. Meaning what they handle is different. But this department, I’m thinking of opening all accounts so you can do anything.”

Meaning, he’ll make the new department able to trade everything without restrictions.

“You can control all of that. Of course, there won’t be as many people as other departments. Since you have to directly become the control tower and move, too many employees might be more chaotic. If you need, just say anytime. I’ll fill all employees.”

I gulped down dry saliva.

Even just this market, it was trading with just a few people.

But that scale grows much bigger?

It really becomes a raid leading dozens like I did in games.

“Ah. And core personnel, you should look and choose directly. Though you don’t know those people well and it might be bothersome, so I roughly picked recommended people and put them on the list. Take a quick look.”

“Ah, yes.”

Jumping from employee to team leader, now jumping from team leader to department head at once.

And in super short time.

And I even got authority to directly pick core members.

Really seems like he’ll push boldly.

“..”

I looked through the recommendation list.

But can I tell by looking at this?

Everyone has better education than me and will have way more experience.

“!?”

I almost dropped the tablet.

“What. Already drunk? It’s only 3 bottles so far.”

“Haha. No way.”

I held the tablet properly again.

‘I definitely felt it.’

That strong feeling like sparks flying on my hand.

‘Then surely.’

Is this intuition telling me which members I should pick to be good for me?