Free Web Novel“Just how many moves ahead does Muhyuk see? That kid never stops surprising me.”
Ending his call with Kim Muhyuk, Han Kyungyeong shook his head and immediately contacted Secretary Rubin.
“Secretary, I’m proceeding with what I asked of you earlier. Once the Korean government surrenders, we’ll revert everything back to normal.”
― Are you saying the Korean government really did something like that?
Hearing Rubin’s voice over the line, Han Kyungyeong, already too familiar with Korean politicians and journalists, chuckled dryly.
“Yes, because it’s the Korean government. Weak as a lamb to foreigners, but when it comes to its own people, they treat them like fools.”
Rubin hesitated for a moment before replying.
― This can’t drag on too long. With Korea and Japan’s economies collapsing, the ripple effects are starting to hit the U.S. The backlash is serious.
“They’ll surrender immediately.”
― All right. I’ll join the pressure campaign.
“Thank you, Secretary.”
Hanging up, Han Kyungyeong muttered to himself.
“This bastard takes even bigger profits than we do, yet still acts like this. Disgusting. Absolutely filthy.”
Rubin was right.
Because Japan’s economic crisis was worse than in the original history, the entire East Asian economy was teetering.
The worst-hit was Russia.
In the end, Russia requested assistance from the IMF.
“This isn’t the time to sit around.”
Han Kyungyeong reached out to Wall Street executives who had profited greatly from the attack on Japan.
They agreed to pull all funds from Korea in a single sweep during the afternoon market.
“Let’s see how long Kim Hakgwon holds out.”
The U.S. government had already offered Kim Muhyuk various incentives if he came to America, but Muhyuk had declined, saying it wasn’t the right time yet.
Han Kyungyeong stared out at the dark night sky beyond the building before leaving his office.
“Alright! Let’s begin. Pull every dollar we have in Korea—immediately. Work hard today, and we’ll take tomorrow off!”
“Yes, sir!”
The traders sitting at their computers responded loudly, eyes fixed on their monitors.
* * *
President Kim Hakgwon was waiting for his scheduled call with Bill Gates. The agreed time had already passed.
“What’s going on? Why aren’t we connected yet?”
“He apologized, said he’s in an emergency meeting.”
“What? What could possibly be more important than a scheduled call with the president of a country?”
“I’m not sure, sir...”
Chief of Staff Park Wonseop bowed his head like a guilty man.
Kim Hakgwon frowned, then sighed.
“Ha... So, we won’t be connected today?”
“They said they’d call back as soon as possible.”
“Fine. What about Director Lee? Any updates?”
“I believe he’s still in the middle of the process.”
“And the Americans’ interrogation?”
“All their statements are consistent: Kim Muhyuk never fired a weapon. Only Cheongpunghoe and their own people fired, and that’s where the casualties came from. Every mercenary’s testimony matches.”
Kim Hakgwon snorted.
“What does that matter? I’m not talking about putting him on trial. I’m talking about putting a leash around his neck.”
“If Muhyuk had directly killed Lee Yonghyeon, it would be simple. But will we really be able to control him just because he was at the scene?”
“Park, truth doesn’t matter. You know what I mean.”
“Yes, Mr. President.”
Once a champion of democracy, President Kim Hakgwon was becoming exactly like the politicians he had once vowed to reform.
But the real problem came a little later—when Bill Gates finally called the Blue House.
“Mr. President, we have a call from Bill Gates. What shall we do? You have about an hour of free time now.”
After some thought, President Kim Hakgwon ordered them to connect the call.
― Hello, this is Bill Gates. Sorry for being late, something urgent came up.
“No problem. These things happen. But I’m a busy man too.”
― Yes, my apologies.
The longer the call went on, the more displeased Kim Hakgwon’s expression became.
Bill Gates sounded distracted, as if his mind was elsewhere—or as if he simply didn’t care much about the call. Every response felt half-hearted.
“I’ve been worried lately. Under the IMF system, we’re doing our best to restructure, but foreign investors don’t seem to find Korea attractive.”
― Mr. President...
Bill Gates murmured something softly, as if about to say something important.
Not hearing him, Kim Hakgwon continued.
“I’d appreciate your advice. What do you think about Korea’s economic future? Someone like you, who leads the new era, should have valuable insights.”
― ...I thought Korea’s economy would recover quickly.
Bill Gates had spoken in the past tense.
Kim Hakgwon frowned, about to ask for clarification, when Bill Gates continued.
― Do you know Kim Muhyuk?
“Kim Muhyuk?”
Kim Hakgwon repeated, shocked. He had never expected to hear that name from Bill Gates.
After a pause, Bill Gates spoke again in a reluctant tone.
― I just came from an emergency meeting after reports about unusual activity on Wall Street. All U.S. funds in Korea are being pulled out immediately.
“What?”
Kim Hakgwon couldn’t believe his ears.
― The Korean government’s actions toward Kim Muhyuk have negatively impacted U.S. investors.
“What does that even mean?”
― When investors choose a country, the first thing they look at is the politicians. Because the economy depends on policy. But who would invest in a country where politicians oppress businessmen?
“No... What does Kim Muhyuk have to do with Wall Street?” ƒrēewebnovel.com
― Who Kim Muhyuk is, or what he does, doesn’t matter. What matters is that he can move Wall Street.
Kim Hakgwon was speechless.
Bill Gates sighed on the other end.
― The era has changed. Money is stronger than any weapon. Wall Street can even influence U.S. politics. The Korean government has made an enemy of someone it should never have antagonized.
“No, Kim Muhyuk is just some kid in his twenties. I’ve only heard he’s acquainted with James Han...”
― I’m simply telling you what I know. It’s probably already happening.
Just then, Chief of Staff Park Wonseop burst into the office.
“What’s the meaning of this rudeness—”
“Something terrible has happened! Foreign funds are suddenly being withdrawn all at once. The stock market is in panic, and the dollar is—!”
President Kim Hakgwon’s mind went blank.
― Then, I hope Korea’s economy recovers soon.
Bill Gates said something else, but Kim Hakgwon didn’t hear it.
The call ended without him responding.
“Mr. President!” Park Wonseop called urgently.
“Say that again... Tell me again. What’s going on?”
“It may be worse than last year’s foreign exchange crisis. Back then, funds left slowly, but now all dollars are leaving at once.”
“Why? Why?”
“I don’t know.”
At that moment, word came that the Chief Economic Secretary had arrived.
He entered the office and spoke in a grim voice.
“Mr. President, we just received word from the U.S. Treasury. The promised dollar support is being delayed.”
“What? Who?”
“Directly from the Treasury Department.”
“What the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know. Without U.S. funding, we’re looking at a national default. The market is already in panic. Following Wall Street’s lead, foreign funds are pulling out of Korea.”
“Countermeasures? There must be something!”
The Economic Secretary shook his head, his expression dark.
“Mr. President, all we can do now is beg for loans. It’s humiliating, but that’s reality.”
Hearing this, President Kim Hakgwon felt the strength drain from his body.
“What is happening to this country?”
His anguished words echoed through the presidential office.
But this was only the beginning.
Investors from Britain and Europe, following Wall Street’s lead, suspended all new investments and began pulling funds from Korea.
By the market’s close, stocks had dropped more than 10%, and the recently stabilized exchange rate shot back up to 1,800 won to the dollar.
“Han Kyungyeong and Eva Zhu have both contacted us to reconsider their acquisitions. The Jesung Bank contract is next month, but they want to review it. The Joongwoo Group acquisition will have to be renegotiated from scratch.”
“Hahaha...”
President Kim Hakgwon let out a hollow laugh.
“All this because of Kim Muhyuk? You expect me to believe that? Park, you tell me. This country is shaking over some kid who isn’t even thirty. Why? Who the hell is he?”
“I don’t know, sir. I have no idea why this is happening.”
Kim Hakgwon buried his head in his hands, his face twisted with despair.
“What about Director Lee?”
“He’s on his way to the Blue House. Kim Muhyuk is still waiting at the NIS.”
President Kim Hakgwon said nothing more.
They sat in silence, waiting for NIS Director Lee Chanjong.
“Mr. President, I apologize for being late.”
“Sit. Quickly.”
Unable to contain himself, Kim Hakgwon spoke before Lee could finish his greeting.
“Did you find anything?”
“Both deny firing any weapons. They claim Lee Yonghyeon was already dead when they entered. That’s their testimony.”
“Ridiculous...”
“That’s what they say. We sent agents to Chairman Cheon’s home and Kim Muhyuk’s Myeongdong office, but found nothing.”
Kim Hakgwon’s face twisted in anger.
“Is this all the NIS can do? What are you even good for?”
“We can’t torture people anymore, sir. Information obtained through interrogation alone is limited.”
Lee Chanjong bowed his head.
“We’ve activated every source, but as reported earlier, aside from his ties to Han Kyungyeong and Eva Zhu, we found nothing—same with his U.S. activities.”
Kim Hakgwon’s face flushed with frustration.
“You know what’s happening, don’t you? We arrest Kim Muhyuk, and the country’s thrown into chaos. There has to be something about him. And yet you’ve found nothing?”
“We could push for detention. He was at a shooting scene, after all, and while Han Kyungyeong hired the American mercenaries, Kim Muhyuk clearly used them.”
Kim Hakgwon shook his head.
“That could backfire. The country could default tomorrow. What does Kim Muhyuk say?”
“He answers questions but offers nothing extra. I learned nothing useful. What should we do, sir? Should we resort to... harsher methods?”
At Lee Chanjong’s suggestion, Kim Hakgwon frowned deeply.
Ever since the end of military rule and the rise of democracy, both the previous president and Kim Hakgwon had worked hard to weaken the NIS.
But torturing Kim Muhyuk would undo all that in an instant.
“No. That can’t ever happen again. Is there «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» no other way?”
“We’ll keep gathering intel, but I doubt we’ll find anything soon. I’m sorry.”
Kim Hakgwon felt powerless, hearing this last shred of hope collapse.
Do you know how hard I worked to reach this position?
Neither Park nor Lee could bring themselves to comfort the dejected president.
After a long silence, Kim Hakgwon finally lifted his head.
“Bring Kim Muhyuk to the Blue House. Release all his men being held at the police station.”
“Mr. President!”
Park objected, but Kim Hakgwon shook his head helplessly.
“Do you have any better ideas? If Kim Muhyuk caused this mess, he’s also the only one who can fix it. I need to talk to him.”
“But...”
“The country has to survive first. We can think about the rest later.”
Park bit his lip in frustration. Kim Hakgwon’s expression was no better.
Only Lee Chanjong remained impassive, bowing slightly.
“Bring him immediately.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lee left the office at once.
Park stared at Kim Hakgwon with a dark expression.
“What are you planning?”
“I’ll ask him. Find out what he wants. This didn’t happen in a single day. He predicted we’d react like this and prepared in advance.”
Kim Hakgwon ground his teeth.
About an hour later, Kim Muhyuk entered the Blue House with Lee Chanjong.
“Sit.”
“Yes.”
Walking in with confident steps, Kim Muhyuk sat down.
Kim Hakgwon, looking as if he’d aged years overnight, couldn’t hide the tremor in his eyes.
“Who... who are you, really?”
“I’m Kim Muhyuk, grandson of Cheon Taesan.”
