Chapter 12: Unexpected Meetings

I woke up around lunchtime.

"Ugh!"

My head felt like it was going to split open. I should have drunk more moderately yesterday.

But where am I?

Looking at the comic books scattered on the floor, I realized I was at Taek-gyu's house.

I sat there for a while, trying to gather my thoughts, when Taek-gyu spoke up.

"Did you sleep well? I ordered hamburgers for you to help with your hangover."

"..."

Did you order it just because you wanted to eat it?

If you knew I needed a hangover cure, you should have ordered something like spicy soup or jjambbong!

But since I was in no position to complain, I silently unwrapped the hamburger while sitting on the floor.

"What happened last night?"

"Uh…"

I met my ex-girlfriend and had a vision about something.

I was about to speak but hesitated.

If I said I had foreseen becoming the CEO of OTK Company, wouldn't he misunderstand and think I was trying to take over his company?

I had no intention of doing that, but to avoid misunderstandings, I mumbled instead.

"I don't really remember."

Taek-gyu looked flustered.

"Then what about our oath from last night?"

"What oath?"

"Bro!"

I blocked the flying hamburger bits coming from Taek-gyu's mouth with my hand.

"Okay, let's eat first and talk."

I was hungry since I had been drinking on an empty stomach.

As I peeled off the hamburger wrapper, I asked a practical question.

"Have you ever invested in anything?"

"I haven't, but you have."

Taek-gyu was not familiar with finance. The only reason he had cryptocurrency was that he received it instead of cash when selling online game characters and equipment.

He probably didn't expect that to pay off so well.

Well, if betting on WTI counts as an investment, then it's an investment.

Fortunately, I had some experience with investing.

I joined the "Practical Trading Club" as soon as I enrolled and studied, opening an account to try my hand at investing.

The problem was…

"It was just playing around with 1 million won."

The bigger problem was…

"I lost half of that."

After investing hard, I lost 500,000 won.

That's a whopping -50% return.

"Well, you attended Korea University's business school, so you must have learned something."

"I only attended for a year."

When people hear "business school," they think it's about learning something grand, but in the first year, there are only three major subjects. Even those are just superficial, theoretical contents.

Most of what I know now comes from the activities in the club.

"How much do you have in your account now?"

"About 12,550,000 dollars."

"That's around 1.38 billion won, right?"

"Exactly 1.3 billion if you take out your money."

Thanks to buying WTI, I had made an additional 630,000 dollars.

That's a sum most ordinary people would never even see in their lifetime. What can I do with this money?

In investing, the size of your capital is incredibly important.

To earn 1 billion won from an investment of 10 million won, you need a 1000% return, but with 10 billion won, you only need a 1% return.

That's why Taek-kyu was able to easily make 700 million won from investing in WTI.

Well, having a large capital also means that when you lose, you lose a lot, but...

In any case, it's better than just playing around with small amounts.

"So, what should we start with?"

Taek-gyu was fired up. I had known him since middle school, but I think this is the first time I've seen him so eager.

What's with a guy who has 1.3 billion won wanting to invest?

He could live comfortably just by collecting interest.

"What do you want to do with the money you earn?"

At my question, Taek-gyu blinked at me.

"What do you mean by that?"

There are countless things you can do if you have money. It's just that everyone else lacks the funds.

"Like a nice house or a good car."

"This house is fine, and I like my car."

Taek-gyu eats whatever food is available and wears whatever clothes he finds. He doesn't really spend money except on hobbies.

"Then why do you want to make more money?"

Taek-gyu said it as if it was obvious.

"Money is better the more you have.".

"..."

That's such a valid point that I find it hard to argue against it.

"And it's fun."

Making money is indeed fun. It's when you lose that it becomes not fun.

Then Taek-gyu asked me.

"What about you? Do you have something you want to do with the money you earn?"

"I'll tell you later."

To invest, I first need to have foresight.

I need a hologram to appear in front of me like last time. But I have no idea when or how that will happen.

I recalled the situation from before. It wasn't certain, but it felt like I responded automatically when I encountered certain information.

Can I really foresee things related to finance, as Taek-gyu suggested?

"I need information first."

________________

I told my mother that I would stay at Taek-gyu's house for a while.

For the next few days, I sat in front of the computer and read every economic-related article that came out. I meticulously reviewed large-cap stocks listed on the stock market in order of market capitalization.

Every day, countless pieces of information emerged. In investing, information is just as important as capital.

Stock prices, oil prices, gold prices, exchange rates, and bond yields rose and fell in response to that information.

These days, the disclosure system is well-developed, so institutions and companies are required to post important information.

As a result, with just a few clicks, I could examine all the good and bad news.

The problem is that the information I can access is available to everyone. And information that everyone knows loses its value as information.

Whether it's good news or bad news, prices have already reflected them.

Stocks that are expected to do well had already risen enough, and those that faced bad news had fallen sufficiently.

If I based my trading decisions on disclosed information, I would likely be late to the game.

I needed information that only I knew—like the Mountain Hill bankruptcy or OPEC's production cuts—not information that everyone else was already aware of.

However, after staring at the monitor all day, nothing came to mind.

"Are you getting any reactions?"

"Not at all."

The only thing I learned was that the government's economic policies were a mess and that the economic situation was as tough as it was during the IMF crisis.

"Even if you have a vision, it doesn't mean anything will happen right away. Think slowly."

"..."

Am I being too impatient?

Just as I was pondering this, Taek-gyu spoke.

"But shouldn't we write up a contract first?"

"What contract?"

"A contract stating we'll split the profits fifty-fifty."

"Isn't it only meaningful to have that with someone who's trustworthy?"

That was a good intention on my part.

If he were the type to break promises, he wouldn't have sent me 500 million won in the first place. That's why I wasn't worried about having 800 million won left in Taek-gyu's account.

Still, Taek-gyu insisted on drafting a contract and handed it to me. It stated that he would take full responsibility for any losses, and the profits would be split evenly.

"My sister said the closer you are to someone, the more important it is to make these things clear. You should sign it too."

We each signed two copies of the contract and took one home.

I folded the contract and tucked it into my wallet before turning off the computer and getting up from my seat.

"I think I need a cup of coffee."

When I opened the fridge, I found it stocked with beer, cola, and juice. Unlike me, who loves coffee, Taek-gyu had a principle of only drinking sweet beverages.

No wonder he's gaining weight.

As I debated whether to go out for coffee, my phone rang.

Ding!

It was a number I didn't recognize. Is it spam?

I decided to answer it anyway.

-----

"Hello?"

[Is this the phone of Senior Kang Jin-ho?]

It was a woman's voice.

"Well, yes, but who…?"

[Ah! This is Shin Yoo-ri, senior.]

"Shin Yoo-ri…?"

[Yes. Do you remember me?]

I recalled the freshman I had seen at a drinking party. I recognized her quickly, probably because of her blonde hair.

"How did you get this number?"

This was a new phone number I had activated after my military service, so only a few people knew it.

[I asked Min-young, senior.]

"Oh, I see."

This guy casually sharing other people's private information.

[Are you currently in a particular area?]

"I'm in Gangnam…"

Yoo-ri's voice brightened.

[That's great. I'm in Gangnam too.]

"Really?"

What's so great about that?

[What are you doing right now?]

"I was going out to get coffee."

[Perfect! I was thinking about having coffee too. Would you like to go to a café together?]

"Huh?"

She suddenly wants to meet up? Why?

[Where in Gangnam are you?]

"I'm near the Eonju Station."

[How about Lydia Coffee Lab in Nonhyeon-dong? It should be close to where you are.]

Since I was planning to get coffee anyway, I thought, why not?

"Okay. By when should I get there?"

I hung up the phone and threw on some clothes.

Taek-gyu, who had been gaming, asked.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm just going out for some coffee."

"Get a lunchbox from the convenience store on your way back."

"..."

You have plenty of money; let's eat something good.

_______

The café Yoo-ri mentioned wasn't very far from Taek-gyu's house.

About a 15-minute walk?

After crossing the crosswalk and climbing a hill, I spotted a large building midway up the slope.

Sitting at an outdoor table near the entrance was a woman in her early twenties wearing a padded jacket. Her slim legs were visible beneath a short skirt and tights.

As she brushed her hair back and looked at her smartphone, she stood up quickly when I approached and greeted me.

"Hello, senior!"

"Oh, hi."

I raised my hand in greeting.

In the warm sunlight, her hair shimmered golden.

It's rare to see such a flashy hairstyle among students in the business school. The atmosphere at Korea University is quite conservative, and the professors are strict, making it feel somewhat intimidating.

I hadn't been able to see her clearly in the dim lighting before, but now, under the bright light, she was quite beautiful. I could see why Kyung-il was so friendly toward her.

By the way, why did she want to meet up?