Money Keeps Piling Up No Matter How Much I Spend

Chapter 110

Translator: Dreamscribe"The positions? Did you secure them all?"

“Yes. We barely managed to meet the three-month deadline.”

The National Pension Service moved frantically for three months according to their plan, selling all their assets and using them to take short positions.

An ultra-massive position amounting to 700 trillion won.

Even if they were targeting the entire global market.

Digesting 700 trillion won in just three months was certainly not an easy task.

Because to take short positions, someone first had to buy the shares being sold. If there was no liquidity, taking positions would be impossible.

“But this time, that part wasn’t very difficult. Everyone is rushing into the stock market like crazy right now. We didn’t need to worry about liquidity. The problem was something else.”

The financial market was experiencing an unprecedented boom.

Even as they disposed of assets and took positions, global markets continued to rise, and from the NPS’s perspective, it was agonizing.

“The momentum is frightening. At this rate, the U.S. stock market is expected to hit an all-time high soon.”

“It’s not just the U.S. Europe is about to break through the ceiling too. Every market is in a full-on bull run.”

Was someone doing a hidden-camera prank?

The moment the National Pension Service took short positions, it was as if everyone had been waiting to push stock prices up.

And not just one market, but the entire global market.

“Didn’t the WHO declare a state of emergency because of that Wuhan pneumonia or whatever it is?”

“Yes. But there was no stopping a market that had already surged to its limits. As if nothing was happening.”

The Wuhan pneumonia situation was more serious than expected.

The city of Wuhan, with a population of 11 million, was locked down.

Not only that, but infected cases were popping up in other countries as well.

The WHO hadn’t declared a state of emergency for nothing.

At that time, Chairman Choi thought this was the beginning of the financial crisis Jung Jin-ho had spoken about.

But what was this?

Instead of collapsing, the stock market was piercing the sky.

“Chairman. We need to stop now.”

Executives had reached their limit.

“If we go any further, the prime broker will demand additional margin. But we’ve already scattered money all over the world, so we can’t provide any more.”

It wasn’t as if all 700 trillion won had been put into shorts.

Because they needed margin.

There were ways to minimize margin using complex financial products and systems, but even those had limits.

With stock prices rising this steeply, multiple financial firms would start pressuring for additional margin.

But if they held out without posting it?

“Then we face forced liquidation.”

“......If we take a stop loss now, how much do we lose?”

“We’ll have to accept a 7–10% loss. But if we miss the timing here, it will become uncontrollable.”

10%.

Tens of trillions of won would evaporate instantly.

In this dizzying situation, Chairman Choi closed his eyes.

‘Should we cut our losses now?’

Tens of trillions of won had already been lost.

They had effectively accelerated the depletion of the pension fund.

The hopes of future generations were crushed as well.

Because of the chairman’s stubbornness and selfishness.

'I- I am the one who destroyed the future of Korea.'

“.......”

Chairman Choi, head lowered in self-loathing, let out a deep sigh.

Finally, was this old man going to bend his stubborn will?

“Let’s hold on a little longer.”

“C-Chairman!!”

“You all know it already. It’s too late to turn back.”

“It’s not too late yet! We said 10%, but that’s the worst-case number due to volatility. We’ll try our best to limit losses to 6%!”

But even so, nothing fundamentally changed.

The moment they took short positions, they had already made their resolve.

Either return in glory, or all die together here.

“At this point, we have to go all the way.”

Although he spoke confidently, Chairman Choi’s hands were trembling.

His lips were drying up, and he couldn’t sleep at all.

Had he really made the wrong choice?

As he regretted it a hundred times over and blamed himself.

“Ah.......”

At last, the U.S. stock market hit an all-time high.

The highest record in history.

And at the same time, calls from the financial firms acting as prime brokers, who had spread the National Pension Service’s money across the world, poured in like a storm.

They were pressuring him to post more margin.

They stated clearly that if funds weren’t deposited within a few days, they would forcibly liquidate the positions.

“.......”

The executives no longer urged the chairman.

They too already knew it was too late to unwind the positions.

All they could do was sit there blankly, waiting for the forced liquidation and watching hundreds of trillions vanish into thin air.

“.......”

Just when they were kneeling at the guillotine, waiting for execution.

“It, it burst!”

The executives, who hadn’t even been able to go home, rushed into the Chairman’s Office shouting roughly.

“Wh-What is it?!”

“It burst, Chairman!”

“What? What burst?”

“The global stock market! After hitting an all-time high, it’s suddenly crashing heavily!”

“What?”

Had the peak been its final flare?

Right after that, every stock market around the world began plunging straight down.

“Wh-What on earth is happening?”

“There are reports of infections exploding in multiple countries. The Wuhan pneumonia’s transmission speed is extreme, so nations are beginning to shut their borders one by one. And above all, rumors are spreading that the WHO is about to declare a pandemic, and that seems to be having a huge impact.”

“Pandemic?”

“It means acknowledging that the disease has reached a level beyond an emergency, practically uncontrollable. Declaring a pandemic means every country, including ours, would have to close its borders.”

“!?”

The chairman, after years in the financial markets, instantly grasped the situation.

“If that happens...... isn’t that the Great Depression?”

“Yes. We thought it was just another passing contagion since the market barely reacted. But it looks like this is serious. Judging by how violently all markets are shaking.”

“Thailand has already shut its borders, and they’re banning gatherings, from workplaces to schools.”

Border closures and restrictions on people’s movements.

All because of an infectious disease!

The economic impact of such measures would be unimaginable.

Which was exactly why the financial markets were shaking.

“What about our stocks?”

“They’re all falling. At this terrifying speed, we might even be able to realize profits today. Of course, disposing of everything will still take time.”

"What if this is a one-time drop?"

“That’s entirely possible. Which is why we need to dispose quickly while profits are still realizable.”

So this was what it felt like to go from hell to heaven.

The problem was, nobody knew how long this situation would last.

Which meant they needed to dump everything and escape faster than anyone else.

But.

“This isn’t our decision to make.”

“Sir?”

“This entire investment was only possible thanks to Kwangwoon. So the timing for when we close the positions is something Kwangwoon must already know.”

“Ah-.”

The executives nodded.

The start of all this was Kwangwoon.

“But...... did Kwangwoon actually foresee this?”

“How could he have known a virus would spread worldwide?”

“It is strange. After the collapse of the UK stock market, Kwangwoon snatched up that pharmaceutical company, right? And a few months before this incident blew up, he told us to take massive short positions.”

“So what, are you saying Kwangwoon is directly involved in this virus?”

Hearing the executives murmuring, the chairman raised his hand.

“Tsk. Stop there. That’s an absurd conspiracy theory.”

“B-But the timing is way too perfect.......”

“So you think Kwangwoon personally created the virus and spread it? Of course not. More likely, he detected this virus earlier than others. He foresaw its danger. That’s why he prepared this insane operation.”

When put that way, it indeed sounded plausible.

The speed at which major securities firms obtain information was said to be faster than even the National Intelligence Service.

“If that was the case, I wish they had at least given us a heads-up.”

“Even if they had told us, it would’ve only made things awkward. And we have no connection to Kwangwoon whatsoever. Everyone, keep that in mind. And all of these investment decisions were made solely by me, so make sure people know that.”

“C-Chairman.”

They all understood why he was saying that.

Was he trying to take all the credit alone if the investment succeeded?

No. No matter how much money they earned from this, someone would have to take responsibility for this crisis.

And the chairman intended to shoulder all of it himself.

“You don’t need to see it like that. I was prepared for this even before we started. So stop standing around and get moving. No matter what happens, we must succeed with this investment.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

Only after the executives left did the chairman finally relax, and his legs gave out, trembling.

At last, one burden was off his shoulders.

But it might truly be just a one-time crash.

Yet why.

Why did he keep feeling that this was only the beginning?

***

Before the media learned the truth about the Wuhan pneumonia.

WHO sent official letters to pharmaceutical companies.

A request asking if they could develop a vaccine for a specific virus.

Since it came completely out of the blue, pharmaceutical companies hesitated.

From their perspective, being asked to develop a vaccine without being promised any separate support funding meant they had to worry about costs.

But AstraZenon, which our Kwangwoon had acquired, began vaccine development faster than anyone. They received every piece of virus-related information the WHO provided.

“CEO-nim. Italy has begun a full lockdown.”

“Heh. Italy too? Then basically every country in the EU could end up closing its borders.”

The first country to shut its borders quickly was North Korea.

Other countries initially began by banning entry for foreigners arriving from China.

“At the time, everyone must have thought it would die down quickly.”

But once the virus started spreading, its transmission speed far exceeded predictions.

Countless people began getting infected, and governments realized it wasn’t something that could be solved by just blocking travelers from China.

Then, the final decisive blow was dealt.

“Wow....... even the United States.”

The U.S. escalated its response to level 4, effectively stopping entry for foreign nationals from nearly all countries.

The U.S. had closed its borders.

“How much is the U.S. stock market down now?”

“-20%. At this rate, -30% will happen soon. They say this is the fastest crash in stock market history.”

The current crash was reportedly the fastest ever.

Even during the Great Depression, stocks didn’t fall this quickly.

That was how terrified everyone was.

“This is the first time a virus has spread like this, and the first time borders have been closed.”

So everyone had no choice but to fall into panic.

“Was pneumonia really this terrifying of a contagious disease?”

“Ah. We’re not supposed to call it Wuhan pneumonia anymore. They say to call it the coronavirus.”

“Why?”

“You know. China is a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The WHO is trying to stay on their good side.”

China strongly denied that the Wuhan pneumonia virus originated from their country.

Ironically, the first report of the virus came from China, and China was also the first to provide the viral genome sequence to pharmaceutical companies.

Everyone knew the truth, yet everyone pretended not to.... a situation strangely funny and not funny at all.

“Anyway, AstraZenon immediately started vaccine development, and it seems they’re making significant progress. Other vaccine companies say it will take at least a year, but we might finish in three months.”

“But even if development finishes in three months, we can’t distribute it immediately, right?”

“Correct. Each country has to approve it. Normally vaccine development takes over 10 years.”

The average time for vaccine development is about 15 years.

Vaccine development itself takes about three years, but clinical trials alone take more than ten.

And receiving governmental approval takes two to three years.

Because of that, pharmaceutical companies were initially negative about developing a vaccine.

It simply took far too long.

That was how mRNA technology came to be.

Using this technology, the vaccine development period, originally around three years, could be shortened to several months, and with further advancements, even to a few days.

However, the real problem was still clinical trials and governmental approvals.

Those alone required at least two to three years.

“But even that might be resolved quickly. The virus transmission speed is far beyond everyone’s expectations, so unless a vaccine is made as soon as possible, there won’t be an answer. There are already talks that the WHO, in cooperation with the UN, is preparing to approve vaccines at maximum speed.”

In other words, the race was about to begin.

Once the UN reached an agreement, every pharmaceutical company would dive into vaccine development and production.

Who would finish development first and begin distribution?

That was the key.

“The fortunate part is that thanks to CEO-nim's long-term investment in mRNA technology, no company can keep up with AstraZenon. And since AstraZenon owns many factories, if we dedicate them all to vaccine production.......”

Department Head Seo’s voice trembled slightly.

“We’ll be able to supply the entire world quickly. If so, we may set the highest profit in pharmaceutical history.”

Other major pharmaceutical companies were also developing mRNA technology.

But none were pouring in investment capital anywhere near our level.

That was where the difference emerged.

“Report AstraZenon’s vaccine development status to me every single day without fail.”

“Yes, CEO-nim. But...... what about our short positions? Will they really fall further from here?”

I placed my hand lightly over the U.S. stock market chart in the report.

“......!”

A sharp sensation pierced through my fingertips.

A signal that it would fall even further.

It already looked like it had fallen enough, yet it would drop more.

Just how far would it go?

“For now, hold. Ah, and there’s one more thing I need you to look into.”

“Ah, yes. Please tell me.”

"It's......."

***

Kwangwoon Shipping had no major work since being forcibly dismantled by the EU.

As per Jung Jin-ho’s instructions, they maintained only the bare minimum operations; everyone was simply receiving their salaries while doing essentially nothing.

“.......”

Naturally, people gradually began feeling anxious.

At first, they thought a rebound opportunity might come someday, but as time passed, they began living with the fear that they might be laid off during the next restructuring.

“Phew-.”

The most stressed among them was CEO Kim Doo-young.

Recently, he couldn’t even sleep at night without alcohol.

Maybe he should just quit now?

Some would say getting paid this much while doing nothing was great, but Kim Doo-young’s conscience and pride had long since been dragging along the floor.

[CEO Kim?]

“Ah, yes. CEO Jung. It’s me.”

Today, he would finally say it.

That he intended to resign.

He opened his mouth.

[Perfect timing. I was just about to contact you.]

“Huh?”

Was he about to fire him personally?

[It’s time to start working again.]

“......?”

But it wasn’t that.

[Don’t you think it’s time we take back the companies that were taken from us?]