Chapter 113: Why? What is that guy to cause all this?

“How far ahead is Mu-hyeok planning? It’s seriously impressive.”

After ending the call with Kim Mu-hyeok, Han Gyeong-yeong sook his head in disbelief and immediately contacted Secretary Rubin.

“Secretary, I’m ready to proceed with what I asked of you earlier. Once the Korean government surrenders, we’ll revert everything back to normal.”

― Did the Korean government really do something like that?

Han Gyeong-yeong chuckled at Rubin’s question, having already dealt with Korean politicians and journalists.

“Of course, it’s the Korean government. They’re soft when it comes to foreigners, but when it’s their own people, they think we’re fools.”

Rubin hesitated for a moment before responding.

― This can’t drag out. The economic collapse in Korea and Japan is already causing serious side effects. It’s even rippling over to the U.S.

“They’ll surrender soon enough.”

― Understood. I’ll also join in the pressure.

“Thank you, Secretary.”

After hanging up, Han Gyeong-yeong muttered to himself.

“That bastard’s making more profit than us, yet he still acts like this. Disgusting.”

Rubin was right.

The economic crisis in East Asia was far more severe than it had been in the original timeline, likely due to Japan’s deeper collapse.

Russia was hit the hardest.

In the end, Russia had to turn to the IMF for help.

“This isn’t the time to be distracted.”

Han Gyeong-yeong reached out to the Wall Street executives who had profited from the attack on Japan.

They agreed to pull all their funds from Korea’s markets in the afternoon session.

“Let’s see how long Kim Hak-gwon can hold out.”

The U.S. government had offered Kim Mu-hyeok various benefits ifhe moved to America, but Mu-hyeok had declined, saying it was too soon.

Staring absentmindedly at the dark night sky outside his office, Han Gyeong-yeong finally left the building.

“Alright! Let’s do this. Pull all funds from Korea in one sweep. Let’s work hard today and take tomorrow off!”

“Yes, sir!”

The traders sitting at their computers responded eagerly, turning their attention to their monitors.

* * *

President Kim Hak-gwon was waiting for his call with Bill Gates. The scheduled time had already passed.

“What’s going on? Why hasn’t the call connected yet?”

“We received word that he’s in an emergency meeting and apologizes for the delay.”

“What? What could possibly be more important than an appointment with a president?”

“I’m not sure either, sir…”

Chief Secretary Park Won-seop lowered his head apologetically.

Kim Hak-gwon frowned in displeasure but then let out a sigh.

“Sigh… So, we won’t be connecting today?”

“They said they’ll get back to us as soon as possible.”

“Alright. What about Director Lee? Any word?”

“I believe he’s still working on it.”

“What about the investigation into the Americans?”

“All testimonies are consistent. None of them saw Kim Mu-hyeok use a gun. It was oly the Cheongpung Group and the Americans who fired, and that’s when the casualties occurred. Every mercenary’s statement matches.”

Kim Hak-gwon scoffed.

“What does that even matter? We’re not trying to put them on trial; we’re looking to put a leash on them.”

“If Kim Mu-hyeok had personally killd Lee Yong-hyun, things would be much simpler. But it’s hard to control the narrative when he was just there at the scene.”

“Chief Park, the truth doesn’t matter. You understand what I’m saying, right?”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

Once a champion of democracy, President Kim Hak-gwon was becoming just like the politicians he had once vowed to reform.

But the real problem started when Bill Gates finally called the Blue House.

“Mr. President, Bill Gates has just gotten in touch. You have about an hour free, so should I connect the call?”

After some hesitation, President Kim Hak-gwon instructed them to connect the call.

― Hello, this is Bill Gates. I apologize for the delay; something urgent came up.

“No problem. These things happen. But I’m a busy man too.”

― Yes, I’m sorry for the inconvenience.

As the call dragged on, Kim Hak-gwon’s expression grew more and more displeased.

It felt like Bill Gates was either distracted or had little interest in the conversation, responding half-heartedly to everything.

“I’ve been having a lot of concerns lately. We’re doing our best to restructure under the IMF’s system, but it feels like foreign investors have lost interest in Korea.”

― Mr. President…

Bill Gates mumbled something under his breath, as if he had something on his mind.

Kim Hak-gwon didn’t catch it and continued speaking.

“I’d appreciate any advice you could offer. What do you think the future holds for the Korean economy? As someone leading the new era, I’m sure you have valuable insights.”

― …I thought the Korean economy would recover quickly.

Bill Gates’ words were in the past tense.

President Kim Hak-gwon noticed that and was about to ask when Bill Gates spoke again.

― Do you know of a man named Kim Mu-hyeok?

“Kim Mu-hyeok?”

President Kim Hak-gwon repeated the name in surprise.

It was the last name he expected to hear from Bill Gates.

After a brief pause, Bill Gates spoke in a reluctant tone.

― I’ve just come from an emergency meeting after receiving reports of unusual activity on Wall Street. They’re planning to pull all the funds they have invested in Korea.

“What?!”

President Kim Hak-gwon couldn’t believe his ears.

― The Korean government’s actions toward Kim Mu-hyeok have negatively affcted American investors.

“What on earth does that mean?”

― When investors decide where to put their money, the first thing they look at is the political climate. The economy is driven by policy. No one’s going to invest in a country where the government oppresses its business leaders.

“Wait, what does Wall Street have to do with Kim Mu-hyeok?”

― Who he is or what he does isn’t important. What matters is that he can move Wall Street.

President Kim Hak-gwon was at a loss for words.

After a long silence, Bill Gates sighed and added one final remark.

― The times have changed. Money is more powerful than any weapon. Wall Street can even influence U.S. politics. The Korean government has made a grave mistake in making an enemy of Kim Mu-hyeok.

“But Kim Mu-hyeok is just a young manin his twenties. Sure, I’ve heard he’s close to James Han, but…”

― I’m just sharing the information I have. It’s probably already in motion.

At that moment, Chief Secretary Park Won-seop burst into the room.

“What’s going on? How dare you barge in like this…”

“There’s a major crisis! Foreign capital is suddenly pouring out of the country. The stock market is in a panic, and the dollar… it’s skyrocketing again!”

President Kim Hak-gwon’s mind went blank.

― I wish Korea’s economy the best of luck.

Bill Gates said something else over the phone, but it didn’t register.

Kim Hak-gwon couldn’t respond before the call was disconnected.

Chief Secretary Park called out to the stunned president.

“Mr. President!”

“Say that again… What’s going on?”

“It could be worse than last year’s foreign exchange crisis. Back then, the money trickled out slowly, but now it’s all leaving at once.”

“Why? Why is this happening?”

“I don’t know, sir.”

Just then, word came that the Chief Economic Advisor had arrived.

As soon as he entered the office, the advisor spoke in a grim tone.

“Mr. President, the U.S. just informed us they’re delaying the dollar support they promised.”

“What? Who said that?”

“It came directly from the Treasury Department.”

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know, but if the U.S. doesn’t provide the funds they promised, we could be facing a national default. The market is already in panic, and foreign investors are following Wall Street’s lead, pulling their money out of Korea.”

“Is there any solution? Any countermeasure?”

The Chief Economic Advisor shook his head with a grim expression.

“Mr. President, the only option we have left is to ask for more loans. It’s humiliating, but that’s the reality we’re facing.”

At those words, President Kim Hak-gwon felt all the strength drain from his body.

“What on earth is happening?”

His despairing words echoed through the presidential office.

But this was just the beginning.

Investors from Europe, including the UK, also began pulling their funds from Korea, following Wall Street’s lead and waiting to see how the situation would unfold.

By the end of the afternoon session, Korean stocks had fallen over 10%, and the exchange rate, which had been stabilizing, suddenly shot back up to 1,800 won per dollar.

“Both Han Gyeong-yeong and Eva Zhu have said they’re reconsidering their acquisitions. The Je-seong Bank deal is set for next month, but they want to re-evaluate it. The Jungwoo Group acquisition is also back to square one, with negotiations starting from scratch.”

“Ha… haha…”

President Kim Hak-gwon let out a bitter laugh.

“All of this… because of Kim Mu-hyeok? You expect me to blieve that one young man not even thirty years old has caused all of this? Chief Park, explain this to me. Who is this guy? What is he that he can shake the entire country?”

“I have no idea, sir. I can’t understand why this is happening either.”

President Kim Hak-gwon buried his head in his hands, his expression one of utter defeat.

“What about Director Lee?”

“He’s on his way to the Blue House. Kim Mu-hyeok is currently being eld at the National Intelligence Service.”

President Kim Hak-gwon said nothing more.

In silence, they waited for National Intelligence Director Lee Chan-jong to arrive.

“I apologize for being late, sir.”

“Sit down, quickly.”

In his urgency, President Kim Hak-gwon spoke before the pleasantries were over.

“Did you find anything?”

“Both men claim they didn’t fire any shots. According to their testimony, Lee Yong-hyun was already dead when they entered the scene.”

“That doesn’t even make sense…”

“That’s what they’re saying. We also sent agents to Chairman Cheontae’s residence and Kim Mu-hyeok’s office in Myeong-ong, but we haven’t found anything.”

Kim Hak-gwon’s face twisted in frustration.

“Is this the best the National Intelligence Service can do? What are you even good for?”

“We can’t use torture like in the old days, so the information we can get through interrogation is limited.”

Lee Chan-jong lowered his head.

“We’ve activated every information network we have, but as I reported earlier, the only thing we’ve confirmed is that Kim Mu-hyeok is connected to HanGyeong-yeong and Eva Zhu. His activities in the U.S. are just as unclear.”

Kim Hak-gwon’s face turned red with anger as things continued to go wrong.

“You know what’s happening right now, don’t you? We pull in Kim Mu-hyeok, and everything goe to hell. There has to be something about him. And you’re telling me you’ve found nothing?”

“We could push for his arrest. After all, he was present at the scene of the shootout, and even though the mercenaries were hired under Han Gyeong-yeong’s name, it’s clear Kim Mu-hyeok was the one using tem.”

Kim Hak-gwon shook his head in frustration.

“If we do that, who knows what’ll happen. We might push the country into bankruptcy. What has Kim Mu-hyeok said?”

“He’s not saying much. He only answers questions when asked, but he hasn’t offered any other information. It’s frustrating because we haven’t been able to learn anything. What should we do, sir? Should we try to pressure him with force?”

At Director Lee’s suggestion, Kim Hak-gwon furrowed his brow.

Ever since the military regime had fallen and democracy had taken hold, both the previous president and Kim Hak-gwon himself had worked hard to weaken the National Intelligence Service’s power.

But if they tortured Kim Mu-hyeok, all that progress ould be undone in an instant.

“No, we can’t let that happen again. There has to be another way.”

“We’ll continue gathering information, but for now, I don’t think we’ll find anything new. I’m sorry, sir.”

The words of the National Intelligence Director, their last hope, left President Kim Hak-gwon feeling utterly powerless.

“I’ve worked so hard to get to this position…”

Neither the Chief Secretary nor the Director of the National Intelligence Service could find the right words to comfort the deeply discouraged president.

After a long silence, President Kim Hak-gwon finally raised his head.

“Summon Kim Mu-hyeok to the Blue House. elease his subordinates from the police station as well.”

“Mr. President!”

Chief Secretary Park Won-seop protested, but Kim Hak-gwon shook his head, resigned.

“What other option do we have? If Kim Mu-hyeok is behind all of ths, then he’s the only one who can fix it. We need to talk to him.”

“But…”

“The country has to survive before we can plan for the future.”

Chief Secretary Park bit his lip in frustration. His expression remained composed, but inside, he was just as disheartened as the president.

Only Lee Chan-jong kept his emotions hidden as he nodded in agreement.

“Bring him in immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

Though he had barely sat down, Lee Chan-jong wasted no time leaving the office.

Chief Secretary Park looked at President Kim Hak-gwon with a troubled expression.

“What are you planning to do?”

“We’ll hear him out. What could he possibly want from me? There’s no way all this happened in less than a day. He must’ve anticipated this and prepared in advance.”

President Kim Hak-gwon gritted his teeth in frustration.

About an hour later, Kim Mu-hyeok arrived at the BlueHouse with Director Lee Chan-jong.

“Take a seat.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kim Mu-hyeok walked in confidenty and sat down.

President Kim Hak-gwon, who looked like he had aged several years in just a few hours, couldn’t hide the uncertainty in his eyes.

“Who are you, really?”

“I’m Kim Mu-hyeok, the grandson of Chon Tae-san.”