Chapter 226: Was There Another Intention?

It was a message to meet in Italy.

But it was instead a notification to meet at my mansion in Russia.

On the day we were supposed to meet, a light rain fell over Russia.

As I watched the raindrops spread over the window, I suddenly asked,

“Have you received any messages?”

Manager Ma, who had been waiting, replied.

“They’ve just arrived at the airport and will be here shortly.”

I nodded and raised my coffee cup. My heart churned darkly, but my reflection in the cup remained composed.

At that moment, the phone in the mansion rang.

Igor, who had been waiting next to Manager Ma, answered the call.

“Please hold on a moment.”

Igor turned to me while covering the handset with his hand.

“It’s Medvedev.”

I slowly reached out and took the handset.

“This is Kim Mu-hyeok.”

— Mr. Kim, it’s Medvedev.

“Yes, Chairman.”

— The identities of the arrivals have been confirmed.

As soon as they entered Russia, all their movements were under FSB surveillance.

For Putin, it was also an opportunity to accurately assess their true nature.

— This is Lorenze Medici, head of the Medici family. While I hold no official title, I am known to control more than 50% of Italy’s industry. Our intelligence has been watching him closely.

“If the head of the family is involved, it must be urgent, right?”

As time passed, the losses were theirs to bear.

The historic crash has ceased, now alternating between rises and falls. However, the evident trend is downward.

— This is our first time seeing him in person, not just in photos. I believe we can gather a lot of information.

Choosing Russia as the meeting place was not only for my safety but also to gather intelligence on them.

While finishing the call with Medvedev, I was notified by the security team at the entrance.

“Boss, they’ve arrived.”

“Let them in.”

“Yes.”

Igor went out to fetch them.

— They’ve arrived. We just got the report. Our agents will be monitoring the area. There will be no wiretapping.

“Understood.”

— Then let’s stay in touch later.

I hung up and got up to move to the reception room.

A little while later, Igor walked into the reception room with the guests.

I stood to greet them.

“I’m Kim Mu-hyeok.”

As I extended my hand, one man stepped forward.

He was a fair-skinned man with a well-groomed beard. He removed his sunglasses and shook my hand.

“I’m Lorenze Medici.”

I had never held anything heavier than a pen in my life, yet Lorenze’s hand surprisingly bore calluses.

“Please, have a seat.”

This was not a reception room but rather my study.

I offered one of the two armchairs facing each other near the window.

Behind me stood Manager Ma and Igor, while two large bodyguards stood behind Lorenze.

“Is coffee alright for you?”

“Of course, I like it.”

Lorenze replied with a warm smile on his face.

Soon, two coffee cups were placed on the small table in front of us.

Watching the steam rise from my cup, I broke the silence.

“So, what’s the reason for wanting to meet?”

Lorenze lifted his coffee cup without showing even a hint of surprise at the straightforward question.

“This is good coffee. What’s the rush? Wouldn’t it be better to share a cup and get to know each other?”

I smiled back at Lorenze, enjoying the aroma of the coffee.

“Sure, no urgency. How about we each ask one question and answer?”

“That sounds like a good idea.”

Despite appearing casual, his gestures were quite assertive, even considering he came from Italy.

“Since you made the suggestion, I’ll go first.”

“Go ahead. Ask your question.”

I nodded readily.

“How did you know? About the currency crisis in Mexico and the one in East Asia?”

“I just analyzed it. Many others succeeded in investing at that time besides me.”

Lorenze chuckled lightly, shaking his head.

“That’s not the kind of answer I expected. You bet everything on it, multiple times even. It’s as if you knew the future.”

There was an odd certainty in his tone.

But there was no evidence anywhere in this world that I could know the future.

“Bet everything? How can you be so sure? I’ve never bet everything; I only invest in what I believe in. I was surprised this time too; the Nasdaq’s increase was steeper than I expected. The decline was also slower than anticipated.”

“······I’ve already investigated everything about you.”

“People often don’t understand their own hearts. I don’t know myself, so how can you claim to know everything about me?”

Lorenze scrutinized my face as if searching for lies in my words and gaze.

I simply raised my cup and took a sip of coffee.

“Now it’s my turn to ask a question.”

Not satisfied with my answer, Lorenze slightly shook his head. His gaze bore into me, as if demanding a response.

“Even if I try to explain, I can’t. Investing is an act of analysis and intuition. It’s just the output of James Han’s analysis and my gut feeling, that’s all. By the way, you also made considerable profits during the East Asian currency crisis, right? Surely you don’t genuinely believe I can foresee the future?”

“That’s…”

He fell silent, as if unsure how to respond.

“Alright. Go ahead and ask your question.”

Finally, Lorenze nodded. I set my coffee cup down.

“You must have expected the Nasdaq would decline. So why did you go to such lengths to accept our offered contract?”

According to the information provided by Putin, they had manipulated all capital market movements at their will.

However, it seemed they didn’t instigate the steep rise in technology stocks in the Nasdaq.

Technological advancement doesn’t always operate on their terms.

A system was created that allowed buying and selling stocks anytime from home via a computer instead of by phone order, and a new investment approach called day trading emerged.

The bubble was formed by them, venture capitalists, and founders of IT companies. Investors on Wall Street had no choice but to follow their lead.

They didn’t create the game. They had no reason to accept such a large contract with the associated risks.

Lorenze nodded knowingly at this question.

“The terms of the contract from Future Investment were simply too favorable for us to ignore. There was no reason not to accept. Honestly, I didn’t expect it to drop enough to trigger that option.”

“I too didn’t anticipate that there would be someone willing to accept such wildly excessive contracts, as you did.”

The capital of UT Investment Bank, one of the top in Italy, was truly staggering.

If they were on the verge of bankruptcy, it was hard to fathom the extent of their losses from this contract.

“That’s a hindsight analysis. We’ve made tremendous gains. Although, I did lose quite a bit from the profits seen before.”

“Was there another intention behind this? Were you trying to bring me to ruin?”

“Hahaha.”

At that, Lorenze suddenly burst into laughter.

“You really are an interesting person.”

“Interesting?”

“Do you really think we accepted such a major contract just for your downfall?”

Contrary to his seemingly innocent smile, his eyes mocked me.

“Don’t overestimate yourself. Do you think a family that’s endured for centuries would care about you?”

His provocative tone caused my expression to harden.

“You speak so casually, yet your family has reached the brink of bankruptcy.”

“Do you think we would go bankrupt over such minor losses? No way.”

“Well then, let’s see how long you can hold out. Aren’t you curious how low the Nasdaq will drop? I’ll hold out too.”

The previously genial atmosphere chilled abruptly.

I felt the bodyguards behind me tense up at the sudden shift.

“Why are you getting so worked up?”

Lorenzes shrugged, seemingly joking.

“Let’s stop probing and get to the point. What’s the reason for wanting to meet?”

“To get to the point…”

He trailed off, stroking his beard.

Watching his face, which attempted to feign nonchalance, I saw his smile fade.

“Are you perhaps thinking of joining forces with me?”

“Join forces?”

His expression was quite serious.

“If you combine your intuition with my abilities, I believe we can achieve great results. What do you say?”

Lorenze referred to ‘me’ instead of ‘us.’

Me, not us.

“Did you come as an envoy?”

Lorenze’s expression stiffened.

“I mean the organization you are part of.”

“······How did you know?”

“If you know me, do you think I wouldn’t know you?”

In that moment, Lorenze threw away the mask he had been wearing.

What remained was no longer the friendly Italian but a powerful figure controlling the world economy.

“Even if you know, don’t speak of it. You could end up dead without anyone realizing it.”

“Are you threatening me now?”

“It’s advice. Putin likely informed you, but even if you know, try not to act like you do. He is someone we can’t deal with, but you aren’t.”

I met his cold gaze with tranquility.

“Do you think I wouldn’t be able to kill you?”

In Russia, and in this place, I could take your life without hesitation.

However, Lorenze remained unfazed by my words.

“You might be able to kill me. But if you do, all those around you will die. James Han in the U.S., Eva Zhu in Japan, and even your family in Korea.”

“But in that moment, you’d also have to brace yourself. I’ll erase you, your family, and everyone connected to you from this world in any way I can.”

Silence enveloped the study momentarily.

The cold sound of rain and the slight rattling of the window from the wind.

The oppressive silence shattered as Lorenze exhaled.

“Let’s stop these unnutritious threats. My coming here shows sincerity. I said it was a warning, but it’s advice.”

“If I hadn’t come in person, I would have had no reason to meet you. If I had tried to send someone else, today’s meeting wouldn’t have happened.”

Lorenze nodded.

“That’s why I came myself. I’ll dismiss all my bodyguards and we can speak alone.”

I glanced at Manager Ma and Igor standing behind me.

Igor’s jaw tightened, aware of the freezing tension in the room.

“They’re people I trust.”

“Of course, I trust my bodyguards too. But the fewer people that know about what we discuss from here on, the better.”

If it were just Manager Ma, I might have refused, but I couldn’t wholly trust Igor.

“Alright. Let’s send everyone away and talk just the two of us.”

The bodyguards turned and exited the room.

I stood up casually and pulled the curtains to block the window.

Now, it was impossible for someone to observe our lips from afar with binoculars.

As I sat down again, Lorenze, who had been watching, opened his mouth.

“You referred to me as ‘me’ instead of ‘us.'”