Wan Chai, Hong Kong
On the northern coast of Hong Kong Island, where countless skyscrapers stood tall, one particular landmark dominated the skyline—Central Plaza.
With its towering spire, Central Plaza was an imposing 78-story skyscraper standing 373.9 meters high. At the time, it was the tallest building in Asia, renowned for its grandeur.
During the day, the facade—adorned with hundreds of tons of granite and multicolored reinforced glass—was a striking sight. But it was at night that its true beauty emerged.
The building's exterior was lined with over a thousand neon lights, creating a mesmerizing nightscape that left onlookers in awe.
On the 43rd floor of this prestigious tower sat the Hong Kong branch of Donghae Group.
"You may go in now."
At the secretary's words, spoken in fluent English, Manager Oh Sang-hyun stood up from the sofa, straightened his suit, and stepped into the inner office.
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, a breathtaking view of the azure sea stretched out before him.
White yachts drifted gracefully on the water, their reflections shimmering under the bright sunlight.
At the luxurious mahogany desk, Woo Ho-geun sat, dressed in a tailored suit and wearing a blue tie embroidered with a luxury brand's logo. He looked up, acknowledging Oh Sang-hyun's presence.
"How have you been, Chief?"
Oh Sang-hyun bowed politely.
"It's hardly been pleasant—I might as well be in exile."
Woo Ho-geun's voice carried a mocking edge, leaving Oh momentarily speechless and uncomfortable.
"Sit down."
"Yes, sir."
Woo gestured with his chin toward the sofa, and Oh quickly obeyed, seating himself to the left.
Stepping away from his desk, Woo settled into the center seat, pulling out a cigarette and placing it between his lips.
Oh, anticipating the gesture, immediately lit the cigarette with a flick of his lighter.
Without a word of thanks, Woo leaned back, exhaling a stream of white smoke, his eyes fixed on Oh.
"The Boseong Telecom matter—it's been handled, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
Oh Sang-hyun leaned forward, ready to give his detailed report.
"It's been established that Section Chief Son Oh-seung and Manager Jo Cheol-rae acted on their own, unrelated to the company. They got greedy and attempted stock manipulation using client funds."
Woo Ho-geun let out a dry chuckle.
"Even with the best lawyers, it would've been tough to avoid prison time, especially with the Financial Supervisory Service making such a spectacle out of the case. Yet, they managed to keep their mouths shut."
"I heard that the former Chief Secretary personally stepped in."
At the mention of Jeon Hae-cheol, his father's closest aide, Woo Ho-geun smirked.
"He's annoyingly meddlesome, but I'll give him this—he gets things done."
He turned his gaze back to Oh Sang-hyun.
"So, does that mean I can go back now?"
"Well…."
At Oh's hesitant response, Woo Ho-geun frowned, already knowing the answer.
"Let me guess—my father told you to keep me locked up here until I 'come to my senses.'"
"The incident only happened recently, and the trial isn't over yet. I believe he just wants to be cautious. Besides, since you're already out here, he might want you to take advantage of Hong Kong's status as a global financial hub—to learn and grow."
Oh Sang-hyun's words were carefully chosen, trying to ease the situation, but Woo Ho-geun wasn't one to fall for sugar-coated excuses.
"Spare me the nice words. I know my father better than anyone."
Oh clamped his mouth shut under Ho-geun's sharp gaze.
"Anyway, what about the information I asked you to find?"
At this, Oh Sang-hyun carefully responded.
"The firm that placed a massive sell order the day before the raid—it was Daeheung Securities."
"...!"
At the unexpected revelation, Woo Ho-geun's thick eyebrows twitched.
"So, you're telling me that the sell-off that screwed me over came from Daeheung Securities?"
"That's correct."
Oh Sang-hyun gave a small nod before adding more details.
"The shares were sold across multiple accounts, but since the orders were placed simultaneously, it's clear that this was orchestrated by a single individual."
"Of course it was. Otherwise, that wouldn't have been possible."
Woo Ho-geun's eyes sharpened dangerously, and he clenched his teeth.
At first, after being forced to flee to Hong Kong, he had drowned his frustration in alcohol.
But that didn't last long.
Before he knew it, he snapped back to his senses, realizing that he couldn't just wallow in defeat.
Once his head cleared, he meticulously re-examined every step of what he had once believed to be a flawless plan, trying to pinpoint where it all went wrong.
One moment, in particular, nagged at him—right when he was about to push the stock price back up after shaking out retail investors, someone had interfered mid-trade, absorbing the large sell orders.
Then, almost like clockwork, the Financial Supervisory Service raided the offices the very next day.
The timing was too perfect to be a mere coincidence.
Unable to shake off his suspicions, Woo Ho-geun had contacted Oh Sang-hyun, ordering him to track down who had placed those massive sell orders.
And now, completely out of left field, Daeheung Securities had emerged as the culprit.
Suddenly, an irritating face surfaced in Woo Ho-geun's mind—Seok-won.
"No way… It couldn't have been that bastard."
Sure, they weren't on good terms, but even he knew this was a far-fetched suspicion.
It wasn't like Seok-won had the insight to detect a stock manipulation scheme, and even if he did, he had no reason to go as far as mobilizing the Financial Supervisory Service just to sabotage him.
'If anything went wrong, it could spark an all-out war between our groups. He wouldn't take such a massive risk just to screw me over… Would he?'
Despite his logical reasoning, Woo Ho-geun still couldn't shake a lingering sense of unease.
He rubbed his chin, his expression turning increasingly sour, when Oh Sang-hyun, noticing his demeanor, cautiously asked:
"Is something wrong, sir?"
Woo Ho-geun straightened his posture, then stubbed out his half-burnt cigarette in the crystal ashtray before speaking.
"Dig deeper. Find out who dumped those shares on us through Daeheung Securities."
At this, Oh Sang-hyun's face immediately hardened.
"Sir… Are you suggesting that they were the ones who tipped off the Financial Supervisory Service?"
"If not, then why did the timing line up so perfectly?" Woo Ho-geun replied, his voice cold and steady.
Unlike his boss, Oh Sang-hyun was naturally cautious. He took a moment to think before offering a skeptical response.
"But what would they gain from doing that?"
"That's exactly what I want to find out."
It seemed too far-fetched, but Oh Sang-hyun knew from experience that arguing further wouldn't end well.
"…Understood."
"Also, look into the investigator who spearheaded this case at the Financial Supervisory Service. There's bound to be something there."
"Yes, sir."
Leaning back in his chair, Woo Ho-geun gritted his teeth, his gaze sharp and unforgiving.
"Whoever it is, they'll regret ever crossing me."
***
A sleek, dark-tinted BMW glided smoothly into the driveway of Walkerhill Hotel, perched on a hill with a commanding view of the Han River.
As the car came to a precise stop in front of the entrance, a uniformed doorman swiftly approached, grabbing the door handle and offering a polite bow.
"Welcome, sir."
Stepping out of the driver's seat, Seok-won adjusted his perfectly tailored suit, his face partially concealed behind a pair of dark sunglasses.
Acknowledging the greeting with a small nod, he handed over his car keys along with a crisp 10,000-won bill. The doorman accepted both with practiced grace, his demeanor respectful and polished.
Leaving his car in the valet's hands, Seok-won walked through the revolving doors, his stride calm and confident—as if he had done this countless times before.
The hotel lobby was a lavish display of elegance, with polished marble floors and a grand chandelier casting a warm glow overhead. Without hesitation, he crossed the expanse of the lobby and entered the elevator, heading straight for the Japanese restaurant upstairs.
A soft, ambient light illuminated the hallway leading to the entrance. There, a neatly groomed hostess, her hair pulled into a flawless bun, stood behind the reception desk.
As soon as she saw him, she greeted him with a graceful smile.
"Welcome, sir. Do you have a party with you?"
"There should be a reservation under the name Landon Shore."
"Ah, you're a VIP guest. Please follow me."
With a polite smile, the hostess led him toward a private suite in the back of the restaurant.
"Your guest has arrived."
After a soft knock, she slid open the brown wooden door and stepped aside.
As Seok-won strode into the room, the breathtaking panoramic view of the Han River unfolded through the large glass windows.
Seated at the VIP table was Landon, who had arrived ahead of him.
Across from Landon sat two East Asian men, both having traveled all the way to Korea specifically to meet Seok-won—none other than Masayoshi Son, President of SoftBank, and Executive Director Yokouchi.
"You're here."
Landon greeted him with a broad smile, rising from his seat before turning to the others and introducing Seok-won in English.
"Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you. This is the head of Eldorado Fund."
At this, both men's expressions briefly flickered with surprise as they turned to look at Seok-won.
Recently, Eldorado Fund had become one of the hottest names on Wall Street, ever since George Soros's remarks at the congressional hearing had made headlines.
And now, they were being told that the mastermind behind Eldorado's massive profits from shorting the yen was this young man?
It was an unexpected revelation.
However, Masayoshi Son was no ordinary businessman.
As a Zainichi Korean who had faced discrimination in Japan, worked his way up from nothing, and endured countless hardships before achieving remarkable success, he was not easily shaken.
Quickly regaining his composure, Son masked his initial surprise and smoothly delivered a well-rehearsed greeting in Korean.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Masayoshi Son."
Though he had clearly put in a fair amount of effort, there was no hiding the awkwardness in his intonation.
As Seok-won grasped Masayoshi Son's outstretched hand, he responded in fluent English.
"I'm Park Seok-won. Feel free to speak in English."
"Ah, would that be alright?"
"Of course."
With a slight brightening of his expression, Son gestured toward the man beside him.
"This is Executive Director Yokouchi, who works with me."
The man in a gray suit, exuding an overly formal demeanor, spoke up in English, his Japanese accent unmistakable.
"My name is Tsuyoshi Yokouchi."
Seok-won accepted the gold-embossed business cards the two men offered, then retrieved one of his own from his wallet.
His card was simple and minimalist, displaying only his name in English and Korean, along with his mobile number.
"Your English is quite impressive."
Son complimented him, to which Seok-won replied with a subtle smile.
"Like you, I also studied in the U.S."
"Ah, that explains it."
Son nodded, and at that moment, Landon interjected.
"Now that introductions are done, why don't we all take a seat and continue the conversation?"
"Sounds good."
"Shall we order first?"
The four men settled into their seats, positioned across from one another around the spacious dining table.
Just then, the waiting hostess, who had been standing by near the entrance, stepped forward.
Placing a menu in front of each of them, she politely asked:
"Would you like to place your order?"
Seok-won didn't even glance at the menu. Instead, he looked directly at the others with a familiar ease.
"The chef's course menu here is quite good."
"Ah, then let's go with that."
The other two nodded in agreement, trusting his recommendation.
"We'll have the course menu for four, please."
"Understood."
The waitress collected the menus, gave a polite nod, and quietly exited the room, closing the sliding door behind her.
Now alone in the private dining room, the four men sat in silence for a moment.
Seok-won took a sip of warm green tea, moistening his throat before speaking.
He then met Masayoshi Son's gaze directly and got straight to the point.
"I hear you're interested in acquiring our exclusive rights to Yahoo's portal services in Japan and other parts of Asia."
Son showed a brief flicker of surprise at the sudden shift to business, but he quickly composed himself and nodded.
"That's correct. We'd like to purchase the exclusive rights your company holds."
Seok-won's lips curled into a slight smile as he narrowed his eyes.
"How much are you prepared to offer?"
TL/n -
In 1995, the President and CEO of SoftBank was Masayoshi Son. He founded the company in 1981 and led its expansion into various sectors, including internet services, telecommunications, and venture capital.
Masayoshi Son was not Korean, but he is of Korean descent. He was born in Japan to a Zainichi Korean family (ethnic Koreans who settled in Japan). Later, he became a naturalized Japanese citizen, changing his Korean surname Son (손/孫) to its Japanese reading, Son (そん/孫).