novelDen Chapter 139
Chapter 139
Translator: Dreamscribe“Has the withdrawal been completed?”
“Yes. All the dispatched employees have returned. We tried to minimize the losses, but there were limits. It’s said that Russia forcibly shut down the operation of foreign factory facilities and is currently remodeling them anew.”
Chairman Kang Sung-ho, who was listening to the report, bit his lip tightly.
“What kind of thug bastards are they? Then we just got robbed in broad daylight?”
“That’s pretty much it. Since our country and other allied nations are all imposing economic sanctions on Russia, the Russians used that as an excuse to seize all foreign corporate facilities.”
Expanding overseas and establishing a foothold costs a lot of money.
You have to work behind the scenes, and only by laying solid groundwork can you handle future issues, so companies like Kangseong Group poured money into entering Russia.
After all, Russia is a country with a population of 140 million.
For businesses, it was a land of opportunity.
“But who would’ve thought they’d wipe it all out like this.”
What’s the point of laying a solid foundation to be able to handle any crisis?
Once war breaks out, it all becomes meaningless.
Honestly, it still feels like a dream.
A war!
If not for that, the companies that entered Russia wouldn’t have suffered this much damage.
“I hesitate to say this, but... we didn’t expect Ukraine to hold out this long. If things had gone according to the expected scenario and Ukraine had been occupied within a week, we would’ve just pretended to withdraw and returned to normal operations.”
And even that sounded like a lie.
That Ukraine was holding off Russia’s powerful military force.
“The saying that ‘Russia is second only to the U.S.’ seems to be outdated now. We thought the Russian army would completely overwhelm the Ukrainian forces, but they’re actually struggling.”
This war was delivering a highly critical blow to Russia.
There were the economic sanctions imposed by numerous countries, but the biggest blow was the fall in Russia’s stature.
In movies, Russia is often portrayed as the only country capable of keeping the U.S. in check.
But seeing them struggle to occupy a single country like Ukraine has completely changed the perception of the Russian military’s strength.
“So why the hell did these morons start a war and cause all this mess? How many companies are suffering losses because of this? And Russia isn’t even gaining anything from it. What the hell were they thinking?”
“There had been some rumors about President Patin’s health issues circulating for a while. Perhaps it’s related to that?”
Rumors about Patin’s health had always been going around.
But this time, the intensity of the rumors was unusual.
“So you’re saying Patin started a war to fulfill his ambition before he dies?”
“Many interpret it that way.”
In the end, one man’s misguided ambition drove countless young people into hell.
“What about other companies? Are they suffering as badly as we are?”
“Yes. There’s not a single place that isn’t in chaos. For one, wheat prices have soared by nearly 40%, and the food industry has been turned upside down. This year’s inflation rate is expected to hit a record high. Also, energy and raw material prices are expected to rise across the board, so the construction industry will also be severely shaken.”
Even before this, the construction sector had been criticized for shoddy work since the COVID era.
The soaring prices of raw materials, the mass departure and entry restrictions of foreign workers, the explosive increase in labor costs, and so on.
Because of such reasons, the apartments built during COVID were said to be full of construction defects, and this Russia-Ukraine war was expected to worsen things even more.
“So in the end, the only sector profiting is defense?”
“Yes. Defense stocks have risen the most, and performance in energy, grains, and shipping sectors is also expected to rise significantly.”
Except for those sectors, everything else was decimated.
Even Kangseong suffered tremendous damage.
It was the first time in history that Kangseong Group had suffered such all-encompassing losses.
“Even the groups making profits from defense stocks aren’t laughing either, because they’re suffering losses in other sectors. They have to offset all their losses with their defense sector gains.”
“So in the end, it’s a time when no one really wins?”
“Yes. Except for one place.”
“One place?”
“Kwangwoon.”
Kwangwoon, huh.
But Kwangwoon must have also suffered damages from this war, right?
“Of course, Kwangwoon wasn’t completely free from the effects of the war. Various sectors, including Netflix, faced disruptions. But Kwangwoon is also the one benefiting the most from this situation. Didn’t they make huge investments in grain, natural gas, and nickel last year, even at a loss?”
Back then, even within Kangseong Group, there were talks that Kwangwoon was doing something strange.
No matter how cheaply they had bought up the volume, in the end, storage becomes a problem.
Why wouldn’t someone stock up on oil when it’s cheap?
It’s because of storage issues.
Storage costs are unimaginably expensive, which is why everyone tries to minimize their stock volume.
That’s why even in shipping, the JIT system is used to deliver only the necessary amount, right?
“Despite that, Kwangwoon pushed through to the end. They went as far as to purchase a massive number of warehouses. And now, it looks like they’re going to reap a big harvest. As signs began to appear that the war would last longer than expected, the EU, which had been clinging to its pride, quickly bowed its head and entered negotiations with Kwangwoon.”
At a time when every group in Korea was suffering losses.
No, in a situation where every company around the world was taking hits, there was only one place that was securing huge profits.
“Then... Kwangwoon knew a war would break out a year ago?”
“Yes. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have crazily stockpiled like that while bearing such losses. Why else would people have mocked Kwangwoon back then, calling them fools?”
Kang Sung-ho remembered how many people had ridiculed Kwangwoon when they suddenly swept up grain companies in Canada and expanded their warehouses to stockpile goods.
Just like how everyone laughed at Noah when he built the ark.
But now, the flood called war had swept across the globe, and everyone was scrambling to climb aboard the ark called Kwangwoon to survive.
“Chairman. But... didn’t CEO Jung Jin-ho give you any kind of heads-up?”
“No. He didn’t.”
Both Jung Jin-ho and Kang Sung-ho had been so busy with work lately, they hadn’t been able to meet as often as before.
Still, it didn’t feel like their relationship had grown distant, or was that just Kang Sung-ho’s own assumption?
“It’s a bit disappointing. If he really did foresee the war, he could’ve at least given us a hint…”
“Well, think about it. What do you think would’ve happened if, out of nowhere, CEO Jung came to me a year ago and told me to withdraw all our factories from Russia?”
“Of course everyone would’ve said absolutely not.”
“Right. Let’s say, since I blindly trust whatever CEO Jung says, I actually did withdraw all our personnel from Russia. But what if the war hadn’t broken out? Then what would’ve happened?”
“……”
“And I’m not even CEO Jung’s direct superior. We’re both running entirely separate companies. Even if we are partner companies, he has no obligation to come and report every little thing to me.”
That was true as well.
No matter how good the relationship between Jung Jin-ho and Kang Sung-ho was, in the end, the two of them were running different businesses.
They could share minor information, but with an issue this serious, it was only natural to be tight-lipped. If the information had been wrong, one of them would’ve suffered massive losses.
“……”
He understood all of that logically.
But still, emotions were a strange thing.
He couldn’t completely shake off the feeling of disappointment.
“But Chairman, I also heard a rumor, just a rumor, that Kwangwoon Group has organized a secret group.”
“…Hm? What do you mean? A secret group?”
“It’s said that the group includes high-ranking government officials, as well as numerous businesspeople. And there’s a rumor that CEO Jung Jin-ho personally built a building and is operating this group. I can’t say for certain whether it’s true or not… but if it is, then maybe information was circulating within that group?”
“!?”
For a moment, it felt like a bolt of lightning struck from behind.
A secret organization?
He had never heard of such a thing.
“Wait a minute. Now that you mention it…”
Sometimes on weekends, when he had time, Chairman Kang Sung-ho tried to meet with Jung Jin-ho, but lately, Jung Jin-ho had been refusing, saying he had other appointments.
Chairman Hwang was the same.
Only now did he realize the reason why.
A secret gathering led by the two men.
That was the reason.
‘So he didn’t say a single word to me.’
But there was one thing Jung Jin-ho didn’t know.
That Kang Sung-ho, as a person, had a deeper tendency toward obsession than expected.
***
“You don’t look so well.”
“Aigoo, don’t even get me started. You know, we pulled out completely from our Russia operations this time. What company isn’t crying right now? Even though the defense companies are seeing improved performance, the raw material prices are so high that they don’t know whether to laugh or cry.”
Chairman Kang Sung-ho downed his soju-beer mix in one go.
A conglomerate chairman enjoying somaek.
No matter how many times he saw it, it was always an unfamiliar sight.
“Heh. I didn’t use to drink somaek either. Wasn’t that fond of soju to begin with. But you and Chairman Hwang always drink soju with pork belly. So after only drinking somaek, I ended up not drinking anything else anymore.”
“Whiskey with pork belly would be weird.”
“That’s true too. Ah, I heard about it. The negotiations with the EU went well, right?”
“Yes. It seems they’re desperate too.”
Right around this time, the storage costs were starting to become a burden.
Even though we had bought up most of the warehouses, maintenance costs kept adding up, and for the ones we couldn’t purchase, we had to lease them for storage.
Those costs were piling up tremendously, making the storage more expensive than the goods themselves.
On top of that, in the early days of the war, people seemed to think the conflict would end quickly, so they didn’t react much to the price fluctuations.
“Then, when they saw Ukraine holding out well, they were all shocked and started moving.”
“Right. Thanks to their hesitation, the prices went up even more.”
Oil prices had surpassed 130 dollars, and natural gas prices had more than doubled.
Even so, the EU had no choice but to purchase from us, even at a high price.
“They’re buying time from us. There’s no other place holding large quantities like we are right now. They need time to endure until they can secure stable supplies from countries other than Russia and Ukraine, and we’re selling them that time.”
By the time we ran out of the stock we were holding, the EU would likely have secured a stable supply of resources.
We could provide just enough volume for them to endure until then.
“Whoa... You’re going to make a fortune. Again.”
“It was just good luck. No, calling it luck when there’s a war feels wrong. Feels like we’re making money off war.”
“No need to beat yourself up over that. It’s not like we started the war, right? That senile old man lost his mind and started it, what were we supposed to do?”
He wasn’t wrong, but the heavy feeling in the heart couldn’t be helped.
Maybe that’s why he was sending donations to Ukraine, to ease it, even just a little.
“But CEO Jung. If you knew about the Russia war ahead of time... you could’ve given me a heads-up.”
“Ah. I wasn’t certain myself.”
“You weren’t certain, yet you spent that much money preparing a year in advance?”
I smiled without saying a word.
I had simply followed my gut instinct.
Still, maybe I should’ve said something after all.
I was so out of it myself that I couldn’t spare the attention to notice back then.
“I understand. It must have been a lot of pressure to reveal such sensitive information. Even though we do have drinks like this from time to time, strictly speaking, we’re both running separate companies. It’d be a bit much to open up about everything. And more than anything, CEO Jung, you’re not under me or anything. Honestly, it feels more like I’m the one under you. Haha.”
“Come on, don’t say that. I never think that way.”
“No, it’s true. Kangseong Group used to be the representative group of this country, but now Kwangwoon has taken that spot. That doesn’t mean I’m jealous, though. I’ve received too much kindness from you, CEO Jung. Forgetting that would make me no better than a beast.”
There was no need for him to say all that, but just the fact that he thought well of me and of Kwangwoon was enough.
Kangseong was an inseparable partner to us, after all.
“But CEO Jung. It’s always nice to meet and chat like this, but I can’t help but feel a bit of a wall between us. Maybe it’s time we broke that down?”
“Huh?”
“I mean... wouldn’t it be nice if we got even closer?”
“Like I said last time, I’m not doing any blind dates.”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant.”
Chairman Kang Sung-ho seemed like he had something he wanted to say, but he kept circling around it.
“What’s this about?”
“Well… ahem. I’m not sure how to put this.”
Then he took a big gulp of soju, even though he’d said earlier he only drank soju-beer mix, and finally opened his mouth.
“It’s something I heard. So I’ll just ask directly. Is it true? That secret group you’re said to be leading, does it really exist?”
“……What?”
“I heard about it too. That you even built a whole building. And that the specs of the members in that group are insane.”
I had no idea what he was talking about at first.
Could he possibly be talking about our in-game guild?
We had built a building, and more than anything, the members did have incredible specs.
Not in real life specs.
I was talking about their actual in-game stats- they were extremely high-level players.
Of course, I was surprised myself that some of them were pretty successful in real life too.
I had simply picked players based on their in-game specs and my gut instinct.
“Ah, that.”
I let out a small chuckle and was about to explain the whole story, but then I paused.
Instead, a better idea came to mind.
“Are you… perhaps interested?”
At that, Chairman Kang Sung-ho widened his eyes and looked at me.
“I-If I said I was… w-would you let me join?”
His eyes sparkled more than any I’d seen in recent times.
I barely held back my laughter.
“Recruiting new members tends to be pretty strict. If we make a mistake, it could negatively affect the whole organization.”
“I get that. But I promise I’ll never cause trouble. You have my word.”
“It might be tough at first when you start participating. You’ll need to follow the guidelines properly. There’ll be a lot you need to work on. Are you really... okay with that?”
“Pfft. I wouldn't be where I am without effort.”
Chairman Kang Sung-ho thumped his chest with the most serious face in the world.
“Then do you have time this weekend?”
“I’ll make time even if I don’t.”
“Alright. Let’s go together this Saturday.”
“Where? Don’t tell me, that building?”
“Yes. I’ll introduce you myself.”
“!?”
At those words, Chairman Kang Sung-ho broke into a wide smile.
“CEO Jung. You won’t regret this, I swear.”
“Of course. I’ve known you for years, Chairman Kang. But… once you step in, there’s no quitting. I don’t need to explain why, do I?”
“Of course I figured as much.”
Chairman Kang Sung-ho, joining our guild.
He had been on the scout list originally, but I never expected he’d voluntarily want to join.
‘Now, what position should I put him in?’
DPS? Healer? Tank?
Anything would be great.
Just imagining what kind of nagging he might get from my hyung as Chairman Kang practices the game made me laugh inside.
‘Should I make a whole new application form?’
First, I need to go home today and write a totally one-sided, unreasonable application form that makes it impossible for him to leave the guild once he signs it.