The room was freezing, despite the central heating. CFO Park sat behind his desk, his face the color of old ash. Standing over him was Jin Hyuk-jae.
"Fix it," Hyuk-jae hissed. "Just... move the numbers from the 'Overseas Project' account. Cover the hole."
"Director," CFO Park wiped sweat from his brow. "I can't. The new external auditor is Samil PwC. They are scrubbing everything. They asked for the bank confirmations for the Vietnam subsidiary cash reserves."
"So? Give them the confirmations!"
"I can't... because the money isn't there. You took it. You transferred 15 billion won to that shell company in the Cayman Islands to buy... those digital coins."
Hyuk-jae slammed his hand on the desk. "I told you, it was a temporary investment! A treasury management strategy!"
"It lost 70% of its value, sir! Bitcoin is at $8,000! We can't liquidate it without realizing a 10 billion won loss. If I book that loss, we breach our debt covenants. The banks will recall our loans."
Hyuk-jae paced the room like a trapped animal. He had bought the top. He had held through the crash, praying for a rebound that never came. Now, March was coming. Audit Season.
If the auditor found the missing cash, they wouldn't just issue a bad report. They would report it to the Prosecutors' Office as embezzlement.
"Bribe them," Hyuk-jae whispered.
"Sir?"
"The lead auditor. Buy him. Offer him a consulting contract. Offer him anything. Just get him to sign the 'Unqualified Opinion' (Clean Audit)."
CFO Park looked at the heir. He realized then that the ship wasn't just sinking; the captain was drilling holes in the hull.
February 25, 2018. Mirue Partners.
Min-jun sat with Hong Ye-eun and Paul Stone (via video link from Hong Kong).
"The trap is primed," Min-jun said. "Hyuk-jae is desperate. My sources inside Daegwang say he's trying to pressure the audit team."
"Will Samil PwC fold?" Paul asked. "Korean accounting firms are notoriously weak against Chaebols."
"Usually, yes," Min-jun admitted. "But not this year. The 'Candlelight Revolution' changed the atmosphere. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has declared a 'Zero Tolerance' policy for accounting fraud. If Samil signs off on a fraudulent book, they lose their license."
Min-jun picked up a thick envelope. [Whistleblower Report: Daegwang Construction Treasury Anomalies]
"This contains the transaction hash of the Bitcoin purchases," Min-jun said. "And the IP logs tracing it back to Daegwang HQ. I'm not sending this to the FSS. I'm sending it directly to the Audit Partner at Samil."
"Why the partner?" Ye-eun asked.
"Because auditors are risk-averse. If they receive a credible whistleblower report with forensic evidence, they cannot ignore it. If they sign a clean audit and this leaks later, they go to jail. I am forcing them to be honest."
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
Min-jun sealed the envelope. "Courier this. Use a motorbike service. No return address."
Ye-eun took the envelope. "You're triggering a credit event, Min-jun. If the auditor refuses to sign, Daegwang Construction's trading will be suspended. The stock will go to zero."
"Not zero," Min-jun smiled. "It will go to the price I want to pay."
March 14, 2018. The Deadline.
The deadline for submitting the Annual Audit Report was 6:00 PM. The market watched nervously. Most companies had already submitted. Daegwang Construction was silent.
5:55 PM. A disclosure hit the DART system (Korean EDGAR).
[Disclosure] Daegwang Construction (000xxx). Audit Opinion: QUALIFIED (Limited Scope). Reason: Inability to obtain sufficient audit evidence regarding the cash equivalents of overseas subsidiaries.
The market stopped breathing for a second. A "Qualified Opinion" for a top-tier Chaebol subsidiary? It was unheard of. It meant the auditors suspected fraud but couldn't prove it yet.
6:00 PM. The Korea Exchange (KRX) issued a notice. [Trading Suspension] Daegwang Construction. Reason: Audit Opinion 'Qualified'. Trading halted until cause is resolved.
In the CFO's office, Park slumped in his chair, weeping. In Hyuk-jae's office, a bottle of expensive whiskey shattered against the wall.
But the real damage wasn't the stock price. It was the Credit Rating.
March 15, 2018. The Credit Crunch.
Moody's: Downgrades Daegwang Construction to Junk (Ba1). NICE Rating: Downgrades to CCC.
The dominoes fell. Daegwang Construction had 500 Billion won in bonds maturing in April. Usually, they would "roll over" the debt—issue new bonds to pay the old ones. But with a Junk rating and a trading suspension? No one would buy their bonds.
The Default Clock had started. 30 Days to Bankruptcy.
Min-jun sat in his Mapo apartment. He opened his laptop. He logged into Nemesis Capital.
"Now," Min-jun said. "We buy the debt."
He didn't want the stock anymore. The stock was frozen. He wanted the Bonds. Investors were panic-selling Daegwang Bonds. They were trading at 40 cents on the dollar.
"Grandpa," Min-jun called out.
Byung-ho walked in. "Is it time to buy Daegwang?"
"It's time to become the bank," Min-jun said. "I'm deploying 50 Billion Won (approx $45M) into the bond market. We are going to scoop up every distressed bond we can find."
"Why buy the debt of a dying company?"
"Because in bankruptcy court," Min-jun explained, "Bondholders eat first. Shareholders eat last. If Hyuk-jae wants to save his company, he has to negotiate with the bondholders."
Min-jun’s eyes were cold.
"And when I own 30% of the debt... I become the Judge, Jury, and Executioner."
March 20, 2018. The Blue House Petition.
The crisis spilled onto the streets. Subcontractors of Daegwang Construction—electricians, cement suppliers, crane operators—weren't getting paid. They gathered in Gwanghwamun.
[PETITION] Save the Subcontractors! Daegwang Group must pay!
Min-jun watched the news. This was the final nail. The government couldn't bail out Daegwang because of the "Corruption Scandal" (Mir Foundation). The public hated them. The banks couldn't bail them out because of the Audit Opinion.
There was only one exit. M&A (Merger & Acquisition). Daegwang had to sell itself to survive.
Min-jun picked up his phone. He called Jin Seo-yoon (The Princess).
"It's time," Min-jun said.
"You destroyed it," Seo-yoon's voice was filled with awe and terror. "You actually broke the company."
"I broke the shell," Min-jun corrected. "The assets are still there. The buildings, the contracts, the land. Now we need to pick up the pieces before a vulture like Elliott does."
"What do you propose?"
"A consortium. Nemesis Capital + Mirue Partners + Your personal faction. We make a formal offer to the Creditors Committee to acquire Daegwang Construction."
"Hyuk-jae will never sign."
"He doesn't have a choice. The creditors are in charge now. And guess who the biggest creditor is?"
"You?"
"Me."
Min-jun stood up. "Get your suit ready, Seo-yoon. We are going to the Creditors Meeting. And you are going to sit at the head of the table."
[TRANSACTION LOG]
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Date: March 2018
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Asset: Daegwang Construction Corporate Bonds (Maturing April 2018).
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Action: AGGRESSIVE BUY (Distressed).
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Price: ~40-50 cents on the dollar.
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Capital Deployed: 50 Billion KRW.
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Face Value of Debt Purchased: ~110 Billion KRW.
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Status: Major Creditor (Blocking Stake in Restructuring).
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Strategy: Debt-to-Equity Swap.
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Goal: Hostile Takeover via Bankruptcy Court.