The room was silent, save for the low hum of the air purifier. Hong Ye-eun stood with her arms crossed, staring at the main screen. Her face was pale.
WTI Crude Oil: $30.00 (-25%). S&P 500 Futures: -5% (Limit Down). KOSPI: -4.2%.
"Russia and Saudi Arabia just declared an oil price war," Min-jun said, his voice cutting through the silence like a scalpel. "In the middle of a pandemic demand shock. It’s perfect."
"Perfect?" Ye-eun turned to him, her eyes wide. "Min-jun, the global financial system is seizing up. The corporate bond market is frozen. Companies can't roll over their debt. This isn't a correction. It's a depression."
"It's a liquidation event," Min-jun corrected. "Everything is being sold to raise dollars. Gold, stocks, bonds, crypto. Cash is the only king."
He looked at his monitor. KODEX 200 Futures Inverse 2X: +8.5% today. Total Return: +45% since entry.
His 150 Billion Won bet was now worth 217 Billion Won. He was making a fortune while the world burned.
"Should we take profit?" Ye-eun asked, her voice trembling. "It can't go lower, can it?"
"It can," Min-jun said. "The margin calls haven't hit the Chaebols yet. When the big whales get called, they dump their crown jewels. That's when we cover."
March 13, 2020. Daegwang Hotels HQ. CEO Office.
Jin Hyuk-jae was screaming.
"What do you mean 'Credit Line Withdrawn'?"
On the speakerphone, the Branch Manager of Shinhan Bank sounded apologetic but firm. "Director Jin, the bank's risk committee has classified the hospitality sector as 'High Risk'. Your loan-to-value ratio has breached the covenant. The hotel valuation has dropped 20% in a month."
"It's a temporary virus!" Hyuk-jae roared. "I have 500 rooms in Gangnam! The land alone is worth..."
"The land is illiquid, sir. We need cash. You have a 30 billion won principal repayment due on Monday. If you don't pay, we have to mark it as default."
"Roll it over! Increase the rate! I'll pay 10%!"
"The interbank lending market is frozen, sir. We couldn't lend to you even if we wanted to. Nobody is lending."
Click.
Hyuk-jae slammed the phone down. He looked at his hands. They were shaking uncontrollably. He was the CEO of Daegwang Hotels, but he was drowning. Occupancy: 5%. Monthly Burn: 10 Billion Won. Cash on Hand: 2 Billion Won.
He was insolvent. He needed to sell something. Anything. He looked at his personal portfolio. Daegwang Construction Shares (4%): Pledged. Crypto: Wiped out in 2018. Art Collection: Who buys art in a plague?
He realized with a jolt of terror that he was poor. Asset-rich, perhaps, but cash-poor enough to go bankrupt by Monday.
His phone buzzed. Caller ID: Nemesis Capital.
Hyuk-jae stared at the screen. He laughed. A broken, hysterical sound. "Of course. Of course, the vulture is circling."
March 15, 2020. The Vault. Private Meeting Room.
Min-jun sat opposite Hyuk-jae. The whiskey bar was empty, closed due to social distancing rules, but not for Min-jun.
Hyuk-jae looked like he hadn't slept in three days. He was drinking water, his hand trembling slightly as he held the glass.
"I need 50 billion won," Hyuk-jae said, his voice raspy. "Bridge loan. 6 months. I'll pay 20% interest."
"I'm not a bank, Hyuk-jae," Min-jun said calmly. "And 50 billion won won't save you. You have 30 billion due tomorrow, and another 100 billion in operating expenses for the year. You don't need a bridge. You need a helicopter."
Min-jun slid a contract across the table. [Real Estate Sale and Leaseback Agreement]
"I don't want your debt," Min-jun said. "I want the Land."
"The hotel land?" Hyuk-jae’s eyes widened. "That's the crown jewel of the group! It's 10,000 pyeong in Jangchung-dong!"
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
"It's a crown jewel that is dragging you to the bottom of the ocean. You can't monetize it because the banks are frozen."
Min-jun pointed to the terms.
"I will buy the land and the building. Cash. Today." "Price: 300 Billion Won."
"300 Billion?" Hyuk-jae scoffed. "It was appraised at 500 Billion last year!"
"Last year didn't have a plague," Min-jun said coldly. "300 Billion is the liquidation value. Take it, and you pay off your debts. You survive."
"And the hotel?"
"That's the 'Leaseback' part. I become the landlord. You become the tenant. You sign a 10-year lease. You keep operating the 'Grand Daegwang Hotel'. You keep your title as CEO. Nobody has to know you sold the dirt under your feet."
Hyuk-jae stared at the contract. It was humiliating. He would be paying rent to Kang Min-jun. He would be a guest in his own house.
"If I say no?" Hyuk-jae asked.
"Then you default tomorrow. The bank seizes the hotel. They auction it off for 200 Billion. You lose your CEO title. You lose your reputation. And your sister, Seo-yoon, will laugh at you from the Construction HQ."
Min-jun uncapped a pen and placed it on the document.
"Sign it, Hyuk-jae. Live to fight another day."
Hyuk-jae looked at the pen. He looked at Min-jun's face—impassive, terrifyingly calm. He picked up the pen. He signed.
[Transfer of Deed Executed.] Owner: Nemesis Capital SPV. Tenant: Daegwang Hotels.
"Pleasure doing business," Min-jun took the contract. "Rent is due on the 1st of the month. Don't be late."
March 19, 2020. The Bottom.
The KOSPI opened at 1,591. By 11:00 AM, the panic reached a crescendo. The USD/KRW exchange rate spiked to 1,280 won. Foreigners dumped 600 billion won of Samsung Electronics in an hour.
KOSPI: 1,439.43. KOSDAQ: -13%.
Sirens wailed on the trading floor of the Korea Exchange.
$$SIDE CAR ACTIVATED$$$$CIRCUIT BREAKER ACTIVATED$$
Trading halted for 20 minutes.
Min-jun sat in his Mapo apartment. The silence of the halted market was deafening. He looked at the chart. 1,439. A number not seen since the 2008 Financial Crisis.
"This is it," Min-jun whispered.
He felt the fear radiating from the screen. He saw the forum posts—people talking about selling their apartments, people talking about the end of capitalism. Capitulation. The moment when the last optimist gives up and sells.
Min-jun picked up his phone. "Ye-eun. Execute Order 66."
"Order 66?"
"Kill the Short. Sell the Inverse 2X. All of it."
"Now? In the middle of the panic?"
"Especially in the panic. The volatility premium is huge. Sell it to the terrified hedgers."
Min-jun watched the order fill. Sold: KODEX 200 Futures Inverse 2X. Total Proceeds: 280 Billion KRW.
He started with 150 Billion in February. He had made 130 Billion Won in one month betting on the apocalypse.
Cash Balance: 360 Billion KRW (including reserves). (Minus 300 Billion committed to the Hotel deal, leaving him tight on cash for the equity buy—but the Hotel deal settlement was T+30, giving him a window).
"We are out," Ye-eun breathed. "We are in cash. We survived."
"We didn't just survive," Min-jun stood up. "We just cleared the deck."
He walked to the window. The streets of Seoul were empty. A delivery scooter—a Hermes bike—whizzed by, the only sign of life.
"Min-jun, what now? Do we wait for 1,000?"
"No. We wait for the printer."
March 23, 2020. 8:00 AM (Seoul Time). The Federal Reserve Announcement.
Min-jun didn't sleep. He waited for the news from Washington. It came.
$$FED ANNOUNCES UNLIMITED QE$$
The Federal Reserve will purchase Treasuries and agency mortgage-backed securities in the amounts needed to support smooth market functioning.
Unlimited. Not 700 Billion. Not 1 Trillion. Whatever it takes.
Min-jun smiled. It was the signal. The central banks had panicked harder than the market. They were about to flood the world with liquidity. The value of money would drop, which meant the value of assets had to rise.
He called Ye-eun. "Buy."
"Buy what? The virus is still spreading! New York is locking down!"
"The virus is biology. The market is liquidity. The liquidity spigot just opened. The disconnect begins today."
Min-jun pulled up his buy list. It wasn't a list of defensive stocks. It was a list of the companies that would define the next decade.
1. Samsung Electronics (005930). (The backbone). 2. Kakao (035720). (The platform). 3. Naver (035420). (The commerce). 4. Hyundai Motor (005380). (The pivot to EV).
"Deploy 100 Billion today," Min-jun ordered. "And get ready to deploy the rest next week."
"Min-jun, foreigners are still selling. We are catching a falling knife."
"We aren't catching it alone," Min-jun said. "Look at the retail deposit data."
He pointed to a secondary chart. Customer Deposits in Brokerage Accounts: +10 Trillion Won in March.
"The Ants are waking up," Min-jun said. "They are bored, they are scared, and they see Samsung at a 30% discount. They are coming."
Min-jun opened his contacts. He found Hong Sung-il (Hanseong Ilbo).
"Chairman. It's time for that editorial."
"The 'Save the Nation' piece?"
"Yes. Frame it as a patriotic duty. 'Don't let the foreigners steal our companies at bargain prices.' The Donghak Ant Movement starts tomorrow."
Min-jun hung up. He looked at the ticker. KOSPI: 1,482.
"This," Min-jun said to the empty room, "is the lowest price you will ever see in your lifetime."
$$TRANSACTION LOG$$
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Action: ASSET ACQUISITION.
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Asset: Daegwang Hotel Land & Building (Jangchung-dong).
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Structure: Sale-Leaseback.
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Price: 300 Billion KRW.
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Action: CLOSE SHORT Position.
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Asset: KODEX 200 Futures Inverse 2X.
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Exit Price: Peak Panic Levels.
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Profit: ~130 Billion KRW.
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Action: AGGRESSIVE BUY (Entry).
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Assets: Samsung Electronics, Kakao, Naver.
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Capital Deployed: 100 Billion KRW (Tranche 1).
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Entry Strategy: Buying into Foreign Selling pressure.
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Status:
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Liquid Cash: ~260 Billion KRW (Remaining).
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Equity: 100 Billion KRW.
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Real Estate: 300 Billion KRW (Committed).
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Thesis: The "Untact" Rally + Unlimited Liquidity = Asset Bubble.
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