"Young master, oil prices have started to fall."
"This is just the beginning. The moment U.S. ground forces set foot in Iraq, oil prices will drop even faster."
Who could deny the strength of the United States?
It was only because of the lingering effects of the Vietnam War that even Americans themselves viewed their military strength with skepticism.
But as Iraq's capital lay in ruins, that skepticism began to fade. Everyone started to expect that the U.S. would be the clear victor in this war.
"Alright! Let's not get greedy. Sell everything once oil hits $18."
"Understood! We'll be on standby 24/7."
Just in case, I remained at the office, watching the situation unfold.
But the future did not change.
Only after confirming that oil prices had plummeted by a staggering 33% in a single day did I finally feel at ease and head home.
By February, the Gulf War was still ongoing.
However, Iraq was being dragged along without even being able to mount a proper counterattack.
Many experts predicted that the war would end before March, and that expectation was already reflected in oil prices.
"Oil prices have dropped from $35 to $16!"
"Why are you still looking at the prices of oil we've already sold? Forget about it and check our report instead."
"I'll prepare it right away."
It was Team Leader Han who had been waiting for me at SAVE Investment when I visited after a long time. He started the briefing by showing me the pre-prepared reports.
"This investment has yielded a profit of $10 billion. It fell short of our initial expectations."
"When you're dealing with investment sums in the trillions, it's only natural that the profit margins decrease."
Our initial projection had been $20 billion in profits.
With an investment of $2 billion and full leverage, a 10x return wasn't an excessive expectation.
However, as we attempted to close our short positions, more and more players jumped in, forcing us to sacrifice some profits to exit quickly.
Still, we made $10 billion—a fivefold return.
That translated to 7 trillion won in profit within just one year.
This was only possible due to the Japanese asset bubble and the Gulf War, an extraordinary combination of circumstances. There wouldn't be another big opportunity like this for a while.
The next major event would be the 1997 financial crisis—starting in Thailand, spreading across Southeast Asia, and culminating in South Korea's IMF crisis.
Until then, we had to use the capital we had just earned to steadily grow.
"Things are slow these days, aren't they? Now that we've made a fortune on oil, I bet everyone's bored."
"We've increased our staff, but with no major investment opportunities, we're only making small-scale investments."
"Let's make a real investment like an investment firm should. Go all-in on the IT market."
"By IT, do you mean companies like Microsoft or Apple?"
In a few years, the IT boom will arrive.
To prepare for that moment, we need to secure stakes in promising companies as much as possible to maximize our returns.
"We'll buy shares in solid companies, but we'll also invest in talented individuals and help them start their own businesses. Isn't that what a true investment firm should do?"
"Are you talking about founding companies rather than just trading stocks or futures?"
"Before that, let's acquire a financial firm."
"Ah! You're planning to acquire a financial firm to strengthen our infrastructure? That's a great idea!"
But the truth was, I didn't need the financial system itself.
The real reason for the acquisition wasn't the infrastructure—it was the people.
Right now, he's just a vice president at a small financial firm, but in the future, his name will be at the very top of the world's richest list.
* * *
D.E. was a newly established financial firm built on an internet-based business model.
However, since the internet wasn't widely commercialized yet, the company wasn't making substantial profits.
But Jeffrey, the vice president, believed in its potential.
Once the internet became mainstream, the company would skyrocket.
All they needed was enough funding to stay afloat until that moment arrived.
Jeffrey was determined to make D.E. the best financial firm, and that's why he couldn't afford to miss this opportunity.
Rumors on Wall Street suggested that a company that had made over $25 billion in profits was looking to acquire them.
He raised his voice, almost threatening his CEO, Richard.
"Are you telling me we've received an acquisition offer?"
"Technically, they're calling it a merger, but in reality, it's an acquisition. They're offering to buy our shares at twice the current market price."
"Is the acquiring company SAVE? The one that made a fortune in oil during the Gulf War?"
"That's right. And they've promised to fund every single project we're working on—without any financial restrictions."
"Then what's the hesitation? We should sign the deal immediately."
But Richard, the CEO of D.E., wasn't happy with the offer.
Over the years, many companies had tried to acquire them.
Even firms so well-known that anyone would recognize their names had made offers, but Richard had turned them all down.
Because he believed in the company's future.
In just a few more years, D.E. would be several times larger than it was now.
Selling it off at a bargain price right now felt like a waste.
If he could just hold out a little longer, he could make a fortune.
That's why Richard wanted to reject the offer.
"If we just endure a little longer, we can succeed without their help!"
"At least meet with them first. It's not too late to decide after hearing their terms and seeing what they're like."
"I already told you—I have no intention of selling the company."
"I get it, but just one meeting. It won't hurt, right?"
"Fine. I'll meet them sometime this week, but just so you know—I'm never selling this company."
Richard wanted his company to succeed.
Jeffrey wanted his projects to succeed.
They had similar yet different goals.
* * *
"Young master, D.E. has rejected our acquisition proposal."
Team Leader aaHan, who had just returned home, bowed his head in apology.
One look at his exhausted face was enough to tell how difficult the negotiation had been.
"I never expected it to be easy."
"I'm sorry. I should have prepared better, but I tried to solve everything with money."
"There's no need to apologize. Honestly, the acquisition offer was just a move to test the waters. What I really need isn't D.E.—it's their people."
Acquiring D.E. would cost too much money.
Of course, it would have been the easiest way to get what I wanted, which is why I tried. But failure didn't mean the plan was ruined.
"We'll make scouting offers to every employee at D.E."
"You don't have to handle that personally, Team Leader Han. There's someone else for this job."
"There is?"
"He should be arriving soon. Just wait."
Right on cue, the door opened.
A security guard led someone into the living room—it was David, one of the company's recent hires.
"David? Why him?"
"You're wondering why I called in someone who gets paid but does nothing, right?"
"..."
Everyone at SAVE liked David.
But no one really knew why he worked there.
While everyone else was busy with their tasks, he would casually stroll around the office with a coffee in hand.
And yet, no one ever resented him.
If you were working yourself to death while the person next to you was slacking off, you'd normally be irritated.
But David had a way of charming people. Instead of complaints, he somehow ended up getting free donuts from his colleagues.
"There's no one better than David when it comes to poaching talent."
"David have that kind of skill?"
David had S-tier charisma and exceptional business skills.
He was better suited to being a lobbyist than an investment firm employee—but if we had to put him to use, he was perfect for headhunting.
If we needed to poach top talent from other companies, David was the man for the job.
"Oh! Boss, you called? I saw this amazing-smelling coffee on the way here, so I picked one up for you."
And sure enough, the aroma was incredible.
After a long day of cramming my head with numbers and strategy, this was exactly what I needed.
David had a natural instinct for knowing what people wanted.
"Thanks for the coffee. It's time for you to get to work now."
"I was waiting for this. Living off a paycheck while doing nothing—it was starting to make me feel guilty. What do you need? You're not gonna make me play with numbers, are you?"
"Just get friendly with these people. Have coffee with them, grab drinks, whatever works. I'll make sure you have plenty of money."
I handed David a stack of employee profiles from D.E.
14 names. These were the employees working on D.E.'s internet-based investment project, including Vice President Jeffrey.
"Oh, I already know quite a few of these faces. So, you want me to lure them in?"
"Tell them this—sticking around at D.E. will only make Richard rich. Employees have to suffer and wait for the company to succeed, but when it does, guess who reaps the rewards? Only the CEO."
"And if they switch to our company, they get a share of those rewards?"
"Exactly. We're offering double their current salary, unlimited funding until the project succeeds, and a success bonus. That should be a sweet enough deal, right? Oh, and for you—$20,000 for every person you bring in."
"I'll get results in a week."
"And make sure you get Jeffrey."
"Roger that!"
David gave a playful salute before grabbing the profiles and heading out.
Team Leader Han, who had been silently watching the whole conversation unfold like a stage play, scratched his head.
"Do you really think David can pull this off?"
"Trust him. If he fails, we'll just swallow up D.E. by force. It'll be expensive, but it's an option."
"Are you seriously considering a hostile takeover?"
"If you don't want it to come to that, then you better root for David."
* * *
David has proven his worth.
In just one week, he successfully recruited 13 out of 14 employees.
Well, who wouldn't be tempted by double their salary?
And with David's S-tier charisma fueling the temptation, it was practically a done deal.
But he failed to recruit the most important one—Vice President Jeffrey.
Even with David's relentless persuasion, Jeffrey stood his ground.
Still, it wasn't a complete failure.
At the very least, David had convinced him to come hear us out at SAVE's office.
Now it was up to me to seal the deal.
Well, after all the effort David put in, it was only fair that I step in and finish the job myself.
"Hello, my name is Min-jae Kim."
"You look incredibly young. I know it's hard to guess the age of an Asian person, but you look really young."
It's not that I look young—I am young.
But there was no need to mention that I was only high-school-aged, so I cut straight to the point.
"I heard you have a strong interest in internet-based investment strategies. I'm also very interested in that field."
"Is that so? It's been a while since I've met someone who understands. Do you know what question I get asked the most? 'What is the internet?' That's what people keep asking me."
It was still before the internet had become widely commercialized.
So naturally, when he talked about internet-driven investment projects, people just couldn't grasp the concept.
But that only meant one thing—
Jeffrey's foresight was on another level.
And it wasn't just his vision of the future that stood out.
After checking his background, I saw that he possessed not one, not two, but three S-tier business skills.
Even my grandfather, the man who had built Taeu Group into the third-largest business empire, only had one S-tier ability.
No wonder he was destined to become the world's richest man in the future.
With a person this exceptional, I couldn't just use any bait.
If I wanted to catch a big fish, I needed to throw in the ultimate lure.
TL/n -
Bezos joined D. E. Shaw & Co, a newly founded hedge fund with a strong emphasis on mathematical modelling, in 1990 and worked there until 1994. he became D. E. Shaw's fourth senior vice-president at the age of 30.