“Is that Love Unni? Did something happen with the association?”
The girl who represented the Republic of Korea alongside me in the National Exchange Tournament.
She achieved her goal by finishing in third place after defeating Giselle Fischer.
“Come to think of it, Love appeared on every entertainment show last year.”
During the time I completely cut off external activities for my Dream Stone research.
The public’s attention was focused on Love.
After all, the only person who closely witnessed my youngest victory or Saetbyeol’s Human Transmutation was Love.
Moreover, the fact that her father is from a renowned wizard family in the United States.
Since Love has been preparing for the National Exchange Tournament since she was nine years old as an elite wizard specialized in combat, that was a huge factor in her popularity.
But now she seems to be in trouble. What happened?
CEO Lee Hyun-do said while popping a peanut snack from the table into his mouth.
“I believe that most of the world’s problems can be solved with money.”
“Love Unni is having friction with the association regarding settlements. Can I understand it this way?”
“Haha, I guess being young makes you quick to understand, and I envy that. By the way, did you receive the prize money from the National Exchange Tournament, Wizard?”
“Prize money? Hmm…”
I paused for a moment and took out my phone from the necklace case.
“I have so much money… I’m not sure how much went into my account. Let me check.”
Lee Hyun-do’s eyes narrowed, and he let out a hollow laugh.
“Why? Is it the first time you see me bragging about money?”
“It is the first time since I’ve taken on the CEO title.”
[+ ₩24,803,597,000 – 2054.01.05.]
Anyway, I checked my balance and nodded.
“It was fully deposited last month. After deducting 22% tax and the amount ordered for Samyeon Link, it’s basically even. Should I send you the payment right away?”
Perhaps Love Kim is a smokescreen, and this person didn’t call me just to check if I received the prize money safely.
I had yet to pay the nearly 20 billion won for the Samyeon Link order.
Because at the time, I promised I’d make the payment once the National Exchange Tournament prize money came in.
“Haha, I’ll thank you at your convenience.”
Lee Hyun-do, CEO of Samyeon Link, smiled congenially as he spoke.
He’s demanding it right away.
As the payment was made on the spot, Lee Hyun-do’s previously stiff expression eased up.
“Why didn’t you just send a text saying you wanted the money?”
“What kind of company could treat its customer so coldly? A minimum level of courtesy must be shown.”
“Sorry! I was wrapping up earthquake rescue activities and must have forgotten.”
“No! If you say that, what does that make me, Wizard…! You’re making me a terrible person!”
“Now please tell me about Love Kim and the association.”
“Ahem. The Wizard Association has been continuously delaying the prize settlement. In contrast, it’s commendable how NoName Wizard has so willingly sent the payment.”
What? It was true; the CEO had come down personally to collect the money.
Honestly, I wouldn’t have been too concerned if my daughter asked me to pay her back.
Lately, there seems to be a heightened atmosphere of treating me cautiously.
“But wasn’t the settlement ratio all determined? If I remember correctly, it was 60:40 or 70:30…”
“It’s 70 for the association and 30 for the players.”
“Right? But what’s there to argue about? The third-place prize is around 17 billion won, so even after deductions, at least 4 billion should go to the individual, right?”
The National Exchange Tournament is indeed a winner-takes-all affair.
If you get eliminated in the newly established round of 64 or 32, you won’t even break even, but from the semifinals onward, astronomical prize money is given.
“Do you remember the general manager of the national team at that time?”
“Yes, William Robinson was the GM of the Korean team.”
“What did NoName Wizard think of him? Did you find his skills good, or was he, on the contrary, incompetent?”
“No. I haven’t met him much, but I’ve never thought he was incompetent. Either way, he got Love Unni to third place. My leaving the camp was due to the curriculum, not because I didn’t like the coach.”
Lee Hyun-do nodded slowly with a relieved expression.
“You know the Robinson faction, right? It was hired by a private individual.”
“E-excuse me? A private individual hired him, what does that mean…?”
“To be precise, it was Kim Love’s parents who hired him using their own money. Robinson was introduced to me through a headhunter while I was on a business trip in the U.S. I’m lucky to hear now that he was competent from your perspective, Wizard.”
A series of unsettling details emerged at once.
I requested a timeline summary.
And what I was told was:
“So, after South Korea had a poor run and got eliminated in the group stages for two consecutive years, Coach Yeo Jong-kwan…”
“Yes.”
“During the two-year gap of 51 and 52, he remained employed by the association.”
“At that time, Korea wasn’t even entering the National Exchange Tournament. There were no applicants.”
“So, Love Kim wanted to bring in a completely new coach, while the association unilaterally extended Coach Yeo’s contract? Whether that was the association’s mistake or a cover-up is still unclear?”
“The association claims it was a mistake, while Kim Love insists it’s a one-sided cover-up.”
“But how did William Robinson come to take the GM position? I’ve never even seen Coach Yeo Jong-kwan’s face.”
“In the end, the association had to pay a penalty fee to send him away. The Robinson faction’s salary was privately covered by Kim Love’s parents.”
“What an absurd situation.”
“Ha ha, want to know something even more ridiculous? Now the association claims it also has to share the penalty fees. This is likely to escalate into a lawsuit 100%.”
That’s right.
Originally, Love Kim should be compensated with 4 billion won for her seven years of hard work.
But due to the association’s blunders, she was put in a situation where she would have to pay 2 billion won out of her own pocket to hire William Robinson and his coaching staff for six months.
Yet up to this point, it seems they had accepted it, grinding their teeth.
They valued the honor of representing their country in the National Exchange Tournament and self-actualization over money.
But then, Coach Yeo Jong-kwan’s four-year penalty fee, totaling 6 billion won, arose.
Based on that, the association claims some clause, deducting 3 billion won and offering only 1 billion won as the prize money.
Love Kim, who should originally receive 2 billion won, found herself in a tight spot.
“I heard that suddenly, 1 billion won of debt magically appeared for Kim Love. So recently, it seems she’s been filming commercials and variety shows as they come. I just learned of that, and morally, I’ve already covered 500 million won for Mr. Robinson.”
“That’s a bolt from the blue.”
“It isn’t easy, it’s not easy.”
While I was having serious conversations with Lee Hyun-do, the elevator doors opened with a ding.
My friends had just come up from watching a diving show.
“NoName, you were here!”
“Yeah. Did you enjoy the show?”
“It was fun at first, but later on, it got a bit boring. Na-me would probably dive better!”
“Right! I can do it better!”
“Hehe, so cute!”
On both sides, they tugged at my precious cheeks.
Lee Hyun-do lifted his slightly stiff body and said his goodbyes.
“Thank you, Wizard, for taking time out of your busy schedule, especially with the recent short-selling issues. By the way, you’re sleeping well these days, right?”
“Hehe, busy? I’m continually grateful to the kind and gracious Buddhists around the world for enabling me to raise funds for a Dream Stone factory.”
“…? Kind? Buddha?”
“Did you know? Short-selling (空賣渡) isn’t actually that different from the Buddhist notion of emptiness (空). How about giving Buddhism a shot, CEO? Namu Amita Bul, Guanshiyin Pusa.”
“Huh? Oh no, I’m a Christian, so… haha…”
“Heading home now, dad?”
“Yeah, I have a dinner meeting later. Bo-reum, make sure you take care of Ha-ru today. Wake her up on time for the academy’s first day on Wednesday.”
“Okay, I got it. Wow, Dad, you even know the start date? What’s up with that?”
“Goodbye, Dad!”
Lee Hyun-do hurriedly took the elevator and escaped from the hut.
Tomorrow marks the end of a long Lunar New Year holiday.
“I should probably contact Love Unni.”
And then, Shaolin.
[Shaolin, “Janjeol must clarify suspicions of manipulating the ‘Shaolin Energy Report’”]
[Zhuge Family, “Investigate allegations of collusion between Premier Li Shizhu and Shaolin”]
[Shaolin, “The Zhuge Family should expel Zhuge Xinwei for neglecting duties during the great earthquake of Shangyang.”]
[Zhuge Family’s media outlet JinroutouTiao, “To shed light on Shaolin’s corruption and hidden actions, we will invest 100 million yuan.”]
“Why are these guys suddenly fighting?”
There’s so much in the world I just can’t comprehend.
*
Shareholders of Shaolin Energy were restless, unable to sleep through the Spring Festival holiday.
“Are we really going up?”
“Absolutely! Last time, NoName short-sold, yet our Shaolin Buddhists pushed it up high! NoName was dispersing money like crazy to get in at a low price; if we can’t cash in, we’re worse than beasts!”
The perpetually optimistic crowd was passionately preaching to acquaintances about this buying opportunity.
And finally, after five days, the stock market opened, awaited by all, or perhaps not awaited.
[2054. 02. 11.]
[Shaolin Energy | ▼ 23.36% | ₩10,500]
“Whaaat?!”
“You useless piggy bank!”
Shaolin Energy had exactly halved during the holiday.
The stock graph of Shaolin (water slide) showcased Na-me’s compounds sliding down TikTok widely.
[NoName’s current short-selling estimated profit]
(captured live on Menggong Dictionary)
7,719,000,000 won laughing uncontrollably
[Comments]
– 7,719 billion at once feels like hitting a wall, lol.
– Life;;
– Earning foreign currency GOAT.
– Please realize this quickly; I’m shaking in my bootsㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– NoName believes in Buddhism EU.
