Chapter 210: Conditional Survival (1)

Instead of answering, Hyunjun took a sip of coffee. While the warm liquid slid down his throat, his gaze turned toward the window. He spoke in a calm voice.

“You could say the options have already been laid out. It will probably be one of these. Overseas funding, the non-bank sector, asset sales, or if not that, squeezing from within.”

Choi Seo-jun nodded.

“Among those?”

Hyunjun set down his cup, and the corner of his mouth rose slightly.

“If it is Nam Kun-ho… he will choose an overseas bridge loan because of his pride.”

Choi Seo-jun’s eyes sharpened. All the more because it was an unexpected answer.

“Overseas?”

“Yes.”

Hyunjun continued calmly.

“It may be expensive, but it is still a loan, and formally, he is not handing over equity. On the surface, it is still a card that leaves him room to choose as chairman.”

Choi Seo-jun thought for a moment, then said,

“If that happens, they will need to take collateral.”

He pointed out the realistic problem.

“Would Chairman Nam Kun-ho really make that choice? Putting up overseas assets or even core affiliates as collateral is….”

“He will.”

Hyunjun’s voice was full of certainty.

“Because this is the first time Nam Kun-ho has been in a situation like this.”

Choi Seo-jun narrowed his eyes. He did not understand.

“I do not quite understand why being the first time would make him choose that.”

Hyunjun leaned deeper against the sofa and continued speaking.

“He has never hit rock bottom, so he does not know what is truly frightening. Because he does not know he can fall even farther, he will make that choice.”

After drinking his coffee, he continued explaining.

“Right now, he is probably thinking this. That this much is still fully manageable. He will believe that even if he puts up collateral, he can recover with time.”

Choi Seo-jun was silent for a moment, then carefully opened his mouth.

“In that case, it does not sound easy for us to interfere.”

Choi Seo-jun had judged that, with the overseas financial world involved, a complicated structure in place, and collateral attached on top of it, there would be no opening for HJ Partners to step in.

“If we touch it carelessly, we may face backlash as well.”

At those words, Hyunjun tilted his head slightly, then slowly smiled.

“Well.”

He took a sip of coffee and set the cup down on the table. The sound of it touching the surface rang especially clearly.

“I doubt it will be that difficult.”

Seeing him say it so casually, Choi Seo-jun’s gaze fixed on him.

Hyunjun leisurely folded his hands together, lifted them toward the sky, and stretched. His chest opened wide, and his body seemed to loosen. After that, the smile he made, with a curve drawn around his eyes, felt meaningful even to Choi Seo-jun.

In Hyunjun’s mind, the next move and even the move after that were already fully drawn.

The lights of the city outside reflected against the glass window, faintly coloring the inside of the office. In that light, only Hyunjun looked strangely peaceful. As if he already knew that his opponent would choose the trap on his own.

***

A few days later.

When February came, winter break ended, and Hyunjun had to attend school. After classes ended, he went straight to the HJ Partners office.

The office was quiet as usual. But on Hyunjun’s desk, a report with an unfamiliar title was placed neatly.

Hyunjun came up to the office still in his school uniform, set his bag to one side, and unbuttoned his jacket. While he loosened his tie slightly, Secretary Cho Hana knocked and entered with a tablet.

“Representative, they moved exactly as you expected.”

Hyunjun sat down, and his gaze naturally moved to the documents on the desk. Cho Hana approached and reported.

“It is still quiet in the domestic press, but the overseas side is reacting strongly.”

Cho Hana showed Hyunjun the tablet screen as she spoke. An article title in English was displayed on the screen.

[DAEHAN GROUP Secures Emergency Bridge Loan via Global IB Consortium Collateralized by Telecom Subsidiary and Financial Arm Assets]

Hyunjun silently skimmed down the article. There was neither surprise nor satisfaction on his face. He was merely confirming the expected result with his own eyes.

The article said Daehan Group had secured liquidity funds through a global investment bank consortium. It explained that an overseas telecommunications affiliate and core assets from the financial affiliate had been provided as collateral.

After reading the article to some extent, he took his eyes off the tablet, and Secretary Cho summarized only the key points.

“They have signed a six-month bridge loan through a global IB consortium. The scale appears to be for securing short-term liquidity.”

She turned the page and read through the material she had investigated.

“There are three types of collateral in total. First, a 30% stake in Daehan Telecom’s overseas subsidiary. Second, a 20% stake in Daehan Capital under Daehan Finance. Third, priority recovery rights over the SPV that bundles those assets.”

Silence passed for a moment. That quiet said more than any explanation could. Hyunjun nodded and answered,

“It is exactly as we expected.”

Only then did Cho Hana carefully bring up the next point.

“And it is tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? That quickly?”

“Yes. Someone from the global IB side is coming to Korea as a board observer. Formally, it is only observation, but in substance, the purpose is collateral management and inspection of the fund disbursement status.”

Hyunjun’s gaze moved toward the window for a moment. The evening light had begun seeping in, and the sunset was falling. He murmured quietly,

“A board observer….”

For a moment, he did not continue. That was because he understood better than anyone the weight carried by the words board observer.

Board observer.

Nominally, it was nothing more than an observer without voting rights. They did not cast votes or make decisions. But their actual role was entirely different.

An observer received all board materials in advance. The financial status, fund disbursement plans, asset sale discussions, and even internal conflicts. They might appear to be sitting quietly in one corner of the meeting room, watching, but everything they heard was immediately delivered to the party holding the funds. And that report was not merely reference material. It became the standard that determined whether the next fund disbursement would happen.

Simply put, every word exchanged in the meeting was directly connected to the funding line. The moment someone’s statement was interpreted as a risk factor, disbursement could be delayed, or the terms could change. That decision would be made outside the meeting room.

A faint smile appeared on Hyunjun’s lips. This was not a method of seizing management control. Perhaps it was far more subtle than that.

A method of looking into the company from the inside and tightening its throat whenever necessary. It left decision-making authority in place, but erased the range of choices one by one.

‘There is nothing more efficient than putting a leash on someone.’

Thinking that, he said,

“This is where it begins.”

Cho Hana hesitated for a moment, then asked what she was curious about.

“Representative, did they not move faster than expected? The collateral conditions are quite aggressive as well.”

Hyunjun turned his head to look at Cho Hana and smiled. He was still in his school uniform, but that expression was not student-like at all. No, how should one put it? If one did not remember his age, it was the sort of smile that might make a person fall for him completely.

“For Chairman Nam Kun-ho, this must be the last choice that allows him to save face.”

He examined the reports on the desk one by one, then picked up one of them.

“The fact that no domestic articles have come out may also mean Daehan has clamped down on people’s mouths. So people know nothing. Not how far Daehan went in putting up collateral, nor how desperate they are. For someone who cares that much about face, this is probably not even particularly fast.”

Cho Hana nodded as if she understood. Hyunjun quietly continued.

“Now, for the time being, all that remains is to watch. Let’s see how they dance on the board we made.”

Cho Hana organized the tablet and asked,

“Do you have any additional instructions?”

Hyunjun shook his head.

“Not right now. We only need to watch how they move.”

He looked out the window again.

“I am looking forward to tomorrow.”

Time passed quickly.

The next morning. Incheon International Airport.

The air at the end of winter still lay cold and heavy. A plane that had just arrived on the runway slowly reduced its speed. A particular airline’s logo was attached to the side of the aircraft.

When the boarding gate door opened, a tall, broad-shouldered man came out first. His name was Lucas Soroso.

He was a person whose name itself counted as credit even within the global IB world. And he was also the son of the legendary investor Gordon Soroso.

He had neatly trimmed hair and an appearance marked by sharp eyes. Urgency and sensitivity showed in every step he took. His gaze, sweeping over his surroundings, was full of vigilance. His brow gradually furrowed. At that moment, a soft voice came from behind him.

“Lucas, wait a second.”

It was Ginny Soroso. Before her marriage, she was a Korean American who had made a name for herself in the United States as Ginny Jang. Her Korean name was Jang Jin-hui.

With a calm impression and a neat coat, she naturally straightened Lucas’s disheveled collar and spoke affectionately.

“This is an airport. Do not be so on edge. Relax your brow.”

Then Lucas, who had not hidden his discomfort until just a moment ago, visibly softened.

“…All right.”

It was a short answer, but his voice had become much gentler. He was the kind of stubborn man who listened to no one, yet before his wife, he was an easy man.

A man who was difficult and nervous with others, yet became endlessly gentle before his wife.

Originally, an interpreter would have had to accompany them, but because Ginny Soroso spoke fluent Korean, Lucas set foot on unfamiliar Korean soil together with his wife.

When they left the arrival hall, the people waiting there moved in perfect order. The woman standing at the very front among them stepped forward.

It was Nam Yoon-kyung.

The fact that she had come meant the other party was that important.

Nam Yoon-kyung held out her hand to Lucas and greeted him.

“Mr. Soroso, Ms. Soroso. Welcome to Korea. Thank you for coming all this way.”

Lucas’s gaze turned toward her. He briefly looked her up and down, then said curtly,

“I didn’t expect you to come in person.”

There was a testing nuance in his tone. Yoon-kyung kept her smile and spoke in Korean this time.

“Of course I had to come myself.”

The interpreter beside her immediately translated and conveyed it to Soroso. At those words, the corners of Lucas’s eyes rose slightly. Whether that meant he liked it, or that he had decided he could be even more difficult, was impossible to know. He nodded and took Nam Yoon-kyung’s hand. This time, Ginny Soroso interpreted for him.

“My husband says he is looking forward to it. It seems he is curious what kind of treatment we will receive in Korea.”

Ginny gently whispered to her husband beside him.

“Honey, stop furrowing your brow so much. It is your first meeting.”

Lucas let out a short sigh, then smiled faintly and said,

“All right.”

Watching that quietly, Yoon-kyung thought inwardly,

‘He is very polite to his wife.’

Nam Yoon-kyung guided them with a bright smile. The six months they would spend in Korea would be extremely important to Daehan Group. Only by winning their favor during that time could Daehan draw its future.