Chapter 26: That Time I Got Korean Investment in South America

TL: Skye

The negotiations didn't take long. After talking it over, it turned out they'd been planning to offer some level of compensation from the start.

In any case, the compensation we'd be receiving from the United States was as follows.

500 million dollars in unconditional aid. A 10-billion-dollar ultra-low-interest loan. A short-term study abroad package for up to 500 people per year.

Depending on how you looked at it, it was modest compensation. But it was also true that the US government didn't bear much direct responsibility for what Chevron had done, so I was satisfied with this.

Of course.

"If you entrust the Northern Oilfield development to Chevron, I'll make sure they concede all revenue minus drilling costs."

Chevron was a separate matter entirely.

"That's it? I feel like we could get more than that through litigation."

"This is by no means a small sum. Considering the Northern Oilfield's estimated reserves exceed 700 million barrels, this offer is worth at least 30 billion dollars."

"A country's president was killed. And not alone, either, but along with every single cabinet member. And you still think that's a lot?"

"That's precisely why the government is offering these benefits..."

"That's on you for failing to keep your own corporation in check..."

"Even so, we can't hand over liquid assets... If we're not careful, shareholders will sue..."

"Buy it. Buy it. Buy it!"

"...?"

After all that back-and-forth negotiation.

"Very well. Let's do that."

It was settled with the US government agreeing to build a highway leading to the Northern Oilfield and modernize Libertad Port.

For the record, the condition was that 100% of the laborers, excluding technical specialists, had to be San Marcos nationals.

"It's a shame that Chevron caused all the trouble but the US government is the one paying for it."

"Don't worry. We'll squeeze it out of them on our end."

That was what Director Ellen whispered to me before she left.

Well, she wasn't wrong. You have to know when to take a reasonable cut and walk away.

There's a reason the hustler in the movie only took half of the other guy's money. [TL: Reference to the Korean film "Tazza: The High Rollers", where the protagonist Go-ni strategically takes only half his opponent's money to avoid making dangerous enemies.]

'I've already gotten my revenge, so there's no point earning America's lasting grudge.'

Honestly, I knew the compensation was insufficient too.

But for San Marcos, a nation without real power, this was the limit.

It wasn't as if we could wage war against the United States, let alone impose economic retaliation.

Filing a lawsuit and making the case public would be the best option, but... it was obvious that would turn into a tedious battle dragging on for who knows how many years.

And what if the administration changed in the meantime? What if America then banned imports of San Marcos coffee beans?

San Marcos's economy would collapse on the spot.

Rather than risk that, choosing the practical gain was the smarter move a hundred times over.

'Being a weak nation... tsk.'

With that, Ellen and John Brown, having concluded the negotiations, boarded a plane and left that same day.

Their departing faces looked quite pleased, and seeing that stung a little, but I made myself be satisfied anyway.

We'd secured everything we needed to on our end.

In any case, that evening after seeing the two of them off, I visited the mission where Min-sik and the other Koreans were staying.

If not today, there wouldn't be time to meet them.

"Cheers!"

"Great work, everyone!"

The cheerful clink of glasses rang out.

The drinking session was a blast. Cracking jokes in Korean for the first time in ages was fun, and the lively Korean drinking culture felt festive.

After several rounds of drinks, Min-sik, who couldn't hold his liquor well, was thoroughly hammered.

'This guy was the same way back in school...'

His face flushed red, he tapped my shoulder and asked in a sly voice.

"About Chief of Staff Isabella. Hmm? Can't you set me up on a date with her?"

"Cut the crap. She wouldn't give a bum like you the time of day."

"Aw, come on, that's cold! Hey, honestly, what's wrong with me? I'm good-looking, I've got money, I'm talented."

"Yeah, the looks are debatable, the money is your family's, and the talent is nepotism."

"You son of a... Tell me. What's the real reason you won't introduce me? Is something going on between you two? Tell me straight. Is there? Or isn't there?"

"There isn't, you idiot. I'm so busy with work I could die, what romance are you talking about?"

I casually brushed off Min-sik's nonsense and poured drinks for the tech crew.

"You all really did incredible work. We couldn't have won without you."

"Oh, not at all! If anything, it was beneficial for us too, getting to accumulate real combat data."

"When we get back to Korea, I'll have war stories to tell for days. Hahaha!"

"If I told people a Korean is serving as president of a Latin American country, nobody would believe it."

The atmosphere was warm and friendly. Chatting away in my native language for the first time in a while, I felt all the pent-up stress just melt away.

"I've got things to do tomorrow, so I'll head out first. Get home safe. Keep in touch when you're back in Korea."

"Yeah, sure. Take care of yourself too. Don't go getting assassinated somewhere."

"Shut up."

I exchanged a reluctant farewell with Min-sik and stepped out of the mission. Outside, Isabella and the bodyguards were waiting.

Just as I was about to get into the car, someone emerged from the darkness.

"CEO Moon?"

It was Moon Seong-mun of Daeho Trading. I'd noticed he hadn't shown up at the drinking session and assumed he was lying low, but it seemed he'd been watching for his chance.

"There's something I'd like to discuss with you. I assure you it won't be a bad deal."

'Here we go.'

He was someone I'd have to address sooner or later anyway.

"Isabella, please go on ahead."

"But Your Excellency..."

"It's fine. There are things I need to discuss with a fellow Korean."

After sending Isabella off, I followed CEO Moon to the back garden of the mission.

The raucous chatter from inside carried all the way out here.

"I'm sorry to bother you at this late hour..."

"It's fine."

I answered as plainly as possible and asked.

"CEO Moon, I don't like it when people beat around the bush."

"Neither do I."

"Then please, tell me. What's your real identity?"

When I asked point-blank, CEO Moon answered with a stiff expression.

"I'm Moon Seong-mun, CEO of Daeho Trading. On the surface."

"And beneath the surface?"

He produced a business card from his inner pocket and handed it to me with a bow.

"My name is Park Munsu. I'm the Deputy Director of the NIS Overseas Intelligence Bureau."

"Park Munsu?"

"Yes, Park Munsu, as in the famous secret royal inspector. I joined the NIS because I wanted to use an alias, you see." [TL: Park Munsu is a famous historical figure from the Joseon Dynasty who served as a secret royal inspector (amhaeng-eosa), traveling the country incognito to root out corruption.]

He cracked a joke that wasn't even funny, apparently trying to lighten the mood...

"Pfft."

Wait, why was that actually funny?

I summoned the acting skills I'd honed playing Servant #3 in Romeo and Juliet, wiped the smile off my face, and put on a poker face.

"What brings you to me?"

"The NIS has been watching San Marcos for three years now. More precisely, we've been watching the man named Choi Yu-jin."

"Since back then?"

When my face went blank at this completely unexpected revelation, CEO Moon explained.

"Yes, it's prime nationalistic pride material, isn't it? A Korean serving as Minister of Resources in a faraway foreign land. Without even having filed a loss-of-nationality report, at that. If utilized well, it could lead to economic cooperation."

"Ah..."

"So we were looking for the right time to reach out to you when... the terrorist attack happened. You may not believe this, but there was an internal discussion about a rescue operation at the time. However..."

CEO Moon looked at me with something like awe in his eyes.

"You'd become the dicta... I mean, the president. With complete control over the military and the executive branch, no less."

"Ahem, I'm not the president. I'm merely the Acting President, following proper democratic procedures."

"I see."

I'd stated the plain truth, but CEO Moon didn't seem to buy it.

"We were trying to figure out how to make contact when Hyunhwa System reached out to us. They said you were urgently looking for military drones. So I filed an expedited report, and the government fast-tracked the export approval."

"I appreciate the help, but..."

Nothing in this world comes free. There had to be a reason the Korean government had gone out of its way to help.

"I'm asking what that reason is."

"The Korean government wants economic cooperation with San Marcos."

"What kind of cooperation, specifically?"

"Labor costs in Korea have risen significantly in recent years. Labor-intensive industries like textiles and garment manufacturing are losing competitiveness. So there's a push to relocate production bases overseas, but labor costs in Southeast Asia have gone up considerably, and China carries too much risk."

"So you want to relocate them to San Marcos?"

"Exactly. Labor is cheap here, and more importantly, a Korean is the country's leader. Also..."

CEO Moon added.

"The public safety here rivals Singapore's."

"Ahem, I did put some effort into that."

"Truly remarkable. Rounding up every criminal and throwing them into forced labor camps... No president anywhere in the world could pull off a policy like that."

"......"

What was that? Somehow that didn't feel like a compliment.

"Korea's ODA, Official Development Assistance, budget is around 3.9 billion dollars annually. There are plans to concentrate a significant portion of that on San Marcos."

"Oh..."

"Frankly speaking, rather than spreading it around to Southeast Asian or African countries, it's a much better deal to back a nation where a fellow Korean serves as head of the executive branch."

It was not a bad offer.

But a question remained.

"What's the catch? I doubt you're offering this just because I'm Korean."

CEO Moon lowered his voice.

"We want resources."

"...The Northern Oilfield is already committed to Chevron."

"Crude oil is certainly a valuable resource. Every Korean dreams of striking oil off the coast of the East Sea, after all."

CEO Moon said with a casual grin.

"But the resource I'm talking about is something different."

"What is it?"

"Nickel and cobalt. With electric vehicle sales growing by the day, these are minerals that need to be secured as a top priority."

I asked back in surprise.

"San Marcos has those?"

"Yes. In enormous quantities."

"How do you know..."

"I'm not sure if you've heard of Korea Zinc."

"I have. They're a comprehensive non-ferrous metal smelting company, aren't they? They have a nickel refinery too."

"That's right."

CEO Moon shifted his tone and continued.

"The former Prime Minister of San Marcos had been working with Korea Zinc to establish a joint venture to develop a nickel mine. The reserves survey was already complete and they were ready to break ground, but the whole thing fell apart because of the terrorist attack."

"...I had no idea about any of this."

I'd been the Minister of Resources at the time, no less.

"In developing countries, that sort of thing happens from time to time. Ahem, rather than handing it over to the government..."

"Ah."

So the former Prime Minister had been planning to pocket it on the side.

'That actually makes sense.'

Rather than simply selling off development rights, establishing a joint venture to share the profits was far more advantageous.

And with a slush fund of 6.5 billion dollars at his disposal, he wouldn't have had to worry about capital either.

'Not a bad deal.'

I nodded and replied.

"Mining rights are all you need?"

"For now, yes."

"'For now' implies there's more you want."

"You never know. More oilfields might turn up. Oh, to be clear, we intend to develop through fair contracts, not take anything for free."

There was no reason to refuse. If I could secure Korea's cooperation, it could significantly accelerate my plan to transform San Marcos into an industrialized nation.

"All right. Let's do this together."

"You're accepting?"

"I have no grounds to refuse. If you're creating jobs for people in poverty, there's no reason to say no. But let's keep the terms the same as what the former Prime Minister proposed. We establish a company with a 50-50 equity split."

"Then what about the investment capital..."

"We split it equally, of course. The technology is on your side. I'm not that much of a scoundrel."

"Understood. I'll report back as soon as I return."

"Then I'll be heading off. If anything comes up, contact me here."

I handed over my business card and was heading for the exit when CEO Moon added one more thing.

"Oh, I almost forgot to mention something."

"What is it?"

"The Korean public still doesn't know you exist. The government has placed an indefinite news embargo on it. They plan to keep the Hyunhwa System people who came along this time under NDAs too."

"...Why?"

He'd just been going on about nationalistic pride material and whatnot, hadn't he? Wasn't I supposed to be one of those proud-Korean-abroad types?

When I stared at him in confusion, CEO Moon smiled bitterly and said.

"Due to its history, Korea has a lot of citizens who hold a very negative view of dictators. Public opinion could turn ugly, so we're choosing the right timing to go public."

"No, I'm not a dicta..."

"Well then, I'll see you next time."

CEO Moon didn't even listen to my protest, gave a respectful bow, and disappeared.

"Ha... unbelievable."

I stood there in a daze, watching his retreating figure.

Me, a dictator? I was nothing more than a rational and efficient administrator.

'They've got it all wrong.'

Someday, I'd have to invite them to Tortilla Farm, nestled amid the vast wilderness, and clear up this misunderstanding.

*****

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