A bubble, at its core, is made of irrationality and rationality. You could say they’re two sides of the same coin.

When stock prices keep rising, people start thinking that’s just how things are—and they try to justify it somehow.

“This is the beginning of a new era,” “It can easily double from here,” “I don’t really get it, but there must be something behind it,” or “Yeah, sure, it’s a bubble, but I’ll get out right before it bursts...”

Especially that last type. They’re the worst.

You know the saying: Buy when there’s fear, sell when there’s euphoria. Some people misinterpret that and try to sell at the peak of the bubble, thinking they can buy again at the bottom.

But reality isn’t that kind. People who say they’ll invest like Buffett think fear hits all at once.

But it doesn’t. Usually, they buy around the third “oooh” in “goooooong-pooooor” (fear), then panic and sell around the “po” part.

And of course, right after they sell, prices go back up.

“....”

Ugh. Bad memories are bubbling up again...

I wasn’t ordinary—I got it right a few times, too. So how did I mess up the last time?

“Miss, why is your face so pale? What are you thinking about?”

“...It’s nothing.”

Well, honestly, those people who say “This time it’s different” are the dumbest. The whole world fails thinking they’re different—and they don’t realize it.

Though I really am different.

This time is different.

For real.

—Huu.

I let out a small sigh. Thinking about the past and prodding at my own weaknesses like this... must mean I’m tense.

I wiped the sweat from my palm onto Seo Ji-yeon’s chest and resumed walking down Wall Street. The landscape was slowly turning into the one I remembered. Still bursting with energy.

—Ding.

“Ah, you’re here. It’s been a while, Miss.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while, Ha Yeong-il. Everything going smoothly at Alpha Fund? You look a little tired.”

His build was starting to resemble his father’s, and Ha Yeong-il gave a relaxed nod.

“Thanks to your concern, I’m doing fine. Still in my early 30s, so I’ve got plenty of stamina.”

Sometimes I’m stunned by how slowly Lee Si-hyun ages, and Ha Yeong-il is three years younger than her.

To have become a legend on Wall Street at that age... No wonder Si-hyun gets jealous.

“Right. We’re kicking off for real now, so time to push harder. The others I sent to help—are they working well?”

Since about last year, I’d sent a few more people to Alpha Fund aside from Ha Yeong-il. I call them acquaintances, not confidants—because frankly, they’re not all that trustworthy.

‘Well, it doesn’t matter. Once I take full control of Alpha Fund, I’ll sort it out.’

Ha Yeong-il thought for a moment, then answered simply.

“From Alpha Fund’s point of view, they’re average. But on Wall Street, ‘average’ means they’re objectively excellent, so... you don’t need to worry.”

“True. The important thing is whether they’re reliable. The venture capital sector matters most, so be careful with the acquisition. Make sure the SEC doesn’t catch wind of anything.”

“Of course. We’ve got a specialist on it, so rest assured.”

Flashing a businessman’s smile, he glanced at Seo Ji-yeon.

“Oh, her? That’s Seo Ji-yeon. You probably remember her from your last visit to Wall Street. Everyone, say hello.”

“H-hello....”

After a moment of hesitation, Seo Ji-yeon straightened her back and offered a confident handshake. Though her face still showed tension, Ha Yeong-il smiled gently as he shook her hand.

“Mm. So that little lady from before has grown this much. Time flies, huh? Ji-yeon, I’ve heard a lot about you from my father.”

“...Thank you. I look forward to seeing you around. Uh... can I call you Uncle Yeong-il?”

“Haha, didn’t you call Si-hyun unni before? I’m pretty sure I heard that. You can just call me oppa.”

I gave Ha Yeong-il a few pats on the back.

“Have some dignity, Yeong-il. Just accept being called uncle.”

“...I’m three years younger than the chief secretary, you know. I still get girls lining up at parties.”

Well, sure. Aside from slowly growing into his dad’s build, he’s objectively good-looking. And more importantly, he’s filthy rich.

“But Ji-yeon’s thirteen years younger than you.”

“Ugh...”

He clutched his chest and collapsed. A display of self-loathing and fatigue, classic symptoms of someone who spent their youth on Wall Street.

“Hey, at least you’ve got money. Thanks to me, you’ve made enough to slap most chaebols in the face with your wallet.”

“You’ve earned plenty too, Miss, but you never stop running forward. Even if I make hundreds of millions a year, there’s always that thirst. Still, I’m endlessly grateful—to you, and to my father for introducing me to you.”

“Yeah, I think so too. There are so many ungrateful bastards on Wall Street, but you’re a damn fine fund manager.”

“Honestly, I think even the ungrateful ones would turn over a new leaf if they had just a few conversations with you...”

Well, I am pretty amazing.

I nodded at the mirror beside me. A well-dressed, pretty young lady grinned back like she couldn’t contain her joy.

Ah, I love myself too much.

***

In the dotcom bubble, companies fall into two broad categories.

One: major IT corporations like Apple and Microsoft.

Two: the countless venture companies of Silicon Valley.

Those who chased the big names often got disappointed that prices didn’t rise more—or thought they’d risen too much—and started investing in venture firms instead.

Even if the venture companies were all bark and no bite, Apple and MS looked so attractive (and deservedly so) that lesser companies benefited from the association.

That’s a bubble.

“That’s why venture capital’s role is crucial. No matter how well IT giants do, just having one or two go up isn’t enough to call it a bubble.”

I can raise the technical strength and competitiveness of companies like MS, Amazon, and telcos. I’m a genius, and I have future knowledge.

But the problem is the venture companies that really blow up the bubble. That’s not something tech alone can solve.

They weren’t built on fundamentals but on rose-tinted projections and manic investor frenzy. Their fundamentals are paper-thin—what am I supposed to do with that?

‘And if they did have fundamentals, it wouldn’t be a bubble. It’d just be a regular bull market.’

I need to create a bubble. Not a steady rise.

“Venture capital firms are relatively new, right? That makes them more effective—harder to distinguish from the rest.”

“Haha, our Ji-yeon. You sure know how to call my firm ‘shady’ in the nicest way.”

“A-ah! That’s not what I meant!”

“But it’s true. Compared to what I went through to take over BBB, acquiring a new VC firm is nothing.”

—Rustle.

I peeled a sweet candy and rubbed my tired eyes.

“Whew, I’m low on caffeine.”

“Uh... should I get you another coffee?”

Seo Ji-yeon, who didn’t really have anything to do at the moment, seemed to be grasping for tasks out of obligation... But honestly, she wasn’t needed right now.

“No, it’s fine. Just focus and learn. I’ll quiz you later, so don’t worry. Anyway, what’s the status with Sequoia Capital or Kleiner Perkins?”

Overworked as well, Ha Yeong-il answered, not even trying to hide the dark circles under his eyes.

“I reached out, but I don’t think we need to ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) worry about them. They’ll invest on their own. I mean, who wouldn’t at this point?”

“True.”

I nodded.

Right now is the golden age of venture capital. Practically anything you throw money at will return a profit, and the people there must be shrieking with joy.

“Still, there are firms that invest cautiously—we’ll need to nudge them. Like you said, don’t contact the big ones too much. We can’t risk exposure. But I think it’s fine to reach out to Accel Partners. Just not too direct—make it look natural.”

Naturally, smoothly, subtly.

Simple in words, difficult in execution. Honestly, it’s a bit irresponsible, but I expect a lot... And I know he’ll pull it off. Ha Yeong-il is talented.

“You’ve bought everything under Alpha Fund’s name, right?”

“Yes. We’ve purchased about $3 billion worth. We masked it with large-cap stocks to stay under the radar, and even though we couldn’t get involved in the IPOs, we still invested around $300 million in venture companies.”

We may act like an investment bank in Korea, but in the U.S., we’re still too small to take part in IPOs.

“And... what about this one?”

I pointed to a file.

Amazon.com.

It was hard to find. I knew the founder’s name, but I hadn’t remembered what Amazon originally did. Turns out it’s still using a different name.

It was founded just last year—still too early to fully mature. Even Ha Yeong-il had been wondering if it was worth bothering with such a minor company.

“Ah... They’re preparing for a public offering. The current trend suggests either late ’96 or sometime in ’97.”

“Right. It’s fine to invest more in Amazon. It’s a very promising company—and its vision and philosophy line up with mine.”

—Crunch.

I bit down and swallowed the candy, savoring the sweetness. My lips curled up into a smile. I extended a finger and tapped on another company.

“Nice. This one looks good too.”

Of all the names I could see...

Yahoo.