A trembling economy, a gloomy atmosphere.

America was cheering for the dot-com bubble, but that prosperity hadn’t crossed the ocean yet....

The East Asian economy, which had started collapsing several months earlier than expected, was now heading toward ruin—slowly, but with certainty.

October 1996. Four months after the Thai baht crash...

I had returned to Korea.

—Thump.

“Hoo, why are there so many people? I feel like I’ve received more attention in the past two days than in my entire life combined.”

I lay on the bed for the first time in a long while, letting the fatigue of the journey melt away. Normally, I’d spend this kind of moment skimming through newspaper articles covering my exploits...

I glanced at the mountain of papers stacked nearby. I hadn’t said a word, and yet every paper had plastered my return on the front page.

[“Korea’s Greatest Financial Prodigy, Yoo Ha-yeon Returns! From Daehwa’s Youngest Daughter to ‘The Witch of Wall Street’”]

[“The Daughter of Korea Shakes the Heart of Global Finance! Yoo Ha-yeon of Daehwa Earns the Title ‘Witch of Wall Street’ and Elevates National Prestige”]

[“Return in Glory! ‘Patriotic Girl’ Yoo Ha-yeon Brings Dollars Back to Korea! Will the Dutiful Daughter Relieve the Economic Crisis?”]

[“‘The Genius of Daehwa’: Yoo Ha-yeon’s Family Story... Revealed to Be the Daughter of Late Actress Hong Ha-ryeon. A Tragic Tale That Brings Tears.”]

Mm. At this point, the flattery’s getting a little embarrassing.

Considering I’m the type to crave attention, this really was something. I’d even agonized over what to wear in front of reporters—good thing I went with something conservative.

If I had worn something like I did with Charles the other day—impulsively revealing my collarbone and back—I might’ve been swallowed whole by tabloid gossip.

Or maybe not? Judging by the clear signs of government media control, they might’ve let it slide.

This was the result of the government wanting to refresh its image and the media being unable to resist such a juicy story—working together in perfect harmony.

Taking ordinary content and blowing it up, stuffing it with what people call “nation-porn.”

Just reading those headlines, you'd think I was some once-in-a-century genius who brought Wall Street to its knees and stole everyone’s money for fun.

Claims like how my eyes were extraordinary even as a baby, or that I was already turning a profit multiple times over by age ten, or that I was the one who designed all of Daehwa Group’s internal software programs in the programming world.

Come on. That’s not how people work, logically speaking.

“...But isn’t all that actually true?”

Seo Ji-yeon, who’d seen me since elementary school, asked with a sour expression.

“Well, yeah. But do you think the reporters know that? They just throw stuff out there and get lucky sometimes.”

There were even articles saying I was born imbued with the spirit of Mount Baekdu, or that a star fell on January 1st when I was born, making me the reincarnation of a star. If I were a reincarnated star, I’d at least have star-shaped pupils or something.

—Snort.

“Still, it feels good. People used to turn and stare at me a lot before, but now their reactions are a whole lot better.”

As I basked in smug satisfaction, Seo Ji-yeon held up a smaller article from the back pages of the paper.

“Young Miss. Did you see this one? Newcore Group and Haitai Group just declared bankruptcy. Oh, and Ssangbangwool too.”

Tch. Alright, enough self-congratulation. Time to get to work.

“Hah, what a waste. That’s exactly why I wanted to come back to Korea quickly. Daehwa Group isn’t really equipped to handle this, huh?”

“Yeah. Everyone’s keeping their heads down. Feels like they all know things are unstable. Except for Hyeonseon Group—they’re aggressively expanding.”

That one’s as bold as ever. Well, even when times change, the people steering the groups haven’t. Their personalities were set in stone long ago.

You don’t just flip a lifetime of thinking in a few short years.

“For now, I’ll move through my department store and cover the retail part. Now that I can openly use my private funds, I’ll funnel money in through Japan, and once things start breaking apart, we’ll pass off only the good bits to Daehwa Group.”

“...Hmm. But is that really okay? Aren’t you just doing all the hard work for others?”

Seo Ji-yeon looked at me with concern in her eyes.

“It’s fine. I’m going to eat Daehwa Group anyway.”

They’re prepping hard too, but that’s alright. If I were an outsider, maybe not—but I’m undeniably part of Daehwa’s main bloodline.

“The only real issue is Mirae Group. It’s not hard to ruin them, but keeping them intact for takeover? That’s a bit of a pain. That Cha Ba-da girl’s still pretty defiant.”

It would’ve been nice if she just became my little puppet. I did manage to get her into Daehwa High, but she’s still got too much self-will.

Then again, if I really wanted to make her my puppet, I had plenty of ways. I just didn’t like using the more revolting methods. My heart’s too soft—that’s my problem.

A schoolyard ostracism followed by a dramatic rescue from me could work, but Ji-yeon became my subordinate through that method herself, so... she might get suspicious.

And that’d be kind of painful.

“Hmm, I think you’re having weird thoughts again, Young Miss. Can’t you just ask her outright? Like, ‘Join me!’ or something...”

“Should I? Maybe it’s because I’m a woman, but honey traps don’t work so well.”

My loyal aide frowned.

“Young Miss, you’re way too full of yourself. It’s not like you’re with people 24/7—who’s going to fall for you for life just after hanging out for a few days? Especially if it’s a girl. That kind of seduction won’t work.”

—Poke.

I casually poked Seo Ji-yeon’s soft chest.

“It worked on you.”

Her face turned red, mouth floundering.

“...Ugh, could you please stop flirting like that? My heart keeps fluttering and stuff. What if some shady guy comes along and takes advantage of you?”

“Aha~ Ji-yeon. Are you jealous?”

“It’s not jealousy! I’m just seriously worried. Didn’t you take that Charles guy to a hotel recently?”

As Seo Ji-yeon fidgeted with her fingers nervously, I just smiled sweetly.

“Yep. It was fun. And there was only one room left, too. His face turned bright red—you should’ve seen it.”

“Ugh, you never gave me that kind of treatment...”

“I don’t feed fish I’ve already caught.”

“You crazy bitch...”

—Flick.

I tapped her forehead with my index finger.

“And how many times have you slept with me to say that?”

“Uegh.”

Leaving Seo Ji-yeon groaning and clutching her head behind me, I brushed my hand over the newspaper buried at the bottom of the stack.

—Rustle.

[Bank of Korea Urges Government to Request IMF Bailout]

No point pretending it’s not happening. It’s already visible.

This is why I returned to Korea despite the inconvenience. It had been less than three days since Alpha Fund withdrew from currency defense, and already they were out of steam.

“They made such a fuss about being fine—I even debated staying a little longer just in case they had cash left. But of course not. It was all lies. They didn’t have a thing.”

Cut open the belly and there’s nothing inside.

.

.

.

On the way back to Korea with newspaper in hand, one thought crossed my mind:

Why... were they praising me this much?

“Seems like... they underestimated me.”

I tilted my head, smiling as if amused.

Looks like the government bigwigs made a serious miscalculation.

“What? They underestimated you? How?”

Seo Ji-yeon asked, confused.

Well, that’s fair. I don’t really think they saw me as some easy mark to use and throw away.

They were just a little stupid.

“They shouldn’t have boosted my reputation like this.”

Now, Korea can’t reject me. No matter how much impact I have, the public supports me.

***

Meeting day with the government officials.

I arrived dressed in a sharply tailored men’s suit, flanked by young bodyguards, and met them at the hotel.

“Oh my, how do you do? Miss Yoo Ha-yeon. Haha, what an honor to meet the very person making headlines across Korea these days.”

Hmm. Classic politician vibe.

Behind the kind-looking smile was a subtle sneer. So that’s it—they’re looking down on me for being a young woman.

“Yes, an honor for me too. I’ve heard quite a few stories from my grandfather. Said you were a very ‘courteous’ man.”

“...Ah, I see. Haha, well, in any case, please remember—Korea’s official stance is that we have no ties with Daehwa Group.”

—Glance.

I glanced at the mirror and nodded. My own expression held the same smile and subtle disdain. I guess I have no room to judge.

Still, I’m pretty, so it’s fine.

“About what Alpha Fund did—”

“Let’s skip the pleasantries. Neither of us has time. The government wants to negotiate behind the scenes before the IMF slaps down its letter of intent, right?”

—Thud.

I sank into the plush chair and cut him off casually.

“...Understood.”

Whether he was a three-term senior lawmaker or someone decades older than me, it didn’t matter.

In the end, he was just a borrower coming to ask for money.