Chapter 3

Episode 3

‘(Shinjin Group)’

When Se-young entered the keyword and clicked ‘search,’ the items that filled the page appeared on the monitor.

– Ranked 2nd in the domestic financial rankings, and projected to reach 1st within the next 5 years due to their aggressive management style.

– In the worldwide market, the ‘Shinjin’ brand has overtaken European companies in North America, currently occupying third place.

– We work for the sake of everyone’s well being. Our business views employees as people, not as assets. Our company constantly strives to uphold the humanistic spirit of our founder!

Bringing the mouse back to the top of the page, Se-young entered a new keyword into the search bar.

*Tap. Tap tap tap.*

‘(Jang Seung-cheol)’

– The second son of the Jang family, Jang Seung-cheol, resigned from his position as head of the Barun-Jung law firm due to his children’s involvement in the academy assault scandal and went on a 2-year long sabbatical. So far, he has not made any comment on his father’s candidacy for President.

– With many seasoned figures attracting attention again, will Jang Seung-cheol, who has cultivated a strong political network, light the embers of a dying generation?

– Former Supreme Court Chief Justice, Jang Yong-hu announces his candidacy. Though he has no previous political experience, both the opposition leader and even the ruling party have expressed excitement at this new development.

– Upholding the generations-old tradition of integrity, Jang Seung-il, the firstborn son of the Jang family and current Prosecutor General quickly distanced himself from his father’s entrance into the political sphere.

*Tap tap tap tap.*

Se-young’s fingers flew across the keyboard.

‘(Blue Wing Media)’

– Despite operating for a mere 5 years, the company now stands toe to toe with nation-wide broadcast stations.

– Previously known as Chung-jang Daily, a local news agency, the company successfully rebranded their business, standing out as an exemplary model of change and growth.

– A different phase: The company is now the world’s top producer of content brands among younger consumers.

– Some netizens are still suspicious of the NIS’s support of the company, and there are concerns that the content portrayed is becoming more and more politically biased.

– The company encountered some difficulty two years ago after the firm head’s children were involved in the school violence scandal.

*Taptaptaptap.*

‘(Goodfield)’

– Goodfield’s rival, the ‘Nuri’orem’ company, is now moving in a new direction which has been generally evaluated to be a strategically sound and wise choice for their future.

– The first portal search service in Korean, ‘Nuri’orem’ has announced the termination of all operations. It will now focus on developing ‘FENCE’ – a service on social networking sites.

Nuri’orem’s actions were in reality, a response to Goodfield’s aggressive expansion. The SNS transition was not a sign of evolution, but one of regression. It was, for all intents and purposes, a last-ditch effort to save the company.

– Despite its late start, the Goodfield Portal Search Company has emerged as one of the largest, most aggressive groups in the search engine market, swallowing up similar companies with an insatiable appetite! As of now, it is virtually a monopoly! There’s no competition!

– Goodfield controls the flow of news, promotions, and even pop culture.

– The dark side of Goodfield: Controversies have emerged over Goodfield’s growing lead over other search services. Critics argue that Goodfield’s monopoly could negatively impact the quality of search results due to the lack of alternative marketing.

Se-young closed out of the numerous overlapping windows one by one with an expressionless face. He grabbed his phone, connected it to his PC through a USB cord, and opened an application named [F]. Eight users, each with a solid green profile photo, popped up. Se-young tapped the second line ‘Su-Jung, Jang.’

A series of notifications appeared on his screen.

“If you are not this user’s friend, there may be restrictions on what you are allowed to view”

“You are unable to access this due to post restrictions”

Se-young turned his gaze to the PC screen, focusing on a file with an ‘?’ as its icon stationed in the middle of the desktop.

Double Click.

The command window appeared with 4~5 lines of code running. Se-young redirected his attention to the phone screen. Suddenly, the notifications disappeared, and the post which had been labeled as “private” was now in full view.

Hee-Un: Yo! Su-Jeong-ah! Is your grandfather going to be president?

> Chang-Su: Did you guys see my uncle standing behind Su-Jung’s grandfather?

> Da-Hun: Oh damn. Your uncle wanted to become a member of the Secret Service before this, right?

> Chang-Su: ㅇㅇ (ㅇㅇ is short for 응 (eung), which roughly translates to “yes”)

> Hee-Un : That’s pretty lit dude. Hey Su-Jung, if this goes well, maybe we can go back to Korea early.

Su-Hyun: I told you guys to be careful about what you say. Even if it’s in private.

> Hee-Un: OoPs. Sorry Su-Hyun. I forgot… ;-;

> Su-Hyun: Did you just talk back to me?

> Hee-Un: Aaa sorry, my bad, my bad. >.< I’ll be careful next time. You’re not mad, right? Su-hyun-ah?

> Su-Hyun: Just be careful. My dad told me that your dad has to become the head of the IRS this time.

Jun-Hyuk: Da-Hun, Chang-Su, stay alert. You know what happens if people discover the five of us are in America right?

> Da-Hun: Hey, I keep my lips zipped. Hee-Un is the *real* dumbass who can’t shut up.

Jun-Hyuk: lmaooo, yo, Da-Hun, wire me some money. Not through the bank though, send it from someplace else.

> Da-Hun: ㅇㅇ

Yu-Jin: Yo, we’re at a party right now. LOL Su-Jung’s got the boys on her tail… hehehe

> Da-Hun: Wow. I’m jealous.

Yu-Jin: There’s still some left right? Yaknow, the thing that comes out…

> Chang-Su: ㅇㅇ

> Hee-Un: Are you even keeping track of the date? When are the three of us getting out of here?? (ㅠㅇㅠ)(ㅠㅇㅠ)

Su-Hyun: Lee Su-ho. Keep track of Su-Jung and Yu-Jin. If they take a selfie with the boys and it gets posted anywhere, we’re all fucked.

Su-Ho: Ok.

> Yu-Jin: Hey! I can still see all your posts, you know that right? The auDACIty.

Jun-Hyuk: HAhaa, Lee Su-Ho, you idiot. You chased Su-Hyun all the way across the ocean just to get ordered around.

Su-Hyun: Hey, where are you?

Jun-Hyuk: ㅗ (“ㅗ” = middle finger)

Se-young, who had been reading so far, turned off the application. Even while observing their conversation, his expression didn’t change. Se-young’s eyes returned to the digital clock at the top of his screen.

2:15 A.M.

After turning off his PC, Se-young opened the door and stepped into the living room to prepare for his bedtime. He squeezed between boxes, pulled up the curtains that covered the windows, and checked all the locks carefully.

*Click! Click!*

Even after confirming the window was locked, Se-young quickly released and re-locked the latch by hand twice more, then blocked both the inside and outside screens with curtains.

He moved to the main entrance, where he repeated the same motion with all eight of the locks on his front door. At that point, he returned to his room and checked the skylight in the same manner. He then turned to his bedroom door, which had twice as many locks as the main entrance, all mounted in a neat column that covered from the top of the door to below the handle.

Finally, he laid in his bed and waited for sleep to come.

This unusual ritual had not been broken or deviated from for nearly two years.

***BANG***

“…!”

Se-young’s eyes shot open at lightning speed.

It hasn’t even been 5 minutes since I laid down, so it can’t be a dream.

The room was silent enough to hear each tick of the clock’s second hand, but not even the noise of a thousand carnivals would have been able to mask the ensuing sound and the soul-shaking trembling that accompanied it.

*DA-DUM*

Se-young grabbed his phone from the bedside table, and with the entirety of his frail, shaking body, slowly turned to face the door.