Chapter 26

Chapter 26 : Are they feeding it to me?

After the meeting ended, Myung Un-seok returned to his office.

The sudden appearance of Chairman Myung Joong-hwan and the successful completion of the announcement regarding the investment in LIVIO SOFT was a success.

The fact that Myung Joong-hwan seemed pleased with the outcome was something to be satisfied with.

However, the report that followed from Baek Shin-woo crushed Myung Un-seok’s pride once again.

“Where on earth does that bastard get such information?”

A 5 billion won investment with a 230% return. If you look at the amount, it means they earned 11.5 billion won.

Myung Un-seok tried to utilize his information network to figure out the source of the stock information but found nothing. When he tried to dig deeper, his father, Myung In-chul, stopped him.

Knock, knock—

With the sound of knocking, Lee Chang-sun, Myung Un-seok’s personal bodyguard, entered.

“Director. A report on MANDU has come in.”

“How did it go?”

“The IP we were tracking was routed overseas, but the connection was cut off domestically. Experts say they used a thoroughly routed connection.”

Myung Un-seok’s face contorted at that moment.

“…So, does that mean we can’t find them?”

“They say it might be difficult to track them.”

“This is getting troublesome.”

Just moments ago, he had confidently reported to the Chairman about LIVIO SOFT. He couldn’t let this slip away after he had spoken with such confidence about the expected returns.

He had to come up with a solution somehow.

“I’ve told them to keep looking based on the IP records we obtained, just in case there are more traces.”

“Try asking around if there are other hackers who’ve had contact with MANDU on the Dark Web. Even though there hasn’t been activity recently, if there’s any past record, we might be able to trace it.”

“I’ll give that order.”

As Lee Chang-sun was heading out, Myung Jin-seok appeared as if taking over the scene.

“Are you very busy?”

Myung Un-seok was two years older than Myung Jin-seok. When they were younger, they were somewhat close, but as the issue of succession arose, their parents’ relationship became strained, and they naturally grew apart.

They still met occasionally at family events, but they hadn’t exchanged many words beyond that.

“…What brings you here?”

“Well, I just wanted to check in. I started at the headquarters but haven’t had a chance to greet you properly, so I came by.”

As he said, after joining MH Group’s headquarters, Myung Jin-seok had never come to see Myung Un-seok personally. Of course, they met during meetings, but there was no personal greeting.

“You didn’t come here just to exchange small talk, did you?”

Seeing his cautious demeanour, Myung Jin-seok clicked his tongue.

“Tch—Aren’t you being a bit too serious?”

“Don’t throw unnecessary jokes. Just get to the point.”

Myung Un-seok spoke dismissively while organizing the documents on his desk.

Seeing this, Myung Jin-seok’s brow furrowed.

“Do you know the guy that Baek Shin-woo parachuted in?”

“Parachuted in? You mean that manager with the weird fashion sense?”

Already overwhelmed by various matters, Myung Un-seok found Baek Shin-woo’s presence bothersome. Though he was only vaguely aware of the manager in charge of the third operations team, whose rumors were wild, he acknowledged the connection.

“Yeah. That manager. His name’s Jang Man-soo. He was parachuted in, and he’s always busy with something. From what people in the operations team say, Baek Shin-woo gives him a lot of work.”

Listening silently, Myung Un-seok’s brow furrowed deeper.

“What are you trying to say?”

After a brief pause, Myung Jin-seok swallowed his saliva and spoke.

“I was thinking, what if we tried to bring Jang Man-soo over to our side? If he got in through a parachute, wouldn’t he be easy to sway?”

“We? Since when were we working together? And weren’t you handling the matter of Manager Jang through Assistant Manager Moon Ji-hoon in the Personnel Management Department?”

At that moment, Myung Jin-seok’s face turned pale.

“…You knew?”

“This isn’t MH Food; it’s MH Group Headquarters. No matter how much you struggle, those who start under you won’t stick around for long. They’ll look for someone higher.”

Myung Un-seok was the one who concluded that Assistant Manager Moon Ji-hoon was higher up than Myung Jin-seok. As soon as Moon Ji-hoon was dismissed by Myung Jin-seok, he clung to Myung Un-seok with the leverage of what he had done.

Although Moon Ji-hoon was dismissed due to a violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, the matter was quietly settled thanks to his connection to Myung Un-seok, and he managed to find employment elsewhere.

While looking stunned, Myung Jin-seok met the sharp gaze of Myung Un-seok.

“Are you saying that guy has my leash now?”

“Does he even have the value to put a leash on you?”

“…….”

Silence filled the room.

Attempting to use cooperation as an excuse to manipulate Myung Un-seok, Myung Jin-seok’s thoughts grew more tangled.

Then, with a heavy expression, Myung Un-seok spoke.

“Myung Jin-seok. You should just mind your own business. Don’t end up getting into trouble like this time by overreaching yourself.”

Myung In-chul had given Myung Seong-cheol an assignment.

It was to verify the project Baek Shin-woo was pushing forward and track down the source of the information.

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’m busy, so you should leave now.”

With a dark expression, Myung Jin-seok left the office.

* * *

After the meeting, Shin-woo called Jang Man-soo to his office.

“Why did you call me when I’m busy?”

“Do you know a company called LIVIO SOFT by any chance?”

As he sat on the sofa, Jang Man-soo easily recalled.

“LIVIO? Yeah, I know it. Why all of a sudden?”

“Myung Un-seok just mentioned in the meeting that they signed an investment project with them.”

“That place has been making noise recently.”

Jang Man-soo made a very profound expression. It wasn’t like a vague recollection.

“Was that company on your stock investment list?”

“No, it’s a bit more personal than that. LIVIO SOFT is running a business using the source code I created.”

Shin-woo couldn’t help but be surprised by the explanation.

“The source code you made?”

After the meeting, Shin-woo had looked up information on LIVIO SOFT. Although it hadn’t gone public yet, its size was comparable to that of a major corporation.

Moreover, as an IT company, it had very high growth potential.

And now, they were using the source code created by Jang Man-soo.

“A while back, I made it out of boredom and released it for anyone to use. After I returned through the regression, I found out, and yeah, it stung a bit.”

“I heard there’s been some noise before their IPO… Is that because of the source code you made?” Sёarch* The novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Probably. Although I don’t have a patent, I planted a lock in the source code, so I can claim ownership.”

It was about time to shake Myung In-chul through Myung Un-seok.

Though he’d been searching for methods, up until now, he’d only been able to strike through successful investments.

“Try reaching out to them.”

“Right now?”

“They’ve presented us with an opportunity, so we should take advantage of it.”

“You’re really quick on your feet. Hold on a second.”

Jang Man-soo grabbed his laptop from his desk.

As he turned around, Shin-woo, watching him, raised an eyebrow.

“Is it okay to send it from here? Won’t it be tracked?”

“What do you take me for! I’m using a burner phone hotspot to create a routed connection, so they can’t trace the IP. But what should I say? Threaten them? Offer cooperation? Negotiate?”

“Start with a threat. If they need the source code’s ownership, let’s see what conditions they put on the table. Oh, and send it in Swahili.”

“Got it—!”

Tap, tap, tap— Tap, tap, tap—

Like playing piano keys, Jang Man-soo’s fingers flew across the laptop keyboard.

“Done! Given that they’re in a rush to go public, they’ll probably respond quickly.”

“If the source code you created is the company’s foundation, could we swallow LIVIO SOFT?”

“It’s difficult right now, but we can demand a significant stake. If they don’t want to see their company disintegrate, they’ll meet the terms even if it’s unreasonable… Oh, here’s the reply.”

A mail notification popped up in the corner of Jang Man-soo’s laptop screen. As expected, it was a reply from LIVIO SOFT.

The contents of the email clearly showed their urgency.

【From: Dale Becker／LIVIO SOFT COMPANY】

【…This is Dale Becker, CEO of LIVIO SOFT. I would like to meet with you in person to discuss this issue proactively. I’m willing to visit you anywhere….】

Reading the message with Shin-woo, a small laugh escaped.

“Hmph—Looks like the situation is more urgent than I thought.”

“What should we do?”

“We’ll meet. Tell them we can meet as soon as possible. But you’ll need to hide your identity, so I’ll go as your representative. As for the location….”

Muttering to himself, Shin-woo pulled out his phone and searched for a suitable spot on a map app.

“What are you looking for?”

“A secluded place.”

“You’re planning to deal with them if they try anything, right?”

“It’s not the first time we’ve seen desperate people take risky moves.”

The missions that Shin-woo handled with Triad Eye rarely went smoothly.

The high risk and secrecy of the missions often led to betrayals from the clients themselves.

In fact, many clients who tried to betray Shin-woo and his team ended up destroyed instead.

“Aren’t you thinking too much about the times we nearly got stabbed in the back during our missions?”

“This place is just as much of a battlefield, filled with all sorts of tricks and schemes. So be careful. Don’t let your guard down and make any unnecessary openings.”

“Yeah, yeah. Geez, I haven’t heard you nag like this in a while.”

As the leader of Triad Eye, Shin-woo had gone through life-and-death situations with Jang Man-soo and his other comrades for about seven years.

They had faced dangers beyond anyone’s imagination.

Even up until the moment of his death, the primary reason Shin-woo could complete the missions was thanks to his cold-headed decisions and bold actions.

At the nuclear missile base, it was Shin-woo who made the final sacrifice to save his comrades….

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Phrase Residence Hotel’s VIP Room.

Lillian Foster sat with a serious expression, on the phone with Dale Becker, the CEO of LIVIO SOFT.

“Are you saying MANDU, the owner of the program’s source code, reached out directly?”

[Yes. So, return to the company immediately.]

“In what way did they reach out?”

[It came through an untraceable email. I’ve already replied. But why do you ask?]

“Can I see the email address as well?”

Dale Becker paused for a moment before replying.

[I can’t give you that information. We’ve set up a separate negotiation team to handle it. Your job ends here, so come back.]

However, Lillian Foster didn’t back down.

“Didn’t you entrust me with handling all contact and negotiations regarding this matter?”

[I acknowledge your skills. Thanks to you, we may even be able to accelerate the IPO. But the final decision is mine to make, not yours.]

“I can’t accept that. I only joined LIVIO SOFT under the condition that I’d handle all of this. If you don’t share that information with me, I’ll consider my role over.”

At that moment, Dale Becker’s voice boomed angrily through the phone.

[Foster!]

“Without me, negotiating with MANDU won’t be easy. And you can take care of my resignation papers on your own.”

[Are you really going to—!]

Click—

Lillian Foster hung up before he could finish.

“Ugh! Dale Becker… Even after all I said, he still plans to act out of greed.”

Muttering under her breath, Lillian swept her hand through her hair in frustration.

Her gaze fell on the eye-shaped tattoo etched below her left wrist.

Below the tattoo were English words inscribed: 【The ordeal is not over】

As she exhaled deeply, the sound of the hotel doorbell echoed urgently.

Ding dong— Ding dong—