Mun-guk Oh's account went on for a while, and Seong-ho only listened quietly, saying nothing.

Having finished all of it, Mun-guk Oh looked at Seong-ho with a tearful face.

"President. What should I do?"

Mun-guk Oh looked down at the water cup in his hand and hung his head.

"It seems President Jeong-eun means to pin all the responsibility on me… but it's not fair. You know it too, don't you, President? That when I was with you, there was nothing wrong with the fund. And now, at this late stage, it's my responsibility?"

Executive Director Mun-guk Oh went on in a voice full of injustice.

"You told her that concentrating investment in KOSDAQ like that wasn't a good idea, didn't you? And wasn't it President Jeong-eun who didn't listen? After you and I left, they wrecked everything among themselves and now they're trying to dodge the responsibility — that's what this is…"

"I understand."

Seong-ho, who had only been listening quietly, poured water again into the glass in Mun-guk Oh's hand and said,

"Even I'm nearly mad with the unfairness of it, so it must be worse for you, Executive Director."

Mun-guk Oh felt relieved that Seong-ho seemed to understand his heart.

"President. What should I really do?"

It was the same question as before, but the desperation in the words was different. You could feel in it a resolve to follow whatever Seong-ho said.

"There are two ways."

"Two?"

Seong-ho spoke to Mun-guk Oh in a low voice.

"The first way is to grab hold of the fund, come hell or high water, and make it find its footing again."

"It's already wrecked beyond wrecking. When you and I were there the valuation topped eighteen trillion won, and now it barely clears ten trillion. How am I supposed to revive that?"

"KOSDAQ would just have to cross 300, wouldn't it?"

"300…"

Mun-guk Oh let out a short gasp.

The last KOSDAQ index he'd seen had broken below 200. And even that was thanks to the large-caps holding their ground — the venture index, lined thick with small-caps, had…