A conference room in virtual reality.
The older executives, more comfortable with holograms than full-dive capsules, took their seats using translucent avatars.
Na-me, dressed in a black suit and skirt, adjusted her red tie to fit just right.
‘This feels more like a kindergarten graduation party than a stiff company meeting.’
While executives were a bunch that would use monkeys if it meant making money, they weren’t shameless enough to utter terrible words to an 8-year-old child.
For now, let’s just watch.
They signed the NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) and quietly listened to the announcement of a big deal worth one trillion won.
“Hello, I’m NoName, co-founder of Bio-Akashic. Before I start my presentation—”
Apart from her childishly high tone, her voice was quite captivating.
A few executives already softened their stern looks at her cute gestures.
“The virus that causes Multiple Sclerosis is a type of herpes, the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)—”
Her prior knowledge was impressive. Na-me explained humanity’s current understanding of the subject in the simplest terms possible.
EBV is a very common virus that infects one in three people.
However, it also possesses antibodies, so typically there are no symptoms.
Occasionally, when immunity weakens, canker sores might pop up.
“But among those infected with EBV, only a small fraction actually develops Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This cannot be explained solely by a single incubation period. An idea hit me while walking on a summer day and seeing a cicada. Do you know how often periodic cicadas emerge? Yes, every 13 or 17 years—”
What on earth does Multiple Sclerosis have to do with cicadas?
The executives leaned forward, intrigued by Na-me’s presentation.
“Back to it, Multiple Sclerosis arises from an autoimmune reaction by T cells that causes damage to the myelin. But the root cause lies not in T cells, but in B cells. B cells, a type of white blood cell—”
Some executives nodded.
This was because related research had been raised in recent years.
Some competitors had treatment options that targeted B cells.
However, indiscriminately suppressing B cells had a major side effect: increased susceptibility to infections like pneumonia.
“Retroviruses. For those who’ve seen the Planet of the Apes movies, the simian flu ALZ-113 is inspired by this virus. Just to give another example, HIV, which causes AIDS, and HTLV, which causes leukemia, all belong to this group. So let me explain how retroviruses and EBV destroy the central nervous system. We will introduce the concept of periodicity with that cicada—”
In the blink of an eye, five slides on the PPT flew by.
The executives panicked.
Had they been awed by her explanation?
No, they had, at some point, lost track of her presentation.
It was like a college professor diligently explaining the Pythagorean theorem while you nodded off, only to awaken to a blackboard filled with incomprehensible equations.
“So, what’s the possibility of passing Phase 3 trials? Didn’t you say it was still a work in progress?”
An executive brought up the crucial question.
After all, this sort of medical analysis would be left to the operational staff below.
Na-me confidently loosened her tie and showed the final slide.
“Already, in Phase 1 trials, 100 patients were declared cured with no side effects. 84% of 87 paralyzed patients were able to walk again. What more should I show you?”
Such suspicious people.
Nevertheless, Na-me gladly gave them time to crunch the numbers.
Once the treatment was released, monopolizing the market would just be a matter of time.
“Why are you looking to sell?”
Finally, Robert Kim, the Vice President of the Asia-Pacific region, asked.
Even capturing half of the market share could effortlessly earn them ten trillion won.
She could instead gather pharmaceutical companies under her patent and spark competition.
“It’s faster that way. While you all see this as just numbers, I see only 3 million patients.”
Bio-Akashic actually didn’t have the facilities or land to mass-produce the treatment.
“And the reason I valued this treatment at 900 billion won is that it won’t be sold for long.”
“Why? Is there some major flaw?”
“No. I plan to create a vaccine later. My goal is to eliminate this business altogether.”
Na-me leaned back in her chair, arrogantly revealing her ambitions.
The executives stared at her wide-eyed.
Ultimately, the female CFO burst into laughter.
“Haha, that’s just priceless! It’s not like you’re wishing the business you’re trying to sell well. You’re saying your goal is to wipe it out. So refreshing to hear such honesty, Na-me!”
“Well, I can just buy up the vaccine business then, can’t I? It’d be great for us if the business grew larger.”
“Well, I might abandon the patent, you know.”
“Like Jonas Salk? If you would become such a great figure, there’s not much we could do about it. It was an enlightening presentation.”
“Let’s move on to the MOU. We don’t need to see more.”
“Oh, right. I can’t give up the Demon King’s Horn.”
Before Na-me stood up, she left one last remark.
“A loss of 30 billion. Still, so far, that magic sells well in Japan.”
“Sounds good.”
Na-me beamed with a bright smile and reached for a handshake.
*
Bio-Akashic’s status among startups in the Republic of Korea is not a ‘welcome rain in a drought’ or ‘chicken met during a diet’ but a whopping ‘sprout from Mars.’
Their rising success was expected to spark a new wave in Korea’s biotech industry, generate thousands of jobs, and elevate their national stature in the international community, but…
Suddenly, a shark appeared in the treacherous red ocean and swallowed the goose that laid the golden eggs whole.
And the trillion-won shark scattered 870 billion won like fecal matter.
Considering that even when the Ministry of SMEs and Startups poured out 5 trillion won yearly, the economic indirect contribution didn’t even reach 10%, this was indeed the golden poop.
But the issue was that capital distribution was uneven.
Public opinion was like this.
“I hate to see the Japanese faction intrude and swoop up 50 billion won.”
“A few unscrupulous securities firms that make money from money snatched 250 billion won.”
The Korean government managed to recover just under 100 billion won, but the remaining piece was an eyesore.
-NoName alone raked in 348 billion? After taxes, at least 200 billion?
-Wasn’t this just a playful business?
-I thought it was just a company for magic toys…
-What the heck is going on? LOL
-What value does this company even have to earn so much money?
-Why does NoName’s stake overwhelmingly exceed that of the CEO? I just don’t get it.
-It’s so enviable it makes me jealous… Even at 8 years old, if I spend freely without worrying about money, I could live well… while I’m stuck with card debts and working to the bone paying them off…
-How can you live life if you’re this envious of them? There are people who’ve hit the finish line from birth, too.
-Don’t envy our poor NoName!
In the market, Bio-Akashic’s valuation was about 100 billion won, and even generously estimated, it hovered around 300 billion.
Then came the surprise announcement of a big M&A with a tenfold markup.
The media scrambled to report.
The Financial Supervisory Service belatedly acquired information and began monitoring and auditing.
How on earth could they conclude the MOU and the main contract so quickly?
The background was that Bio-Akashic had very little asset listings.
All pharmaceutical machinery was registered at market prices, and most importantly, they had no land or buildings under the company’s name, so everything hinged on verifying the treatment.
Things proceeded swiftly.
The warm sunlight melted the frozen Korean Peninsula, pushing humans glued to their beds and backs outside.
Spring had finally arrived.
*
“ACHOO!”
I sniffled and vigorously shook a hot pack against my cheek.
When will this winter end?
The beginning of spring, called ‘Ipchun,’ had long passed, and we were nearing ‘Gyeongsim’ when frogs wake from hibernation.
If I wake up from hibernation now, I’d likely end up on a French dinner table as frozen fish.
Using heating magic while the weather is cold directly weakens immunity.
Similar-aged children were running around the park, shrieking.
That’s the way to go.
To emit heat from the body, you have to energetically move your feet like that. But as I age, I increasingly dislike wasting energy on unnecessary things.
Even now, there was a girl running into the park and looking around.
“NoName!”
It was my orphanage classmate, Baek Ah-rin.
She dashed towards me the moment she spotted me and hugged me tightly.
Her adoptive father, Baek Ho-chan, joined in late and exchanged greetings.
“Ah-rin, hey. Thank you, Baek Ho-chan!”
Once a young CEO who led a cell observation disease diagnosis project combining microscopy and AI, utilizing his major in Microfabrication at USC Viterbi School of Engineering.
He had to halt his business due to a series of regional bank failures in the U.S., but here he was, making a grand comeback.
“Why do you start with ‘thank you’ instead of ‘hello’?”
“Because you deserve it.”
“Alright, thank you!”
Baek Ho-chan had truly pushed his health and business, resulting in him acquiring various ailments.
“What are your plans going forward?”
“Me? I plan to work hard with the lab staff aiming for the release of Persizumab. It seems I’ll need to observe the progress for another year or so.”
“And then?”
“Then… I think I’ll step back. I need to take it easy and care for my health. I’m also brainstorming a business I originally wanted to pursue.”
While Baek Ho-chan was the nominal CEO, I held the actual power.
With this Bio-Akashic sale, he too had become a billionaire, paving the way for achieving his dreams.
He truly was a very greedy person.
“NoName, how much is in your bank account? You still have that 40% share, right?”
“Such lack of manners.”
“We’re not exactly in a situation to be talking about manners, are we?”
I gave a small nod and opened my stock account to check.
[Subscription Date: March 1, 2052]
[₩214,105,826,285]
“That’s quite a lot.”
“Come on, hiding it! Even local reporters know you’ve got over 200 billion.”
“But it’s approximately 7.3 billion less than expected. And it’s going to be spent quickly, so it doesn’t mean much.”
“Haha, with that much money? You’d never spend it all, even if you rained down your favorite magic a few thousand times!”
That wasn’t wrong. At least for 5th-circle magic.
“Anyway, be careful out there. If money keeps coming up in the news, the dirty flies will swarm around you.”
“Then I guess I should squander it away quickly.”
“NoName has money? How much is a lot?”
“Why? Is there something you want, Ah-rin?”
“Uh-huh. I can just ask my dad to buy it for me.”
We spent our free time engaging in trivial chats.
How long has it been since I’ve enjoyed a leisurely day like this?
“School starts next week, right?”
I nodded again at Baek Ho-chan’s question.
“3rd grade?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow… I just can’t believe it.”
His breath floated upwards on the breeze.
Those words were now incredibly familiar to hear.
“There are many mysterious things in the world. If you just accept them, life feels easier.”
Like a comedian-turned-president leading a victory in war against major powers, Korea reaching the semi-finals in the World Cup while Morocco wins it.
If you consider past lives, dragons indeed soared through the sky.
Of course, there were no horned creatures there.
“Most of all, I’m amazed that you’ve managed to create this treatment almost all by yourself. If this gets out into the world, it could spell big trouble, right?”
“Well, people forget pretty easily. After a while, it slips out of their memory.”
“By the way, I heard overseas that a religion was even formed in your name.”
“What?”
“Didn’t you know?”
I had no clue.
“Check it out later in some community. It’s quite entertaining to see different religious groups bickering with each other.”
“Haha…”
I forced a smile, placing my phone face down on the ground.
For some reason, I felt a strong instinct that I shouldn’t look it up right now.
