A Wall Street Genius's Final Investment Playbook-Chapter 277: The Invisible Hand (12)
“What do you want? For me to pull out of Gooble?”
[That’s the beginning.]
“The beginning…?”
So that wasn’t all.
“Then what’s the end?”
After a brief silence, an unexpected phrase came through the receiver:
[You already know, don’t you? Join the Stark camp.]
Only then did he realize—what Hasiheon was truly after all along.
“So that’s what this was…!”
Stein felt as if he had been struck on the back of the head—dazed and reeling. With the final puzzle piece in place, Hasiheon’s grand design finally became clear.
“From the very beginning… this bastard’s ultimate goal was to make me defect to the Stark camp.”
The current AI market was a tense tug-of-war between two powers: Stark and Gooble. Capital, too, was divided nearly evenly between both sides.
In such a situation, what would happen if he—a key figure in the Gooble faction—switched allegiance to Stark?
“The balance would collapse in an instant.”
Like a massive weight suddenly shifting to one side, the scales would tip violently toward Stark. A tsunami of capital would flood into Stark. AI stocks linked to Stark would skyrocket across the board.
And when that happened?
“So, you... never intended to make a profit from Brazil. You knew you could recoup it all through AI anyway.”
Hasiheon didn’t deny it.
“So that was the plan all along…!”
Hasiheon had already placed massive bets on Stark-affiliated stocks. Which meant that the moment the scales tipped in their favor, he’d reap astronomical profits. Whether or not he made money in Brazil was irrelevant.
As long as he could—pull Stein over to the Stark side.
[There’s a saying in Eastern strategy: ‘Offer up your flesh to take their bones.’]
Brazil was, from the start, the “flesh” he was willing to sacrifice. While the other side was distracted tearing at that bait, he intended to take the real prize—the unshakable “bone,” the entire AI market.
He understood it in theory… But emotionally, he couldn’t accept it.
“Is he insane? He burned 800 million dollars just to set up one move?”
Eight hundred million was no small amount. Even if he planned to recoup it all in AI stocks later, to throw away that kind of money on a strategy that wasn’t even guaranteed to work? Was that something a sane person would do?
And what if Stein didn’t budge? What if he refused to defect to Stark and held out?
Yet Hasiheon remained calm.
[Let’s just call it an investment.]
“Who in the world calls this kind of madness an investment—”
Actually, no. It couldn’t even be called investment anymore. It was sheer madness.
And then, at that moment—a bone-chilling line came through the receiver:
[Do you believe in my sincerity now?]
“Not that word again!”
That damned “sincerity” had started to sound like a cursed loop, repeating endlessly.
[If you still doubt me, I’ll simply raise my position to a billion. Oh—did I mention? I’ve got a public appearance tomorrow. I’ll be discussing the ‘possibility of a Black Swan in Brazil.’]
Up until now, Hasiheon had only implied things. He had never explicitly said the word Black Swan on the record.
But now, he was going to make it official.
“B-but there’s no actual evidence Brazil’s facing a Black Swan—”
[Right, there isn’t. But really, does evidence matter all that much?]
…And there it was.
Hasiheon didn’t need evidence. There were already hordes of people who would believe whatever he said. He had a track record—Malaysia, Greece, China—each time predicting Black Swans with eerie precision.
Worse still, many of the people who believed in him… were Stein’s own top clients.
[Will you be all right?]
…He absolutely would not be all right. Even now, his phone was blowing up with calls from major institutional investors.
Just the rumor that Hasiheon had gone short on Brazil was enough to whip everyone into a frenzy: “Is a Black Swan event coming?”
Panic was already brewing. If Hasiheon went on air and said it directly?
“They’ll all start cutting or liquidating their positions. No questions asked.”
Sure, technically, he didn’t have to do what the clients demanded. He could try to talk them down with logic: “Hasiheon has no proof. Let’s focus on the facts.”
But Stein knew—that wasn’t a choice he could afford to make. Doing so would only lead to conflict with his biggest clients. And if that conflict turned into a trust issue, and that trust issue led to withdrawals?
Tens of billions could be pulled from his fund. Ironically, none of it would have anything to do with Brazil’s actual economic state.
[I can afford to lose a billion dollars. Can you?]
“He’s a total lunatic!”
Hasiheon wasn’t just playing by a different rulebook. He had rewritten the game entirely.
It wasn’t about who could make more money. It was about who could lose more—and still stand.
And in a battle like that, Hasiheon held all the advantages. He was burning his own capital. No regulations to follow, no investors to please. No one to answer to.
But Stein? His money in Brazil wasn’t truly his—it belonged to others. That meant he had to play by his clients’ risk rules.
‘……’
Still, Stein didn’t want to yield to Hasiheon’s threats so easily. He hated losing. And flipping his AI position overnight would be catastrophic for his reputation. If he reversed a public stance so easily, he would lose all credibility.
So he tested Hasiheon.
“……What if I ditched Brazil too—and challenged you head-on in AI?”
If he gave up Brazil, just like Hasiheon, and met him head-on in the AI market, what then?
Hasiheon had already bet everything on AI anyway—so maybe, if Stein blocked that play, he could win. If he didn’t join Stark’s camp, then the scales wouldn’t tip as Hasiheon expected.
But then, Hasiheon quietly asked:
[Are you sure you won’t regret that?]
…A chill ran down his spine. That was the voice of a man prepared.
[I only planned to offer this ‘opportunity’ to one person. I wanted it to be you… but well, I suppose we’ll just have to roll the dice again.]
“Roll the dice…?”
[Ah, I meant I’ll ‘persuade’ someone else.]
At last, Stein could truly understand Hasiheon’s language. When he said “persuade,” he meant intimidate. And with Hasiheon, that meant another unhinged stunt—another “sacrifice the flesh to take the bone” kind of move.
[I only need one person. Just one to tip the scales. And it doesn’t have to be you, Mr. Stein.]
“……”
That line froze Stein’s mind.
If even one of them gives in to Hasiheon’s pressure…?
Then the capital scale of the AI market would tip. Stark stocks would skyrocket. Gooble stocks would plummet.
And those who remained loyal to Gooble until the end? They’d be hit with massive losses.
[You do understand, don’t you? Only the first one to defect becomes the winner. Everyone else becomes a loser.]
The first to turn away gets rewarded.
This… was a classic prisoner’s dilemma.
Like when the police split up accomplices and offer immunity to the first one who confesses. If everyone keeps quiet, everyone walks free. But if one betrays the others…? The traitor goes free—and everyone else gets double the sentence.
So the question is: Will the other members really hold the line with Stein to the bitter end?
No… this isn’t even about loyalty anymore.
Right now, Hasiheon—this madman—was coming at them with this insane strategy, offering to cut off his own flesh to take the AI market bone.
Could the entire Macro Fund team really resist that kind of madness? What if even one person gets scared and flips their position…?
[I tried my best, but it seems you still won’t believe in my sincerity. That’s a shame… But with five of you, surely one will believe in me. Well then, I’ll be off—]
“Wait!”
In a battle like this, Hasiheon held a crushing advantage. He was gambling with his own capital—no regulations to obey, no investors to please, no need to tiptoe around anyone.
Stein, on the other hand? The money he had in Brazil wasn’t his—it belonged to others. Which meant he had to follow strict client risk protocols.
‘……’
But Stein couldn’t just fold to Hasiheon’s threats. He hated to lose. And abandoning his AI position overnight would deal a fatal blow to his reputation. If he flipped so easily after declaring support publicly, his credibility would vanish.
So, he tested Hasiheon:
“……What if I drop Brazil too, and take you on directly in AI?”
What if he ditched Brazil and went toe-to-toe with Hasiheon in the AI arena? Since Hasiheon was gambling everything on AI anyway, maybe cutting off his gains would throw a wrench in his plans. If Stein didn’t defect to Stark’s side, the scale wouldn’t tip like Hasiheon expected.
Then Hasiheon asked quietly:
[Are you sure you won’t regret that?]
A chill ran down Stein’s spine. That was the voice of someone fully prepared.
[I only intended to give this ‘opportunity’ to one person. I wanted that person to be you… But if not, well—looks like I’ll just have to roll the dice again.]
“Dice…?”
[Ah—I mean, I’ll go]
Stein’s voice burst out reflexively. His lips were dry, but he forced the words out:
“I’ll try… trusting you.”
A hard decision—but the moment he said it, Hasiheon’s voice instantly brightened.
[So you finally believe in my sincerity! I'm truly delighted. I hope we become great partners.]
“Partner,” my ass…
His stomach churned. It felt like he’d boarded the one ship in the world he never wanted to be on.
“Then I’ll contact you again after I’ve closed out my positions.”
But just as he tried to end the call—
[Ah, about that. Why not leave it to me?]
“Leave it… to you?”
Stein flinched. A familiar chill crept up his spine.
“Is there… another card you haven’t revealed?”
On the other end, Hasiheon chuckled softly.
[It’s nothing much. Just that… if we’re doing this, why not maximize the effect instead of doing it halfway?]
