Damn Necromancer-Chapter 308
Chapter 308: Development
[TIME Special Feature] South Korea, the Quiet Dragon Awakens
―Chaebol Empire Ilsung, and the Man Standing Behind It
By | Michael Brennan (TIME Asia Correspondent)
“Ilsung does not change.”
This was a common saying in the Seoul business world until just two years ago.
Chairman Kim Kangchul was a typical defensive-style executive.
South Korea's largest corporation, inherited from his predecessor.
He defended the ranking, but lacked inner substance.
There was no identity unique to Ilsung.
The fierce pursuit of Dorim, ranked 2nd in the business world.
At one point, Dorim had closed the market capitalization gap to just a third of Ilsung's.
Stability over expansion.
Management over challenge.
That was Ilsung's DNA.
But now, no matter who you ask in Seoul, the answer is the same.
“Ilsung has gone crazy.”
＊ ＊ ＊
■ The Beginning Was the Equipment Business
―This is breaking news. Ilsung has announced a surprise entry into the Korean equipment market. In the industry, there are evaluations that it is a reckless challenge by a latecomer…….
This is Korean news from a year ago.
Back then, everyone laughed.
An already saturated equipment market.
It was a red ocean where existing powerhouses were holding out.
Where would they find skilled craftsmen, and how would they secure a distribution network?
The result?
Domestic market share of 88%.
14 months' worth of overseas backorders.
Plus items.
Even affordable prices.
They can't sell them because they don't have the stock.
It became Ilsung's unique luxury brand and identity.
Among mid-to-low-tier Hunters in Korea, it has become harder to find an Awakened who doesn't use Ilsung equipment.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ The Revival of Home Appliances, and the ‘Skelphone’ Syndrome
―[Real-time Trend #1] #Skelphone #Skullphone #IlsungAppliances
Kim Minwoo's NewTube channel, Mangnani.
Current subscribers: 520 million.
The channel with the fastest-growing subscriber count in the world.
The NewTube channel created after setting a world record from his very first gate.
At first, it looked like a reckless prank by a chaebol young master.
However, that ‘prank’ placed a massive premium on the brand called Ilsung.
Kim Minwoo Syndrome.
Whatever Kim Minwoo uses gets a premium attached to it.
Starting from Ilsung's home appliances, to their smartphones.
In particular, the ‘Skelphone’, which had his trademark skull attached to the back, sold out its initial stock of 5 million units in a flash after its release, elevating the Ilsung phone to a brand on par with Apple.
Merhen, Cedric, Vulcan.
The Legion Commanders appeared in commercials one after another, turning it into a series.
The whole world went wild over the surreal sight of undead promoting home appliances.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ Game Changer, Slime Battery
Annual salary of 1 trillion won.
This is the amount Kim Minwoo offered to Dr. Kim Seokjin.
Isn't that crazy?
That was the industry's reaction.
It didn't take long for that salary to quickly be re-evaluated as visionary foresight into the future.
―It has passed all tests. Even if you bring any battery in the world, I am confident that it cannot produce better performance than this.
The driving range of existing magic stone batteries on a single charge is 1,000km.
The slime battery's is 3,000km.
Three times as much.
The weight, on the contrary, has been cut in half.
The world was turned upside down.
The magic stone electric vehicle market?
It was completely reorganized. A single charge is more than enough for a round trip from Seoul to Busan. The internal combustion engine market, which had been holding out using the lack of charging infrastructure as an excuse, began to collapse.
The aviation industry?
Electric airplanes became a reality. Half the weight, three times the output. Starting with short-haul routes, a rush to introduce electric aircraft began.
The defense industry?
The Pentagon reached out directly. Electric tanks, unmanned drone fleets. It became impossible to discuss next-generation warfare without slime batteries.
And at the center of all this was Ilsung.
The US paid royalties to buy the technology.
Exclusive production only in South Korea and the US.
The doors to an ultra-massive market well over 1,000 trillion won opened.
Automakers all over the world sent love calls to Ilsung.
If they don't secure the right to supply batteries, they will fall behind.
Tesla, Volkswagen, Toyota.
They all pulled waiting tickets at Ilsung's door.
The shift in energy hegemony.
The era where those who held oil ruled the world was over.
Now it's batteries.
And Ilsung held the key to those batteries.
The ranking of the Korean business world?
Such things had now become meaningless.
Ilsung was not just the number one company in Korea, but had become the gatekeeper of the global energy market.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ The Caesar Continent, and New Trade Routes
―Ilsung launches heteromorphic race employment placement business…… “Elf secretaries, Dwarf technicians can be hired”
Various companies are participating in trade with the Caesar Continent.
However, Ilsung is different.
The master of the continent is Kim Minwoo.
Tariff exemptions.
Priority contract rights.
Access to an exclusive talent pool.
While other companies have to go through complex procedures and brokerage fees, Ilsung supplies heteromorphic manpower directly. The hiring waitlist alone has surpassed 30,000 people.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ North Korean Development, and the ‘Kim Minwoo Premium’
―This is breaking news. The government has exclusively selected the Ilsung Group as the developer for the North Korean Special Economic Zone…….
The Korean business world was turned upside down.
Even if they wanted to participate, they couldn't.
Dorim, Hanwha, KS.
Prominent major corporations proposed consortiums, but they were all rejected.
“It's driving me fucking crazy, seriously.”
These are the words of a chaebol executive who requested anonymity.
What was even more absurd was the exchange rate.
Usually, when such a large-scale development project is announced after unification, the value of the won drops.
Financial burden, inflation concerns.
It's a textbook reaction.
But……?
The won actually showed a strong trend.
Wall Street's analysis was unanimous.
―“As long as Kim Minwoo is there, the South Korean economy will not fail.”
―“Ilsung's North Korean development is not a risk, but an opportunity.”
―“Buy the won. It is buying Kim Minwoo.”
The Kim Minwoo Premium.
The driving range of existing magic stone batteries on a single charge is 1,000km.
The slime battery's is 3,000km.
Three times as much.
The weight, on the contrary, has been cut in half.
The world was turned upside down.
The magic stone electric vehicle market?
It was completely reorganized.
A single charge is more than enough for a round trip from Seoul to Busan.
The internal combustion engine market, which had been holding out using the lack of charging infrastructure as an excuse, began to collapse.
The aviation industry?
Electric airplanes became a reality.
Half the weight, three times the output.
Starting with short-haul routes, a rush to introduce electric aircraft began.
The defense industry?
The Pentagon reached out directly. Electric tanks, unmanned drone fleets. It became impossible to discuss next-generation warfare without slime batteries.
And at the center of all this was Ilsung.
The US paid royalties to buy the technology.
Exclusive production only in South Korea and the US.
The doors to an ultra-massive market well over 1,000 trillion won opened.
Automakers all over the world sent love calls to Ilsung.
If they don't secure the right to supply batteries, they will fall behind.
Tesla, Volkswagen, Toyota.
They all pulled waiting tickets at Ilsung's door.
The shift in energy hegemony.
The era where those who held oil ruled the world was over.
Now it's batteries.
And Ilsung held the key to those batteries.
The ranking of the Korean business world?
Such things had now become meaningless.
Ilsung was not just the number one company in Korea, but had become the gatekeeper of the global energy market.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ The Caesar Continent, and New Trade Routes
―Ilsung launches heteromorphic race employment placement business…… “Elf secretaries, Dwarf technicians can be hired”
Various companies are participating in trade with the Caesar Continent.
However, Ilsung is different.
The master of the continent is Kim Minwoo.
Tariff exemptions.
Priority contract rights.
Access to an exclusive talent pool.
While other companies have to go through complex procedures and brokerage fees, Ilsung supplies heteromorphic manpower directly.
The hiring waitlist alone has surpassed 30,000 people.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ North Korean Development, and the ‘Kim Minwoo Premium’
―This is breaking news. The government has exclusively selected the Ilsung Group as the developer for the North Korean Special Economic Zone…….
The Korean business world was turned upside down.
Even if they wanted to participate, they couldn't.
Dorim, Hanwha, KS.
Prominent major corporations proposed consortiums, but they were all rejected.
“It's driving me fucking crazy, seriously.”
These are the words of a chaebol executive who requested anonymity.
What was even more absurd was the exchange rate.
Usually, when such a large-scale development project is announced after unification, the value of the won drops.
Financial burden, inflation concerns.
It's a textbook reaction.
But……?
The won actually showed a strong trend.
Wall Street's analysis was unanimous.
―“As long as Kim Minwoo is there, the South Korean economy will not fail.”
―“Ilsung's North Korean development is not a risk, but an opportunity.”
―“Buy the won. It is buying Kim Minwoo.”
It sounds like a joke, but it actually became a term used on Wall Street.
The comment added by Moody's and S&P when upgrading South Korea's sovereign credit rating.
‘The Kim Minwoo Factor.’
A single human became a nation's credit.
Became its currency.
South Korea's GDP rose noticeably.
Jobs increased explosively.
The youth unemployment rate recorded an all-time low.
South Korea is soaring.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ Why Is the World Silent
South Korea's rapid growth.
There are two countries that should be getting the most heated about it.
The US and China.
But it's strange.
Both are quiet.
First, China.
―[Breaking News] 3 Chinese Standing Committee members suddenly dismissed on corruption charges
Chairman Li Zemin was uncharacteristically silent.
Ever since Kim Minwoo visited Beijing.
What moved instead was the blade of purges.
Standing Committee members who were in a hostile relationship with the Ilsung Group.
They disappeared without a trace.
Our Beijing correspondent said it like a joke.
“Doesn't Ilsung have a purge list.”
Before long, the era of Liang Xiaojun opened.
China promised unlimited opening to Ilsung.
Preferential treatments not even given to their own domestic companies poured in.
Simply because he saved Shanghai?
Well.
If you consider that Liang Xiaojun is the Diocese Head of the Death Cult, the meaning of that silence changes.
It's not just Ilsung.
The entirety of Korean companies was given benefits equal to their own nation.
A new wave of opening.
The doors to the 1.4 billion market opened.
Next is the US.
President Robert, stepping up his moves in earnest after his re-election.
The signing ceremony with the Caesar Continent.
At that venue, he put his arm around Kim Minwoo's shoulder and smiled.
A single photo spread around the world.
Thanks to that, stock prices rose greatly.
Leaving behind the close race with Johnson, he succeeded in re-election with a 5% margin.
Conclusion.
Currently, the countries that should be keeping them in check are unable to.
No, they aren't doing it.
The US is in a honeymoon period with Kim Minwoo.
China opened its doors on its own.
Since the G2 are quiet, the rest cannot easily make a move either.
At this very moment.
There is no country that can stop Ilsung.
＊ ＊ ＊
■ Kim Minwoo, Who Led All These Changes, Who Is He
He was different from the very beginning.
Sweeping world records right from the start.
He was quiet after that, but he began moving in earnest upon establishing the Money Talks Guild.
Resolved the Magenta Shanghai incident.
Conquered the Caesar Continent.
Concluded a treaty with the entire Earth.
He was on a different level.
He was no longer a chaebol young master.
He was not an Awakened either.
Even the job of Necromancer was insufficient to define him.
He was now the only bridge connecting two worlds.
＊ ＊ ＊
Chairman Kim Kangchul was a master of defense.
But his son is a conqueror.
The Ilsung Group's one year will be recorded as the most dramatic leap in South Korea's economic history.
No, perhaps in the entire history of humanity…….
The dragon has awakened.
And now, it is about to spread its wings.
―Michael Brennan,
Chairman Kim Kangchul put down his tablet.
The cover of TIME magazine floated on the screen.
Below the headline ‘The Dragon Awakens’, the Ilsung Group logo was clear.
“Heh.”
A low exclamation leaked out.
The corners of his mouth went up on their own.
He had commanded the business world for decades, but this was a first.
To have the heart of America spotlight South Korea, Ilsung, and his own son like this.
“Even TIME magazine is talking about our Ilsung.”
Kim Kangchul looked out the window. Seoul's skyline was reflected in the glass window.
Among those buildings, Ilsung's flag was fluttering.
“The more times like this, the better we have to do.” 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎
“Yes.”
Kim Hyungseok, sitting opposite him, nodded.
“We have to support Hyung solidly. While Hyung is running on the battlefield, I will take responsibility for the rear.”
The wrinkles around Kim Kangchul's eyes deepened.
Two sons.
One roams the battlefield, and one protects the empire.
Could it get any better than this.
It was then.
Knock, knock.
Along with the sound of knocking, the door opened.
“Have you all been well?”
A young man in a black suit entered. It was Kim Minwoo.
“It's been a while. Since I visited the company directly.”
Kim Kangchul stood up from his seat.
“Minwoo, what brings you here? Aren't you busy?”
“I have something to do.”
Kim Minwoo sat on the sofa.
Kim Hyungseok moved to the seat next to him.
The father and two sons sat facing each other.
Kim Minwoo's gaze scanned the two people.
“During this time, our Ilsung has grown a lot.”
Kim Kangchul nodded.
“South Korea's status has also risen considerably.”
Kim Hyungseok agreed as well.
It was an earth-shattering change.
They dominated the global energy market with slime batteries.
Exclusive trade rights with the Caesar Continent, North Korean development projects, none of them were small.
“It is time to take it one step further.”
Kim Minwoo took something out of his pocket.
A black case.
He placed it on the table with a clack.
As the case opened, a blue light leaked out.
The subtle glow unique to magic stones. Inside was a module the size of a fist.
“What is this?”
Kim Kangchul leaned forward.
“It's a magic stone cooling and power module for AI super factories.”
Kim Minwoo looked at Hyungseok and asked calmly.
“Do you know what the core of the AI competition is?”
“It's infrastructure rather than chip performance. Power and cooling. I heard the energy data centers devour is on the level of a small city.”
“Exactly.”
Kim Minwoo picked up the module.
A blue light flowed between his fingers.
“Running a single GPU factory requires power on the level of a nuclear power plant. Cooling is even more serious. It's gotten to the point where there's talk of building data centers in the Arctic because they can't handle the heat the servers spew out.”
Kim Kangchul's eyes narrowed.
“So this is the solution?”
“Yes.”
Kim Minwoo placed the module on the table.
“It's an ultra-high-efficiency system made from magic stones and gate byproducts. It has two functions.”
His finger tapped the surface of the module.
“First, dimensional emission cooling. It's an immersion cooling method where the server is submerged in a special liquid, but we mixed magic stone properties into this liquid. It absorbs the heat and releases it into the dimensional rift.”
“Into the dimensional rift?”
Kim Hyungseok asked back.
“Simply put, we're dumping the heat into another world. There's no heat left on Earth. The cooling efficiency is over 500% compared to existing methods.”
Kim Kangchul inhaled sharply.
“Second, a magic stone buffer power system.”
Kim Minwoo continued.
“AI computation has fluctuating power consumption. It eats up a massive amount during peaks, and then drops sharply during idle times. Because of this volatility, the power grid becomes unstable, and power plants have to be over-operated.”
He tapped the side of the module.
“This module stores peak power in the magic stone and releases it when needed. You can think of it as a miniature version of the slime battery. A 40% improvement in power efficiency, and a reduction in power generation costs.”
Silence flowed.
Kim Kangchul slowly opened his mouth.
“If this is commercialized…….”
“Big tech all over the world will line up.”
Kim Minwoo asserted.
“Googol, Micronsoft, Omazon, Zeta. If they want to survive the AI competition, it will be impossible without this module. It will become a structure where they have to pay us royalties every time they build a single data center.”
Kim Hyungseok quickly tapped his calculator.
“The simple data center construction market alone is 600 trillion won annually. But this is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Hyungseok's eyes flashed.
“If you combine operating costs, power consumption, and the AI service market running on top of it…… the estimated scale alone exceeds 2,000 trillion won. This is even bigger than the slime battery market.”
He swallowed hard.
“If batteries replaced ‘oil’, this is monopolizing ‘intelligence’. Whatever price we name will be the price.”
At those words, Chairman Kim Kangchul swallowed hard and looked at Kim Minwoo.
“……Minwoo, how on earth did you develop something like this?”
“Dr. Kim Seokjin. Isn't he a genius? I only gave him the concept, but he managed to produce the results on his own.”
To be exact, it was one of the technologies that appeared in the latter half of the game. Naturally, for a rotten water veteran like Kim Minwoo, it was one of the lists worth remembering.
“The reason I haven't used it until now was because the US could throw a fit over the slime battery alone. But now, it's different. The situation.”
“Right. It's different. China is on our side, and you resolved the Shanghai incident. Something even the world rankers couldn't handle.”
“Since he owes a debt, Robert won't be able to throw a fit either. If he got re-elected, he has to pay it back. If he doesn't, we just have to make him want to.”
Kim Minwoo's eyes turned out the window.
“The places where AI infrastructure is gathered are essentially the eyes and brains of the world. And those eyes and brains will all be tied to our Ilsung.”
It wasn't a simple business expansion.
The place where data from all over the world gathers.
If he held that flow, he wouldn't miss even the faintest traces of the ‘Shadows’ who had slipped past the system's eyes.
Before the Outer God's descent, he had to get Earth's neural network into his grasp.
‘Earth's money is also slowly……. Escaping the route to becoming the Zimbabwe dollar.’
250 billion to 1.
It was a vastly lowered exchange rate for Achievement Points.
It was still abysmal, but it was gradually becoming useful.
Therefore, now was the perfect time to put the product out there.
Kim Kangchul looked at his son.
The sunlight from outside the window shone on Kim Minwoo's face.
That was his son.
What was TIME magazine compared to this.
The real dragon had only just begun to spread its wings.
“Good, let's do it. Let's have our Ilsung turn the world upside down.”
