Chapter 11: The Demonstration


    Yu Kyung-seok’s days became hectic after he announced the new battery.


    He was flooded with business proposals and requests for meetings from various parties.


    But Yu Kyung-seok dismissed them all with ease.


    “Our research institute is solely dedicated to research. We are not epting any external contacts for now.”


    “We can’t give you any definite answers until the demonstration event. Our priority is to validate and gain recognition on a public stage.”


    “President Yu is so busy that even I have a hard time seeing him. Haha.”


    Of course, he was lying.


    He looked at his son affectionately as he entered the office with aptop.


    “What is it?”


    “I have something to discuss regarding the ck metal.”


    “If it’s about that, then I’ll make time for you, even if I have to split myself in two. Please sit down.”


    The tycoon sat on the sofa and ced a table between them, ready to get down to business.


    Theptop contained the design blueprint for the ck metal mining equipment.


    “Hmm… I forgot that you have design experience as well. So this is the equipment for mining ck metal underwater, right?”


    “Yes. It’s called a concentrator. It was originally designed for harvesting manganese nodules, but I made some modifications. This is how we can extract ck metal.”


    He yed a video that showed the w-shaped device approaching the ck metal.


    As it did, the solid and sturdy ck metal rock crumbled effortlessly.


    “This ck metal is truly fascinating… Anyway, with this equipment, we can mine it, right?”


    “Yes. I want Si Heavy Industries to manufacture it.”


    Chairman Yu Kyung-seok watched the video over and over again, making sure he understood.


    He knew that mining ck metal was extremely difficult, almost impossible due to its incredible hardness.


    As a result, most of the ck metal remained as raw ore and had limited use.


    But with this equipment, they could break it into smaller pieces and suck it up through a pump.


    “It seems like we can make concentrators all over the world.”


    “What about creating a new mining system that includes aplex processing nt? I’m sure there will be a huge demand for it.”


    “Hmm…”


    Chairman Yu Kyung-seok realized the destructive potential of this simple equipment.


    There were several ck metal mining sites around the world, but they were mostly ignored by countries because the metal was less valuable than scrap iron.


    But now, things had changed.


    “Once the demonstration is over, countries will realize that ck metal is used in the new batteries.”


    “And they will scramble to secure ck metal mining sites.”


    “And we will provide them with ships from our shipyard…”


    “Si Heavy Industries’ reputation will soar. The immediate profits may not be huge, but the future will be different.”


    “…”


    Chairman Yu Kyung-seok clenched and unclenched his fist, feeling a thrill that he hadn’t felt in a long time.


    This felt more real than acquiring subsidiarypanies through theplex ownership structure of Mirae Group.


    Making a working concentrator seemed more promising than building unprofitable ships.


    If the demonstration went well, getting investments would be easy.


    All of this depended on the concentrator, and as far as he knew, his son was the only one who could make it.


    “…Name your price.”


    “First, I want a 10% stake in Si Heavy Industries.”


    Yu Kyung-seok’s face twisted for a moment.


    “You know how much revenue the shipbuilding industry madest year, right? It was over 5 trillion won. It’s the backbone of the group.”


    “I know. And I know how important this concentrator is even better. Father, how big do you think the global electric vehicle market is?”


    “About 10 million units?”


    He sounded unsure.


    It seemed that he was not very familiar with smart businesses like electric vehicles, despite his prominence in the shipbuilding industry.


    “It’s close to 20 million units. If you consider the cost of a battery pack for each electric vehicle, it’s about 140 trillion won.”


    The scale was bigger than he expected, and Yu Kyung-seok’s eyes flickered.


    “But we won’t be supplying all those batteries. All you have is the ck metal near Ulleungdo.”


    “ck metal batteries can also be used in smartphones. Apple and Hansung Electronics will be eager to get them. We will be the ASML of the battery industry.”


    Yu Kyung-seok’s expression changed when he heard ASML, apany that had a monopoly in the semiconductor industry.


    “ASML…”


    “Si Heavy Industries will be the onlypany in the world that can produce ck metal disintegrators. The process is simple and the costs are low. I’m giving you this opportunity for a 10% stake.”


    “That’s one of your conditions, right? Tell me the rest and then I’ll decide.”


    “I want 10% of the profit from the disintegrator.”


    “Does that include the concentrator too?”


    “Of course. What good is a concentrator without a disintegrator?”


    It wasn’t an unreasonable demand, considering the rtively low production cost based on the design.


    The key point was that without the disintegrator, the ck metal ecosystem wouldn’t work.


    “So this is his gift to me.”


    His son had a special skill to create disintegrators.


    He could sell his skill or start his ownpany to make them.


    So why was he choosing to give up control to the group?


    “Maybe he knows I’m having a hard time and wants to help me…”


    He felt tears in his eyes when he thought of his son’s kindness.


    After all, he would inherit the whole group in about ten years, so what was wrong with giving him a boost?


    He took a drag of his cigarette, trying to hide his moist eyes.


    “Ahem. Instead of giving you 15% of the shares, I’ll give you 5% of the profit for the first year. The capital management is tight, you see. From the second year on, we’ll switch to 10%.”


    “That’s fine. But I want to have priority ess to the supply when I need it. Of course, that should be in the contract.”


    “Of course, I can do that much. But… wouldn’t it be better to merge thepany you acquired personally into our group as a subsidiary?”


    “Do you mean Samcheok Ocean Development?”


    “Yes. Since Manager Kim has been working hard, promoting him to a director and making him part of the subsidiary seems like a good idea. It would be ideal if he stays within our reach and doesn’t get poached by others.”


    It seemed that Chairman Yu wanted to provide a shield for thepany that handled ck metal for the next three years.


    But Yu Ji-ha had a different n.


    “I want to keep thatpany for myself.”


    “It might be better to go public and raise funds. Is there a reason?”


    “I can raise funds through other means. Since it’s apany that I acquired with my skills, I want to nurture it well.”


    In fact, there was another reason.


    Since Alma would be overseeing the overall operations of thepany in the future, there were many sensitive aspects that would cause trouble if they were exposed.


    The n to delist Si Energy voluntarily was also based on such considerations.


    There would be some drawbacks in terms of taxes and fundraising by keeping thepany private, but they could afford that much.


    Seeing his son’s determination, Chairman Yu nodded.


    “Handle that yourself… The transfer of shares might be a bit tricky. When the ck metal disintegrator is announced, the shares of Si Heavy Industries will soar.”


    “Don’t worry about the gift tax; I’ll pay it without any tricks. If there’s any extra tax, I’ll take care of that too.”


    The important thing was not the money but the control over Si Heavy Industries.


    Chairman Yu asked cautiously, just in case.


    “But do you have enough money?”


    His son replied confidently, “Don’t I have cryptocurrency? I have a cash cow that makes around 230 million a day.”


    “Uh…”


    He was amazed that his son was making money in the vtile cryptocurrency market where everyone else was losing money.


    He wanted to stop him, but it was hard to oppose someone who insisted on finding his own way to make a living.


    He just hoped he would do it moderately and eventually move on.


    “Alright. I’ll have your brother handle the paperwork and other details. Secretary.”


    “Yes, Chairman.”


    “Tell President Choi from Heavy Industries toe with the head of the design division. And bring this director too.”


    The day of the demonstration came.


    At 9 o’clock, journalists swarmed into the courtyard of the research institute, and dozens of ck sedans filled the parking lot.


    The faces of Hwang Sun-young and other employees, who were waiting politely in whiteb coats, turned pale.


    “Isn’t this too many people?”


    “Isn’t that a CNN correspondent? Why would theye to a ce like this?”


    “Oh, the Prime Minister is here too…”


    Not only the Prime Minister, but also the Vice Minister of Science and Technology, Navy Rear Admiral, and other guests added to the grandeur of the event.


    By this point, the arrival of entrepreneurs was not a big deal.


    Among them, Yu Ji-ha appeared, attracting the attention of the crowd.


    The prodigal son of a chaebol stood before the public.


    “First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the distinguished guests who have honored this asion. What Si Energy would like to present is…”


    Yu Ji-ha’s voice was low and clear, easy to listen to. He briefly exined the new battery and the vehicles that used it before getting to the main point.


    “We have two vehicles. We will select six lucky winners who will travel from Pangyo to Busan and back. For the rest of the distance, we will take a route around our research center as a substitute.”


    Dozens of cameras captured Yu Ji-ha as he spoke from the podium.


    Every word he said was being streamed on YouTube, where more than 100,000 people were watching.


    —Hurry up and get on with it.


    —They’re acting like they’ve never seen an event like this before. They’re rushing it like crazy.


    —Are they trying to fool us by fully charging those batteries?


    —They’ll weigh them in a moment.


    —But what if they rigged it?


    —Give it a rest. They brought equipment from the Ministry of Science and Technology to measure it themselves. How could they rig it?


    —Hey, that Windrunner looks pretty heavy. What’s its curb weight?


    —Why don’t you search it online instead of asking? It’s around 2.5 tons, you idiot.


    —As soon as the demonstration started, Si Energy’s stock went up.


    —Damn it, I should have bought some on Monday.


    –If only we had bought some when they announced it.


    “Well then, let’s proceed with weighing the Windrunner with the new battery. I would like to thank the staff from the Ministry of Science and Technology for their help.”


    The staff brought a portable scale and set it up.


    As the Windrunner drove over the te, the monitor showed the number 2,215.


    A murmur went through the crowd.


    “So you’re saying a midsize SUV with people inside weighs 2.3 tons? That’s impossible.”


    “The curb weight of the Windrunner is only 2.5 tons. We’ve reduced it by over 200 kilograms.”


    “What is the battery made of, then?”


    Those who knew about cars understood how hard it was to achieve weight reduction.


    They also knew that electric cars had a lot of weight from the battery.


    So Si Energy had made a battery that was half the weight of other solid-state batteries and had three times the energy density.


    How was that possible?


    Sensing a major breakthrough, journalists quickly typed on theirptops.


    Without any embargo, articles were written on-site and posted on various online portals.


    —South Korea beats Japan in the next-generation battery race.


    —Si Energy makes a battery that surpasses solid-state batteries.


    —Yu Ji-ha, CEO of Si Energy, confident in leading the secondary battery market.


    During the demonstration, these articles were tranted and posted on Japanese news websites, sparking hundreds ofments.


    Thements were mostly skeptical, dismissing it as nonsense and using Chosun (Korean media) of lying.


    Artificial intelligence, Alma, carefully recorded all these situations.


    Although the Master had not given any specific orders, there might be a time when they would be useful.


    “Now, we will proceed with the actual driving. Please raise your hand if you want to be a passenger.”


    About ten people volunteered, and the passengers were chosen by a random draw.


    “Well then, let’s begin.”


    Two vehicles with smart cams started their journey side by side.


    Their entire trip would be publicly documented, without missing a single second, for 24 hours.


    There were also escort vehicles, making any maniption impossible.


    —So those cars will go to Busan and thene back to the research center?


    —They will make two round trips and drive around the research center until the battery runs out.


    —They have multiple smart cams installed, three passengers on board, and a car following them for live streaming. How can they manipte that?


    —Anyone who really thinks they can manipte that needs to see a psychiatrist.


    —Wow, if it’s true, an electric car that can travel 2,000 kilometers on one charge will shake up Japan. They will be totally shocked.


    —Japan probably already made it, right? Logically speaking, if Si Energy made it, there’s no way other research centers couldn’t.


    —That makes sense. The research budget alone is several times higher.


    —Or maybe they know it’s hard to mass-produce, so they’ve kept it secret. Those Japanese guys are good at that.


    —They must be watching this stream andughing. It must be so annoying.


    While viewers expressed their negative opinions, someone met Yu Ji-ha: the Prime Minister who attended the demonstration.


    …


    In South Korea, the role of Prime Minister has traditionally been seen as a shield for the President.


    As a result, their terms usuallyst around a year, and their political careers are not long.


    By acting as a shield against attacks from the opposition and the media, they often lose their poprity and credibility.


    Most Prime Ministers have not been able to escape this fate, but the current Prime Minister, Park Hyun-goo, has been in office for four years.


    This raised suspicions among the public that there might be someone else behind him, not just in the Korean political scene.


    [This guy is a typical Chinese puppet. He graduated from a Chinese university, served as a diplomat in China, and even worked as an advisor for NCC (Next China Corporation), ranked 15th in the corporate hierarchy]


    Alma exined as he exchanged greetings with him.


    “It seems like yesterday when you had an arrest warrant against you, but you overcame it and developed an amazing product. Congrattions indeed.”


    Logically speaking, there was no reason for the Prime Minister who attended the demonstration to say anything other than congrattions.


    Bringing up an unpleasant past would only make one ufortable and imply a request for cooperation.


    “Thank you. You must be busy, so why are you here?”


    “Hehe, it seems my ears are failing me, as I hear you asking me to leave quickly.”


    “No, when someone who has experienced a great sess calls me, I think there must be a reason.”


    It wasn’t just because the other high-ranking officials or generals had already left the demonstration venue.


    Since the Prime Minister attended the demonstration and received the press release, the rest would be handled by the officials in charge.


    Prime Minister Park Hyun-goo felt that he had failed to shake the confidence of this handsome young man.


    It seemed that the public opinion, which imed that he had changedpletely from three years ago, was true.


    “Now that you mention it, let me ask you directly. Did you make the new battery with ck metal?”


    “Yes.”


    “Surprisingly, you’re admitting it openly. I thought you would keep it as a trade secret.”


    “ck metal has only emerged a few years ago. It would be reasonable to say that extensive research has been done and some progress has been made.”


    “As you said, several research institutions have been studying ck metal. Among them, there are quite a few that have achieved significant results. Although they are not public, I can assure you.”


    “The United States, China, and Japan, I suppose.”


    “Many research institutions have reached the same conclusion. It is a new material that has the potential to overturn the secondary battery market, but it cannot be used in its current state.”


    “Are you saying that mass production is impossible?”


    “It’s not just difficult, it’s impossible. How can you use a metal that spontaneously divides wherever it’s used? And even reproducing it is challenging.”


    He was referring to the conditions required for transformation.


    To process ck metal, a high level of ether sensitivity was needed.


    Ether sensitivity was not something that could be acquired through training; it was innate, and Yu Ji-ha had it.


    Of course, even in this era, there were people with ether sensitivity, but they couldn’t control transformation to such a degree.


    “In fact, our researchers have also faced difficulties in the development process.”


    “I expected as much. So let me make you an offer.”


    Prime Minister Park Hyun-goo smiled warmly and handed him his business card.


    Rayo Research Institute.


    It was an institute run by Rayo, an electric vehiclepany under the NCC Group.


    Although South Korea hadunched several electric vehicles, they didn’t sell well due to the bias against Chinese-made cars.


    But by using various promotions and offeringpetitive prices, they had been increasing their annual sales.


    “There’s a lot to talk about regarding ck metal. Since I’ve given you a hint, I’ll treat you with respect.”


    “Understood. Let’s have a conversation when we have a chance.”


    Prime Minister Park Hyun-goo frowned.


    He thought his friend was smart enough to get his message.


    Did he not understand what he was saying?


    “Well, there are two conditions attached. Contact me right after the demonstration is over. In terms of ck metal, Rayo’s research is far superior. Cooperating with them will be very helpful for you.”


    If that was really the case, the prime minister wouldn’t have gone to such lengths to persuade him.


    “Sorry, but I don’t think our research achievements are inferior to Rayo’s.”


    “Oh, dear. I’m giving you advice with good intentions. Do you know how much R&D budget Rayo’s research institute spends on it every year?”


    “I can guess it’s much higher than ours.”


    “Then shouldn’t you handle this well? Are you going to miss such a great opportunity because of unfounded confidence?”


    “I will handle it myself, Prime Minister.”


    “..”


    His thin lips curled slightly.


    ‘Why did he have to mention his position? It’s probably a sign of resentment for why high-ranking officials in Korea are seeking coboration with Chinesepanies.’


    ‘He seems like an ignorant fool who doesn’t even know what the current trend is.’


    China had already started to exert its influence in various ways in Korea, and it was like a unstoppable wave that couldn’t be resisted.


    “…I see. Well, don’te crying to meter. I’ve given you enough chances.”


    “I appreciate your concern.”


    He said the words, but there was no gratitude on his face.


    ‘Arrogant bastard.’


    Prime Minister Park Hyun-goo clenched his lips and stood up.