Chapter 12: Hidden Movement


    The demonstration of the new battery had been going on for eight hours.


    Two vehicles that had left Pangyo were already filming at Gwangalli Beach in Busan and heading back.


    There was no need to charge them at any point.


    The whole drive was broadcasted live, so there was no room for maniption.


    The live streaming channel, which had only about 100,000 viewers at the beginning, had soared to over 500,000 viewers.


    Various onlinemunities were buzzing with discussions about the demonstration.


    ― They’ve already driven more than 700 kilometers. When are they going to charge?


    ― They’re driving non-stop without charging.


    ― That’s nothing. Japanese electric cars can do that easily.


    ― But some passengers said the battery still has a lot of power left. They said it’s over 70% full.


    ― Come on, that’s not logical. How can it be three times more efficient? Did they kidnap some aliens or something?


    ― Kidnapping aliens is America’s specialty.


    ― These days, the aliens that America kidnaps are liberal arts students!


    ― Anyway, isn’t this thing supposed tost until tomorrow morning? We can just keep watching.


    At first, there wasn’t much interest when it was announced.


    But as the demonstration proceeded transparently, the public opinion began to change.


    However, there were still some people who were negative from the start.


    Shin Ha-yoon and Yu Sung-jun, who were having a conversation at a cafe in Cheongdam-dong, were among them.


    “That thing will never be mass-produced.”


    “Didn’t you hear this morning? They said it’s totally possible to mass-produce it.”


    “That’s just wishful thinking. I checked with Japan, and mass-production is impossible. Do you know why?”


    “…”


    Yu Sung-jun was pleased with her posture, slightly leaning forward and listening attentively.


    “Come on, tell me quickly.”


    ‘You’re definitely going to sleep with me.’


    He tried to hide his wicked smile and spoke.


    “The new battery is made of ck metal. Have you heard of it?”


    “A ck and hard material?”


    “That’s how ordinary people see it. But research institutes have a lot of data on it. Like Panasonic Research Institute.”


    “So what are you getting at?”


    “Take a guess.”


    Yu Sung-jun licked his lips and whispered in her ear.


    “To use that ck metal as a battery material, there’s one condition. You need someone with special abilities.”


    “What kind of abilities?”


    He showed her a video on his smartphone.


    The video showed a man touching the ck metal and making it change shape and crumble.


    Shin Ha-yoon’s eyes widened.


    “What is this? It’s not some kind of metal Lego.”


    “It’s amazing, isn’t it? Panasonic tested it on thousands of people and found only one person who could manipte that piece. Based on the experiments, they concluded that it could be used to make an incredible battery. Si Energy is not the first one to find it.”


    “…So we can use this person to make the battery.”


    “But they said mass production is impossible, right? This person can’t control the ck metal consistently. You know that standardization of the battery pack for electric cars is essential, right?”


    “I know that.”


    Yu Sung-jun lightly clicked his tongue.


    “That Yu Ji-ha bastard must have thought he hit the jackpot when he heard about this from the research institute. The researchers probably tried to dissuade him, but he went ahead and made the announcement. He clearly wanted to boost the stock price and make a profit.”


    “He’s not that dumb…”


    “Huh? Are you defending him now?”


    She shook her head quickly.


    After meeting him in person, she realized he was nothing like the old Yu Ji-ha.


    His calm eyes and attitude made him seem like a different person.


    Now Yu Sung-jun felt like he hadpletely won as he lit a cigarette in the cafe.


    “Phew… He hasn’t changed at all. The prosecution won’t let this go easily. He’ll probably end up in jail.”


    “… “


    “Heh heh, he went through a lot of trouble to develop the battery for the demonstration car. But what’s the point? Mass production is impossible. He was just showing off something that had already been proven by ces like Panasonic.”


    As he blew out a long stream of smoke, a smug smile appeared on his face.


    Shin Ha-yoon stared at the screen, her brow furrowed.


    …


    Time passed, and the next day came.


    The two demonstration cars sessfullypleted the initial n and returned to the research institute after driving around Pangyo. It was 9:30 a.m.


    “Let’s give a big round of apuse to those who worked hard and came back.”


    As the two vehicles entered, people pped warmly.


    Everything had been tested and verified publicly, so there was no chance for maniption.


    The two Windrunners achieved a range of 2,000km without any problem.


    Now it was time to reveal what the new battery was made of and how it would be supplied.


    “Now, I will reveal everything. As you all know, this is ck Metal. It’s the material used in the new battery.”


    A cube-shaped metal object was ced on the table in front of the demonstration stage.


    The audience’s attention was drawn to the metal object, but there was a suddenmotion among the reporters.


    “Panasonic Research Institute in Japan just issued a statement!”


    “Didn’t they say mass production of this new battery is impossible?”


    “What? What’s going on?”


    “Quick, check the statement!”


    Everyone hurriedly used trantion devices to read the statement.


    Yu Ji-ha calmly showed the whole statement on the monitor.


    “It seems that Panasonic thinks it is impossible to mass-produce this battery.”


    At that moment, someone raised their hand.


    “I am Fukuda from Nikkei. I have a question about this matter.”


    It seemed that a famous Japanese economic journalist who could speak Korean had been sent.


    “Please ask.”


    After getting permission, he stood up, holding the microphone given to him by an employee.


    “Is it true that the new battery you announced over the past two days is made of ck Metal?”


    “Yes, that’s true.”


    “Then you must also know that mass production is impossible.”


    As soon as the journalist said this, the crowd whispered among themselves.


    “What? Mass production is not possible?”


    “Then why did they do this demonstration?”


    Fukuda, gaining confidence from the whispers, started exining loudly.


    “To make a battery using ck Metal, there is one requirement: it must be broken down ording to a certain standard. This is amon finding not only from Panasonic but also from other leading research institutes around the world. This metal does not behave as expected… In other words, it is impossible.”


    He delivered his exnation smoothly, as if he had prepared it beforehand, and the faces of the Koreans turned pale.


    In Japan, they already knew about it.


    They were waiting for Si Energy’s demonstration.


    If this was true, then the demonstration was just a hoax and a fraud.


    Why did they make such a big announcement when mass production was impossible from the start?


    However, Yu Ji-ha remained calm.


    After listening carefully to Fukuda’s statement, he asked slowly, “Did you ever consider the possibility that I can break down ck Metal?”


    “Panasonic Research Institute has already done tests. Only one person was able to break down ck Metal in the end. Even that person couldn’t keep a consistent size for the pieces, and their ability to control it was also poor.”


    His words implied that he assumed Yu Ji-ha would be no different.


    “Can youe forward for a moment?”


    Did he want to hit him out of anger?


    As people wondered whether to stop him, Yu Ji-ha attached a device to the journalist’s arm.


    “As a Japanese, you must have a favorite anime. Just think of any and try touching the device.”


    “It’s wrong to assume that I like anime just because I’m Japanese. That kind of thing is for otaku…”


    When Fukuda, the journalist, touched the cube, something amazing happened.


    The ck Metal cube started to change shape with metallic sounds, forming a recognizable figure.


    It turned into a iconic Japanese robot, Gundam.


    Yu Ji-ha smiled gently, keeping hisposure.


    “So, you like this robot?”


    The journalist’s mouth opened wide, as his taste was unexpectedly exposed.


    “As you can see, this device can not only change the shape of ck Metal but also break it down. Like this.”


    With a slight gesture, the ck Metal split into small spheres.


    But it didn’t stop there; it further broke down into solid electrolytes, ideal for batteries.


    “This is absurd…”


    From the perspective of Fukuda, the journalist, this was unbelievable.


    He had covered Panasonic extensively, writing a special report on the all-solid-state battery.


    He had visited not only the research institute but also the processes that were top-secret.


    The researchers at Panasonic all struggled with ck Metal.


    “With our technology, we can’t process this metal. It’s frustrating, but there’s nothing we can do.”


    “ck Metal is the metal of the gods. It’s like we’re not worthy of it yet.”


    There was only one person among tens of thousands who could handle ck Metal.


    Even that person couldn’t use their abilities reliably, making it impossible for mass production.


    But the abilities, or rather the technology, shown by the CEO in front of him were clearly ready forpletion.


    Fukuda, the journalist, reached out with shaking hands towards a piece of ck Metal.


    “With just this device, can you mass-produce it?”


    “It’s more than possible. In fact, we have already developed specific ns for mass production. That’s what we’re going to announce next.”


    The journalist’s shoulders sagged at the confident voice.


    In fact, he and some other employees at Panasonic had a somewhat arrogant attitude towards Si Energy’s announcement.


    —They thought Korea couldn’t seed where Japan failed.


    —They couldn’t stand the idea of using the metal of the gods for stock maniption.


    They all shared this sentiment without saying it out loud and dyed the press release.


    Their n was to ruin the demonstration by delivering a crushing blow, and Fukuda, the journalist, was their frontman.


    But it backfired.


    At least, Si Energy had seeded in developing a device that could handle ck Metal perfectly.


    Unable to bear the stares that were directed at him, Fukuda, the journalist, left the scene.


    And Yu Ji-ha continued to exin his vision in a calm voice.


    “There is one thing we want to convey through this demonstration. Si Energy is ready to mass-produce ck Metal batteries. However, the supply of ck Metal is not yet fully secured. Here are the known sources of ck Metal.”


    A world map appeared on arge monitor, with dots of light shining.


    One of the journalists raised his hand and asked, “Are those dots of light the sources of ck Metal?”


    “Yes, that’s right. We only listed the ones that were reported by the media. As you can see, they are located in the waters of various countries, but most of them are in polluted or even underwater areas.”


    The UN had firmly dered that the deep sea and its resources were themon heritage of humanity.


    Unless a specific country imed it, it would be virtually impossible.


    Yu Ji-ha pointed to the dot of light in the East Sea.


    “Fortunately, there is also a source of ck Metal in Korea. We have secured exclusive mining rights for three years.”


    “Oh…”


    “As expected, you’re fast.”


    Sighs of relief erupted among the people.


    Now, while not as valuable as gold, ck Metal would create a market price that would surpass most other materials.


    However, processing that metal was another issue.


    “I have a question. You said you secured the mining rights in the East Sea. Are you ready to start?”


    “The infrastructure is ready. However, we need long-term cooperation from various countries.”


    While saying that, he showed a screen.


    It was a mining line consisting of a concentrator with a ck metal breaker and aplex processing nt.


    “Let me introduce you to the ck metal mining line. Please note that it doesn’t have to look exactly like this.”


    Equipment and ships for mining ck metal appeared.


    The journalists who attended the demonstration immediately started writing articles on the spot without even having time to ask questions.


    Because of that, he had to keep hisposure and lead the demonstration by asking himself questions.


    “Thisplex processing nt has all the functions needed for ck metal mining. It covers all the processes from concentration to extraction, dehydration, and drying. In other words, with just this ship, we can mine ck metal effectively.”


    “The key is obviously the breaker attached to the concentrator. Until now, it was believed that ck metal mining was impossible without the original light, but that will change from now on.”


    “Excuse me.”


    This time it was CNN reporter David.


    He tried to speak in broken Korean, but Yu Ji-ha spoke English first.


    “English is fine.”


    “Great… I have a question. From your presentation, we can infer that a ck metal ecosystem will be established in the future. What will be Si Energy’s role in that ecosystem?”


    “We don’t seek huge profits. We sell the nts and ships and earn a smallmission from refining ck metal. That’s all.”


    “Can you do contract manufacturing?”


    “No, we can only process it in Korea.”


    “So, all ck metal has toe to Korea first?”


    “That’s right.”


    People finally realized how amazing Yu Ji-ha’s n was.


    Since the ability to process ck metal was in Korea, factories had to be built there.


    “The United States will not like apany monopolizing a specific technology.”


    “We will negotiate well with the United States on that.”


    David, the reporter, looked stunned for a moment, then sat down excitedly.


    Yu Ji-ha’s presentation continued for a while.


    From ck metal exploration to mining line construction and factory establishment, huge ns were revealed one by one.


    Any one of them was enough to shake up the entire secondary battery market and cause a big stir.


    People began to wonder about one thing.


    ‘Despite the impressive technology and ns, does Si Energy have the capacity to achieve them?’


    The Si Energy they knew was a smallpany with only about 100 employees, whose stock price had recently risen slightly.


    Moreover, there were doubts that even the Si Group had the capacity to sell globally.


    ‘They will probably have to form a consortium with other groups.’


    The journalists, who made their own conclusions, subtly inserted the names of the groups that had paid them generously into their articles.


    This is what they call shaping public opinion.


    …