After a full day of rest to adjust to the time difference and recover their energy, Choi Ho-geun and the team headed to Eldorado Fund on the third day to begin their training.
As the van crawled through heavy traffic, with cars barely inching forward, Jung Hwan-yeop looked out the window and grimaced.
"Seoul's traffic is bad, but this place is on another level."
"Seriously. We've been in the car for almost thirty minutes and it feels like we haven't even moved a few blocks."
Yoo Seok-hyun sighed and nodded in agreement.
As Choi Ho-geun watched crowds of suit-clad stockbrokers bustling between the towering skyscrapers, briefcases in hand, he finally murmured in realization,
"So that's why the boss said we'd take the car on the first day, but from now on we should use the subway instead."
"At this rate, he's definitely right. If the traffic is like this every day, taking the subway makes way more sense. I don't know how these people survive this hell."
Hong Jae-hee grumbled as she responded to her boss's comment.
"We can't afford to waste this much time stuck in a car. We'll have to switch."
Given the pace they were going, walking probably would've been faster. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"At least our accommodations are amazing, so we can't complain too much."
Trying to lift the mood, Yoo Seok-hyun chimed in, and Hong Jae-hee, dressed in a two-piece suit and full makeup, smiled brightly.
"I still can't believe we're in New York. And not just any place—we're staying in a luxury hotel for a whole month. It's like a dream."
"I heard the hotel we're staying at is the one from Home Alone 2!"
"Yes! I heard that too!"
From the front seat, Choi Ho-geun couldn't help but chuckle as he listened to the two chatter excitedly.
To be honest, he never imagined he'd ever get to visit Wall Street in real life—a place he had only seen in movies or on the news, something he'd admired from afar.
The congested roads choked with exhaust fumes, the sea of people in suits rushing down the sidewalks, even the street vendors selling goods on the corners—all of it felt both harsh and vibrant at the same time.
As the reality sank in that he was now part of this very scene, a chill of excitement ran down his spine.
After what felt like an eternity, the van finally pulled up in front of One New York Plaza, the building where Eldorado Fund was located.
As they stepped out, Jung Hwan-yeop craned his neck to look up at the towering skyscraper and let out a low whistle.
"Wow. I think it's even taller than the 63 Building back home."
At that moment, Yoo Seok-hyun chimed in.
"It's a 50-story building, so it's actually shorter than the 63 Building."
"How do you know that?"
"I did a bit of research beforehand. Just in case, I also looked up the subway routes from the Plaza Hotel to here."
Jung Hwan-yeop slung an arm around Yoo Seok-hyun's shoulder and ruffled his hair with a grin.
"Look at this guy—he really knows how to take care of his seniors. Good job."
"Hey, hold on! I used mousse on my hair this morning. You're ruining it!"
"Oh, really?"
Getting even more playful, Jung laughed and tightened his grip instead of letting go.
Watching their antics, Choi Ho-geun sighed and scolded them with a stern look.
"You think this is Seoul or something? Cut it out, both of you."
Chastised, Jung Hwan-yeop quickly released Yoo Seok-hyun and stood at attention.
"I know this trip is part training, part reward vacation, but don't forget—we're not just here to play. We're representing Daheung Capital. It's fine to relax when we're among ourselves, but once we're inside, I don't want to see anyone slacking off. You all understand what I'm saying, right?"
"Yes, sir."
"Understood, Manager."
Hong Jae-hee and Yoo Seok-hyun answered in unison.
"Don't worry, sir. We'll make sure not to embarrass the company. We'll show them how spicy Korea can be!"
Jung Hwan-yeop raised a clenched fist with bravado, causing Choi Ho-geun's face to instantly darken.
"You punk! Are we here to pick a fight or something?"
Choi wiped his face with his palm, clearly exasperated.
"Sigh… You're the one I'm most worried about, honestly."
"Hey, it was just a figure of speech."
"You sure? You're really going to behave this time? No trouble?"
"Well… I'll try my best."
Choi let out a deep sigh, about to launch into another lecture, but ultimately realized it was pointless and just gave up.
"All right, we're out of time. Let's head in."
With a vague sense that this month might be more eventful than expected, Choi took the lead and walked ahead.
Not long after, the elevator doors opened. Amid the stream of people getting off, a brown-haired man in a dress shirt, wearing a visitor badge around his neck, looked around as if searching for someone.
Scanning the wide lobby with its polished stone floors, he spotted a group of East Asians seated on the sofa near the reception desk and walked over.
"Excuse me, are you the group from Daheung Capital?"
At that, Manager Choi Ho-geun rose from the sofa and responded in English.
"Yes, that's us."
With a pleasant smile, the man extended his hand for a handshake.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Mason Acott Jr."
"I'm Choi Ho-geun."
After shaking hands, Manager Choi gestured to the staff standing beside him, looking slightly stiff and nervous.
"These are my colleagues who came with me."
"I'm Jung Hwan-yeop. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Starting with Jung, the two others followed suit, each introducing themselves in turn.
Mason shook hands with each of them, his tone upbeat and friendly.
"Was the traffic bad on your way here?"
"We were stuck on the road for over thirty minutes. We'd heard the stories, but we didn't expect it to be that bad. It was quite the ordeal."
Jung Hwan-yeop replied with a sheepish grin, showing his sociable nature.
"Haha, Manhattan's infamous for being a traffic nightmare—even by New York standards. You're usually better off taking the subway. Or even biking."
"Yeah, I can see that now," Jung replied with a weary expression, prompting Mason to burst out laughing.
"Oh! I almost forgot—here are my business cards."
Mason handed one to each of them, continuing warmly.
"I'll be your point of contact while you're staying in New York. If there's anything you need or are curious about, don't hesitate to ask."
"Thank you. We appreciate your help."
Choi accepted the card and carefully tucked it into the inside pocket of his jacket.
Though their pronunciation wasn't perfect, Mason was relieved to see that everyone had a decent grasp of conversational English. He gestured upward.
"Well then, shall we head up to the office?"
Leading the way, Mason guided the group into the elevator.
When they got off on the 31st floor, the first thing that greeted them was a reception desk adorned with a golden logo that read Eldorado Fund.
Behind the desk stood a woman in a sharp, modern uniform. She rose to greet them with a warm smile.
"Welcome."
Mason turned to the group and introduced her with a playful grin.
"This red-haired beauty here is Eva, the face of our fund. She lights up our gloomy mornings like a ray of sunshine."
"Oh, thanks for calling me a beauty," Eva replied with a smirk. "But I'm still going to turn you down if you ask me out."
"When will you finally return my affection?" Mason said in mock despair.
"Hm… maybe in a hundred years?"
Eva chuckled softly and glanced at Manager Choi Ho-geun and his team behind Mason.
"Are these the guests from Korea?" she asked.
"That's right. You'll be seeing a lot of them over the next month, so make sure to remember their faces," Mason replied.
Eva gave the group—clearly uncomfortable and unsure how to react to the casual American office culture—a teasing glance, her lips curling into a sultry smile.
"I hope you enjoy your time in New York," she said warmly.
"Uh… y-yes."
"Thank you," the team stammered in unison.
When Eva gave them a playful wink, Jung Hwan-yeop and Yoo Seok-hyun instinctively nodded back, their faces flushing.
"Get a grip, both of you," Hong Jae-hui muttered, jabbing them hard in the ribs.
"Ow!"
"I meant for it to hurt. Hmph."
Yoo Seok-hyun, who had been grinning like a fool, quickly straightened his expression with a sheepish cough.
Meanwhile, Mason walked past the reception desk toward the secured door inside. Taking the ID badge from around his neck, he held it up to the reader above the handle.
"You'll need one of these to enter the office. You'll each get your own badge today, so don't lose it—ever."
As he tapped the badge against the reader, a click sounded and the lock disengaged.
When the group stepped inside behind Mason, they were immediately greeted by a breathtaking view through a massive wall of glass overlooking the East River. Ferries drifted peacefully across the sparkling water.
"Wow…" Hong Jae-hui couldn't help but gasp in awe, her eyes wide.
Beyond the spectacular view, the expansive space was filled with at least a hundred traders, all deeply focused on their work, moving rapidly between screens and phones.
"This is our fund's trading floor," Mason explained, brimming with pride. "We may not pack in hundreds of people like J.P. Morgan or Goldman Sachs, but I can confidently say our individual performance is much higher."
Despite the stunning backdrop and slightly better amenities, the trading floor itself didn't look that different from what they were used to back home.
But the size—far beyond what they'd anticipated—left Jung Hwan-yeop whispering in surprise.
"Didn't you say our CEO owns this fund?"
"That's right," Manager Choi replied, still trying to hide his own astonishment.
"But this operation looks huge. Doesn't it seem like they have even more people than our main trading center back at Daheung Securities?"
"Y-yeah… no kidding," Manager Choi murmured.
Just then, Mason, having noticed the two speaking Korean, approached with a curious smile.
"What are you two talking about?" he asked.
Speaking in a language foreign to the locals could easily come off as rude, so Manager Choi quickly clarified to avoid any misunderstanding.
"Oh—uh, we were just saying how surprised we are at the scale of your fund. It's much larger than we expected."
Mason puffed out his chest proudly.
"Well, we're one of the hottest hedge funds on Wall Street, managing tens of billions of dollars. It's only natural."
Manager Choi blinked, unsure if he'd heard that correctly.
"I'm sorry, how much did you say you manage?"
"I don't know the exact number, but it's at least several tens of billions," Mason replied casually.
That offhand remark hit them like a freight train. The shock wasn't limited to Manager Choi—every member of the team stood frozen.
Jung Hwan-yeop let out a deflating breath as he stammered, "I must've misheard, but… did you just say tens of billions?"
"I… I heard the same," Manager Choi replied, his face still blank with disbelief.
"Wait, hold on. Even ten billion dollars—how much is that in Korean won?" Jung said, still struggling to wrap his head around it.
"The exchange rate was around 830 won per dollar when we converted…" Yoo Seok-hyun muttered as he quickly did the math in his head. Then he swallowed hard.
"…That's about 8.3 trillion won," he said, his voice quivering as he glanced at Jung Hwan-yeop with wide eyes.
"E-Eight trillion?!" gasped Hong Jae-hui.
"Are you sure about that?" Jung asked, still unable to believe it.
Yoo Seok-hyun recalculated mentally, then nodded firmly. "Yeah. I'm sure."
"Holy crap…"
Jung stared at Manager Choi with eyes like saucers.
"That's more than the entire market cap of Daheung Group, isn't it?"
"…Probably," Manager Choi replied, still stunned.
"You don't think all that money belongs to the CEO, do you?"
"Come on. No way," Jung scoffed, waving it off. "It's a hedge fund. He must've raised capital from other investors."
And that made sense. Even if Seok-won came from a wealthy conglomerate family, there was no way he'd have that kind of money on his own.
For reference, the largest chaebol, Saseong Group, had a market capitalization of about 19.77 trillion won. Even the total market cap of all top 10 conglomerates' listed subsidiaries combined didn't exceed 54 trillion.
"Still, it's shocking that someone could personally operate a fund of this size on Wall Street. Don't you think so, sir?"
Manager Choi could only nod in silent agreement.
Even back in Seoul, he'd thought Seok-won was impressive. But now, it was dawning on him that Seok-won might be far more powerful and influential than he had ever imagined.
TL/n -
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