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CH55 | DI
🕑 Added 2025-03-16 02:55:00 +0000 UTCRachel’s sudden proposal left me quite flustered. I never imagined the usually gentle princess would assert herself so strongly.
‘Or perhaps… it’s only natural?’
Thinking carefully, it wasn’t that surprising. For an idealist with a strong sense of justice, protecting the rights of Russian Roulette patients was a given.
‘And she’s not exactly wrong.’
From a risk management perspective, it wasn’t a bad suggestion either. The greatest risk in Russian Roulette was controversy. If loud voices questioned the ethics of our actions and criticisms grew louder, the very survival of the project could be jeopardized.
If public opinion worsened and the government intervened, even with sufficient funds, the road ahead would be blocked.
Of course, I had already recognized this risk. My solution was singular: reputation. I intended to build enough blind trust that no controversy could gain traction. But Rachel was proposing a completely different solution. From the start, she suggested creating a role for a ‘Patient Rights Representative.’
Neither David nor I had even considered this. It was likely an idea only someone like Rachel, with her strict ethical standards, could think of.
‘Surprisingly usable idea, isn’t it?’
Rachel might just be the person who could pinpoint the most glaring issues for our opposition. The proposal itself wasn’t bad, but…
There was one problem.
‘It’s problematic for Rachel to get too deeply involved…’
Put myself in the shoes of Gerard and Attorney Mosley. Their youngest daughter is deeply entangled in a foundation tied to someone suspected of fraud? Not only donating a huge sum of money but carrying the foundation’s business cards and investing her precious time?
It felt like too many risk factors were spiraling out of control. Therefore, it was better to politely refuse this.
“Rachel, as you said, a third party is necessary. That’s why you aren’t suitable. Since you’re close to us, it would be difficult to consider you entirely neutral.”
My stance was simple and clear: I agreed to bring in a third party but rejected Rachel’s participation.
“Instead, let’s hire an outside expert. I’ll cover the cost.”
This was the cleanest solution. I thought I had neatly tied up the situation, but unexpectedly, Rachel didn’t back down.
“Then, I’d like to personally verify if the person you hire is qualified.”
She seemed overly emotionally invested in this project. At moments like this, firm boundaries are necessary.
“I’m sorry, Rachel, but you don’t have that authority.”
“What I mean is, I’ll buy that authority for two million dollars. And strictly speaking, Sean doesn’t have that authority either.”
Rachel turned her head directly toward David.
“Ultimately, the real decision-making power lies with the Castleman Foundation. David, it’s your choice. What do you think?”
I was momentarily speechless. But… Rachel was correct. From patient recruitment to project execution, the actual authority rested entirely with David and Jessie.
“I’m proposing to invest two million dollars and work for free. I may not have medical knowledge, but I’m a Harvard graduate.”
This was equally confounding. Rachel wasn’t just bypassing me to deal directly with David—she was even flaunting her educational background, something she’d never do under normal circumstances.
“And my father is a renowned lawyer. If necessary, free legal counsel can be provided. Projects like these often face legal challenges, so that would undoubtedly be helpful.”
She was even candidly revealing her tightly guarded family background. Well… that part was quite an attractive offer. Not just any lawyer but a Cravath & Swain partner offering free legal counsel…
“And I also have connections that can be used for fundraising events.”
That part piqued my interest too. Not for the fundraising events themselves. Leveraging Rachel’s connections meant arranging meetings with important individuals— CEOs of major pharmaceutical companies, for example, or senior FDA officials. People whom ordinary folks would wait months just to meet. Being Able to Schedule With Them Immediately Would Greatly Save Time…
‘No, this isn’t the time for that.’
What am I doing, getting swayed like this? I needed to shut this down immediately. If Rachel started carrying around Castleman Foundation’s business cards, it was bound to create all sorts of troublesome situations.
I stood before David and firmly stated my position.
“As I said, the reason we need a third party is to ensure independence. Bringing in someone completely unrelated to us will prevent any issues later on.”
“A third party hired with Sean’s money isn’t truly independent. If anything, that person would be tied up in financial interests. Compared to them, wouldn’t I actually be in a more neutral position?”
“……”
Once again, I was left speechless. This princess… I thought she was simply naive, but she was far sharper than I expected. Even so, I wasn’t going to let this slide. I was just about to prepare my next counterattack when—
“Hahaha!”
David suddenly burst out laughing. Looking back and forth between Rachel and me, he laughed even louder.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I just didn’t expect the two of you to be at such odds… So, the final decision is up to me, right?”
That was true. The ultimate decision rested with David. And he didn’t take long to make one.
“Two million dollars, free labor, legal counsel, and fundraising events… I see no reason to refuse.”
David sided with Rachel. Smiling apologetically, he explained,
“Sean, you’re right too. But I have my own urgent circumstances to consider.”
I couldn’t exactly blame him. David was living under the weight of a terminal diagnosis—at most, two years left. Choosing the path to accelerate the research made perfect sense for him.
“I’m sorry, Sean. But with Rachel’s proposal, we can begin the foundational research immediately. Isn’t that what you wanted too?”
Well… that was true. I also wanted to start the research as soon as possible. Gerard’s funding freeze had thrown an unexpected wrench into things, and Rachel had essentially resolved it for us.
‘She may have attached some annoying conditions… But it’s not an issue I can’t handle. I only wanted to avoid it because it felt bothersome.’
“I’ll gratefully accept the proposal.”
David even extended his hand for a handshake with Rachel. And with that, Rachel’s involvement became a certainty.
A new flow had emerged. And what matters on Wall Street? Liquidity. If the tide has shifted, I needed to find new opportunities within this new current.
Trying to resist Rachel’s momentum would be like swimming upstream against a raging current. Instead, I had to leverage Rachel’s financial power and influence to surge ahead.
‘No, this… could actually be better.’
The legal counsel and connections Rachel mentioned… They would undoubtedly become valuable resources. Of course, as she said, they wouldn’t be easy to use. It was like dealing with raw gemstones.
To truly shine, they needed to be properly polished and refined. It might take some effort, but… If I succeeded, I’d have access to even better resources than before. In many ways, the situation wasn’t bad at all.
While I was lost in thought, David glanced at his wristwatch and smiled at Rachel.
“Can we coordinate the details later? I have to discuss something separately with Sean today. We’re running out of time…”
Then David’s gaze shifted to me.
“You said you need to leave by 8:30, right?”
“Yes.”
Fine, I’d deal with Rachel later. For now, there was a more pressing matter to address. From the beginning, that was the reason I had arranged to meet David directly. I looked straight at David and asked the most important question.
“Did you get the estimate?”
***
I had earned a staggering $100 million from the Genesis incident— Approximately 136.9 billion won.
It’s an astronomical amount of money, one that most people could never dream of obtaining. I could retire now and live comfortably for the rest of my life,
Or I could use this as seed money to build even greater wealth. But there’s one problem: My goal isn’t earning money. My ultimate goal is survival.
To achieve that, I need to develop a cure, and that inevitably requires ‘withdrawals.’ But how much, and when should I withdraw?
That’s what I had asked David to estimate. However, David didn’t answer right away. Instead, he lowered his gaze.
Tap. Tap.
His head was down, and he absentmindedly drummed his fingers on the table. After hesitating for a moment, David finally raised his head and looked at me.
“Sean, do you really… believe there are two cures?”
Ah. This was something I had only recently shared with David. His face was laced with deep suspicion, but I answered firmly.
“Yes. I believe there are two cures, and I’m committed to funding this project only if we find both of them.”
“I see…”
David’s expression remained skeptical. Of course, it must sound strange. Finding even one cure is an insurmountable challenge, yet here I was, insisting on two. Not to mention, there’s still no evidence to support the claim that two are necessary.
“And what makes you think that…?”
I couldn’t very well say, “Because I saw it in the future.” So instead, I brushed it off with a cryptic smile.
“Didn’t we agree not to pry into each other’s reasoning? That’s why I didn’t question your cherry angioma theory.”
“Well… that’s true.”
David cleared his throat awkwardly. When I had accepted his “red spot hypothesis” without argument, I had demanded that he, in turn, accept my claim. To be honest, neither of our theories had any concrete evidence to back them up.
I offered a reassuring smile.
“I’m not asking you to believe me right now. I just want to estimate the budget under the assumption that it’s true.”
I didn’t care if he doubted me. He could still crunch the numbers.
“Hah…”
David let out a deep sigh and continued.
“To find two cures within 10 years… the difficulty increases exponentially.”
I already knew this. So, I just nodded and urged him to continue, but a sudden question interrupted us.
“Why?”
It was Rachel. David’s gaze immediately shifted to me. Now that Rachel was officially part of the Castleman Foundation, it was only fair to explain things to her.
When I signaled my approval, David began speaking again.
“It’s because of the FDA approval process and the time it takes.”
David grabbed a napkin and began sketching a simple diagram as he continued his explanation.
“At present, Castleman has treatment A. We are trying to obtain approval for new drugs B and C to treat patients unresponsive to A. If we attempt to get approvals for both simultaneously, how will the FDA respond?”
Rachel, resting her chin on her hand, asked back,
“Surely… they wouldn’t make us choose between the two?”
“Exactly. The FDA would naturally choose the superior option between B and C. That’s why the sequence matters.”
David nodded before continuing his explanation.
“We first develop B because A doesn’t work. But then, we discover a group of patients unresponsive to both A and B, which forces us to pursue C. We must follow this step-by-step process.”
“Then… the order of the Russian Roulette changes, doesn’t it?”
“Exactly. Because parallel development isn’t possible.”
The situation is complex, but the conclusion is straightforward.
“This effectively changes the rules of the game.”
Indeed. To use a racing analogy, what was once a long-distance race had turned into a relay.
At the starting signal, B and C would no longer run simultaneously. Runner B has to cross the finish line first for Runner C to even begin.
“Moreover, we have a 10-year time limit. By my calculations… if B takes more than three years to get approval, pursuing C becomes practically impossible.”
We had to obtain approval for B within three years. Only then could we spin the roulette for C. Here, the treatment David needs is B. The one I need is C.
‘I wish I could just prioritize my treatment, but… Even that isn’t an option.’
“In this plan, B’s role is critical. The academic community believes A is the only solution. We must prove that B demonstrates superior efficacy to open the door for C.”
B had to show undeniable results. In my previous life, the second treatment—rapamycin—had delivered precisely that level of efficacy. Pushing recklessly for C too early might end up ruining everything.
“Let’s calculate the necessary funding under the assumption we move forward with rapamycin clinical trials first. How much will we need this year?”
At my question, David looked up. His gaze was still clouded with doubt.
“Are you… truly certain rapamycin is the way to go?”
Rapamycin was David’s most favored candidate. Yet, his hesitation had one clear reason:
“Well… we don’t even have basic research results yet. Isn’t this too hasty?”
There was no evidence yet. We were proceeding based on a vague hypothesis that “red spots are abnormal,” while I was pushing to leap straight into clinical trials.
From David’s perspective, it was natural to feel bewildered.
Wearing a confident smile, I replied,
“I’m saying we should prepare ahead of time because there’s a chance for positive results. Raising funds takes time. Rather than waiting for results to act, it’s better to plan now with the best-case scenario in mind.”
“Well… that’s true, but…”
“How much do we need?”
I wouldn’t be establishing my hedge fund for another year to a year and a half. Until then, I had to cover all costs for the treatment’s development out of pocket.
How much would that amount to?
“We’ll need $50 million by May to start.”
Fortunately, I had that much. With my total assets currently at $100 million, I could afford it.
“The real problem comes after that. To fully proceed with clinical trials… we’ll need at least $400 million by the end of the year.”
Damn.
