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CH9 | DI
🕑 Added 2025-02-02 02:35:00 +0000 UTC“My VP will contact you soon.”
Pierce stirred up a commotion and left. But the person trailing behind him looked familiar. It was the instructor from the training center. The same one who had been pleased with my Excel skills before.
‘Could he have sold me out?’
Considering the circumstances, that’s the only explanation. That instructor must have tipped Pierce off about the fast-handed Excel slave, and Pierce came here in person to claim the slave.
‘No, that still doesn’t make sense… Why would someone like an MD be so worked up over a low-level employee?’
Though I still had questions, I decided to let it go for now. I had other things to deal with at the moment.
“This kind of event makes work more exciting!”
“Chris, you’re in for it tomorrow!”
“It’s weird that Pierce showed up here! Why did he come?”
The senior employees were in a frenzy.
“But Sean! You got this, right?”
“My 500 bucks are riding on you!”
“Hey, what’s your relationship with Pierce?”
Brent had disappeared by now. Maybe that’s why all eyes were now on me.
“I just met him today. Is he famous?”
“He’s a legend at Goldman!”
“Didn’t you hear about him when you were an intern?”
I knew of his reputation. What I needed were the details. The thing I was most curious about was Pierce’s client list. If all his clients were big shots, then, honestly, switching sides wouldn’t be so bad.
‘There’s no need to stick to the same path.’
People who stubbornly refuse to adapt always crash and burn early. On Wall Street, the key is liquidity. When a new flow appears, you have to find new opportunities within it. Right now, what I need is information. I need to calculate the profit and risk based on that information and make a decision…
“Man! Haven’t you heard the story? When Pierce was VP, he co-managed a bond issuance with another bank. But the other bank got cold feet and backed out!”
“A bank gave up the fees and withdrew?”
“It’s a Wall Street miracle! Anyway, Goldman handled it solo and raked in an extra million dollars in fees. That’s what got Pierce promoted so quickly.”
Does that even make sense?
“His nickname is the Lich King, you know? No matter how hard you try, you can’t shake him off.”
“Isn’t it because none of his deals ever die?”
“Really?”
“He’s never failed a deal. Had a 100% success rate, though I heard that record broke during the financial crisis.”
“Is that even possible?”
“My VP said Pierce doesn’t even rest for five minutes. They tried slipping him sleeping pills, but he was unfazed.”
“I heard there are companies that have banned Pierce from entering…”
My question got drowned out. All I was hearing were exciting stories, and they were clearly exaggerated, too.
‘Well, that’s what you get with bar talk.’
But the efficiency in terms of time was abysmal. I needed a different source of information. Just as I was thinking this, I locked eyes with Liliana, who was sitting at the bar.
‘Is she leaving?’
Liliana smiled at me and grabbed her bag. I wasn’t going to gain anything by staying here either.
“Phew… I’ll head out now.”
“Why!”
“Where are you going!”
Once outside, I hurriedly looked around. It had taken longer than I expected to shake off those clingy seniors.
‘She hasn’t left already, has she?’
Fortunately, Liliana was still nearby. She had stopped in the middle of the road and was rummaging through her handbag.
‘It feels like she’s waiting on purpose…’
As proof, I was quite close now, yet she hadn’t even glanced up. When someone senses movement at night, they instinctively feel on guard, don’t they? From what I could see, Liliana was holding her keys in her right hand. If I ask her what she’s looking for, she’s probably going to show them to me, but I have no intention of playing along with that question. If she loses her balance, she’ll get pulled in the direction I want.
“Liliana, are you just going to leave? You need to take responsibility.”
“Huh? What do you mean by responsibility…?”
“You saw everything, didn’t you? It looked like the instructor tipped him off.”
Liliana flinched at the word ‘instructor’ and rolled her eyes. She must have already known.
“You know I’m aiming for the Healthcare Department, right? Things were going well, but you ruined everything.”
“Why is that my fault?”
“If you hadn’t stopped me, I wouldn’t have attended the class, and none of this would have happened.”
That’s right, take responsibility. You’ve got a share in this situation too.
“I didn’t know things would turn out like this.”
“Even without bad intentions, if you hit someone with a car, it’s still an accident.”
“What?”
“I’m not asking for much, just give me the information on the car I hit. Pierce, why is he after me?”
“Ah, geez.”
“Thanks to you, I got caught up in this mess, and now you’re just going to walk away without taking responsibility? A hit-and-run?”
Liliana let out a laugh in disbelief, but there was no anger in her laugh. I, too, was smiling and speaking jokingly. Liliana stopped her incredulous laughter and spoke.
“Where do you live?”
“Murray Hill.”
“We’re neighbors.”
Well, that’s not particularly surprising. Murray Hill is known as the ‘banker’s dormitory’ after all.
“Let’s split the taxi fare. I can share what I know on the way.”
This is the woman who started talking about debts and loans from our very first meeting. If I had asked directly, she would have tried to settle accounts again, so I preemptively shifted the blame, and it worked better than I expected.
“Pierce has been recruiting talented employees since last year, but even I don’t know why. At first, I thought it was due to performance pressure, but that doesn’t seem to be it…”
She started spilling everything even before I asked any questions.
“Did you see the news? Goldman’s been cutting staff across the board lately. There’s a rumor they’re reducing the number of MDs from 600 to 400… But Pierce has nothing to worry about, his performance is stellar!”
At this point, it seemed like she was itching to talk about it.
“There could be factors beyond performance. Like internal politics.”
“Could it be that? Actually, Pierce is from Merrill Lynch.”
“Doesn’t Goldman avoid recruiting outsiders?”
“There are some exceptions. That shows how capable he is.”
“Or maybe he has strong connections. Maybe he’s managing some big clients.”
“Hmm, there’s a rumor that he has ties to pension funds or university endowments. Do you think that’s related?”
I’m getting some decent information, especially the last part.
‘Not bad at all.’
Pension funds and university endowments are the big players. Securing a few of them could easily bring in $50 billion. If it’s true, switching sides wouldn’t be a bad idea.
‘Well, there’s no need to make a decision right now.’
I’m still lacking enough information. For now… let’s leave it at that for today.
The tall building in front of me was where I used to live 10 years ago. It’s a pretty upscale residence.
It’s not a bad place for a young professional to live, but I can’t help but feel my shoulders sag.
‘My mansion in Greenwich… I miss my past life’s home. The one with the private pool, tennis court, and home theater.’
That’s not the only thing I miss.
The watches I collected over the years, my supercar collection, the $460 million I had in my account…
All the wealth I worked hard to accumulate and my past achievements have been wiped out, reset in an instant.
How can I stay motivated?
“Hey, just getting in?”
As soon as I opened the door, I saw my roommate.
Yes, I have a roommate.
This building only has three-bedroom apartments, and I can’t afford the rent on my own.
This guy’s name is Carver. He works at JP Morgan and will head off to Silicon Valley in a few years.
My other roommate works at Deutsche Bank.
Like I said, this neighborhood is a dorm for bankers.
“Midnight snack?”
“I’m hungry.”
Carver put two pieces of toast on a plate, nodded his head, and went straight to his room.
That’s how we are.
We met through a roommate listing and agreed to keep the living room and kitchen clean for a year.
In short, we’re total strangers.
And somehow, that makes things more comfortable.
When I entered my room, only a frameless mattress and a desk greeted me.
Once again, I missed my past life.
‘My 1020-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets…’
Still, I suppose I should be grateful just to be alive.
I forced myself to feel motivated as I approached the desk.
Just as I remembered, there was a printer.
I hurriedly pulled out my laptop, sat down at the desk, and immediately started searching.
<ClinicalTrials.gov>
It’s a website that collects information on ongoing clinical trials.
What am I doing?
Obviously, I’m checking for any golden opportunities.
The reason I succeeded in my past life was because I had a knack for identifying drugs that would get FDA approval.
If my opportunities have disappeared because of the reset, I swear I’m going to cry.
Vrrr—
Vrrr—
I neatly organized the papers that the laser printer spit out, stapled them, and laid them out on the desk.
There’s a rule with my opportunities—they only work if I maintain an exact 80:20 ratio.
So, based on my memory, I adjusted the ratio and turned off the switch.
‘Please, let it have saved.’
I closed my eyes, half in fear, half in anticipation, and opened them again.
<11:59>
The cheap digital clock I bought at Wal-Mart was showing the current time on the desk.
And right in front of that clock… two documents were glowing green.
That means my opportunity is still intact.
“Phew…”
I still have the ability to pick the winning horse.
I was about to give up and start planning for ‘Round 3,’ but thankfully, I don’t have to go that far.
But just then,
<00:00>
The digits on the digital clock changed.
And something strange appeared in my vision.
[Time of Death: March 11, 2023]
[Remaining Time: 3,468 days]
[Survival Rate: 0%]
What the hell is this now?
***
Meanwhile, the newcomers attending the welcome party were celebrating the absence of Ha Si-heon.
All the senior employees’ attention had been focused on Ha Si-heon until now.
‘He’s finally gone!’
‘Let’s try talking to the seniors!’
Each newcomer approached the seniors with their own goals—to score points with seniors from the same department, to build connections in the department they hoped to transfer to, to get some work-life advice.
But the conversation didn’t go the way they wanted.
“What was the hardest part of your first year?”
“Oh! Newcomer! Do you know anything about that guy, Sean?”
“No, we’re not that close.”
“Still, there’s got to be something, right? There’s no way Pierce would single out someone ordinary…”
“He did finish the final exam the fastest.”
“Come on, that can’t be the only reason… Does he have an unusual background? Maybe he’s the son of an Asian conglomerate?”
“He seems to live quite modestly…”
No matter what question was asked, it always came back to Ha Si-heon. After repeated failed attempts, the newcomers gave up on networking and sat in a circle, grumbling.
“Lucky him. They can’t even remember our names…”
“Lucky guy.”
“So, isn’t he already starting ahead of us?”
“Is he really just lucky?”
The last person to speak was one of the seniors.
“What do you guys think the outcome of this bet will be?”
“Well, obviously…”
“Yeah, he’s going to lose. What’s so great about losing in front of everyone?”
Most of the newcomers nodded, but one hesitated, then cautiously asked a follow-up question.
“But what if, by some chance, he wins? Wouldn’t that be an incredible opportunity?”
“Pfft!”
The senior burst out laughing. The newcomer’s speech quickened in response.
“Of course, it’s unlikely… but he did say he’s confident, and as a med student, maybe he sees things we don’t.”
“Well, in an ideal world, sure. But reality is different.”
The senior gestured for the newcomer to move aside, then sat in the center of the sofa, full of swagger.
“Science? Theory? Numbers? Yeah, they’re all important. But at the end of the day, it’s people who run companies.”
All the newcomers perked up their ears. It was time to learn from the insights of someone with experience.
“People aren’t rational. When you work, you’ll see a lot of CEOs making bizarre demands. Companies are supposed to chase profit, but sometimes, they don’t.”
“Ah! So that’s why it’s not like the textbooks!”
“Exactly. Brent’s been in the field for two years, so he understands the fickle needs of clients. But the newcomer is relying solely on scientific data.”
The senior declared firmly.
“The newcomer doesn’t stand a chance.”
He made a valid point—if Ha Si-heon were just an ordinary newcomer. Of course, this senior had no idea that Ha Si-heon had been in the industry for ten years before coming back.
“On top of that, it won’t be easy for him to perform well. Imagine having 2,000 bosses watching your every move. Would your brain function properly?”
“Two thousand people?”
The newcomers tilted their heads again. There were only about fifty seniors in the lounge at the moment.
“No, it’ll be more than that. By tomorrow, all of Goldman will probably be watching that newcomer.”
That was a bit of an exaggeration. Reading the disbelief on the newcomers’ faces, the senior pulled out his wallet.
“Don’t believe me? Wanna bet? 500 bucks says that by tomorrow, all of Goldman will be talking about Sean.”
