"Will you acquire it? At 60 dollars per share."
Andreessen, who was drinking and smiling, had his expression stiffen.
"Hey. James. Do you really have to bring that up on a day like this?"
"I am also happy and enjoying myself. But work has to be done."
Han Gyeong-yeong continued speaking without erasing the smile on his face.
"The market has currently closed at 57 dollars. If all our shares are transferred somewhere else, it would cause problems for your management rights, Andreessen. That is why I am giving you an option. A premium of 3 dollars shouldn't be a large amount, right, given the current atmosphere? I am giving you priority just as our boss promised."
"Where is Charlie?"
"The boss is busy."
"That is too much. Where am I supposed to get that much money right now?"
Han Gyeong-yeong could not understand Netscape's abnormal stock price. It was a company that had never once escaped a deficit. Yet, on the first day of its listing, its market capitalization closed at 3.9 billion dollars.
"It would be best if you used the shares you hold as collateral, Andreessen, or bought them out somehow. Even if it is difficult to purchase all of them, you have to defend your management rights."
Andreessen pondered for a moment before answering Han Gyeong-yeong.
"Give me a few days. I will get the money. Instead, I will only acquire half. Taking all of it is too difficult."
"Understood. No matter what the stock price becomes, it is 60 dollars. If you break the promise because the stock price went down......"
Han Gyeong-yeong trailed off, but Andreessen understood without having to hear the rest.
"I got it. Tell Charlie I said thanks."
"I will pass it on to the boss. Should I look for a buyer for the remaining half?"
"I will find one for that too."
"Understood. Then I will see you when we sign the contract. Congratulations once again. On Netscape's successful IPO."
"Yeah, I won't see you out."
Han Gyeong-yeong smiled and left his seat. The venue, which had grown chilly, slowly began to get noisy again.
We had talked on the phone a few times, but it was our first time meeting in a long while. Pixar still had not produced proper results despite my investment.
"Charlie, it has been a while."
Steve greeted me gladly. Someone else was standing next to him. When I looked that way, Steve introduced him.
"He is a businessman in New York who invested when I was previously at Apple. Andrew Gigante."
The middle-aged man rose from his seat and held out his hand to me.
"I am Andrew."
"I am Charlie."
He had a face I felt like I had seen somewhere. I could not exactly remember who he was.
"Because you came so suddenly, we inevitably had to share a table. You aren't upset, are you?"
"Of course not. Who doesn't know you are busy, Steve."
We all sat down, and the food came out as if Steve had ordered in advance.
"Did you come to America because of Netscape's listing?"
Steve asked me while eating his salad.
"There's that, but I also came to meet you, Steve. How is Pixar?"
"We are joining hands with Disney and plan to release a movie soon. It is called Toy Story."
Toy Story was the movie that would instantly make the name of Pixar, which had been on the verge of taking its last breath, known to the world.
"Oh! That's a relief. It will do well."
"Aren't you worried? You are a respectable shareholder of Pixar too."
"I told you back then too, but I invested in you, Steve Jobs."
Gigante silently cut his steak and only listened to our conversation. Even while talking to Steve, that man kept bothering my mind. I definitely saw him somewhere......
"I don't expect a huge profit since it is an animation, but it still has the symbolic meaning of being the world's first full-length full CG animated feature."
At Steve's words, I quietly swallowed a laugh. It was a movie that would achieve first place in North American box office revenue in 1995. Thanks to this movie, which succeeded as a long-term box office hit after its Thanksgiving release, Steve would gain confidence and carry out Pixar's initial public offering a week after the movie's premiere.
"It will succeed."
"I hope so. Honestly, I'm a bit exhausted."
Steve was pushing forward with perseverance, but worry could be seen on his face.
"Tell me anytime. I am always ready to invest."
"Hahaha. You are an interesting friend, as expected."
Steve turned his head and looked at Gigante.
"Andrew, what do you think? Am I right?"
"Mm."
"He is a fun friend. Isn't he definitely different from those old fogies on Wall Street?"
"I suppose so. If I were an investor, I would never invest in Pixar."
"Haha, isn't that too harsh?"
"Have you ever seen me give empty words?"
Listening to their conversation, I observed Gigante's face. I felt like I was on the verge of remembering.
"But is your father doing well? His name goes up and down in the news every time."
"It is always like that. I don't know why they keep doing that to a sick person."
"I did receive a lot of help thanks to him. Even though I've never met him once."
"His health is so bad that it's difficult for him to meet people. Helping with your work was something I asked for."
It seems his father has quite a lot of power in America.
Wait, Gigante?
A name suddenly popped into my head.
'Vincent Gigante!'
He was a man known as the boss of the Genovese Family, one of New York's Five Families. His younger brother was a New York City councilman, and he himself was a powerhouse of the American Mafia with a strong voice in the Mafia Commission.
"His health gets better and then worse. Mental illness is always like that."
"That's true......"
That meant Steve had received help from the Mafia...... but it didn't really click for me. I listened closely to their conversation, but it was hard to get any more hints. At that moment, Steve's cellphone rang.
"Just a moment. I will go take a call."
Steve took his phone and left the room, leaving only me and Gigante. Just as an awkward air was flowing. Gigante opened his mouth first.
"You said you came from a country called Korea?"
"Yes. Do you know Korea?"
"I know of it, even if I don't know it in detail."
Gigante examined me while making conversation.
"What do you do in Korea? You look young, but the amount you invest is quite substantial."
"I am running the family business."
When I subtly used the word 'Family', his expression changed slightly.
"Sorry. It was an important call."
Steve came in with good timing. Steve conversed by taking turns between me and Gigante. The meal finished, and just as I was about to head back after agreeing to meet Steve one more time before returning to Korea.
"Would you like to have a drink?"
Gigante subtly asked me.
"Sounds good."
I entered a nearby bar with Gigante. The employee naturally guided us to a separate seat as if recognizing Gigante. Gigante seemed to be a regular here, as the employee went back without even taking an order.
As the employee grew distant, he started speaking.
"Do you know anything about me?"
To his straightforward question, I also answered directly.
"I wasn't sure at first. I couldn't be certain just by hearing your name. But after hearing your conversation with Steve, I roughly figured it out."
"Mm."
"The eldest son of Vincent Gigante, the boss of the Genovese Family, which is one of America's Five Families, Andrew Gigante. Is that correct?"
The conversation was briefly cut off by the employee returning with the drinks. As the employee's footsteps faded away, Gigante quietly picked up his glass. A cold smile had appeared around his mouth.
"Even the FBI only suspects my father's exact identity, and there are few who know, but you pinpointed him exactly as the boss."
"Everyone is certain, but it would be more accurate to say they haven't found the evidence."
"Are you doing similar work to us?"
A person doing similar work, huh...... The American Mafia did anything that made money. The Genovese family, in particular, was an organization considered the true lineage of the Mafia because they succeeded the Luciano Family.
Centered around New York and reaching down to New Jersey, they operated bookmaking and loan sharking businesses, and were a group that exerted strong power over truck unions and port unions.
Even during America's massive War on Crime in the 1980s, the current boss of the Genovese Family, Vincent Gigante, was the only meticulous person among the bosses of the Five Families to slip through the net of the law.
In the 1985 Mafia Commission Trial, known as the trial of the century, the person pointed out as the boss and convicted was his underboss. You could say he was the mastermind hiding in the back and directing everything.
"I am doing a similar business."
"So something like the Mafia exists in Korea too. Not a gang......"
The Mafia always emphasized that they were different from gangs. Even though it didn't look much different to me.
"Did Steve have any reason to receive help from the Mafia? They don't seem related at all."
"Not the Mafia, but because of my friendship with Steve, I gave him a little help with sales when he first started his business. Thanks to that, we have continued our relationship until now."
The era when Steve founded Apple was an era when the Mafia intervened in all profitable rights. Distribution and sales could not even be properly transported without the help of the Mafia, so considering the times back then, it wasn't unreasonable. Is it just friendship and not anything specially entangled?
I only half-believed his words and nodded my head.
"Is the man behind you your subordinate?"
Section Chief Ma was standing behind me like a statue.
"A subordinate...... Let's just call him my representative."
"Since you subtly gave off the nuance that 'I know you are the Mafia,' it seems you have something to say to me."
"I don't necessarily have something to say right away. I just sent a signal because I thought it would be good to know each other. Since it is not something I can say in front of Steve."
"Right. You shouldn't say it in front of Steve."
Having a connection with the New York Mafia would be a big help to my business in America. Because unlike in Korea, the Mafia here hid well behind legal businesses, they were a channel to lobby the political and government circles.
"Good to know each other...... Will there be any benefit for me to know the Mafia of a small country in Asia?"
"The world is changing rapidly. Just because it is Asia doesn't mean they are weaker than the New York Mafia. Even the yakuza in Japan right now possess a force similar to the American Mafia. The Chinese triads, and the triads in Hong Kong and Taiwan, are definitely not below the American Mafia either. You should know this."
"Mm......"
I tipped my glass as if there was nothing to worry about. For me, there was nothing to lose anyway. Gigante, who seemed to hesitate a little, soon nodded his head.
"Alright. Let's keep in touch occasionally. We will have to wait and see if we can actually be of help to each other, but for now, I welcome a rich friend."
"Hahaha."
He was an honest man. He is a person with a strong voice in the Mafia society. It would be helpful to know him someday.
I drank with him until late at night and shared many conversations. He showed a lot of interest in Korea. Around the time the enjoyable drinking session was ending, I handed him a gift like a passing remark.
It was the news that the FBI had caught onto Vincent's trail. Along with the name of the whistleblower who had broken the rule of silence...... It was a commemorative gift for becoming friends.
Han Gyeong-yeong eventually handed over our shares to Andreessen and the investor he introduced at 55 dollars per share after negotiations. He also recruited capable stockbrokers and financial firm employees on Wall Street into the company. After Netscape, which signaled the start of the dot-com bubble, was listed, the NASDAQ would experience an unprecedented boom until the early 2000s.
"For the time being, invest all the funds in Dreamhigh Investment into the NASDAQ. Look closely at the employees too, and see if there is anyone trustworthy enough to leave things to."
"Okay."
"Keep the paper company operations known only to yourself and delegate everything else to the employees. Make it so the company can run even without you, and if there is a shortage of manpower, consider acquiring other investment firms too."
"Mm...... I will think about it."
"I will trust you. And I think you need a bodyguard now too."
Section Chief Ma went outside at my words. A moment later, Section Chief Ma came in bringing a man.
"This is Michael. He is a veteran who worked with me in EO."
"I am Michael, boss."
"He is a mercenary-turned-bodyguard introduced by Section Chief Ma. Since he is American, take him around with you. Michael, your boss is James here. Please take good care of him."
Han Gyeong-yeong, who was a little flustered by the word bodyguard, had his mouth wide open as if surprised by Michael's size.
"If something goes wrong with you, all my plans will fall apart. Always be careful, and careful again. Never travel alone and take Michael with you wherever you go. This is not a request. You know what I'm saying, right?"
Han Gyeong-yeong nodded at my words. Perhaps because my face was serious, he didn't raise any objections. The hotel room after Han Gyeong-yeong and Michael left.
"Is Michael trustworthy?"
"Yes, we worked together in EO."
EO, Executive Outcomes. It was the best private military company in existence. It was a time when Blackwater hadn't even been established yet.
"Tell him to be thorough in surveilling and protecting Han Gyeong-yeong. A 200,000 dollar salary isn't being given for nothing. Let's make a proper firm while we are at it. Is there anyone fit to take charge of it?"
"I know an administration expert in EO. He was also my superior. I will try making an offer."
"Let's do it by setting up the headquarters in America and a branch in Korea. Since Korea is strict with regulations, after all."
"Yes, I will report back as soon as it is ready."
I planned to monopolize the manpower before proper PMCs started forming. Section Chief Ma's connections from his days as a mercenary were a huge help. Even in America, the demolition of the Japanese colonial headquarters on August 15th was broadcast live.
I watched the removal of the headquarters' spire on my hotel room TV. When I thought about how the people from the Blue Wind Association would be grieving over it, a smile naturally arose on my face.
< Genovese Family. > The End