The Regressed Vault Keeper Took It All

Chapter 6: I Can See Desire Boiling Over

“Hey. What are you?”

Kim Jin-ho, who had crouched like a mouse before a cat in front of Yang Sobo, bared his teeth and growled the moment the office door closed.

The mask on his face, which had pretended to be polite, was ripped off in an instant.

“Is that important?”

I asked indifferently, but my voice carried a slightly defiant edge.

I could feel Kim Jin-ho bristling at it.

“Why are you trying to go to the securities office? Did the Master give you some kind of hint…….”

“What should I call you?”

“What?”

“I asked what I should call you.”

As if dumbfounded, Kim Jin-ho let out a hollow laugh.

“Call me President Kim.”

“President Kim. This is something Mr. Yang instructed me directly to do, and I’m not sure if I’m obliged to report that to President Kim. Did Mr. Yang perhaps give you separate instructions?”

When I lowered my gaze slightly as I spoke, Kim Jin-ho’s eyes wavered for a brief moment.

‘He flinched.’

He forced an ambiguous smile, clearly trying to hide something.

As I thought—asking to visit the securities exchange had been the right move.

I looked at Kim Jin-ho and spoke again.

And I uttered words that a ‘subordinate’ might typically say.

This sort of performance was second nature to me.

“When you’re told to do something, you follow orders without complaint. Isn’t that what people like us are supposed to do? I’ll be counting on your guidance.”

The future where Park Jeong-ho manipulated Daejung stock, and Kim Jin-ho was used as his stooge and destroyed—I already knew it.

But rumors and memory weren’t enough.

I had to see it with my own eyes and catch their connections myself.

To do that, I first had to make myself look like a rookie who only did what he was told.

As long as they only remembered me as someone who toured the securities exchange on Yang Sobo’s orders, it would suffice.

Just then, Zhang Wei conveniently came outside.

“President Kim.”

“Yes, Mr. Zhang Wei.”

“Guide him properly.”

“By any chance, may I ask what this is about…….”

At Kim Jin-ho’s question, Zhang Wei placed a hand on his shoulder.

His face was expressionless, like a mask, but the hand on the shoulder pressed down with heavy force.

“Since when did we start questioning the Master’s orders?”

“N-no, sir.”

At Zhang Wei’s emotionless, cold voice, Kim Jin-ho’s whole body stiffened.

He bowed his head like a criminal, flattening himself.

“Judgment is for the Master alone. Remember this. Crossing into presumptuous curiosity—this will be the only time.”

Zhang Wei turned his gaze and glanced at me.

His eyes betrayed no emotion, but the fact was, he had helped me.

I gave him a faint smile, expressing my thanks.

“Shall we go, President Kim?”

I got in the car with Kim Jin-ho.

‘Using Yang Sobo’s orders as an excuse to visit the securities exchange—it’s a good chance. A perfect opportunity to witness firsthand the frenzy of this period I’d only heard about in rumors. And if my memory is right, Park Jeong-ho should be appearing around this time in a corner on the second floor.’

We arrived at the securities exchange in Myeong-dong.

It wasn’t open yet, but the front of the exchange was already swarming with people.

They all looked anxious, shuffling their feet as they waited.

Their faces were diverse.

From gentlemen in fedoras and Western suits, to elders in hanbok leaning on canes, to women in aprons glancing around nervously.

“Even on normal days, does the place gather this many people before opening?”

Kim Jin-ho answered in a dissatisfied tone.

“The Securities Transaction Act passed yesterday. Securities trading is about to change completely. The people who know that have come flocking here since morning.”

“I’d like to take a look inside.”

“Follow me.”

Since the exchange hadn’t opened yet, we entered through the back door instead of the front.

Kim Jin-ho guided me past the first-floor trading floor and up to the second floor.

It was a spot overlooking the hall.

I saw people already gathered and conversing.

Then suddenly, the hall grew noisy.

The exchange’s doors had opened.

People poured in disorderly.

“Daegung stock! 55 jeon! I’ll buy at 55 jeon!”

“60 jeon! 60 jeon!”

“80 jeon! I’ll sell at 80 jeon!”

With the sound of the exchange staff’s “wooden clappers,” chaos erupted.

Cries mixed with the rustle of papers.

Just yesterday, Daegung stock had been 50 jeon, but the price was skyrocketing.

‘And yet, at the end of this madness, all that will remain is ashes.’

Suddenly, I felt as though the air carried the stench of blood.

Once everything collapsed, those who had lost everything wouldn’t have many paths left.

“The Securities Transaction Act allows the pursuit of free profit in a market that has been under strong government control until now. It’s a bill that will further vitalize Korea’s capital market.”

I half-listened to Kim Jin-ho’s explanation and instead pointed toward a man on the floor.

“Who’s that man? He’s sweeping up Daegung stock.”

Kim Jin-ho’s gaze followed my finger.

“90 jeon! I’ll buy all Daegung stock at 90 jeon!”

The man I had pointed to was drenched in sweat, desperately taking orders.

His hand trembled as though convulsing, but he didn’t stop trading.

“He’s an agent of Hangang Securities.”

“I see.”

Scanning the hall, my eyes landed on a familiar figure in the farthest corner.

As expected, he was there.

‘Park Jeong-ho. And beside him—that’s Lee Seong-gyu of the KCIA, isn’t it?’

Just as I remembered, the two were meeting covertly.

While Kim Jin-ho was distracted by the chaos below, I quietly stepped closer to them, softening my steps as much as possible.

The deafening noise served as my shield.

I couldn’t clearly hear their conversation, but fragments of words reached me.

I strained my ears, piecing them together desperately.

“……sooner than expected…….”

“Supreme Council……. the Director…….”

“……already 90 jeon……. as planned……. March……. 5 hwan…….”

“Don’t get greedy……. suspicion…….”

“Taebaek……. Geumgang……. agreed to…….”

I pieced the crucial words together, matching them against what I knew, fitting the puzzle.

Just when they began discussing financing, Park Jeong-ho stopped talking and locked eyes with me.

He tilted his head, then, spotting Kim Jin-ho beside me, raised his hand and called out.

“Hey! President Kim.”

At his call, Kim Jin-ho tapped my shoulder.

“Let’s go greet him.”

We walked over to the two men.

“Who’s the young fellow with you?”

“Master Yang told me to show him around the exchange, so that’s what I’m doing.”

“Master Yang?”

Park Jeong-ho’s gaze lingered on me.

The mention of Yang Sobo seemed to spark his interest.

“What’s his connection to you?”

“I don’t know. I’m only following orders.”

“Hmm……”

With the eyes of a hyena, Park Jeong-ho kept scanning me.

“Young man. How old are you?”

“I just turned twenty.”

“Twenty, huh……. A fine age.”

I scoffed inwardly.

I’ve lived decades longer than you, you bastard.

Did he even know that I had witnessed such frenzies countless times, and devoured every fool who had succumbed to them?

“So, what do you think now that you’ve seen it with your own eyes?”

Park Jeong-ho narrowed his eyes as he asked.

His fingers fiddled absently with his suit buttons.

I stayed silent for a moment, watching the hall.

Below, the frenzied cries continued.

Then I slowly turned my head back toward him and answered.

“I can see desire boiling over. Thank you for the tour. But…… forgive me, may I ask who you are to be asking me such questions?”

At my question, Park Jeong-ho burst out laughing loudly.

Kim Jin-ho hurriedly explained to me.

“Don’t you know President Park of Hangang Securities? He’s the man who controls the prices here at the exchange.

With just a single cough from him, stock prices soar and crash. Go on, greet him.”

Park Jeong-ho waved his hand dismissively and laughed.

“Come now, why are you gilding my face? Even if you do that, there’s nothing you’ll gain from me.”

“But isn’t it true?”

Kim Jin-ho treated Park Jeong-ho with reverence, as though serving a master.

“Hahaha. Once you’ve gone bankrupt once, people’s praises don’t sound so pleasant anymore.”

“My apologies.”

Park Jeong-ho waved his hand again and turned his gaze toward me.

“Young man. Let me give you a tip. Buy Daegung stock right away. Hold it for a few months and you’ll make several times the profit. Now then, I’ll be on my way.”

The moment he finished speaking, Kim Jin-ho tried to pull me away by the arm.

But I lightly shook him off and opened my mouth.

“Several times, you say……. Tempting words indeed. But to blindly trust the words of someone I’ve just met—when, as you can see, this place looks far too dangerous.”

Park Jeong-ho’s eyes narrowed.

“You really are still young. Listen here. This securities exchange is a place where trusting your own instincts over the advice of the experienced leads to utter ruin. Tsk. You’re not even worth advising.”

In the end, Kim Jin-ho forcefully dragged me away.

“Are you……. insane? Do you know who that man is?”

His voice trembled thinly with fear.

That alone told me my plan had worked.

‘Success. I made myself seem insignificant in Park Jeong-ho’s eyes, while at the same time, I confirmed to Kim Jin-ho that he fears Park Jeong-ho more than Yang Sobo.’

I caught his gaze, not letting it slip away, and asked.

“President Kim. It seems you fear that man more than you fear the Master.”

“What?”

“You don’t look like you’re just casually acquainted with him.”

In my memory, Kim Jin-ho was both a victim and a conspirator in this stock manipulation.

He was chosen to draw in Yang Sobo’s money.

I wasn’t going to miss a single one of his actions, not a single word.

I couldn’t miss this moment, not if I wanted to use the future I already knew to turn the tables on them.

“95 jeon! I’ll buy at 95 jeon!”

“99 jeon! 99 jeon!”

The trading floor grew more heated.

Orders roared against the ceiling, and the crowd’s movements grew rougher.

Someone screamed out in desperation.

“I put in my entire fortune! I bought Daegung stock with everything I own! Tomorrow it’ll go even higher!”

In one corner, someone who had bought cheered, while in another, those who failed to buy Daegung stock kept shouting their orders.

It was pure madness.

“Don’t you see this right now? How can you still say such things after looking at this? Look there.”

Kim Jin-ho pointed to an old man.

With trembling hands, he pulled out his bankbook.

“That man is about to spend every coin he’s saved his entire life to buy securities. And there are more and more like him. Just like that man said, it’ll rise several times. No, even higher.”

“Well. I’m not so sure. No one knows how this madness will end.”

But Kim Jin-ho ignored my words and kept staring at the people buying stocks.

I could see the golden illusion shimmering before his eyes.

He looked like a man dreaming of sudden riches, blind to danger.

For a moment, my past self overlapped with Kim Jin-ho.

Meanwhile, the fever refused to cool.

The entire exchange felt like a gambling den.

The light in people’s eyes was no longer reason—only madness for money flickered there.

“One hwan! It’s finally one hwan!”

Someone’s cry struck the trading floor like a bomb.

For an instant, all sound ceased—then an earth-shaking roar erupted.

“Let’s return. We have something to report to Mr. Yang.”

We left the trading floor, overflowing with madness, behind us.

I already knew.

This whirlpool of frenzy would soon devour everything.

By the time the sun dipped low in the west, casting a crimson shadow, we had returned to the mansion.

I opened the door to Yang Sobo’s office.

He was standing by the window, gazing out at the city as darkness fell.

When I entered, he turned his body.

From the look on his face, it seemed he had already heard today’s report from Kim Jin-ho.

“Now tell me. Why did you say you wanted to look around the securities exchange?”

“Mr. Yang. How much do you trust President Kim?”

“You still answer a question with another question, I see.”

At his light scolding, I didn’t stall any longer and spoke directly.

“You must know I’ve lived on the streets. And on the streets, truths and lies are always mixed together.”

He would also know.

That among the countless lies on the street, sometimes, truths seeped in.

As expected, my words seemed to spark his interest.

“Among those rumors, there were also stories about the securities exchange.”

“Rumors?”

“That stock prices would be artificially inflated.”

“You went to the exchange to confirm that for yourself?”

“Yes. And I confirmed it with my own eyes.”

“So, your conclusion?”

Yang Sobo leaned toward me as he asked.

His voice betrayed clear curiosity.

“The prices at the Korea Securities Exchange will rise. That is my conclusion.”

“That’s something anyone could say. Anything else?”

“The end will never be good.”

Yang Sobo fell silent.

When he leaned back, his eyes sharpened.

“Jin-ho asked me for fifty million hwan more.”

Fifty million hwan in this era…….

I clicked my tongue inwardly.

They truly intended to strip him clean.

Their greed had no end.

“And yet you say the end won’t be good? Jin-ho has managed securities for years, while you’ve only just looked once. Whose words should I believe?”

“If you dig into it yourself, won’t you know whose words hold the truth?”

Yang Sobo gave no answer, only a faint nod of his chin.

I continued.

“Find out for yourself, and then let’s talk again. But the longer time passes, the more stock prices will rise.”

“So what do you gain? Don’t tell me it’s for my sake.”

“In the end, money. Of course, I have another purpose too, but that’s difficult to say.”

“Leave. I’ll call for you again.”

“Mr. Yang. From what I observed, President Kim seemed to fear that man, Park Jeong-ho, more than he feared you.”

I rose, leaving those words behind, and walked out of Yang Sobo’s office.

“Zhang Wei!”

The moment I stepped outside, Yang Sobo called for Zhang Wei.

‘This time…….’

I clenched my fists.

My nails dug into my palms, and the sting of pain sharpened my senses.

‘Things won’t go your way. Wait until the shadows of the past swallow you whole.’

As I turned, I recalled the man who had ordered my death.

A few days later, Yang Sobo summoned me again.

I waited, curious to see how the seed of doubt I had sown about Kim Jin-ho’s betrayal had taken root in him.

His office was still as imposing as ever, but this time, a different kind of tension filled the air.

Even after I entered, he didn’t move for a while.

Slowly, he turned.

“How did you know?”

His face was still almost expressionless.

But in the depths of his eyes, I felt a cold flame of fury intertwined with something far more complicated.

“That Jin-ho betrayed me and joined hands with Park Jeong-ho.”

Yang Sobo’s voice rumbled low and dangerous.

It wasn’t just confirmation—it was a demand to know the source of my insight.

“As I said before…….”

I paused, meeting his chilling gaze head-on.

“The streets are a sea of rumors. And sometimes, truths are hidden among them. That’s why I went to the securities exchange myself.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“And if you don’t? How else do you think I could have known?”

I shot back without a hint of fear.

Yang Sobo glared at me, lips sealed.

Of course.

No matter how much he investigated me, he would never uncover the source of the knowledge I possessed.

“Mr. Yang. What I want to know is the source of your information.”

I stared straight into his eyes and turned the question back on him.

“Because I need to know just how far your reach extends before I can make my plans.”

The tension in the office thickened, swirling heavily around us.