Mid-1996.

At last, when the Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate to 5.25%, the bubble began to take on a bizarre heat.

[Dotcom Founders Become Billionaires in Their 20s]

[Pets.com Receives $100 Million Investment from Disney... Half Spent on Advertising]

Seo Ji-yeon’s office saw IPO proposals piling up like mountains day after day. Most were absurd beyond belief—but a few held surprisingly plausible business models.

“Hm... Pets.com?”

“Oh, this one? It’s an online pet supplies retailer... Honestly, I don’t really get it. But the market’s buzzing, so I invested in it anyway. Umm... Is that okay?”

I skimmed through the materials she brought, letting out a chuckle. The sock puppet mascot was cute, sure—but whether it could make money was another matter.

But that wasn’t the point.

“What’s the expected return on the first day of listing?”

Ahem.

Seo Ji-yeon cleared her throat and responded seriously. Maybe she had to say it that way—because the number was so absurd it needed some gravitas just to sound sane.

“The underwriters are estimating at least a 200% return.”

Yep. Crazy. Absolutely electrifying.

“Good. This kind of insane heat—that’s what makes it a real bubble.”

“Ugh... Miss, are you sure this is okay? Seriously? I’m not going to get arrested, right? You’re not just acting innocent and saying you didn’t start it, right?”

I smiled softly and reassured her.

“It’s fine. As long as you cut the tail cleanly, I won’t [N O V E L I G H T] be the one getting caught.”

“Stop joking around!”

“Ahaha, sorry. You just looked too cute. You know how the VC scene is right now, Ji-yeon.”

“...”

It wasn’t just Seo Ji-yeon anymore. Sure, she had set the stage—but these days, the others were even worse.

Calling it “competitive” investing was too tame.

Fully-formed investment banks, VCs that had grown into major players in just a year, and a flood of investors, entrepreneurs, and regular people—

Everyone was pouring money in, hoping to invest in dotcom startups just a little earlier than the next person.

“Congrats. You just fired the first shot of the war.”

“Ugh, I’m gonna die before my time at this rate... You’re going to take responsibility for this, right?”

“I will. So just keep working hard, okay? Understood?”

Despite stomping her feet, she dutifully prepped for her next meeting. Aqua Capital, which had carved out its spot faster than anyone on Wall Street, was now a recognizable name even in Silicon Valley.

Those who valued “fundamentals” scorned Seo Ji-yeon... But who cares? It’s her money to invest.

In a black suit adjusting her collar in front of the mirror, Seo Ji-yeon tilted her head when she saw me changing out of my pajamas.

“Huh? Where are you going, Miss? You’re not suddenly taking a bath or something, are you?”

“Me? I’ve got a meeting at IBM. They had some questions about Deep Blue algorithms.”

I wasn’t going as an investor or capitalist this time—just as a scholar. There wasn’t anyone ahead of me in the field of artificial intelligence.

Well, technically I stayed the same, but everyone else fell behind.

In my previous life, I wasn’t an AI expert, but even on Wall Street, generative AI was used a lot. Especially for spreadsheets and reports—it was incredibly helpful.

We didn’t have the infrastructure to build serious AI, but I could still offer some insights on basic algorithms.

“Come to think of it... Miss, weren’t you really famous in academia, even if you don’t seem like it now? Anyway, have fun. I’ve got work.”

Phew.

I knew she was joking, but it still annoyed me—just a little.

“Ji-yeon, you know I’m busy too, right? If you keep whining, I’ll start getting a little hurt.”

Especially with the time zone differences—it’s brutal. Even my incredibly healthy body was starting to scream.

“Aah! Of course, I know! You’re doing great, Miss...”

Wearing an awkward smile, Seo Ji-yeon gave me a light hug in her suit.

“Yeah. You know I don’t usually act like this, right? It’s just... I’m extra tired ‘cause I’m on my period.”

I had a mountain of things to do.

Just a few days ago, I was in Europe—and now I had to fly back to Korea again...

‘Can’t skip this one, either.’

They say the chairman’s health is deteriorating. I wish I could stay by his side longer, but that’s not easy.

If he collapses, who’s going to handle the group? There’s only one person who can do it—me. So I will.

***

Silicon Valley, Venture Capital.

The VC partners fell into two camps: those who were ecstatic, and those who wore forced calmness to hide their confusion or sense of defeat.

“...What the hell is going on.”

Even self-proclaimed rational investors could feel that something was off.

They knew it—this was weird.

Just slapping “.com” onto a company name, getting it listed, and then seeing ridiculous profits? It made no sense.

This was... a bubble. Anyone could see it.

[Add “.com” and Watch Your Stock Price Double? Blind Investor Stampede]

[Companies with No Profit Valued at Hundreds of Millions... Market in Frenzy]

[Massive Investment in High-Speed Internet Infrastructure: “Everyone Will Have Fast Internet Within 10 Years”]

[Deep Blue Defeats Chess Champion! The Dawn of the AI Era...]

And yet, the market was celebrating like mad. It made you feel like a fool.

...No—feeling like a fool would’ve been better. At least then you’d be making money.

In this distorted market, the so-called smart investors who preached caution and careful analysis were the ones losing money or missing opportunities—while reckless fools who dove in blindly were getting rich overnight.

As a result, frustration and anxiety were bubbling up across Wall Street offices.

“All the other funds are aggressively investing! And we’re just sitting on our capital? Any random dotcom we pick would easily triple on IPO!”

A young analyst raised his voice in frustration. Truthfully, everyone agreed, so they started lowering their cash holdings and making investment decisions—while consciously trying to ignore the word “bubble.”

If it’s a bubble, we’ll just pull out in time... That was the mindset.

[Warren Buffett Should Sell All His Dow Holdings and Go All-In on IT! How Long Is He Going to Ignore the Market Like a Dinosaur? He’s Starting to Sound Like a Relic!]

Anonymous investor forums were flooded with angry rants. Everyone talked about the “Age of the Internet,” but most had no clue that similar things had happened before—because they never truly understood the effects of the internet.

The worst were the foolish so-called investors—who were now somehow the winners of life, throwing yacht parties.

“A curse of knowledge... Phew, is it really different this time?”

“I’ve tried using the internet myself. If it becomes widely adopted, the world’s definitely gonna change. If it becomes widely adopted...”

Even the most experienced and level-headed investors were starting to mumble like this—losing their grip on reason one by one.

It wasn’t about losing money. It was watching those stupid idiots rake in fortunes that no one could stand.

So many chose to become fools.

Consumed by FOMO—Fear Of Missing Out—people questioned if they were outdated relics. “This time is different,” “The new economy can’t be judged by old standards”—such nonsense flooded the discourse.

And so, the masses—hypnotized—began pouring money into dotcom companies without hesitation.

While the spotlight shone brightest on the main stage...

[Thailand Runs Current Account Deficit. Are the Four Tigers of East Asia Headed for a Fall?]

[Shrinking Dollar Reserves, Possibly Due to Dotcom Bubble. South Korea Effectively Issues Capital Flight Ban]

[Kim Hae-ik, Former Blue House Economic Advisor, Warns: ‘Chaebols Must Cut Debt and Cease Excessive Investment.’ Critics Say It’s Overly Conservative]

East Asia was groaning under a sudden dollar shortage.

***

Wall Street's Money Demons Noticed First.

“...Wait a minute—do we have a play here?”

There was no clear theory yet, but their instincts—honed by experience—had picked something up.

“There’s barely any dollars left—everyone’s scrambling to get their hands on them.”

“Thailand’s economy isn’t doing as well as expected. Real estate’s dropping, current account deficit’s growing...”

So... is this a currency attack opportunity?

Hedge fund managers, always looking for the next disaster to profit from, briefly licked their lips.

“Ugh, why now... There’s so much money on the table I can’t even leave my desk.”

Eating a sad little sandwich, one manager sighed. Money was dangling in front of his eyes, so leaving the office felt impossible.

But they didn’t jump in right away. After all, the dotcom market was already a sweet, juicy prey—no need to throw dice just yet.

Wall Street hedge funds are like wolves. They go into a frenzy at the scent of prey, but once they’re biting down, they can’t pay attention to anything else.

And... last time they messed with the pound, didn’t they get burned bad?

The scars still ached.

A colleague who had been there at the time muttered under his breath:

“Damn it, if it hadn’t been for Alpha Fund... Let’s be careful. We could get wrecked like in Sweden.”

Who would’ve guessed Sweden would raise interest rates to 500%? Even so, East Asia’s economy was more robust than Sweden’s back then.

In other words, smaller hedge funds might try to poke around and just end up crushed.

“Tch, those bastards always dodge the landmines like magic. You know how many funds lost everything trying to mimic Alpha Fund’s strategies? Still... Alpha’s been pretty quiet lately, hasn’t it? It’s LTCM now that’s going wild...”

“Exactly. Alpha Fund’s mysterious silence aside... LTCM feels different, doesn’t it?”

The fund of geniuses! Alpha Fund, once known for risky investments, now looked reasonable in comparison. That insane leverage! Over 40% returns!

They shook their heads as they thought of the most famous funds on Wall Street. Alpha used to be top—but like any fund that had grown large, it had since turned to stable investing.

You could argue that betting wildly on unknown dotcom startups wasn’t exactly “stable”... but hey—at least they weren’t using leverage.

Ring ring!

The bell rang. A signal for breaking news. They swallowed the last bite of their sandwiches and turned to the TV.

[Berlin-Bearings Bank Announces Withdrawal from Thailand: “We Will No Longer Make Risky Investments”]

[George Soros Declares War on Thailand! Baht Crisis Deepens...]

“...Welp. Guess we’re skipping dinner.”

A major event had just exploded.