Chapter 13: Victor 2.0

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Kim Sang-yeon lit a cigarette after quite some time.

Though he had switched to an e-cigarette to avoid the smell lingering in his office where students occasionally visited, and had even been cutting back on that, today he couldn’t help himself.

“How on earth did such an interpretation come about?”

The student in question had never stood out.

He had taken Kim’s class back in the second year, and Kim had purposely checked the records—back then, the student had received a B grade.

Kim adhered to absolute grading and never handed out inflated scores, so a B wasn’t a bad grade. It just meant the student had memorized answers diligently without demonstrating any creative thinking.

And yet, this same student suddenly appeared after four years, including military service, wanting to retake classes.

More than that, he came up with this kind of interpretation—not from undergraduate textbooks, but from a paper beyond the doctoral level?

If by some chance he had read this paper beforehand for advanced study purposes, it might be understandable.

But that paper had been withdrawn just before publication by the author himself due to a critical error.

And that author was none other than Kim Sang-yeon himself, meaning it was absolutely certain and natural that it had never been made public.

Yet this student identified flaws even in the fundamental principles applied, and not only that, suggested a new direction.

He even pointed out errors in the paper.

Kim stubbed out the barely smoked cigarette and picked up the phone.

—Mr. Kim?

“Yes, this is Kim Sang-yeon.”

—May I ask what this is about?

“Do you remember the paper I recently withdrew?”

—I do.

“Has a similar paper ever been registered?”

—No.

“I see.”

—Would you consider re-registering it?

“…I need some more time.”

—I’ll wait for good news.

The brief call ended just like that.

There was no need to verify with other associations.

First, he needed to find out if this new interpretation could actually be applied to electronic device fabrication.

If it was truly a groundbreaking alternative, then what?

Verification of theory and commercialization were separate matters.

But if commercialization succeeded, its value would no longer be measurable in mere billions.

He was the one who built the theoretical framework.

His student was the one who proposed the new interpretation and direction.

So, who should claim the results?

“Please hold here for a moment.”

“Yes.”

After the attendant left, Lyndon sat down and rubbed his stiff neck. He had apparently been tense without realizing it.

Well, how many Americans had actually been inside the White House?

He had heard that some areas were open even to verified civilians, but this was surely not one of them.

He’d heard the people he was about to meet included the Secretary of Energy and officials straddling both economic and resource sectors.

Actually, that alone would be fine.

But since the President would be attending, the meeting was held in the White House.

“I thought I’d just meet the head of the EIA.”

He had sent details about Jay’s additive “Victor” to the Energy Information Administration under the Department of Energy, and less than a week later received a request to visit the White House itself.

Thanks to being born with the Cutler name, he had never felt intimidated anywhere.

But facing a meeting with the heads of administration, including major ministers, keeping his cool would be difficult.

He took several deep breaths.

And gathered his thoughts.

Why was he called all the way here?

Out of respect for the Cutler name? Because they seriously acknowledged the destructive potential of Victor?

No need to hesitate—definitely the latter.

In that case, there was no reason to be intimidated.

He recalled the conversation he had with Mark after Jay tossed the company over and left.

“Maybe Jay is testing us.”

“What do you mean?”

“What if there’s a Victor 2.0 version?”

“…”

He was breathless, unable to respond.

Victor Ver. 2.0? So an additive over 22%?

“He said there was room for improvement in his additive. It was a joke, but he mentioned 55%.”

“And if that’s true?”

“The fact that he gave me 5% of STA’s shares, told me to find investors if we needed more funding, and delegated all management authority to you—that was all a test.”

“…”

He’d heard.

Mark’s final demanded stake was 3%.

But Jay had handed over 5%.

A mere 2% difference, but from 5%, you become a major shareholder.

For a listed company with weak governance, that could mean calling an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting and wresting control.

It was just theory and the worst-case scenario, but there were precedents.

Yet Jay threw 5% to him.

And told him to pick investors at will.

He gave him full managerial authority.

All because of Victor 2.0?

“Understand? Jay isn’t complacent or indifferent about his company—he’s hiding a knife behind his back.”

“Yeah. I heard he’s suffered losses before.”

“Jay could start another company anytime.”

Another company?

Then it would have no connection to Cutler.

Maybe, like choosing the U.S. over Korea, he’d settle in another country.

If there really was a new version of Victor, nothing would be impossible.

“That can’t happen.”

No matter how the U.S. government responded, Lyndon had to represent Jay’s interests unconditionally.

He might even become the first in the Cutler family to threaten the U.S. government.

“Mr. Cutler.”

The attendant returned and called out to Lyndon, who had been lost in thought.

“Yes.”

“Please come this way.”

The place he followed the attendant to wasn’t a conference room.

It was the Oval Office, like something out of a movie.

Inside, exactly eight people, including the President, were waiting for him.

“Pleased to meet you, Mr. President.”

He tried to keep his expression as composed as possible while greeting.

“Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Cutler.”

“I’m not here to represent the Cutler family. Please call me Lyndon.”

“…I see. Please, have a seat.”

After greeting the officials from various departments, the discussion began.

“Mr… ah, Lyndon, we reviewed all the experimental data you sent to the EIA.”

“Yes.”

“It was astonishing.”

“I found it hard to believe at first as well.”

The President nodded.

Everyone found it hard to believe.

But what came next was important.

Lyndon, more accustomed to political speech than the average person, still felt like a child compared to those gathered.

“Rightly so. To put it frankly, it’s an additive that could bring about an energy revolution.”

“If actually released, it will be called a revolution.”

“But revolutions always cause bloodshed on one side.”

It began.

The officials gathered here.

Seven excluding the President.

He guessed some among the seven were lobbyists for American oil companies.

Perhaps the moment the data was sent to the EIA, it was already picked up by the antennas of the Seven Sisters.

“I admit it.”

“Exactly.”

“But—”

“…”

“Isn’t it inevitable blood must be shed?”

“…Why do you think so?”

“If all revolutions proceeded without bloodshed, they’d be called riots instead.”

He had no intention of backing down.

Nor being persuaded.

He declared by this political statement that shaking him would gain nothing, and that they should lay all their cards on the table.

Immediately, two officials’ eyes changed.

There might be more maintaining poker faces.

After a brief silence, the President spoke again.

“Lyndon.”

“Yes, sir.”

“To be honest, many have concerns about Victor’s commercialization.

Among them are people who have long worked to secure America’s energy resources.

Even if their efforts were for private profit, there’s no denying they formed the backbone of the American economy.”

“Yes, I don’t deny that.”

Now, the real discussion began.

“The additive developer is Korean, I hear.”

“Yes.”

He hadn’t thought he could keep it a secret.

“He obtained 5% of the Cutler family’s shares.”

“That’s right.”

To be exact, they were Mark’s shares.

But there was no need to correct that.

Even the President treated him so respectfully because he benefited from bearing the Cutler name.

If necessary, he would use that name without hesitation.

“It’s truly appreciated that the young Korean chose America, but I ask for a little more concession.”

“Please specify your terms.”

A compromise was possible.

They understood each other, but how far the President envisioned that compromise was a question Lyndon was deeply curious about.

“You named the company STA.”

“Yes.”

“If STA is to remain permanently in the U.S., how about 40% ownership?

Of course, they would invest sufficiently in return.”

The room fell into silence.

Everyone’s anxious eyes were fixed on Lyndon, waiting for his response.

But his decision was quick.

“I refuse.”

Before heliocentrism, there was geocentrism.

The belief that Earth was the universe’s center and everything revolved around it was the core of geocentrism.

Imagine the shock of those who held this belief when they found out Earth was round and orbited the sun.

Would they have accepted it easily? Or denied it?

Shock was something Lyndon was used to.

Nothing could be more shocking than meeting people from parallel future worlds in his dreams (an assumption by the Seers).

Still, EP?

Out of the 7 billion people on Earth, EP happened to appear in his dreams because his affinity with EP was high, the Seers said.

And even though he hadn’t realized EP’s existence himself, his body was already accepting it.

The speed of acceptance was faster than expected because the dream world was constructed through EP?

In his case, faced with such incredible facts, he felt rather calm.

“Do all life-bearing planets have that power?”

—We haven’t confirmed it.

“Why not?”

—Because no other life-bearing planets have been found.

“…”

So, no aliens?

Or just not found yet?

His thoughts swirled when Elder Eta looked at him with understanding and began to explain further.

Humanity had attempted terraforming Mars.

“And?”

—Do you know why Mars is uninhabitable?

That would have been a difficult question before.

Now it was easy.

“Generally, it’s thought Mars lacks the gravity to hold an atmosphere.

But actually, it’s not gravity but the lack of a magnetic field to protect the atmosphere from solar winds.

Unlike Earth, Mars lacks a liquid core beneath its crust that generates a magnetic field.”

But this wasn’t a quiz.

“That’s right.

That’s why initial plans involved building domes on Mars, then slowly altering its core properties.”

“…”

An incredible idea.

Is that possible 300 years from now?

—To do that, they had to study why Earth’s and Mars’ cores differed, and at the end of that research, they discovered EP—the force that enabled life to arise on Earth.

“…”

—But it’s not necessarily limited to life.

Even the additive you named Victor violates the general definition of gasoline—what principle makes that possible?

“…Is EP involved?”

—Correct.