Ghosts of Eternity

Inside the CEO’s office at Aether Bio, afternoon sunlight slanted through the gaps in the blinds.

A dry beam of light cut through the dust-free air, leaving parallel stripes across the marble edge of the desk. Cool air from the central HVAC system brushed steadily across the skin.

In the stillness, the only sound was Seo-han’s faint breathing. Seo-han sat buried deep in his leather chair, lost in thought. His forehead, exposed beneath neatly combed-back hair, gleamed pale under the cool indoor lighting.

[Bloop... Boss, those sharp, decisive heel clicks belong to Attorney Kang, don't they? Every step is screaming, 'No room for negotiation today!']

Click, click.

Footsteps echoed across the marble floor with unyielding, rhythmic precision.

The door opened, and Kang Si-hyun stepped inside, clad in an immaculate charcoal-gray three-piece suit. A subtle woody scent wafted from between her crisp, pressed lapels. Lightly adjusting her metal-frame glasses, she set a thick stack of documents down on the table.

Si-hyun’s eyes rested on Seo-han’s expressionless face. Her gaze was clear and unreadable, like polished glass.

“We need an additional 60 billion won in funding to accelerate Aether Bio’s global clinical trials for Ghost. To bring the timeline forward by more than six months, you’ll need to commit at least this amount.”

Instead of replying, Seo-han gazed quietly out the window. Down below, vehicles moving busily through the skyscraper forest looked like microchips navigating a massive circuit board. Seo-han slowly turned his head to meet Si-hyun’s eyes.

“We aren't cutting six months from the timeline. We're cutting a full year.”

Si-hyun’s eyebrow twitched subtly.

“In that case, the speed of capital raising becomes the bottleneck...”

“Use Aetherno’s available cash for a third-party allotment in Aether Bio. Aetherno will invest the full 60 billion won.”

At Seo-han’s calm tone, the goldfish whispered playfully in his earpiece.

[Bloop... Torching all of Aetherno’s available cash in one go! My tail fin is shaking uncontrollably at this tear-jerking display of ambition. Spending money to speed up research—now that's a refreshing power move...]

Si-hyun tapped her tablet screen, quickly calculating Seo-han’s proposal.

“With Lysis now holding more than 22 percent of the North American D2C market, its IP royalties have generated more than enough cash. Aetherno currently has 68 billion won in liquid funds. So you intend to use it to acquire newly issued shares in Aether Bio.”

Every time Group S sold a single unit of Lysis in North America or Europe, $5 flowed directly into Aetherno’s accounts. Once sales volume crossed tens of millions of units, those five-dollar payments compounded into a massive stream of cash.

A faint smile touched the corner of Si-hyun’s lips.

“Let's proceed with a 60-billion-won third-party allotment. We’ll conservatively price the new shares based on recent valuation rounds and clinical trial risks, while explicitly documenting that this is a strategic investment for global clinical acceleration. Even if existing shareholders object, we can structure it so it’s legally airtight.”

“They won't object,” Seo-han murmured softly.

“Because they know better than anyone where the value of those shares actually comes from.”

At that cool conviction, the goldfish wagged its tail right on cue.

[Bloop... Ah, the seamless banter between Attorney Kang and the Boss! That icy insight slicing straight to the core! Masterfully solidifying control within the boundaries of the law!]

[System Log]: Goldfish loyalty sensors exceed critical threshold; outputting absolute trust toward the designer.

That evening, in a secluded safe house in Hannam-dong.

Inside a room filled with the subtle scent of aloeswood, Jung Hyun-jin, Jung Ui-hyun, and Goo Tae-min sat facing one another.

The heavy duffel bags of cash that used to rest on their table in the past had vanished without a trace. In their place, silver nasal spray canisters of Ghost 2.0 were neatly arranged on a high-end crystal platter.

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“Dr. Lee, the European launch response for Lysis is insane. L'Oréal’s stock dropped 6% over the last two days alone. Our distribution network is screaming under the weight of reorders.”

Jung Hyun-jin picked up a canister of Ghost with practiced ease.

Pfft—

As the fine mist settled into his nasal passages, his pupils widened slightly. Color gradually returned to his cheeks, radiating a surging vitality ill-suited for a man in his sixties. His voice carried not the terror of aging, but the arrogant greed of someone holding an exclusive privilege.

Goo Tae-min quietly swirled his glass of single malt whisky. Though he took pride in still being vigorous at forty-eight, he felt a strange sense of defeat before the bizarre vigor of these seasoned elites armed with Ghost.

“The royalties flowing into Aetherno are already on track to exceed 5% of our group’s annual operating profit. You're no longer just a scientist, Dr. Lee. You're a walking central bank.”

Jung Ui-hyun also let out a low laugh, lightly clinking his glass against the others. Their eyes reflected a mix of wariness toward Seo-han and a resignation to the fact that they could never escape the web of interests created by Ghost.

Inside Seo-han’s earpiece, the goldfish’s voice crackled softly.

[Hiss, hiss... Boss, I smell a rank obsession coming from those gentlemen—a desperate 'we will never let you go.' Watching them feast helplessly on value they can't refuse is quite a spectacle! Bloop...!]

Seo-han took a slow sip of chilled champagne. The crisp carbonation prickled against his tongue before the champagne slid down his throat.

Royalties gave the money a legal name. Efficacy gave it an irrefutable justification. At the boundary between light and shadow, Aetherno no longer had to bow to anyone. It simply absorbed the incoming tide of capital, silently turning the massive gears where money and power interlocked.

The goldfish gave one final bloop and swished its tail.

[No flavor, plenty of bite—that’s Goldfish No. 14005! Now, Boss, let's step on the gas for the next phase!]

Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the Seoul skyline glittered like a massive circuit board.

A few days later, in a private lounge at the Four Seasons Hotel in Gwanghwamun.

The silent room held a tranquil blend of polished wood and freshly brewed tea. Seo-han sat deep in a neutral-toned sofa, reviewing detailed briefing documents on his tablet.

The door opened, and Si-hyun and Baek Seo-yoon entered side by side.

“Seo-yoon, did you eat Pyongyang cold noodles again? I think I can smell the broth from here,” Si-hyun teased, lightly tapping Seo-yoon’s shoulder with a smile. Her razor-sharp courtroom persona was nowhere to be seen.

“No way. Today is serious business. I dressed up for this,” Seo-yoon replied, adjusting the lapel of her coat. Her gaze was already fixed on Seo-han sitting on the sofa.

“Have you been waiting long?”

Seo-han looked up at the two women. Instead of answering, he gestured toward the seats opposite him with a subtle tilt of his chin. Si-hyun guided Seo-yoon to sit and pulled a thick contract out of her briefcase.

“This is the strategic advisory agreement between Aetherno and GSI—the final revision Seo-yoon worked hard to polish. I built the legal framework, and she designed the regulatory roadmap.”

Si-hyun uncapped her fountain pen with a sharp click and set it before Seo-han.

“This isn't just a contract. It's an actionable blueprint to help Aether Bio's Ghost navigate domestic regulatory hurdles and secure a stable clinical and commercial structure.”

Seo-yoon turned the pages one by one, highlighting the key clauses.

“We linked the National Strategic Biotechnology Exemption clause with the Ministry of Health and Welfare's 'Future Medical Special Zone' designation. Once these provisions pass, Aether Bio will hold exclusive rights to operate restricted-use programs linked to clinical trials within the zone.”

Through his earpiece, the goldfish’s voice seeped softly into Seo-han’s ear.

[Bloop... Boss, the synergy between these two is incredible! One builds the legal fortress while the other opens the policy gateway. What a flawless partnership!]

Seo-han didn't move a muscle. Ignoring the AI, his eyes rapidly scanned the figures and timelines in the clauses Seo-yoon pointed out.

“Seo-yoon, about this exception clause here—won't the Ministry of Economy and Finance push back hard?” Si-hyun asked, pointing to a section of the document.

“Don't worry, Si-hyun. I’ve already coordinated with key officials at the ministry. With bio-security and national interest as clear justifications, even the ministry staff will have little basis for objection.”

Seo-yoon lifted her teacup with calm poise. The exchange between the two women was that of seasoned professionals who had worked together for years.

“Dr. Lee, what do you think? Does this structure look solid enough to move directly from the Phase 2 readout into Phase 3?” Seo-yoon asked, looking at Seo-han over the rim of her cup.

Seo-han closed the final page of the document. He picked up the fountain pen Si-hyun had set down, its heavy weight settling into his fingers.

“It looks well-prepared on paper, but we’ll see how it holds up in practice.”

In a brief, clean script, Seo-han signed his name on the paper.

“All that’s left now is to deliver results this system cannot afford to ignore.”

Seo-han pushed the document back toward Si-hyun.

[Bloop... Oho, so you intend to shake the whole foundation! As expected, your scale is different!]

Si-hyun checked Seo-han’s signature and gathered the contract, satisfied.

“Good. Now that it’s signed, I’ll begin formal negotiations with the relevant ministries tomorrow.”

Seo-yoon looked directly into Seo-han’s eyes, a slight smile on her lips.

“Regulations won't drag you down anymore. We’ve rewritten the rules of the game.”

Seo-han pushed back his chair and stood up. The night view of Seoul beyond the glass mirrored data nodes flashing across a vast server rack. Sixty billion won in capital, Baek Seo-yoon’s regulatory architecture, and Kang Si-hyun’s legal fortress—scattered pieces were locking into a single system.

Seo-han’s gaze lingered on Seo-yoon for a moment. She did not look away.

For a moment, he became oddly aware of the silence between them.

[Bloop... Boss, your heart rate is up twelve percent from baseline. That reaction isn't in the contract terms.]

The goldfish’s report snapped him back to reality. Seo-han adjusted his glasses.

“...Please send the schedule for our next meeting via messenger.”

He turned away first, cutting off the silence before it could deepen. Seo-yoon watched him go without saying anything.