The history-altering resident vote wasn't limited to the free school meal referendum.
From a global economic perspective, an even larger-scale vote was unfolding in Greece.
"The Greek government has announced that it will hold a national referendum on leaving the Eurozone and declaring a default."
"It seems the European debt crisis is beginning to accelerate."
"Although the Eurozone offered debt relief of 50% and over 100 billion euros in bailout funds, the Greek people are strongly opposing the austerity measures proposed by the Euro authorities."
We knew all too well how harsh these austerity demands could be.
Every Korean still remembered the IMF era, when the nation suffered deeply under similar austerity measures.
"Europe's atmosphere is certainly different from when Korea received IMF support," I noted.
"The IMF reportedly reflected on its excessive austerity demands on Korea and has eased the requirements for Greece this time," he replied.
"Yet even the eased conditions are unacceptable to the Greek people."
"In fact, Korea was exceptional. Among the countries that received IMF support, it was the only nation to accept all the demands and successfully recover its economy."
The history of South Korea had been a continuous struggle against adversity.
Resilience and crisis management were ingrained in the national DNA.
So it wasn't fair to criticize other nations simply because they couldn't act as Korea did.
"The European stock markets must be in turmoil," I said.
"The euro hasn't fluctuated dramatically yet, but the moment the Quantum Fund takes decisive action, it will drop sharply, and the European stock markets are already declining. The Stoxx index is expected to fall more than 10% this year."
We had already positioned ourselves to profit from the European debt crisis.
We had set up a system that would generate returns as the euro and European stock markets fell.
"The situation in Southern Europe must be even more severe."
"Exactly. A new term has emerged: PIGS. It refers to the four heavily indebted countries whose stock prices are plummeting."
PIGS—or PIIGS—referred to Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Spain, nations mired in sovereign debt crises.
Later, Ireland and the United Kingdom would be added, bringing the total to six, and collectively they would be mockingly called "the pigs."
"How can we make a profit from this?"
"We've already set up a massive net across all of Southern Europe. Once the Quantum Fund signals, we just pull in the net and take only the fish we want," he explained.
"Since the net is so extensive, it must take a lot of time to haul it in."
"We'll pull it in sequentially. Start with the net set in Greece, then move to Southern Europe, and finally lift the net spanning all of Europe. Profits can start being realized as early as next year, and the entire operation is planned to be completed within three years at the latest."
Three years wasn't a long time.
Moreover, if we start realizing profits from Greece next year, we could repay the debt borrowed from the fintech bank immediately.
"Even if a few fish escape the net, it's fine. Proceed quickly and safely," I instructed.
"Even if some fish slip away, the Quantum Fund will pick them up. No worries. And as you suggested, we've also set nets around Greek shipping companies," he replied.
Greece was on the verge of declaring default.
If the Greek government went bankrupt, Greek companies would likely face bankruptcy or be on the brink of it as well.
"For shipping companies with too much debt, just take the ships. Only acquire the ones that can realistically be saved," I said.
"We're already discussing that with Dimon. He's the world's top expert in mergers and acquisitions, after all," he answered.
"Dimon isn't just an M&A expert; he's also a master at enhancing a company's value."
Dimon was deeply involved in this project.
He had provided us with astronomical loans, so the project had to succeed for him to recover both principal and interest.
Therefore, Han had to comply with every request, carefully analyzing Greek shipping companies, preparing valuations, and allocating limited time to the task.
"However, there's a variable. If Greece actually holds the referendum on Eurozone exit and default, and it passes, we'll have to revise our plans significantly," Han cautioned.
"They won't make that decision immediately. It's essentially a form of intimidation. Greece is signaling to other European nations that if they don't provide more support, a bankruptcy declaration will follow," I explained.
"Even threats have to be within bounds. Right now, Greece has crossed the line. Wall Street, along with investment firms across Europe and Asia, are all criticizing Greece."
From Greece's perspective, it was an inevitable choice.
More precisely, the Greek political establishment was acting in accordance with what the people demanded in order to survive.
The Greek populace believed that the fiscal crisis had been caused by the Eurozone.
Thus, Greek politicians had no choice but to wield the threat of exiting the Eurozone.
"What good would complaining do? By the end of this year at the latest, the Eurozone will provide substantial support to Greece. They'll have to prevent a Eurozone exit at all costs," I remarked.
"Then let's consider the Greek referendum a non-issue and continue with our plans," Han responded.
"Please relay the same message to the Quantum Fund: the likelihood of a public referendum is 0%. Of course, if the government changes, that possibility could arise, but under the current Greek administration, it won't happen—I'm certain of that."
The Greek economic crisis and the European fiscal crisis—preparatory work was largely complete, and now all that remained was to collect the profits.
***
Summer of 2011 arrived.
While Greece was in turmoil over its national referendum, South Korea was preparing for a local referendum.
"Chairman, the date for the free school meals referendum has been set. It will be held on the 24th of this month for Seoul citizens," the planning director reported.
"So the ruling party expects to win the referendum?"
"They seem to be relying on public opinion polls. Support for selective free meals is about 20% higher than for universal free meals," he added, handing over the survey results.
In a typical election, poll results generally matched the final outcome.
But with a local referendum, voter turnout introduces a crucial variable.
"Even if the support rate is over 20% higher, if turnout doesn't exceed 33.3%, the votes can't even be counted."
"Chairman, do you think the turnout will fail to surpass 33%?"
"This vote has shifted in nature. It's no longer simply about free meals—it's effectively a vote of confidence for the Seoul mayor. Those who don't want the mayor to remain will likely avoid voting entirely, while those who do vote will inevitably be labeled as ruling party supporters."
Elections in South Korea are based on secret ballots.
Ordinarily, coworkers would not know each other's political leanings.
But in this referendum, simply appearing at the polling station revealed a voter's stance, placing significant pressure on them.
High pressure naturally leads to low turnout.
And on sensitive issues like free school meals, people would be even more inclined to conceal their preferences.
"But will the Seoul mayor actually resign as promised?"
"Having staked his political life on this gamble, resignation is his only viable option."
"Then a by-election for the Seoul mayoral seat will soon take place."
"How do the political party support rates among Seoul residents look now?"
"The People's Economic Party is in first place, while the ruling and opposition parties are nearly tied."
Support for the People's Economic Party continued to rise.
While the ruling and opposition parties were busy fighting over issues like free school meals, the People's Economic Party had saved the lives of Korean residents in Japan—a naturally favorable outcome.
"If this momentum can be carried through the by-election, the People's Economic Party could secure the Seoul mayoralty," one noted.
"To do that, we need a solid election strategy," another added.
"The strategy for this election is silence. We will remain silent on the free school meals issue and only present policies focused on the economy."
Silence is golden.
This was a saying attributed to ancient Greek politicians.
Yet in modern politics, it was rarely followed. Politicians were expected to speak for their constituents, not hold back.
But regarding the free school meals issue, simply staying silent would allow the party to attract moderate voters. For this election, the silence strategy was deemed appropriate.
"If the current support levels hold, the People's Economic Party is in a favorable position. But compared to the major parties, don't we lack candidate competitiveness?"
"Governor Choi Jae-seok will compensate for that gap. Furthermore, the party's Seoul mayoral candidate was directly involved in the Japanese resident evacuation operation. Highlighting that will sufficiently narrow the gap."
The by-election for Seoul mayor was by no means naturally advantageous for the People's Economic Party.
Even in local elections held just a few months prior, Seoul had been a district where they lost by more than 10%.
Yet in only a few months, the situation had completely changed.
The People's Economic Party had actively responded to the massive disaster in Japan, earning widespread public support for their actions.
"And while the party remains silent, we will not just sit back. Spread the images of the major parties fighting over free school meals across SNS and portals, and simultaneously promote the evacuation videos of the People's Economic Party. Make sure to edit and highlight videos of the Seoul mayoral candidate," one instructed.
"We will do everything possible to boost the People's Economic Party's support during the by-election period."
If the People's Economic Party were to capture the Seoul mayoralty, Governor Choi Jae-seok would be in a position to make the significant decision to pursue the presidency.
***
August 24 had arrived.
In most elections, attention is usually focused more on the vote count than on the voting itself.
But in this election, whether voter turnout would exceed 33% was critical, so all eyes were on turnout.
"By noon, turnout is 13%. The ruling party expects that turnout will easily exceed 33%," one reported.
"What big dreams. Most of their supporters probably voted in the morning. Yet only 13% have voted so far. There's no way it will surpass 33%," another remarked.
"The AI team's analysis confirms this as well. They predict turnout around 23–26%, with a margin of error of 5%, meaning it will never reach 33%," came the update.
The ruling party could hardly fail to anticipate what the AI had predicted. Their optimism was likely just wishful thinking, and they had probably already sensed defeat.
"It's time to start preparing for the by-election in earnest," one concluded.
"As soon as the voting results come in, we will proceed with the by-election plans immediately."
The outcome was obvious even without seeing the results.
When news came in that polling stations were nearly empty, I turned off the TV and focused on work.
Far more important than the by-election, the European debt crisis was beginning to intensify.