Chapter 70: Payment Received! (Votes Requested)

“Heh heh…” Facing Kudo’s tone, Tao merely smiled, then, putting away his smile, he spoke with gravity, “Sell all positions with 200x and 300x leverage and buy U.S. dollars. From the profit, wire thirty million yen to my bank account, and as for the remainder, immediately proceed with the following strategy…” He then gave careful instructions, explaining how much capital to keep on hand to cover potential risks, and how much of the surplus to reinvest with what degree of leverage.

On the other end of the line, Kudo was frantically scribbling notes, his heart pounding with anxiety.

Tao’s judgment was clear: the appreciation was not yet over! This time, his appetite was much larger.

It was as if he were gambling madly!

“Tao, isn’t the risk on this margin far too great…” Kudo couldn’t help but ask.

But Tao replied calmly, “Don’t worry, I’ll have more funds coming in soon! Just carry out my orders at once, and after that, get some proper rest.”

Although the leverage was higher this time, the margin was sufficient. Unlike others, Tao had a clear sense of the maximum possible volatility and had set aside enough to cover it.

Besides, with fifteen hundred million yen promised by Hidekaze Kinoshita, his positions would be perfectly safe.

The only concern was that, although Tao’s principal was modest, his leverage was high, so liquidating positions could cause too much of a stir.

Thus, he had no intention of acting rashly, repeatedly building and closing positions to increase his capital, lest he became a target for the major players.

Except for a modest expansion, he was prepared to wait for the next interest rate cut, when the big capitalists would be making their moves, to hide within their ranks and trade.

Just as in these past two days, when trading volumes had surged.

Kudo was left speechless by his words.

He was, in fact, used to Tao’s occasional ability to mobilize vast sums at will.

As long as fresh margin arrived, there was little reason to worry.

After all, why should he worry on behalf of someone as wealthy as Tao?

Runa Onodera, freshly changed, quietly tidied up the table after his meal.

When Tao spoke so confidently on the phone, that overwhelming charisma of his radiated once more.

After giving Kudo his instructions, Tao checked the time and called Hidekaze Kinoshita: “Brother Hidekaze, about the loan—when can it be finalized? I’ve already prepared the loan agreement!”

“…I’ve only just arrived at the office! Are you really in such a hurry?”

“I can’t wait! I’m more than ready for a grand undertaking!”

Runa Onodera, having finished washing the dishes, returned to see the heroic vigor on his face and was momentarily dazzled, quickly lowering her eyes.

Tao’s attitude had truly changed.

At this moment, having netted over six hundred million yen in a single day and night, he was no longer in negative equity.

Yes, after last night, his earnings had increased again.

He could pay off Inoue’s money and the bank loan in one fell swoop.

Still beaming, Tao continued, “With your support, Brother Hidekaze, I’m planning to take advantage of what’s left of the spring break to scout out locations today. If I find the right place, I’ll need the funds ready to show my commitment.”

“You’re something else… I’ll arrange it shortly. Also, if Tomokazu’s side gets in touch to schedule another meeting, make sure you attend!”

“Of course. If it’s the president’s business, it’s my business too!”

Having gotten Kinoshita’s resigned reply, Tao hung up and announced, “Let’s go—first, to Mogami Real Estate, then shopping!”

…

“Section Chief, please wait for me. I’ll join you after I complete the wire transfer Tao requested!” At Nomura Securities, Kudo, having stayed up all night, still wasn’t allowed to rest.

Ichiro Kawasaki could only review once more the evaluation forms his subordinate submitted.

Seeing the many positions with hundredfold leverage, Kawasaki’s heart couldn’t help but race.

This was clients’ money; for him, hundredfold leverage was already a daring move.

If the positions collapsed, the losses would be hard to recover.

But after watching Kudo execute all of Tao’s orders, Kawasaki, as if injected with adrenaline, immediately instructed his subordinates to mirror all the new strategies applied the previous night.

The results had been bountiful!

Though not as spectacular as Tao’s windfall, it was still an unprecedented victory.

But watching Kudo open even more highly leveraged positions as per Tao’s instructions, Kawasaki felt uneasy.

It was sheer madness—besides the previously held positions with four and five hundredfold leverage, the newly earned funds were used to open even more positions at similar leverage.

Kudo assured him Tao said not to worry, that more capital was coming, and there would be no margin calls.

But Kawasaki had no grounds to persuade other clients to take on such high risks!

When Kudo finally finished his tasks and came over, rubbing his eyes, Kawasaki quickly pulled him aside. “Take a look—do you think this is feasible?”

Kudo looked at the forms helplessly. “Section Chief, I’m not that strong—my heart is already at its limit… Ultimately, it’s your call, not mine!”

Kawasaki was stunned but then realized—it was Tao who made the decisions; Kudo just executed them.

“So, Tao said after building the new positions, you should get some proper rest?” Kawasaki asked, glancing at the list of new positions with high leverage.

“That’s exactly what he said…”

“I see.” Remembering last night’s profits, Kawasaki figured that, at worst, they’d lose some back, so he instructed, “Don’t go home to sleep, just nap in the lounge! That way, if Tao calls, you’ll be reachable at once!”

“…Eh?” Kudo thought of the hard floor and less-than-quiet environment in the break room, but seeing his supervisor’s stern face, he could only mutter, “Understood…”

Working at a securities firm was truly miserable.

When the market was bad, you worried about performance; when it was good, you couldn’t rest.

Either way, your nerves were always on edge.

And in the end, all this money—hundreds of millions, billions—belonged to someone else.

What did it have to do with him?

…

Still, watching other people’s money flow in and out, you couldn’t help but feel differently.

Approaching eleven in the morning, Kumiya Maehara had just returned to her desk at the bank when the internal phone rang.

“Kumiya! Your VIP client…” The girl’s voice on the other end was excited. “There have just been two large incoming transfers. The first wasn’t too shocking, so I didn’t tell you. But just now, fifteen hundred million yen came in! Fifteen hundred million!”

“What?” Maehara shot to her feet. “Are you sure there’s no mistake?”

She could believe one hundred fifty million, but fifteen hundred million was another matter entirely.

“No mistake! You’d better contact him. If that amount is put into a fixed deposit…”

“I understand! Thank you, Yuki!” After asking for more details and hanging up, Maehara slowly sat down and quickly drank a glass of cold water.

This money must be headed for Nomura Securities again.

She pondered for a while, then decided not to fret over it anymore.

He must have far more funds at his disposal!

Although it was unlikely the money would stay at the bank—since after yesterday’s rate cut, many people had come to withdraw their savings—he surely wouldn’t use this account solely as a transfer channel.

Everything depended on his decision.

For someone able to move billions, even tens of billions, in and out in such a short span, there would always be significant expenditures in life. He would need a preferred, regular personal account.

Therefore, she resolved to do her best to make this account his primary one!

Hadn’t Yuki said it? The first three million yen had been transferred back from his securities account.

Maehara checked the bank’s back-end data.

Sure enough, since morning there had been a flurry of outflows.

Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, even a million yen at a time… In just two hours, he had already spent nearly ten million yen!

Ten million! Was this the casual spending of a true aristocrat?

Judging by the timing of the withdrawals, Maehara knew he was not at home.

She would wait until evening or another time to contact him.

Just as she thought this, the phone rang again.

“Hello, this is…”

“Kumiya-chan? Is that you?”

“Eh?” Maehara heard a faintly noisy background, with the occasional sound of cars passing by.

“My, the call quality is pretty good. It’s Tao Taro. I’m surprised that after giving my name, the call was transferred right to you,” Tao said cheerfully. “I just wanted to ask—have any funds come into my account?”

“…Yes. There was a transfer of thirty million yen, and another… of one and a half billion!”

“I see. Understood. Then wait for me—I’ll be there soon.”

After ending the call, Tao looked ruefully at the brick in his hand. “This thing is really heavy.”

“But very cool!” said the NTT salesman before him.

Tao smiled, “Cool? Well, you have my number now. If any lighter, newer models come out, let me know immediately.”

“Absolutely!”

With that, Tao finished his latest purchase and left NTT, carrying the device that weighed a full kilo.

He sighed. “Spending over a million yen for this thing… honestly…”

At that moment, he missed smartphones more than ever.