Chapter 22: Persuading Martin
Should I tell him about the system?
No... I can’t.
Why not?
...I just can’t.
But why?
Because if they find out, they’ll be in danger.
...Right. I’m only doing this to keep everyone safe.
Klaus stood silent for a long while, then he looked away from Martin and said, "I cannot tell you..."
The instant those words spilled out of his lips, the crunch of potato chips being devoured stopped. Carl placed the chip bag down and stared at Martin, who stood at his spot with a dumbfounded and betrayed look on his face.
"Why can’t you tell me?" Martin asked, his voice no longer as unyielding as before.
Hearing that, Klaus’s chest tightened, and he answered with a lowered head, "It is not that I do not want to tell you; I just have no way to do so."
Carl’s eyes shone with curiosity, and before Martin could respond, he asked, "What do you mean by that?"
’Fuck! How do I get out of this now?’
He looked at Carl and explained, "I don’t know the person who gave me the information, nor have I ever met them. I don’t even know what they look or sound like."
"Oh?" Carl’s eyes shone like stars full of curiosity and excitement. "How did they contact you then?"
"I got messages from multiple anonymous accounts saying that if I wish to grab the sun, I must step into its flames, and then they listed names of various companies, industries, and organizations which will get big in the next three years."
Listening to him, Carl nearly fell off his chair out of sheer excitement and asked, "Do you have any info on them?"
After a few seconds of thoughtful consideration, Klaus shook his head. "I have nothing."
The excitement in Carl’s eyes instantly vanished into smoke, and he fell in his chair. "What a bummer. Only if you weren’t so stupid."
This motherf— calm! He is just a kid... hoh...
"So you are telling me that you trusted that suspicious anonymous group? Are you really telling me that, Kal?" Martin asked, his fists clenched at his sides.
’Why can’t he just accept it as Carl did?!’
Klaus turned to him and answered calmly, "I wasn’t going to. But when you told me about that lady’s condition, I decided it was worth taking the risk."
Martin’s face darkened. Although he wanted to help his friend’s daughter, he would never do it at the expense of his bestfriend’s safety.
He rubbed his forehead with a tensed expression and stated as he turned around, "Leave. I will not allow you to step on an obvious mine for me."
’It’s not just for you, though...’ Klaus frowned.
He clenched his fist and muttered, "Do we really have to give up on this?"
Martin’s lips lowered even further, and he asked in an icy tone, "You are really asking that?"
Martin’s worries were justified, according to his understanding; Klaus was being manipulated by someone who could afford to create untraceable anonymous accounts to spread information, so the best option was to simply give up on it.
He knew that Klaus was optimistic, and at the same time he understood that Klaus wouldn’t do something so stupid.
"Can’t we simply replicate the method they used to give us the information?" Klaus suggested.
"We can," Carl commented, verifying the possibility.
Martin blinked a few times, then he sat down on a chair. Today, the world had decided to do everything against his knowledge and expectations, so he had to sit down.
"You do know how dangerous that is, yes? What you want to join isn’t some simple investment; it’s a masterfully directed scam. We will be thrown in prison for years for that."
Klaus nodded, respecting his worries, and then he shrugged. "Then we have to make sure that we don’t get caught, and we have just the right guy for it, no?"
His eyes shifted to the excited teenager, and he asked, "You aren’t feared by big corporations for nothing, right?"
Carl looked between Klaus and Martin, then he smirked, "Heh. Soon, the stock market will fear me as well."
"That’s right," Klaus grinned. "Good. If we’re reaching for the sun, there’s no point stopping halfway."
"What are you two talking about...? Are you seriously thinking of stepping into a scam?" Martin asked, dumbfounded and drained.
Klaus stepped closer, crouched before Martin, and placed his hand on his shoulder. "The ones getting scammed aren’t us, but the people who crafted this artificial rise. Although they have made the deal, their stocks are still very much cheap."
"What do you think they will do when an entity appears out of nowhere and takes everything that they worked for?"
"I don’t know, I am not as smart as you after all," Martin mumbled, sarcasm dripping down his lips.
"Heh." Klaus tightened his grip on Martin’s shoulder and said, "The first people they will suspect are themselves; they will think that one of them is the anonymous party, and once we have earned our profit, we will vanish like we never existed."
"Is there any need to do something so risky for mere money?" Martin asked; the statement sounded absurd coming out of his lips. He was, after all, a person of finance.
Klaus straightened himself on his feet and added, "You are thinking too much into it. With your and Carl’s expertise, we can easily get away with this."
Martin looked at Carl, remembering how he had come to know him.
Seeing that, Klaus added, "If we’re careful, we’re taking from the people running the manipulation, not innocent investors."
"Hah..." He let out a defeated sigh and mumbled while fiddling with his fingers, "Okay... let’s give this a chance. But we have to make sure no one else finds out about this."
He met Klaus’s gaze and stated strictly, "And if anything happens, we will immediately stop and forget about continuing it ever again."
"Haha!" Klaus laughed, pulled Martin out of his chair, and tightly hugged him. "I knew it! There’s no way a womaniser like you would run away from so much money."
"Eh? Is that an insult or a compliment?" Martin chuckled.
The next moment, he looked at Carl and said, while moving his left hand away from Martin, "Come."
Carl blinked in genuine surprise, and his gaze instinctively shifted to Martin.
Martin nodded.
He slowly stood up from his chair and joined their hug.
Klaus embraced them tightly and said, "I have decided on our anonymous name!"
"Huh?" The two looked at him in confusion.
He grinned and announced, "The Maker."