If you go against the wind, you can understand the flow.

If you defy the flow and trace its remnants, you might uncover its beginning.

As time passed, information about Lucas accumulated.

“Want to know about Lucas? Oh, he’s a really good guy. At least as an employer, he’s quite decent. If you succeed, he pays handsomely, and when issues arise, he actively protects his employees. Plus, well… he’s wealthy. What’s so important about being rich, you ask? Oh, it is important because when you visit his other business entities, you can get some services or discounts. That’s a significant factor.”

“He definitely takes care of those within his fence. He knows how to share the profits and be generous. Yes? The people outside the fence? That’s not my concern. And it’s not Lucas’s either. There are plenty of people who love to donate, so why should we care about that? Your typical eastern way of thinking just doesn’t work for me. The most important thing is a small meaning of community like friends, family, and neighbors. What matters is the scope of ‘us.’ If you focus on larger communities like the country or humanity, you’re bound to go bankrupt, you know?”

“Not a bad person. In the chaos of Wall Street filled with crazy folks, he’s a rarity. He has no interest in women or men, doesn’t harass anyone. He doesn’t meddle in other people’s homes or touch their spouses or partners. He doesn’t go around creating unnecessary gossip, nor does he act out on TV. Honestly, perhaps I’ve seen too many strange people in my previous jobs… Lucas feels truly angelic.”

Some spoke favorably about Lucas.

“Lucas… Hmm. Asians are said to be tight-lipped, especially shamans. So I’ll trust you and say he’s a bit… well. Oh, I’m not saying I’m unhappy with my job. I like this workplace, with benefits and all. But as a person… well, I wouldn’t want someone like Lucas as my neighbor. He’s neurotic and has emotional ups and downs. You can often see his close tendencies to paranoia or obsession. He doesn’t project it onto his employees, but still… I wouldn’t want him living next door.”

“Hahaha, he’s a demon. Oh, of course, I’m not trying to blaspheme from a Christian perspective. It’s just that when you see the things he’s done, the word ‘demon’ comes to mind. He’s ruined countless firms and made a staggering amount of money doing so. He’s a master of short selling, a more thorough hyena than your average ‘friendly value investment expert.’ He also performs the magic of turning junk bonds into valuable money. Therefore, he’s a demon. Just thinking about how he entices money-loving folks like me makes it even more true. Hahaha.”

Some referred to him as a good but unsettling person.

“Lucas? Damn! That Metatron employee? Not? What? A shaman? Oh dear. So you got hired and came to me with questions about your employer? Good. You couldn’t have found someone more objective and reliable than me when it comes to that damn Metatron Investment. That damn bastard is a devil. He’s consumed by money without any sense of belonging.”

“A few years ago, the investment teams on Wall Street agreed to short sell a company. If successful, it would yield juicy profits. Failure? Hah, there’s no such thing! If we think we might fail, we simply change the rules. We’re the ones who set the rules.”

“But that damn Lucas, that golden-fixated bastard who deserves to fall into hell and burn forever, betrayed us. To mess with us, he hindered our plan! Damn it! Because of that, we suffered astronomical losses instead of astronomical gains, and that bastard was the only one to profit—he even collected on insurance! Plus, he picked up profits from our losses and soared high. Damn, damn Lucas!”

“And did he know he was going to get shot or something? He walks around with some weird artifact. Many tried to blow his head off with a revolver but kept failing! Instead, the CEO of the bankrupt investment managed to mess with his car and caused an accident. As a result, that CEO got over 200 years in prison, and Lucas lost one of his arms. You’ve seen it, right? Crystal Arm.”

“It was annoyingly cool. Damn it. If part of my body ever gets wrecked, I’d want prosthetics like that. I’d get a crystal arm adorned with rubies, sapphires, and diamonds, making it look like the stars and stripes. What do you think, sounds cool, right? Hahahaha!”

Some harbored feelings bordering on hatred for Lucas.

“Lucas? Oh, he’s a hero!”

“We had to endure terrible things because of the wolves of Wall Street. Burdened with a massive debt, we lost our home, and were thrown into the streets. Many families shattered—yes. Family, friends, lovers, relatives… many lost precious ones. In our home, my uncle put a gun in his mouth and took his own life, and other relatives were in dire straits. My parents had to work extra hours to earn more money, leaving me to grow up neglected at a young age. In the process, I got involved with drugs—oh, I quit now. Fortunately, with the help of my family, I managed to quit quickly. But I do regret it. If I had quit sooner, I might have studied more and secured a better job.”

“And every time those regrets hit me, I think—ah, the reason our family fell into hardship, why we’re only now barely finding peace, why I got into drugs, why I hung out with delinquents, and why my parents’ health isn’t too good now since they’ve worked themselves to the bone… it all comes back to these damn Wall Street folks.”

“So when the Wall Street folks gathered to short sell, I couldn’t help but empathize with someone’s words.”

“I’ll burn it all down just to spite them.”

“A short yet intense, relatable phrase.”

“Yes. I empathized. I, and countless others, empathized with those words. And we acted. Individually, we gathered a modest amount of money and took action to spite the wolves of Wall Street. Losses? Hah, if I could bankrupt them, I’d gladly accept any losses. I had a home and a job. No girlfriend, no wife, no kids. I could do it. And I intended to do so. And I did.”

“Honestly, it wasn’t easy. Those bastards would change even the rules. But then, Lucas appeared. Like a hero, even though he didn’t do a superhero landing, he showed up out of nowhere and helped us. He restored the missing buy button and used the media to assist us. And he supported us with a staggering amount of money. He felt like a magician, like a sorcerer, like an angel.”

“And the outcome? With a hero by our side, there was no way we could lose. We won. Instead of losses, we profited and brought down several of those damn Wall Street bastards. We rocked the companies involved in the operation and made our power known worldwide. We did it. Lucas was a hero, and we were heroes, too. Hahaha.”

And some called Lucas a ‘hero.’

In some places he was a good person.

In others, a peculiar person.

In some, a demon.

In others, an angel or hero.

People’s evaluations of Lucas varied, and the emotions they harbored towards him were all different.

But isn’t that the nature of people?

People have various aspects, and can’t be consistent.

Thus, the different stories draw closer to the essence of that person, providing valuable clues to unravel the temperament and origins they hold.

Jinseong gradually gathered more information.

And at long last, he was able to judge Lucas.

Countless individuals.

Countless sentiments.

Countless evaluations.

Sifting through all of them, Jinseong personally saw and experienced to assess Lucas—

“Hmm. It wouldn’t be strange for an evil person like him to face a harvest.”

Evil person.

Jinseong concluded that Huele could very well come collect a harvest from an evil person like Lucas.