End of 2002

Fenwick, Connecticut, the Hepburn Family's seaside villa, the annual Christmas gathering.

After dinner, the men inevitably gathered together to discuss national affairs and recent news.

One of Mrs. Hepburn's nephews, himself an elderly retiree, asked, "Do you think this war will actually happen?"

Another replied, "There's no way it won't. After last year's terrorist attacks, the government swiftly adjusted its strategic direction, identified its primary enemy, and aggressively courted its allies."

"If that were all, it might not mean much. But the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 1441 and dispatched inspectors to Iraq to investigate its secret production of weapons of mass destruction."

"And in October, U.S. Congress passed the Iraq Resolution, authorizing the president to 'take any necessary measures' against Iraq. That included the power to declare war. They've gone this far already. How could they possibly not fight?"

Someone else said, "Exactly. Since launching the Afghanistan War last year, the U.S. military has been preparing for a second war. It'll clearly be larger in scale and involve more troops. The Army alone is expected to deploy two hundred thousand soldiers in the first wave."

"Right. Once the U.S. military moves, arms dealers start smiling. If we buy related stocks now, is there money to be made?" Everyone turned toward Henry.

His high-frequency trading fund had become everyone's main moneymaking tool in the stock market. If they were to shift their investment direction, this man would have to make the adjustments.

Henry said, "The newspapers have analyzed it already. Stark Industries and Hammer Industries are still the primary suppliers. Stark Industries' procurement volume will roughly remain at the level of the Afghanistan War, perhaps with a slight increase."

"Hammer Industries, meanwhile, is running all its newly established capacity at full tilt, hoping to usher in another round of