Chapter 141

Chapter 141

I Became the Academy Mafia Chapter 141As soon as morning broke, everyone at the cathedral began moving quickly.

With Augustus the bishop taking Ascalon, the cathedral was no longer a safe place for the children to stay.

That was why they chose to evacuate the children to the Lava Cave where the Blue Yaksha Workshop was located.

“Won't it be too hot for the children?”

“Do those clothes the children are wearing look ordinary to you? They're spell vestments sent directly by the headquarters. The heat of the Lava Cave will probably only feel a little stuffy to them.”

“Then there shouldn't be a problem.”

There would surely be apprentices remaining at the Lava Cave who wouldn't participate in the battle, so the children could stay there safely.

“Mister! Mister!”

From far away, Sister Jeanne came running toward me with a bright smile.

“Sister Jeanne. You'll fall if you run like that.”

I said it out of concern, but she merely giggled as though that wouldn't be a problem.

“It's okay! I'm really athletic. Mister, you're going to Baengnokdam to catch the bad dragon now, right?”

“Hm? Yeah.”

At my answer, Jeanne rummaged around in her pocket and pulled something out with her little fist tightly clenched.

“It's a charm!”

What emerged from her tiny hand was a rather old-looking rosary made of wood.

“...

What's this?”

“It was something my mother left behind. She said it would always protect me whenever I was in danger, but I think you need it the most right now, Mister.”

Jeanne slipped the rosary around my wrist with a light tap.

“Please come back safely, Mister.”

With those final words, Jeanne abruptly turned around as though embarrassed and ran toward the bus where the other children were waiting.

“Jeanne, hurry!”

“Bishop! Mister! Come back after winning!”

“Mister, are you going to kill the dragon with chopsticks again this time?”

“Come back safely!”

I watched the children leaning out the bus windows and waving their arms, then slowly put on [Midas's Gloves]

that I'd kept in my pocket and spoke.

“By this time, the other factions should've started moving too. We should get going.”

Last night, the various factions had agreed to begin advancing toward Baengnokdam at 10 AM.

According to plan, it was time for us to depart as well.

At that, everyone climbed into the vehicles they'd prepared.

Twelve priests and nuns from Halla Cathedral.

Four craftsmen and six apprentices from the Blue Yaksha Workshop.

And me, the bishop, and Yoon Gwang-su.

Two buses carrying a total of twenty-five elite members began moving.

“Everyone remembers the plan, right?”

“The plan where we pretend to advance, herd the monsters into the rear of those bastards, then escape ourselves?”

“...

I don't know who came up with that plan, but it's truly vicious. Well, considering who it's being used against, I like it.”

Just as Yoon Gwang-su said, I planned to use this opportunity to clean up the other factions as well.

Once Fafnir, the primary cause of Jeju Island's Dungeon Breaks, died, Jeju Island would naturally begin returning to its original state.

Then before that happened, I needed to weaken the influence of these factions that had already entrenched themselves here.

I couldn't let them keep rampaging forever like they had when I first arrived on Jeju Island, could I?

The Blue Yaksha Workshop led by Yoon Gwang-su, who was sitting beside me and carefully watching my mood, could also be called a rather nasty faction, but...‘Well, even in the game, they didn't really attack first unless you provoked them or entered their territory.’They did occasionally save people being chased by Raiders and then take their equipment as compensation(?), so I suppose they were roughly chaotic-aligned.

“It's good to stop those guys from running away. But why are we gathering in front of the cave?”

Apparently curious about something in my plan, the bishop poked only her head out from the back seat and asked.

“If we go through the forest trails or Olle Trail, Shukharbangs, Hell Ponies, and Ghost Tangerine Trees will keep attacking us. If we have to clean those up one by one along the way, do you think we'll still be able to fight Fafnir?”

“...

That would be difficult.”

That was exactly why Fafnir was considered a raid boss in the game.

Just reaching Baengnokdam for the Fafnir raid required breaking through countless monster hordes, and even after arriving, Fafnir continuously summoned monsters to harass the player.

“You'll understand why we're heading toward the cave soon enough, so don't worry too much.”

“Of course! Our Sen── Mr. Hitman will handle everything just fine! Naturally!”

“Well, if you say so.”

In the end, the bishop returned to her original seat and looked out the window.

Father Johann, sitting farther back, apparently thought the atmosphere was a little too gloomy, so he clapped his hands sharply to gather everyone's attention and smiled brightly as he spoke.

“We'll be heading into battle soon. How about we all sing a hymn together? Those who~ call upon the Lord's name~”“Father Johann.”

“Yes! Bishop!”

“Shut up.”

“...

Yes.”

He was immediately cut down by the bishop.

And so, in silence, we sped toward Hallasan.

______________

Hiss─The moment we stepped off the bus, an excessively dense forest greeted us.

“...

To think I'd enter this demonic realm with my own feet.”

“Workshop Master. Didn't you say something similar when you came to the cathedral with me?”

“Wahaha! Back then and now, it means I'm reassured because Senior Unc── Mr. Hitman is beside me. Wahahaha!”

Barely dodging my criticism, he laughed awkwardly and began walking ahead first.

“I take the left. The bishop and Mr. Hitman take the right, correct? Then I'll see you later.”

Yoon Gwang-su began walking toward the right side of the forest with the people from his workshop, and the bishop likewise began moving with the other priests and sisters.

“Ah. I should change my face.”

To make sure I drew their aggro properly, just like yesterday, I gathered the power of DisPater and Black Mist and concentrated it around my face.

In an instant, the unrecognizable face was completed.

The bishop, who had watched the process in real time beside me, shook her head in disbelief.

“Don't tell me you went around Jeju Island looking like that yesterday?”

“I did. Why?”

“A face you can look at but can't perceive. Anyone seeing you would think you're Satan. Don't tell me your original face is fake too?”

“Who knows?”

I still had no intention of showing her my real appearance, so I playfully brushed off the question.

At the same time.

“Looks like the monsters are starting to gather!”

Johann, who had climbed onto the bus to scout the surroundings, shouted down.

Just as he said, when I looked around, I could see monsters carrying swords in both hands.

Shukharbangs began gathering toward us one by one.

“...

They're unpleasant monsters no matter how many times I see them.”

The bishop's face twisted as she made a sweeping gesture from top to bottom.

Then small golden crosses fell from the sky.

“Shuk─ Shukshuk─ Sh. Sh?”

The Shukharbangs surrounding the bus turned into stone dust the moment they touched the crosses.

A sight difficult to believe had happened with a single wave of her hand.

When I stared at her closely, she raised her eyes and looked back at me.

“What? I controlled my strength, so don't worry too much.”

That's what she calls controlling her strength?

Changing Ascalon into its new form had definitely made her stronger as well.

Well, since she originally didn't use a sword, perhaps she was now receiving a main-weapon correction...

This might go more smoothly than I expected.

While I was thinking that, the bus came to a stop and the door opened.

“We've arrived, Bishop.”

The priest who had been driving said that, straightened his clothes, and stepped off the bus first.

The nuns and priests followed him out one by one.

The moment I stepped off the bus, refreshingly clean air unlike anything I'd ever experienced filled my lungs.

“...

Maybe because it's the countryside, the air is nice.”

The Olle Trail, one of the entrances to Hallasan.

As though showing off their former majesty, massive Jangseung statues of the Great General Under Heaven and the Female General Under Earth stood from the entrance onward, greeting us with bizarre expressions as if declaring that beyond this point lay another world.

At that moment.

The bishop silently approached and lightly kicked one of the Jangseung with her foot.

“...

What are you doing?”

“If I had my way, I'd smash an object of idol worship, but that would cause an uproar, so I'm settling for this.”

“...

Ah.”

Still, she was a bishop of an entire diocese.

I shook my head at the way her religious fervor manifested in such a strange direction.

The Jangseung in front of us were a kind of barrier that prevented the monsters of Hallasan from going berserk.

She knew that as well, which was probably why she settled for just this.

“About five minutes until the operation begins?”

“Yeah. Once it starts, we'll be running around a lot, so you should probably warm up.”

Indeed, the other priests and nuns were already twisting their bodies this way and that, loosening their muscles and joints.

Since it had been a while since they'd experienced a proper battle, they were preparing in earnest too.

“I don't need that kind of thing. Thanks to the sacred relic, my body is always in peak condition.”

“...

And someone like you drinks and smokes?”

“It's the privilege of the sacred relic's guardian.”

Lungs that wouldn't rot no matter how much you smoked.

If I could, I'd want to present it to Father immediately... but sacred relics were said to choose their owners, weren't they?

No matter how I thought about it, I didn't think it would work very well for Father.

“Thirty seconds.”

Checking the time on my wristwatch, I estimated the directions where the other factions would likely be.

To finish things properly, wouldn't it be best to wave what I'd stolen from them right in front of their faces?

“Begin!”

I shouted that toward the Halla Cathedral forces behind me, then began running in the exact opposite direction from them.

Before long, a group of Raiders came into view.

“The moment you find that fucking bastard, kill him immediately. Got it!”

“Yes! King!”

“I don't know who that fucking bastard is, but I truly pity him.”

“Hm? You are... th-that in your hand...!”

I climbed onto a nearby tree and muttered that while fiddling with the Thunder God's Stone.

The Raiders' leader, the Junk King, spotted me and began pointing at me while screaming at the top of his lungs.

“I told you, didn't I? Come to Baengnokdam. We're still near the entrance, so you'd better take your time.”

After giving the Junk King a word of advice while lightly waving the bait toward him, I immediately began running toward another location.

“Get him! Catch that bastard!”

His desperate voice echoed from behind me, but I had plenty of customers with reservations waiting.

I ignored them and moved quickly.

The next place I headed was where the Tangerine Farm faction was located.

“Found him! Turn that bastard into fertilizer for the fields!”

This time, their resentment seemed so great that even without showing them the treasure I'd stolen, I could feel their anger prickling against my skin.

Judging by what I'd seen so far, about seventy Raiders and thirty farmers from the Tangerine Farm.

Hmm.

This should be enough.

After finishing the simulation in my head, I immediately raised Tommy toward the sky.

At that, the guys chasing me began shouting.

“He's preparing an attack!”

“Prepare defensive spells!”

“Without that gun, he's nothing!”

I smiled lightly at the sight.

“Looks like you're seriously misunderstanding something.”

A gun?

No, I do have a conscience, you know.

After understanding how much emotional damage my last tour must've caused you, there's no way I'd give you something reeking of gunpowder as a gift.

“They said naturally occurring mana stones from Jeju Island are higher quality than other mana stones, right? Probably?”

So I prepared something.

Rrrrr, rrrrrrrr, rrrrrrrrr──The ground that had remained still until now began trembling little by little.

“Huh?”

Far in the distance, I could see a group running hard toward this place.

Yoon Gwang-su, the craftsmen and apprentices from his workshop.

And farther below, the priests, bishop, and nuns were also running as hard as they could.

“Sen── Mr. Hitman! Everything's ready!”

Behind Yoon Gwang-su as he shouted, an enormous army could be seen moving.

“Shuk. Shukshuk. Shukshuk. Shukshukshukshuk.”

“Neeeeeeigh──!!”

“Grrrk! Grrrrrrk!”

A true parade of monsters.

After confirming the sight, I judged that it was about time for us to leave and shouted toward them.

“Move!”

At my shout, everyone simultaneously pulled something from their pockets and threw it toward the ground.

I also took out ‘that’ item I'd kept inside the Cube and threw it onto the ground, then smiled at the monsters charging toward us and the bastards staring blankly at me.

“Then, I'll leave it to you?”

It'd be a little beneath my seniority to waste time on trash mobs like these~