Chapter 159

Chapter 159

I Became the Academy Mafia Chapter 159Even though he was smiling, I could clearly tell that he was flustered.‘That was what they said on the community, right? If his eyes tremble, he's seriously pissed.’Indeed, the corners of his eyes were trembling faintly.‘Well, of course he'd be pissed.’The reason I'd arranged this occasion for him was simple.

I had effectively branded him so he couldn't use the student council's power to bury what I'd done this time.

What if someone who had even received a commendation like this withdrew the agenda that had been submitted this time and announced that he wouldn't support the clubs I'd proposed?

For someone who already cared deeply about how he looked in the eyes of public opinion, it would be no different from a death sentence.

In other words.─He can't do anything.

“All right! Mr. Ray Pendragon! We'll take the picture! Please look this way and smile!”

At the reporter's words, the student council president turned his head and smiled.

Seeing the hand that wasn't holding the certificate tremble violently almost made me think of one of those try-not-to-laugh compilations.

“Huh? Boss. Isn't the student council president looking at you right now?”

Just as Jin-woo said, our eyes met.

He looked at me as though he knew from the beginning that I'd planned all of this.

I looked back at him and applauded along with everyone else.

Smiling as though I sincerely respected him.

Crk──The frame of the certificate in his hand crumpled.

“S-student council president?”

“Ah. My apologies. The camera flash startled me. Hahaha.”

“Ahahaha! To think the student council president would be startled by a flash. What an unexpected side of you! Hahaha!”

They even took a picture and immortalized it...

From now on, that photo would probably make the front page of an article and be used to commemorate the accomplishments of our wonderful student council president.

With this, my new business was safe from the student council.

A good thing.

A very good thing.

Next would probably be...

______________

After the noisy schedule that had started in the morning finally ended.

The student council members returned to the student council room and sat in their respective places in silence, quiet as mice.

And as though everyone had agreed in advance, they all lowered their heads deeply while watching one person's mood.

Ray Pendragon.

The man currently clutching his forehead.

“...

Seo Yeon-su.”

The Head of Club Affairs slowly raised her head as his lips, which had been tightly closed until now, finally opened.

“Explain what you did. Right now.”

Ray's voice didn't sound angry, nor did it sound disappointed.

It was simply a little colder than usual.

But precisely because of that, the fear he gave off was beyond imagination.

There had never been a single time until now when Ray Pendragon's voice had sounded this alien.

“...

I'm sorry.”

She apologized immediately, but Ray waved a hand as though telling her to cut it out.

“I don't want an apology. Explain what the hell you did for the Academy to give me a commendation, and what the dean was talking about earlier.”

At that, Seo Yeon-su slowly began explaining what had happened yesterday.

Ray's shoulders gradually began to tremble as he silently listened to the entire story.

“...

That's everything.”

“Kuh...! Haha! Hahahaha! Is that so? So that's what happened? I thought he was just trying to screw me over, but I really got played! Haha! Hahahahaha!”

Ray burst into wild laughter the moment she finished.

Then suddenly.

He stopped laughing.

And looked at Seo Yeon-su.

“──You don't even know what you've done, do you?”

“I judged that his proposal would be a great help with the financial shortcomings of the current clubs and student council. Since you also granted me discretion regarding the clubs, President, I thought there would be no problem──”

“Hey.”

The student council room froze once more at his cold voice.

“I gave you discretion because I thought you'd at least calculate what benefit the student council would gain from it, not because I told you to do whatever you wanted. But I never expected you to throw such an obvious giant middle finger at us. Have you ever thought about why the student council gives subsidies to the clubs?”

“For smooth club activities...”

“If that was the reason, we wouldn't give them subsidies at all!”

Bang!

The table they were gathered around shook with the sound, making the room vibrate.

Everyone was flustered and frightened because they'd never seen the president this angry before.

Ray swept his disheveled hair back, took a deep breath, and looked around.

“Because of this, clubs will appear that become independent from the student council's subsidies. If they can sell their own products outside, they won't have any problems operating. Do you understand? This is the same as removing the leashes we've worked so hard to keep around their necks!”

Ray trudged back to his seat and sat down.

“Yuli.”

“Yes, President.”

“I'll give you one day. Organize everything about this matter and prepare an alternative.”

“I will, President.”

After hearing her answer, he leaned back in his chair and turned away.

“I'm sorry about today. Everyone, go.”

Without even looking back, he merely waved one hand.

The other student council members began rising from their seats one by one and leaving.

Seo Yeon-su slowly left as well.

Shocked that something she'd done for the student council had instead caused backlash, she forced her heavy feet to keep moving.

How long had she wandered aimlessly after leaving?

“Head.”

She turned her head toward the familiar voice coming from behind.‘Yuli Rodman’.

The student council vice president.

“...

Vice President. I'm sorry.”

Seo Yeon-su lowered her head deeply, believing Yuli had come to reprimand her.

At the same time.

“You did well.”

Something soft wrapped around her lowered head.

“...

Vice President?”

“I know why you passed this proposal. You did it for the Academy, right? But... the president only talked about the student council, not the Academy. That hurt a lot, didn't it?”

“Vice President...”

“You really worked hard. Head.”

Yuli spoke quietly while holding her in a comforting embrace.

Seo Yeon-su's body began trembling faintly in her arms.

______________

“It went exactly like you said, Junior. I followed Head Seo Yeon-su, comforted her, and planted the seed too. For now, the Head reacted positively... what do I do next?”

Yuli had moved exactly as I'd told her.

Did she think I didn't know that student council president bastard's personality?

Not a chance.

Just as I'd expected, he'd rebuked Seo Yeon-su, and she must have felt deeply disappointed because of it.

No matter how loyal she was to the student council, she wasn't some private soldier loyal to Ray down to her bones.

She was just a student.

And I used that opening to make Yuli draw Seo Yeon-su into the anti-president faction within the student council.

“We wait. It's common sense that after planting a seed, it takes time for it to sprout. Thanks to what happened today, Head Seo Yeon-su will definitely start doubting or feeling dissatisfied no matter what the president does.”

And the other executives who witnessed that scene beside her would gradually begin to doubt him as well.‘Just what is the president looking at?’ they would wonder.

“Even from where I was standing, the president's behavior today was a bit much. It was the first time I'd ever seen him get that angry.”

“Well, that's usually how precious young masters are, isn't it? The moment someone takes what's theirs, they can't contain their rage── ah, Vice President, you're from a European noble family too, aren't you?”

“...

I thought you were taking a jab at me, but I guess you weren't.”

Yuli giggled at my joke and rose from her seat.

“You worked hard today, Junior. Then I'll get going. I have some other work to do.”

“Yes. Good work, Vice President. I have a mentoring lesson scheduled this afternoon too. Get back safely.”

She transformed into a bat and slipped out through the small window as usual.

After closing the window she'd left through and stepping out of the president's office, the club room packed with people spread out before me.

“Yes! The application forms are over there, so please fill one out and come back!”

“Don't cut in line over there! I'm watching all of you!”

“Pilates Club? Welcome, Senior.”

Applicants were pouring into the club room like a flood before I knew it.

Thinking that all of them had been unable to conduct proper activities until now because of financial problems made me feel in real time just how much of a blue ocean this really was.

“Ah, the Familia president is here?”

At that moment, someone called to me in a friendly voice.

When I turned my head, the president of the Board Game Club was approaching me with a bright smile.

“Ah, Senior.”

The first group to come running to us and submit an application had been the ‘Board Game Club’ under ‘Familia.’

He seemed to have really enjoyed what had happened this morning.

He'd been practically delighted, saying it was the first time he'd ever seen the president get that angry.

“You stopped by at lunch too. What brings you here?”

When I asked politely, he handed me the object he was holding as though it were nothing.

“Ah, it's nothing much. Our Board Game Club made a board game this time. I heard you handle things like selling them outside too, so I wanted to ask about this.”

What he handed me was a fairly heavy box.

“...

What's this?”

The name of the board game written on the box was ‘Bushland.’

It showed a man dressed in black holding a glowing piece of grass.

“Ah, it's called Bushland. It's a pretty simple board game where you gather different kinds of herbs and collect farmer cards──.”

“Let's sign a contract immediately.”

“Hm?”

“I'll have the contract prepared right away. Ah, would you mind coming into the president's office for a moment?”

Bushland.

The legendary game that would later dominate the global board game market.

It was the moment that item fell into my hands.

______________

The sky above the Calione estate was thick with clouds, enough to hide even the moon.

Beneath it, two men were fighting fiercely, sparks flying from their clashes.

“There's too much tension in your shoulders. If you'd deflected it with the back of your hand, you could have redirected it.”

“If I redirect it wrong, I'll die...!”

“That's precisely why we're practicing it in a spar. Surely you don't think I would actually kill you, Young Master?”

Even while swinging his dagger with extremely short and concise movements, Parnello coached me through every single action.

“Your feet are idle.”

“I'm too busy dodging...!”

“If you dodged like that in a real battle, this would happen.”

At the same time, he hooked my leg inward, and despite how much strength I'd put into my lower body, I fell backward.

“Aah... Parnello, you're seriously too str──?!”

At the same time, an enormous killing intent swept across my entire body.

Even though I was already on the ground, he raised his leg as though he were going to stomp me into it, forcing me to roll sideways and avoid him.

“That's right. It would be troublesome if you gave up simply because you fell to the ground. Even if the Young Master gives up, an enemy will not stay still. They'll rush in aiming for your neck.”

“...

Got it. Then we keep sparring?”

“Why, of cour... hm?”

Parnello suddenly stopped speaking and turned his gaze toward the estate.

Following his gaze, I turned my head and saw a man running toward us.

“Young Master! Sir Parnello!”

“...

Han Seo-jun?”

I stared in confusion at him running toward us.

He'd apparently sprinted so hard that even his normally immaculate hair was completely disheveled.

“The Consiglière has summoned both of you. Immediately! It seems you need to go to the Consiglière's office right now!”

“...

The Consiglière?”

I'd heard he was handling the organization's work as Father's deputy while Father was away, but what happened?

Parnello grabbed my hand and helped me up, and I immediately followed him toward the Consiglière's office.

Unlike Father's study, the office was filled with modern sensibilities, from the semi-transparent glass door to the decorations inside.

When we entered the space, which resembled an executive office at a large corporation, the Consiglière, who had been looking over documents while wearing glasses, turned his face toward us.

“Ah. Both of you are here at the right time. It's urgent, so I'll get straight to the point.”

With that, he closed the documents he'd been reading.

Removing his glasses and rubbing his face with both hands, he looked at us with an utterly exhausted expression and spoke.

“──An A-rank dungeon has appeared in the Foreigner Area. Eugene, Parnello. I think the two of you will have to go deal with it.”

“...

Pardon?”An A-rank?