Chapter 17

Chapter 17

I Became the Academy Mafia, Chapter 17“Yeah, accept the condition... Huh? What did you say?”

As though he hadn’t expected me to refuse, the president wiped the smile off his face and stared at me in bewilderment.

I repeated myself to him.

“Thank you for the offer. But I’ll refuse it.”

“...

You’re really refusing? Then are you saying you don’t need the consent form?”

“No. That’s not it. What I’m saying is... I’d like to make you a different offer.”

“A different... offer?”

I took out my phone and called the number at the top of my recent calls. After two rings, a voice came through.

-I’ve answered.

“Han Seo-jun. Did you bring it?”

-Yes, I’m waiting right outside the door.

“Come in.”

-Understood.

The moment I ended the call and put the phone back into my pocket, the club room door we had entered through opened and Han Seo-jun walked in.

“Young Master. Here it is.”

He placed two briefcases on the table in front of me, gave a short bow, and immediately left. The president, who had been staring blankly at him, let out an incredulous laugh after Han Seo-jun exited.

“...

Who was that?”

“Is that important?”

Without even turning my eyes toward him, I undid the locks on the cases.

Inside the opened case were countless file folders. I took several of them out and scattered them across a board game box before looking at the president and beginning to speak.

“Board Game Club. A Bronze-rank club located on the first floor of the club building. With the ten million credits you receive once a month, it’s difficult to purchase all the board games released every year, so the loans you took out through the Economics Club at interest rates bordering on loan-sharking have accumulated and accumulated, until they’ve now reached fifty million... Am I right?”

“Wait, how does a freshman like you know that...”

“You know that isn’t the important part, don’t you? And last year, since you didn’t recruit any freshmen either, there was even talk of adjusting your base support funding... You really are at the edge of the cliff.”

“N-no, that’s...!”

“Well, none of that really matters. What’s important is why I’m telling all of this to you.”

I snapped my fingers and brought his attention back to the point.

The president’s eyes suddenly widened as if he had realized something, and he glared at me.

“...

Don’t tell me, you’re going to buy the consent form. Is that it?”

At those words, I grinned.

“Correct.”

“Buying a consent form with money, what kind of ridiculous───.”

“───Fifty million credits.”

“What?”

Thud.

Rustleeeee─!

The other briefcase opened and something spilled out from inside.

Bills, bills, bills.

Every single thing spreading across the table was a bundle of cash.

The sight was so far beyond common sense that the president could only open and close his mouth.

“Uh, uh...”

“I would like to make the Board Game Club an offer.”

Not just any offer.

An offer they couldn’t refuse.

“There are fifty million credits here right now. Fresh cash I just withdrew from my account.”

“What... are you saying...”

“Ah, and as it happens, the Board Game Club’s current debt is also fifty million credits. What an unbelievable coincidence, isn’t it? You can pay off all your debt simply by handing over a single club authorization form!”

Slowly, I leaned in and whispered into the president’s ear.

“Isn’t it wonderful?”

If they refuse your offer, give them money. If they still refuse, ask yourself whether you gave them enough money.

I had no idea who had said that quote, but wasn’t it an incredible one?

The president, who had been staring at me blankly until now, stretched a trembling hand toward the table.

Slide.

The moment he did, I pulled the spread-out bills toward myself, and the president looked at me with pitiful eyes.

“But still, the fate of the club over mere money───.”

“Hmm, if that’s what you think, then I’m disappointed. Does this look like simple money to you? What I’m offering you is an opportunity. An opportunity for the Board Game Club to survive.”

Ah, and one more thing─.

I looked down at him with an indifferent expression and spoke quietly.

“Don’t even think about negotiating. If you don’t accept this offer, I can simply go to another club.”

Violence was not the only way to instill fear in someone.

Use the opponent’s circumstances and psychology to make them realize just how great an opportunity the present situation was. And make them understand on their own what would happen if they let that opportunity slip away.

That was how one could drive someone into fear not through violence, but through the situation and atmosphere.

“...

I just have to fill out the consent form?”

“Yes. Then you can take this case and go pay off your debt.”

“...

Wait here for a little while. I’ll bring it right away.”

“Yes, I’ll wait here patiently, so there’s no need to rush. Senior.”

After finishing my conversation with the Board Game Club president and returning to where the others were, everyone was staring blankly at me.

“...

Why are you all looking at me like that?”

I was sure I hadn’t made any mistakes, so why were they acting like this?

“Um... Eugene, you’re kinder? Scarier? Than I expected.”

“Boss, I almost pissed myself...”

“...

I can’t believe you thought of buying a consent form with money. That’s absurd.”

After watching my method from behind, each of them reacted differently.

“At first, I thought you were just threatening them with money... but if you think about it carefully, the Board Game Club loses nothing from this deal, right? Fifty million credits must be an enormous amount of money. Is it really okay to spend that much?”

“...

A lot of money?”

Fifty million credits was about fifty million won in Korean currency.

Was it because even in the game, a single decent piece of equipment cost an average of a hundred million credits? Even after handing over the equivalent of fifty million won to someone else just now, I didn’t feel any sense of loss whatsoever.

More than anything...

“I just spent a bit of my allowance, so it doesn’t matter.”

“...

What?”

When I thought about my own bank balance as Eugene Han Calione, this truly was nothing more than pocket change.

The Calione Family was one of the most prominent underworld families in the entire world. Thanks to that, my account balance was far more abundant than one could imagine.

More than anything, the fifty million credits I had just used were only a portion of the money Father had given me after dealing with the Blunte Family, so it was actually hard to even say that my wealth had decreased.

The others, who had no way of knowing that, simply stared at me blankly with expressions saying they had no idea what I was talking about.

“Freshman.”

Apparently finished filling out the consent form, the president approached me holding a document envelope.

“Here. The Bronze Club consent form you asked for.”

“You finished faster than I expected. Thank you.”

I received the envelope from him and naturally handed it over to Jin-woo.

“Seeing you spend this much money to get a consent form from a Bronze Club... it looks like you’re serious about this.”

“Yes. Exactly as you think.”

The president chuckled after hearing my answer.

“To think I’d see a freshman create a club again during my time here. Though I don’t have much to say since I ended up giving you our consent form like this... now that you’re taking our club’s consent form with you, do your best.”

He spoke with genuine sincerity and held out his hand to me.

I grasped the president’s hand and nodded.

“You won’t have to worry.”

With that, everything here was finished.

Leaving the Board Game Club behind, we exited the room and immediately headed toward the first floor, where the club building lobby was located.

“I didn’t think we’d get the Bronze consent form this easily... How are you planning to get the Silver Club consent form?”

Young-je immediately asked about our next schedule.

Since obtaining the consent form from the Board Game Club hadn’t even taken an hour, we still had plenty of time, so I spoke as I walked at a leisurely pace.

“The Silver Club will actually be easier.”

“Hm?”

“Well, you’ll see.”

The Silver Club at our next destination had its club room on the fourth floor of the club building.

“Wow, the upper floors really are on a different level from downstairs. This place isn’t just clean, it practically shines.”

Jin-woo was the first to step out of the elevator and look around.

“Boss, what kind of club is it this time? We handled the Board Game Club, so... Archery Club? Shooting Club? Something like that?”

“No, it’s not anything that grand... I’m going to a club that does business.”

“A business club?”

The moment we stepped out of the elevator and turned the corner to the right, the first thing we saw was a luxurious black door. Beside it hung a sign that read [International Trade Club]

.

“International Trade Club? What does this place even do?”

“I’ve heard of it!”

Apparently Kim Se-ah had heard something about the club we were heading to, because she suddenly raised her hand.

“The club that quickly and accurately delivers overseas products you can’t get at the Academy or nearby markets through their own routes! The one where they say there’s nothing they can’t get if you pay them enough, right?”

“Huh? Boss knowing that is one thing, but how do you know?”

“I looked into it because I heard this place pays pretty well too.”

Jin-woo let out an impressed sound at this unexpected side of Kim Se-ah. Watching the two get along, I raised the corners of my mouth and said.

“Not literally anything, but if it isn’t something particularly special, it’s true that they can obtain most things.”

Just as Kim Se-ah said, this [International Trade Club]

was a kind of transaction request office where, if you paid them, they would procure nearly anything for you.

In the game, it served as a shop you could use within the Academy, and if you followed the Academy route, there was one fact you would naturally learn about the [International Trade Club]

.

“Let’s not waste time. We’re going in.”

“What? Just like that?!”

Kim Se-ah looked flustered when I immediately opened the door and entered without any prior preparation.

When we opened the door and stepped inside, we were greeted by a vast space reminiscent of an office and cold air blowing from the air conditioner.

No, it was a cold atmosphere that greeted us.

“I told you to bring in the genuine article, and you brought a fake? How are you going to make up for this loss!”

“S-sorry! Deputy Manager!”

“Sorry? Sorry? Sorry makes club life over? I’m deducting the loss from your salary, so keep that in mind. Got it?!”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

A sharp voice reached us the moment we entered. Apparently sensing our presence, the woman who had been scolding the employee turned her sharp eyes toward us.

“...

What is it? We’re not open yet.”

Was this her roundabout way of telling us to leave?

“We didn’t come to buy anything.”

“What? Then?”

“We came to meet the president of the International Trade Club.”

“What? Wait, judging by your name tag, you’re a freshman... Hey, do you even know what kind of place this is? Do you think our president is some dog that has to come running whenever you call?”

“Not a dog.”

“What?”

I smiled at the flustered employee and mimed shaking a bell.

“Come see me for a moment?”

“What the hell are you trying to───.”

“Ring-a-ling.”

Then, pushing aside the employee who had been about to yell at us, a woman approached while making the sound of a bell.

Wearing a cadet uniform modified to create an atmosphere similar to a black suit, the woman approached me with a blank expression while continuing to make bell sounds.

“Long time no see. Right?”

“...

Huh?”

A beautiful woman with her hair tied back, exposing the pure white line of her neck.

She stepped in front of the flustered employee, bowed toward me, and spoke in a calm voice.

“Lee Haru, president of the International Trade Club. I greet you, Young Master.”