Chapter 66

Chapter 66

I Became the Academy Mafia Chapter 66“Still, you didn't aim for his head. Good. If we want the Association to identify him, we need to leave the head intact.”

After watching Elusive collapse in front of him, Kwak Chun-sik approached, glanced at the body, and frowned.

“Huh... Did you forcibly compress the aura and create repulsive force? The inside of his chest has practically turned to mush.”

“I didn't know it would be this powerful either. I was only trying to gather my aura like you did, sir, and this is what happened.”

“Well... repulsive force is still a form of power, so I don't think it's bad. More importantly, what are you planning to do with his corpse?”

The Association employees were still inside the dungeon.

Before long, they would finish their investigation inside and come back out.

If they saw the corpse in front of me and me standing here, they might judge me to be the culprit who murdered an Association employee.

If I were alone, that is.

“I'll explain things properly to the Association employees. You just stay still.”

“...

You will, sir?”

Kwak Chun-sik chuckled at my reaction.

“How many years do you think I've spent in the Association? I can at least clean up this much for my mentee. Just stay quietly behind me.”

Was he basically the equivalent of a senior master sergeant in the Association world?

Since those words came from none other than Kwak Chun-sik, I couldn't help but trust him.

“You were also the one who dealt with the villain, so I'll make sure you receive the proper reward.”

“Ah, you don't need to go that far. Let's just say I helped you, sir.”

“Hm?”

“Since the villain wasn't some ordinary guy but ‘Elusive,’ if the credit goes to you, wouldn't your sentence be reduced a little? And the burdensome attention toward me would be redirected that way too.”

“Well, that may be true... but wouldn't that reduce the reward you receive as well?”

“I'm fine.”

In truth, I'd already received my reward.【Hidden Quest Complete!】[Hunting the Elusive

Villain.][You have successfully hunted the first villain of your life with overwhelming force. As a Hitman who hunts villains, you will become even stronger!][Reward: Trait 【Hitman】 enhanced.]

When I checked my status window, I saw that new information had been added to Hitman.【Hitman】[1. Ruthless Killer

– The blade of an organization that executes its enemies. A Hitman maintains composure in any situation.

Firearm-related proficiency greatly increases.][2. Hunter of Villains

– You are a Hitman highly accustomed to hunting villains. Villains will feel fear toward you, and it will become easier for you to hunt them.

The fear villains feel toward you increases by 1.5 times.

Aura utilization ability slightly increases against villains.]

The trait 【Hitman】 had practically become an anti-

villain weapon.

A trait that gave me an advantage against villains.

Considering the nature of the scenario, its range of application as a special attack ability was enormous, making a smile naturally form on my face.

“W-what in the world happened here?!”

At that moment, the employees who came out of the dungeon looked around in shock.

Perfect timing.

“Sir. I'm counting on you.”

I smiled at Kwak Chun-sik and quietly hid behind him.

Naturally, shouldn't troublesome matters be handled by a superior?

Kwak Chun-sik sighed at the sight of me, then looked toward the employees.

“This fellow suddenly attacked me and my disciple. So my disciple and I took him down.”

“...

Pardon? This man attacked you and your disciple?”

Kwak Chun-sik nodded.

“He even said himself that he was that ‘Elusive.’ If you compare him against the Association database, you may find something.”

“T-this man was Elusive?! My goodness...”

As expected, since the one speaking was a figure of Kwak Chun-sik's stature, the employees didn't seem suspicious.

“As you said, sir, we'll first take the corpse back to the Association, conduct a separate investigation, and contact you afterward.”

“Yes, yes. Keep up the good work.”

When the employee placed a hand on the corpse, it disappeared in an instant.

He had placed it into a subspace.

I'd roughly guessed it when I didn't see any materials when they came out, but as expected, they carried an item enchanted with subspace magic.

The employees bowed to us, then ran down the mountain.

Watching them leave, Kwak Chun-sik turned toward the direction of his house and spoke.

“There's no spatial mage left to take me back, so I suppose I'll have to start walking.”

“Are you heading back right away?”

“Of course, you brat. Where else would I go besides my own home? Once I get back, I'll have to start modifying the Aura Style so I can teach it to you.”

“Is it really that complicated?”

“You want me to teach you the exact method I use? Your aura and mine have different properties, so naturally, I'll have to adapt it anew. On top of that, I also have to think about how to train you, so there's a mountain of work to do.”

Kwak Chun-sik started walking while clutching his head.

“Don't come looking for me for about three days. To think I'd be studying again at this age, grr...”

Kwak Chun-sik gradually grew farther away.

I couldn't believe he'd even say he was going to modify the Aura Style specifically for me.

Then again, judging only by what I'd shown him until now, I could understand why he was itching to train me.

I was still nothing more than an Academy student, yet I'd single-handedly beaten a semi-named villain.

Just how much would he be looking forward to seeing how far I could grow?

In the distance, I could see the sun slowly beginning to rest against the mountain ridge.

Checking the time, I realized evening was gradually approaching.

“...

I should head back too.”

For a first mentoring session, wouldn't this count as a passing grade?

______________

The family's evening meal.

They say humans are creatures of adaptation, don't they?

Even today, the family dinner where we sat together harmoniously no longer felt uncomfortable or heavy.

At this point, how should I put it... just a dinner with a little more food than usual?

It was also a place where the family exchanged small updates, so interesting information or things I normally wouldn't know often came up.

“How was Sir Kwak Chun-sik? Was he doing well?”

Father, who had been eating, was the first to ask me.

Since I'd borrowed the organization's helicopter to go to Gangwon Province this time, it was only natural that he knew.

“Yes. He was somewhat sharp, but also very warmhearted.”

“Haha! He's still the same. Even when this father of yours was young, he was someone who begged me to please become his disciple. Unfortunately, the relationship between the Hero Association and Calione at the time wasn't very good, so we weren't able to interact much.”

That old man, I'd thought he'd only thought about it, but he actually asked Father to become his disciple?

Apparently, he'd been too embarrassed to say that he had personally asked Father to become his disciple, so he hadn't explained the details.

“Still... rather than me, you've ended up receiving his teachings, so in the end, his wish has come true. That's a good thing. Hoho.”

Feeling a hint of regret in Father's words, I immediately spoke.

“The only thing I've decided to learn from him is the Aura Style. He also said that my aura greatly resembles Father's ability. If you're willing, Father, I'd like to learn from you as well.”

“Hahahaha! I'm grateful just to hear you say that. Yes, yes. We're both busy right now, so once we have some free time later, let's do that.”

“Yes, Father.”

Now this was what you called a real fever event.

My teachers after entering this game world were the Emperor of the Underworld, one of the strongest assassins in the world, and an Aura Master?

It truly made my heart swell.

A lineup of the strongest people that an ordinary character probably couldn't even dream of attempting.

Perhaps this was only possible because I had inherited the blood and talent of ‘Calione.’

“Papa! Ji-yoon wants to learn too! Hyah! Hyah!”

Apparently dissatisfied that only the two of us were talking, Ji-yoon climbed onto her chair and enthusiastically threw straight punches into the air.

Maybe she'd been separately taught self-defense since she was young, because even with her short arms, her punches carried some force.

But because the one doing it was Ji-yoon, it was simply adorable.

“Hahaha! Of course, this Papa will teach our Ji-yoon too. That's it, that's it, you're doing well!”

“Ji-yoon is good?”

“Of course, of course. Whose daughter do you think our Ji-yoon is? You'll become the strongest in the world soon, hahahaha!”

“World's Strongest Ji-yoon! I love it!”

Perhaps already imagining herself becoming the strongest in the world, Ji-yoon sat back down with a broad smile.

Father, who had been watching her fondly, slowly shifted his gaze back toward me and spoke.

“So, have you decided to continue learning from him?”

“Yes. The Academy allows mentor lessons to substitute for classes up to three times a week, so I believe that's what I'll do.”

The Academy allowed students who had designated a mentor to have absences excused up to three times per week.

Of course, I also had club activities, so I couldn't miss classes too often, but whenever Kwak Chun-sik called for me, I intended to go to Gangwon Province as regularly as possible.

As for transportation... I could take the helicopter, and maybe occasionally ask Ji Su-hyeon to send me to Gangwon Province?

Of course, she wouldn't send me to Gangwon Province for free, so I'd probably have to give her some small compensation.

“Very well. I'll inform Parnello in advance, so you're free to use the helicopter as you please.”

“Thank you.”

“Ah, and one more thing.”

Father spoke as though something had suddenly come to mind.

“Why don't you bring Sir Kwak Chun-sik to our mansion sometime?”

“Sir Kwak Chun-sik?”

Father nodded.

“He is my son's mentor, and our relationship wasn't particularly bad in the past either, so I thought it might not be a bad idea to meet and talk once. What do you think?”

Certainly, as Father said, the current relationship between the Hero Association and Calione wasn't particularly bad.

And more importantly, since the two of them had history together in the past, there was little risk of some major incident happening.

Most of all...

Two people who could be called Asia's greatest authorities on aura meeting and talking?

I need to make this happen immediately!

As a hardcore gamer, this was an incredibly interesting and exciting event.

“Yes. I'll speak to him separately.”

“Good. If he feels uncomfortable, there's no need to force him to come, so keep that in mind.”

“Understood.”

Father smiled in satisfaction when I nodded and answered.

“Good. Let's finish eating. Ji-yoon, you should eat now too, shouldn't you?”

“Yeees!”

It wasn't certain yet, but I imagined the scene of Father and Kwak Chun-sik sitting across from each other and talking.

Vito Calione of the red aura and Kwak Chun-sik of the blue aura.

A meeting between the two.

If the aura fanatics from the community saw it in person, they'd probably cry tears of emotion... but this was a luxury that only I could personally witness.

Well, if they're jealous, they can get transported into the game themselves.