Chapter 98

Chapter 98

I Became the Academy Mafia Chapter 98In the past, I had once seen a post like this on the community.[Title: GIF of a Jeju Island foal getting blown away by a typhoon.

gif][Sorry. I baited you because I wanted to show you this. Is the level of the Calione, Azure Sky Sword Clan, and National Police Agency alliance actually for real? It's seriously an alliance of the strongest people in the entire setting. No, not long after starting the game, I bombed the Academy, and these crazy bastards suddenly formed an alliance, tracked me down, and killed me? lolololololol No, I was wondering why, and it turned out Choi Yeon and Eugene Han Calione got caught up in my terrorist attack, and even Jung Eui-hoon was dragged into it too. Holy shit, I only did it because I was curious what would happen if I killed main-character-level characters, but the game blocks it like this lololol][HotDogCoolDog: Are you fucking insane? Why would you blow up the Academy][Yeah: Is this guy crazy lololol Why would you blow that place up right from the start when you're not even in the Villain Alliance lolololol][Yeah: I saw this and tried copying it, but what alliance? The Sword Saint came alone and killed me.][└CookingKingAssassinationKing: Lmaololol Why would you copy that lololol][Yeah: So where's the foal GIF?]

Even when I saw that post, I couldn't believe it.

No matter what, those three forming an alliance. Was that even realistically possible?

Even when I did all kinds of things right from the start, like firing bombs and stealing nuclear warheads to detonate them, those bastards never formed an alliance.

But...

“We'll contact your side separately later.”

“I'll be waiting.”

The Sword Saint and the Consiglière shook hands.

Were these really the same groups who had glared at each other like they wanted to devour one another on the day of the exam?

I never thought this would actually happen.

“...

Looks like the conversation went well, right?”

Only after the adults had finished talking did the parking lot become empty.

While I stood there blankly, still unable to process reality, Choi Yeon, who was standing beside me, spoke.

“Yeah, it seems to have gone well... but I still feel like my brain hasn't caught up.”

“...

Really? Your grandfather and your father. They looked like they got along well.”

“Are you serious?”

Those two who had been shooting sparks at each other on the entrance ceremony day really looked like they got along?

Well, there was a saying that fighting could lead to affection, so it wasn't completely incomprehensible...

“This is difficult.”

“...

Yeah. Difficult.”

For now... it seemed the urgent matter had been dealt with, and since things had ended well, it looked like we should return to the Academy too.

______________

When I returned to the Academy with Choi Yeon, most of the situation seemed to have been settled, as there were no students gathered on the field anymore.

“Did everyone go home?”

“No way, they wouldn't have sent everyone straight home.”

Just in case, I checked the messages that had come in and saw one Young-je had sent in the club group chat.[Young-je: President. Everyone's in the classroom right now, so just come to class. Yeah.]

“Looks like everyone went back to their classrooms. We should probably head back to ours too.”

“To class?”

She tilted her head.

I also didn't understand why they were gathering the students in their classrooms at a time like this...

But what could we do.

We were Academy students.

“...

For now, let's split up and go to our respective classes. If there's anything to say, I'll contact you separately later.”

“You have my number?”

“Didn't we exchange numbers last time?”

“Ah. We did.”I've felt this since I first started CS... but she had a somewhat absentminded side to her.

Well, that point probably appealed as charm and made her popular.

“Then, I'll go first.”

“Yeah. See you later.”

After we split up and I arrived at Class A.

“You're here? The Academy's hero. Han Eugene.”

I could see Ji Su-hyeon smiling brightly at me.

“...

What is it. Why do you suddenly have such an ominous expression?”

“You bastard... try being an instructor yourself. Do you have any idea how it feels to suddenly hear that you disappeared from the Academy?”

“Ah.”

So it was because of that...

She probably had been worried.

I felt a little sorry about this.

But there had been something more important.

It was an unavoidable sacrifice.

“Anyway, I heard what happened inside from the other kids. You, the Familia kids. And Choi Yeon subdued all the ringleaders and cleared the dungeon too?”

Had the report already gone that far?

There was nothing wrong with what she said, so I nodded.

“That's right. Were the villains arrested?”

“Thanks to you. Apparently they're currently being held in a prison inside the Academy while wearing restraints, and they'll be handed over when people from the Association arrive.”

“...

That's fortunate.”

They would end up back in Niflheim anyway, but they'd probably be put into an area with even stronger restrictions than where they'd originally been.

“And... now that the situation's roughly settled, we should do what needs to be done.”

“Yes?”

What needs to be done?

While I was still wondering what she meant, Ji Su-hyeon suddenly bowed to me.

“Thank you.”

“...

What?”

My brain froze for a moment at Ji Su-hyeon suddenly expressing gratitude to me.

Then she continued.

“Thanks to you, we were able to resolve this quickly without a single fatality. I can't speak for the entire Academy, but as the representative of Class A, thank you. Really.”

At the same time, the sound of chairs scraping came from behind.

“Vice class president. Thanks.”

“Thank you.”

“It was thanks to you. Thank you.”

When I looked behind me, I saw the students expressing their gratitude toward me...

This is kind of embarrassing.

Fortunately, Ji Su-hyeon immediately raised her head again. Then she grinned.

“You're embarrassed, aren't you.”

“...

You did that knowing I would be?”

“Be grateful I'm ending it at this. Do you know how shocked I was when the others told me you recklessly fought the Miner one-on-one?”...

At most, she probably would've said something like, Oh, he really knows how to get stronger, huh?

“You've got a weird expression on your face.”

“...

You're imagining it.”

Seriously. Her instincts were disgustingly sharp.

“Anyway, everyone in our class is grateful to you. And... the dean also wants to express his thanks to you.”

“The dean?”

Ji Su-hyeon nodded at my words.

“You also took first place in the last ‘Class Ranking Match,’ and the other kids said you were the representative among those who resolved this incident. The dean's message is that he'd like to meet you personally this time.”...

Come to think of it, there was also supposed to be some kind of special gift from the dean if you won the Class Ranking Match.

“Right now?”

“He told me to pass the message along as soon as you came back, so yeah? Anyway, if you don't go to the dean's office, all you'll be doing is waiting here. A government notice came ordering students to remain in their classrooms because of the post-terrorism measures and investigation.”...

So that was why all the kids had returned to the classroom instead of going home.

In that case, going to meet the dean seemed better than wasting time sitting in the classroom.

“Can I just head straight to the dean's office?”

“Yeah. I'll contact him, so you can walk over slowly.”

“Understood.”

After greeting Ji Su-hyeon, I immediately started walking.

The Academy corridors were still quite chaotic due to the aftermath of the terrorist attack.

Because of the nature of the game, I'd practically memorized the route to the dean's office, so it wasn't difficult to find.

When I arrived in front of the dean's office, I naturally knocked and spoke.

“Han Eugene from first-year Class A.”

A dignified voice came from inside a moment later.[Yes. Come in.]

When I opened the door and entered, I saw an old man with a kindly smile.

That man was the dean of Seoul Hero Academy.[A new person has been added to the <​Character Encyclopedia>!]<​Character Encyclopedia (N)>[Name: Heo Seok-gi][Affiliation: Republic of Korea, Hero Association, Seoul Hero Academy][Age: 54][Specialties: Sniping, Concealment, Magic][Description: The greatest marksman in the Republic of Korea, once known as Silence

. He has currently retired from active duty and serves as the dean of Seoul Hero Academy.]

Although he looked like an extremely gentle old man on the outside, the reality was completely different.

Silence.

It was a name given because those struck by the arrows he fired died instantly without uttering a sound.

The number of Awakened he'd personally killed in the past was in the triple digits, while the number of monsters was impossible to even count.

“This is our first time meeting like this, Han Eugene. I am Heo Seok-gi.”

And naturally, he was also someone who knew my true identity.

“It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Han Eugene.”

When I closed the door and bowed, the dean chuckled and stood up.

“Hoho, sit over here. You know why I called you, don't you?”

“Yes, I heard it was because I took first place in the Class Ranking Match. And... because I stopped this terrorist attack.”

The dean smiled softly and nodded at my words.

“That's right. Those are among the reasons. I should formally express my gratitude. Thank you very much for protecting our Academy, Eugene.”

As though bowing his head were the most natural thing in the world, he lowered his body and bowed.

“...

I only did what had to be done.”

“To think you're even humble. As the dean, I'm truly proud.”

He raised his head again and looked at me with a gentle smile.

But why was it?

His expression was clearly smiling, yet for some reason I felt an inexplicable tension constricting my body...

That was the Republic of Korea's Silence.

Still, there was something that bothered me, so I carefully opened my mouth.

“You said those were among the reasons. Is there perhaps another reason?”

“Yes, there is another reason. It's because you are the son of my close friend.”...

Father comes up here too?

“You knew my father?”

“I suspect there are fewer older heroes like myself who don't know Eugene's father. I also met with him recently regarding your enrollment.”

From what I heard, apparently he had been the biggest contributor in consulting with Father when I entered the Academy and allowing me to attend under an alias like I was now.

“I can't repay all the kindness I've received from him with something like this, but I'm glad I could at least return the favor this way. Though lately, it seems I'm the one receiving even more kindness.”

With that said, he continued.

“So, as a token of gratitude and repayment, I prepared a gift.”

“...

A gift?”

The dean nodded at my question.

“Yes. Though the situation is like this, perhaps that's all the more reason I should give it to you.”

As he gestured, black mist bloomed from the tips of his fingers and gathered in his hand, slowly taking shape into something.

“Originally, the student who places first in the ‘Class Ranking Match’ receives an elixir suited to them... but no matter how I thought about it, an elixir alone felt somewhat inadequate as a proper reward. So I thought I would give you this instead.”

What he placed on the table as he said that was a pitch-black box with no decorations whatsoever.

“...

This is.”

“Open it.”

I slowly placed my hand on the box and opened it, revealing a neatly placed pair of jet-black dress shoes inside.

“...

These are?”

“Black Mist. The shoes I used in the past.”

I hit the jackpot.