Chapter 99

Chapter 99

I Became the Academy Mafia Chapter 99I could feel the adrenaline being released in real time at the appearance of Black Mist.

To think the dean would pull out Black Mist here.

When I slowly reached out and touched it, the item's information appeared before my eyes.[Name: Black Mist][Rank: Relic][Type: Shoes][Description: Dress shoes made using the shoes once worn by a man called the legendary phantom thief, Iljimae

, as material. When worn, they completely eliminate the sound of footsteps and greatly reduce the wearer's presence. The wearer can kick off the air two or more times, and Agility increases by 30%.]

Black Mist.

In the game, it was mainly an item used when raising assassin characters or characters built around the concept of an archer.

There were a total of two ways to obtain this in the game. The first was to purchase it through the Black Market once you reached the middle of the game.

And the other was to join the Academy student council early on and become the dean's disciple.

As befitting a Relic, it had excellent basic defense as well as great additional effects, making it one of the higher-tier shoes even in the game.

The unexpected gift nearly made the corners of my mouth rise, but I concealed my emotions as much as possible and spoke calmly.

“...

If this is something you used in the past, Dean, isn't it a precious item? I feel burdened wondering if I can truly accept such a treasure.”

Of course, that was a lie.

I wanted to take it and run outside right this instant.

But as a Korean, wasn't it only natural to refuse the first offer?

The moment these shoes were placed on the table, I had already decided I would take them no matter what happened.

“I am giving them to you because I judged that you are more than deserving of them. Think of it as the conclusion this old man reached after careful consideration and take them.”

“...

If you put it that way, then I can't refuse.”

I said that, closed the box again, and subtly placed it beside me.

I had planned to refuse at least three times, but if he was insisting this strongly that I take them, then accepting them was surely the proper duty of a disciple.

I'd happened to be lacking shoes, and these showed up right here.

“I'll gratefully make use of the gift you've given me today. Thank you very much.”

“I would be grateful if you did.”

At that moment, the telephone on the dean's work desk began ringing noisily.

“...

Excuse me. Given the Academy's current condition, it may be an important call.”

I wasn't unaware of the situation either, so I nodded.

The dean slowly approached the desk and picked up the receiver.

He stood there silently with the receiver held to his ear, then put it back down and looked at me with a gentle smile.

“It seems agents from the Association have arrived to take custody of the villains imprisoned here. They say there are no major abnormalities in the surrounding area either, so now we only need to send the students safely home.”

In other words, everything Ji Su-hyeon had mentioned before I came here had been resolved.

“Then I have work to attend to, so... I hope we can meet again next time.”

As the dean approached me and gave a slight bow, I also rose from my seat, tucked the box containing Black Mist under my arm, and greeted him.

“Thank you very much for today. Then I'll be going.”

“Haha, I'm the one who should be thanking you. Please take care on your way home.”

After the meeting with the dean ended, I returned to the classroom and saw the students fiddling with their phones with bored expressions.

“The dean said we can go home.”

At that moment, every student's gaze snapped toward me like something out of a horror movie.

“Really?!”

Including Ji Su-hyeon.

“...

Yes. The dean said it just before leaving to hand over the villains, so I imagine there'll be an announcement soon.”

And as if on cue, the speakers turned on.[An announcement from the faculty office. An announcement from the faculty office. All students currently at the Academy are asked to return safely to your homes. Once again, all students currently...]

The moment the contents of the announcement spread through the classroom, every student rose from their seats at once and began preparing to go home.

The students moved with perfect coordination.

Their speed was truly astonishing.

“Don't wander off anywhere strange! Your parents will be worried, so go straight home!”

“““Yeees~!!”””

Ji Su-hyeon shouted after them as though reminding them not to forget, and an immediate answer came back.

These kids were truly serious when it came to going home.

I also had plenty to do once I got home, including explaining what had happened, so I immediately prepared to leave as well.

“Boss. At this rate, don't you think we might get tomorrow off too? That'd be fucking sweet.”

Even now, the bastard was chuckling, apparently looking forward only to getting time off.

“Even if you get the day off, you'll just get dragged to mentoring. Is that really so great?”

“Huh.”

Apparently he'd forgotten about that himself.

“I'll probably be in a similar situation, though...”

Even as I said that, my eyes went toward the message hovering at the edge of my vision.[Kwak Chun-sik: I'm in front of the Academy. Got a moment?]

Given that old man's personality, he wouldn't have come because he was worried...

It seemed I was going to suffer through mentoring just the same.

“Then, see you later.”

After exchanging brief farewells with the others, I left the main building and spotted a man in unusual clothing among the crowd heading home.

A man wearing a pure white fedora was making his way through the crowd.

It was Kwak Chun-sik.

“Old man, what's with that hat?”

“Ha, for someone who supposedly put villains behind bars, you look pretty intact.”

“...

Can't you see I'm wearing a suit because my uniform got completely torn apart?”

“No wonder. I thought maybe they had some kind of free dress policy now. Hahaha.”

Kwak Chun-sik burst out laughing like that, then wiped away his tears and spoke.

“Just looking at you, I can roughly tell what happened. That Miner bastard probably threw dirt around again. Am I right?”

When I nodded, Kwak Chun-sik began laughing so hard once again that he nearly stopped breathing.

“Good grief. And only your uniform got torn apart in the middle of all that? Must be wearing something pretty good underneath. Let's see... hm? ‘per l‘Imperatore?’ Th-this. Was it made by Maestro?”

Apparently he could tell it was genuinely good clothing, because his eyes suddenly widened as he asked me.

“You already know, so why ask? That's right. Maestro made it for me.”

“Ha! Of course the son of some wealthy house would walk around wearing a building... Ha, hahaha.”

“You must have plenty of money saved up too, old man. Why don't you use that to get one yourself?”

“You brat! A man should face the world with his bare body! Besides, do you think Maestro has that much free time? Even if I reserved an outfit now, it'd probably be ready when I'm about to die!”...

Really?

He made mine right away.

“Anyway, I came here to transport the captured villains, heard about you, and came to see if you were all right... I'm glad you're fine.”

Saying that, Kwak Chun-sik gave a faint smile.

He placed a hand on my shoulder and spoke in a kind voice.

“You did well, Eugene. You saved the children. On behalf of the incompetent Association that couldn't do anything, I'll apologize.”...

Why were so many people thanking me today?

It was making me feel awkward again.

“I'll make sure you get a reward, even if I have to tear the Association apart for it. Of course. My disciple did something this significant, so they have to give you something.”

A reward?

Embarrassing gratitude was one thing, but a reward was always welcome.

“Old man. Make sure. Make absolutely sure you get me something good.”

“Hm? Khahahahaha! You brat. Fine, don't worry. You think I'd bring back some weird cheap junk? I'll get you the best thing possible! Hahaha!”

With that, Kwak Chun-sik left after only exchanging greetings.

He still seemed busy with the Villain Alliance terrorism investigation... but I wondered if he knew.

That this terrorist attack had only been a preliminary skirmish.

“Well, there's still some time left, so it'll be fine.

Until then, I had to become stronger.

______________

As soon as I returned home, the estate was thrown into an uproar just as expected.

“Is your body all right?”

The moment I got out of the car, Father, Parnello, and the Consiglière were waiting for me.

“I told you I was fine.”

“How could merely hearing it in words make my worries disappear?”

The Consiglière, who had returned after confirming my condition, looked haggard from how much Father must have pressed him in the meantime.

“I'm fine. I'm sorry if I made you worry.”

When I said that, Father shook his head and simply pulled me into an embrace.

“Do not worry. Your Vendetta

is Calione's Vendetta

.”

“...

What?”

Vendetta.

It was the Italian word commonly used for revenge.

However, the meaning of Vendetta in Calione was slightly different.‘Retaliation that must be carried out even at the cost of one's life.’ It referred to a kind of destiny.

After hearing that, I looked around and began noticing one after another how different the estate looked from usual.

Soldato

roaming the estate while armed with heavy weaponry.

Operatives moving about, and cars gathering one after another in the estate's parking lot.

As I blankly examined the scene, Parnello spoke first.

“The Consiglière has identified a building believed to be a hideout of the Villain Alliance. We plan to deploy with the Don at the head.”

“...

Father is going personally?”

Surprised by his words, I looked at Father.

“If my child was caught in a terrorist attack, then naturally I should step forward myself.”

It would be one thing if only Calione's members moved, but Father himself taking action was a completely different matter.

It meant Calione was preparing for total war and making a definite declaration of war.

“From this point forward, the Villain Alliance is Calione's enemy.”

And Father's decision didn't look like it would change.

“Then I'll prepare as well.”

Father's will was Calione's decision.

And Calione's decision was a kind of order I had to follow.

But Father looked at me as though asking what nonsense I was talking about.

“If you've worked hard, then you should rest properly. I've already told Alessia and the other servants, so rest well today. The rest... this father will handle.”

With those words, Father patted my shoulder a couple of times, then silently walked toward the parking lot.

For some reason, the sight felt familiar.

Because it was exactly how he sometimes looked in the game when heading out to war.

The atmosphere of the estate was cold, but everyone seemed to be carrying flames within their chests as the heat gradually began to rise.

It was truly a departure befitting the Emperor of the Underworld.

And following behind Father, Parnello and countless Soldato began to move.

The Villain Alliance guys... aren't they seriously screwed?

______________

A small apartment where cold moonlight shone between the curtains and a cool breeze entered through an open window.

There, a man leisurely stirring a teaspoon was smiling broadly as though something amused him greatly.

Then came a knock, followed by the presence of someone outside.

The man stopped stirring his teaspoon, turned his head, and spoke.

“Come in.”

At the man's words, the door opened with a click.

“Plague. Intelligence has come in. Calione and its hound are apparently heading this way.”

The person who entered was a tall blond foreign man, chuckling as though something delighted him immensely.

“Oh, Calione is? Did they figure it out already?”

“Of course not. That hasn't even begun yet.”

“Right? Then why are they moving?”

The teaspoon began moving again with a clink.

“We haven't done anything to get on Calione's bad side... all we've touched so far is the Academy, haven't we?”

“You mean the one using the Miner?”

“Yeah. From what I heard, it failed almost instantly. Well, we did accomplish our goal of greeting the Republic of Korea's government and Association... but I heard something interesting. Apparently, the first-years caught up in this terrorist attack subdued the Miner and the other villains...”

Stop.

The teaspoon stopped.

“Bloody Clown.”

“Yes, Plague.”

“Investigate those children. Find out who they are and what specialties they possess.”

“I shall do so.”

Plague lifted the teacup, smelled its aroma, then brought it to his lips.

After downing the steaming black tea in one gulp, he threw the cup and teaspoon toward the window and gave a playful smile.

“Then shall we move?”

“Should we leave them a generous gift?”

“Of course. Since our guests are Calione, we should prepare something generous.”

Twitch.

The bandages wrapped around his face wriggled.