I Become a Mafia in the Academy

Chapter 104

As Gwak Chunshik appeared with the old men, the attention of those around began to turn towards them.

"Welcome! Senior!"

"Please come in! Senior!"

"I respect you! Senior!"

Despite merely being old men with their hands clasped behind their backs, they were greeted by countless heroes as they entered the banquet hall.

But the man standing before me now was only gaping and blinking at the older men who were older than him.

"Hey. Manseok."

"Uh... what the..."

"Manseok. Can't you speak properly? Shall we go old school?"

"Why have you brought all these seniors here?"

Kang Manseok, who had been full of vigor just moments before, quickly subdued his energy and asked back.

This was exactly why he had hesitated to summon Gwak Chunshik from Gangwon-do.

The fact that they were his seniors.

And the fact that they possessed greater power and influence than him.

"Why, I came to see my disciple, of course."

"Your disciple... you say?"

In response to Kang Manseok's question, Gwak Chunshik walked over and casually placed a hand on my shoulder.

"This boy, whom you trapped with a soundproof spell and made strange remarks to, is my disciple."

"Pardon? Your disciple, perhaps from the dojo..."

"No, the heir to my Aura Technique."

At Gwak Chunshik's words, the guy gaped in astonishment.

"Aura Technique... you mean?"

"Yes. But it seems some fly is defiling my disciple's body, so this senior is quite displeased."

While Gwak Chunshik relentlessly berated Kang Manseok, I tried my best to keep my expression neutral by tensing my lips.

That's because I had seen that dumbfounded look on Kang Manseok's face somewhere else before.

'Was it when he attempted to assassinate the president of the association in the nude? That was certainly the face he made when he woke up.'

But given the current situation, I couldn't afford to laugh.

If I laughed here, the reason for bringing Gwak Chunshik and the other elders would be lost.

"Yoojin."

Gwak Chunshik called my name.

"Yes, Master."

"What did this guy say to you?"

"He told me to join him. Asked why I was siding with the academy."

"And then?"

"He threatened me, telling me to honestly reveal who was backing me."

As I murmured this in a lowered voice, Kang Manseok looked at me with an indignant expression.

"When did I──"

"Manseok, isn't my disciple speaking?"

"Senior. But isn't he making me out to be some kind of weirdo right now?"

"Are you saying my disciple is lying? Are you really?"

At this, Kang Manseok stepped back for a moment, then wore a blank expression before letting out a 'Ha!' in disbelief.

"Could it be, you planned this from the start?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Indeed, you might hold a grudge against me, Senior. After you left for Gangwon-do, I was the one who benefited the most."

Nevertheless, as if to say that he didn't just get the position of the association president easily, Kang Manseok quickly grasped the situation and looked at Gwak Chunshik with a very confident attitude.

"Senior. I am the president of the Republic of Korea's association now. Even if you are my senior, wouldn't it be better to show some respect?"

"Ha, respect? Respect, huh..."

The old man tapped his fingers, pretending to think deeply.

And then, finally, he opened his mouth again.

"Ha ha, our Manseok is looking for respect. I came prepared with respect. Hey, folks. It seems our Manseok has lost his respect."

At Gwak Chunshik's words, two old men who had been silent until now stepped forward, raising their left and right hands respectively.

"Manseok. You haven't forgotten that these old men are nicknamed the Respect Injectors, have you?"

"The support coming into Silver Town from the association has decreased lately. Have you really lost your respect?"

The atmosphere in the banquet hall turned icy in an instant.

It was an atmosphere where a fight could break out at any moment, but only I could watch the scene calmly.

Because one of the strongest old men in the Republic of Korea had yet to arrive.

"Yoojin."

At that moment, Choi Yeon behind me tugged at the hem of my clothes.

"He's here."

"Yes, he is."

Just then, another old man entered through the door.

Choi Yeon wiped the whipped cream from her lips with a tissue and waved her hand.

"Grandfather. Over here."

"Yeon-ah! My granddaughter was here. But... what are Manseok and Chunshik doing?"

He has arrived.

Another one of the strongest old men.

Sword Saint Choi Seonho.

"Senior."

"What are you doing?"

There was one characteristic about Choi Seonho that most people didn't know.

He valued the senior-junior relationship to an extreme degree.

Having grown up in the Cheongcheon Sword Family, he considered the hierarchy to be natural and valued seniority.

In other words, he was a fearsome Confucian Taliban.

"Manseok. If I'm not seeing things wrong, are you confronting Chunshik? Chunshik, who is 'my contemporary'?"

"No, no. It's not like that..."

"It seems we need to have a talk... Chunshik. Since the kids are eating here, how about we go outside and talk?"

"That would be best. Cheongsam, Chuncheol, let's go."

"Oh, yes, we should."

"Sounds good~."

The Cheong brothers, who answered thus, suddenly approached me and patted my shoulder with a bright smile.

"Yes, Yoojin, keep up with your studies."

"Ah... yes."

"And keep up with your training! Your talent is a gift from heaven, so polish it and you'll get strong quickly. Got it?"

"I will always keep that in mind."

"Ha ha. Good, good. Let's go then. We shouldn't disturb the kids while they eat."

The two old men's log-like arms wrapped around the association president's shoulders from both sides and dragged him away.

Thus, causing a storm and then disappearing from the banquet hall.

"Grandfather seemed angry..."

Choi Yeon, who had been quietly watching the scene beside me, muttered expressionlessly before sitting back down and resuming her dessert.

Even with such a commotion happening right next to her, why was she so devoted to her dessert...

"Hmm?"

The dessert looked familiar, and it turned out to be food from the 'Recipe Development Club'.

Could it be, she was eating it knowing it had additional effects?

Was she trying to get stronger by eating?

"Should I eat something too?"

For some reason, I felt hungry.

* * *

In the end, the closing ceremony was taken over by Park Yoonho, the year's president.

I heard that the principal also left with the other old men and hadn't returned.

When I contacted Elder Gwak Chunshik to ask about it, he said it was nothing to worry about.

It seems they just collectively dumped 'nagging' on the president of the association, then went out to drink with the Sword Saint, whom they hadn't seen in a long time.

It seems the principal got caught up in it and had to go along.

In the end, my plan to call in the elders from Gangwon-do to pressure the president of the association was a success.

It wasn't a plan I had prepared from the start.

I was able to come up with this plan because I saw the president of the association and Lee Wonho giving speeches, and Ji Soohyun's expression of anger at it.

I sent Ji Soohyun to Gangwon-do to bring back the elders.

With the support of the elders, Elder Gwak Chunshik entered the banquet hall and openly flaunted his relationship with me to check the president of the association.

In that process, Choi Yeon's support in calling the Sword Saint played a significant role.

Thanks to that, the president of the association and the other heroes who visited here must have thought about my existence once again.

From the second place of the academy to Elder Gwak Chunshik's disciple.

From a student who was just thought to be outstanding to one who has something.

Even when investigating information, what comes up is insufficient, and just looking at the background that has been revealed, it's a freshman that can't be approached.

'Untouchable'

I have become an existence that cannot be touched lightly.

The benefits gained from this were quite diverse.

The trust of the academy principal and teachers close to the academy.

Showing off my presence.

And even making hostile forces unable to touch me lightly.

The increasing influence of Familia, where I am the president, is just an added bonus.

"Peak War......"

Suddenly, I heard Jinwoo mumbling next to me.

"What?"

"Peak War, you know, Boss? It's when the strongest in the world gather in one place and wage war. What happened at the banquet hall just now was totally a Peak War. It's like the great heroes of the past coming to the academy to bring peace to the new sprouts!"

...The nuance seemed quite different, but it wasn't entirely wrong, so I thought I understood what he was trying to say.

"But why isn't peace coming to us? Why do we have to attend classes even on the day of the freshman welcome party?!"

He was screaming exaggeratedly, as if watching a Shakespearean play.

As Jinwoo said, after finishing lunch and the closing ceremony at the banquet hall, we returned to our classroom and were waiting.

"We can't help it, right? If we don't attend classes now, we'll fall behind in our studies. Isn't it Seoyoung A that we have to fill in the missed classes with online lectures for mentoring?"

Progress is a major issue... nothing can stop it.

Even though there was still some time left until class, Seah took out her earphones and joined the conversation while listening to lectures online.

"Anyway. Are you listening to online lectures, Jinwoo? They said they'll mark you absent if you don't fill this in."

"Ah, that? I just keep it playing while playing games. Isn't that enough?"

And to that, Jinwoo answered as if it were obvious, and she sighed, looking fed up.

"What are you going to do about the exam?"

"The exam? I'll cram at the last minute and it'll work out somehow. It's actually weirder to listen to every single online lecture like you do. Right, Boss?"

"Huh?"

Suddenly, Seah's gaze also fixed on me as if I were the target of a thrown arrow.

...If I say I just keep the online lectures playing and do something else, Jinwoo's shoulders will rise and Seah will be disappointed, right?

At times like this, I have to calmly give the model answer.

"...Of course, I have to listen to them for the exam."

"See! You're the only one playing games!"

"No, this is normal, isn't it?!"

I know most of the content of the online lectures, so I don't listen, but it's different for Jinwoo.

"If you fail the exam, you'll be banned from club activities and have to take supplementary classes... wouldn't it be better to study a bit?"

If he fails the exam, it could disrupt club activities.

"S, supplementary classes? I didn't hear about that?!"

"...Well, that's obvious. Why don't you check it again now? You'll have to take the midterm exam eventually."

To this, Jinwoo clenched his fist as if making a resolution with a determined expression.

"...I! Trust in future Jinwoo! Future Jinwoo! Please take care of it!"

He'll definitely curse past Jinwoo for this.

It was a predictable video without even watching.

While chatting with the kids and passing the time.

Youngje, who had gone out after being called by the instructor, came back into the classroom with a sigh.

"Everyone, please pay attention."

It must be an announcement if he's trying to get the kids to focus with so little time left before class.

And as if confirming my expectation, Youngje opened his mouth.

"The basic medical technology class that was originally scheduled has been canceled due to the lab being half-destroyed. It seems it will be replaced with another class."

Replacement class?

While I was wondering about that.

"They said we're doing an outdoor class, so everyone has to go out of the academy."

Youngje said so, letting out a sigh as if he was tired to death.