Chapter 179
Personally, I thought I had done a good job of hiding my identity so far.
The reason why my father didn’t want me to be discovered at the Academy in the first place was because he didn’t think I could handle the pressure and attention that would come from the outside world.
In South Korea, the Corleone family is known as the Untouchables.
They are not to be messed with, and they must be watched at all times.
Therefore, I naturally used [clown makeup] to change my face slightly when dealing with others while doing family business, just in case, or so that the organization could take action if I failed.
As my father said, very few people in the academy still know who I really am, so I thought I would hide it until the end.
……That was certainly the case.
“Huh?”
“Oh.”
Why is Julie Rodman here?
“Um, why?”
Dwight furrows his brow as she stands there, puzzled but Julie shakes her head as if it’s nothing.
“Oh, it’s nothing, Dad, but who is this person here……?”
“Oh, you mean the one here?”
He smiles as he returns to my story.
“Say hello. This is the man who will be the next Lord of Corleone.”
Once again, Julie’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open.
“Corr, you mean Corleone.”
“Yes, we were just chatting for a moment when I heard that the crown prince of Corleone is very interested in our family, haha!”
She looked away from the laughing Dwight and toward me, her eyes darting about intently, signaling.
She looked like she wanted to say something, but how could anyone understand a story based on eyelid movements?
Finally, Julie sighed and looked in her father’s direction.
“He seems to be about my age, which is an incredible coincidence. Do you mind if I speak with the heir to Corleone for a moment?”
“Um? You mean you?”
“Yes, Mr. Corleone, would you mind?”
“Of course.”
Had he sensed something in our conversation? Dwight nods and puts a hand on Julie’s shoulder.
“Yes, what a strange fate this must be. Go and talk.”
“I will, father.”
She bows to her father, then offers me her hand.
“May I ask for an escort, sir?”
……this look. I know it.
It means the mischievous Julie is enjoying this situation.
With her father behind her, for me to refuse an escort would mean disrespecting House Rodman.
Eventually sighing and accepting her hand, I slowly led her to a secluded spot.
“So this weekend you said you were going to the main house, was it a party after all, the ‘Walpurgis Night’ party where the bigwigs of the underworld gather? You said you couldn’t come here without an invitation, so how on earth did you get here?”
I knew the Rodmans would be there, but I assumed nothing would happen since she wasn’t some underworld tycoon.
“The……Walpurgis Night is only open to immediate family members, as long as they contact them a few weeks before the event, so it’s kind of weird for someone like you to just show up on the day, especially since your family is Corleone, but what do you mean you’re Corleone heir in the first place?!”
She asks, also puzzled.
“My name is Eugene Han Corleone.”
“Ha.”
I reply confidently, only to be greeted with a look of exasperation.
“I thought it was just the Pendragon blood in his veins that made you so hostile to the student council president, but……I believe it’s something else?”
Julie shrugs in affirmation, her brow furrowing.
“Uh……right?”
But no one knew.
Maybe I was too blatant.
“I mean, I figured that……junior would have something up his sleeve, but I never thought it would be such a huge nuclear bomb. Who would have thought that a mere first-year at the Academy would be the son of Vito Corleone, a man respected and feared by everyone in the world?”
“Oh, that sounds like the title of a novel.”
“I’m not kidding!”
Saying so, she stamped her foot as she plopped down on the bench right behind her.
“Then I’m going to be so embarrassed about what I’ve done in front of you all this time, oh my God, oh my God!”
……To be precise, Julie has done plenty of embarrassing things in front of me.
Like shrugging and talking about her house as if it were a giant spawn.
“Ewww, that sucks!”
Her dress flutters eagerly as she sits on the bench, stamping her foot.
“……Senior.”
“Why!”
She was kicking up dust.
“……I hate it!”
She finally stops stomping and looks up to see me standing in front of her.
“This is so ridiculous.”
“Who’d have thought I’d run into you here? If I’d known this would happen, I’d have changed my face.”
“Well, you’re still a lot tighter in the face and hair than you were back at the academy…….”
“Doesn’t it look good?”
She turns her head quickly at my question.
“……Not really.”
Right. Of course not.
The maids of the Corleone family spent hours setting it up.
“So, do the kids at the academy know you’re the heir of Corleone?”
I shake my head at her question.
“No, no one knows. Very few people at the Academy know I’m related to Corleone in the first place.”
“What about Jin-woo Bevalt? He’s a Corleone, too.”
“I doubt he’d do that to me if he knew, he’s a short-tempered bastard.”
“Oh. Right.”
She’s immediately convinced by my explanation.
Jin-woo is still considered one of the official assholes of the academy.
“Hah, so that means I’m pretty much the only one who knows that you’re the heir to Corleone after all?”
“Hmm, well, unless you’ve known since before you entered the school, but of the students I’ve met since entering, you’re probably the only one.”
“I like that.”
“You’re……?”
At my question, she gets up from her seat and walks briskly over to me, holding out her hand.
“You know what they say about business partners, the more they share their secrets, the more they trust each other?”
……ha.
I guess she sees this as a device to solidify our relationship.
As I took her hand and shook it, a thought occurred to me.
“Senior.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t know your secret.”
“Huh? Didn’t I tell you that my goal is to become student council president?”
“Isn’t that the same as now? Then you told me first to convince me, and now my secret has been revealed to my detriment.”
“I’ll let you in on a secret, junior………Well, you better not show the nape of your neck when you talk to me.”
“What?”
Having said that, she suddenly pulls me up by the hair and snuggles against the side of my head, bringing her mouth to my ear.
“Because──I’m a vampire.”
-Snap!
With the sound of her upper and lower teeth clashing, she pulls away from me again and giggles.
“Of course, I’m not going to suck my junior’s blood.”
“Don’t say scary things like that when you’re the one who turns into a bat and flies back and forth in the first place. You’re telling me that’s a secret?”
“Oh, is that so, I told you a secret anyway.”
-Ugh.
* * *
Julie and I walked over to the seats of my family.
My father, who had been sitting and relaxing for a while, waved his wine glass in the air.
“Whoa, junior. Are you sure I can come over and say hello? Honestly, a little. No, I’m really scared.”
“There’s nothing to be scared of, he’s the parent of someone you care about.”
“No, it’s not because your parents aren’t normal people!”
“You’re the one who said you wanted to say hello first.”
The outline of the incident went like this.
I was passing the time by making small talk with Julie, who realized that I was a Corleone.
Suddenly, she made up her mind and asked me if she could go say hello to my father.
I asked her why…….
It was a very realistic reason: “My favorite junior is the heir to Corleone, so shouldn’t I be able to benefit from it?”
Well, I hadn’t introduced my father to any of my friends or close associates at the Academy before, so I accepted, thinking he would be happy.
“First of all, you’re an acquaintance of mine, so I’m sure he’ll be happy, you just need to be polite.”
“…… Okay, let’s go.”
As she clenched her fists in determination, I gave her a toothy grin and started walking.
I hadn’t even gotten close yet, but dad was smiling and looked over, as if he had sensed my approach.
Then he looks at Julie next to me, gives me a puzzled look, and smiles again.
“I’m back dad.”
“Yes, I see you’ve been wandering around a lot too, but who is the lady next to you?”
In response, Julie immediately bows her head and waist in the most elegant greeting I’ve ever seen at the Academy.
“I am Julie Rodman of the Rodman family. I am pleased to meet the great Don Corleone.”
“Rodman……?”
My father’s brow twitches at the mention of Rodman.
Something doesn’t look quite right so I quickly added an explanation.
“She’s a senior who attends Seoul Hero Academy with me. She’s currently the vice president of the student council, and she’s been very helpful in my club activities.”
“Ah, a senior who’s close to you?”
Father smiles and offers her his hand.
“I’m Vito Corleone, Eugene’s father, and yes, the vice president of the student council at Seoul Hero Academy?”
Julie, who was still bowing her head in response to my father’s question, replies in a quiet voice.
“Yes. The academy relies heavily on your son, Eugene.”
Father nods his head in approval.
“Make yourself comfortable. Think of it as meeting your friend’s parents. I never thought I’d see a senior from Eugene’s academy here at Walpurgis. Hahaha! Eugene, isn’t this the first time you’ve ever been caught by an academy child?”
“Yes. I was surprised at first too.”
“Well, your position in the family is slowly growing, and as you attend more and more events, your identity will eventually be known…….”
My father puts his hand on my shoulder.
“It doesn’t matter, you’re already a man who can take care of himself.”
In other words, he’s decided I’m old enough to handle society’s attention.
Well, it’s nice to be recognized.
“I can’t believe you’re bringing a girlfriend! You’re all grown up, my boy! Hahahaha!”
“……?”
Is that what you mean?!
