Chapter 87
That night.
In the great hall of Corleone, the bosses and executives of every family in the country gathered for the first time in a long time.
And seated at the head of the table was the boss of all the Corleone families.
Don Vito Corleone.
“From now on the emergency meeting of the executive board, called by Eugene Hah Corleone, is hereby called to order.”
He taps the gavel in front of him, like a judge announcing the start of a court trial.
As this was my first meeting as an executive and Corleone successor, a mundane agenda would have cast doubt on my worthiness to succeed him, but I was confident.
Well, at least until you see this with your own two eyes.
“I am Eugene Hah Corleone, the organizer, agenda-setter, and convener of this meeting. Thank you all for taking the time to do this.”
There were six of us at this meeting, including me as the boss of a family.
The Move Family in their usual scavenger hunt role
The Bevalt, who manage the coastal areas of the central region
The Pirlo family, who manage the Busan area
The Kowalnose family, who are both Hunters and form a guild.
Me, the Familia leader, who founded a new branch at the Seoul Hero Academy.
And the supreme ruler of them all, the Don of the Corleone.
Vito Corleone.
In addition to that, the number was even higher, as the executives of each family were also present.
“The reason I’ve called this meeting is because I’ve received some important information.”
As I said this, I studied the expressions on the faces of those seated around the table.
Unlike the first time I met with the executives, they listened to me with a more serious expression on their faces.
In private, I’ve always thought of them as friendly uncles, but from the moment I called the meeting with an agenda, they’ve been judging me in public.
So, by the end of this meeting what would they say?
As I thought about it, I played the video I had prepared in advance.
“Despair will land in Korea.”
A declaration of war from Plague, a global criminal and one of the highest-ranking member of the Villain Alliance.
When he appears in the video himself, only his face and title are known, and the faces of the officers begin to intrigue him.
“This video was sent anonymously to a government agency, hinting at a terrorist attack on the Republic of Korea. And the reason I’m showing you this video is because the territory that the Villain Alliance intends to terrorize includes our own Corleone.”
The bosses and executives look puzzled.
“Their attacks include Corleone territory?”
It was the boss of the Kowalnose family who raised the question.
As the dominant force in the world’s underworld, Corleone would inevitably come into contact with the Villain Alliance, and as such, we had a sort of inviolability pact that kept us from touching each other.
Technically, it’s more like the Villain Alliance avoids us.
But.
“I heard this from a source in the Villain Alliance, so I’m pretty sure.”
If the last rescued Rate is to be believed, they no longer intend to make an inviolable alliance with Corleone.
If anything, they’ve turned against us.
If I think about the story ahead, I need to be prepared.
“We need to be prepared for terrorism. We need to increase the number of people patrolling each area and create an environment that can handle it at any time.”
That’s when the Move Family boss, Reg Move, raises his hand and asks.
“There’s no guarantee when a terrorist attack will happen, so it could just be a threatening video, right?”
As he said, the video showed no indication of when the attack would take place or where it would take place.
It just said that despair was coming to South Korea.
When I tried to explain it, Antonio, the boss of the Bevalt family, spoke up.
“But it’s also true that a large number of villains have been smuggled into the country, and if they want to cause terror, there’s nothing they can’t do.”
“Especially since there’s no evidence that they’re targeting us Corleone all we have to do is protect our families.”
“Isn’t that too passive-aggressive, if we’re the ones who get hit first?”
“That’s just speculation! What do they have to gain by attacking us in the first place?”
“That’s why I’m saying that, so we can be prepared!”
I say, my voice starting to rise.
“Preparedness? Preparedness is good, but if we move, the people in the areas we’re protecting will be unsettled. And what do you think the government will do if we start acting on a large scale?!”
“That’s why we need to inform the citizens beforehand-”
The back-and-forth conversation begins to heat up.
And just as each of the bosses was about to speak up.
“──Quiet.”
One word.
The air around me turns heavy and crushes the entire room as the single word is spoken next to me.
The two of us break out in a cold sweat and slowly turn our heads in the direction of the voice.
A red glow flickers through the thick cigar smoke.
“My son, Eugene Han Corleoen, has not yet finished speaking.”
Tuduk.
The ash from the cigar in his hand settles on the table.
“Be polite. Reg, Antonio.”
My father warns, using the real names of the two family bosses.
At the sight of him, the two men, who had been raising their voices just moments before, bend hastily toward him.
“You’ve been disrespectful. Don.”
“……Please forgive us.”
Their apologies were met with silence in the hall.
The other executives and bosses also look on, their expressions tense.
Father looks at them in silence, and then nods, and the two men, who had been bowing, sit down.
The room falls silent once again while father glances at me and says
“Please continue.”
“……Yes. Boss.”
I bring everyone’s attention back to the table, even those who weren’t paying attention because of the earlier hijinks.
It’s a rare opportunity to engage a group of people with strong egos, and it’s my job to capitalize on it.
If they know the villains are dangerous, it will change their minds.
“From what my sources are telling me……they aren’t making threats or false propaganda.”
He was such a man.
A man with warped ideas who truly believed that humanity needed to be wiped out for the good of humanity.
A man who believed that only the best humans, those who had survived countless diseases and wars, could create a new world.
“He is a villain who believes that he must become the plague, that he must become the filter to filter humanity, that he must become the bearer of original sin like Jesus.”
Such a psychopath declared war. There could be no disagreement.
“The cadres of the Villain’s Alliance have made it their life’s work to fulfill their ridiculous beliefs. In this case, they’ve even gone so far as to make a video of themselves doing it. And as such, they will surely cause terror.”
And that terror would spread across the country, starting with the upcoming event.
Will it be for good or evil?
Will you act for yourself or will you act to protect everyone.
What choice will you make in this war that no one can escape?
As a member of Corleone, my answer was simple.
“We need to keep an eye on the villains in each district and watch out for unregistered Awakened. We need to identify those who have smuggled themselves out of the eyes and ears of the government.”
I said that……we must prepare for a real war.
At my last words, the expressions of everyone in the room turn serious.
Slowly, the gravity of the situation sinks in.
“Okay, let’s get this straight.”
My father, who was holding a cigar, spoke first.
“If what Eugene says is true, sooner or later, there will be consequences for Corleone. We have a duty to protect those who trust us from harm. But.”
His eyes flicked to his left.
“This is something the government should be doing. It’s going to be on a different scale than simply governing our own territory. There will be pushback, of course. We have to think about the balance of power.”
With those words, he takes a deep drag on his cigar and exhales, sending gray smoke billowing over his head.
The cigar in his hand burned to the mark, as if it had reached the end of its life.
“All those in the Family who believe Corleone should prepare for war, raise your hand.”
Simultaneously, the heads of each family, the bosses, began to raise their hands.
One, two, three.
The hands kept going up.
The vote was over.
“Okay, it’s decided.”
And among them was the boss of Move Family, who had just asked if we should just defend.
I hadn’t expected such a result, so as I looked at them in bewilderment──
“──Corleone does not spare wolves that target our family.”
Parnello, who was closest to father, raised his hand and spoke in a grave voice.
At the same time──
“””Corleone does not spare wolves that target our family!”””
Everyone echoes Parnello’s words, and my father crushes his cigar into the ashtray and smiles.
“Unanimous.”
He slams his raised hand down with a thud.
“As you say, Corleone does not spare wolves that target our family. Go back to your families and tell them. From now on, Corleone will prepare for war.”
As he spoke, he looked at Parnello.
“Parnello take the footage you just saw to the intelligence center and spread the word on the Internet so that everyone knows about it. They have the right to defend their families, so don’t let the government play games with them.”
“As Don wills.”
With a bow, Parnello leaves the room.
“Bevalt.”
“Aye. Boss.”
“You are to increase patrols around the ports, investigate recent stowaways to determine if there are any Awakened among them, and make a list.”
“Aye, boss, I will.”
“Move. Do your best to find where they’re hiding out in Korea.”
“Aye, sir.”
“Kowalnose. If they’re hiding, they’re most likely inside a dungeon. Identify every dungeon in the capital and investigate them all.
“I will.”
“Pirlo. If they’re planning a terrorist attack, they’ll need a lot of supplies. Keep a close eye on the black market and watch for any suspicious activity.”
“Understood, Don.”
In a flash, he’s giving orders at the family bosses gathered here one by one until I was the last one left.
“Eugene.”
“Yes. Don.”
“……You will be suspending your nightly Successor classes and focus your energy on policing the Foreign Area. The safety of others is important, but the people in this sector are the only ones we can trust.”
“……I will do so.”
Having heard my response, father taps me on the shoulder and stands up.
Everyone is looking at him with unwavering eyes.
They are waiting for my father to start the war.
“Prepare for war Corleone.”
With those words, Corleone war to protect our family began.
