I Became a Mafia in the Academy

The Spirit Realm was a kind of independent country founded by spirits in the center of the DMZ, it was also classified as one of the giant fields in CS.

The government is trying to restore the country, but it's like some monsters have set up a country without permission, so of course they have to issue a decree of extermination, and the land will only be returned to the government after paying a lot of blood.

Yes, tons of blood.

It was practically a war.

So what were the dark spirits doing then?

Well, they weren't doing much in the turbulence of war.

One by one, they began to split off from their packs to avoid annihilation, and later, they became mercenaries and villains themselves.

The creation of something similar to the Foreign Legion is still a distant future, so my plan had to work.

If this works, not only can I stop the war from happening, but I can also recruit a large number of people who would otherwise become villains or mercenaries.

As I followed Black Hand, organizing the plan in my head, I finally saw what I had been waiting for.

-This is our city. Darkness.

A vast expanse of space inside the cave, a magnificent underground city carved out of the rock.

"……It's quite large. There's a facility like this underground?"

"Yes. It seems to be the size of a city."

Just like the city's name, there wasn't much light around.

Minimal sources of light, barely visible by normal human standards, were spread throughout the caverns.

Darkness, then, seemed a fitting name.

-The conference room is this way. Contractor.

He led the way to a building that was far more ornately carved than the others around it.

The neighborhood looked like nothing more than a large hollow when I checked it out during a mission in the game……but it had apparently been completely destroyed in the aftermath of the war.

As I ascended the building's stairs, I came upon a large conference room.

-I will summon the Elders, please, please wait a moment.

With that, Black Hand left us and walked away.

The atmosphere was relaxed and the old man turned to me as if he couldn't take it anymore.

"Eugene, what's all this about? Who’s the contractor of Dark Spirit and what is he after?"

Apparently, he was most curious about the fact that I had used the name of the Dark Spirit.

Because it's known that they are still active, I had already walked all the way here and had already organized my answers.

"Oh, that's not a big deal, I caught Dark Spirit."

"……What? You caught Dark Spirit? You?"

The old man's expression was one of shock, as if he hadn't expected my words.

"Uh, how did you do it? From what I've heard and seen of him, he's not someone you can easily take on with your powers."

"Oh, it was no big deal, he's an assassin after all, right? I unleashed this on him as soon as I realized he was in his hideout."

With that, I handed the old man a gem bomb.

"This……is the bomb you were holding just now."

"Yes. A friend of mine is researching it at the academy, and since it's a gemstone-based bomb, it's supposed to work well against beings like spirits."

"So……was also a dark elemental?"

"Yes, that's something I found out later, but it was also a higher-level dark elemental, so I expected them to be connected to him……but apparently he was the leader of the group."

The old man nods, as if it's starting to make sense.

"……Certainly. If he's determined and hiding inside the DMZ, who could find it, and I can see why the other powers haven't found it."

So he raised another question.

"So what do you intend to do with them, do you really intend to use them to wage war against this ‘Spirit Realm’?"

"Yes, why wouldn't I? I mean, I have access to mercenaries that cost me nothing and are fully armed, right?"

Among other things.

“They are experts in this area, right? I think it’s worth a try.”

Enough men and bombs. And with a powerful Awakened, what's to fear.

"And I'm going to rescue Dulchan's parents as soon as possible, because I promised I would."

"……tch."

"Of course, we'll have Corleone’s support along the way. If the opponent is a country-class power……we can use country-class power too, right?"

"…… That's right, this was Corleone’s business as well, wasn't it?"

"Yes, my father has given me permission, so I should be able to get support without difficulty. From then on, there shouldn't be much difference in power, so it depends on what we do."

At that moment, I felt a pull from outside.

I stopped what I was about to say and looked in that direction, and the wooden doors opened on either side, letting in a half-dozen people.

Black Hand stepped forward and bowed as if to introduce them to us.

-The Elders, who now decide our most important decisions. The leaders of the Dark Spirits, if you will.

They seemed to realize that they didn't have much time left, which was refreshing.

"Great, then we'll get right to it."

And so we sat down and faced each other.

-So, are you saying that person is Dark Spirit contractor?

At that moment, one of the guys called Elder glanced in my direction and asked.

"Why? You want to know?"

What's so suspicious about these guys anyway.

I look at him again, holding the aura of Black Mist energy between my fingertips.

"Okay? If that doesn't convince you, you'll have to try it yourself."

-What nonsense is that!

-Ha, but that power is unmistakably his, isn't it?

-Well, it could be a fake, using magic, and I'm not easily convinced!

Haoh, it seems that not all of them are completely stupid.

But what are we going to do about it?

Are you going to throw us away and live as fugitives chased by the Spirit Realm?

"Make no mistake, bastards."

I imbue the Ancient Berserker's Ring on my finger with aura, casting a terrifying effect around me.

The effect was enhanced by unsealing the ring with Fafnir's blood, and the aftermath was comparable to Dragon Fear.

In addition to this, the activation alarms of my other talents flashed before my eyes.

[Talent [Heir to the Dark House] has the additional effect of ‘Offer You Can't Refuse']

[Talent [Eloquent Speaker] is activated.]

With all the buffs stacking up, the dark spirits trembled before me.

-You, you horrible……!-What in the world are you!

-What kind of evil aura is this!

"You're the ones who need help, not me. Don't you understand what's important? You're shaking in your boots because you don't know if they're going to attack at any moment, and you're suspicious of someone who came to help you? Are you out of your mind?"

-Well, we can handle them on our own!

-If they lay siege to this place, it's enough──

"──Yeah, I think I'll be able to defeat you by myself."

Countless gem bombs rained down on the table.

Once again, their expressions were colored with horror, and I picked up one of them and said.

"Don't be mistaken. Do not be proud. You are prey, hunted by the Spirit Realm, and all you can do is watch the hunter blow smoke while you're stuck down the rabbit hole."

Having dealt with this kind of ego-stroking many times in the past, I can tell you that there's nothing like it to convince them.

There's nothing like shoving reality right in their faces and crushing their last shreds of stubbornness.

"You're going to be begging for your life if they come after you, and you're going to refuse to help because you think you're so great? Why, because I'm human?"

-That's……!

-Begging for help! We'll fight to the death!

-Wait, we're outnumbered, aren't we, and once we listen to that human…….

The guys' opinions are starting to crack a little.

-You mean to tell me that you know what they're going to ask of us, and you’re taking their help!

Yeah, I guess that's what they were wondering after all.

"Freedom. I will create a free city in this land. I will declare it a land where neither spirits nor humans discriminate against each other."

Their mouths drop open at the same time as I answer.

"A new city will be built in this land. A land where spirits can roam freely. A place where sins are punished fairly, whether they are committed by humans or spirits. I have come here to build such a city."

──What you've said is contrary to the ‘Spirit Realm', which is only for spirits.

But that's why the dark spirits would resonate so deeply with my words. A faction of spirits who were exiled because they were uniquely stronger than others.

Spirits ostracized by all.

There may never be true peace, but at least there would be laws, and a land where they could live as equals.

-Would such a place……truly be possible?

They had to wonder.

Would it really be possible to make no distinction between humans and spirits and punish them solely for their sins?

And it was possible.

No, to be precise, it is not generally possible, but I know all too well how to make it possible.

I have seen and practiced it many times, and there are places where it is already being done.

"──Overwhelming fear."

"──Overwhelming violence."

"──Overwhelming scale."

Things that can only be seen in Corleone.

"Whether human or spirit, in the end, such things are bound to be consumed."

At my bold declaration, the spirits' expressions slowly begin to change.

-You mean it's true.

-Will we be able to operate outside?

-The Spirit Realm. Can it really be destroyed?

Is it the influence of the Eloquent Speaker?

The people who were afraid of my words just a moment ago are now beginning to feel hopeful.

-What can we do?

-I'll help you if you promise.

-More details. Tell me more.

The questions began to multiply.

"Of course, it's war. We will wage war. Of course, you can't do it alone, so the humans I'm with will come to your aid."

-We lack many things.

"We will supply you with weapons."

-Most of the trained young men were killed. We are weak.

"I will bring in the experts you need."

-We don't have enough defenses. If the enemy comes in at this rate, we will suffer……devastating damage.

"I'll call in my people to fix that too. In no time at all, this place will be a fortress of safety."

Just as despair grows when hope turns to fear, so too does fear turn to hope.

"Okay, well, I'd like you to fill out this one thing before we start."

With that, I held out the contract I had prepared in advance to them.

-This is……What is it?

-A contract. I think it's a contract for something.

"Oh, nothing much, just an alliance agreement that we're going to be together."

A contract that only says they're coming under Corleone’s umbrella.

I grinned at them and handed them a pen.

"Once you have my full support, you'll have to become part of the…… family, right?"

Welcome to our family, dark spirits.