Father's Gift
After finishing my conversation with Jinwoo and returning home, I was checking my status window and weapons to prepare for tomorrow's event when I heard footsteps outside my door, followed by a knock.
“Eugene, may I come in?”
It was my father's voice. I couldn't fathom why he was visiting at this hour, but I couldn't very well refuse like some sulky middle schooler in puberty.
“Yes, of course.”
Composing myself from the sudden Father's Visit event, I replied and sat neatly on the bed.
“Alright then, I'm coming in.”
My father entered, a cigar clenched in his teeth, dressed in a black overcoat and a fedora. From his outfit, it looked like he was about to head out somewhere.
“Are you going out?”
“Yes. We got intel on a hideout where the remnants of the Blunti family are holed up.”
Shrugging with a helpless expression, he sat in the chair opposite my bed.
The Foreign Quarter was a place where the government's influence barely reached due to past events. In reality, security there was maintained by the Calione family.
“You must be busy.”
“What can you do? The Foreign Quarter is beyond the government's reach, so even this old man has to hustle.”
Grinning, he patted my head. The firm, rough hand on my scalp didn't feel bad at all.
“By the way, you met the heir of the Bivalt family today, didn't you? I'd heard Antonio's son was at the academy, but it seems he's in your class.”
As expected, reports had gone straight to Father. I casually brushed his hand away and nodded matter-of-factly.
“Yes, that's how it turned out. We even had a spar today.”
My father's eyes widened at my words.
“Oh? And the result?”
“......It ended less than three seconds after I pulled the trigger. Instructor Ji Suhyun even said she wanted to see us fight without personal armaments next time—it was that anticlimactic.”
“Hahaha! That's Ji Suhyun for you.”
Since Ji Suhyun had come up, I decided to ask Father about something I'd been wondering since the academy.
“Father...... may I ask what your relationship is with Instructor Ji Suhyun? She called you 'Uncle.'”
“Hm? That girl? Well...... if you're asking what kind of relationship, we clashed a few times before she started teaching at the academy. That's the extent of our connection.”
“Ah......”
So they'd crossed paths during her active hero days. I'd known from the game that Ji Suhyun had taken down plenty of criminals as a hero, but I never imagined my father was one of them.
“Anyway, Antonio's son went down in three seconds? Looks like you got yourself a fine prize, Eugene.”
Smiling kindly, Father spoke. He'd probably heard from Parnello—Father knew about my personal armament too.
“Yes, I got lucky.”
“Luck? Getting what you want is skill. Be proud.”
The relic, Al Capone's Tommy, was something you could call the holy grail of the mafia world. No wonder he was pleased that his son had claimed it. Though to Father, it might just seem like a toy.
“Father, what brings you to my room?”
“Ah, right. I have something for you.”
With that, he rummaged in his pocket and handed me something.
“You completely wiped out the Blunti family, didn't you? When a mission's accomplished successfully, it's only right to reward accordingly.”
What he pulled out was a colorful cube that looked utterly ordinary.
“......What's this?”
“You can't lug that heavy gun around every day. So I prepared a sub-space artifact. Like it?”
A sub-space artifact. The design looked familiar—it was one of the inventory items from the game.
“Each slot in the cube provides about 10cm³ of space, so with 64 slots, you get a total of 6.4m³.”
The cube passed from Father's hand to mine. The moment it touched my skin, usage instructions flooded my mind.
A 64-slot inventory appeared before my eyes. Testing it out, I picked up a pillow nearby and stored it—it took up 8 slots and vanished inside.
“What do you think?”
Father watched me with a curious smile.
“Yes, I...... I really like it.”
“Haha! Good. I hear you can adjust the size too—most people wear it as a necklace.”
He handed over a necklace that seemed to match the cube. It looked like you could shrink the cube and hang it from it.
“Thank you. I'll treasure it.”
“Seeing you like it makes me happy too.”
◈ Artifact Workshop 'Cube' master's sub-space relic. Composed of 64 slots, each providing 10cm³ of space, for a total of 6.4m³ of sub-space storage. Includes an option to resize the cube for user convenience.
“Hm? A message from a friend?”
“Yes, seems like it.”
The phone buzzed again. This time, from Father's pocket.
“......Looks like I got a call too. Time for me to head out.”
He walked toward the door.
“Take care.”
“Will do. Thanks.”
After Father left, I flipped over my phone and checked the new alert.
“......As expected, from the Cube Workshop.”
The Cube Workshop was a premium brand that appeared often in the game—like a luxury label. Their items fetched high prices, and sub-space relics were notoriously hard to obtain no matter how much money you had. I couldn't even imagine the cost, but with Father's name and the Calione fortune, it probably wasn't a big deal.
In the end, it was exactly what I needed.
As I organized my inventory, storing Al Capone's Tommy and odds and ends in the cube Father gave me, another knock came from the door.
“It's Han Seojun. May I enter?”
Han Seojun, whom I'd summoned before Father's visit, must have been waiting for him to leave.
“Yeah, come in.”
Finishing with the cube, I called out. He opened the door cautiously and entered.
The moment I saw his face, I got straight to the point.
“Han Seojun. I need the secretary office's resources.”
“......The secretary office?”
“Yes. Kim Sea-a and Kim Young-je from my class, and Ji Suhyun. Use the office's power to gather intel on all three and report back. Deadline...... tomorrow morning. Can you do it?”
“But...... using the office on your own authority— the Don might—”
“I'm the heir in the middle of successor training for the Calione family. I have the right to use the secretary office, don't I?”
“......I'll have the report by tomorrow.”
“Good. Thanks.”
He bowed and left promptly. He was originally NIS, planted as a mole inside Calione. Normally, I'd report him to Father for handling, but...... keeping him close, watching him, and slowly turning him into my limb seemed far more profitable.
He'd be a key card in taking down the NIS later, after all. Though that was far in the future.
“Boss~ You here?”
Arriving at Seoul Hero Academy, Jinwoo—who was already there—waved enthusiastically.
“......Can't you greet me quietly?”
“Huh? Why?”
Why? If I focused even a little, I could hear the murmurs around us.
‘That thug just called Eugene ‘boss,’ right?’
‘Did he lose yesterday's spar and swear loyalty?’
Not great conversations.
“Try not to call me ‘boss’ so loudly.”
“Got it. I can tone it down...... So, ready to recruit club members?”
His words reminded me of this morning. I'd received the secretary office's intel, and the character compendiums for Kim Sea-a and Kim Young-je had updated.
The character compendium, which incorporated external info, was incredibly useful in situations like this.
“Of course.”
“Good. What about the advisor?”
“Hm?”
“The club advisor. The instructor overseeing the club. You weren't planning to start it just with students, right?”
“For advisor, we can ask Instructor Ji Suhyun.”
“Dude, you're insane if you think that woman would agree.”
Jinwoo waved his hands dismissively at my response.
“I've only seen her for two days, but she's not the type.”
“You think so?”
Normally, yeah. I'd already planned how to convince her, but no need to explain here.
“Morning assembly first, so lunch it is. I'll handle the Ji Suhyun part.”
“......Alright, if the boss says so, I won't stop you. Anything I can help with?”
“Just stay out of the way.”
“Sweet.”
He returned to his seat. Finally alone, I pulled out my phone and reviewed the character compendiums.
Sorting through the secretary office intel combined with the Character Compendium ability, pondering my approach, the front door opened. Instructor Ji Suhyun entered with a grin.
“Hmm, with such a small class, counting heads is a breeze. Alright, let's kick off day three at the academy?”
Something...... something felt off.