Chapter 135
Chapter 135 – Everybody Gather!
Tae-hyuk stared blankly into the air as he went to school for the first time in a while. After entering the third grade, he had gone abroad to study. The Blue Dragon Prison was out at sea, so it wasn't exactly a lie.
Thus, it had been more than a month since he sat in a chair and took classes. It was noisy in the classroom, due to the presence of a dark horse that appeared after a long time.
"Did you see the results of yesterday's mock exam?"
"It is really perfect."
"There were two people in our school who got perfect scores."
"Eh? I know one. Who is the other person?"
"Who? Over there."
"Ah…Seo Tae-hyuk?"
"Class President has already been accepted into S University. She can pick any university like they are ice creams."
"……"
Their chatter entered his ears, but Tae-hyuk didn't care. He also received comments on the Internet about Phantom. This was just cute.
Tae-hyuk manipulated the Demon Revealing Mirror to check his stats.
-Stats: Stamina (67), Intelligence (70), Agility (55), Dexterity (64)
Particularly noteworthy was the additional 20 points in intelligence. He had been able to reach 50 points easily with An Eun-young's help. However, he hadn't studied with her after that. But it rose at a tremendous pace while fighting other criminals.
The Red Mafia art forgery case. the Triads' organ trafficking. After the cult incident with the Yakuza, Tae-hyuk's stats increased enormously. In the case of his stamina, it went up by 10 after fighting against dozens of mafia members.
'I literally took a giant leap.'
Yesterday, mock tests were conducted all across the country. He thought it was a good opportunity to see how his head had improved. The result was a perfect score for all subjects. He also finished the tests with 10 minutes to spare.
'This is just 70 points. If I get 100 points, then can't I win a Noble Prize?'
However, it was more interesting to plot crimes than to study. Anyways, his stats seemed to ascend when he specialized in crime.
'A criminal should have a good head.'
There was still some time before homeroom would start. Tae-hyuk pulled out his phone from his pocket and accessed the Internet. The incident from a few days ago was still heating up the news columns.
[Declaring war on the mafia who encroached on South Korea? Phantom's purpose.]
It was an obvious gossip story that he knew the contents without even clicking on it. But there was an eye-catching ripple.
–No matter how incredible Phantom is, it will be hard for him to deal with the whole mafia alone.Even if the mafia were chased out, they can just start operating secretly.Will we ever be able to get rid of their weeds?It will remain the same.Even if one sprout is pulled out, two more will grow in its place until the person is exhausted.
The debate continued. It made a lot of sense. It didn't appear in the news but the mafia were still active in South Korea.
Of course, Phantom's declaration of war wasn't a prank call. He would let the opponent know how much damage he could do.
One person alone couldn't deal with the whole mafia.
'But I am sorry. In this case, I've prepared a plan.'
However, it couldn't be implemented right now. There were a few things that needed to be taken care of before he could smash the mafia.
'First…'
Bam!
At that moment, his eyes flashed.
"Hey! Tae-hyuk! What are you doing? Class has begun."
It was Jung Nam-ho, his teacher, who spoke with his unique dialect. He had hit the back of Tae-hyuk's head. Tae-hyuk rubbed his head and said,
"Uhh…Teacher-nim. Doesn't it seem like your treatment towards me hasn't changed?"
"This brat. I will treat all my students the same, even if you ended up being first in the nation. Aigoo, I didn't think I would get you for two years in a row."
Jung Nam-ho was still Tae-hyuk's third year homeroom teacher. Most of the classmates changed, but he was still together with An Eun-young and Jung Nam-ho. Since starting to work as Phantom, Tae-hyuk had become so busy that he needed two bodies to do everything. Even so, he came to school consistently due to two people.
"Oh, please bring your sister on the Friday written here. I have something to say to her."
"Huh? N-Noona?"
Tae-hyuk's eyes shook as Jung Nam-ho requested the presence of his guardian. Surely no one knew that he was the Phantom. Did Jung Nam-ho perhaps see him with the Nuclear Bomb members? It couldn't be…
"Yes! It is Seo Tae-hyuk's third year. You have to decide your future path."
"Ah."
Tae-hyuk nodded with a convinced look. In a words, the guardian had to come for career counseling.
Jung Nam-ho told him.
"You worked hard on the exams. They are grades that anyone would desire. Effort never betrays you…"
However, Tae-hyuk was thinking about something else.
‘Then it is time to talk with him.'
Tae-hyuk smiled as he visualized someone's face.
@
"— I will punish them!"
Kwang!
The young boss of the Triads, Li Zheng, struck his desk after seeing the video from the UCC site.
"This bastard!"
"B-Boss…"
The subordinates trembled at the boss' agitated state. Their boss was someone who always kept his cool, even when subordinates were lost. Yet he was agitated this time.
Li Zheng glared at his subordinates with blazing eyes then tore up the reports on his desk. They were the results of various plans to bring Phantom into the Triads.
All of them failed.
"He hates money, hates honor, and hates women. Even if he dies, he doesn't want to go under another person…"
He lost count of the sweet fruits that he offered Phantom. However, the target didn't bite the apple.
Li Zheng was furious.
"…Then we have to kill him before he falls into someone else's hands."
Li Zheng calmed down and ordered his subordinates to summon his special forces.
"Kukukuk… Even Phantom wouldn't be able to take on dozens of armed men. Tell them that anyone who obtains Phantom's neck will be give a three million dollar reward. Let's see how much he can do alone. I might be using a flamethrower to catch a rat in a warehouse, but I have to let him know that he can be killed."
At that moment, the door opened and an agitated man in a black suit entered.
"What?"
"B-Boss… P-Phantom."
"Phantom?"
"Yes…do you know the matter from a few days ago? The bosses of the Red Mafia mobilized armed men with powerful firearms to kill the 'Princess.'"
"Well. I think I recall it. What does it have to do with Phantom?"
The subordinate dropped his head and said,
"…Phantom rescued her from the Red Mafia's hands."
"W-What?! Wait a minute. The opponents were armed with weapons! I clearly remember that anti-tank rockets and sniper rifles were mobilized, yet one man saved the princess and got away?"
Li Zheng got goosebumps.
The fact that the Red Mafia was engaged in a civil war was well known. They would obvious fight among themselves and self-destruct. That's why he hadn't worried about the movements of the Red Mafia.
But what was this? Phantom stopped the assassination of the boss?
"D-Don't tell me… Phantom has gone under the princess of the Red Mafia?"
"I don't know. It is the worst case scenario."
"We have to absolutely stop it! Phantom doesn't need to join the Triads. However, he shouldn't become the Red Mafia's subordinate!"
"I-I will keep that in mind!"
"But… He really is great. Saving the boss from dozens of armed people. Yes, what about the damage to both sides?"
It would be preferable if Phantom got a big injury and died. However, the expression of his subordinate was strange. It was like opening a box that shouldn't be opened.
"Tell me. What the hell happened?"
"T-They were wiped out."
"What?"
"Phantom killed all of his opponents and strolled out of there."
"……"
Li Zheng sat down like he saw a ghost. Phantom was a rodent who was an eyesore. However, the problem was that his abilities were real.
Another subordinate listening from the side asked,
"B-Boss. Should I convene the special forces?"
"Shut up!"
@
Tae-hyuk took the paintings he forged to Big Mama's pawn shop. Big Mama clapped with a big smile.
"Omo! You succeeded in stealing it!"
Two of Gauguin's oil paintings.
The result of the careful examination was that it was all 'genuine.'
Tae-hyuk bought information from her by saying that the Sun Cult had some Gauguin paintings. If so, he had to show her the results. In the future, her help would be needed to fight the mafia. Therefore, he had to do this.
Paul Gauguin’s paintings were traded for hundreds of millions of won to collectors.
'Of course, it is a fake.'
Big Mama was an intellectual in the art forgery business. Tae-hyuk was selling fake goods to such a person. Naturally, some work was needed to create these pieces. First of all, his Forgery crime skill was fully activated to create the most plausible fakes. Then he used Counterfeit on top of that.
In such a way, he managed to create fakes that could even deceive Big Mama. Although the duration of Counterfeit had increased due to an attribute, it was still only 30 minutes. However, Big Mama wouldn't look so carefully after purchasing it.
'Is the saying, the person who was deceived is in the wrong?'
Tae-hyuk was reminded of Big Mama's motto. A person who didn't know it was a fake as they were buying it was the one at fault. This was literally a complete crime.
"I think I can give you 100 million."
The two paintings of Gauguin were traded for hundreds of millions of won. But 100 million.
Tae-hyuk moved the abacus. Usually, stolen goods were traded at 20~30% of the market price. A lot was taken away as a commission fee. This was a very conscientious price.
Above all, Big Mama only paid in cash. Therefore, she gave him an excellent price. For her, Tae-hyuk was a trading partner that she didn't want to give up.
Tae-hyuk replied with a smile,
"I'll accept 70 million. Instead, please give me some information for the remaining amount of money."
"Hoh. You have grown a lot when it comes to business."
"Of course. I am a child growing every day."
Once Tae-hyuk asked about the Yakuza who were active in South Korea, Big Mama gazed at him with suspicious eyes.
"Have you been making a bad friend these days? In particular, someone who has a hobby of wearing a strange mask?"
"Ah, do you think that I know Phantom? I am just filled with burning patriotism these days. I heard that the Yakuza are gathering Goryeo celadon (Korean pottery from the Goryeo era that is pale green-blue in color). I want to try and steal it."
"Goryeo celadon? Really?"
"You can't spill this anywhere since I'm putting a lot into this. Of course, I will deal with Big Mama. Is this enough for you?"
"…I will do it. But this time it will take longer. Please wait at least three days."
"Three days. Right."
He thought it would take at least one week. But it was just three days. Big Mama was truly the madame of the information world.
Tae-hyuk waved at Big Mama as he left the pawn shop.
A fake piece of artwork that he spent half a day on was sold for a lot of money. He would also get the information he wanted. Big Mama really was generous.
Tae-hyuk muttered as he walked in an alley,
"Since I have nothing to do for three days, shall I break out the Bomber?"
Tae-hyuk started collecting the parts necessary to fight the mafia.