Chapter 29: The Successor’s Ring [1]

Currently, I was having breakfast with Sara and father.

We were having small talk, it’s forbidden to talk about mafia stuffs in front of Sara, Don Aldric Riina has made this rule and every syndicate members has to follow, even me and Don himself.

At that moment my phone beeped.

\[Beep! Beep!\]

I calmly opened the notification.

\[Congratulations, Mr. Lorenzo Riina. You ranked 2nd in the entrance examinations and are qualified to join Golden Dawn Academy.\]

"...Oh?"

I blinked.

Then I read the notification again.

And once more.

Second place?

I had expected to pass the entrance examination, but ranking second was a different matter entirely.

Well, that’s unexpected.

I leaned back in my chair, staring at the notification.

Honestly, I hadn’t been particularly concerned about my results. I had more pressing matters to deal with, such as the increasingly complicated situation with Sofia.

Compared to those problems, an academy entrance examination seemed almost trivial.

Still, I couldn’t deny that seeing the results made me feel a little pleased.

After all, second place wasn’t bad.

Not bad at all.

"Lorenzo?"

My father’s voice brought me back to reality.

I looked up.

Aldric was watching me with a raised eyebrow, while Sara sat beside him, munching on a piece of toast.

"What is it?" he asked.

"The results are out."

"Results?"

"The Golden Dawn Academy entrance examination."

Aldric put down his fork.

"And?"

I turned my phone toward him.

"I ranked second."

For a moment, he stared at the screen.

Then he burst into laughter.

"HAHAHAHA! That’s my boy!"

His booming laughter echoed throughout the dining room.

Sara nearly dropped her toast.

"Papa! You’re too loud!"

"Oh, sorry, sweetheart!"

Aldric immediately lowered his voice, although his grin remained as wide as ever.

"My apologies."

Sara puffed out her cheeks.

"You always say that, but you keep doing it!"

"Hahaha—"

Aldric stopped himself when she glared at him.

I couldn’t help chuckling.

So even an Overlord can be intimidated by a six-year-old.

Apparently, there were things in this world that even the strongest Awakeners couldn’t resist.

One of them was an angry little girl.

"Second place, huh?" Aldric said, looking at me again. "Not bad. I expected you to do well, but I didn’t think you’d rank that high."

"You’re making it sound like you doubted me."

"Of course not!"

He grinned.

"I simply know my son. You’re lazy when you want to be, troublesome when you’re bored, and occasionally give me headaches that make me wonder whether I raised you properly."

"...Father."

"What? Am I wrong?"

I stared at him.

He stared back.

Then he laughed again.

I swear, one day I’m going to find a way to get back at him.

Before I could respond, Sara tugged at my sleeve.

"Big Brother!"

I turned toward her.

"What is it, Sara?"

"You got second place?"

"That’s right."

Her eyes widened.

"Does that mean you’re the second-smartest person in the whole world?"

I nearly choked on my drink.

"No, no. It doesn’t mean that."

"Then who’s first?"

"...I don’t know."

"Papa?"

Aldric immediately shook his head.

"Definitely not me."

Sara tilted her head.

"Then Big Brother is smarter than Papa?"

I froze.

Aldric froze.

"Of course I’m smarter! Your brother can’t compare to me in any way!"

"Really?"

"Absolutely!"

I almost wanted to vomit by watching him act like this.

Whenever we were alone, his personality was completely different. He would act like an intimidating mafia boss in front of his subordinates, but the moment Sara was around, he became an entirely different person.

And now, look at him.

He was shamelessly bragging to a six-year-old just to protect his pride.

Honestly, it was putting me off.

Anyway, I needed to stop him before I really puked up my breakfast.

"Father?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah."

My father snapped out of it and looked back at me.

Even while doing so, his hand continued stroking Sara’s head.

"I have something important to tell you."

"Now?"

"Yes."

Perhaps noticing the seriousness in my expression, my father stopped stroking Sara’s head and gently tapped her waist.

"Sara, Papa needs to talk to your brother, so go play in your room for a bit."

"Okay~!"

Sara cheerfully climbed down from her chair and headed toward the stairs.

She was surprisingly obedient when it came to following my father’s instructions.

I watched her disappear upstairs and waited until I heard the sound of her bedroom door closing.

Only then did my father reach into his pocket, pull out a cigar, and light it.

The playful expression he had worn moments ago vanished.

His eyes became serious.

"What are you so serious about? You got Second Seat, so are you trying to demand something as a reward?"

A thick cloud of smoke emerged from my father’s mouth as he spoke.

Even through the haze, his red eyes gleamed.

Honestly, I was trembling.

It wasn’t as though I had never seen this side of him before. I had witnessed his intimidating presence countless times since coming to this world.

However, knowing that the man sitting across from me was one of the four Overlords in the world made it difficult to remain calm.

His very existence was enough to make ordinary people tremble.

And I was about to ask him for something that could change the course of my life.

Still, I had to say it.

It was necessary for my plan.

"...Now that I’m an adult, I want to begin the Successor Training."

My father stared at me, dumbfounded.

For several seconds, he remained completely silent, as though he were trying to determine whether he had heard me correctly.

Then he cleared his throat and asked again.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes. I think it’s time for me to begin the Successor Training."

My father tapped his fingers against the table.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

I had seen him do this countless times before, especially when he was playing games or thinking about something important.

It was one of Aldric Riina’s habits.

Whenever he was calculating something or making a difficult decision, his fingers would begin tapping against whatever surface was nearby.

I remained silent and waited.

After a while, the tapping stopped.

My father raised his head and looked directly at me.

"Fine. If that’s what you want, then go ahead."

I blinked.

That was... surprisingly easy.