The mafia members could indulge in extravagant luxuries. At least, that was the obvious fact in Hebili.
Apartments and real estate, not to mention even regular members would buy brand new cars without a second thought.
In a sense, mafia members were the ideal consumers the market desired. They had plenty of money and showed no hesitation in spending it.
When it came to spending, they behaved like girls enjoying a shopping spree.
Buying dozens of shirts at a high-end clothing store and suits worth 1,500 pounds (about 2,000 dollars) alongside shoes costing 760 pounds (about 1,000 dollars) was quite common.
And that’s not all.
They also spent ridiculous sums on food and drinks, including high-end liquors like wine and champagne.
Of course, enjoying such luxuries didn’t come without personal sacrifices.
To give a suitable example, after finishing a fancy meal, they would have to put on black clothes within an hour to go kill someone or dig a grave for the target they were about to eliminate.
It was only natural to pay a price for something gained.
In that sense, the members of the Russo Family weren’t much different.
After figuring out the disguised snake man with the help of my status window, I shared this information with Damar, who immediately summoned near members.
“Feli, Veronica. Go up to the second floor first.”
“What?”
“Veronica, hurry.”
“….”
Although it was a bit chaotic, at my urgent request, Veronica took Felicia’s hand and rushed upstairs.
“Damar, what are you planning to do with that guy?”
“We’ll surround him first… and handle it.”
“If you use a gun, even an elephant might be startled.”
“….”
It looked like Damar was deep in thought about what to do.
I chose not to disturb his thoughts and followed Felicia and Veronica upstairs.
Meanwhile, sensing the strange atmosphere, Arta Russo and Vesus Russo’s crew began to move as well.
Sadly for that snake man, he was practically a dead man walking.
Of course, if he were a viper, he could unleash his horrendous poison and take many down with him before he bit the dust.
But he didn’t do that. Well, to be precise, it seemed he couldn’t.
He probably wasn’t a viper.
“….”
And there was something I didn’t understand and couldn’t accept.
‘Why didn’t he take me out?’
Why didn’t he strike when I was riding the elephant?
The most plausible explanation was he didn’t want to cross me and the Russo Family after targeting me.
However, considering that the vipers aimed for revenge against the Five Families, there could be other reasons.
Anyway, I finally made it to the second floor, escaping the snake man’s clutches along the way.
In that process, I had to deal with two men and women who dared to approach me without fear.
“What the hell, are they serious?”
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
Seeing the bizarre scene unfolding on the first floor, I understood why.
With Russo Family members widely spread around the elephant, two or three members approached the elephant’s lower belly and began to poke the disguised snake man.
They, of course, were not holding guns but various kinds of nasty tools. With the situation escalating, the snake man would have to realize his disguise had been blown.
I left the snake man struggling with the members around the elephant and headed towards the room where Russo was.
“Luke.”
“Brother.”
No sooner had I returned than Elena and Veronica called out to me at once.
“Russo, you must have heard the news, right?”
“Yeah, looks like that fearless guy really managed to hide himself.”
“Is that something to say right now? What if that guy were a real viper?”
“Oh my… Godmother. Have you ever seen any of those vipers in person?”
Russo calmly asked back.
“No, I’ve never seen one in person.”
Of course, that was the case. The vipers were purged by the Five Families during Elena’s childhood.
Thanks to that, our father had decided to defy the Five Families. Although that wasn’t his only reason for rebelling.
“The Godfather… well, it goes without saying.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen plenty.”
I hadn’t been involved in purging the vipers.
But whenever I accompanied my father, the Wolf leader, I couldn’t help but encounter spiders and vipers often.
“So what’s the point?”
Felicia asked while watching the fight between the Russo Family members and the snake man unfold on the first floor.
“Vipers are the kind you can tell from a glance. They’re like living bombs soaked in poison.”
“Russo’s right.”
The one clinging to the elephant was not a viper.
If that guy were a real viper, the elephant would have reacted violently long before we noticed.
“Well, I guess bringing that kind of guy to the party was my mistake.”
Russo said this and formally apologized to us. Elena accepted the apology.
In a way, it felt like bowing and scraping, but it was important that Russo had apologized.
“By the way, is there anything we can help with?”
“What? What do you mean by helping?”
“The war with the vipers.”
As Russo seemed clueless, Elena answered before I could. It seemed like Elena knew exactly what I wanted to say.
“Now that the northeast is ours, we can focus our attention elsewhere.”
“….”
Russo couldn’t hide his expression when he heard the Felini Family had taken over the northeast of Hebili.
While they were struggling to deal with the vipers, our influence was growing stronger.
“Palmas Family. They were a pretty tough bunch, but they lost quickly.”
“Yeah, they were quite tenacious.”
From the Wolf side, there was Salido, and from the old fox Alexander Dova, who tried to assassinate me; there were many memorable characters in the family.
I didn’t hold Russo Family accountable for their relationship with the Palmas Family.
Though there had been times they were allies, after the Russo Family became part of our umbrella, they showed no signs of such camaraderie.
“Ah.”
Meanwhile, while Elena and I were having more strategic talks with Russo, Veronica reacted suddenly.
“Oh, looks like it’s decided.”
After Veronica, Felicia spoke, and I quickly turned my gaze to the first floor.
With the ongoing onslaught, it seemed the snake man had finally collapsed. Following Damar’s orders, the members were taking the fallen snake man somewhere.
“Nobody seems to care.”
“That makes sense. Everyone is too busy enjoying themselves.”
That wasn’t all. It felt like the atmosphere had shifted as the big band played more loudly and splendidly than earlier.
It seemed Damar had requested the band to put on a show while dealing with the snake man.
“With this, the uninvited guest is no longer a problem.”
Russo sighed in relief.
As the obstacle to the party disappeared, Elena whispered something to me and Felicia.
“….”
“….”
Felicia and I nodded in agreement with Elena’s words.
With the snake man gone, we could easily leave the party venue.
“I feel bad for Veronica.”
“No, I’m fine with it.”
Veronica replied as if it didn’t matter at all to her. But it was Russo who seemed to have a problem.
“So, are you already leaving? The party is just starting.”
“I’ve had enough for now.”
“….”
Russo quickly looked at me when Elena said that.
“I’ll see you again later.”
But nothing would change because of that. Elena, Felicia, Veronica, and I all stood up from our seats.
I paused for a moment before entirely leaving the room.
“I really enjoyed the elephant.”
Never did I think I would ride an elephant in my life.
Although I didn’t really connect with the elephant, I just climbed onto its back with the assistance of trainers… it was quite a nice experience.
Especially since my vision had been limited because of my small height since I came to this world.
But up there on the elephant, it was a different story.
‘I wish there was some magic to make me taller, if not an elephant size.’
Why isn’t there a magic that makes you taller? In this realm, there is magic that can regrow hair after all.
“Won’t you get lost?”
As soon as we left the room and came to the second floor of the mansion, there were some individuals showing interest in us.
To be precise, not me, but the other three. People approaching my two wives and my brother with inappropriate intentions.
“….”
But it didn’t seem necessary for me to step in.
Elena and Veronica led the way as they cleared out the garbage blocking their path.
Thanks to that, Felicia and I just had to follow them without much effort.
“Godfather, are you leaving already?”
As soon as we began to descend the stairs, Damar approached us.
“Yeah, it’s getting quite late.”
I patted Damar on the shoulder.
Even though it was his brother who had brought us to our knees, considering how hard Damar worked during this party, I felt a sense of sympathy.
As we were about to exit the mansion, Arta and Vesus, who had cooperated in subduing the snake man, approached us.
It seemed they were only interested in getting on the good side of the Godfather and Godmother.
Only after a brief conversation with them could we finally leave the mansion.
*
“Veronica, have you had dinner?”
“No, not yet.”
“Then let’s grab something to eat at the hotel restaurant.”
Veronica nodded vigorously at my suggestion, obviously pleased.
“Yeah, that sounds good.”
Elena and Felicia also seemed inclined to join in. Now that I think about it, aside from drinks, we hardly had anything to eat in the same room with the Russo Family.
We climbed into the bulletproof car right away. There might be other guys disguised as snake men hiding in the elephant.
Afterward, with the escort of other cars, we managed to reach the Lupus Carlton Hotel.
“Brother, ladies.”
Waiting for us at the hotel entrance was the family’s underboss, Carso.
He looked like he had something to say.
“Carso, come along.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s eat at the restaurant first.”
There’s a saying that good things come to those who wait, and important conversations can still take place while waiting for the food to arrive.
