Chapter 55: The Mobley Family's Birthday Banquet
Listening to the secretary's gradually intensening breaths and seeing her adoring expression, Chief Noru's face revealed a self-satisfied look.
Though he claimed he could casually replace the city's underworld representatives at will, the reality wasn't as simple as he made it sound. If it were truly that easy, he wouldn't have been so troubled earlier.
It must be understood that the Terrio family, which holds authority over the Mobley family, is one of the world's top ten mafia organizations.
Matters at this level are far beyond the decision-making power of a mere police station chief like him.
Now, he only wishes to quietly endure until retirement, hoping that no further mishaps occur within his small jurisdiction.
"Ding-a-ling!"
Just then, the office phone suddenly rang.
Chief Noru, startled by the ringing, shuddered—could this be another disaster in the making?
At this hour, unless it was something critical, no one should be disturbing him.
He pushed away the female secretary sitting on his lap, walked to the desk, and picked up the phone.
"Chief, it's—it's terrible!"
"Don't panic. What have I taught you? Speak slowly and clearly!" Noru frowned, scolding the caller.
"It's the shady bar run by the Mobley family—people are dead." The voice on the phone trembled. "So many dead. According to witnesses, everyone from the Mobley family in the bar was killed."
"Not a single survivor left."
By now, the secretary had straightened her clothes and approached. Hearing phrases like "so many dead" and "everyone was killed" from the phone, she felt a chill run through her body, standing frozen in shock.
Unlike her colleagues who had risen through skill, she had climbed the ranks using her body and had never encountered such a scene.
Chief Noru also drew a sharp breath.
He had just been praying for no more trouble—the downtown explosion case remained unsolved, and now, so soon after, this happens.
And it involves the Mobley family.
His vision darkened; if he hadn't braced himself against the desk with his right hand, he might have collapsed outright.
How long has it been since anyone dared to strike against the Mobley family in this city?
Tonight, the city is likely to undergo a drastic change.
...
Ignoring the chaos at the police station, over at the Mobley family headquarters, everyone was immersed in a joyful atmosphere.
And for good reason.
Today was the birthday of the Mobley family's young master.
The great efforts they had made earlier, finally retrieving that item from Chiyo's home, were all for his birthday gift.
The luxurious villa's courtyard was lined with high-end black cars; every notable figure, big and small, from the Mobley family had come to attend the birthday celebration.
The villa was filled with a festive ambiance everywhere.
However, the guest of honor at the birthday party, Mobley III, was throwing a tantrum in his room.
"My dear young master, please come out with me to greet your uncles. Didn't your father already give you the birthday gift you wanted?"
"Father lied! Father lied! What he found was just a memory card, not the actual Greed Island game." The chubby boy threw the evening suit handed to him by a servant onto the floor. "I don't care, I want to play this game!"
The middle-aged woman sighed helplessly and glanced at the butler nearby.
"If the young master wants to play a game, just go find it for him."
Faced with the mistress's ignorance, the butler felt immense frustration but could only cautiously explain, "The game the young master wants to play has gone out of print and will not be reproduced. The company responsible for developing it has long since ceased operations."
"Then go check who it was sold to back then. We can just buy it from them, can't we?"
"Madam, the game the young master is so obsessed with is a legendary one that has completely transcended the category of ordinary games."
The butler wiped sweat from his forehead and continued explaining: "They say this game was limited to only one hundred copies worldwide back then, each priced at 5.8 billion, and it could only be purchased with cash transactions. Therefore, it's impossible to trace who exactly bought those copies."
"5.8 billion?!" The middle-aged woman completely lost control, involuntarily raising her voice. This was beyond her comprehension.
"Also, I've heard this game was specifically designed for professional hunters." The butler cautiously glanced at the chubby boy, making it clear that even if they did find the game, given his physique, he might not be able to play it.
The butler didn't know about Nen, but since it required hunters to play, it definitely wasn't an ordinary game.
The chubby boy didn't actually know the specific content of the game either. He had just stumbled upon information about it while browsing online and became completely obsessed.
"Darling, how about we choose a different birthday gift?"
"I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to..."
5.8 billion jenny, while not an astronomical figure for a crime family of their scale, would still deal a severe blow to their finances if withdrawn.
There was absolutely no possibility of spending that amount of money on some game.
Previously, when they heard rumors that someone possessed this game, they had sent Chiyo's father and several others to steal it, which led to the subsequent events.
"I've heard that this September, at the auction in Yorknew City, the game itself will be put up for auction." Seeing the chubby boy's uncontrollable tantrum, the butler spoke up.
The middle-aged woman understood the butler's implication and continued along the same line: "You heard that, right? We'll attend the auction then, and Mommy will definitely help you buy the game."
Hearing this, the chubby boy finally stopped crying.
"Sasaki, there's suddenly a commotion outside." The mistress looked toward outside the room and spoke.
"Today is the young master's birthday. The master is happy and might have organized some activities." The butler bowed as he replied.
The middle-aged woman nodded.
"You few, help the young master tidy up his clothes. It's about time for us to go over."
...
In the villa's main hall, everyone was drinking and chatting merrily, creating a lively atmosphere.
Besides the core members of the Mobley family and their subordinates, they had also hired some hostesses to liven up the party.
Mobley looked at his brothers with a smile on his face.
Although it was ostensibly his son's birthday banquet, Mobley also saw it as an opportunity to strengthen the family's unity.
In his view, to successfully run a mafia family, besides guns and money, emotional bonds were equally important.
Only by treating the entire mafia as one family could he make his brothers willingly sacrifice their lives for him.
If the entire mafia were truly a family, then that guy would be the problem child.
Mobley looked up and gazed at Stanley.
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