On the day he sparred with Ober, Leo joined the Rauno Family.
Cassia vouched for the siblings’ identities, relaying the lie Leo had instructed her to tell.
However, it was Lena who played a decisive role in gaining the trust of the Rauno Family.
The moment the Family executives, who had rushed over after hearing Ober’s report, saw Lena at the shoe store, they let down their guard. An older brother trying to protect his incredibly beautiful younger sister—it seemed unlikely that they were spies sent by another family.
However, even though their suspicions were cleared and they acknowledged Ober’s claims of Leo’s extraordinary skills, a small test was still necessary.
They were curious if Leo was capable of shedding blood, and Leo surprised the Family executives by nonchalantly taking down a few gangsters.
[ Achievement: First Kill - Leo feels less guilty about killing. ]
Ober bragged to the executives, “See, I told you! This kid wasn’t joking when he went for my throat.” He then proudly escorted the siblings to a large mansion.
“This is it. The boss is waiting, so be sure to greet him properly.”
Lena was left in the living room of the mansion, and Leo was summoned alone. Ober strutted away after reminding him to be respectful.
As Leo opened the door, etched deeply with several sword marks, the shadow of a man sitting by the fireplace stretched out to engulf him.
[ Achievement: First Encounter with the Family Boss - Gangsters have slightly more trust in your words. ]
The man, who seemed to have crossed middle age and was stepping into his senior years, approached slowly and offered his hand for a shake.
He was Joseph Rauno, the boss of the Rauno Family. His family, although not nobles, had passed down the surname ‘Rauno’ for generations.
Even they didn’t know the origin of their name.
Joseph's grandfather, and his grandfather before him, were all Raunos, so they simply upheld it as a tradition.
Joseph looked much younger than his greying hair suggested, and though his eyes were crinkled with kind wrinkles, he had a habit of cruelly pressing his thick lips together.
He welcomed Leo and readily agreed to protect his sister.
He had brought Leo into the ‘inner circle’ of the Family.
Being brought into the ‘inner circle’ was a great privilege. The Families placed most of their many members on the ‘outside.’
Joseph offered his hand once more and declared.
“If you become one of our family and dedicate your strength to us, we will do our best for you and your sister.”
His outstretched hand was broad and full of goodwill, so Leo clasped it.
***
A room in the mansion was provided for the siblings. Seeing the room, small but equipped with everything they needed, Lena couldn’t hide her amazement and exclaimed.
“Wow! This is our room?”
Leo smiled contentedly, watching his sister scrutinize every corner of the room.
“No. This is your room to use alone, so make yourself comfortable.”
“What about you, brother?”
“I’m going to use the room next door.”
“Aww… Can’t we share a room?”
“There’s no reason we can’t, but we have two rooms, so there’s no need to squeeze into one, right? I’ll visit you often since it’s right next door.”
He soothed his pouting sister, who whined, “But I want to share~,” and savored the feeling of his long-held frustrations melting away.
I want Lena to only see good things, and I want only good things to happen to her.
No, I’ll make sure of it.
The siblings, who had been taking turns exploring each other’s rooms, were called downstairs when it was time for dinner.
The central hall of the Family mansion seemed to serve as a dining room, as several large tables were arranged there.
The entire front wall was lined with three large open doors, creating a sense of openness as if the front yard and the hall were connected.
This mansion was where the families of the inner circle members lived, their homes interconnected to form their base of operations.
The corridors were intricately intertwined, making it impossible for a newcomer to navigate without getting lost. Lena and Leo also had to be guided for a while.
When the siblings came down, over eighty gangsters and their families were gathered in the hall, seated in groups of three or five, many of them bustling about, serving food.
Finally, when everyone was seated, Ober stood up and cleared his throat.
As Leo had expected, Ober held a high rank. However, he was getting too old to be on active duty, so he spent his days leisurely managing the leather district, which was closest to the mansion.
Ober put his hands on the shoulders of the seated siblings and said,
“These are our new family members. This is Leo, the older brother. Don’t let his small stature fool you, he’s something else. And this is his younger sister, Lena.”
“I’m Leo. Pleased to meet you all.”
“...I’m Lena.”
Leo stood up and bowed his head in greeting, while Lena, seemingly shy, plopped back down on her chair as soon as she got up.
The people gathered in the hall applauded.
“Woo! Siblings, you say? I heard the younger sister was beautiful… My goodness.”
“Oh my! How can they be so beautiful and handsome? Welcome.”
Leo was pleased with the Family’s warm welcome.
I made the right decision coming here. This seemed like the perfect place for his sister to hide and grow, with all the middle-aged women, children, and elderly people around. Lena will surely grow up well within this large family.
It didn’t matter that all the men were gangsters. They were all just husbands and fathers dedicated to their families, even if their line of work was a bit rough around the edges.
The gangsters flocked to Leo, offering him drinks. While they exchanged the usual questions men ask each other, Lena was being showered with affection by the families.
Some of the women even gave her gifts, and each time, Lena would run to her brother and ask if it was okay for her to accept, bringing laughter to everyone present.
The next day, Leo woke up early and went straight to his sister’s room. Lena might be anxious if he wasn’t by her side when she woke up.
He wasn’t going to leave his sister’s side this time. He had learned his lesson.
When he opened the door and went inside, he found Lena stirring as if she was about to wake up. He stroked her hair.
My beautiful little sister.
Like a doting father, Leo caressed her nose and lips until she finally woke up, and they had breakfast together.
Only after leaving his sister with other children her age from the Family did he finally relax.
They’ll learn about life here by playing with each other now.
Only then did Leo seek out the boss.
Joseph Rauno assigned a gangster to him and said,
“There’s no need to rush into work. Take your time learning the ropes from this man.”
He didn’t seem to be in a hurry to put Leo to work. He gave the skilled newcomer a few months of leisure to learn.
While Leo did learn about managing their businesses, what he mainly focused on were tasks related to contract killings.
That was what he was expected to do from now on.