He had also prepared everything we needed, without exception. For example, regarding our residence, he built a mansion on a hill surrounded by tall trees, perhaps so no one would know we were living here a massive mansion just for my mother and me.
But no matter how cleverly you try to hide a secret, the truth always finds a way out. When I was approaching four years old, my father's family discovered my mother's existence and that she had a child by him.
Everything was chaotic then; the long-kept secret had been revealed. Naturally, my father's family was furious about this.
Not wanting this family scandal to leak out to their business rivals, my father's father my grandfather accepted my mother and me. However, it came with the condition that my father had to legally marry my mother.
Otherwise, my grandfather would send him to prison. Ah, one more thing: the law is quite strict in this world, especially within a Mafia family.
Long story short, my mother and father finally got married. It wasn't lavish or simple you could call it bare-bones, as they wanted to expedite the wedding.
What shocked me after the wedding was that my father already had three other wives besides my mother. Counting my mother, he now had four wives. That crazy man, damn him!
But the conditions set by my grandfather didn't end there. With the agreement of the three wives, they decided they would not accept my mother living near them in the same house.
When I heard that, I wanted so badly to rip out their throats, to chop off their fingers... arrgh! Hadn't they hurt my mother enough?! In my previous life, I could have killed them in seconds!
My mother merely smiled when she heard those words. She nodded, taking a deep breath. She looked at me for a moment with a resigned smile.
"Very well, Madam. My child and I will live in silence..."
"Thank you for accepting us into the family."
Ah, no, Mother! In my previous life, I didn't have a mother or a father; I was just an orphan. Hic... hic... hic!
This meant my mother accepted that we would remain exiled to our place in the village of Portego. There was something else that shocked me when I understood everything: this family. A giant Mafia family. Their connections were beyond doubt.
They bribed the local government officials in Portego village to keep our identities secret. Just hearing their name made people tremble and fear. It was as if there was power in that name.
I am now six years old. It's not bad being reincarnated as the child of a bastard Mafia boss! I no longer have to endure the hellish torment I faced when I was a mercenary in my previous life.
The money that was once so hard to earn is scattered here like dust, haha a harsh comparison, I know.
I have decided to live life on my own terms. I'm also grateful that my father's family no longer wants anything to do with us. I am always wary that I might be dragged into that dark family at any moment.
Just imagining it kills my appetite. The bottom line is, I just want to live a normal life this time around. I want to experience things I never had before, like family. And MONEY!
...
Knock, knock, knock!
"Young Master, are you awake?"
*Whoosh!*
He slowly opened his eyes while gathering his wits. He rubbed them sleepily.
He got out of bed with a sleepy expression; a small gust of wind would probably knock him over if he tried to walk while staggering.
"Breakfast is ready, Young Master."
"Yawn!"
"Yes! I'll be right there!" Aland replied.
"Huuuugh!"
"I'm so sleepy. This is because of Grandma's stories! How could she tell them so loudly? I really couldn't sleep."
"Last night, she just kept coming up with stories she wanted to tell me! It never ended, even though she repeated the same tale ten times." He walked toward the bathroom.
"I hope Grandma goes out of town. I'm so sick of hearing them tonight. Ugh!" He made an annoyed face.
...
"Hi, Mom!" He slowly pulled the chair away from the dining table.
She let out a soft sigh. "How many times do I have to tell you, when the maid calls, you need to come immediately." Then she poured water into a glass.
"Yeah, yeah!" Aland replied, looking toward the dishes on the table.
"Woah... fried chicken again!" His face lit up.
"Of course!"
"I cooked this myself. It's good for your development. Try some!" She said with a beautiful smile.
Is this what people call attention? Or a mother's love? Aland thought to himself while chewing his food heartily. "Wait. Isn't Grandma having breakfast with us today?"
"Your grandmother just left a few minutes ago. She said she has business out of town."
"That's unusual. Grandma usually never forgets to give me her buffalo milk."
"Yes, Grandma..." She placed some side dishes on Aland's plate. "... Grandma will probably be out of town for three days." Hearing this, Aland's mood turned joyful.
Insane! Did my prayer just get answered in this world? I just wished Grandma would leave town, and now it's happening! Aland thought.
"Don't be sad, Aland..."
Sad? Why would I waste time on something trivial like sadness? This is happiness! Aland thought, his expression growing even brighter.
But in his mother's mind, Aland must be very sad because his grandmother left. Since Aland was raised by his grandmother from childhood, he probably wouldn't have an appetite.
"I'll tuck you in tonight. Grandma said you really like fairy tales, right?" She smiled and looked gently at Aland. "I have a great story for you tonight."
I never remember saying the words, I LIKE FAIRY TALES! Aland thought, his expression turning slightly sour.
Why is this so sudden?! Mom never did this, even when Grandma left for a week two months ago. Why now?!
"For now, eat plenty. Don't be sad, sweetie!"
"After you finish eating, I have a request for you!"
"Yeah, yeah, okay, Mom!" Aland replied weakly.
"Young Master, everything is ready." The man looked toward Aland, who was sitting on the steps of the mansion entrance.
"Yes, just wait in the car."
"Understood."
The request Mother mentioned during breakfast turned out to be a real hassle, huh! Mother ordered me to go see her younger sibling in the village across the way, Hansam Village.
She wants me to go all the way to Hansam just to pick up a package Mother frequently buys from there.
The package only contains spices for cooking and a few bottles of alcohol. Usually, Mother sends a servant to retrieve it. But for some reason, I'm the one tasked with picking it up now. What did Mother eat earlier...
"Ugh!" He looked up at the sky.
"I can't imagine what Auntie is going to do to me later." He slowly stood up and walked toward the car.
It was a large, luxurious car, long and sleek rather than wide. Several bodyguards stood on alert, surrounding the vehicle.
What in the world is this?! Aland thought.
Do they think we're going to war? Why do we need this kind of setup?
Someone opened the door for Aland to get into the car. "Uncle Bros. This seems quite excessive. I wanted to go casually without drawing attention to myself."
Bros was a man my mother trusted implicitly; he was practically her right-hand man. My mother took him in from a nearly destroyed village high in the Darkeyes mountains.
Back when Mother was looking for spices. Before she worked at the cafe, my mother and her family used to work as spice farmers. She accidentally found Uncle Bros, who was starving to death.
He was also very skilled at fighting and quite handsome for his age.