I Became a Yakuza's Daughter

Chapter 7: Disciplinary Committee (1)

“Noaaa! I’m soooorry!”  

Chise clung to Noa, showering her with affection.  

Noa showed no reaction and simply kept reading her book.  

“Huh? I really did something wrong, so…”  

Chise tried acting pitiful in front of the desk, but Noa turned her head away with a loud motion.  

‘This is bad. She’s really sulking.’  

Honestly, she had forced the matter through.  

But if she hadn’t, Noa would never have agreed to join the Disciplinary Committee.  

Noa’s most hated things were, first, anything troublesome, and second, anything that required communication with people.  

The Disciplinary Committee involved both.  

Sensing a major crisis, Chise decided to use her trump card.  

‘At times like this… there’s only one way.’  

There was a restriction she had been carrying out at Noa’s mother’s request.  

To make up for this incident, Chise had no choice but to lift that restriction.  

‘I’m sorry, Kako-san!’  

She spoke with determination.  

“—I’ll lift the prohibition.”  

Tap.  

Noa closed her book and raised the corners of her lips.  

“If Chise says so, then I guess I have no choice.”  

As if she had been waiting for those words, Noa extended her small hand.  

With trembling fingers, Chise handed over a small, white, square box.  

It looked exactly like a drug deal.  

**  

“Our Japan, along with our long-standing ally, the Korean Empire, divides the world between us. Korea holds military power, while Japan dominates the economy. Because we are both satisfied with our positions, global peace is maintained. The Korean Empire is not just an ally, but Japan’s long-time friend and partner. That’s why we always respect and help each other in difficult times. You must never forget this.”  

“Doesn’t this sound a lot like the Fujiwara and Minamoto relationship? Like Japan and Korea?”  

Chise whispered from the seat beside her.  

‘…A harmonious relationship between Korea and Japan, huh.’  

This was the most shocking thing after reincarnating.  

In this world, Korea and Japan got along.  

More than just being on good terms, they were called ‘true blood-bonded brother nations.’  

…Honestly, even now, it’s hard to believe.  

In any case, it all started with a single ‘what if.’  

‘What if Joseon was never established?’—a simple yet absurd scenario.  

Joseon was created after Yi Seong-gye defied an unreasonable order and turned back his army at the Amnok River.  

But in this world, instead of retreating at Wihwado, Yi Seong-gye became a legendary conqueror with the ‘Liaodong Campaign.’  

The reason? He was moved by a letter from Choe Yeong when he reached the Amnok River.  

As a result, the Ming Dynasty lost the war.  

In this world, Yi Seong-gye became a renowned general who accomplished an impossible mission, and Goryeo rose as the dominant power in Northeast Asia.  

Seizing this opportunity, Goryeo adopted an aggressive foreign policy and focused on national defense. They succeeded in developing the first firearm, the ‘matchlock gun.’  

At that point, they were tempted to conquer the Ming, but lacking justification and still assessing their strength, they held back.  

Then, at the perfect timing, Japan proposed, ‘Want to ally with us and take down the Ming?’  

Goryeo immediately agreed and charged ahead.  

Instead of the Imjin War, Korea and Japan joined hands and invaded the Ming together.  

The result? A landslide victory.  

As a reward for winning the war, Japan only asked for ‘the right to borrow passage whenever necessary.’  

From Japan’s perspective, facing Goryeo’s overwhelming military strength had them crying, ‘Eh? Uso…’ (No way…) while forcing themselves to accept the deal.  

But Goryeo, deeply moved, responded, ‘That’s really all you want…? You guys are such good people,’ and fully supported Japan.  

Thus, a mutually beneficial relationship was formed.  

Japan never backstabbed Korea.  

Instead, as sworn allies, Korea and Japan shared knowledge, aided each other’s development, and successfully modernized.  

In 1776, they set their next goal—world conquest.  

This marked the beginning of World War I.  

And once again, they achieved a sweeping victory.

After that, it was an unstoppable march forward.  

With World War I moved up to 1776, the country that was supposed to become the United States never came into existence.  

Since there was no America, the final step in modern warfare—nuclear weapons—fell into the hands of Korea and Japan.  

Holding real power, Korea and Japan divided roles and blatantly carved up the world between them.  

In this world, the only trace of the United States was the name of the new currency, "dollar," created during the process of establishing a key currency.  

‘This is interesting.’  

Before I knew the circumstances, I thought this was the most unrealistic fantasy ever.  

But who knows? If you ran enough simulations of the planet Earth, maybe a world like this could exist.  

Anyway, Korea skipped over the Joseon period and went straight from Goryeo to the Korean Empire.  

Instead of being a struggling empire forced into a desperate choice, it was a nation that truly owned most of China's land.  

In textbooks, Korea’s territory sprawled across the pages.  

Meanwhile, China had been reduced to about the size of Taiwan.  

It was seriously tiny.  

Whenever Noa looked at the map, she could barely hold back her laughter.  

‘This is hilarious.’  

Holding her stomach, she personally decided to rename China as "Little Country."  

"Little Country? Ugh, Noa, that’s such a bad habit. Discrimination is wrong."  

"They have little land, and the people are small-minded, so it fits."  

"That’s weird. Noa, then does that mean Korea is ‘Great Korea’ because it has a lot of land?"  

"I dunno."  

Noa cut off the conversation bluntly and closed her textbook.  

It was an interesting history, but for some reason, it made her cringe, so she didn’t feel like looking at it too often.  

"More importantly, Chise."  

Noa looked at Chise with a mischievous glint in her eyes.  

"Hm?"  

"Let’s ditch class."  

"Eh?"  

"I really can’t sit through history."  

From that day on, Noa never attended world history class again.  

**  

"So this is the Disciplinary Committee room."  

Noa let out a bored remark.  

"There’s really nothing here."  

"Yeah. The Saints student council is a test in itself. Since first-years are also competitors, they probably didn’t want to leave anything behind."  

"How petty."  

"Even if they didn’t do it, the school would have taken everything back. They need to see how you rebuild from scratch to evaluate your skills."  

The eight-pyeong-sized room was completely empty.  

"Still, shouldn’t they at least leave some furniture?"  

"Maybe financial resources are also part of the evaluation?"  

Chise smiled brightly as she pulled out her phone.  

Well, it might actually be better to just buy new ones.  

With a single phone call from Chise, they could have furniture made by the world’s finest craftsmen.  

"For furniture, how about Restone Giordano from Italy…"  

Chise began selecting things one by one.  

"Chise, add a bed."  

"Oh, um… A bed… No, Noa!"  

Tch.  

Clicking her tongue, Noa walked over to the window and opened it.  

Then, leaning on one leg, she pulled something out of her pocket.  

‘Ditching class and having a smoke—now that’s happiness.’  

Rustle.  

With the sound of plastic tearing, she put something in her mouth.  

A thin, white stick stuck out from her lips.  

Taking a slow draw, she exhaled deeply with a jaded expression.  

"Hoo…"  

Noa closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again.  

"Umami."  

What Noa was holding in her mouth… was candy!  

In her past life, Noa had been a hardcore smoker.  

After reincarnating, her lungs had been replaced with new, nicotine-free ones, but she hadn’t been able to shake the deeply ingrained "habit."  

Paired with her newfound love for sweets, this led to the perfect alternative—candy!  

"This is bad! Noa!"  

"Why?"  

Chise trembled while holding her phone.  

"...We can't use our own money."  

"Huh?"  

"We... We have to use only the budget set by the student council! W-What do we do?"  

Noa frowned.  

Chise was usually smart, but sometimes she was ridiculously naive like this.  

"Why is that a problem?"  

"Uh...?"  

"Just spend it."  

"But if we do—"  

"If we do?"  

Chise hesitated.  

Noa crossed her arms and spoke coldly.  

"What exactly is going to happen?"  

"...Wouldn't there be consequences?"  

Noa let out a small sigh.  

Laws. Rules.  

Those were things only the weak followed.  

People obeyed them only because they had no choice but to be bound by them.  

Would a billionaire be afraid of a fine?  

Would a dictator or a king refuse to kill someone just because murder was a crime?  

Would a soldier on the battlefield hesitate to pull the trigger just because killing was immoral?  

Noa had seen it too many times.  

War laws. Peace treaties.  

Soldiers breaking those laughable, idealistic war laws over and over again.  

And behind all of it was the confidence that as long as they could handle the consequences, they could do whatever they wanted.  

More than anything—  

"If something's in your way, just remove it. Stop thinking like a fragile girl, Chise."  

The Minamoto family was one of real men.  

If something blocked their path, they smashed through it.  

Noa had the strength and authority to make that happen.  

No matter who stood in her way.  

Chise gave a troubled smile.  

"Uh, you do remember that we're both girls, right?"  

Noa spoke bluntly.  

"What matters is an unbreakable will."  

"I don't think that phrase applies here..."  

"Willpower!"  

At Noa's firm response, Chise was left speechless.  

—Chhht.  

Just then, an announcement came on.  

[First-year Class A, Minamoto Noa. Fujiwara Chise. Please report to the principal's office.]  

**  

"Hoho, now, please have a comfortable conversation."  

"Thank you, Principal."  

The bald-headed principal smiled and then disappeared.  

Noa's eyes trembled like the leaves of an aspen tree as she looked at the person sitting on the sofa.  

"Mama...?"  

Hic.  

Noa hiccupped and took a step back.  

"Why on earth..."  

In her 16 years of life as Minamoto Noa, this was the greatest crisis she had ever faced.  

"Oh my, Noa."  

A woman who looked strikingly similar to Noa smiled warmly at her.  

Her name was Minamoto Kako.  

Noa's mother—and the one and only person in this world who could counter her.  

"It doesn't seem like snack time yet. And yet, you have candy in your mouth."  

Cold sweat soaked Noa's entire body.  

She felt like the blood was draining from her.  

Noa never flinched, even in front of Genji, but Kako was the one person who truly terrified her.  

Genji might have acted cold on the outside, but he was secretly the biggest softie when it came to his daughter.  

Kako, on the other hand, seemed kind on the surface but was the strictest parent of all.  

She was the one who made Noa stop swearing after every sentence.  

She was the one who made Noa wear yukatas properly.  

She was the one who made Noa wear skirts more often.  

And she was also the one who stopped Noa from wearing shorts under those skirts.  

It was all thanks to her.  

Noa was someone who stuck to her beliefs no matter who she faced, but that never worked against Kako.  

"If Noa-chan gets cavities because of this, Mommy… Mommy will…"  

Ping—  

A true man never makes his precious woman cry!  

Even without that, Noa wasn't an unfilial child!  

Noa's pupils trembled as she took a step back.  

Chise bowed politely and spoke.  

"Have you been well, Mrs. Minamoto?"  

Kako wiped her tears and smiled warmly.  

"Chise, you're still so formal. There's no need for that."  

"No, ma'am."  

Chise's face turned red.  

‘She said she was traveling abroad for a bit, but now she’s back.’  

The only person who could render even the fierce Noa completely helpless.  

Since childhood, Kako had been Chise’s idol—her absolute role model.  

‘I need to learn all her secrets.’  

As Chise thought about that, Noa, still trembling, spoke up.  

"M-Mama, why are you here? I thought you were on a business trip overseas."  

"Noa-chan."  

Still smiling, Kako tilted her head.  

"Aren't you going to take that candy out?"  

Noa flinched in terror and quickly hid the candy behind her back.  

"I-It's my first one!"  

"Really? Chise-chan?"  

"Yes!"  

Noa loved sweets.  

But she never showed it openly. She seemed to find it embarrassing.  

However, there was one exception—candy. She simply couldn’t resist it.  

She easily went through twenty a day, and if she was feeling down, that number could go up to thirty.  

She ate so many that even her health became a concern, so Chise had been managing her intake.  

But after today’s events, she had no choice but to lift the restriction.  

For the record, today was her fifteenth piece.  

Since it had been a while, Chise had already seen Noa crunching on them multiple times—  

But at least she had that much loyalty.  

Noa looked at Chise with an expression full of gratitude.  

"What brings you here?"  

"Oh my, look at me forgetting things. Noa, have a seat."  

"Uh-huh."  

"I heard you skipped all your morning classes today. Is that true?"  

Flinch.  

Noa mechanically turned her head.  

'Chise, help me.'  

Chise couldn’t bring herself to ignore that desperate look.  

"I-It was my idea!"  

"...Minamoto Noa."  

Kako’s gentle voice suddenly dropped in tone.  

"Are you… shifting the blame onto your friend?"  

"N-No, Mama, that’s not it."  

"A Minamoto passing off responsibility? It must be because I was such a terrible mother."  

Kako took Noa’s hands and teared up.  

"I'm sorry for being so inadequate."  

Noa froze in place.  

She looked so fragile, like she would shatter at the slightest touch.  

Seeing her like that after so long made her look even cuter.  

But this wasn’t good.  

Chise quickly raised her hand stiffly.  

"That’s not it! It’s because we joined the Disciplinary Committee! Y-You know, right? At the beginning, the workload is so heavy that skipping class is allowed!"  

Kako’s eyes widened.  

"The Disciplinary Committee? Really?"  

She stood up and crouched beside Noa.  

Whenever Noa lied, her pupils always wavered. Kako wanted to see for herself.  

"Y-Yeah."  

"Look Mommy in the eyes."  

"It's true."  

Noa looked slightly intimidated, but her pupils didn’t waver.  

Kako’s smile bloomed.  

"Noa-chan!"  

"M-Mama, I can't breathe…!"  

Kako hugged Noa tightly.  

"You finally have motivation for something!"  

‘They really do have a great relationship.’  

Chise watched the pink-haired mother and daughter fondly.  

But then—  

Deng—  

"Ah."  

Noa went limp!  

"K-Kako-san! Noa, Noa!"