Please Stop The Pope

Chapter 118

3.

“So, your mission is to track the movements of our family members in advance and report to Wang Wei, is that right?”

“Yes, yes. That’s correct.”

“And only Wang Wei and you know about this fact?”

“Although I’ve come to meet the Pope like this, even in the Department of Ability Management, I’m recognized for my information gathering skills! If I want to, even my colleagues can’t find out where I’ve gone. It would take someone at the level of a transcendent…”

The coffee shop located below our house.

I was meeting a strange Chinese man on the second floor of a coffee shop filled with guests giving off an artificial atmosphere.

The guests were, of course, all agents from the Department of Ability Management.

Thinking about this reminds me of when I met Manager Kim in Gwangmyeong back then.

At that time, the cafe was also filled with agents like now. Whether then or now, it seems like I’m covering the entire day’s sales of the cafe alone.

“What was your name again?”

“Lin Tao. Please call me Lin Tao.”

“Alright, Lin Tao.”

Looking carefully, this Chinese man is quite amusing.

He was hiding with strange skills and suddenly appeared. Although I wasn’t surprised because I was already aware of his hidden presence, the moment he revealed himself, I almost killed him in a fit of rage.

Although I don’t know about the temple, the issue regarding our house is directly related to the safety of my family.

His methods might be excessive, but they were not insufficient.

I drank an iced Americano in one gulp and exhaled lightly before speaking.

“I understand completely. Since you’ve surrendered, I’ll let you off this one time. When you think about it, you were just observing from a distance, right?”

“Thank you, truly, truly. I will live the rest of my life grateful for the Pope’s mercy.”

I had anticipated movement from the Chinese side. To be honest, it would have been strange if they hadn’t moved.

However, there’s a clear difference between anticipating something and witnessing it with my own eyes.

If this guy had first observed Siyeon circling around…

I would have immediately shown him the basement of the temple without hesitation. There’s definitely a secret room in the temple’s basement.

“But I’m curious. Didn’t you say with your own mouth that you’re China’s top spy?”

“Yes, yes. You can believe me. Even if you look at other divisions within the Department of Ability Management, there’s no one like me.”

“Do you think it makes sense for someone like that to surrender like this?”

“…That is.”

“Try to convince me. If you can’t persuade me, you won’t be walking out of here today. Do you understand what I mean?”

Lin Tao was at a loss with my question.

He seemed to have something to say, but looked like someone who had been threatened.

And then,

Miyaaaa-

Baekseol approached the table where I was sitting. Then, Siyeon’s voice was heard from afar.

“Big brother! Can I buy and eat just one cake? I’ll pay you back at home!”

“Oh, our Siyeon. Go ahead and eat it all. Owner! Is it possible to pay later? I’ll pay for what my sister ate!”

“Oh, of course! It’s an honor to have the Pope visit, so you can leave without paying! Just give me an autograph when you go…”

The kind-looking owner readily agreed.

Baekseol being here naturally means Siyeon is here too. I deliberately kept Baekseol close to Siyeon.

Miyaaaa-

“Yeah, yeah. I’m listening to brother.”

While stroking Baekseol’s back, I looked at Lin Tao.

“So, what’s the reason for surrendering?”

“That is…I felt…a pang of conscience…”

“Can’t tell me the reason? Is there something lacking? For example, torture or threats. If something’s missing, tell me. I can provide anything.”

Lin Tao’s already pale face became even paler.

Moreover, for some reason, he seemed to keep glancing at Baekseol. It couldn’t be that he was charmed by Baekseol’s cuteness in this situation, so what could it be?

“May I…speak honestly?”

“You came to surrender, so what are you worried about? Of course, I’ll let you live if you speak honestly. Go ahead.”

Lin Tao closed his eyes tightly, then continued in a resolute voice.

“The beast you’re stroking right now has threatened me.”

“Beast? How do you know about that?”

Baekseol was a divine beast, so calling it a beast was understandable.

While people who don’t know Baekseol just treat it as a smart cat, this guy was very specific.

“If I don’t go to the Pope and confess my sins…it said it would eat me alive. Moreover, I was told not to let the Pope know that it can speak.”

“Baekseol spoke?”

“It was more like a voice ringing in my head. I’m sorry, divine beast! But I felt I shouldn’t lie to the Pope anymore…”

Seeing Lin Tao looking at Baekseol with a terrified expression, I felt quite convinced.

This guy wouldn’t create such a bizarre situation in front of me, and Baekseol’s reaction was also unusual.

As soon as Baekseol heard Lin Tao’s words, it stared directly at me.

When our eyes met, it cutely blinked its eyes. This little thing looking at me like this was very bad for my heart.

Its gaze seemed to say, ‘You’re not believing this nonsense, right?’

“Baekseol.”

Miyaaaa-

“Can you talk now?”

-Shake shake.

It’s absurd that a creature that understands human speech can’t speak.

It wasn’t so strange for a divine beast to converse with humans.

“Hmm.”

Understanding the situation from Lin Tao’s nervous demeanor and Baekseol’s brazen denial, I nodded slightly and spoke in a soft voice.

“I was going to buy you the highest-grade handmade treats because you’re adorable, but you can’t talk…What can I do? I’ll have to cancel what I put in the shopping cart.”

-Twitch.

It was just for a moment, but it definitely flinched.

Even in front of its most beloved treats, it held back once.

Let’s see if it can hold out this time.

“I’ve also ordered a custom-made cat tower from a famous cat tower craftsman with a cat wheel…I’ll have to cancel that too. Come to think of it, Baekseol isn’t old enough to use a cat tower yet. It doesn’t seem to have done much.”

That was when Baekseol, who had been quietly toasting like a bread slice, finally moved.

“No, that’s not true! I’ve done a lot! Confiscating the cat tower is seriously crossing the line, human!”

A child-like voice echoed in my mind.

Looking at Baekseol staring at me with big eyes, it seemed to be its voice.

I stroked Baekseol’s back again and said,

“Didn’t you say you can’t talk?”

“I never said I couldn’t talk.”

“Then why did you hide the fact that you could speak?”

“Obviously, because it was obvious you’d use me! Just look at Leo and Luna. I just wanted to enjoy a comfortable cat life.”

Could it be that by being a cat, it forgot its own identity as a divine beast?

-Grrrr.

“What’s this growling?”

“It feels good when you pet me. So, master. Are you really going to cancel the cat tower? Treats too? I kept Siyeon well as you asked. Right? Didn’t I cleanly handle another bad human approaching?”

So she was hiding her speech because she didn’t want to be exploited by me?

“Come to think of it, you’re quite…”

“I didn’t want to do this!”

Baekseol flopped onto its back. In that position, its head remained fixed towards me.

Trying to appeal with its cuteness.

Miyaaaa!

I looked at Baekseol and let out a deep sigh. Shaking my head, I muttered,

“Well, that’s how it is.”

It can’t be normal when it’s right beside me.

I’ll let it slide this time because it’s cute and has hidden its communication abilities.

Instead, I’ll show it a taste of society.

“You’ll get treats, right? You’ll get a cat tower, right?”

“Oh, sorry. Actually, I didn’t put treats in the shopping cart.”

“Huh?”

“Same with the cat tower. I wasn’t ordering it, just thinking about ordering it.”

Baekseol quickly raised itself and put its front paws on my thigh.

“D-did you just lie to a divine beast?”

“Our Baekseol. You’re still young. That’s what society is like.”

“Do you have proof?”

“The Pope can’t lie!”

“I can lie sometimes.”

“I’ll tell Limen!”

“Limen’s been busy lately. Communication’s been hard. Go ahead and tell if you want. But when you do…you know, right? Hehe.”

I thought it would understand by now, but that was a big mistake.

“If it comes to that, I have my ways too!”

What methods could this little thing possibly have?

4.

You shouldn’t underestimate a kitten.

From the moment that thing started hiding what it could speak, I should have realized, but I didn’t know that a creature less than six months old could be that clever.

“Hyung, why do you have that look on your face?”

“…In-wook.”

“Yeah.”

“Order the highest quality churu and a cat tower I mentioned last time. I’ll pay with my card.”

“Didn’t you say you’d think about it for a bit? Why suddenly?”

“Siyeon wants it. She wants it as a condition for not eating snacks for a month…how could I refuse that? And one more thing. Be careful around Baekseol.”

In-wook’s eyes widened at my words.

“Baekseol? Why all of a sudden?”

“That thing might not be a kitten.”

“Explain it properly.”

“There’s something going on. Just understand roughly.”

I had expected the name of Limen to be sold, but I didn’t think that thing would go as far as to deceive Siyeon.

Moreover, the method of deception was incredible.

Siyeon was busy playing with her smartphone, and Baekseol approached her, pressing the buttons on the screen with a small jelly.

, .

Seeing the rare scene of Baekseol pressing the smartphone, Siyeon excitedly came over to me and said.

“Oppa! Baekseol said it needs homemade churu and a cat tower. Are you going to buy them?”

It was strange in itself that a cat was typing on a smartphone, but Siyeon seemed not to care.

It seemed that because of Baekseol’s usual behavior—suddenly appearing out of nowhere—Siyeon had already suspected that Baekseol was not an ordinary cat.

In the end, Baekseol got what it wanted by riding on Siyeon’s back.

It had noticed that I was weak to Siyeon’s requests.

I could still vividly remember Baekseol’s look earlier.

The look in its eyes, as it gazed at me from Siyeon’s arms, a look of a victor.

Had it not been for catching Lin Tao this time, I would have immediately started teaching it about hierarchy right there.

“Anyway, be careful around Baekseol, and keep an eye on things when you go out. Although you’ll probably stay home these days, I noticed someone got close to Siyeon today. The problem has been dealt with.”

At this, In-wook, who had been quietly eating an apple, suddenly jumped up and shouted.

“What? Who? Who got close to her? Did you catch them?”

“They came to confess to me directly.”

“Of course, it’s China, right?”

“Yeah.”

“You didn’t just let them go, right? With your personality, you’d at least make them half-paralyzed before sending them off!”

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen In-wook this worked up.

I, too, would have been more than happy to break Lin Tao’s waist earlier, so I completely understood him.

I leaned back on the couch and replied.

“Don’t worry. I handled it well.”

“So how did you handle it?”

“Leo and Luna took him. As soon as I mentioned that the guy was close to Siyeon, they arrived in less than a minute. Both of them had fierce looks on their faces. By now, they’re probably…in the underground of the temple.”

In-wook’s expression quickly relaxed.

“Yeah, that’s what I expect from you. You never disappoint in situations like this.”

“What? You’re not mad anymore?”

“Leo and Luna took him, right? Then I guess they’ll handle it.”

…What does In-wook think of our church leaders?

I made a slightly displeased face. After taking a bite of the apple, I said in a quiet voice.

“The person who gave that order is someone else.”

“What are you going to do with him?”

“What do you mean, what am I going to do?”

That person tried to harm my family.

How could I just let someone like that go?

“I’ll split them in half.”

I need to think about what exactly to split in half.

Where should I split them to make sure it’s done properly?