Please Stop The Pope

Chapter 114

They’re Not Bad People

1.

On the last day of January, when the heavy snowfall from the day before had yet to melt.

Despite the biting cold of -12°C, Kwon Dong-hyun, a porter with just two months of experience, had come to the site to earn his daily wage.

Today’s site was a large, C-rank gate that had appeared in the vast fields of Munsan-eup, Paju City. Naturally, Kwon Dong-hyun was filled with anxiety.

C-rank gates are supposed to be dangerous…

From C-rank and above, teams usually form their own porter groups or hire professional porter services. The reason was simple: safety concerns. Starting from C-rank, dangerous variables frequently arose.

For someone like Kwon Dong-hyun, who was a non-Awakened individual, a C-rank gate was undeniably burdensome. Yet, the reason he came here today was due to the recommendation of a younger acquaintance he had recently met, Mr. Yoo.

“Hyung-nim, something urgent came up, so I can’t go to this site. But I checked, and they said it’s fine to send a substitute. Go on my behalf, hyung-nim. Treat me later, yeah?”

At first, Kwon Dong-hyun couldn’t understand why Mr. Yoo said he owed him a treat. After all, every job site he’d been to so far treated day laborer porters poorly. On top of that, raids on cold days like this were particularly grueling.

However, after meeting a coordinator named “Team Leader Park Jeong-soo” at the site, his thoughts changed.

“We deeply appreciate your participation in the first solo raid of the Limen Order, even in this cold weather. Please put on these necklaces. They’ll ensure your safety during today’s raid.”

Team Leader Park handed out necklaces with small white gemstones embedded in them. Surprisingly, as soon as Dong-hyun put on the necklace, the cold disappeared.

And that wasn’t all.

The exhaustion accumulated in his body over the years melted away like snow, and his entire body felt energized.

It seemed the other porters around him were experiencing the same thing.

“I used to be a day laborer porter like all of you. So I understand your hardships better than anyone. While portering may not be a joyful job, I hope you can leave with a good memory, at least for today.”

Has there ever been a coordinator who treated him so kindly?

For day laborer porters, not being treated like slaves was a blessing. Some Awakened individuals even treated non-Awakened people like insects.

In fact, two weeks ago, during an E-rank dungeon raid, Dong-hyun was verbally abused to the point of humiliation by a hunter young enough to be his son.

In the midst of expecting such treatment, this unexpected kindness caught him off guard.

“Please relax here and wait until the gate has been completely cleared. I’ll check on you again shortly.”

Team Leader Park gave a polite bow and stepped away. Only then did the porters begin to talk among themselves.

Dong-hyun, unfamiliar with any of the faces, felt awkward, but soon, another porter standing nearby struck up a conversation.

“Did you win a spot too?”

“Win a spot…?” Dong-hyun tilted his head. “No, I’m just filling in for a younger friend who couldn’t make it.”

“Wow, you owe him big time! The competition for this job was 49-to-1, and he gave it to you? You’ve got yourself a real friend there.”

“…49-to-1? Are you saying that many people applied for a day laborer porter job?”

“Well, it’s a Limen Order site. Makes sense. Judging by how little you know, I guess you’re new to this?”

“Just two months in.”

At Dong-hyun’s response, the man nodded in understanding.

“Then no wonder you didn’t know. How should I explain this…? Oh! Look over there!”

The man pointed to a group of hunters walking by.

There were at least 50 of them.

Leading the group were hunters clad in shining white armor, followed by individuals dressed in tight black outfits who quietly trailed behind them.

“Hic!”

Overwhelmed by their sheer presence, Dong-hyun involuntarily hiccupped.

These hunters were in a league of their own compared to anyone he had seen before. Not only were they physically imposing, but their intense, predatory gazes seemed enough to haunt someone in their dreams.

“W-who are they?” Dong-hyun stammered, his voice trembling.

Unlike Dong-hyun, who was clearly intimidated, the man beside him replied with a familiar tone.

“Who else? They’re the new clergy members of the Limen Order.”

“…Clergy? Not gangsters…?”

“Hey, hey! Watch your mouth. How can you say such rude things about those who follow the will of God?”

Typically, the word “clergy” would conjure up images of Protestant pastors, Catholic priests, or Buddhist monks.

But the people in front of them defied every expectation of what “clergy” should look like.

“I thought the same as you when I first saw them, but my mind quickly changed.”

“Changed? How so…?”

“You’ll see.”

A hum filled the air as a gate suddenly formed in the sky. Moments later, green-skinned monsters—Orcs—began pouring out.

The sight of the orcs, their thick muscles covering their entire bodies, was intimidating enough.

However, Dong-hyun soon realized that none of the other porters seemed frightened. In fact, they looked as if they were eagerly anticipating a show, their eyes sparkling as they watched the Limen Order clergy.

“You’ll understand soon enough. Just watch quietly.”

At the man’s words, Dong-hyun turned his gaze forward.

There, the clergy of the Limen Order, who had just passed by, clasped their hands in prayer.

But only for a moment.

“Uraaaaaahhh!”

“Limen protects us!”

“Glory to Limen! Victory to us!”

Finishing their prayers in an instant, they each drew their weapons and charged toward the orcs at an incredible speed.

It was like a tsunami crashing down.

And that tsunami mercilessly swept through the unprepared orcs.

-Crack!

What followed was an outright scene of overwhelming violence.

Some used maces, others shields, and a few their bare fists.

As the orcs screamed, their heads were crushed one after another, the sound echoing all around.

While Dong-hyun stood frozen, staring blankly at the scene, the voice of the man next to him flowed into his ears.

“I feel like my head would be smashed to pieces if I ever did anything bad in front of them. Before I knew it, I started being cautious in everything I did, and I even began to regret all the wrongs I’ve done in the past…If they’re not clergy, then who is?”

“…I see. That makes sense.”

Without even realizing it, Dong-hyun found himself nodding in agreement.

2.

“Are you satisfied, Your Holiness?”

“There’s still a long way to go, but…at this level, they won’t get beaten up wherever they go.”

I nodded slowly as I watched our cute fledglings annihilate the orcs.

It was a battle that could aptly be described as a one-sided slaughter.

While the opponents were merely orcs from a C-rank gate, the fact that the first batch of recruits had only been in training for about two months made their growth rate remarkable.

“They can now handle C-rank gates without our help. Compared to other hunters, how strong are they?”

“At least upper C-rank. They’ve been sparring weekly with hunters from the Dokkaebi Guild and the Seolhwa Guild. Some of our recruits are already defeating B-rank hunters.”

“Those two, right?”

Even amidst the overwhelming onslaught, two particularly outstanding recruits stood out.

They were a familiar man and woman—part of the five individuals I personally recruited when divine power first appeared.

Choi Siwon and Shin Ahyoung.

True to their role as trainee paladins, they wielded maces and shields, tearing through the orcs’ formation without hesitation.

“Yes, that’s right. Their training results are the best, and they show the most refined movements in live combat. Their handling of divine power is smooth, and their balance as paladins is outstanding.”

“They’ve always had potential.”

I nodded slowly at Luna’s words.

As the first recruits to awaken divine power, they had started their training earlier than others. It was no surprise that they were excelling.

“What about the other three from the group of five?”

“They’re in the afternoon squad. Their skills are slightly behind the morning squad, but the difference isn’t significant. Would you like to see the afternoon squad later?”

I waved my hand dismissively at her suggestion.

“I have other plans in the afternoon, so I’ll pass. I don’t think it’s necessary.”

“I’m glad Your Holiness is satisfied.”

“The second batch of recruits will begin training in two weeks. This time, we’ve selected 200. Start identifying potential instructors from among the first recruits.”

I had heard from Director Kim that the number of divine-type players was growing slower than expected.

After the first week of divine power’s appearance, only one out of every 20 magic users awakened divine power.

Given that around 50,000 people awaken each year, this meant only about 2,500 would awaken divine powers annually.

Such a small pool inevitably led to fierce competition among religious organizations.

Still, our order was in a better position than others.

Why?

“This time, over 100 recruits are coming from Japan. Keep that in mind.”

We had the advantage of recruiting talent from Japan.

Thanks to the overwhelming impression I made during the Yamata no Orochi incident, the number of our followers in Japan had surged dramatically.

I was seriously considering building a second temple in Japan.

While it was standard practice to retain awakened individuals within their own countries, this recruitment had been finalized during the recent Korea-Japan summit.

“Korean and Japanese players can now freely move between the two countries. This includes divine-type players. The new recruits will train here for a year before returning to Japan.”

“Then they’ll become the backbone of the Japanese diocese?”

“Exactly. We can’t keep them in Korea forever.”

“Will the Japanese recruits integrate well with the Koreans? They don’t even speak the same language.”

She had a point.

Language barriers posed significant challenges to fostering unity.

But I wasn’t too concerned.

“That’s their problem. If they’re coming to train in Korea, they’ll have to learn Korean. It’s only fair, isn’t it? I’ve already arranged for Korean language instructors.”

“It sounds like they’ll end up fighting.”

“That’s true. I’ve told the Japanese recruits not to lose even at rock-paper-scissors.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

“Having rivals in front of you is excellent motivation. If used properly, it can be a good thing.”

That’s the essence of rivalry.

It pushes both sides to improve through relentless effort, creating a positive feedback loop.

Of course, if rivalry becomes too extreme, it can have negative consequences…but that’s something we can manage.

“If it looks like they’re about to brawl, I’ll discipline them with ‘the rod of love.’”

“‘The rod of love’?”

“Getting beaten equally and fairly might just help them bond.”

Luna fell silent for a moment, seemingly at a loss for words.

Then she clapped her hands and exclaimed in admiration.

“As expected of Your Holiness. I can’t even begin to match your creativity. How could such…a down-to-earth…no, a ‘brilliant’ idea come from the mouth of the Pope?”

“Want to see what true crudeness looks like?”

“Ahaha! My mistake, my mistake. Sorry!”

As Luna and I exchanged such banter, discussing our recruits’ battle performance, I felt the vibration of my smartphone in my pocket.

It was a call from Director Kim.

“Hello.”

-“Sir, I’m calling to confirm. The goodwill delegation welcome ceremony is scheduled for this afternoon. The Japanese delegation has already arrived in Korea, and the Chinese delegation has just boarded their flight.”

“6 PM at the Blue House, correct?”

-“Yes, that’s correct.”

“I’ll make sure to be on time. Luna won’t be attending, so I’ll bring Leo instead.”

-“As you wish, sir. I’ll see you later.”

“See you then.”

I ended the call with a wide grin, which didn’t go unnoticed by Luna.

“You look like you’re looking forward to this. Are you that excited?”

“Of course.”

Chinese, Japanese, and our own awakened players gathering for a joint welcome ceremony—how could I not be excited?

“Someone needs to stop you, Your Holiness.”

“That’s why I’m bringing Leo.”

“Pfft. Leo? Stop you? Funniest joke I’ve heard this year. I approve.”

Whether Luna laughed or not, one thing was certain.

“This is going to be fun.”

I couldn’t wait for 6 PM.