Please Stop The Pope

Chapter 77

There was a reason the sign was hanging.

Just a few steps into the underground market, and the atmosphere changed immediately.

Compared to the neat and orderly buildings outside, the interior was poorly maintained.

From discarded cigarette butts scattered everywhere to the faint smell of mugwort wafting through the air.

It wasn’t hard to identify the mugwort smell.

“I didn’t know marijuana was legalized in Korea while I was away.”

“Your Holiness, marijuana is still illegal.”

“Then what is that smell?”

“It’s probably marijuana. There have been rumors of drugs being circulated in the internal area. It wouldn’t be strange for illegal activities to happen here.”

Minsoo added an explanation, mentioning how all the MyTubers who had come here to report on the place had gone missing.

According to Minsoo’s story, it seemed that stronger substances than marijuana were likely being traded here.

Even though the government was weak, they wouldn’t just leave a place like this alone.

“This place is also technically under the jurisdiction of the Hive Guild.”

“Still, this is part of South Korea. Doesn’t it sound odd that the government can’t do anything?”

“I guess the role of the government has been severely reduced.”

Thinking back to President Seo personally coming to ask us for help, it made sense that a place like this could exist.

“Let’s set aside the government for a moment. You mentioned that the Hive Guild is in charge of security here, but isn’t it a little strange that they leave it so freely run?”

“The Hive Guild regularly sweeps through this area. In fact, they have captured many villains. The number of villains apprehended by guilds affiliated with the Guild Coalition is greater than those captured by the government.”

“This place smells fishy.”

In other words, it meant they might turn a blind eye to villains who cooperate with them.

Now that I thought about it, the privileges I had asked the government for didn’t seem excessive.

After all, it seems that the Guild Coalition had been doing it this way already, right?

I could understand why Aiden had been so pessimistic about the capabilities of the South Korean government.

“Brother Minsoo.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

“What do you think of those approaching from afar? They’ve been staring at us for a while now.”

A group of seven people was approaching us. Their staggered steps were accompanied by intense, overtly suggestive stares. The way they looked at us made me suspect their sexual preferences.

Minsoo briefly observed the strange group following us. Then, in a quiet voice, he spoke.

“They don’t seem very friendly. Do you think they might be dealing with magi…?”

“They’re not. They’re probably just here to start trouble. By the way, Brother Minsoo, you don’t know much about the internal areas here, do you?”

“I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize. Actually, this is perfect. Let’s hire a local guide while we’re at it. I’ve seen that in foreign slums, there are guides. I’m sure we can do the same here in South Korea.”

Shall we see what they have to say?

I waited, smiling, for them to reach us.

As expected, they stopped right in front of us.

Unlike the people in the outer area, they weren’t wearing masks, and their shocking appearances were fully exposed.

Especially the leader of the group—his face was particularly unusual.

His left cheek was covered with gruesome scars, and on the right side, there were strange symbols tattooed.

Anyone who saw his face would have been horrified on the spot, it was so shocking.

He scanned my and Minsoo’s entire bodies with bloodshot eyes. Then, in a raspy voice, he asked.

“Are you customers? Who did you make an appointment with?”

“Ah, is this a reservation-only place? You can’t come in without one?”

“Of course not! If you’ve come all the way here, it means you need something. We wouldn’t kick a precious guest out. So, what do you need? Drugs? Illegal modified weapons? Or people? If you need something, just tell me. As long as you pay, I can get anything.”

Their attitude toward treating us as guests was extremely rude.

The merchants in the outer area were at least polite in their solicitation, but here, if we refused their offer, it seemed like they would use force.

I could feel magic energy from all seven of them.

Two of them were A-class, and five were B-class.

This wasn’t a random group. Minsoo knew this too, and his nervousness was apparent.

“No need to worry. Even though my people may look rough, they’re really kind to guests.”

“What do you mean by ‘you can get for us’?”

“Since you’ve come this far, you must not be a rookie, right? Want a woman, a man? Just say it. I can tailor it to your every taste.”

The leader of the group slightly bent forward and said in a suggestive tone.

“I can make it a fantastic night for you. Heh, isn’t that why you came here?”

Alright, I got the vibe of this place.

So this is what it’s like.

I nodded slowly and stared at the man who had stepped forward.

Several wicked deeds floated over his head.

[Lists the evil deeds of player .]

[, , , etc. 24 cases]

I can’t tell you how happy I am that I have this awesome villain detection feature called .

Being able to confirm someone’s bad deeds was a great advantage. It allowed me to exclude innocent victims.

I smiled as I took out a black glove from my pocket.

“Fantastic night, huh? That’s exactly what I was hoping for. I came here to heat things up too.”

“Everyone who comes here is the same. No need to be shy. You’re my guest now. Mind taking off your mask? Let’s introduce ourselves. My name is…”

“Kang Jiwon, right?”

The moment I spoke his name out loud, Kang Jiwon’s previously smiling face contorted grotesquely. His subordinates, who had been grinning behind him, began drawing their weapons, threatening us.

Kang Jiwon also suddenly pressed a dagger to my neck.

The blue poison-coated dagger looked ready to pierce my throat any second.

“How do you know my name? You better answer. Are you from the government? Or…from somewhere else?”

“I’m really curious about what ‘somewhere else’ means.”

“Take off your mask.”

“I have weak lungs. Could you understand that?”

Hearing my cheeky response, one of his subordinates rushed toward me, enraged.

“This cocky bastard!”

The man ripped the mask off my face roughly.

The strap of the mask broke, and it fell to the ground, fully exposing my face.

I glanced at the fallen mask and said.

“My cute little sister gave me this mask because there’s a lot of fine dust today. Don’t you think that’s a bit much?”

But there was no reply.

Instead, the dagger that had been pressing against my neck began to tremble. The expression of Kang Jiwon, holding the dagger, was filled with disbelief.

“Kim…Siwoo?”

“I guess I’ve become quite famous. The orphanage director and now you. Looks like people recognize me right away. It seems being famous is a thing.”

I said this while gripping the dagger that was touching my neck. It immediately transformed into a small bead.

Shocked by the unexpected magic trick, Kang Jiwon froze in place, as did all the subordinates surrounding me.

“If things get noisy, it will be troublesome. You can cooperate, right, friends?”

They nodded desperately.

“Good. Folding in half is an experience you only get once in life. Enjoy it.”

With a cracking sound!

I folded the body of the man who had taken off my mask and gently smiled at Kang Jiwon.

“You’re going to have a fantastic night with me, so stay still. If you try to run, you know what will happen, right? I’ll crush your leg bones if you even take a single step.”

That’s how we acquired a useful guide and moved straight toward the place where the magical energy was felt.

It seemed like Kang Ji-won was far more influential in this field than I had thought.

“Everyone clears out when they see you.”

“I… I have quite a notorious reputation…”

“A reputation, huh.”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Perhaps it was because he had witnessed his subordinates being bent in half, his morale was quite high.

I punched Kang Ji-won in the head and asked Minsoo.

“Is he famous?”

“I remember him. Two-Face. He’s a villain who gained fame for being hired as a mercenary, participating in dungeon hunts, then killing his employer and taking the dungeon’s spoils and equipment. I didn’t expect to see him here.”

As expected, Minsoo was like a walking encyclopedia of awakened individuals.

Two-Face, huh.

For a villain, he sure had a fitting nickname.

“Maybe I should’ve split his face in two to match the name?”

“I’ll do whatever you say. Just, please…spare my life…”

“Don’t worry. I don’t kill people that easily. Quit the drama.”

There’s no way I’d kill someone so easily.

I punched him in the head again and stopped walking.

“Is this the place?”

It was a shabby three-story building.

It didn’t look special on the outside, but there was a strong magi aura emanating from the entire structure.

Especially, from the underground of the building, magi was still being released. And that magi was slowly starting to seep into the surrounding land.

Though there were multiple magical barriers in this area, they couldn’t deceive my senses.

“Hey, you know this place well. Do you know who’s using this building?”

“Th-these people, they’re from China. They’re doing business here, mainly selling smuggled goods…and drugs. They also sell drugs.”

“Is that all?”

“And people! They also buy people. Usually, they buy people who are deemed no longer useful. There are a few other places that buy people, but these guys offer the best prices. Even if the person is damaged, they’ll still buy them.”

“Damaged?”

“Yes, yes. It refers to people with health problems. Normally, in the human trafficking business, they sell organs to make a profit…”

“That’s ear-piercing.”

Crack-

I frowned as I shoved my fist into Kang Ji-won’s mouth. I then forcefully threw his shoulder back.

“Ugh! Ahhh…”

Kang Ji-won trembled in pain, but he couldn’t scream loudly.

All he could do was let out a muffled scream through the gap between his clenched teeth.

“This is just a preview. I’ll show you the main event later.”

The survival instinct in humans is truly remarkable, as even in the midst of suffering, they still try to escape.

Especially players, who have far superior physical abilities than regular people, so it was definitely necessary to make sure he wouldn’t try to escape.

So, after a moment of thought, I shattered his legs.

Crack.

It seemed like an open fracture, and his pants were stained with blood. At this point, he wouldn’t be able to run.

Minsoo, who had been watching, spoke with a pale face.

“It’d be better to just kill him…”

“The Pope shouldn’t kill people that easily. Life is precious, and it’s necessary to respect its value as much as possible. Even if someone is a villain, they shouldn’t be killed so easily. They should be given a chance to repent for their sins.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes. I’m just giving a little help to those who probably wouldn’t repent so easily. It’s a ‘good’ kind of pain, if you think about it that way.”

“…I see.”

“Exactly.”

It’s nice when someone understands quickly, like Minsoo.

I gave Minsoo a thumbs-up, then turned back toward the building.

There was no external staircase, and the building had an interior where you could only move between floors inside.

The only visible exit was the door on the first floor.

“Minsoo.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

“Stay here. It’s still a bit too much for you.”

They’re from China, and they buy people indiscriminately. Plus, I can feel magi.

The circumstantial evidence is clear.

Minsoo knew that he wasn’t quite ready to deal with people like them, so he reluctantly nodded.

“It won’t take long.”

“I understand.”

“Then.”

Confidently, I entered the building leaving Minsoo behind.

When I opened the door and stepped inside, the first floor appeared to be set up like a restaurant.

There were people sitting around, and right next to the counter, a woman was stationed.

She stared at me intently. In fact, everyone in the room was staring at me.

After a brief silence, the woman at the counter spoke in a trembling voice.

“The Black…Pope.”

I looked at her and smiled brightly. Then, I created a holy barrier around us and said,

“What’s the matter? Shouldn’t you be welcoming guests?”