Please Stop The Pope

The next morning.

“Si-yeon, is this really your wish?”

“Yeah! Do you not like taking me to school, big brother?”

“It’s not that… It’s just a bit.”

“Ey, Shi Yu. Si-yeon isn’t asking for something expensive or difficult. Is it that hard to take your sister to her place of learning?”

“That’s right, Your Holiness. It’s not that difficult, is it?”

“No, I’m fine with taking her to school. I like it, but it’s just…”

I trailed off and looked around.

It was because of the burning gazes I had been feeling for a while.

Many people were looking at us and whispering. From elementary school students to middle and high school students in uniforms, and even adults who seemed to be on their way to work.

The gazes of everyone around us were focused on us.

“Wow! Aren’t those people the ones?”

“You’re right, that’s them.”

“Is that tall mister Folder-jwa? He really looks like he can fold people well.”

“Isn’t that noona really pretty? Wow, I’ll have to brag about this at school today. Do you think I can ask to take a picture with them?”

Anyone would think a famous idol group had come.

I smiled awkwardly at their attention pouring in from all directions.

And I looked at Si-yeon, but I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“Pfft.”

“What is it, big brother? Is there something on me?”

“Nothing, Si-yeon just looks extra cute today.”

Si-yeon’s shoulders were slightly raised. It was the so-called shrugging state.

Moreover, her expression was bright, so she seemed to be in a really good mood.

Last night, before eating pork belly, Si-yeon had made this request to me.

「Si-yeon: Take me to school together with big brother, Leo oppa, and Luna unnie. Yesterday at school, the kids were watching MeTube videos with you guys and Luna unnie, so I told them those people are our family members. But a boy named Choi Sung-hyun told me not to lie! He said everyone knows your big brother is missing, and asked if I like attention that much. He even curses and hits other friends! Bullies them! He’s really a bad kid.」

「Me: Hmm, so you want to go to school with your oppa?」

「Si-yeon: Yeah!」

「Me: Okay. But you don’t need your little brother to come along?」

「Si-yeon: Yeah!!」 (TN: Poor In Wook lol)

…End of last night’s flashback.

Back to the present, there were a few additional orders this morning.

They were,

“I should have said I washed my priestly robes.”

“It’s sanctified cloth, so there’s no need to wash it. And you couldn’t have avoided being noticed because of me anyway. There’s a saying on Earth, if you can’t avoid it, enjoy it! How about you try enjoying this attention too, Your Holiness?”

Leo and I will wear priestly robes.

And Luna will wear that ‘flashy armor!’.

These two things.

Before I could even think about it, Luna and Leo immediately agreed, and as a result, this spectacle unfolded.

To be honest, the attention wasn’t very burdensome.

Even in Eden, people would come running wherever we appeared, shedding tears of joy. Compared to that, this level of attention is on the cute side.

And I was also someone who liked attention, so it wasn’t embarrassing or anything.

It’s just,

“It’s troublesome. Just troublesome…”

I simply didn’t want my peaceful morning to be disturbed.

However, I soon had no choice but to regret saying it was troublesome.

“Big brother. I’m sorry… I made an unnecessary request…”

Si-yeon started sniffling while looking at me.

“Si-Si-yeon. It’s not that taking you is troublesome, your oppa is just…”

“Si-yeon, come to unnie.”

Luna lightly hugged Si-yeon and looked at me. Then she said with a gleeful expression,

“To so mercilessly trample on your only sister’s request. You cold-blooded.”

“I also think Shi Yu was wrong this time.”

Seeing even Leo taking their side, it was clear they both had it in for me.

I glared at both of them alternately, but soon sighed and gave up.

Just as I was fidgeting while looking at Si-yeon,

Si-yeon, who had been rubbing her face against Luna’s armor, suddenly turned her head.

“It’s Choi Sung-hyun.”

As soon as I heard those words, I looked to where Si-yeon’s gaze was directed.

There, a boy around Si-yeon’s age with a backpack was blankly staring at us.

A slightly dazed expression.

Si-yeon didn’t miss this opportunity and ran towards the boy. Then, with a truly ‘smug’ expression, she said,

“I told you, right? They’re my family.”

“It, it was true? The kids said your big brother went missing. Are they just… just cosplayers? You paid them to do this!”

“No! They’re really my brothers!”

“No, I absolutely don’t believe it!”

Kids these days are really scary.

I didn’t know they would know other people’s personal information inside out. And perhaps because they watch a lot of dramas or movies, their imagination is quite rich too.

I didn’t expect them to even make the inference of hiring paid actors. This impudent kid.

I leisurely approached the boy named Choi Sung-hyun. And I bent my knees for a moment to meet his eyes.

“So you’re the bas… I mean, friend named Sung-hyun. Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Shi Yu. Si-yeon’s big brother.”

“Hello…”

“Yeah, Sung-hyun. It’s nice that you have a bright greeting. But do you know who I am?”

Then the boy answered in a voice like an ant crawling.

“The Black… Pope.”

“Oh, you do know well. Then do you know who those two people behind me are?”

“Folder-jwa and Noona…”

For reference, Luna’s nickname is simply Noona. It was a nickname given because if you apply the initial sound rule to Luna, it becomes Noona.

I nodded my head satisfactorily at Sung-hyun’s kind answer.

And I quietly brought my mouth close to his ear and whispered in a very small voice.

“I don’t know who you heard from that Si-yeon’s big brother went missing… but if you talk to my sister like that one more time, your hyung can’t stand it, okay? You know how nicely Leo folds people, right?”

Nod nod.

Sung-hyun, nodding his head desperately.

I can acknowledge his quick-wittedness.

“That guy Leo folds children even better. Children are small and soft, you see. Sung-hyun, you’re quick-witted, so you roughly understood what your hyung said, right?”

“Y-yes!”

“Yeah, if you understood, that’s enough. It’s nice that kids these days are so smart. When you go to school, make sure to tell your friends what your hyung told you, and ah, you also know what happens if you tattle on your hyung to your parents, right?”

Nod nod nod.

Usually, fists are scarier than the law. The reason I’m being so petty to a mere 3rd grader is not simply because he made things difficult for me.

This is all a stinging admonition as an adult hoping he doesn’t go down the wrong path.

…Or not.

Anyway, Sung-hyun, who had been stingingly disciplined by me, immediately turned to Si-yeon and bowed his head several times.

“I’m sorry for bullying you! I won’t do it again! Please forgive me! S-see you at school!”

With those words, Sung-hyun turned around and started running at full speed.

I satisfactorily watched the boy’s quickly receding back. And I said to Si-yeon with a slight smile,

“How was it? Your oppa did well, right?”

Then Si-yeon raised her thumb and smiled brightly.

“As expected, my big brother is the best!”

“Then will you forgive oppa’s slip of the tongue earlier?”

“Of course!”

With that brief happening over, we started going to school with Si-yeon again.

It was a school commute that made me realize that my Limen Denomination had truly become famous now.

Until we returned home after dropping Si-yeon off at school, we attracted crowds wherever we went.

Someone requested an autograph, and someone asked to take a picture.

I wonder if this is the life of celebrities.

It was by no means a bad thing that many people recognized us.

It was an opportunity to spread the name of Limen to as many people as possible.

As a result, the school commute that would have only taken 20 minutes round trip turned into 2 hours, and by the time we finally arrived home, Leo and I were already in a state of mental exhaustion.

“Earth is such a fun place. To become this famous in an instant! It took a long time in Eden. Don’t you think so, Your Holiness?”

“…Yeah.”

“I guess I should have been born on Earth. It suits me.”

Of course, those words didn’t apply to Luna, who could be called the hottest ‘Noona’ in South Korea right now.

Luna’s face was full of vitality.

They say stars are born, and that saying is spot on.

I’d rather pull out the heads of demonic beasts than deal with people.

“Hyung. What the hell were you doing outside?”

In Wook, who had fallen into a deep sleep after drinking two glasses of soju last night, came out to the living room with a smartphone in his hand.

Then he soon handed me his smartphone, and the screen contained an article with familiar photos.

-(Photo) Kim Shi Yu, the ‘Black Pope’ of the Limen Denomination, warmly hugging a young elementary school student.

-(Photo) ‘Noona’ Luna Lebenthon gladly taking pictures with approaching fans.

-(Photo) ‘Folder’ Leo Lumen performing paper folding in front of people.

Let’s see, the first photo is of me threatening Choi Sung-hyun in his ear earlier.

The second photo shows Luna forcibly taking the smartphones of male students and taking pictures.

The third photo is of Leo folding paper with colored paper purchased from a stationery store when someone asked him to show a ‘folding’ show.

I don’t know when they were taken, but judging from the composition of the photos, it’s no ordinary skill.

They must have been taken by professional paparazzi.

Although the meaning was seriously distorted.

I checked those photos and then handed the smartphone back to In Wook.

“As you can see.”

“Weren’t you just dropping Si-yeon off at school? But you went in such flashy outfits?”

“Don’t misunderstand. Si-yeon directly requested it. I was against it at first.”

“Hmm, is that so? If Si-yeon said so, then I guess that’s how it is.”

This guy, if I had said I voluntarily wore it and went out, he would have definitely had something to say.

From now on, it might be good to solve In Wook’s nagging through Si-yeon.

“I think we would have attracted attention even if we hadn’t gone out dressed like that.”

“Why?”

“Think about it, hyung. A white male with a stature easily exceeding 190cm, a white female who makes anyone turn their head at least once, and an Oriental male with a sturdy physique in between them. Do you think this combination is that common? We already became famous because of the terrorist incident yesterday, so there’s no way people wouldn’t recognize us.”

Now that I think about it, he’s right.

We just didn’t realize it because we haven’t been going to crowded places lately, but it’s no exaggeration to say that we are currently the most famous trio in South Korea.

The fact that paparazzi, who usually follow celebrities, immediately posted our photos was proof of that.

“But In Wook.”

“Yeah.”

“I noticed earlier that the search results were from searching my name on the portal site. Why were you searching for hyung’s name there in the morning?”

It was a question I asked jokingly, but In Wook’s answer was unexpected.

“I sometimes search because I wonder if it’s a dream that you came back.”

Normally, I would have said what nonsense he was spouting in a cheesy way, but In Wook’s expression as he said that was as serious as it could be. So I was at a loss for words.

This kid sometimes takes my words away like this.

He doesn’t need to make such a serious expression when saying things like that. Come to think of it, In Wook is also quite strange at times.

But perhaps realizing that it was a slightly cringy comment, In Wook coughed a few times.

And as if it was nothing, he asked me,

“Are you going to work at the temple today too, hyung?”

“Yeah. We have to pick up Grandma tomorrow, so I need to finish things in advance today.”

I had been running around outside too much lately, so I couldn’t take care of what was truly important.

“I need to solidify the foundation of the denomination a bit.”

“Foundation?”

“There’s such a thing.”

[There are currently unused and remaining.]

[For smooth progress, it is recommended to use them quickly.]

The sacred points I had accumulated little by little, and the sacred relic points I had obtained by defeating the otherworldly deity last time.

I closed the message window that appeared before my eyes and smiled slightly. And looking at In Wook, I said,

“Cheat keys should be used when they can be used. Right?”