Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: The Mayor and the Cat Moms
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BAM!
The heavy mahogany desk in the mayor's office let out a dull scream as it took my fist.
And my right hand screamed right along with it.
"Ow ow ow!"
A stinging pain reverberated through me. Vivid agony.
Damn it. Why is this thing so sturdy? Guess expensive desks really are different.
What got hurt was my fragile hand... and my shattered pride.
Clutching my trembling hand, I chewed over my rage once more.
Humiliation. Degradation. Mortification.
Me, Lee Garam. Mayor of Neo Incheon. The nominal top authority in this city.
And yet, I got surrounded by some street cat moms and forced into a strategic retreat.
Of course, cats are cute.
I have to admit that.
Especially that calico who purred under my touch. That seductive little creature.
Its soft fur, warm body heat, the rough texture of its tongue.
Ah. Just thinking about it melts my heart.
That little guy is innocent.
It was just there, faithfully fulfilling its cuteness duties.
Yeah. Cats just live their lives.
The problem, as always, is humans.
People who use cats as shields to feed their twisted possessiveness and need for validation.
Hypocrites who dodge responsibility while claiming their rights.
That's right. The Bupyeong Cat Moms Alliance.
I clenched my fist again. Left hand this time.
And raised it to smash the desk agai... nah. Pain sucks.
"Grrr...!"
Infuriating. So damn infuriating.
To tuck tail and run from cat moms. From a bunch of ajummas!
This wasn't just a humiliation for me, Lee Garam—it was an insult to the entire administrative power of Neo Incheon.
Fine. You wanna play it like that?
"How dare you cause a scene right in front of the mayor?"
I swung my fist at the empty air.
"Hey, you cat mom bastards! Don't move a muscle! I'm bringing the tanks... no, the Special Task Force right now to blow all your food bowls to hell!"
That's right. The Special Task Force.
I have the city's direct anti-villain elite unit, the Special Task Force, at my command.
Those cat mom nobodies? One elite Task Force member could handle them with ease.
I shot to my feet and stormed out of the mayor's office.
Target: the Special Task Force command room in the city hall basement.
My footsteps echoed through the hallway with grim determination.
I'm not heading out for personal revenge right now.
Absolutely not.
This is the sacred duty of the mayor to restore the dignity of public authority and the order of the city.
Yeah. This is official business. A public mission.
Definitely not some pathetic mayor slinking back after getting embarrassed by cat moms and sending out his private army in a fit of rage.
I threw open the door to the Task Force command room.
Dozens of monitors displayed spots all over Neo Incheon, and a few agents bustled about.
A young agent sorting files near the entrance spotted me and saluted.
"Sir! Mayor, what brings you here?"
"Ah, uh, good work."
I replied in as calm and dignified a voice as I could muster.
Now, how to broach this.
'I almost got jumped by cat moms in Bupyeong villa town, so help me out.'
No way. I'd die of embarrassment.
The mayor's dignity would hit rock bottom.
I'm Lee Garam. The crouching dragon. The king dragon. Neo Incheon's dark knight.
Yeah. I need a justification.
A public, reasonable, irrefutable cause.
"Hmm... How's security in Bupyeong lately?"
"Bupyeong, sir? No special reports."
"Really? That's weird. I just did some on-site welfare checks. In... a villa town in Bupyeong, I spotted a really dangerous-looking group."
I continued with the gravest expression I could manage.
"A group made up entirely of ajummas... er, women. They were swarming around, creating an intimidating atmosphere. Looked like they had minor superpowers too. The residents were terrified. Needs urgent patrol and action."
The young agent tilted his head at my plausible explanation.
"A superpowered group of just women? You mean the 'Bupyeong Cat Moms Alliance,' sir?"
"How'd you know that?"
"Oh, they're famous. They clash with residents sometimes, get complaints, but it's mostly minor stuff, not worth our direct intervention..."
Damn. Already on their radar.
Plan's hitting a snag.
"What else, Mayor?"
A cold voice came from deeper in the command room.
The woman with the will of steel. The incarnation of principle and justice.
Special Task Force Commander Kang Jiyeong.
She eyed me sideways, arms crossed.
"What weird errand are you trying to send my agents on this time? That last one with Sugar Girl or whatever villain was already way out of line."
Ugh. Still holding that grudge?
It ended up a huge win with Hearts and Minds, but yeah, the process wasn't exactly clean.
"No, Commander Kang. Misunderstanding. This isn't some personal errand. It's legitimate public business."
"Public business?"
Kang Jiyeong snorted.
Her distrustful gaze stabbed at my conscience.
"I don't recall ever seeing real 'public business' from you, Mayor. Though you've been different lately..."
"This one's real too! Bupyeong Cat Moms Alliance, right? They're dangerous. I saw it myself."
I approached her and lowered my voice.
"They're not just some animal lovers' club. They're practically a mob outfit. 'Alliance'? Suspicious name, right? Good citizens don't go with something that thuggish."
"Sounds like a hobby club name."
"They move like an organization, claiming territories! Threaten outsiders en masse and extort money! I almost got hit myself!"
Kang Jiyeong's eyebrow twitched slightly.
Good. She's reacting.
"It's true! They demanded money over nonsense like 'cat food fees' and 'responsibility costs' just for petting one! Straight-up extortion!"
I ramped up the heat, exposing the cat moms' true nature to her.
"And think about it! All those cats in that cramped villa town? Hundreds of them. Where'd they come from? Stolen? Or breeding them illegally to sell? Could be an animal trafficking ring!"
My imagination took flight, soaring endlessly.
The Cat Moms Alliance instantly morphed into a criminal cartel threatening Neo Incheon's peace.
"......"
Kang Jiyeong stared at me silently for a moment.
Her face was still full of doubt, but she seemed a tad intrigued by my absurd claims. The superpowered group aspect had piqued her vigilance.
"Even so, they're just cat moms. Not something for the Task Force."
"Not just cat moms!"
I decided to target her by-the-book nature.
Law and principle are the core of the giant that is Kang Jiyeong!
"The real issue is most members are superpowered. Low-rank, sure, but groups like that flaunting power blatantly violates Neo Incheon ordinances, right?"
"Superpowered group?"
As expected, her eyes grew more serious.
Her mind was probably fact-checking my claims at full speed.
She knew 90% was bluff and exaggeration, of course.
But that remaining 10%.
'Superpowered group' and 'suspicious circumstances.'
That sliver of truth was enough to stir her investigative instincts.
Kang Jiyeong let out a long sigh.
"...Understood."
She finally spoke.
"We should check if your concerns are valid."
Yes! It worked!
I cheered inwardly.
"Right! Then deploy the Task Force now and raid their feeding station, er, hideout...!"
"Not my men."
Kang Jiyeong cut me off firmly.
"Can't waste valuable personnel on the mayor's curiosity. I'll go myself. I'll swing by before patrol tomorrow."
***
The next day.
Neo Incheon's mornings were as hectic as ever.
The roar of vehicles on the skyways, breaking news of yet another villain incident.
But today was different.
I was in the passenger seat, not the back of my usual luxury official car.
And the icy chill radiating from the driver's seat next to me, like forged steel.
"Do I really have to handle something like this?"
Commander Kang Jiyeong in the driver's seat exhaled an aura that was hard to tell if it was a sigh or murderous intent.
I ignored her displeasure and pretended to admire the scenery outside.
"Of course, Commander. This is a major issue tied directly to public safety. The mayor checked the site himself and recognized the danger. Task Force action is the natural follow-up, isn't it?"
"The Task Force isn't so idle we can run cat mom sweeps."
"Poor word choice. 'Cat mom sweep'? We're investigating a suspected illegal superpowered group and preemptively removing threats to citizen safety. How rational and public-spirited."
That's right. Not revenge.
This is upholding justice.
Definitely not some petty emotion boiling over from yesterday's humiliation!
The car turned into the familiar alley of Bupyeong's villa town.
The moment we stepped out, a familiar silhouette appeared.
Burly build, flashy nails, and that face twisting into a sneer of contempt and mockery at the sight of me.
The leader of the Bupyeong Cat Moms Alliance.
"Oh my, isn't this the punk who ran off after getting scolded yesterday? Brought a shiny ride today, huh? Got the money?"
One by one, the cat mom legion from yesterday emerged behind her.
Fools. Walking right into their own graves.
"Money?"
I'm not yesterday's me. Now I'm a fox with a tiger on my back.
"No. Here to enforce the law."
"What're you babbling about, you psycho?"
Her ridicule drew giggles from the cat mom legion.
Shing—
The cat mom leader's nails extended with a sound, sharp like a cat's claws, about 30 cm long.
"Last time, we were nice and just talked."
Beside her, another cat mom sparked lightning or small flames from her palm.
Each with D-rank or E-rank minor powers. Clumsy, but terrifying enough for civilians.
"Strays are precious lives, right? Touch 'em carelessly, you take responsibility. Ten million won oughta do it? If you wanna go home in one piece~"
They still hadn't clocked the situation.
"Commander Kang."
Click.
The passenger door opened, and she stepped out.
Her combat boot hit the ground first.
Crisp movement. Not a hint of hesitation in her stride.
A heavy thud, and the cat moms' laughter cut off dead.
Then her Task Force uniform came into view.
Square shoulders, flawless lines without a wrinkle.
The black uniform exuded overwhelming pressure.
Finally.
The insignia pinned there.
The silver Task Force emblem gleamed with a crane and three stars etched clearly.
The symbol of Neo Incheon's strongest law enforcement—besides the Hero Association—their top commander.
Special Task Force Commander. Kang Jiyeong.
A character with real weight even in the original story.
The woman the Hero Association tried to scout with S-rank treatment.
The superhuman top corporations wooed with astronomical salaries.
But she turned them all down for her conviction to protect the citizens, staying on as a steadfast city employee. Guardian of steel.
"So the unauthorized superpowered group is real? Supers banding together to exert force violates Neo Incheon ordinances outright."
The sneers on the cat moms' faces froze solid.
Now they get it. Who they've messed with!