ch40

[Chapter 40 - The Villain and the Cat Mom]

Darkness and White King sniffed the air. Today's mission was clear.

To find the culprit behind the trash piles and severed wires at Crown Villa.

And to find and punish the 'Cat Mom' behind it all.

"Stray cats and Cat Moms! Tremble in fear, for the great villain Grimoire is here!!"

As soon as I stepped out of the villa, I ran into some neighborhood women who recognized me and swarmed over.

"Oh my, Grimoire! You look so cute today~"

"Where are you going? What are those next to you? Are those real mice?"

"Where did you get the mice? They seem so well-trained."

To call this body 'cute'! How many times do I have to say it before they understand? And to call my subordinates just 'mice'!

I put as much dignity as possible into my voice and raised my chin high.

"These are not just mice, but my loyal subordinates! Darkness and White King! The best informants to join me in the first step of world domination!"

As soon as I said that, the women's eyes widened even more, and they looked at each other. They couldn't suppress their smiles.

"Oh my, you have such a vivid imagination~ Kids these days are really different."

"Yes, it's good to have big dreams!"

To have my great plan treated as mere imagination! My whole body heated up.

"Hmph! Just you wait! Someday, you'll all kneel before me and swear your allegiance!"

Leaving the women's laughter behind, I quickly walked away.

Right now, hunting the Cat Mom is the priority. I will deliver judgment to those who have invaded my territory!

There must be clues at the scene of the crime.

Turning the corner of the alley, I spotted clear scratch marks on the wall of a building. And a few strands of fur lying below. Obvious evidence.

I put my hands on my hips and stroked my chin. Grimoire detective mode activated!

"Hmm… very interesting. These are definitely traces of a monster… no, a cat of at least D-class!"

I examined the scratch marks on the wall from various angles. The spacing is about 5 centimeters, the depth is about 2 millimeters? Probably the claw marks of an adult cat.

"Three claw marks, a slightly tilted angle to the right… this is the attack pattern of the left front paw! The cat clearly marked its territory by scratching the wall!"

I could feel Darkness and White King exchanging glances. They even seemed to sigh.

"What is it? Do you think my reasoning is lacking? I went to the library a few days ago, so my INT has increased a bit! I have gained the power of knowledge needed for a villain!"

Sherlock Holmes, Professor Layton, and even Conan would have to take a step back in the face of my reasoning! I am a genius villain, after all!

"Now, my loyal subordinates! It's time to track down the culprit's trail! Follow me!"

I followed the scratch marks and fur up the alleyway.

New clues appeared in every alley. Traces of an overturned trash can, fur caught on a tree branch, faint footprints… I discovered them all with my detective senses!

Of course… Darkness and White King did help a little… but it's only natural for subordinates to help!

That fur caught on the tree branch, the small footprints left in the puddle… all the evidence pointed in the same direction.

"Behold! The traces of this overturned trash can! Judging by the angle and the direction of the scattered contents… it's clear that the cats moved from here to there! Kakat! All the evidence is telling me the truth!"

It felt like everything in the world was helping me. Of course, it would! I am the center of the world, after all!

Squeak-squeak-

Darkness suddenly stopped and pointed ahead. White King also stared ahead with sharp eyes.

"What is it? Did you find something?"

Following the direction of the mice, I moved a few steps further through the narrow alley, and a small open space came into view.

A space filled with cheap feed in plastic bags, bedding made of old clothes, and makeshift cat houses made of styrofoam. Water bowls and sandboxes used as makeshift toilets were scattered everywhere.

And most of all… more than 10 different cats were occupying the open space.

Orange, black, white, striped… big and small cats were gathered together, playing or napping.

"I've found the culprit's hideout! My reasoning is always right!"

Startled by my words, the cats all turned their heads and glared at me. Yellow eyes gleamed.

"You insignificant creatures! Are you the ones who scattered trash and chewed on wires at Crown Villa?"

The cats didn't move at my shout, they just stared with lazy eyes.

Meow-

A black cat yawned widely.

These rude little things! Daring to greet the great villain with a yawn!

At that moment, I heard someone's voice from behind.

"Yes, Mr. President. I'm volunteering for the poor Street Angels today. Of course, the donation receipt is… what? What did I buy with the last donation? I used it for the cats' medical expenses, of course… Oh, it's time to feed them, I'll hang up now."

The owner of the voice was a plump middle-aged woman with excessive makeup and a fake designer coat.

She was walking into the open space with a large bag of feed.

"My babies~ Were you hungry? Mommy brought you something delicious~"

Sniff… a strange perfume smell stung my nose.

Is that the Cat Mom? The culprit who disturbed the peace of Crown Villa?

I cleared my throat and confidently took a step forward.

"So, you're the Cat Mom who dares to defile my territory!"

The woman turned in my direction, startled. For a moment, she stared at me silently.

Of course! She must be overwhelmed by the majesty of the great villain!

"Oh my, what a cute child! And with horns!"

Wh… what? Did she just call this great villain 'cute'?

"I'm not cute! I'm a fearsome villain! There's something wrong with your eyes!"

I put all my effort into making a fearsome expression. I narrowed my eyes, bared my teeth, and growled.

But the woman showed even more interest and approached me.

"Are those horns real? Are you… like a cow?"

'A cow…? Daring to compare this body to livestock?'

"What? What? Are you calling me a cow? I am the great villain Grimoire! The ruler of this world with the King's DNA!"

She ignored my protests and gave me a friendly smile.

"My name is Park Ji-young. I'm the mother of these children. I'm an animal rights activist for Street Angels."

Her gaze turned to the mice beneath my feet.

"Are you… walking them? You like animals too!"

Treating my great subordinates as pets to be walked!

"These are my loyal subordinates, Darkness and White King! Not pets!"

"Your subordinates? Rats…?"

"Yes, they are my intelligence unit! The cornerstone of my world domination plan! Their abilities are beyond the imagination of a mere human like you!"

"Ah… so that's the setting? Then let me introduce you to our cats."

Park Ji-young reached out and gently stroked a black cat.

"This one is 'Night'. I found him in a trash can three months ago. He's been neutered and vaccinated. The striped one next to him is 'Tiger'. He hurt his leg, and after I treated him, he wouldn't leave my side. The hospital bill alone was 380,000 won."

I waved my hand, pretending to be indifferent, but they were quite cute for stray cats.

What, is this woman only collecting cute ones? No way, that can't be it, right?

"That one with the white fur is 'Coco'. Someone deliberately abandoned her. She was left in a box on a cold winter day. That calico is 'Mimi'. She was a baby who lost her mother in a traffic accident. After taking them in one by one, I'm already spending over 100,000 won a month on feed alone, you know?"

100,000 won? For over ten cats? Hmm… shouldn't she be feeding them better feed?

"So what? What does that have to do with me!"

I crossed my arms irritably. What does this woman want? Sympathy? Villains don't need that!

Park Ji-young's eyes suddenly sharpened.

"Yeah, just like you, other people aren't interested in Street Angels. They hate cats normally, but when a cat video comes up, they act all 'poor thing' and pretend to be sympathetic."

There was a sharp anger in her voice.

"These children have nowhere to go. If someone doesn't take care of them, they'll starve to death or be abused. They're our neighbors too!"

Then a small cat approached. One eye was blind and unfocused, and there were traces of tears on its ears.

"This child is 'Lucky'. Some kids hit him in the head with a tree branch and he lost one eye."

Lucky…? Doesn't seem very lucky….

He rubbed his nose against my fingertips. The sensation was strangely warm.

"The fur… the fur is soft…"

"Of course! I groom them every day with a special brush."

Park Ji-young suddenly felt a sense of kinship and moved closer to me.

"People don't understand cats. How special cats are…"

The Cat Mom took out a strangely shaped cat treat from a small paper bag and held it out to me.

The color was strangely fluorescent, so I doubted whether it was safe to feed them.

"It's perfect timing. This is a special treat for our children. I researched and made it myself. Would you like to give it a try?"

"You feed them this…?"

"Why? It's my special treat. The cats really love it. Come on, my babies~ Come and eat something delicious~ The most delicious treat in the world~"

But then something strange happened.

Instead of going to Park Ji-young, the cats began to gather around my feet one by one.

"Wh… what? What are you doing? Are you ignoring your mom now?"

Park Ji-young's face twisted with embarrassment.

Even though she was holding the treats, the cats ignored her.

"Come to Mommy? Listen to Mommy? I'll give you delicious treats~?"

The cats still came towards me.

Soon everyone gathered around my feet and rubbed against me. Some even lay down and exposed their bellies.

"Hmm, are you submitting to me? As expected, the charisma of a villain cannot be hidden!"

"That's strange. Our children don't usually react like this to strangers… What are you?"

Her voice became strangely sharp.

"Yeah, it's perfect! Maybe… would you consider adopting one of these children?"

The topic suddenly changed.

"What? You want me to raise a cat?"

"Yes! These children will be happy with a special child like you."

She suddenly switched to business mode.

"The adoption fee is 300,000 won per cat. Of course, that includes the cost of neutering, vaccinations, and medical treatment."

"What? You have to pay to adopt?"

"Of course! Do you know how much it costs to raise these children? Feed, treats, hospital bills… I'm taking care of it all out of my own pocket.

Her fake designer bag and excessive makeup suddenly caught my eye.

"Actually, I was looking for a responsible adopter. I'll give you a discount on the adoption fee to 250,000 won. But the responsibility fee of 100,000 won is separate."

"What? Then that's a total of 350,000 won. That's not a discount!"

"The responsibility fee is mandatory. It's like a deposit to make sure you don't neglect or abandon the child after adoption."

"Oh… so if I raise the cat well later, will I get it back?"

"Give it back? No, not really…"

"Wait a minute, being responsible means not abandoning it. If you raise the cat well, shouldn't you get it back?"

Her eyes wavered with embarrassment. A loophole was exposed in my logical attack!

"Th, th-that's… that's just industry jargon. It's called a 'responsibility fee' because it's the cost of taking responsibility for the cat. If I give away cats without a responsibility fee, an irresponsible person might take the cat? So it's to weed out people who are really serious about cats to the point that they can pay the responsibility fee."

"Ah, so the responsibility fee measures responsibility? The more money you pay, the more responsible you are?"

This was a clear contradiction. I remembered the logic trick Evelyn had taught me when I interrogated White King in court yesterday.

"But is there any proof that having a lot of money means having a lot of responsibility? Maybe someone without money would cherish them more?"

Park Ji-young was momentarily speechless. Confusion spread across her face.

"That's... that's..."

"Isn't the responsibility fee just a different name for the adoption fee? That's double-dipping!"

My question sliced through her argument like a sharp sword.

In professional terms, a devastating blow! To me, logic is murder!

Grimoire's evolved thinking! I was proud of how much I had grown.

"W-Well, anyway! It's for these kids! If you're going to raise a cat, this much is obvious! Oh, and I need to visit your home once a week. I need to check if you're raising them properly."

Home visit? Is she trying to get information about my hideout?

"I'm a villain! I have no intention of raising animals! Minions are a different story!"

"Oh, and we need a contract."

She ignored me and took out a stack of documents from her bag. The contract was quite thick for just adopting a cat.

"What's this?"

"The adoption contract. If you sign here, you can take Lucky."

I skimmed through the documents. The letters were too small and dense. Some parts were so small and faint that they were almost unreadable.

"Wait, I need to see what's written first..."

"Sign first. Then you can check the contents. It's a device to protect our children."

"I'm not falling for that trick! You should always read the contract first! Evelyn said you have to check all the clauses before signing a contract! How dare you try to trick me with such a cheap scam!"

Park Ji-young's face twisted for a moment. The friendly smile from just now disappeared, replaced by a cold expression.

"So, you're not thinking of adopting?"

"Of course not! I'm a villain who will conquer the world! I don't need a cat! Besides, Darkness and White King are already in my hideout!"

"Then why did you come here? You wasted my time! Don't touch our babies carelessly! If you don't really intend to adopt!"

The reason I came here... that's right!

"Your cats rummaged through the trash and cut the wires in our villa! How are you going to take responsibility!"

As soon as the word 'responsibility' came out, Park Ji-young's face turned cold in an instant. The friendliness from a moment ago was nowhere to be found.

"My children would never do such a thing. Do you have any proof?"

"Clearly... uh... footprints..."

"Probably other cats. My children are well-educated."

She whistled, and the surrounding cats gathered around her at once.

"See? My children are so well-trained. They would never rummage through the trash or bite the wires. Besides, you shouldn't judge cats according to human standards. They are also neighbors living together. Cats also have freedom."

"What?"

I was furious for a moment. There was a crucial contradiction in her argument!

"You were asking for money for adoption fees and responsibility fees earlier, and now you're talking about freedom? Isn't feeding them the same as raising them in the first place? Why aren't you taking responsibility?"

"That's... that's to protect the children..."

"Is it protection? Or is it making money?"

My genius brain caught the loophole!

The villain trial with the mice last time was helpful.

Evelyn said, 'If you find a contradiction in the opposing side's argument, you can win!'

"Anyway! Please stop bothering our children and leave? I don't want the children to get stressed."

"Are you kicking me out now?"

She was logically defeated, so she was trying to run away. A cowardly attempt to not admit defeat!

"Take good care of your cats! If they invade my territory one more time, I won't forgive you! Darkness, White King! Let's go!"

I declared boldly and left the vacant lot. When I turned around, Park Ji-young was bending down to the cats and whispering something. That figure was somehow suspicious.

"Isn't something a little strange?"

Darkness and White King nodded.

Squeak-squeak-

"That lady is hiding something? I think so too. But even so, she's just a strange lady who raises a lot of cats."

Yeah, she's just a vicious Cat Mom who's blinded by money.

"I told her off sharply, so she'll definitely be scared and take good care of the cats!"

[TL: Our Grimoire has become so smart now]

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