How a Salaryman Became an Underworld Boss

“Oppa, where did you get this cat?”

If I told her that it was a wildcat, my younger sister would probably faint in terror.

“Chairman Park asked me to keep him for about two weeks.”

“So you went to Chairman Park’s place just to pick up a cat?”

“Well, among other things.”

“But isn’t he way too big for an ordinary cat? And if you look closely, his eyes are kind of fierce and predatory.”

At that moment, something no one expected happened. The wildcat deftly jumped out of my arms, walked over to my sister, and began rubbing affectionately against her legs. Hyeonji instantly melted at the display of affection, called him adorable, and started stroking his head.

‘This little rascal definitely understands human speech. Smart, and he even knows how to pretend to be a house pet...’

The beast’s charm was so overwhelming that anyone who wasn’t completely cold-hearted would instantly let down their guard. While I was thinking about it, my sister suddenly asked:

“Oppa, what’s this cat’s name?”

Monk Popchin had surely given him a name. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to ask Chairman Park Yeongil the most important thing—the cat’s name. I couldn’t just make something up.

“It slipped my mind. I forgot to ask Chairman Park.”

“Then let’s just call him Meowy.”

“Whatever you want.”

And then something unexpected happened. The cat, who had been lying on the floor acting cute in front of my sister, suddenly sprang to his feet. In one swift movement, he dashed toward the balcony window and raised his tail straight up.

‘Did he hate the name Hyeonji came up with that much?’

My sister and I froze, staring silently at the beast without understanding what was going on. The tense atmosphere lasted for two or three minutes. Then, as though the danger had passed, the cat relaxed, returned to my sister, and resumed rubbing affectionately against her. While petting him, Hyeonji looked at me in confusion.

“Oppa, why did Meowy suddenly get scared and act so threatening just now?”

“I have no idea. It’s late already, let’s go to bed.”

After taking a shower and entering my room, I found the wildcat sprawled out comfortably on my bed as though he owned the place. My bed was only a single, so sharing it with such a large animal would be far too cramped. I walked over and lightly tapped one of his hind legs.

“Get off my bed.”

However, the predator didn’t even move, making it clear that he had no intention of leaving. I had absolutely no desire to sleep in such cramped conditions with a wild animal.

“Do you want me to get rough with you, or are you going to get down while I’m asking nicely?”

Apparently, my warning worked. The cat sadly lowered his tail and reluctantly climbed down from the bed.

“And remember, if you sneak back up while I’m asleep, you’ll be thrown out of the house immediately.”

“...Rrrrh!” the beast grumbled unhappily.

“If you act like that in front of my sister, she’ll figure you out quickly. In the worst-case scenario, you’ll end up in some secret laboratory where they’ll perform biological experiments on you.”

Bzzzz!

As I lectured the cat, my phone vibrated on the desk. Looking at the screen, I saw that Chief Secretary Kang Inhan was calling.

“Hello, Chief Secretary.”

[The head of the security team assigned to Cha Hyeonji just reported something suspicious.]

“What is it?”

[A black sedan parked in the alley in front of your house for about two minutes before driving away.]

“Could it be...”

[What do you mean, ”could it be”? Did something happen?]

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan’s voice was filled with concern.

“The wildcat I brought home suddenly rushed to the balcony window a few minutes ago, raised his tail, and assumed a defensive posture.”

I honestly explained everything that had just happened.

“...And he remained on alert for about two or three minutes.”

[Could it be... that this wildcat sensed that the people inside the black car were enemies?]

“But how could he identify them as enemies when we don’t even know who they were?”

[I told you before. This wildcat is a sacred, extraordinary creature.]

“I suppose... But who could have been inside that black car?”

[I’ll find out as soon as possible and report back to you.]

“Please do. Oh, and Chief Secretary, do you happen to know the cat’s name?”

[Before his death, Monk Popchin used to call him Saho.]

The name sounded incredibly old-fashioned and plain, but it wasn’t my place to complain.

“I understand. Thank you. It’s late, so please get some rest.”

Click.

After hanging up, I looked at the beast lying on the floor.

“So your name is Saho?”