America: John Wick 1924

Chapter 52 The Catholic Priest Who Sold Arms

San Francisco, the Lisianthus Building, the cat's office—

Although it was late at night, Nekoyashiki did not go back to his room to sleep, but was still working in his office.

Suddenly, Chang Lu Ningning's voice came from outside the door:
"Master Nekoyashiki, Mr. Li has come to visit and specifically requests to see you."

For some reason, there was a hint of hesitation in Chang Lu Ningning's tone.

Nekoyashiki was stunned.

"Mr. Li?"

After a moment's thought, she put down her pen.

"Bring him here."

"Yes."

A moment later, the door was gently pushed open—Chang Lu Ningning led Li Yu into the room.

Upon seeing the likeness carved by Li Yu, Nekoyashiki was stunned.

It wasn't just because Li Yu reeked of blood, but also because he was holding a large object tightly wrapped in a clean cloth—judging from its shape, it was clearly a person!

Li Yu skipped all pleasantries and got straight to the point:
"Miss Cat, could you do me a favor? Help this poor little girl return to her hometown. I know her name and I know where her hometown is."

Nekoyashiki slowly came to her senses and stared intently at the body in Li Yu's arms.

"Is she... a relative or friend of yours?"

"No. I only just learned her name and place of origin."

"If that's the case, then why did you do so much for her?"

As he spoke, Nekoyashiki cast a scrutinizing glance at Li Yu.

Li Yu chuckled a few times:
There was no special reason. It was simply because I couldn't bear to do it.

"that's it?"

"Isn't that enough?"

Nekoyashiki paused for a moment, seemingly stumped by the question.

A moment later, she smiled—a joyful smile as if recalling a past event.

“I understand. I will accept your request. I will send this little girl back to her hometown as soon as possible. I happen to know someone who specializes in helping Chinese people ‘return to their homeland’.”

"I am extremely grateful. I will pay you as soon as possible."

Nekoyashiki waved his hand:
"No need to pay. It's not a big deal anyway."

She paused, then playfully squinted her left eye, glancing at Li Yu with her right eye, and continued in a teasing tone:

"Don't let my appearance fool you, I'm a good person just like you."

[Ding! Helped the poor little girl get home. Successfully played the role of a "good Samaritan"]

[Progress of "Good Samaritans and Righteous Individuals": 66% → 81%]

"Good guy?"

Li Yu chuckled to himself.

"I would never dare to call myself a 'good person'."

"Mr. Li, don't you think you're a good person?"

"……I have no idea."

"That's right."

How can it be 'that's right'?

"Because only good people cannot distinguish between their own good and evil."

After saying this intriguingly, Nekoyashiki turned to look at Hitachi Nene beside him:
"Ningning, properly collect and preserve this girl's body."

"Yes."

Chang Lu Ningning stepped forward and solemnly took the girl's body from Li Yu's arms—Li Yu then handed Chang Lu Ningning a note with the girl's name and hometown written on it.

After watching Hinoki Nene and the girl leave, Li Yu turned his gaze back to Nekoyashiki.

“Miss Cat, I have another question for you. Do you know where there are… ‘shady arms dealers’?” Although Li Yu spoke cryptically, as an intelligence broker, how could Nekoyashiki not understand what “shady arms dealers” meant?
"Oh? You want to buy weapons?"

Li Yu nodded:
"There are both weapons that they want to sell and weapons that they want to buy."

"Then you've come to the right person. I happen to know an underground arms dealer with a very good reputation."

Li Yu was not surprised by Nekoyashiki's "friends all over the world" - his cautiousness in never talking too much and his super strong network of connections were the foundation of an intelligence dealer's business.

"Could you introduce me to someone?"

“Of course! I’m an old friend of his, so I’m happy to help him with his business. He mainly operates at a Catholic church called ‘St. Michael’ at 13 Lake Street. The opening hours are from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.”

Hearing such an impressive term, Li Yu couldn't help but ask in return:

"...A Catholic church?"

"That's right, the Catholic Church. Because he was a priest."

Li Yu, unable to contain his astonishment, pressed on with the question:

"A priest who sells arms?"

Nekoyashiki smiled slightly:
"Is there a problem? A tall and magnificent Catholic church is perfect for hiding weapons."

Li Yu's lips twitched, and for a moment he couldn't think of any rebuttal.

Nekoyashiki’s words are not finished yet:
"That's a great place. Not only is there a Catholic priest who'll sell you any weapon for enough money, but there's also an Orthodox nun who'll treat any injury for enough money."

There were so many things to criticize about Nekoyashiki's statement that Li Yu didn't even know where to begin.

After a short while, having sorted out his thoughts, he asked the question that concerned him most, looking utterly perplexed:
Why would Orthodox nuns be in a Catholic church?

There is a saying that "heresy is worse than paganism." Although Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Protestantism are all Christian, their relationship is far from harmonious, with each accusing the other of heresy.

It's no exaggeration to call it a "miracle" that there are Orthodox nuns in a Catholic church!

Nekoyashiki spread her hands, looking helpless, and said, "I don't know either."

"In short, if you want to buy and sell weapons safely, that's the person you should contact."

"The prices are fair, and they are very professional, never disclosing customer information to outsiders."

"And you can also have that nun treat your hands while you're at it."

As Nekoyashiki spoke, he lowered his gaze and looked at Li Yu's red and swollen finger joints.

"Although she is very young, her skills are exceptionally good, no less than those of professional doctors in major hospitals."

Li Yu took a deep breath and summarized what Nekoyashiki had said above:

"So, that Catholic church called 'St. Michael' had a Catholic priest who also worked as an underground arms dealer, and an Orthodox nun who also worked as an underground doctor... Was San Francisco really such a vibrant and thriving place?"

Nekoyashiki smiled gently:
"San Francisco has many more extraordinary people waiting for you to discover."

"Oh, right, I almost forgot to mention. Mr. Li, I must remind you that the priest and the nun both have somewhat... eccentric personalities."

"If you anger them, there will be serious consequences, so you must be polite."

Li Yu smiled:

"I'm always very polite to people who won't mess with me."

……

The next morning—

San Francisco, an apartment—

Ring ring ring ring ring ring!

The urgent alarm clock woke Una up.

She stretched her arm out from under the covers and forcefully pressed the alarm clock to stop... The world returned to silence.

She didn't get up immediately. Instead, she curled up in bed and lingered for several minutes before finally sitting up, yawning.