The Civil Servant Who Concealed Their True Strength Turns Out to be a Master of Possession - Chapter 109

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A Civil Servant Who Hides His Strength Is Exceptionally Good at Possession – Episode 109
First, the messenger app began to light up.
The group chat that caught fire most noticeably was naturally the peer group chat.
Wow, as expected of Investigator Lee Yu-ji! You’re amazing!
Did you know a fan cafe was created for Investigator Lee Yu-ji? It’s called Taekwondo Girl V.
Wow, even a fandom name! You’re the best!
Looking at the chat room plastered with emoticons and praise, my feelings became complicated.
It was the same when I joined the Special Team, and the same when I got promoted to Grade 3.
The truth is, I have virtually no real power, and I can’t meet their expectations, so is it really okay to keep hearing this praise?
And my face seems to be showing up too much on the internet—is that okay?
What am I supposed to do about a real fan club being created?
Most of all—
This is the Promotion Department Director. Could you film just one video of you breaking wooden boards? The gogoshoe edit we uploaded last time got over a million views. Our subscriber count is also ranked 2nd among government agencies. ^^
I barely avoided breaking wooden boards on the gogoshoe, and now I’m getting this message from Min So-a, the Promotion Department Director of the Hunter Investigation Unit, who was promoted from Promotion Team Leader. What am I supposed to do about this?
…The aftershock from the gogoshoe is too massive.
Of course, there weren’t only negative aftershocks.
When I received this message from Baek Sang-jin, who had been dismissing Team 5, it was incredibly satisfying.
Investigator Lee Yu-ji! I watched you on the gogoshoe~ My kid wants your autograph. Could you sign something for us? Oh right, I came out at 4 AM this morning to get bubble tea, so let me know what you like~
Baek Sang-jin, who had been harassing our team members, was now coming to figure out how to survive in the upgraded Hunter Investigation Unit.
Well, when you move up to a bureau level, there’s bound to be personnel restructuring.
In fact, Captain Hong, the director of the Hunter Investigation Unit, received the rank of senior civil servant through this personnel restructuring.
In other words, he became a Grade 1 civil servant.
Because of that, Captain Hong was always smiling brightly.
“Ahahaha, ahahahahaha!”
Though it was still below the Chief, the feeling was completely different from when he was always being pressured because of performance metrics.
Even though he was under the Chief’s authority, because this was a personnel appointment directly inserted by the President, he seemed to care less about the Chief’s mood.
“Ah, the Chief called? I’ll take it later!”
I watched Captain Hong coolly ignore the Chief’s call and smacked my lips.
“Tell him I’m a bit busy with the new personnel restructuring! Ahahaha!”
“Yes, sir.”
The newly appointed administrative officer in the director’s office nodded with an expression of exasperation as he watched the director laugh.
“How many days has it been since you’ve taken his calls?”
Director Hong answered Pee So-won’s question.
“Three days? I’m planning to hold out until at least five days.”
“…You’re really a petty bastard.”
“Didn’t you know? Ahahahahaha!”
Now nothing Pee So-won says has any impact on him.
I thought that way while looking at Director Hong.
“But…why am I…”
“Ah, right, so this time our Investigator Lee Yu-ji became Grade 3, and Pee So-won and Investigator Kwon Ik-seong became Grade 2, right?”
“You weren’t included in the Senior Civil Service rank. Fortunately.”
Pee So-won spoke as if it were a nuisance, seemingly unbothered by her civil service grade.
For reference, the other investigators did receive promotions, but most remained at grades 3 or 4.
“Regardless, shouldn’t we give him a position befitting his accomplishments?”
“Huh? Then will Team 5 or the Special Team be dissolved?”
Captain Hong shook his head at my question.
“We’re establishing a new division. For now, we’ll handle tasks similarly on an urgent basis, but each division will likely specialize in different areas.”
“Hmm….”
Something felt ominous.
I turned to look at Pee So-won, recalling her words about how our duties might change.
She seemed to know something.
And Kwon Ik-seong standing beside her also seemed to know something.
But why was I sandwiched between these two grade-2 officials?
“We’ll separate things later, but setting that aside, you three and the Special Team will transfer to the Public Investigation Division.”
Public Investigation?
Handling public cases, something like that? It was too vague.
Captain Hong spoke as if reading my expression.
“Think of it as mainly handling major cases. We’ll deal with politically sensitive cases too, and most importantly—”
The captain smiled and continued.
“It includes auditing the Hunter Association. Though it’s classified.”
“…!”
The Hunter Association?
That organization wielded power nearly equivalent to a quasi-governmental body.
Though not a state institution, it held a superior status among private organizations, surpassing economic consortiums and trade associations.
Naturally.
Since hunters emerged in this world, the global economy had revolved around the market for byproducts that hunters extracted from dungeons.
Most of these hunters belonged to guilds, and every guild in South Korea was registered with the Hunter Association.
Even freelance hunters typically held Hunter Association membership.
The saying that hunters don’t pay taxes but do pay association fees wasn’t without reason.
The moment the Hunter Association moved, every guild in South Korea moved with it.
“The reason you’re telling me this is….”
Surely not?
“Pee So-won will take the position of Director of Public Investigation Division 1. Kwon Ik-seong will be Director of Division 2. And our investigator Lee Yu-ji will go under Division 1 with the other Team 5 personnel.”
Oh. Director Pee.
Becoming a division director in the Hunter Investigation Unit, which had no rank structure before.
I looked at Pee So-won and smiled teasingly.
She then looked at me with an irritated expression.
“Keep listening. See if you can still laugh.”
“Yes?”
“So here’s the thing—we received a tip. Some guys the Hunter Association sends out are extorting guilds. They’re collecting byproducts like taxes and funneling them to political circles, manipulating policy in favor of the Hunter Association.”
Captain Hong shook his head and spoke.
“This is a very bad phenomenon, isn’t it?”
A bad phenomenon? Hardly.
This is just the ordinary ‘guild lobbying’ that everyone in the world knows about, isn’t it?
Guild lobbying refers to the practice where specific massive guilds lobby politicians to steer policy in their favor—something occurring worldwide but never fully eradicated.
It’s roughly similar to why the business world can’t separate itself from the political world.
After all, those with money naturally tend to attach themselves to those with power.
“So we need to definitively identify that route. That’s what I’m saying.”
Ah, I see.
Now I understood why this damned Captain Hong had refused to take the Chief’s call.
I could roughly guess the identity of that ‘informant’ as well.
The informant was probably—
‘Baek Hee-ryeong.’
This was a task the President directly assigned.
The President had been working to eradicate ‘guild lobbying’ even before taking office.
To transparently monitor Hunters, ‘guild lobbying’ had to disappear from the political sphere.
Of course, in the original work I’d read, that ‘guild lobbying’ never got rooted out, which was why Choi Woo-jin pursued his personal revenge.
‘Would this time be any different?’
And surely this wasn’t being assigned to me, was it?
If we investigate the Hunter Association, Choi Woo-jin is one thing, but now there’s no way to avoid contact with Choi Jun-gu, the Hunter Association Chairman and the main villain of the story.
‘That man is a true psychopath.’
He kills people without hesitation, without remorse.
Getting entangled with a criminal like that would—
‘Definitely trigger a Quest window.’
Please, no.
“Ma Deok-ho and Byeon Gu-do will provide support, and you’ll need to handle the investigation—”
That’s when it happened.
Contrary to my hopes, Captain Hong placed three items on the desk.
Wait, could it be?
I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere before.
I recalled an item that Kang Il-yeon had been diligently crafting when I visited the Sunmoon Workshop a few days ago.
The reason it caught my eye was simple.
‘In the original work, it was made for Choi Woo-jin.’
An accessory in the form of earrings or a ring—an item that changes your appearance when worn.
“This investigation is an undercover infiltration operation.”
The moment I heard those words, Kang Il-yeon’s earlier statement came to mind.
‘Right, I got selected as an item supplier for the Hunter Investigation Unit, so I’ll be busy for a while. If you need any items made, let me know quickly.’
…I never imagined that item supply would come back with such explosive consequences.
“The Hunter Association is apparently recruiting people this time. By the way, our investigator Lee Yu-ji and Director Pee So-won will go to the member guild headquarters, and Director Kwon Ik-seong will go as a secretary to the headquarters director’s office.”
Ah, this feels ominous.
This is far too ominous!
And as if to prove my foreboding, a window materialized before my eyes.
Quest ‘Capture Choi Se-a (A)’
-Time Limit: 1 month
-Reward: Special Side Story 3, 10,000 Gold
-Penalty for Failure: Death by Excessive Bleeding
…So there really are countless ways to die?
Damn it.
I immediately grasped who Choi Se-a was.
The headquarters director of the Hunter Association’s member guilds.
In other words, Choi Jun-gu’s right hand in the story—the one who prospered by extorting the guilds—
‘My, how much Woo-jin has grown.’
She was Choi Woo-jin’s aunt.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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