The Civil Servant Who Concealed Their True Strength Turns Out to be a Master of Possession - Chapter 124

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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 124
[What could it be? Since we agreed to use each other, if he has a favor to ask of me, I should ask for something in return too.]
Sigh… Why are there so many people who want to use each other like this?
I pressed my brow together with that thought.
“You roughly know what I’m doing right now, don’t you?”
There’s no way this bastard isn’t monitoring me.
Both Bureau Chief Choi Se-a and I are definitely keeping tabs on each other.
[You’re married with children, and you have a husband. Your mother-in-law is taking care of the child.]
Yeah. This bastard.
I clenched my teeth while looking at my fabricated family photo.
He knows everything—not just my undercover investigation, but my entire false identity as well. Of course he does.
[But, I think it would be better if you didn’t participate in that dungeon incident.]
That’s when it happened.
A subdued voice came through.
It was unusually serious for Choi Woo-jin.
[The Jeong-an City dungeon, I mean.]
“Why?”
When I asked, Choi Woo-jin hesitated for a moment before speaking.
[It could be quite a dangerous situation.]
Is he referring to the accident he witnessed in his previous life?
Is he worried that I might get caught up in that accident?
‘No way.’
He’s not that kind of person.
Even when my mother saved his life, he was still debating whether to save mine.
“Actually, I have something to discuss related to that.”
Choi Woo-jin had been thinking about why Bureau Chief Choi Se-a failed to prevent the major accident in the original work.
Currently, both the Heonsu Bureau and Choi Woo-jin believe that Choi Se-a received bribes from Hanseong, the massive guild that would take over the Jeong-an City dungeon, and passed that money to Choi Jun-gu.
But what if that wasn’t the case?
Since there was no trace on Choi Se-a’s computer or in any documents that passed through her hands, Choi Woo-jin couldn’t prevent the accident.
If he had discovered some clue from Choi Se-a, he would have passed it on to Kwon Ik-seong.
He was already prepared for his identity to be exposed anyway.
Then the original premise must be wrong.
So—
‘The person who received the money, the person who passed it on, the person who acted as the middleman—they’re all different people.’
Choi Woo-jin’s ability has limitations.
He cannot monitor people he hasn’t actually met or spoken with.
‘The reason I was able to catch the terrorist who delivered the bomb to Team 5 is probably because Choi Woo-jin has some connection with Pee So-won or someone like that, rather than with me.’
In other words.
Someone Choi Se-a made contact with, but who didn’t communicate with her and received money from Hanseong Guild to pass on to Choi Jun-gu.
And yet, someone Choi Woo-jin has never actually met in the original work.
Thus, the person whom Choi Woo-jin’s skill couldn’t monitor.
There was a high probability that this person had actually planned this massive catastrophe.
“Kang Han-geul seems suspicious.”
[Kang Han-geul?]
Kang Han-geul.
Though aligned with Choi Jun-gu’s faction, he had earned considerable trust from Bureau Chief Choi Se-a and managed to insert himself into this dungeon expedition.
How was that even possible?
Choi Jun-gu must have applied invisible pressure on Bureau Chief Choi Se-a.
In an extremely subtle manner.
To ensure this matter fell into Kang Han-geul’s hands.
Otherwise, there’s no way Bureau Chief Choi Se-a would have deliberately included newcomers like me and Pee So-won in something this important.
No matter how much human nature dictates that people’s eyes glaze over at the sight of ginseng boxes, it’s only natural that matters related to ‘corruption’ are kept hidden from subordinates like us.
If they received any commendation, they might panic and blurt out nonsense.
‘Yet Bureau Chief Choi Se-a chose us based solely on Kang Han-geul’s word.’
I’d even heard that Bureau Chief Choi Se-a had suspected my identity.
‘Which makes this situation all the more suspicious.’
[…That is strange.]
Choi Woo-jin murmured as if chewing over my words.
Having already roughly checked the situation’s ins and outs, Choi Woo-jin would have understood what I meant.
But Choi Woo-jin pretended not to know and spoke.
[Are you suggesting that Kang Han-geul exercised some influence over this dungeon expedition? When Bureau Chief Choi Se-a is right there?]
“It’s possible. The fact that Bureau Chief Choi Se-a used us without complaint means Kang Han-geul has more pull than expected. Looking at the internal factions, it doesn’t seem like he’s part of Bureau Chief Choi Se-a’s line.”
I answered firmly.
Then I heard a faint laugh from the other end of the line.
[Is that an investigator’s intuition? Or— do you know something?]
My spine went cold in an instant.
Had I spoken too suspiciously?
After hesitating slightly, I opened my mouth.
“It’s experience from working in society, man.”
[…?]
“Do you know how intense office politics can be? One wrong faction and your head rolls in an instant? So how does Kang Han-geul manage to slot us in? The rope sizes are completely different.”
[…Ah, that kind of experience?]
Choi Woo-jin exhaled as if slightly exasperated.
Did I get away with it?
[But you haven’t been working that long. Our investigator Lee Yu-ji.]
Oh, sharp observation.
I began to feel tense again—
‘But I have something to say about this.’
“Did you ever live as an athlete?”
[….]
A cheat code.
Among all social institutions, the military is brutal, but athletic teams come in a close second.
If you survive that, you’ve proven yourself.
Though maybe you didn’t survive it?
Anyway.
“So what I’m saying is, since the skill works within a 10km radius, investigate Kang Han-geul a bit.”
I said everything Choi Woo-jin couldn’t refute.
10km, my foot.
Choi Woo-jin would probably find a way to approach Kang Han-geul.
Well, as the association chairman’s grandson, something like that would be simple.
[What can I get in return?]
“Huh?”
Oh, right.
Give and take, as they say.
We’re using each other, after all.
“What… do you want?”
Did I even have anything to offer someone who was practically the strongest in this world?
[Han Seong-ye, the sergeant.]
Choi Woo-jin spoke in an even lower voice.
[Tell me about Han Seong-ye. What kind of person was she exactly, and how did she end up marrying Detective Lee Do-young?]
Detective Lee Do-young.
At those words, my grip on the steering wheel tightened.
That’s when it happened.
Someone tapped on my driver’s side window.
I glanced over to see Officer Oh with that expression of his—seemingly harmless yet somehow malicious—gesturing for me to roll down the window.
“Yes, sir. What’s the matter?”
“Are you moving your car? I’m trying to leave right now, but you’re double-parked and idling like that for so long—what are you doing? Is wasting gas your hobby or something, Ha Dae-ri? Hahahaha!”
“Ah… yes, I apologize. I’ll move it right away.”
“Who’s on the phone?”
Even though all the names on my phone were encrypted, I discreetly covered the screen and answered.
“Oh, that… my husband. There’s something at my parents’ house, so I left the child with his parents.”
“Goodness, your in-laws must have their hands full. They say twilight childcare is all the rage these days, right? Show some filial piety to your parents~”
Officer Oh finished his unnecessary and tactless remarks and disappeared.
Watching his retreating figure, I brought the phone back to my ear.
“Um, let’s talk later…”
[I’m your husband? Wow, you even have a kid?]
Damn it.

* * *
[When did we get married? How old is the kid?]
Rather than listen to more of Choi Woo-jin’s nonsense, I hung up the phone and pulled out of the parking lot.
For the first time in ages on a weekend, I changed clothes and showered in the apartment the Heonsu Bureau had provided, then removed my ring.
Unable to adjust to seeing my own face again, I took a taxi back to Lee Yu-ji’s apartment.
“Running away. And for days at that.”
…Round two had begun.
I found myself face to face with Lee Yu-gyeom, whose eyes behind his glasses gleamed with sharp intensity.
He hadn’t even slept despite the late hour, still working through math problems.
No, wait—I just got back from work!
“It’s not running away. I left you a message on KakaoTalk. I said I’d be on night duty for a while!”
But that excuse didn’t work either.
“I called the Heonsu Bureau and found out you took personal leave?”
Ah, right.
Since this was a covert investigation, the Bureau had processed it as personal leave.
I furrowed my brow.
That’s when Lee Yu-gyeom snapped the mechanical pencil lead he was holding and spoke to me.
“And Team Leader Kwon Ik-seong took personal leave too.”
Oh no.
“Where did you two go?”
This. The genre was shifting from thriller to melodrama.

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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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