The Civil Servant Who Concealed Their True Strength Turns Out to be a Master of Possession - Chapter 176

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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 176

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The gallery of the hearing room was overwhelmingly filled with reporters rather than civic organizations or ordinary citizens.
It couldn’t have been otherwise.
Guild masters from major guilds had been summoned one after another this season, and now an utterly unexpected figure had appeared.
Despite numerous national audits being held and the opposition party—now the ruling party—relentlessly attacking, this was a person who had never once appeared as a witness.
Choi Jun-gu was here.
“Witness Choi Jun-gu, Guild Master of Daeyang Guild.”
“Yes.”
Choi Jun-gu announced his appearance as a witness with a composed demeanor, though his expression carried a hint of stiffness as if apologizing to the nation for any concerns caused.
Watching this, Pee So-won, who sat in the gallery, narrowed her eyes.
“The acting is….”
She muttered this quietly so no one could hear.
“Why is someone who should be at Cannes sitting here?”
Of course, Kwon Ik-seong, sitting beside her, heard it clearly.
And so did Lee Yu-ji, sitting next to him.
“Perhaps… you could lower your voice a bit?”
Lee Yu-ji gave Pee So-won a hint, but she didn’t even turn around as she asked.
“Why are you late?”
“I met with Secretary Gu Jae-yong.”
“That guy? Did he bother you?”
Kwon Ik-seong and Pee So-won’s eyes turned toward Lee Yu-ji.
“A special forces recruitment proposal?”
Even Kwon Ik-seong asked with a hint of wariness in his gaze.
“…No? Just casual conversation?”
Lee Yu-ji answered, slightly flustered.
‘Why are they all like this…?’
That was when it happened.
Choi Jun-gu stood and began the oath.
“I swear to speak only the truth without concealment or addition, according to my conscience.”
The witness oath.
Now that he was a witness, this statement carried legal binding force.
‘If he lies here, there’s no way around it—he’ll be punished for perjury.’
But there was a clear reason he appeared as a witness.
Standing as a witness rather than a reference person allowed him to appeal greater authenticity—
‘Above all, it meant he was that confident.’
That none of his criminal acts would be properly exposed.
His frame, leaning on a cane as he stood, was solid enough to belie his middle-aged years, and his face was no different.
A faint murmur of admiration rippled through the surroundings.
“That’s impressive! Choi Jun-gu, a true hero! The pride of South Korea!”
As several citizens cheered, the civic organizations responded as if they couldn’t be outdone.
“Down with the tyranny of mega-guilds! We condemn guild lobbying!”
“Now, everyone please quiet down. If you continue to disrupt the hearing, I will have you removed.”
At the Chairman’s words, the heated atmosphere cooled somewhat.
The witnesses began their prepared statements, and Choi Jun-gu’s testimony commenced as well.
“First, I sincerely apologize to the people for the concerns raised by these allegations. However, I must carefully state that the Daeyang Guild and the Hunter Association fight on the front lines of South Korea’s economy and security, never forgetting the heavy responsibility we bear for our citizens, and we fight with pride in that duty. This incident has also caused considerable pain to the members of the Daeyang Guild and the staff of the Hunter Association. I understand that the esteemed representatives here are also present to represent the will of the people, but—”
Choi Jun-gu’s eyes grew cold as he read from the meticulously scripted text in standard Korean.
He deliberately allowed a hint of the anger he’d been suppressing to surface.
In fact, even this was part of his script.
He deliberately made eye contact with Representative Seo and the other ruling party representatives one by one as he spoke.
“How does harassing a mega-guild with malicious allegations help South Korea’s economy? It’s truly lamentable and tragic.”
His tone carried a regional dialect.
And at the end, his gaze turned toward the gallery.
He was about to continue naturally with his script when his eyes suddenly met those of a woman.
She had a gentle face, her hair tied back in a ponytail—
‘The cute little thing came back again.’
That’s what Choi Jun-gu thought as he looked at Lee Yu-ji.
Did she really come just to watch?
His downfall?
She actually thought the Daeyang Guild and the Hunter Association would collapse from just this?
It was laughable.
The countless dots and lines he had laid out were far more formidable than that.
It meant that something as insignificant as dust in this world couldn’t possibly ruin what he had built.
So what this woman would witness in this place wasn’t the downfall of the Daeyang Guild, the Hunter Association, or Choi Jun-gu—it would be the downfall of Baek Hee-ryeong, her people, and the Hunter Management Bureau.
It was a shame.
If they had met under different circumstances, he could have used her as a porter for the Daeyang Guild’s raids.
He could have even utilized her as some kind of mascot.
Her head seemed to work well enough, after all.
Choi Jun-gu suppressed the smile that threatened to break through and spoke to the gallery.
“I will ensure that no forces seeking to slander the Daeyang Guild can move again, and I will thoroughly answer all questions here.”
When he finished with a brief bow and lifted his head, that’s when it happened.
Lee Yu-ji’s face entered his line of sight once more.
Lee Yu-ji was—
‘…?’
Smiling.
Brightly and sweetly.
Choi Jun-gu’s brow furrowed. It was the first moment his script had broken since entering the hearing room.
And before he could even recover from that mistake, his turn ended and the Hunter Management Bureau Chief took over.
“I… um… will do my best!”
…?
Choi Jun-gu’s expression twisted further.
The Hunter Management Bureau Chief, drenched in sweat, looked flustered.
Like a trembling dog.
Choi Jun-gu ground his teeth internally.
‘That bastard needs to be replaced next time.’
With that thought in mind.
Representative Seo continued his barrage against Choi Jun-gu in his opening remarks.
Representative Kim Jae-sul: Yes. The Chairman said he handled that matter with your son well….
Hunter Management Bureau Chief: Oh, thank you. Representative.
Representative Kim Jae-sul: No, what, thank you. I’m always grateful too. Did the equipment from ENC come in well?
Hunter Management Bureau Chief: Yes. It arrived well.
Representative Kim Jae-sul: Then what… we’ll do our part well too….
“The word ‘Chairman’ appears a total of 9 times in this conversation.”
Representative Seo’s eyes gleamed like a beast that had caught its prey.
“And this conversation conveniently took place while the Guild Special Tax Act favorable to Daeyang Guild was being legislated. I’d like to ask the Chief what Representative Kim Jae-sul means by ‘our part’ here?”
“What, what do you mean?”
“Yes. Witness.”
At Representative Seo’s question, the Chief swallowed hard.
The Chief unconsciously looked at Choi Jun-gu.
Just as Choi Jun-gu had told him.
So ‘that matter’ isn’t ‘that matter’.
I don’t know.
If I just answer that way—
“Come on~ you know.”
The Chief laughed mischievously.
“Yes?”
Representative Seo furrowed his brow.
“I asked the Representative to help my son get placed, and the response was that we’d do our part well. In this situation, that’s perfectly clear!”
“What do you mean…?”
The sound of reporters’ keyboards in the gallery became urgent.
“The Office buys equipment from ENC, a subsidiary of Daeyang Guild! And? Daeyang Guild gets my son placed! Representative Kim Jae-sul gets some benefits and provides legislative protection! My son also received many special favors because of that Hunter Sensitive Information Protection Act, haha!”
The Hunter Management Bureau Chief said this while bowing 90 degrees toward the opposition party member next to Representative Seo.
“Please tell Representative Kim Jae-sul I’m grateful!”
Seeing this, the opposition members’ faces contorted.
Even Representative Seo, who had asked the question, was flustered at that moment.
Suddenly, the PPT screen that Representative Seo had displayed changed.
The Hunter Management Office’s internal audit report appeared on the screen.
As Representative Seo was confused by the suddenly changed screen, the Hunter Management Bureau Chief laughed while looking at the new display.
“Huh? That came up? Ahahaha! We manipulated that and switched it with something else! Look there. See that weird number sticking out in the reserve funds? That’s because of the equipment we bought from ENC! Those equipment were so expensive. You’re going to get rich from ENC, Chairman…!”
The Chief chuckled and tapped Choi Jun-gu’s shoulder beside him.
Watching this, Choi Jun-gu’s face twisted.
Clack-clack-clack-clack-clack!
Amid the sound of reporters typing, Lee Yu-ji watched with a gentle smile on her face.
Kwon Ik-seong’s expression hardened as he observed Lee Yu-ji.
“Lee Yu-ji… Investigator?”
“Yes?”
“What is it. You… are you here?”
At Pee So-won’s question, Lee Yu-ji tilted her head in confusion.
“What do you mean?”
“You didn’t use possession or whatever to write that, did you?”
“Aw~ I told you I don’t do illegal things like that, right? False confession! That’s bad, isn’t it? Right, Team Leader?”
Lee Yu-ji smiled and looked at Kwon Ik-seong.
Kwon Ik-seong’s brow furrowed slightly as he regarded her.
“But that’s not a confession—it’s more of a disclosure. Does that even require cross-verification…?”
Lee Yu-ji fidgeted with her fingers, gauging Kwon Ik-seong’s stern expression.
Kwon Ik-seong exhaled shortly and replied.
“It shouldn’t be necessary. The testimony given here carries legal evidentiary weight, and the evidence supporting the testimony is substantiated.”
“Yes!”
Lee Yu-ji let out a small exclamation.
Her expression resembled an excited retriever, and Kwon Ik-seong’s face softened for a moment.

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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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