The Civil Servant Who Concealed Their True Strength Turns Out to be a Master of Possession - Chapter 271

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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 271

* * *
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”
I watched Kwon Ik-seong’s hand slip away and felt an odd sensation wash over me.
I hadn’t come here to hear something like this.
I simply wanted to be his refuge the way he’d been mine—since I’d run away once too, and he’d helped me through it.
But the things Kwon Ik-seong had confessed were far deeper and heavier than I’d anticipated.
And this apology seemed to be directed at all of that.
‘People dislike those who read their hearts.’
Did that statement also mean he believed revealing one’s own heart was an imposition on others?
I grasped Kwon Ik-seong’s hand as it withdrew.
Not with any semblance of grace—I found myself clutching it with both hands instead.
Like some… puppy.
“Um… ah… oh…”
Damn it.
This wasn’t the image I’d wanted to project.
I’d wanted to comfort him with some semblance of maturity, hadn’t I?
I’ve failed again, Lee Yu-ji.
“I’ll… dispose of it.”
I accepted the tissue from Kwon Ik-seong’s hand and grimaced.
Then I heard a soft laugh from above my head.
When I looked up, Kwon Ik-seong was smiling.
“Please do.”
“At least you’re smiling now, so that’s something to be grateful for, right?”
When I asked, Kwon Ik-seong nodded.
Then he tilted his head slightly.
“Were you concerned about me?”
“Of course. How frustrating it must have been—having to stay in the same hotel room with someone so complicated.”
I wanted to give him an escape.
“It’s true that it’s inconvenient, but Ocean and I aren’t actually in a complicated relationship. Especially for me—I harbor neither malice nor goodwill toward Ocean. Ocean carries guilt about me, but I’m trying not to let it show.”
Kwon Ik-seong regarded me quietly.
“We aren’t substitutes for our parents. If it’s not our fault, we can’t bear that burden.”
We aren’t substitutes for our parents.
Those words tickled something deep in my chest.
That’s right.
I’m not a substitute for my mother.
Even though I was her dream, her most intense desire, the driving force of her life—
I am not my mother.
I can never… be her.
“Whatever happens.”
Kwon Ik-seong shifted his gaze from me to the lake.
“The fact that Lee Yu-ji was concerned about me—that’s a good thing.”
The surface of the lake, which had appeared calm, rippled visibly as the wind swept across it.
“Just think of me occasionally like that.”
“….”
“That would be enough.”
With a face that suggested it was anything but enough, Kwon Ik-seong said that would suffice.

* * *
When I returned to the room, I was about to get chewed out by Pee So-won for going solo.
“Ugh.”
Johnny might not have noticed, but Pee So-won certainly did.
“Solo action forbidden. Period.”
“Yes… I know….”
“Did you go eat ice cream?”
Pee So-won frowned at the ice cream spoon in my hand.
Eat? What am I, some kind of animal? I don’t just eat things, I don’t!
…is what I wanted to say.
“Yes. I went and had some ice cream.”
Pee So-won is terrifying.
“Good job. Really.”
“…I didn’t draw any attention from people, and I reported my location every ten minutes.”
“Are you bragging?”
“No.”
I lowered my head as I looked at Pee So-won’s angry face.
“I won’t do it again.”
“Damn it. How am I supposed to believe that?”
“You’re right. I wouldn’t believe me either.”
I grinned and hung from Pee So-won’s shoulder.
“But wouldn’t your mood improve if I at least say things like this?”
“….”
Pee So-won looked down at me as if she found it absurd.
She probably likes me more than she lets on.
That’s why she gives in when I act cute.
“Get some rest. Now.”
I watched Pee So-won’s retreating figure as she greeted me and went off to find Kwon Ik-seong.
‘Usually, if you like someone, don’t you ask them to date you, or say something like “I like you so please like me back”?’
What had Kwon Ik-seong answered to my question?
‘A romantic relationship would put Lee Yu-ji at a disadvantage. And more than anything—’
‘…?’
‘You don’t dislike me, do you?’
Her words left me speechless.
Dislike her?
You’ve always been my favorite.
‘You set your password to my birthday.’
‘…How did you…’
‘You often lose yourself staring at my face.’
‘…Ah… ah…’
I wanted to disappear and vanish into thin air.
‘But why does that prove I don’t like Team Leader Kwon…’
‘It seems like you like me more as a character from a movie or drama rather than as a real person. Of course, I don’t think the difference between the two is that significant…’
Wow.
Every time I experience it, Kwon Ik-seong’s ability is genuinely terrifying.
‘I believe the emotions Lee Yu-ji feels toward me are primarily admiration or awe.’
Ah, that was it just now.
I closed my mouth firmly at that thought.
‘If those feelings change to worry or affection like they are now, I’d appreciate it if you’d let me know first.’
‘Why?’
‘That’s when I’ll try to do something.’
‘…?’
Kwon Ik-seong spoke without hesitation, his face as serene as a still lake.
‘I’ll try to ask you to love me.’
…!
The fact that he could say something like this so naturally—that’s what makes Kwon Ik-seong truly remarkable.
At the same time—
I understood that the feeling of admiration and the feeling of affection might be subtly different.
And I felt a pang of sympathy for Kwon Ik-seong, whose life must be somewhat lonely as he perceives all these delicate nuances.
I sat on the edge of the bed and leaned back.
Thump.
My body collapsed onto the mattress with a soft thud.
“Ugh…”
That was the moment.
A call came through on my encrypted phone from Choi Woo-jin.
[Hello.]
…Right. You were there.
The Great Guild Master of the Great Empire Guild who agreed to deal with Seol Ok-gyun for that insane sum.
“Why’d you call?”
[Worried?]
“About what.”
I jumped to my feet.
“They’re refusing to make a deal?”
[What?]
“Then what are you worried about?”
[That I’ll be alone without you?]
…I could kill him.
I gritted my teeth and spoke.
“I’m hanging up.”
[Wait. I have something to tell you.]
“…?”
[Baek Hee-ryeong is coming to New York too. It’s highly classified, though.]
Baek Hee-ryeong is coming? Why?
I furrowed my brow at those words.
“How did you find out about that?”
[How else would I know?]
Ah, right.
This bastard had a skill.
[And surprisingly, the reason is unclear. Whether it’s because of all the S-rank items overflowing at the Blue House, or if it’s simply the President’s whim, it looked like a suddenly scheduled trip.]
A suddenly scheduled trip.
Those words made me feel uneasy.
Could it be she came because of me… No, that couldn’t be it.
“Alright… I understand.”
[If you think the situation is dangerous, just look at the Times Square billboard.]
“What?”
[I’ll be standing there.]
So now he was going to hack the Times Square billboard too, apparently.
I let out a hollow laugh at that thought.
“I’m really hanging up now.”
I said that and ended the call.
After that, I hesitated for a moment before looking at my phone again.
Who should I call to “get through”?
I quickly reached a surprisingly simple conclusion.
[911]
The moment I dialed the number and called, a man picked up.
[What is the emergency?]
Surprisingly, it was in Korean.
Well, actually, it wasn’t that surprising.
Apparently the Special Investigations Bureau was distributing encrypted phones.
“Good to hear from you, Lieutenant Cheon.”
[I asked what the emergency is.]
“There’s someone monitoring me, isn’t there?”
[….]
“That person is also tracking my cell phone signals.”
[It’s for the nation.]
I realized that for Lieutenant Cheon, the words “nation” and “President” occupied the same conceptual space.
So I responded.
“I want to speak with that person. Right now.”
At my words, Lieutenant Cheon exhaled a heavy sigh.
But he had no choice but to relay my message.
And so—
[You’ve been found.]
I could soon hear Baek Hee-ryeong’s voice.

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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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