The Civil Servant Who Concealed Their True Strength Turns Out to be a Master of Possession - Chapter 78
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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 078
“Ow.”
A short cry escaped from Choi Woo-jin’s lips.
It felt less like a genuine cry of pain and more like a performative one.
‘…As if someone with a hidden S-rank would actually hurt.’
Yet at the same time, blood began trickling down the drunk Choi Woo-jin’s forehead.
‘…?’
How hard did he hit him?
Did he really strike with that much force?
I was certain I should refrain from unnecessary violence…
I glanced toward Kwon Ik-seong.
But the ferocity in Kwon Ik-seong’s eyes showed no signs of fading.
“That action felt like a threat directed at an investigator.”
No, it was hardly a threat—he just moved a bit closer physically.
I stood frozen between the two of them, unable to do anything.
Choi Woo-jin wiped his blood away with his free hand and chuckled.
Laughing while looking at his own blood.
Truly a madman.
“Wow. Our investigator isn’t scared of our grandfather, huh? I guess the person who locked Kevin away really is something special.”
A reckless performance.
I’d almost forgotten that no one could match Choi Woo-jin when it came to acting like a fool.
It was hard to dismiss Choi Woo-jin’s involvement in our arrest operation as mere coincidence.
If the Choi Woo-jin I knew from the original story was involved, he’d have ulterior motives.
‘Perhaps he had something to dig up before the Heonsu Department could capture the Joker and the Slime.’
Choi Woo-jin was someone who didn’t trust the Heonsu Department as an organization.
So he must have deliberately learned about the arrest operation beforehand and inserted himself into this situation.
“An investigator has no reason to fear a criminal. If anything, it should be the opposite.”
“Is that so? But from what I know, all those Heonsu Department guys are scared of our grandfather.”
Choi Woo-jin chuckled again.
“What do you mean by—”
“If you say you don’t know what I mean, that wouldn’t be a lie, would it?”
Choi Woo-jin’s expression turned cold.
Seeing that, Kwon Ik-seong furrowed his brow.
Damn it…
The atmosphere just turned incredibly tense.
Why is Choi Woo-jin making such loaded statements!
It would be problematic if the Heonsu Department actually investigated Choi Woo-jin.
The original story would completely fall apart.
That’s why I’m in such agony right now.
Even if I wanted to reveal that Choi Woo-jin is a Gamer right now, I can’t risk the original story derailing and facing who knows what suffering next time.
As I leveled up from being a ‘nameless extra’ to an ‘extra the protagonist had begun to care about,’ the Quest difficulty shifted entirely. Once I truly became entangled with Choi Woo-jin, I’d be completely stripped bare.
‘Now I’m really going to get torn apart.’
So for the next two months, my mind was inevitably consumed with devising some kind of workaround.
That’s when it happened.
Choi Woo-jin grinned widely and shifted the mood.
“And a criminal? That’s harsh language. I just came to see some interesting merchandise my hyungs are selling, you know? I’m the victim here!”
As he spoke, Choi Woo-jin shook his handcuffed hand.
When Choi Woo-jin moved his hand, mine was dragged along with it.
Kwon Ik-seong’s expression turned fierce once more at the sight.
And just as Kwon Ik-seong reached toward the passenger seat again.
I struck Choi Woo-jin’s nose with the hand connected to his.
“Ugh!”
This time, a genuine cry of pain escaped him.
I spoke to the frozen Kwon Ik-seong and the bewildered Choi Woo-jin staring at me.
“I judged that to be threatening behavior as well. Let’s keep quiet, Choi Woo-jin.”
“….”
“….”
Both of them fell silent.
Thank goodness.
I pulled a few tissues from the pocket attached to the back of the driver’s seat and handed them to Choi Woo-jin.
“Wipe your nosebleed.”
“….”
Choi Woo-jin watched me quietly for a moment, then let out a hollow laugh and pinched his nose shut.
Just be quiet!
My head’s already a mess!
* * *
The investigation into Joker and the Slime began.
Pee So-won’s reaction to seeing Joker with his face completely caved in and the Slime was straightforward.
“Good work.”
…As expected, a psychopath.
Times like these, I’m genuinely grateful my partner is a psychopath.
“But what’s with Choi Woo-jin tagging along?”
Then she furrowed her brow while watching footage of Choi Woo-jin enthusiastically eating hangover soup in the interrogation room.
“He’s suspected of being one of the buyers who dealt with the Slime and Joker, so we brought him in. We also found records of transactions between him and the Slime and Joker. It appears he was using unregistered burner phones.”
Thanks to Choi Woo-jin’s assistance, a burner phone that the Slime and Joker hadn’t mentioned surfaced.
However, the items Choi Woo-jin purchased were precariously positioned on the borderline between illegal and legal.
“Pink Pink Honey Powder? What is this?”
“…It’s a dungeon byproduct.”
“No, I get that it’s a dungeon byproduct, but what exactly is it used for? Is this another one of those things used to drug women and commit sexual crimes?”
At Pee So-won’s harsh voice, Ham I-na lowered her head slightly and spoke softly.
“Erectile dysfunction… treatment….”
“Damn it. Seriously. This bastard covers all his bases. Young punk.”
The moment she heard that, Pee So-won’s expression crumpled.
An erectile dysfunction treatment.
At most, it seemed like the kind of item that would result in a fine for misuse of medicinal dungeon byproducts.
“If an unawakened person takes it, it apparently doesn’t go down for a day….”
Ham I-na dutifully added an explanation that wasn’t particularly necessary.
And I deliberately pretended not to notice Baek Sang-jin writing that down on his phone.
Ugh. I don’t want to know.
“But who smashed this bastard’s nose?”
That’s when Pee So-won struck the heart of the matter.
In the quiet silence, just as I was about to raise my hand.
Kwon Ik-seong answered.
“I did.”
“…?”
I looked at Kwon Ik-seong with a puzzled expression, but he didn’t even glance my way.
“And was it also you, Team Leader Kwon, who cracked the back of this precious Daeyang Group heir’s head?”
Pee So-won looked at Kwon Ik-seong as if something didn’t sit right with her.
“Yes. That too.”
“Why?”
Pee So-won pressed him as if conducting an interrogation.
“He was unlucky.”
Kwon Ik-seong spoke quietly.
Just now…. Wasn’t that a completely uncharacteristic thing for Kwon Ik-seong to say?
All the investigators were looking at Kwon Ik-seong with that exact expression.
Kwon Ik-seong opened his mouth.
“I wasn’t particularly pleased with the situation itself—deploying female detectives to lead the arrest operation. In such circumstances, Choi Woo-jin suddenly approached Detective Lee Yu-ji, and while trying to stop him, my emotions got the better of me. If necessary, I’m willing to accept disciplinary action.”
Ham I-na’s expression became enigmatic at those words.
Truth be told… I wasn’t thrilled about the situation either—having to disguise Ham I-na and send her into the arrest operation. So hearing Kwon Ik-seong say it that way felt refreshingly honest.
So this is what experience gets you—the ability to say such things.
Pee So-won seemed to share similar thoughts and didn’t press the matter further.
“What can you do? Criminals always stay one step ahead of us. They don’t follow the rules. We need to bend them a little too.”
Pee So-won said this while looking at Ham I-na. Then Ham I-na nodded.
As if to say she understood. Her expression was one of gratitude for being told such a thing.
Both situations made sense.
We’re people who punish crime after all, and sometimes a little ‘bending of the rules’ is necessary to do that.
But it’s also true that we mustn’t lose our own conscience and pride in the process.
‘This is difficult…’
Such a thought suddenly occurred to me.
How would my parents, who were police officers, have handled a situation like this?
Since they were both patrol officers, I wonder if they ever faced anything like this…
That was when it happened.
The Special Team door opened, and someone with perfectly combed-back hair made an entrance.
“Ah, I heard our client is here.”
A sharply tailored suit. Shoe tips that clearly looked like luxury brands. An expensive watch gleaming on the wrist.
It was an entrance that screamed sophistication.
He promptly pulled out a business card from his jacket pocket and offered it to us.
No one particularly wanted to take it, but I, being closest, accepted the card.
And on that card was—
“I’m attorney for Mr. Choi Woo-jin.”
Rian Kim
Partner Attorney
written on it.
Thus arrived one of the nation’s most prestigious law firms.
“I understand our client suffered illegal assault during the arrest process…”
The attorney’s eyes, wearing a subtle smile on his face, were saying exactly this:
Got you, you bastard!
…Damn it.
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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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