The Civil Servant Who Conceals Her Power Is Too Good at Possession Chapter 5

* * *

 

“A bomb? What bomb?”

 

It was the moment Byeon Gudo said that.

 

Lee Yuji spun around and, without hesitation, struck the delivery man who was trying to slip out of Team 5’s office.

 

Struck.

 

Yes, that was the only word that fit the movement.

 

With legs so long it was hard to believe they belonged to someone barely 160 centimeters tall, she snapped the delivery man’s knee in a single blow.

 

And the next thing she did—

 

‘Eat this……!’

 

—was shove the mushroom into the gaping mouth visible through the lifted helmet.

 

“You brought in a bomb, didn’t you?”

 

The deliveryman, held firmly by the collar in Lee Yuji’s grip, choked for a moment before looking up and letting out a hollow laugh.

 

“Keuheu… keuk…….”

 

“….”

 

“How did you know?”

 

What Lee Yuji had fed the deliveryman was the mushroom that grew from the spores of Funny Powder. 

 

Regardless of how it happened, the bomb had been found and the culprit caught. Was all that remained the bomb disposal? 

 

Just as that thought crossed her mind—

 

Her body tilted sharply.

 

The delivery man had yanked her with overwhelming strength.

 

I-I can’t hold on…!

 

As soon as she felt the pulling force, Lee Yuji realized. 

 

This man is an Awakened. 

 

Even though she had been an athlete until high school, the gap in ranks was not something easily overcome.

 

And in the blink of an eye, as she was trapped in the delivery man’s grip, the cold barrel of a gun pressed against her temple.

 

Click.

 

“…Move and I’ll shoot. Nobody move.”

 

‘What kind of cliché crime novel situation is this?!’

 

“Whoa, whoa, calm down, calm……!”

 

Look at Byeon Gudo, telling the criminal to “calm down” at a time like this.

 

And look at Ma Deokho, still clutching his headset and covering both ears! As if he’s going to save anyone!

 

It was then—

 

Click.

 

Another sound of a weapon being cocked came from behind.

 

Held in the deliveryman’s arms, Lee Yu-ji could do nothing but roll her eyes, and she saw the shocked expressions of Byeon Gudo and Ma Deokho.

 

Byeon Gudo gasped.

 

“T-Team Leader……!”

 

Team Leader?

 

Do you mean Kwon Ikseong? Or—

 

Hearing the new cocking sound, the bomb-delivering criminal glanced back and shouted,

 

“Y-You! Want to see this girl’s head blown open?”

 

Only then did Yuji grasp the situation. Team 5’s team leader was aiming at the man holding her hostage.

 

“…Well, I don’t particularly mind.”

 

A languid, low voice—

 

‘…It’s a woman?’

 

No, wait, more importantly—what do you mean you don’t mind?!

 

‘I refuse to die a pointless death twice!’

 

The delivery man shouted angrily as he pressed the barrel harder against Yuji’s temple.

 

“Don’t lie! There’s no way you don’t care!”

 

“Well… I suppose writing up the incident report would be annoying.”

 

But there was no emotion in the team leader’s voice beyond that lazy tone.

 

No urgency. No desperation.

 

“But if we drag this out, aren’t we all just going to die in the explosion anyway? If that’s the case….”

 

Lee Yuji had the distinct feeling that she was smiling.

 

“…isn’t it more efficient to reduce the number of people who die?”

 

‘Now I know why the rookies couldn’t last a week before quitting. I know exactly why!’

 

As if just remembering something, the team leader added,

 

“Oh, by the way, did you know?”

 

“K-Know what……?”

 

“When a person speaks, their hands can’t help but tremble a little. Because their breathing changes. But you, right now….” 

 

“Stop spouting nonsense and lower your gun! This is a bulletproof helmet anyway!”

 

The criminal’s agitated voice rang loudly in her ears.

 

She could feel his hand trembling. What if he pulled the trigger by accident?

 

Lee Yu-ji’s head buzzed and rang. 

 

‘Am I dying again? Next time, at least let me possess the protagonist.’

 

“…You talk too much.”

 

Bang!

 

A deafening gunshot exploded in Yuji’s ears.

 

* * *

 

In an instant, the pressure felt at my temple and against my body vanished.

 

A ringing sound filled my ears.

 

Beeeeee— 

 

Did I just get shot?

 

With her freed hand, she cautiously touched her temple.

 

Something damp seeped onto her fingers.

 

It was blood. 

 

But—

 

“…Hey, rookie.”

 

As her hearing gradually returned through the ringing, a woman came into view.

 

A woman with hair somewhere between a short cut and a bob that reached just below her ears. There were dark shadows under her eyes, and her pupils were devoid of life. 

 

“Are you lying there because you expect someone to help you up?”

 

At the woman’s question, Yuji carefully pushed herself upright.

 

Her neck was slightly stiff from tension, but she felt no pain anywhere.

 

In fact, the one who looked like he should be in pain—

 

Still clutching her right hand stained with blood, Lee Yuji stared at the culprit screaming in agony.

 

The blood on her temple wasn’t hers.

 

The team leader hadn’t shot the helmeted head—

 

She had shot the man’s right hand, the one holding the gun to Yuji.

 

‘My head was right next to it! And she knew that and still fired!’

 

Certified psychopath!

 

On top of that, hands are small targets—hard to hit even under ideal conditions.

 

If her breathing had wavered even slightly, there would have been a hole in Lee Yuji’s head.

 

And yet there hadn’t been the slightest error—she’d blown his hand clean open.

 

‘A psychopath who shoots like a ghost.’

 

Realizing this, Lee Yuji understood what she needed to do next.

 

She sprang to her feet and bowed at a perfect ninety-degree angle to the woman.

 

“Hello! I’m rookie investigator Lee Yuji!”

 

…Make a strong first impression on your superior.

 

Because this psychopath was her superior.

 

‘I have to get on her good side!’

 

The woman watching her looked utterly dumbfounded.

 

After scanning Yuji up and down, she muttered,

 

“This time, they sent me a lunatic.”

 

But Lee Yuji wasn’t looking at her face.

 

Her eyes were still fixed on the explosion countdown timer, which had more than ten minutes remaining.

 

Above it, translucent windows popped up rapidly.

 

Status Effect ‘An unnamed extra in a crime novel must die’ lifted!

 

You have completed the quest ‘Locate the bomb installed inside the Hunter Investigation Bureau building! (A)’!

 

Completion reward: 5,000 gold has been granted!

 

Right. The quest condition was to find the bomb.

 

…Mom, Dad.

 

I just made 500 million won. Our apartment belongs to me now, not the bank!

 

The moment that thought formed—

 

Congratulations! Having successfully completed a possession, a special skill has arrived!

 

Another reward appeared.

 

* * *

 

One hour later. The Hunter Investigation Bureau Chief’s office. 

 

Hong Jaegyeol, the HIB Chief, having heard the report regarding the incident in Team 5, looked up at the woman who had delivered it with a bewildered face. 

 

Though she was standing at attention, her head was tilted at an odd angle.

 

Team 5’s Team Leader, Pi Sowon.

 

“…That’s the end of your report?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Despite the bewildered voice, Team Leader Pi Sowon’s answer was concise. 

 

“So, a rookie on her first day brought a detection dog into the building, noticed abnormal signs from the dog, located a bomb, and even caught a terrorist? All of this just happened to fall into place by sheer coincidence?”

 

Reading something in Captain Hong’s tone, Pi Sowon reached out and picked up the documents.

 

“Shall I go draw up a ‘picture’?” 

 

Pi Sowon’s use of the word ‘picture’ meant she would find a way to give this absurd story some plausibility. 

 

That’s how life as a public servant worked.

 

The higher-ups didn’t like the word “coincidence.”

 

If a criminal was caught “by coincidence,” it implied that without that coincidence, the capture might have failed.

 

And that implied institutional incompetence.

 

“And how exactly are you planning to draw it?”

 

At Captain Hong’s question, Pi Sowon set aside another document with an irritated look and began spinning words effortlessly.

 

“I’ve already written a report stating that during a periodic inspection conducted independently by Team 5, a rookie who was learning the ropes handled the task strictly by the book and discovered the bomb, tracked the terrorist’s location via CCTV, immediately pursued, and succeeded in the arrest.” 

 

As Captain Hong read through the report, his eyebrow twitched.

 

“A picture….”

 

“…It’s decent, right?”

 

At Pi Sowon’s words, Captain Hong’s eyes narrowed.