The Civil Servant Who Conceals Her Power Is Too Good at Possession Chapter 73

There were things that changed after coming to the Special Crime Investigation Task Force. 

 

First of all.

 

The desks had gotten bigger.

 

The painfully heavy, ugly desk—which the supplies manager had clearly bought in bulk after taking a bribe from somewhere, and whose bizarre curves made it difficult to utilize the space properly—was replaced with a decent wooden desk. 

 

At the same time, it was paired with partitions that could somewhat be considered ‘interior design,’ allowing me to leave materials on my desk and stick post-its for things I needed.

 

Furthermore, Team 5’s chairs, which did more than just creak—sinking down with a pffft deflating sound if you touched them the wrong way—were replaced with new chairs. 

 

I felt an unknown pleasure every time the wheels rolled smoothly.

 

Not only that, but the strange odor of mixed ramen and sweat that used to linger in the office turned into the scent of air freshener, the lighting grew brighter, and above all else— 

 

“Everyone read all the materials related to Susubat and the black market, and we will hold a meeting next week.”

 

…Pi Sowon had changed.

 

“Distribute one copy of this to each person. Team assignments will be made at that time. I know you were drafted from your original teams, but instead of your old teams, we can organize teams fluidly as needed. In the case of the black market, there are many borrowed names, so we’ll often have to hit the ground running to shake down the brokers ourselves.”

 

I did think it had been a while since I’d seen her slacking off without motivation, but now she was acting like a blatant workaholic.

 

Watching her systematically distribute the materials, which looked to be thousands of pages long, as if she had already read through them all herself over the past few days, I exchanged glances with Byeon Gudo. 

 

‘What’s up with her.’

 

That was the look we gave each other, but it wasn’t like there was anything we could do about it either.

 

“Investigator Lee Yuji will move in a team of three with Kwon Ikseong and Ham Ina for the time being, and you guys will shake down the brokers first. So you’ll need to look over the materials a bit earlier….”

 

You want us to read these thousands of pages by this week? Just me, Ham Ina, and Kwon Ikseong?

 

I looked at Kwon Ikseong with a plea for help in my eyes, but the expression of the man who had agreed to be in a ‘fake relationship’ with me remained flat. 

 

No, far from just flat, he even added a comment he really shouldn’t have. 

 

“Let’s read it by the day after tomorrow and hold a meeting. Just the three of us.”

 

Is there really a need for that?

 

I wanted to ask that, but Ham Ina, seemingly used to Kwon Ikseong’s schedule, answered without complaint.

 

“Yes, sir.”

 

“….”

 

When I blankly stared at the two for a moment, Kwon Ikseong and Pi Sowon’s gazes fell on me. As if asking what I was doing.

 

I looked at Pi Sowon with the most pitiful eyes I could muster.

 

‘No…. You said I was your partner….’

 

Why do I have to work with Team 1?

 

Despite my questioning gaze, Pi Sowon’s eyes were cold.

 

“Once you’re in the Special Task Force, you’re all Special Task Force members together. And I can’t leave the office for the time being because I have to handle the distribution of tasks.”

 

You psychopath! But there’s Byeon Gudo over there, and Ma Deokho too!

 

However, except for when cursing out their superiors, they were people I absolutely could not do teamwork with.

 

They subtly avoided my gaze and stared into space.

 

What choice did I have?

 

The one with the least seniority has to bow their head.

 

“…Yes, ma’am….”

 

And so, my overtime work began from that day.

 

There really was an insane amount of material.

 

Partially in the case of the sub-spatial black market ‘Susubat,’ which was our target this time, transactions were conducted anonymously, so it wasn’t even clear exactly how many traders there were in total. 

 

Should I consider it a stroke of luck that we even salvaged the fact that a few transactions had occurred……? 

 

Thanks to that, there was rather more work to do.

 

Categorizing all the transactions, which numbered in the hundreds, and deducing who the transacting parties might be was an incredibly intricate process. 

 

We had to find out who the ‘big hands’ of the illegal weapons trade were with just a few hints.

 

In connection with this, an investigation of Kang Ilyeon as a reference witness also took place.

 

It was me and Ham Ina who interrogated Kang Ilyeon, who appeared wearing a high school uniform.

 

Kwon Ikseong was observing our investigation from the other side of the translucent glass.

 

“I don’t really know how many customers went in and out. I barely saw any of the customers’ faces either… within Susubat, I could rarely step outside the room…” 

 

“If you mean the room—”

 

Ham Ina presented a photo of the subspace they had prepared beforehand.

 

It was a photo of the small workspace, roughly 10 pyeong in size, where Kang Ilyeon had been locked up every single day.

 

That space, completely filled with bizarre machinery, did not look like a place a high schooler should spend several years in, no matter how one looked at it. 

 

“Yes. I think I ate and slept in here. There were many times I couldn’t sleep. Because when the Chairman punished me, I had to stay locked in there and make what he told me to for days.”

 

“….”

 

Ham Ina’s expression contorted. 

 

An expression that looked like she wanted to go out, find that ‘Chairman’ b*stard, and kill him right this instant.

 

Reading that expression, I quietly opened my mouth.

 

“Right. I understand. Then by any chance, is there anyone you remember from when you stayed at the Chairman’s house?” 

 

Even at my question, Kang Ilyeon shook his head.

 

“I haven’t seen anyone besides the driver and the cleaning staff. Even then, I mostly stayed in the storage room.”

 

“Storage room?”

 

“Yes. It was a room made by remodeling the garage, but even so, that place was better than staying in Susubat. I could go to the bathroom whenever I wanted, I could drink water, it was a bit brighter…… and I could see Wolyeon occasionally too!” 

 

Ilyeon smiled brightly.

 

However, from that bright smile, the abuse the guy had endured could be clearly felt.

 

Just how normalized must the abuse have been for going to the bathroom, drinking water, and seeing his family to feel like a ‘special privilege’?

 

“…Right. Understood. Let’s wrap it up here for today. Could we call you again if we need you?”

 

When I asked, Kang Ilyeon’s eyes sparkled as he said.

 

“Noon… I mean, whenever you want, Investigator.” 

 

These days, this guy was following me around like a hound.

 

The word ‘following’ feels a bit uncomfortable, but it was the truth.

 

I clearly unlocked the shackles the Chairman used to suffocate him and suggested we do business together, but the guy treated me like a new ‘Chairman’.

 

The fact that he tried to obey everything I said was one piece of evidence.

 

‘It feels a bit dangerous….’

 

In the original work as well, Choi Woojin had utilized Kang Ilyeon to his heart’s content due to this kind of tendency of the boy. 

 

Ultimately, it was something that helped this world and Kang Ilyeon, but even so, the fact that Kang Ilyeon’s status of being bound to someone hadn’t changed made me feel throughout the entire reading that Choi Woojin’s methods were profoundly wrong. 

 

But to think that now I was the one playing Choi Woojin’s role—

 

‘It’s a bit strange.’ 

 

So I escorted Kang Ilyeon out of the interrogation room and told him.

 

“You don’t have to listen to everything I ask of you. You are just a reference witness, after all….”

 

It was while I was giving that explanation.

 

“Oh, right. About what you gave me permission for last time, Noona.”

 

“Permission?”

 

What permission did I give?

 

“That time. You said I could run one experiment on that slime.”

 

Ah, right!

 

Only then did I remember the text I had sent when I plummeted because of Cha Jeonhyeok and lost consciousness after returning to my original body.

 

Sun

Noona. Can I do just one experiment with that slime? 

 

Mhm. Sure.

 

…I had sent it by mistake.

 

I think it might have autocorrected while Byeon Gudo was messing with my phone while I was passed out.

 

First of all, I don’t have any memory of it!

 

So I hastily corrected it afterward, but are you saying you actually went and did it?

 

Feeling thoroughly miserable, I looked at Kang Ilyeon.

 

“W-what. So, don’t tell me you’re about to hand me some slime mochi or slime buckwheat jelly now? Like, if I eat it, my body will be strengthened?”

 

For reference, after hearing the news that I passed out, Kang Ilyeon delivered a disgustingly terrible-tasting potion to my house, God knows what he put in it.

 

It did give me energy, so I’ve been making good use of it while working overtime lately, but—

 

Don’t tell me… That squishy guy isn’t inside that potion, is it?

 

Just as I was breaking into a cold sweat.

 

Kang Ilyeon stuck something into my ear.

 

The moment that thing, which looked like a bean sprout head, was plugged in, I heard a voice from somewhere.

 

[It’s too cramped! Open the door! I said open the door, you XXXXX!]

 

Along with very scathing curses.

 

And at the same time, when Kang Ilyeon opened the zipper of his backpack, a green liquid monster… no, a slime popped out with a swoosh.

 

[ Oh? It’s that airheaded woman. You, you kidnapped me and didn’t even show your face all this time? ] 

 

…What is this. Don’t tell me—

 

“I experimented with this and that using the inner thoughts earphone. Then it worked.” 

 

Kang Ilyeon smiled broadly, holding up the slime spilling out of the bag with both hands to show me. 

 

“Slime language translation!”

 

And at the same time—

 

“Get down, Investigator Lee Yuji.”

 

As a flat voice echoed through the hallway, Kang Ilyeon’s face vanished downward in an instant. 

 

And when I came to my senses, Kang Ilyeon was already pinned flat against the floor, his arm twisted beneath Kwon Ikseong’s body.

 

[Uwaaaak! What are you doing in the hallway!]

 

Along with the slime’s scream, my face crumpled.