Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 167

A large, black sac, the size of a human head.

Martin Park eyed it suspiciously and asked,

“...What is this?”

“A Kraken’s ink sac.”

“A Kraken? You mean the Kraken?”

“Yes. Harvested from a boss monster that was at least several dozen meters long.”

Kraken was a general term—sometimes used to describe giant squids, sometimes massive octopi.

But Su-ho had chosen to call it a Kraken rather than the Sea God—because that name resonated better.

And it worked.

Martin Park’s eyes widened, intrigued.

Su-ho continued smoothly,

“You’ve always said that to paint something real, you need pigments harvested from the real thing. That’s why you traveled all the way to Korea, didn’t you? To find the legendary black pigment that can only be obtained in the East.”

“...You did your homework, I see.”

Martin smirked.

“Yes. I refuse to use synthetic pigments. All my colors come from true materials. And yes, I did come here searching for the fabled Eastern black. But—”

He narrowed his eyes.

“If this is a Kraken, then isn’t it a Western sea monster? How does that count as an Eastern mystery?”

A sharp observation.

But Su-ho answered without hesitation.

“Because this Kraken was caught in Korea.”

“...Korea?”

“Yes. And here’s the proof.”

Su-ho handed him a magic stone, freshly harvested from the Sea God.

A Tier 1 Boss Monster Magic Stone.

At 1-star and above, magic stones were more valuable than gold—and their export was strictly regulated.

This alone was enough to certify the ink sac’s authenticity.

Martin Park inspected the magic stone and swallowed hard.

“...Hmmm.”

“Something wrong?”

“It’s just... ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) the idea of a Korean Kraken is a bit...”

“Haha, it’s simple. Your name is Martin Park, but you keep the Park surname because of your Korean heritage, right?”

“...Well, yeah.”

“You see? Same logic.”

“...You really did your research on me, huh?”

“I’m a fan. A real fan. That’s why I went through all this trouble to track you down in Samcheok. And I collected this just today—for you.”

“...Today?”

“Yes. Solely for you.”

At those words, Martin Park’s eyes flickered.

Truthfully, he had been enthralled by the ink sac the moment he saw it.

After all—

The most valuable black pigment he could obtain came from mythical beasts.

And this?

A magical ink infused with mana?

Impossible to resist.

Even more so because it hadn’t been purchased—it had been personally harvested for him.

Martin Park, keeping his excitement in check, murmured,

“...You’re really desperate for this, huh?”

“Yes. Very.”

“Then I assume you’ll tell me why you need my painting?”

“Of course. I need it for humanity.”

“...What?”

Humanity.

Martin Park’s eyebrows knitted together, but then—

His lips curled into a smirk.

“...Interesting. Keep talking.”

Su-ho had hooked him.

Without wasting the opportunity, he began explaining—

Who he was.

Why he joined the Korean Hunter Association.

His ultimate goal.

As the story unfolded, Martin Park’s grin widened.

And by the time Su-ho was finished, the artist was smiling more warmly than ever before.

“Heh. So basically—you need to kill a giant for a trait quest. And you took the long way around to explain it.”

“Haha, you got me.”

“Pfft. Amusing.”

Martin chuckled.

“Alright. I like grand, noble causes. So I’ll sell you my one and only painting of a giant.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Su-ho stood and bowed slightly in respect.

Martin Park opened his inventory, rummaged for a moment, and then pulled out a small sheet of paper—

No larger than a palm.

Su-ho’s eyes flickered with recognition.

“...So this is David Slain by Goliath.”

“You’ve seen it before?”

“Only online. Never in person.”

He really had seen it before.

It was one of Martin Park’s most famous works—

And also the smallest painting he had ever created.

Martin Park had deliberately chosen a tiny canvas for it.

Since it was the only painting of a giant he had ever drawn, he wanted to make it special.

That quirk had only added to its fame.

Even the story behind the painting was intriguing.

Martin Park had reinterpreted the David and Goliath legend—

In his version, David doesn’t win.

Instead, he’s brutally slaughtered by Goliath.

Because, in Martin Park’s view—

A human without tools can never defeat a giant.

Martin Park nodded.

“So? What’s your plan? You know how my paintings work, right?”

“Yes. I want to enter the painting and fight Goliath directly.”

“...Shame.”

His paintings worked in two ways—

1. He could trap someone inside the artwork.

2. He could summon the artwork’s subject into the real world.

Su-ho had chosen the first option.

That was why Martin Park was disappointed.

If Su-ho had chosen the second option, he could have watched the battle in real time.

Still, he extended a hand.

“Well, let’s get the payment settled first.”

“Here it is.”

“...This is incredible material.”

Taking the ink sac, Martin Park chuckled.

“Well, I hope you don’t die in there. I like weirdos like you.”

“I don’t intend to die. For the sake of humanity.”

“...Hah. Crazy bastard.”

Martin Park let out a low laugh and activated his skill.

A brilliant white light flared—

And then, a system notification appeared before Su-ho.

[Player Martin Park has invited you into the painting.]

[Do you accept?]

Of course.

Without hesitation, Su-ho accepted.

The moment he did, his body was sucked into the artwork.

Martin Park watched as Su-ho vanished into the painting.

Looking down at his masterpiece, he saw a new figure standing before Goliath.

A new David.

And that new David—was Su-ho.

“...Heh. Let’s see if the new David can really kill Goliath.”

With a chuckle, Martin Park set the painting beside him—

And casually cast his fishing line back into the sea.

*

[You have entered Martin Park’s painting.]

Thanks to Martin Park’s skill, Su-ho had stepped into the Giant’s Painting.

The moment his vision shifted, the first thing he saw was the mangled corpse of David.

‘Doesn’t look like he’s been dead for long.’

A painting captures a single moment.

And Martin Park’s David Slain by Goliath depicted the exact moment after Goliath killed David.

Su-ho shifted his gaze.

Standing over the corpse, still breathing heavily, was Goliath.

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The giant had yet to calm down from the thrill of his kill.

A menacing sight.

But Su-ho wasn’t intimidated.

Instead, he mused.

‘This is a real giant.’

In historical texts, Goliath wasn’t an actual giant race.

He was simply a large human general.

But in Martin Park’s painting, Goliath had been painted as a true giant—

Because Martin Park had actually seen a real giant before.

And his paintings were influenced by everything he had witnessed firsthand.

Given the choice between depicting a mythical Goliath and a real-life giant monster, of course, he had chosen the latter.

Which meant—

This Goliath was a pure-blooded giant.

And right now, he was the only giant race monster Su-ho could encounter.

Su-ho looked up at the name floating above the giant’s head.

– Goliath Lv. 151

A good level.

The reason?

Because Martin Park had painted this when he was level 151.

Without wasting time, Su-ho cast his buffs.

[Holy Enchant activated.]

[Blessing activated.]

Two buffs surged through him.

And as soon as the preparations were complete, Su-ho summoned the Shadow Spear, Guiyeong Spear, and plunged it into Goliath’s shadow.

CRACK!

[Shadow Restraint activated.]

[Shadow Bleed activated.]

Two debuffs immediately took effect.

And at that very moment—

A searing pain struck Goliath.

The giant snapped his head toward Su-ho.

– David?

David?

Su-ho snorted.

**“Did you go blind? You’re the one who just killed David.”

– I WILL KILL YOU, DWARF!

Goliath, enraged, grabbed his massive spear and lunged at Su-ho.

Or rather, he tried to.

If not for the Shadow Restraint holding him in place.

– WHAT?! WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!

The giant struggled, trying to break free.

But escaping wouldn’t be easy.

Even though there was a 40-level difference, Su-ho’s stats were Orange-tier.

A mere level gap meant nothing.

– GRAAAAH!

Goliath roared, thrashing violently.

His feet were restrained, but his upper body was still free.

So he gripped his spear in reverse and began wildly stabbing at Su-ho.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

Each strike of the spear was massive.

Of course, it had to be—

Goliath himself stood at least seven to eight meters tall.

But was that a problem?

Not at all.

Compared to the Sea God Kraken Su-ho had just slain—

This giant was much slower.

And far weaker.

Su-ho raised his blood sword and met the incoming spear strike head-on.

The moment the two weapons clashed—

CLANGGGGG!!

Shockingly—

Su-ho’s blade sliced through Goliath’s spear like bamboo, splitting it in two.

With a final push, Su-ho shattered the remaining shaft of Goliath’s weapon.

– WHAT?!

Goliath stumbled backward, unable to withstand Su-ho’s strength.

But—

Because of the Shadow Spear’s restraint, his body couldn’t fall.

Instead, his waist bent backward unnaturally—

Leaving him completely vulnerable.

Su-ho knew—

There was no need to drag this fight out.

The moment Goliath’s back arched, Su-ho gripped his blood sword with both hands—

And swung upward with all his might.

[Cloud Cleave activated.]

He didn’t even jump.

Instead, he planted his feet firmly and launched the Cloud Cleave from the ground.

A blade of pure energy shot forward—

Moving faster than any sword wave.

SLICKKK!

A clean, brutal cut.

Followed by—

PUKWAAGH!

A shower of blood.

The Goliath who had slain David—

Had now been split in two.

And as his body fell apart—

The sky rained down.

A crimson rain.

Hot, red blood.

The purest blood of a giant.

And as Su-ho stood there, soaked in the blood—

A system message appeared.

[You have been drenched in the pure blood of a Giant.]

[The conditions to unlock the Giant’s Bloodline have been met.]

[Due to the effects of New Blood, the seal on the Giant’s Bloodline has been lifted.]

Finally—

The Giant’s Bloodline had been unlocked.