Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 175

"I'm sorry! No, I apologize! It's all my fault!"

All Su-ho did was take off his wristwatch.

And yet, Park Gyu-min trembled like a terrified pup facing a predator, looking as if he would piss himself any second.

His PTSD from the past was kicking in.

But more than anything, what he feared the most was the bomb planted inside his body.

After all, during his "education", Su-ho had forced him to swallow a fake remote bomb as insurance.

Su-ho spoke.

"You committed two sins against me.

First, when I told you to confess everything, you hid the Shock Project, a crime of massive scale.

Second, I told you to lay low, but you ignored me and shamelessly crawled back into gambling dens."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking! I truly apologize!"

"Does saying sorry make this go away?"

"N-No! It doesn't, but...!"

Su-ho summoned his Blood Club.

With a single swing, he smashed both of Park Gyu-min’s wrists as he knelt and begged.

CRACK!

"Aaaaghhh!!"

A horrifying scream filled the interrogation room as Park Gyu-min collapsed to the ground, writhing in unbearable pain.

Without hesitation, Su-ho reshaped the end of his weapon into a sharp spike.

Then, he began prodding Park Gyu-min with it.

"Is. It. That. Hard?

All. You. Had. To. Do. Was. Stay. Still.

Are. You. Just. That. Fucking. Stupid?"

Each word was punctuated with a stab from the weapon's razor-sharp tip.

The pain was unimaginable.

Park Gyu-min thrashed like a salted eel.

His shattered wrists, his body riddled with piercing agony—he felt like he would pass out at any second.

But Su-ho remained emotionless, continuing to stab him without pause.

"Just. Fucking. Stay. Put.

Was. That. So. Damn. Hard.

You. Pathetic. Piece. Of. Shit."

"AGH! AHHHHH!! AAAAGGGHHH!!"

His screams echoed as he writhed in agony, rolling across the blood-stained floor.

Chairs overturned.

Tables were shoved aside.

The walls and floor were smeared with his blood.

Yet, Su-ho did not stop.

Even when he lost consciousness, Su-ho revived him—again and again, ensuring he fully absorbed the lesson.

Why?

Because despite everything, this idiot still fell for Son Baek-geum’s temptation.

He needed to engrave fear into his very bones.

He needed to remind him of the primal terror that was An Su-ho.

Only after countless stabs and repeated fainting spells did Su-ho finally stop.

"Huuh."

This was such a hassle.

Dragging a chair, he sat down.

Meanwhile, Park Gyu-min lay twitching on the ground, his body a shaking, sobbing mess.

He was covered in blood, sweat, tears, and his own filth.

His hair was a tangled mess, and his expression was that of a man who had seen hell itself.

Su-ho calmly set the table upright again and spoke in an ice-cold voice.

"Sit properly."

"Y-Y-Yes...!"

With trembling limbs, Park Gyu-min sat up immediately, obeying like a terrified recruit facing a sadistic drill sergeant.

Su-ho stared at him silently for a moment before speaking.

"I'm getting tired of this.

Just go die already."

"Wh-What?!?"

"Find some deserted place and blow yourself up.

That bomb inside you—I'll detonate it remotely."

"W-Wait! Please, wait!"

"Why?"

"P-Please spare me! I-I'm truly sorry! I must have been out of my mind!

I only went because Son Baek-geum said he'd lend me chips!

I-I thought it was fine!

I wasn’t trying to gain anything from it!

I swear!"

"Fine. Let’s say I let that slide.

What about the Shock Project?"

"Th-That...!"

"According to Prosecutor Kim, you guys left Gate Shocks unattended on purpose.

All for real estate profits.

You let people die—just so your fucking property values could increase?"

"......"

Park Gyu-min shut his mouth.

He had no excuse.

Though, if he had to defend himself, he could argue that...

Yes, he did receive property in Safe Zones through the Shock Project.

But at the time, he had no idea that it was part of a massive crime.

He had simply accepted it as a bribe.

"...According to records, you only realized the truth later."

By the time he found out, the property was too good to give up.

Safe Zone real estate was the most valuable asset in the country.

So, even after learning the truth, he kept his mouth shut.

And now... he was caught.

Su-ho spoke.

"I'm not going to let any of you get away with this.

Because of Gate Shock, I lost my entire family.

I became an orphan because of bastards like you."

"Th-That...!"

Park Gyu-min’s face turned even paler.

Only now did he remember.

That interview.

That one interview where An Su-ho spoke about his past.

And now, the dots connected.

"Shit...!"

His survival instincts kicked into overdrive.

A cornered rat could push its IQ past 300 just to find an escape route.

Desperation fueled his thoughts.

And suddenly, a solution appeared in his mind.

"Th-Then let me help you!"

"Help?"

"I-I'll personally expose everything about the Shock Project!

I-I'll fully cooperate with the investigation!

I’ll hand over all my properties!

I-I’ll accept any punishment and apologize to the public!

P-Please, just... just spare my life!"

He climbed onto the table, falling to his knees, his voice trembling.

"Please...!

I-I beg you!

Spare me! Please!"

He bowed his head so low that his forehead pressed against the table.

Su-ho stared at him.

A beaten, broken man.

Crying.

Begging.

Groveling.

Yeah.

This is why scum like him only understand one thing—

Pain.

Su-ho had gotten the answer he wanted, but he didn’t accept it immediately.

Instead, he stayed silent, staring at Park Gyu-min’s bowed head.

After a long pause, he finally let out a deep sigh, as if he was reluctantly giving in.

"Fine."

"T-Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Park Gyu-min’s head snapped up, his face lighting up with relief.

But Su-ho met his gaze with an icy glare and spoke firmly.

"Don’t thank me.

I’m just using you as bait to wipe out the entire cockroach nest.

So remember—if you fail to expose every single person involved in the Shock Project, then no matter what you do, you’re dead."

"Y-Yes! I’ll do my absolute best! I-I’ll find them all!"

"This is probably going to be the biggest and worst Gate incident in Korea’s history.

Congratulations, you’re now the key figure and the detonator of the Re-Development Gate."

With that, Su-ho stood up.

Then, he kicked the table, knocking Park Gyu-min over onto the floor.

"If I could, I’d tear all of you bastards apart for what you did to my family.

But I’m holding back for the sake of the greater good.

You better be fucking grateful."

"T-Thank you...!"

"Tsk. You’re worse than an insect."

Disgusted, Su-ho took an item from his inventory and cleaned up the interrogation room—erasing all traces of blood and filth.

Even Park Gyu-min’s body was cleaned up, leaving no evidence of what had just happened.

Only then did Su-ho step out of the interrogation room.

As he exited into the hallway, he saw Prosecutor Kim Seung-hwan waiting at the end of the corridor.

"Is it over?"

"He admitted to everything and agreed to fully cooperate in identifying everyone involved in the Re-Development Gate."

"You did well."

"It was nothing.

But listen, just go through the motions and write a fake interrogation report for him.

Use my information instead.

I know way more than he does."

"Understood. What should we do with Park Gyu-min?"

"Keep him in custody for now.

Once the investigation starts making headlines, they’ll try to kill him.

I’ll take him after that."

"Wouldn’t that be... inconvenient?"

"If I don’t take him, he won’t survive.

Do you have any idea how terrifying the Cartel is?

By the way, what about the others?

There were quite a few who got arrested, right?"

"Yeah, we detained a good number of them."

"Don’t go easy on any of them.

Give them all prison time.

Later, once Park Gyu-min spills everything, we can tie their cases to the Re-Development Gate.

Actually, no—I’ll be the one to leak the story.

I know a trustworthy journalist."

"Got it."

"Alright, then. I’ll leave things to you.

I need to move on to the next step."

"There's another step?"

"If we're going to purge them, we need to do it thoroughly.

Even with an insider confession and my information, it’s going to be tough to push through.

I need another card to play."

"I see... Understood."

Just as Su-ho was about to leave—

BOOM!

A thunderous explosion shook the building.

The sound came from close by.

Without hesitation, Su-ho took off running toward the source.

The explosion had come from another interrogation room.

The one-way mirror and even part of the connected hallway wall had been blown apart.

Through the dust and debris, someone emerged.

When their eyes met, the man frowned.

"The Swordmaster?"

"Who the hell are you?"

"Hah. You don’t recognize me?"

The man responsible for the explosion was Hwang Ga-on.

He was a warrior-class Player, affiliated with the Prime Guild, and was nearing Level 200.

His combat skills and brutal fighting style had earned him notoriety, and his rugged, macho persona had made him a celebrity—which was how he got into the White Gold Club.

Su-ho smirked.

"Don’t tell me...

You’re making all this noise just to avoid interrogation?"

"Ah, fuck..."

Hwang Ga-on clicked his tongue and summoned his signature dual axes from his inventory.

Raising one, he pointed it at Su-ho.

"You already know, so why the fuck are you asking?"

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"Wow... This place is seriously mismanaged.

I’ve been saying—they need to station more Hunters in the prosecution office."

"You’re acting real cocky.

You think you can take me?"

"What, you think I can’t?"

"The fuck did you just say?"

"Oh, I remember now.

You’re Hwang Ga-on, the ‘Viking’ of Prime Guild."

"Good memory.

Then you should know—you should be running for your life right now.

The second I smashed this wall, I made up my mind.

I ain’t going down for gambling.

Do you have any fucking idea how much I’d have to pay in breach-of-contract fees if I get caught? Fuck that."

He wasn't lying.

For celebrities like him, getting caught in a scandal meant losing all their sponsorship deals.

And Hwang Ga-on had amassed ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) a fortune from endorsements—most of his money came from advertising, not actual hunting.

The penalties for breaking those contracts?

They’d be astronomical.

So, since he was already fucked, he made a choice.

If he turned into a villain, he wouldn’t have to pay a single won.

And he wouldn’t have to maintain his fake-ass ‘public image’ anymore, either.

He rested his axe on his shoulder.

"I hear you’ve been making waves lately.

But so what?

You really think you can take me?"

Su-ho smiled.

"Of course I can."

"The fuck?"

"I’ve taken down plenty of guys like you before."

Su-ho casually summoned his Blood Sword.

Then, pointing it at Hwang Ga-on, he spoke.

"You should’ve just paid your fines and kept your head down.

If you had, you wouldn’t be dealing with me right now."

"Fuck you."

BOOM!

The moment the words left his mouth, Hwang Ga-on charged forward.