Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 454

“Now then, the Association President issue is dealt with.......”

No one knew that Su-ho had gone to meet the President.

Strictly speaking, only a few people in the Blue House, including Jo Jin-hwi, knew about it, and they all kept their mouths shut.

Because of that, Su-ho was able to move straight on to the next matter.

‘There’s still a long time left before the second Big Gate appears.’

The second Great Cataclysm had only just begun.

In terms of “courses,” they were barely at the entrance.

But before even the early stages had ended, the first Big Gate the system had prepared was already over, so the world would enjoy a golden age of peace for a while.

‘And on top of that, Australia has become a completely safe zone, just like Jeju Island.’

The declaration that Jeju Island and Australia were complete safe zones.

He hadn’t anticipated at all that a Big Gate would have the nature of an End Gate.

Because in his previous life, after he cleared the first Big Gate, he had been killed.

Additionally, he had only realized the Jeju Island Gate was an End Gate after clearing it and seeing people’s reactions.

‘Then if I deal with all the remaining Big Gates, will those regions become safe zones as well?’

What hidden rule was at work?

For now, there was no way to know.

The only certain thing was that he had to raise his specs to high specs so he could respond to any Disaster that might come.

‘I have to get my level up to 300, too.’

For that, he had put together plans in advance and organized them to work through whenever he had time over the past few days.

At that moment. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

- Um...... Su-ho?

He was sitting on the sofa, organizing his thoughts.

Grid poked his face out of midair and called out to him like a pitiful puppy.

“Why?”

- Are you busy, by any chance?

“I’m just organizing my thoughts. Why?”

- It’s just...... I was wondering if you’d thought about what I mentioned before.

“What you mentioned?”

Su-ho recalled what Grid had said to him right before he challenged Girard.

- Now that you’ve officially become Partner grade, there’s something I want to ask you in earnest.

“What is it?”

- Once you get out of here, could you collect the remaining Runes of the Seven Deadly Sins first? Then I’ll do my utmost to cooperate with your growth and live up to your expectations.

It had been a request to clear up the remaining Runes of the Seven Deadly Sins first once they got out of here.

Su-ho had replied that he’d think about it.

But to be honest, he had been too busy to spare the time to think about it.

When a faint sigh left Su-ho’s lips, Grid showed a disappointed expression.

Seeing that, Su-ho chuckled.

“Is it really that urgent?”

- It’s not that it’s urgent...... I’m just anxious.

“Anxious?”

- I’ll be honest. You’re so busy and so incredible that as time goes by, I feel like you’ll need my power less and less. You freed Lust first because she had to prove you, but the others haven’t even awakened yet, have they?

“That’s true.”

- But whether they wake up or not, you already know exactly where they are and who they’re with, don’t you? That’s why I’m asking. Rather than having you grant my request later when you’re even busier, I was hoping you might handle it now while you still have at least a little leeway.

“Hmm.......”

Honestly, he had a point.

As time passed, Su-ho was only going to become more remarkable, and separately from that, he would always be busier trying to become stronger, so by then, Grid’s power might not be something he particularly needed anymore.

‘Of course, it’ll be a different story once Grid becomes Demon King.......’

He didn’t know exactly how great the Demon King’s power was.

But he didn’t think he needed to cling to a power he couldn’t even gauge.

Time was money.

When Su-ho showed signs of hesitation, quick-witted Grid spoke.

- Su-ho.

“What is it?”

- I won’t try to tug at your emotions. But this one thing I will state clearly. Once I become Demon King, the power you gain will be different in kind and in trajectory from anything you obtain going forward.

“Really?”

- I guarantee it.

If he put it that way, then.

Su-ho nodded.

“All right. Then before I move on to the next step, I’ll grant your request first.”

- Really?

“Of course.”

Su-ho answered coolly.

Grid’s last words might have been somewhat light on evidence, but it didn’t feel like he was just making things up either.

Of course, there were a few other reasons as well, but he had also accepted because he valued his partnership with Grid.

‘If I don’t grant his request now, he’ll probably whine about it for quite a while.’

Whining was something he absolutely hated.

And for the sake of his future plans, it would be better to satisfy Grid’s desires in advance.

Because among the plans Su-ho had laid out, there were a few that required Grid’s help.

Checking the time and calendar, Su-ho spoke.

“Then first, let’s go track down the remaining Seven Deadly Sins.”

- Let’s go!

Grid, thrilled, laughed brightly and bounced up and down.

*

The Players of the Seven Deadly Sins in his previous life were as follows.

Wrath’s Las.

Lust’s Lust.

Gluttony’s Gluttony.

Envy’s Envy.

Sloth’s Sloth.

Pride’s Pride.

And Greed’s Grid.

Among them, the one with the worst notoriety was, without question, Lust’s Lust.

Contrary to the assumption that he was just some rapist obsessed with sex, he was someone with a special perversion who enjoyed pleasure-killing.

‘Next worst was Gluttony’s Gluttony.’

The reason Gluttony ranked next was because his dietary preference was same-species predation...... in other words, cannibalism.

Of course, he hadn’t engaged in cannibalism from the beginning.

Originally, Gluttony’s Apostle had simply loved eating, but after forming a contract with Gluttony, he was completely brainwashed by Gluttony’s honeyed words.

‘He’d just been a simple glutton, but after the contract, he was brainwashed into believing that human flesh was the most delicious.’

Not even ordinary humans, but Player flesh.

The reason was obvious.

By eating Players, he could fully absorb the power those Players possessed and grow.

Of course, ranking the Seven Deadly Sins Players beyond that was essentially meaningless.

Their common trait was that they were all mass murderers who slaughtered countless people.

And now, Su-ho had come to cut off those massacres at the bud before they could raise their heads.

The process itself wasn’t particularly difficult.

At present, Su-ho could use transformation arts to completely change his appearance and voice, use [Colorless Solitude] to erase his presence so perfectly he wouldn’t even show up on CCTV, and use Cheolma to zip around the world at super-high speed.

And he knew where the Seven Deadly Sins Players had gotten the Runes of the Seven Deadly Sins in his previous life.

In that sense, the first place Su-ho visited was a large general hospital in an affluent neighborhood in the United States.

Naturally, no one recognized Su-ho.

On top of changing his appearance, he had completely erased his presence with [Colorless Solitude].

Grid asked,

- A hospital? Why are we here?

“You told me to find the Runes of the Seven Deadly Sins.”

- I did, didn’t I?

“There’s one of them hiding here that hasn’t been freed yet.”

- ......?

Grid couldn’t understand Su-ho’s words.

Which was only natural; this was a hospital.

Once inside, Su-ho grabbed a passing female nurse.

“Excuse me?”

“Yes?”

[ Enthrallment is activating. ]

Meeting the nurse’s eyes, Su-ho used Enthrallment on the spot.

Pink hearts appeared in the nurse’s pupils, indicating that Enthrallment had taken effect.

Su-ho spoke.

“I’m looking for a patient named Kinsey. Which building and room is he in?”

“Just a moment......”

At Su-ho’s question, the nurse immediately tapped at her phone and looked up the information on the patient named Kinsey.

Once Su-ho obtained the information, he sent her back right away, then headed straight to the private VIP ward and opened the door to a single room.

Inside the room, there was a middle-aged woman who appeared to be Kinsey’s family.

“Who are you......?”

[ Enthrallment is activating. ]

Meeting her eyes, Su-ho used Enthrallment without hesitation and bewitched her.

He asked,

“What’s your relation?”

“I’m Kinsey’s mother.”

“Very good, ma’am. Please turn around, face the wall, and stay still.”

“Yes, I understand.”

At Su-ho’s command, Kinsey’s mother immediately turned around and stared at the wall.

Only then did Su-ho approach Kinsey.

Kinsey was a boy on a ventilator.

He was seventeen.

But he had been in a coma for so long that his entire body was so skinny he didn’t even look fourteen.

Su-ho asked Grid,

“How is it, can you feel it?”

Grid came out directly and examined Kinsey, but he couldn’t feel anything from him.

He only tilted his head.

- There’s really one of them hiding here?

“More precisely, it’s preparing to hatch.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Su-ho drew the Blood Sword.

Then, without a moment’s hesitation, he swung it down at Kinsey’s neck as the boy lay sleeping as if dead.

Slice! Splat!

The blade cut through his neck and blood splattered everywhere.

In that instant, a bear’s roar echoed from Kinsey’s severed neck.

- Grrruaaargh!!

It wasn’t just the sound.

Ash-gray smoke poured out from the severed neck, took on the form of a fierce bear, its eyes flashing as it shuddered as if it were about to leap at Su-ho at any moment.

At that moment, Su-ho raised one hand.

[ Holy Enchant is activating. ]

Sacred radiance gathered in his hand.

And then.

Smack!

Without any hesitation, Su-ho started slapping the smoke-formed bear across the face.

- Grrh?

“‘Grrh’ my ass. Shut it, you punk.”

Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!

Like a mother spanking a misbehaving child’s back, he smacked the bear several times with a hand coated in Holy Enchant.

The bear kept shrinking inward until it became a small, rounded something, and when Su-ho grabbed it and yanked it out, it condensed into a hard stone-like lump in his grasp and took shape.

[ You have acquired ???’s ?. ]

System judgment settled over it, and an item dropped into Su-ho’s inventory.

It looked similar to the Rune of Greed, and its item information was the same as when he had first gotten the Rune of Greed.

The hospital room fell quiet.

Kinsey’s mother was still standing facing the wall, and Kinsey, whose neck had been half severed, was dying as he poured out blood.

Su-ho immediately placed his hand on Kinsey’s neck.

[ Heal is activating. ]

[ Recovery is activating. ]

Two healing skills.

As the skill effects burst out brilliantly, Kinsey’s neck was restored so cleanly it was as if it had never been cut.

Su-ho didn’t stop there.

With the light of healing still pouring out, he swept it over Kinsey’s body once more.

“This part is on the house.”

They were healing skills of a Middle Player.

In terms of grade, Kinsey was a lowest-grade Player at best, and thanks to Su-ho’s healing, he would now simply be someone whose muscles had weakened from a long hospitalization, with no other part of his body in pain.

Having finished his business, Su-ho quietly left the hospital room.

Then he snapped his fingers and released Enthrallment from Kinsey’s mother.

“Kyaaaaaah!!”

If the caster wished, he could erase as many memories as he wanted from a person under Enthrallment.

Because of that, she had no idea Su-ho had ever been there.

But because of the traces of Kinsey’s blood left in the room, she couldn’t help but scream.

Of course, Kinsey was fine.

No, not just fine—he would soon wake from his coma.

Because the cause of his coma had been removed from his body.

Once they had gotten a decent distance away from the hospital, Grid asked, barely suppressing his excitement,

- Su-ho, that thing you just obtained in your hand, don’t tell me......

“Yeah. It’s a Rune of the Seven Deadly Sins just like you. The Rune of Sloth, at that. And it hasn’t even been freed.”

Smiling, Su-ho handed it over to Grid.