Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant - Chapter 70
Chapter 70
The next day, at the Korean Hunter Association auditorium.
The commendation ceremony for Suho was held there.
However, a problem arose.
Originally, only journalists were invited for a modest event, but an unexpected crowd of ordinary citizens attended.
The staff of the Korean Hunter Association, sweating as they managed the crowd, murmured.
“Why are so many people suddenly here?”
“After checking, it seems they’re all Ahn Suho’s fans? The ‘Suho Priests’?”
“I know that, but how did they even find out? This event hasn’t even been posted on the official website yet.”
“That… that’s true…”
The identity of the gathered people.
They were none other than Suho’s fan group, the “Suho Priests.”
Just as the staff member mentioned.
Today’s commendation ceremony hadn’t even been announced on the official website of the Korean Hunter Association.
Of course, this wasn’t a private event, so there was no rule against ordinary citizens attending.
After all, the purpose of this event was to celebrate Suho.
Still, for so many people to gather for an unpublicized event was unprecedented in the association’s history.
Those seated in the auditorium began to murmur.
“When is the Sword God coming?”
“Don’t you know? The main character always arrives a bit late.”
“At last, we get to meet him.”
“Yeah, I’m really curious about what he looks like in person.”
“I even skipped school today just to see the Sword God.”
“By the way, the president isn’t coming today, right?”
“Yeah, he said he couldn’t make it due to other work.”
“Golden Horse will be so disappointed.”
“Let’s take a lot of photos and share them with him.”
“Let’s do that.”
At those words, someone cleared their throat awkwardly.
It was Jo Jin-hwi, seated among the journalists.
Of course, the “president” they mentioned, who also happened to be the owner of the fan cafe, was none other than Jo Jin-hwi himself.
When he founded the fan cafe, Jo Jin-hwi had vowed never to reveal his identity.
Revealing himself would certainly be exhausting in many ways.
‘Still, I’m fulfilling my duties as the president of the fan cafe…!’
It was true.
In fact, it was Jo Jin-hwi who had informed the Suho Priests about today’s commendation ceremony.
Jo Jin-hwi texted Suho.
– Pro Ahn, there are a ton of your fans here at the Korean Hunter Association auditorium.
A reply quickly came back.
– I know. I’m watching.
– Huh? You’re already here?
– Yes, I came early and have been watching.
– Where are you?
– “I’m in the auditorium.”
– Huh?
It was true.
Suho had arrived even earlier than Jo Jin-hwi and was observing everything.
Why hadn’t people noticed him?
It was simple.
[“Monochrome Solitude” is activated.]
Thanks to the Monochrome Solitude ability of the original First Nameless.
As expected of an S+ rank item.
Even when he was right there, people were unaware of Suho’s presence.
Soon, Pi Seongyeol contacted him, asking where he was, and Suho promptly headed to Pi Seongyeol to begin preparations for the ceremony.
Seeing Suho, Pi Seongyeol remarked.
“You’re quite popular, aren’t you?”
“Haha, not really.”
“Come on. I’ve been with the association for a long time, and I’ve never seen a commendation event draw this many people. But actually, it’s a good thing. There was some negative publicity from yesterday’s article.”
The article from the previous day.
He was referring to part two of Jo Jin-hwi’s Yeongdeungpo series.
Pi Seongyeol furrowed his brow as he spoke.
“His name is Jo Jin-hwi, right? Why’d that kid write something like that and make things so troublesome, huh?”
“Yes, you’re right.”
“Anyway, it’s about to start, so make sure you accept the award gracefully. I have some urgent business, so I’ll head out first.”
“Yes, I understand, Senior.”
With that, Pi Seongyeol disappeared.
After Pi Seongyeol left, Suho dropped his polite smile and thought.
‘He hasn’t changed at all in his indifference to those around him.’
Even though he knew reporters from PBS would be here today, he hadn’t bothered to check on them.
With everyone wearing name tags, he could have easily spotted Jo Jin-hwi if he’d paid a little attention.
Yet, it was thanks to such indifference that Jo Jin-hwi’s identity as the fan cafe president hadn’t been exposed.
‘He’s been paying a lot of attention to me.’
As proof, he’d come directly to this event hall, even though he didn’t necessarily have to be here.
The ceremony soon began, and Suho moved to his designated seat at the front of the hall.
Then, the fans sitting behind him began to beam with excitement.
“Wow.”
“Amazing.”
“It’s the Sword God.”
“He’s really handsome.”
“Wow, look at that gaze… no wonder he’s so captivating.”
“And that jawline… that’s what you call the dignity of the Sword God?”
“I wish I could be cut by the Sword God just once.”
“Agreed.”
The people murmured excitedly.
Sorry, but I can hear everything.
It’s quite embarrassing.
The ceremony continued, and Suho moved to one side of the stage to receive his award.
When he faced Jang Kyunghwan, the President of the Korean Hunter Association, the host spoke.
“…and thus, we present this plaque of gratitude, on [Date], [Month] [Year], from the President of the Korean Hunter Association, Jang Kyunghwan.”
Click! Click!
As the plaque was presented, camera flashes from the journalists filled the room.
Suho naturally posed with Jang Kyunghwan, holding the plaque together.
While posing, Jang Kyunghwan quietly mouthed words that were nearly ventriloquism.
“You seem quite used to posing?”
“It’s thanks to your excellent guidance, isn’t it?”
“Haha, I heard from Director Pi. Your performance in Yeongdeungpo has been quite impressive?”
“I just acted to help the victims.”
“Haha, you truly are Hunter Ahn. Look forward to some good news soon. You’ll be hearing from us in a few days.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Good news.
Suho smiled at those words.
The “good news” likely referred to his special recruitment.
The photo session ended, and he stepped up to the microphone to express his gratitude and answer questions.
“Thank you. I think I just did what needed to be done, but receiving this award motivates me to work even harder. I’ll continue to give my best.”
A brief, standard acceptance speech.
As he finished, the Suho Priests burst into cheers.
“Wow!”
“So cool!”
“We love you, Sword God!”
“Sword God is the best!”
“Haha, thank you.”
As the cheers poured in, the host calmed everyone down, and it was time for the journalists to ask questions.
The first reporter, who obtained the speaking rights, asked,
“This is Kim Sang-woon from Hunter Net. Hunter Ahn Suho, congratulations on receiving the plaque of gratitude. Now, let me ask you this: do you still have a desire to join the Korean Hunter Association?”
A question-and-answer session.
It was expected, but there was no pre-prepared list of questions.
Preparing a Q&A list is usually done when higher-ups have done something questionable.
Suho replied.
“Yes, I still do.”
The second reporter then asked,
“You recently created an account on Stargram. Could you tell us why you suddenly made it after not having one?”
“People around me recommended it, so I decided to give it a try. Using social media is a personal choice, isn’t it?”
“You gained over 50,000 followers within a day; are you aware of that?”
Fifty thousand?
Had it already reached that number?
Since creating the account, it had been constantly buzzing with notifications, so he had turned off the alerts and didn’t know it had accumulated so many followers.
But he didn’t find it particularly surprising.
Stargram had easier accessibility compared to a fan cafe.
“I turned off notifications, so I just found out now.”
“You haven’t posted anything yet; do you have any idea what your first post will be?”
“Well, since I received a plaque today, I might post about it. I heard social media is for sharing daily life.”
After that, other routine questions followed.
After all, it was an award ceremony, and with the association president present, no journalist would try to stir controversy.
And finally, it was the last question.
Coincidentally, the final questioner was someone Suho knew.
It was Jo Jin-hwi.
“I’m Jo Jin-hwi from PBS.”
At that, murmurs began among the crowd.
It was only natural.
There was likely no one here who hadn’t read Jo Jin-hwi’s feature articles on Yeongdeungpo.
When Jo Jin-hwi raised his hand, Vice President Park Kyuman glared angrily at a nearby staff member and quietly scolded him.
“Jo Jin-hwi? Isn’t that the reporter who wrote that feature article?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Then why was that bastard invited? Are you people out of your minds?”
“Well, we did clearly…”
“You idiots…!”
Haha.
I can hear everything.
What’s the point of scolding them now?
They should have double-checked properly.
While Suho chuckled inwardly, Jo Jin-hwi’s question continued.
“Have you read the Yeongdeungpo feature articles I wrote?”
Haha.
Are you really asking that here?
This place is like a lion’s den for Jo Jin-hwi.
Yet, he has such guts.
Suho smiled.
‘He really knows how to stir things up, this Golden Scandal-Seeker.’
The type to go all out, no holding back.
Jo Jin-hwi’s style as a reporter was to say and ask whatever he wanted without considering the consequences.
That was why Suho had recruited him first.
Suho answered with a smile.
“Yes, I read them.”
At Suho’s smile, Jo Jin-hwi chuckled and continued with his question.
“The police and the Korean Hunter Association have been criticized for their selective approach to public security. Are you aware of that?”
“Yes, I am aware.”
As the questions continued, the association president, Jang Kyunghwan, began to scowl.
Seeing Jang Kyunghwan’s expression, Park Kyuman urged the staff to end the questioning quickly, but unfortunately, Jo Jin-hwi’s question came first.
“Then, if Hunter Ahn Suho joins the Korean Hunter Association, can we expect the association’s stance to change?”
Instead of asking direct, troublesome questions about the current association, Jo Jin-hwi subtly phrased it in Suho’s favor, and everyone’s gaze shifted to Suho.
Just as he was about to answer, Suho saw the president and vice president already moving to leave the auditorium.
Thanks to that, Suho could answer with the most natural smile.
“Yes, of course. If I join the Korean Hunter Association, I’ll do everything in my power to reform every corrupt root.”
“Thank you for your response, Hunter Ahn Suho.”
With that, the award ceremony concluded.
Suho quickly exited the auditorium as the Suho Priests trailed after him, while the reporters scrambled to turn his words into articles.
Of course, the Suho Priests were unable to locate Suho in the end.
The moment he left the auditorium, Suho activated the First Nameless.
As he waited in his car, someone soon entered the passenger seat naturally.
It was Jo Jin-hwi.
Suho greeted him with a smile.
“You’re here?”
“Wow, the association staff were glaring at me the whole time; I was so nervous on the way here.”
“You went into the lion’s den on purpose, and now you’re saying that’s too much?”
“Haha, you caught me. By the way, was my question a bit too harsh? I apologize. My editor told me not to cause trouble at the association, but I thought this was a chance to attract attention, promote the third part of the series, and boost Pro Ahn’s followers.”
Don’t put it all on me.
But it didn’t matter.
Thanks to him, I said what I wanted to say.
Suho responded with a smile.
“It’s fine. Thanks to you, I got to say what I wanted to.”
“Something you wanted to say?”
“Yes, that I would change the association.”
“Oh… you weren’t just saying that?”
“How could I lie at an award ceremony? I’ll make sure those criticisms won’t be heard again, just as you asked.”
“Haha… then I’ll look forward to it.”
“Of course. Anytime.”
A few days later, Suho was specially appointed at Rank 5.