Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant novel Chapter 14

Guild scouts were more formidable than one might think. Many went as far as entering restricted examination halls undercover as examinees to scout potential recruits.

Park Pyung-sik was one such scout.

This way, he could get ahead and secure genuine talents before anyone else. While this approach wasn’t mainstream yet, it would soon become the standard in the future.

In that sense, Park was an early adopter.

Suho nodded, then asked, “There’s no way my exam results have been leaked yet. Did you enter as a candidate yourself, Mr. Scout?”

“Yes, I did. I’ve been observing you since your spar with Park Yong.”

That would make things much quicker.

This was a great opportunity for Suho.

“Good, then we can skip any lengthy explanations. What kind of terms do you have in mind?”

Park’s face brightened at the mention of terms. Candidates who asked directly were often easier to recruit.

“You’ve just become a Hunter, so we can’t offer anything extreme. But we promise the best conditions among new recruits.”

“Best conditions for a rookie, huh... but it’s still rookie-level, right?”

“True, but since you don’t have a record as a Hunter yet, even Hexagon would offer a similar contract.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard about the Gate at Sindorim Station yesterday, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I’m aware. But why bring that up now...”

“Being from Prime, it seems your information is a bit slow. Maybe because it just happened? Anyway, I was the solo conqueror of that Gate.”

“...What?”

“If you don’t believe me, check the news later. We can revisit the terms once that’s confirmed, right?”

“W-Wait! Hold on a moment!”

“Oh, come on. You’ll have to discuss it internally anyway, right? Take your time and reach out. By the way, here’s my number.”

With that, Suho shared his number with Park, then took his leave.

Holding Suho’s number, Park stared blankly for a moment before hurriedly dialing his guild. This was an emergency.

***

The next day.

No surprises awaited.

In this digital era, results were released within a day, and Suho received word of his passing directly from Jung Chul-min.

- “Congratulations on passing, Suho.”

“Thank you, Team Leader.”

- “Thanks to you, we managed to catch a lot of cheaters using skill-doping. Just as you said, all of them were juicing up with skills. This is going to be reported in the media, and the exam regulations will be tightened moving forward.”

That was good news.

If unworthy Hunters filled the ranks, not only would it tarnish the profession’s reputation, but it would also lead to a decline in Gate success rates and more innocent casualties.

“I’m glad. Fair exams are always better.”

- “Exactly. Also... it’s about to be announced, but you’re the top scorer in this exam. Congratulations once again.”

Suho smiled.

Of course. After all the fuss, they couldn’t not award him the top spot.

Still, he replied modestly.

“Thank you. I guess I’ve done well, thanks to you.”

- “Haha, it’s not like I did anything... The full list will be on the Association’s website this afternoon. Your name will be at the top as the number one candidate.”

“Got it. Thank you.”

Just as Suho was about to hang up, Jung hesitated before continuing.

- “It feels awkward to ask this right after you’ve passed, but... do you still want to join the Association?”

Suho chuckled at that.

It seemed Jung was eager to keep him onboard, especially with Suho now at the top of his class.

He gave him the answer he wanted to hear.

“Of course. I’ve already received offers from large guilds, but I’m set on joining the Association.”

Jung’s face broke into a wide smile.

- “Thank you! I’ll notify you as soon as the hiring announcements go up. Get some rest—you’ve earned it!”

“Thank you, I will.”

After the call, Suho immediately dialed the next person.

With his top ranking secured, it was time for business.

The next person was Director Kim Soo-ae. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

- “Hello, Suho. Today is results day, right?”

Kim answered immediately, as though she had been waiting for his call.

Suho nodded and replied.

“Yes, Director. I’m calling because of that. I received confirmation from an insider that I passed as the top candidate. The official results will be posted on the Association’s website in a few hours. You can check there and make the transfer as per our contract.”

- “Congratulations on passing! I had faith you’d make it. But Suho, if you’re interested, what would you say to joining Nexus Guild? We’d offer the best conditions compared to any other guild.”

As expected.

Kim was interested, just as Suho had anticipated. In fact, any guild would react this way to the top candidate.

Suho could already feel guilds’ eagerness, especially since he had conquered a Gate even before officially becoming a Hunter.

This was why he had demanded the three billion won fee. It allowed him to build goodwill with Nexus while holding off on making any firm commitments.

‘Might as well test the waters while I’m at it.’

Suho asked, “Prime made a similar offer. How would Nexus compare?”

There was a brief silence before Kim spoke again.

- “...You’ve already met with Prime?”

“A scout from Prime was at the exam, disguised as a candidate, so I guess I caught his attention.”

A faint sound of surprise came from the other end of the line.