Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant

Chapter 12

At that moment.

“……Ha?”

“Haha?”

“Wow, hahahaha!!”

Right after the headbutt, sudden bursts of laughter erupted around them.

He had thought the atmosphere was intensely hostile, but that brief headbutt shattered it entirely.

Besides, the sight of the fierce-looking Park Yong being visibly flustered only added to the humor.

“Is he strong? Or is he weak?”

“Kuhuh! What was that nose bridge headbutt? Seriously, that’s hilarious.”

“Wow, but did you see how he had his hand on his waist while delivering that headbutt? The class of it all.”

“Where’s that guy from? His skills aren’t a joke.”

“You idiot, if he’s that skilled, he’s probably an up-and-coming talent trained by a major guild.”

“Really?”

The heavy atmosphere flipped in an instant.

At the same time, Suho began to attract attention as well.

After all, although his attack might have seemed ridiculous, anyone in the know would recognize it as a brilliant counter.

Park Yong, who was holding his nose, let out an incredulous laugh.

Then, in the next moment, he displayed the most menacing expression Suho had seen, exuding a murderous aura as if he truly intended to kill.

‘Wow, that’s some serious bloodlust. But if things go on like this……’

It could get dangerous.

Suho decided to end it there.

Any further damage to Park Yong’s pride, and something genuinely bad might happen.

That was a situation he wanted to avoid.

Suho spoke.

“This time, I’ll go first.”

With those words, Suho moved swiftly, closing the distance with an effortless footwork.

His speed was incomparable to the footwork that Park Yong had demonstrated.

Park Yong, flustered, tried belatedly to draw his sword, but Suho reached out and pressed down on the end of the sword’s hilt.

Then, with his other hand, he cupped his palm and slammed it upward into Park Yong’s chin.

Thud!

He hit him a little harder than necessary.

It was the surest way to make him faint.

And, just as expected……

Thud!

Unable to withstand Suho’s force, Park Yong lost consciousness and collapsed.

At that moment.

[Your understanding of Palm Strike is exceptionally high.]

[The system has begun to assess your talent.]

[Congratulations! You have acquired the skill Palm Strike (B).]

Suho had gained a new skill.

Its name was Palm Strike.

After clearing the notification, Suho dusted off his hands and approached the examiner.

“I just knocked him out, so please take care of him until he wakes up.”

“Huh? Ah, yes……!”

“Well then.”

Politely requesting their assistance, Suho left the area.

That was enough for his first encounter with Park Yong.

***

A few hours later, the capsule issue was resolved, and the practical exam resumed.

Suho looked at the platform where the capsules were set up.

In addition to the usual examiners assigned to each capsule, new personnel had been stationed as well, who looked like capsule technicians at first glance.

‘Those people must be the skill inspectors.’

In reality, they were skill inspectors, hastily gathered at Suho’s request.

Among them was Jung Chulmin.

‘For something prepared so urgently, they managed to gather quite a number of people. Hyung Chulmin must have had a hard time.’

Satisfied, Suho nodded to himself, just as the numbers of the examinees began to appear randomly on the electronic boards hanging from the ceiling.

“In the interest of fairness, numbers will be drawn at random. Those called must check in within five minutes, and failure to appear will result in automatic disqualification!”

Suho quietly took his seat, watching the examinees make their way up to the platform.

A little while later, he noticed a few examinees moving towards the back door accompanied by the skill inspectors.

Those were the ones suspected of cheating.

‘As expected, Chulmin hyung is good at his job.’

The reason they were wearing fluorescent vests to disguise their identities was to prevent any disruptions from the suspected cheaters.

That precaution was probably also Jung Chulmin’s idea.

Thanks to that, the suspected cheaters were escorted out and didn’t return, while other cheaters were lulled into a false sense of security as the test continued without a hitch.

A while later, Suho’s number finally appeared on the electronic board.

‘Finally, it’s my turn.’

With light steps, Suho walked up to the platform.

By coincidence or design, he was assigned to the capsule where Jung Chulmin was acting as the inspector.

Suho gave him a silent nod of greeting.

Then he proceeded with the mana test, achieving a result significantly higher than others, but passed without any issues.

Jung Chulmin already knew about Suho’s capabilities.

Once Suho was settled in the capsule, the examiner spoke.

“If you feel any discomfort during the dive process, you must immediately request an emergency help call.”

“Understood.”

The examiner’s caution.

He understood.

At that time, the dive capsules had more glitches than expected and were somewhat prone to errors.

Once Suho was equipped with the capsule module, he began his dive into the test program.

[Activating the Hunter Practical Exam Program.]

[Connecting user’s consciousness.]

[Dive progress 5%…….]

As the dive progress reached 100%, his vision faded to black, and the surrounding scenery changed abruptly.

A strange landscape filled with monochrome.

In that place, a mechanical voice sounded once again.

[Ahn Suho, thank you sincerely for applying for the Hunter License Practical Exam.]

[I am the program master here to assist with your practical exam, Ahn Suho.]

[Based on the information registered for Ahn Suho, we will commence the practical exam for the Healer class.]

There were a total of four practical exams registered in the program, divided by class.

Suho had taken the exam for the Warrior class in the past, where he faced various combat situations.

For instance, it tested endurance and skill in scenarios from one-on-one battles to battles against multiple opponents, with high scores awarded based on survival time and kills.

‘In that sense, for a Healer……’

Suddenly, the scenery around him distorted, and screams began echoing from all directions.

“Aaaagh!”

“Help me!”

“Over here! I need a heal!”

The screams were only the beginning.

The stench of burnt flesh and the smell of blood assaulted his nose, and intermittent explosions echoed around.

A scene of pure chaos.

He found himself in the middle of a raging battlefield.

Suho murmured as he took in the horrifying sight.

“Wow…… Now I understand why they call this test the trial by fire.”

In the practical exam, the key was to demonstrate suitability for the chosen class.

For Healers, it was most important to show dedication and the ability to stay calm while providing healing in the midst of battle.

‘In that sense, a blood-soaked battlefield is the most fitting test environment.’

But only to a reasonable extent.

The patients screaming in pain before him were in such severe condition that any rookie Healer might vomit or be traumatized.

‘This is why Healers are so highly valued.’

Suho immediately knelt on one knee and began casting Light of Healing on a patient.

“Urghhh, it hurts, it hurts so much……!”

“Please hold on. The rescue team will arrive soon.”

Suho proceeded by the book.

The Healing power or amount doesn’t matter much in the Healer test.

The exam wasn’t measuring the Healer’s level but merely assessing eligibility for a Hunter license.

In other words, to achieve the highest score in the Healer practical, one would need to protect the patient even at the cost of their own life.

Simply put, dying while defending the patient would suffice.

In the global context, the ultimate virtue for a Healer was “sacrifice.”

‘Isabella always talked about sacrifice because of this.’

But Suho had no intention of going that far.

‘Why would I let myself be killed by an Orc?’

He was the Sword God.

The thought of dying to lowly Orcs was unthinkable.

Besides, the exam program simulated pain as part of its immersive experience.

‘Moreover, since it’s likely my status window is fully replicated here, I’d probably survive far longer than most others while getting pummeled.’

He might even instinctively evade, prolonging his suffering.

The thought made Suho furrow his brow.

Just imagining it was unpleasant.

After completing emergency treatment, Suho scanned his surroundings.

Soon, he spotted an unclaimed sword nearby and quickly picked it up.

‘The goal of this exam is to protect the patient to the end.’

In that case, there was no need to die.

He just needed to eliminate the threats.

Besides, this was a virtual world programmed specifically for the exam.

From what Suho knew, there was a fixed number of monsters in the practical program.

‘It’s better to fight until the monsters run out than to get beaten to death.’

At that moment, several Orcs began approaching Suho.

There were four in total.

The Orcs’ fixed gazes on Suho left no doubt—they intended to kill him.

‘Hmm.’

After a moment of consideration, Suho positioned the sword at his waist.

He had no sheath, but he kept the sword by his side as if sheathed and bent his upper body forward.

He couldn’t abandon the patient, nor could he step too far forward to fight.

Even if his intention was to protect the patient, the program would deduct points if he moved too far away.

Thus, Suho prepared a suitable approach.

He took a deep breath, calming his senses.

His perception sharpened, and he began to distinguish the individual sounds around him.

Soon, the four Orcs charged towards him in unison.

Alright, come on.

Just a bit more.

Just a little closer.

Finally, as the Orcs stepped into Suho’s range, he unleashed his sword with an explosive burst of speed.

Slash!

A powerful slicing sound.

And then—

Splurt!

A long slash carved through the Orcs’ bodies, spraying a massive amount of blood in all directions.

Simultaneously—

[Your understanding of Quick Draw is exceptionally high.]

[The system has begun to assess your talent.]

[Congratulations! You have acquired the skill Quick Draw (B).]

Suho reacquainted himself with a familiar skill.

‘As expected.’

No matter how virtual this place was, as long as it was Earth, no one could escape the system’s watch.

Thus, it was possible to master physical techniques here.

Since the system recognized that the player physically executed the move, it allowed for skill acquisition.

After this discovery, many players practiced techniques in virtual reality.

Training in a virtual setting allowed them to reset physical damage and fatigue.

But soon, it was found that training in virtual reality was inefficient.

Since they could freely manipulate the environment and heal themselves, the experience gained was lower than in real-world training, where they would push their bodies to the limit.

‘But that’s irrelevant to me.’

It didn’t apply to Suho.

The techniques he sought to master were not new but “genuine skills” he had already attained through real sacrifices.

‘I’ll endure as long as possible.’

Suppressing a smirk, Suho gripped his sword once more.