Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant

Chapter 21

Thud!!

The Tower Dragon crashed to the ground.

However, Suho was no longer there.

Just before the Tower Dragon fell, Suho had used it as a stepping stone to leap upwards and cling to the stone tower, narrowly avoiding being dragged into the fall.

It was at that moment.

[You have defeated the Tower Dragon.]

[You have cleared the 49th floor.]

[You have set a new record in the Tower of Trial.]

[You are the first to successfully conquer the Tower of Trial!]

[The system awards you 10 bonus stat points in recognition of this great achievement.]

[The system is beginning its assessment of your extraordinary Trial.]

The fallen Tower Dragon took its last breath and finally died.

At the same time, numerous system notifications flooded his vision, making him momentarily dizzy.

At last, he had succeeded in killing the creature.

“Finally!”

Seeing the cascade of notifications, Suho felt the tension release.

But he still remained cautious, clambering down the stone tower before finally lying down on the ground to catch his breath.

Yet, his lips couldn’t help but curl upwards.

It was only natural.

He had succeeded in hunting the Tower Dragon, a feat no one in either his past or present life had accomplished.

It was then.

[Your level has increased.]

[All stats have risen by 1.]

[You have gained 1 bonus stat point.]

[You have reached Level 40.]

[The system desires for you to grow even stronger.]

[The system grants you an additional 5 bonus stat points.]

[The levels of all skills exclusive to the Healer class have been raised by one tier.]

[You have mastered Spirit of Healing (B).]

His level had risen.

Though he had defeated only a single creature, it was worthy of being the final boss, rewarding him with a generous amount of experience points and allowing him to level up.

Thanks to this, Suho reached Level 40, and upon doing so, received yet another system privilege.

The class skill he obtained this time was “Spirit of Healing.”

Suho checked the information on Spirit of Healing.

[Spirit of Healing]

– Grade: B

# Deploys an area capable of recovering health.

# Any being within the Spirit of Healing area will slowly recover health, with no limit to the number of people within the area.

# To deploy Spirit of Healing, at least one weapon usable as a totem is required.

Spirit of Healing.

It was Suho’s first area-based healing skill.

He remembered Isabella, who once healed the entire battlefield with her immense healing aura.

“I’ll definitely have to evolve this to its final form as well.”

Just as Suho finished reviewing the skill, another notification appeared.

[The system has completed its assessment of your Trial.]

[The system acknowledges your extraordinary accomplishment and has decided to grant a reward befitting this level of Trial.]

[You have mastered Dragon’s Blood (S+).]

The evaluation was complete.

But the reward he received was something entirely unexpected.

Suho sprang up in surprise as he read the system notification.

“Dragon’s Blood? The Dragon’s Blood I know? It appeared here?”

Suho couldn’t believe his eyes.

It was understandable since Dragon’s Blood was a skill synonymous with that monstrous player once known as “Dragon Demon.”

“But I thought Dragon Demon got Dragon’s Blood from a different gate, not the Tower of Trial?”

The Dragon Mountain Range.

The gate’s name had left such an impression that he remembered it clearly, thanks to Dragon Demon’s stories.

This could only mean one of two things.

Either Dragon Demon had lied, or it was also possible to obtain Dragon’s Blood from the Tower of Trial.

But whichever it was didn’t matter.

The important thing was that he had received Dragon’s Blood, a skill that was both Dragon Demon’s symbol and core strength.

Suho immediately checked the information on Dragon’s Blood.

[Dragon’s Blood]

– Grade: S+

# The lineage of a mighty dragon.

# Those possessing Dragon’s Blood can attain the power of a dragon, even without being born as one, depending on their efforts.

# Lv.1 – Dragon Blood: Intimidation (S), Dragon’s Will (S).

# Lv.2 – [???]

: Locked.

└ Unlock Conditions

① Reach Level 50.

② Unknown.

# Lv.3 – [???] : Locked.

└ Unlock conditions unknown.

# Lv.4……

As expected.

This Dragon’s Blood was indeed the growth-type skill he knew of.

Furthermore, Suho was already at the first stage of unlocking Dragon’s Blood’s awakening effects.

Thanks to this, his Intimidation skill, previously at A rank, was naturally upgraded to S rank.

“To think I’d obtain Dragon’s Blood in this way.”

Suho could not suppress the joy blooming on his face as he laughed brightly.

And no wonder—it was clear to him that, with the Dragon’s Blood skill he gained, this life would surpass his previous life by far in strength.

At that moment, the corpse of the Tower Dragon, the once tower’s master, began to disintegrate.

This was expected.

Unlike special monsters like Red Gaine, the monsters of the tower quickly faded away, unlike those within gates.

But then.

[Ghost Shadow Spear is reacting to the Tower Dragon’s shadow.]

[Ghost Shadow Spear is absorbing the shadow of the Tower Dragon.]

[Ghost Shadow Spear is being enhanced.]

“It’s starting.”

Suho narrowed his eyes.

This was to be expected, as Ghost Shadow Spear had a unique function.

[Ghost Shadow Spear has fully absorbed the shadow of the Tower Dragon.]

[Adequate magical energy has been provided.]

[The consciousness of Ghost Shadow Spear awakens.]

[Congratulations. You have successfully awakened a portion of the consciousness of Ghost Shadow Spear.]

[The item information has been updated.]

[You have obtained Ghost Shadow Spear (S+).]

When all the notifications had popped up, Suho finally allowed himself a satisfied smile.

Although it wasn’t specified in the information, Ghost Shadow Spear had a hidden option.

That was the “Shadow Devour.”

Ghost Shadow Spear, as a plus-ranked item, was naturally affected by its wielder, but occasionally, it could evolve itself, unlocking hidden abilities or improving its powers.

And in the world, such weapons were often called growth-type weapons.

Suho checked the enhanced information of the Ghost Shadow Spear.

[Ghost Shadow Spear]

– Grade: S+

# Ghost Shadow Spear, with its Stage 2 consciousness awakened.

# Recognizes the one who first awakened its consciousness as its master, enabling the use of “Ghost Shadow (S)” that can be summoned anytime from the owner’s shadow.

# If damaged, the Ghost Shadow Spear can always be repaired and resummoned through the “Shadow Regeneration (S)” effect, as long as there is a shadow and sufficient magical energy.

# Enables “Shadow Binding (S),” which bites into the target’s shadow to immobilize them.

# While Shadow Fangs are embedded in the target’s shadow, they suffer “Shadow Bleeding (S),” taking continuous bleeding damage every second.

Four abilities.

Not only had an A-grade additional option been upgraded to S-grade, but two additional S-grade skills were added, bringing the total to four.

Suho quietly raised the corner of his mouth.

“As expected from a growth-type weapon. It’s on a different level than ordinary weapons.”

The only regret was that it was a spear, not a sword.

Of course, he already had something in mind for the sword side.

Eventually, the Tower Dragon’s corpse completely vanished.

But where the Tower Dragon had disappeared, something remained.

Moving closer, Suho saw it was a fist-sized fang, causing his eyes to widen.

“Could it be?”

A fang.

And it was sharp.

Hoping he was mistaken, Suho quickly checked its information.

[Dragon’s Fang]

– Grade: S

# The fang of a mighty dragon.

# Those pierced by the Dragon’s Fang fall under the curse of “Incurable (S).”

Upon reading the item information, Suho felt a shiver run through his body.

He had hoped he was wrong, but it turned out he was right.

“To think I’d get a Dragon’s Fang here…!”

Dragon byproducts are valuable materials at the S-grade just by their existence.

However, they were incredibly difficult to obtain, as only pure-blood dragons, not just dragon-type monsters, could produce them, making it nearly impossible to even see, let alone acquire.

Even Suho, who was once the World’s Greatest Sword God, had only ever seen two dragons in his life.

Suho’s eyes gleamed.

“This will be perfect for making it.”

An unexpected high-quality material had come his way.

Naturally, it had to be used to create the ultimate item.

Its purpose was already decided.

“He’ll love it.”

And Suho also knew who would wield it.

Finally, everything was wrapped up.

Perhaps it was because of the double blessing, but he no longer felt any pain in his body.

Suho moved toward the exit portal that had appeared in front of him.

***

[The Tower Dragon has been defeated.]

[The 49th floor has been conquered.]

[The Tower of Trial has been conquered.]

[Conqueror: Player Ahn Suho.]

[With the Tower of Trial conquered, all players will be forcibly expelled.]

The Tower of Trial had been conquered.

Thanks to Suho, the world, already in a stir, experienced another explosive upheaval.

– No way, did he actually clear it?

– I can’t believe the Tower of Trial was conquerable!

– But wasn’t he just a newly certified hunter?

– Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god. Ahn Suho is a god…

– Mom! I want to be Ahn Suho when I grow up! Mom! I want to be Ahn Suho when I grow up! Mom! I want to be Ahn Suho when I grow up! Mom! I want to be Ahn Suho when I grow up!…

Both offline and online spaces erupted in chaos.

And that wasn’t all.

At the Tower of Trial’s entrance, news agencies, YouTubers, and even civilians flocked to catch a glimpse of Suho, and as soon as the tower was conquered, they rushed to publish articles.

When Suho finally emerged through the exit portal, everyone gathered beyond the safe line, flashing their cameras.

Click! Click! Click!

“Ahn Suho! Look over here, please!”

“Ahn Suho, can you say a few words?”

“Ahn Suho!”

“Ahn Suho!!”

Standing on the safe line that appeared upon clearing the gate, Suho took his place.

This area was like a trophy pedestal, reserved only for those who conquered.

Suho looked up at the sky.

The sky was so clear.

The sun hadn’t even set yet.

As Suho scanned his surroundings with a refreshed expression, he locked eyes with Jo Jin-hwi, who was staring at him with a dumbfounded look.

Seeing him, Suho raised the corner of his mouth and made a call.

The recipient was, of course, Jo Jin-hwi.

Still holding eye contact with Suho, Jo Jin-hwi awkwardly answered the call.

– H… hello?

“So, do you believe me now?”

– ….

He had nothing to say.

Madman.

He had really conquered the Tower of Trial alone.

Perhaps that was why?

Feeling relieved, Jo Jin-hwi brushed his shaggy hair back and laughed.

– You know you’re a total maniac, right?

“If you’re not confident, say it now. I’ll switch to another reporter.”

– To become great, one must swim in the deep waters. Of course, I’m confident.

“Good. You brought the car, right?”

– Yes, I did.

“The yellow Ferrari, right? The symbol of the golden reporter. I’ll head to the parking lot soon, so keep the engine running.”

Jo Jin-hwi chuckled at those words.

He had a look of, “How did you know my car?”

But he soon obliged and went to prepare the car, while Suho once again surveyed the area.

Just then, several black vans approached through the crowd of people from a distance.

People poured out of the vans, and Suho immediately recognized who they were.

They were employees of the Korean Hunter Association.