LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 23
Chapter 23: Unexpected Gift
Si-hyun awoke, fully alert, after receiving Sang-kyu’s call.
He wasn’t the kind of friend to joke around with something like this, so it had to be real.
Sometimes, he had seen videos become the talk of the internet, but he never imagined it would involve him.
Dazed, he got up and turned on his computer.
“Ugh… what is this…”
The sudden noise and light must have woken Ha-young, who frowned and buried her face in the blanket, rolling over.
“Ah… don’t you have any sleep left? It’s Sunday; you can sleep in a bit. Ugh…”
“I’m really sorry. I’ll keep it down, so just ignore me and go back to sleep. I won’t wake you.”
Si-hyun spoke in a remorseful tone.
Yesterday, after the documentary ended late at night, his younger sister decided to stay over at his apartment for the night.
Being careful not to make any noise, he sat in his chair and opened the internet.
As the homepage of the portal site ‘Naver’ loaded, he clicked on the news section, hoping there might be an article about the prison documentary.
“There it is.”
Indeed, it was there.
But it was among the top views.
Immediately, he clicked on an article titled [Daehan Correctional Facility's 72-Hour Close-Up, A Sea of Tears].
The article summarized the contents of the documentary and mentioned that the filming site was filled with the repenting tears of inmates, alongside comments from the filming crew.
It looked like it was just a plain article written in advance before the documentary aired.
But the number of comments was no joke.
It wasn’t even about a popular variety show, yet there were hundreds of comments.
“Holy.”
Si-hyun’s eyes widened in astonishment as he clicked to view the comments.
There were quite a few discussing him directly.
– This episode of the 72-Hour Documentary was super entertaining, LOL. Those prisoners were so scared of that guard; it was soooo satisfying when they looked down, ROFL.
– LOL, but isn’t that guard basically a slave? He seems to be called at every little incident. Hahaha.
– But does this even make sense? Those criminals look like they don’t care about anything and they’re cowing down to some guard?
– Don’t believe it. Anything on TV is staged.
– My brother is connected to the 72-Hour Documentary, and they don’t stage anything. Don’t spread weird rumors.
– Hey, would they really manipulate a documentary?
– Isn’t he blackmailing them? LOL. Like, he has some nude video or something. LOL. Otherwise, they wouldn’t react like that.
– A “nude video” like from voice phishing? LOL. Do they threaten to spread it to people you know if you don’t listen?
– The guard’s authority, I’m addicted to this video. Click the link and check it out.
– But are those criminals really sobbing and showing remorse? I can’t believe it. I don’t trust those criminals.
– If that’s acting, shouldn’t they go to Hollywood?
“What the heck…?”
Si-hyun blinked and rubbed his eyes.
Even though it was broadcasted on national television, he never expected such an explosive reaction from viewers for a documentary.
It seemed his ability to easily subdue inmates was shockingly impressive to many.
He thought it would get some attention, but he never imagined it would be to this extent.
At least he was grateful to be wearing a mask.
Next, Si-hyun browsed through communities to gauge the reactions.
No matter which community he visited, posts about the documentary had exploded after the broadcast. Several communities featured popular posts of the video he appeared in.
Si-hyun wore a complicated expression, unsure whether to be happy or not.
If he were a budding celebrity, he might have been thrilled, but as an ordinary person, the sudden attention on the internet felt more like a burden.
Of course, he knew that internet attention quickly fizzled out.
Feeling overwhelmed, Si-hyun stood up for a glass of cold water.
Just then, a notification popped up.
[As your fame rises, Po-ahim is very pleased. He wishes to give you one of his treasures as a token of congratulations.]
[Received Po-ahim’s Restraint Rope.]
[Active Skill Restraint Technique has appeared.]
“…Huh? Huh? What is this?”
“Ugh… you said you’d keep it down!”
“Ah, sorry, sorry.”
The unexpected content of the notification seemed to have made him raise his voice without realizing it.
But it was indeed surprising.
Wait, an item?
And a skill too?
And my fame increased?
Si-hyun quickly opened his status window to check his status displayed in the upper right corner.
[Current Status] Fame: Slightly Known Position: Level 9 Correctional Officer
“Huh… It’s gone up.”
Si-hyun muttered as he covered his mouth.
His fame had risen from ‘Thoroughly Unknown’ to ‘Slightly Known.’
It seemed the documentary had unexpectedly introduced him to many people. Even now, more people were likely sharing the video.
The power of media… amazing.
Next, Si-hyun examined his skill window.
[Skills] Passive: Veteran Guard’s Insight Active: Restraint Technique, ??? (Inactive), ??? (Inactive)
“Huh?”
Si-hyun was surprised again.
He thought that inactive skills would appear active, but instead, a new skill had emerged.
What on earth is this?
Were there more than three skills in total?
…Is this old man hiding his abilities too much?
While it was a great thing, he felt somewhat mocked.
With a peculiar expression, Si-hyun examined the Restraint Technique skill closely.
[Restraint Technique] – A unique technique of Po-ahim that restrains the opponent completely within 3 seconds. The bound target experiences considerable pain due to restricted blood flow and cannot escape by themselves.
He knew well what Restraint Technique was, so it was as expected.
Although he had little opportunity to utilize the technique as part of the Security Department, he had often tied up inmates as if they were dried fish.
For a correctional officer, it was an essential skill.
Thus, it was rather strange for Po-ahim not to know this technique.
Yet a three-second cut?
They say fast restraint techniques take about ten seconds, so this was three times faster.
At this rate, one could call him a god of restraint technique.
‘This could be useful.’
This new skill appeared to have some practical applications.
It would certainly be handy when assigned to duty, and if the need arose to capture someone, he could use the Restraint Technique to bind them.
However, to perform the Restraint Technique, he would need the Restraint Rope.
The message he received about acquiring Po-ahim’s Restraint Rope made sense now.
Si-hyun checked his inventory.
Sure enough, there was an item he had never seen before.
[Po-ahim’s Restraint Rope][Rarity: Rare] – A restraint rope made from twisting the tendons of a Royal Griffin. Extremely tough and durable, making it difficult to cut with sharp objects.
“Oh, rare.”
Si-hyun brightened up.
He still had nightmares from the ‘Po-ahim’s Guard Baton,’ which was the ultimate useless item, so even seeing ‘Po-ahim’ in the name made him anxious.
The Guard Baton was only used occasionally when beating a dust-covered blanket.
But it seemed that at least there existed one rare item formerly used by Po-ahim.
Si-hyun poured a glass of cold water and took a moment to gather his thoughts.
‘With my fame rising, the rewards are no joke. Then?’
Not only did he get a brand new skill, but he also received an item.
Raising his fame further wouldn’t be easy.
But what about promotion?
He could definitely achieve at least level 8 quickly.
The exam date for the promotion was coming up soon.
It’s clear the evaluation will be favorable, so as long as he doesn’t screw up the exam, the promotion is practically guaranteed.
At that point, he might get another skill or receive another item.
He could become even stronger.
‘What about level 7?’
Si-hyun gazed a bit further ahead.
Though the minimum duration for promotion has been decreasing recently, it still took a few years to become level 8.
For Si-hyun, that duration felt quite lengthy.
So he had two options.
One was to pass the public servant exam for level 7.
There was no way he could do that.
Studying seven subjects while working?
Knowing his own studying skills, Si-hyun ruled that out.
The other option was to take the special recruitment exam for Awakened correctional officers.
Back when he was studying for civil service exams, he had curiously looked it up, and the memory lingered until now.
Awakened individuals of at least D rank could be directly recruited at level 7 as long as they pass two subjects: Introduction to Corrections and Introduction to Criminal Procedure Law.
It seemed that many Awakened individuals apply for this program as they prefer a stable job rather than riskier endeavors like raid strategizing.
Of course, since the income is immense for those ranked C and above, it was rare for anyone outside those ranks to apply here.
Moreover, starting from rank B, there was even recruitment for level 5.
I had heard that correctional officers selected through Awakened special recruitment usually work in special wards where Awakened individuals are incarcerated.
Naturally, it followed that Awakened persons could commit crimes too.
Such Awakened individuals are incredibly difficult for ordinary correctional officers to manage.
That’s why they have Awakened individuals overseeing cell management.
In any case, this was a possibility.
Raising my magic power to 10,000 gets me to D rank, and I only have to study for two subjects.
‘Alright, let’s do this.’
Si-hyun’s eyes sparkled.
With promotion, not only would it be great, but he’d also get stronger.
It’s a great deal!