The Low-Ranking Civil Servant Wants to Achieve Success-Chapter 5

How much time had passed?

“Ughhh...”

With a groan, my eyes shot open.

What the... What? What the hell?

I jolted upright. My whole body felt light—way lighter than usual.

What is this?

As I tried to gather my senses, a thought struck me with urgency.

There’s only one thing that can bring about this kind of sudden physical recovery—and that’s money. Just what is this radiant aura of wealth coursing through my veins right now?

Sure enough. There was an IV needle stuck in my left arm. Drip. Drip. Drip. That sound wasn’t just fluid—it was money hitting the bloodstream.

I looked around.

This is... the Imperial Palace infirmary. And this is a private suite—reserved for VIPs!

The math was instant. Kiaros had arranged this for me—an outrageous level of treatment.

IV therapy like this was so expensive even high-ranking nobles rarely got it!

“This is amazing...”

It was still early morning. The sky outside was a soft shade of violet.

I lay back down into the bed. The mattress was plush and wrapped me in warmth.

“I’ll head straight to work from here.”

I closed my eyes again, hoping to steal a bit more sleep—when the door creaked open.

“You’re awake?”

A young man with brown hair and green eyes walked over in a white doctor’s coat—Luka.

“You got up faster than I expected. Must be the IV.”

He checked my line as he spoke. I looked up at him and blurted out:

“You used the best one, right?”

“Huh?”

“You know how royals are like, ‘Only the best.’ You didn’t skimp, did you? That’d be a waste.”

I clasped my hands together with desperation.

“If you used something mediocre, it’s not too late. Switch it to the best now.”

“...What?”

“This is your chance to rack up some good karma for your next life. Spend the palace’s money. Come on, live a little.”

Luka gave me a look that could only be described as utter disbelief.

Luka Class—he was a fellow graduate of the Imperial Academy, same year as me.

Second place on the entrance exam.

First in class throughout the entire program, valedictorian at graduation, top scorer in the imperial civil service exam.

Unlike me—who didn’t even get a single line in the original novel—he was good enough to play the part of a decent supporting extra.

Honestly, the Ministry of Finance tried to recruit him...

But he chose the Public Health Department instead.

Being born a commoner, he knew the other departments—driven by nepotism—would cap his advancement. So he chose the one place where skill came first.

And he was right, in the end.

Though we started at the same time, Luka was already climbing the ranks while I, well... hadn’t even been assigned a junior.

Wait. No—I did get an intern. Who ran away after one day.

As that thought crossed my mind, Luka muttered in disbelief.

“You know... I’ve seen a lot from you, but this is the most energetic you’ve ever been.”

He shrugged and added,

“I used the best stuff. The kind they reserve for royalty.”

Figures. No wonder I felt like I could take on the world.

My mouth stretched into a wide, dumb grin. Luka lifted his chin and continued:

“Also, I’m the one who told His Highness you needed IVs because your nutritional condition was poor.”

“Wow... Luka Class, I didn’t know you were this loyal.”

Luka folded his arms and scoffed.

“You think we’re close enough to talk about loyalty? I didn’t do it for you.”

“Ah, right...”

I gave a nonchalant answer, and Luka snapped:

“Hey! Normal people would ask why, you know?!”

“I just don’t have that kind of energy...”

“...”

His face flushed with irritation.

I wasn’t surprised. We’d always been like this—ever since the Academy.

He’d rage at me, and I’d always reply half-heartedly, like I was on the brink of death.

“Namia Roafi. You’re practically malnourished. What the hell... ha.”

He stared at me, fell silent for a moment, then muttered like he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“Your family... they’re still like that, huh?”

“...Huh?”

“The Roafi barony.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

I didn’t say anything. Luka kept talking anyway.

“The palace gives us great lunches, right? But for you to be in this condition... it’s like you’re surviving on just that one meal.”

His eyes flared with anger.

Clearly, my health had shocked him.

“Your salary... you’re not using it, are you? Everyone knows. That rumor’s already all over the palace.”

“Seriously.”

I muttered dryly.

“What kind of bastard goes around spreading private family business like that?”

“Your lovely parents are the ones going around telling people not to worry—they’ve got your salary as backup.”

Fucking hell.

I knew palace gossip traveled fast, but this was ridiculous.

Wait. Debt? They’re in debt now?

A wave of dread swept through me, but I refused to show it in front of Luka.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

So I kept my tone light and said,

“Well, at least the overtime pay’s mine. They pay that in cash at the end of the month.”

“That’s barely anything...”

“It adds up. Oh, and Juan doesn’t tell them about his overtime either. Probably wants some side money for himself.”

At the mention of Juan, Luka’s expression turned sharp and angular.

Juan Roafi.

On paper, my twin brother. We attended the Academy together, took the civil service exam together.

“Namia Roafi. Let me ask you something—since we’re on the topic.”

Luka lowered his voice.

“I’ve wanted to ask this for a long time, but I held back.”

“Then maybe keep holding it in?”

“Hey! Normal people ask what the question is!”

“I just don’t have that kind of energy...”

My unwavering responses went ignored. Luka stared directly at me and asked:

“You wrote Juan’s civil service exam report, didn’t you?”

“...”

“You two were a pair, and your report was ranked number one by a landslide. He claimed he did all the work, so you got the lowest grade and he got the highest.”

The evaluation system gave 50% weight to the written exam, 50% to the report.

Juan had average test scores, but got a perfect score on the report. That’s how he got into the Ministry of Finance, one of the palace’s top departments.

“But you—you were paired with Juan. There’s no way you didn’t do anything.”

Luka’s eyes were locked on mine, sharp and unrelenting.

“Just like back in the Academy—you always did his assignments. The same thing happened during the entrance exams, didn’t it?”

Faced with Luka’s barrage of accusations, I picked my ear and replied flatly:

“Why are you so obsessed with me? Do you like me or something? Could it be... that all this time, I was too dense to notice your long-standing crush?”

“Have you lost your mind?!”

Luka exploded.

“You’re my rival! Rival! It’s only natural to care about your rival—especially one I’ve been obsessed with since the entrance exam!”

Oh, there it was again. That line.

I waved him off lazily.

“Luka, can you just let the entrance exam thing go...”

“How could I?! You were the first perfect scorer in 15 years! You beat me—second place—by nearly 40 points!”

“...Mm.”

“God, would you please just answer properly for once? Why can’t you ever say anything clearly? You’re so frustrating!”

Hmm. Watching Luka get this worked up... I figured I should at least justify the IV costs.

So, I gave him what he wanted—an actual answer.

“It wasn’t 15 years. It was 17. But the year 17 years ago had 56 perfect scorers because of a miscalibrated test. I’m considered the first true perfect scorer {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} in Academy history. And while the total difference between us was 42 points, you beat me by 23 in the physical test, which was also included in the score. So in terms of just the written exam, the difference was 65. If you’re going to keep obsessing over that entrance exam, could you at least get the numbers right from now on?”

“...”