The Academy’s Time Stop Player

Energy surged vigorously through his entire body.

It was a feeling of power surging, unbelievable for a body that had just entered the realm of superhumans.

His senses sharpened, feeling an energy he had never experienced before – the 'mana' around him became distinctly perceptible.

Hajoon lifted Maharazu.

As Saan tried to escape into the dimensional space, Hajoon struck down with his hammer at the space that was already closing.

Crack-

With a massive sound, a crack formed in the space.

Brilliant golden light surged through the crack, crumbling down.

Hajoon, having grasped Saan's scruff from beyond the dimensional space, pulled him out.

"We need to see this through to the end."

"You bastard, how could you!?"

Saan's eyes shook violently with agitation.

It was impossible.

A power that could penetrate and interfere with the dimensional space he created.

In that moment of horror-stricken expression,

Hajoon, having thrown Saan to the ground, lifted Maharazu towards him.

Saan, using all his strength, reached out his hand to create a protective barrier, but Hajoon did not hesitate to swing the heavy Maharazu.

Bang!!! Kukung!!

The ground around them heaved violently.

The ground around Saan flipped and cracked.

Golden mana surged through the cracks towards the sky.

With that single swing, he caused an earthquake, a disaster in its own right.

Immediately, Saan's barrier cracked, scattering in all directions.

"This, this can't be..."

The shock caused Saan's arm to be torn off and pulverized without a trace.

He tried to regenerate his arm, but like the left arm he lost just before, it did not regenerate.

A single fear dominated his mind at that moment.

He imagined himself meeting a gruesome end, unfulfilled in his lifelong aspirations.

That must not happen.

He had waited years to fulfill this aspiration.

He attempted to flee again.

If escape through the dimensional space was impossible, he would move to another location.

Saan protected himself with a barrier again and opened a gate within it, leading somewhere else.

He had to escape.

Escape from the range of that monster, anywhere.

But futilely,

Whoosh! Thwack!! Crack-

With one swing of the boy's hammer, the barrier shattered, and the newly created gate cracked like breaking glass, disappearing.

"This power, what is it..."

[Who said you could run away at will.]

Hajoon twisted his mouth roughly and murmured fiercely.

Yet, that voice felt like an amalgamation of multiple voices echoing together, not just Hajoon's.

Saan, with a look of horror, asked Hajoon with a trembling voice,

"You, what are you...?"

It was an impossible situation.

For a superhuman to possess such an extraordinary power was unthinkable.

Truly.

'An Irregular...'

His very existence proved it.

Hajoon didn't answer Saan's question but gripped his hammer tightly and approached him.

With an angry expression and baring his teeth fiercely, he declared to Saan,

[All that you've done and all that I've suffered.]

"......"

[Don't think you'll die easily.]

With those words, Hajoon raised his hammer.

The tightly gripped Maharazu roared, emitting a golden mana.

[Die an agonizing death as you are crushed to pieces.]

With that final statement.

Bang!! Kukukung!!

Hajoon struck down on Saan with his hammer.

Saaaaa....

Amidst the scene of dirt and dust rising gently.

Realizing the situation was over, Hajoon retracted his mana.

Soon, his angry expression vanished, returning to his usual listless demeanor.

"Is it over...?"

In a dry voice, Hajoon checked his own body.

He frowned, feeling a strange sensation, as if his personality and character had changed.

It was as if he wasn't himself.

Frowning with an inexplicable discomfort, Hajoon checked the center of the area where Saan had been and where he had struck.

Saan lay there, eyes open in pain, missing his arms and legs, dead.

The whole situation was over.

Then, Hajoon felt the presence of a massive mana approaching him.

A new sensation, made possible by his newfound mana.

The approaching massive mana turned out to be the great heroes.

Han Junho, Helen, Adrian.

Each of them looked at Hajoon and spoke.

"What happened to that guy? Kid."

Adrian asked.

Hajoon pointed to where Saan was.

"He's dead."

"......I see."

"What a foolish guy."

Together, the great heroes approached Saan.

They looked down at Saan with a bitter expression, and soon Adrian carefully lifted Saan's body.

The three approached Hajoon again, expressing their gratitude.

"We owe you one, kid."

"Saan's power exceeded our expectations. Without you, we couldn't have stopped him."

"Are you planning to bury him?"

At that question, Adrian replied with a wistful smile.

"Even though he turned into such a despicable person, he was once a comrade who helped save the world with us."

Hearing this, Hajoon nodded.

Well, as Adrian said, even though Saan betrayed them and walked the path of a villain, he was once a great hero who saved the world. So, Hajoon decided to respect his choice.

"Looks like our job here is done, so I'll be off."

The one who said that was Sword King Han Junho.

He briefly approached Hajoon to express his thanks formally.

"Thank you for stopping him. If you ever need help, call on me. I'll be sure to assist if it's your request."

At those words, Hajoon nodded, and the Sword King showed a faint smile.

With that smile, he kicked off the ground and leaped high into the air, heading somewhere.

As he disappeared,

Hajoon looked at the two remaining great heroes.

Adrian spoke first, looking at Hajoon.

"You had us fooled back there, kid."

He chuckled and continued,

"I should be going now. I won't forget this debt, kid. If you ever visit America, contact me. I'll show you a good time."

With those words, he leaped into the sky.

With a thud, his figure disappeared, and then Helen, the last one remaining, spoke to Hajoon.

"We really do trouble you a lot, don't we?"

Helen showed a wistful smile as she spoke.

Hajoon shook his head in response.

"I don't really hold grudges."

The issue regarding her grandson, William Belhar, was a closed chapter.

Of course, he never blamed her in the first place.

Helen smiled kindly at Hajoon's response and patted his head in thanks.

"Thank you."

"Are you leaving now?"

"Yes, I must go. And remember, what the Sword King said applies to me too. If you need anything, just call us through Riella. If it's your request, we'll come right away."

With those last words, her body began to shine brightly.

Her glowing form gradually turned into particles and disappeared. After confirming her departure, Hajoon walked slowly towards where the principal was.

Soon, Hajoon arrived at the place where the principal was and approached him.

Choi Jungwon was leaning against a tree, seemingly peacefully asleep with his eyes closed.

Hajoon came to his side and sat down on the ground, leaning against the tree as well.

He stared blankly at the starlit night sky and then took out his smartphone to contact the head of the Korean Heroes Association.

After discussing a brief matter and ending the call, he gazed again at the night sky, letting out a weary sigh.

"Sigh..."

"It looks like it's over."

"......? Weren't you asleep?"

Hajoon turned his head to look at Choi Jungwon.

He smiled faintly at Hajoon and spoke.

"Just woke up, hahaha!"

"Please, go back to sleep. The association's agents will be here soon anyway."

"Just one last thing to say before I sleep."

At those words, Hajoon frowned, puzzled.

The mention of 'last' bothered him.

"What last thing?"

"Student Hajoon."

But Choi Jungwon still spoke in a calm tone.

"I'm really grateful to you, and I'm sorry."

"You're not leaving us, are you?"

"Why would I die? I'm just..."

With that, Choi Jungwon looked up at the stars.

Hajoon, too, looked up at the stars in the night sky, following Choi Jungwon.

Choi Jungwon then softly spoke with a peaceful smile,

"I've been running hard for so long, it's just time for a little rest."

In the past era of great chaos, he defeated numerous monsters and conquered dimensional dungeons, securing safety for the world and becoming a hero representing Korea. Finally, he settled as the principal of the academy.

"It seems I've lived quite a busy life."

He reminisced about his past with a contented smile, one that seemed peaceful, as if he had finally let something heavy go.

“I think I can finally take a break now.”

"You should. You've worked hard."

Hajoon responded nonchalantly, but Choi Jungwon seemed reassured by his words.

"Student Hajoon. I'm really glad you're here."

With that, Choi Jungwon slowly closed his eyes.

"I can trust you to take care of things."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm looking forward to the future when I wake up."

His head slowly dropped, and a faint smile began to form on his lips.

"You'll wake up soon anyway. What future are you talking about?"

Hajoon responded to Choi Jungwon's words.

However, Choi Jungwon did not reply.

In the silence that followed, Hajoon, who had been looking at the stars, turned to look at Choi Jungwon.

"Principal?"

He looked as if he had peacefully fallen asleep, having shed the weight of life.

A week later.

In a single-patient room at the Korea Superhuman University Hospital.

There, Hajoon and Riella Harnis looked at Choi Jungwon lying on the hospital bed, his eyes peacefully closed. After checking his wrist and his body condition, Riella let out a heavy sigh and shook her head at Hajoon.

"His body is fine. It's just that his mana is gone. However, it's hard to guess when he'll wake up."

The principal had not awakened for a week since that day.

Hajoon, gazing blankly at Choi Jungwon, sighed and asked her,

"Is it because of the mana that he can't wake up?"

"It's hard to say. But without his mana, it could be that his body is adjusting and unable to wake up."

"What if we transfer mana back to him?"

"It's impossible. Only Choi Jungwon, who could fully control mana, could do that."

Hajoon silently looked at Choi Jungwon.

Riella then kindly smiled at Hajoon and spoke.

"The mana Choi Jungwon entrusted to you is yours now. And even if you transferred the mana back to Choi Jungwon, there's no guarantee he'd wake up immediately."

"......"

"Don't worry too much. Time will solve this problem. He's definitely going to wake up. That's the kind of person he is."

With those words, Riella looked at Hajoon with a faint smile.

But her faint smile carried a hint of bitterness.

"Don't feel too guilty, kid. Without you, Choi Jungwon might have died."

"......"

At those words, Hajoon remained silent, not responding.

Hajoon just stared blankly at Choi Jungwon before turning to leave the room.

Just as he was about to open the door, Riella looked at him and said,

"Kid."

"......"

"Thank you. Because of you, Choi Jungwon survived."

With those words, she approached Hajoon.

She took something out of her pocket and handed it to Hajoon.

"What is this?"

"It's a magical device that Choi Jungwon wanted to pass on to you after this incident was resolved. Take a look at it when you're alone."

It was a disk-shaped magical device with a sapphire button in the center.

Hajoon nodded and then left the room.

He went up to the rooftop of the hospital and sat on a bench near the roof, gazing blankly at the sky.

"Sigh... really..."

Hajoon let out a heavy sigh of emptiness.

He had acted to save Choi Jungwon, but the outcome had not changed.

Overwhelmed with a sense of futility and mixed feelings, Hajoon stared blankly at the clouds drifting across the sky.

Soon, his gaze shifted to the magical device Riella had given him.

After a moment, he pressed the button on the device.

Immediately.

Whoosh!

Blue light started emanating from the device.

The light gathered in one place and soon began to take the shape of a person.

The face was familiar.

It was the face of Choi Jungwon, whom he had just seen.

Then, the hologram of Choi Jungwon began to smile kindly at Hajoon.

He looked at Hajoon and said,

-It seems Riella has conveyed the message correctly.