The Academy’s Time Stop Player

TL/Editor: looloo

Schedule: 5/Week Mon/Fri

Illustrations: Here

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The clock struck 7:00 AM.

At last, the grand signal declaring the start of the combat survival training echoed. Around 700 cadets waiting at the starting line started to dash into the island following the sound.

Boom! Woong!

All 700 of them. As they started to run, the ground began to tremble with a ghostly roar. Given their superhuman speed and strength, this was natural, but watching cadets run as fast as cars was indeed an incredible sight.

Hajoon just stared at the cadets and slowly began his walk into the forest.

"Um... Was it here?"

Hajoon activated the available Bell Points and examined the map.

On the map, he was heading towards a cave near a stream.

Of course, this was where he had stored food and essentials when he first arrived on the island.

"Not bad."

Before anyone else entered this cave, Hajoon activated Time Stop (SSS) and made his move.

Surely, if he stopped, the Bell Points, which indicated his current location, would also stop, but he wasn’t overly concerned. He’d been on this trail before and had a rough idea of the direction.

If it didn’t work out, he could just lift the stop halfway and recheck his location. It wouldn’t pose a major problem.

"Oh man, this is tough...."

But more than anything, the mountain trail was exhausting his Stamina significantly.

Despite a slight increase in his stats, trekking through an unfamiliar forest was wearying. He felt a twinge of envy for those who were flying around and hopping over trees like monkeys, but what could he do?

If he didn’t have it, he had to make do without it.

"Phew.... At least I’m lucky in that respect."

Fortunately, time was on his side.

The clash with the cadets would commence in five hours.

The locations of the cadets, who would soon become the targets of tracking, would be displayed on the Bell Points with their names after five hours.

Simply put, the safety period of 5 hours was hardly enough for Hajoon.

"Well then...."

Hajoon’s mouth twitched upwards slightly.

In reality, he had already plotted a strategy to live comfortably for the next three days.

Only one minute had passed since the exam’s start.

He planned to wrap up all the preparations within that time frame.

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Raei Translations

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"Huh? What’s this?"

"What’s happening?"

Training supervisor Jo Ah-han was baffled by the Monster Slaughter Record that was posted just one minute after the training started.

But it was only a minute.

The situation looked like nothing more than an error, but the drones scattered across the island had captured and uploaded the footage, so it was undeniable proof.

"Wow... Senior Eeseul. What was the fastest record so far?"

"Huh? I believe it was about 30 minutes? But that was because the cadet was lucky and found the monster quickly."

"But how did this one... how on earth..."

"...Huh? Oh, it’s him."

Recognizing the name of the student who posted the record, Han Eeseul nodded as though everything suddenly made sense.

The student’s name was Kim Hajoon.

He was the boy who had shattered the academy’s artificial dungeon and topped the rankings, the protagonist of a recent viral video, and a figure who, in all respects, was believable.

"If it’s him, I understand."

"Huh? No, no matter what, isn’t this like, you know, some sort of rule violation or something?"

Han Eeseul fully comprehended everything his junior instructor Jo Ah-han was saying.

If he hadn’t seen the video of him ripping through the artificial dungeon in an instant before, his reaction would not have been much different from Jo Ah-han’s.

Feeling a bizarre sense of sympathy, Han Eeseul let out a bitter laugh, patting Jo Ah-han’s shoulder as if encouraging him to accept the reality.

"I know. I feel the same way. But don’t try to understand, just accept."

"Huh? No, what are you talking about?"

"We’re the normal ones. He’s the odd one."

Han Eeseul shook his head.

Jo Ah-han gawked at him as if what he said was preposterous.

Believing it would be quicker to show him rather than explain, Han Eeseul motioned towards the video recorded by the artificial drone with a bitter smile.

Jo Ah-han appeared apprehensive.

Regardless, he instinctively reached out and played the freshly recorded video.

After all, he had to view it to verify how the monster was defeated and to evaluate the score.

And Jo Ah-han, after reviewing the video, blurted out,

"What’s this?"

One moment it was there... and then it wasn’t.

It simply vanished.

The video had captured him facing the demon beast.

The demon beast was named Rock Bear.

A creature adorned with rocks protruding all over its body, it wasn’t particularly dangerous to defeat, but it was an opponent that generally took some time to tackle.

Then, just for an instant.

The moment the video’s timestamp ticked past a single second.

The boy disappeared, and all that remained in the video was the Rock Bear, its head blown apart, collapsing forward in an exaggerated motion.

"Eh? What?"

"You saw it, right?"

Jo Ah-han, his face a picture of confusion, slowly turned to look at Han Eeseul.

Han Eeseul simply nodded as if everything was clear.

"You get it, right? It’s bizarre even to think about."

"......"

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Raei Translations

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Just a minute after the training began, I had slain the assigned magical beast and was now heading towards the cave where I would take refuge for the next three days.

The location was quite pleasant. There was a stream nearby, so I didn’t need to worry about water.

"Nice."

I quickly spread out my sleeping bag and reclined. I then fixed my smartphone to the holder I brought along and started a movie.

Opening a bag of snacks from the supplies I had with me, I spent my time focused in the film.

Fortunately, no drones managed to penetrate the cave, so there was no risk of this scene being captured.

"Yawn~ hmm..."

When I began to feel drowsy while watching the movie, I stopped time and sunk into a deep sleep.

The only problem was that during the time stop, the somewhat soft sleeping bag became rigid. However, in a place where magical beasts roamed, it was the only way to sleep safely and comfortably, so I decided to put up with the slight discomfort.

After sleeping, I continued to watch movies. Time passed swiftly.

Precisely five hours later, when the sun was at its zenith.

Simultaneously, the Bell Point uploaded information about the assigned student and, after quite some time, a quest window materialized before Hajoon’s eyes.

[First-year special class student ’Haruna Ruel’]

[Sub-Quest]

Possible character for quest: Kim Hajoon (Liber Laphilton Phil Ehrman)

Description: Defeat the magical beast. (0/70)

Reward: 400 Experience Points

[Sub-Quest]

Possible character for quest: Kim Hajoon (Liber Laphilton Phil Ehrman)

Description: Cook a meal using the defeated magical beast.

Reward: 200 Experience Points

"Huh? Two of them?"

Apart from the assigned student, the number of quests seemed odd.

Were they all appearing at once after remaining dormant for so long?

As I stared blankly at the quest, a forgotten task suddenly crossed my mind.

"Oh, now that I think of it..."

[Job Change Quest]

Possible character for quest: Kim Hajoon (Liber Laphilton Phil Ehrman)

Description: Defeat the magical beast. (50/100)

Reward: You will be granted the title of Dwarf King Horton, the previous owner of Maharazu.

Title: Destroyer

"I had totally forgotten about it."

The job change quest.

Of course, possessing a title grants you abilities similar to skills, but honestly, the necessity for the quest wasn’t very apparent as the skill Time Stop (SSS) was too overpowered.

Initially, the title ’Destroyer’ was something never seen in the game.

In some ways, a title was a term that represented a character’s job.

Just as Han Siyoung’s profession was a swordsman and so he earned the title ’Beloved by the Sword,’ and Anna’s job was a mage and sage, leading her to acquire the title ’Ruler of Magic,’

This title also represented some sort of job, but I had absolutely no idea what that job could be.

However.

"Hmm..."

-Why is that?

As I stared at Maharazu, Philaten, the spirit within the item, seemed puzzled and asked.

If I rejected this job change quest, would Philaten make Maharazu too heavy for me to wield? The possibility was becoming clearer.

"Do I have a choice?"

I reluctantly rose from my spot and addressed Philaten.

"Can I take the test now?"

-Doesn’t matter. Are you going to move?

"Yes."

Isn’t it more efficient to finish everything at once when you’re already in a suitable environment?

"Let’s get this over with."

At those words, Philaten chuckled, as if amused.

-It won’t be easy, master.

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Raei Translations

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Meanwhile, Yoo Seolah and Liam were on the hunt for a certain magical beast.

Yoo Seolah stealthily glanced at Liam, who was leading the way, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"I didn’t expect you to suggest we team up..."

At her remark, Liam just scratched his neck awkwardly and chuckled.

"Hmm..."

Yoo Seolah was intrigued by the reason Liam had decided to form a team with her.

She had accepted his proposal without hesitation, given her indifference towards the evaluation scores, but she still couldn’t understand his motivation.

’Does he really need me?’

What she had noticed during their shared journey was that Liam was unexpectedly aggressive.

He didn’t avoid any of the magical beasts they encountered, killing them all. He even made an effort to eliminate the ones that were distant.

She had initially thought that he needed her healing abilities, but it didn’t seem to be the case.

After all, he didn’t get injured, so there was no necessity for healing.

"Ah! There it is."

Soon, Yoo Seolah spotted their target magical beast.

It was a rabbit with red eyes, but it was as big as a wolf.

Liam readied his spear again at the sight of the creature, but Yoo Seolah stopped him, shaking her head.

"I’ll take care of this one. You don’t have to intervene."

"Uh, okay... Got it."

Even though she was a hero with a single healing ability, she was still a hero.

Yoo Seolah pulled out her weapon, a rapier, and quickly approached the beast, exploiting its moment of distraction to pierce its throat.

The creature died without making a sound, thanks to her accurate and neat movements.

"Hmm... it seems like the beasts here are all adapted to the level of newcomers."

This just made things even more puzzling.

If these were the level of the creatures here, Liam wouldn’t get injured. So why did he ask her to join him?

"Now we just need to snatch some Bell Points."

There were probably quite a few newcomers who succeeded in catching a magical beast within a day.

The reason they were given three days was likely due to the skirmishes between newcomers to steal Bell Points.

"But who are you planning to steal from, Liam?"

"......"

Liam was silent for a moment before turning his gaze towards Yoo Seolah.

Then, with a faint smile, he posed an unexpected question.

"I have a question."

"What is it?"

"... Kim Hajoon. How strong is he?"

Why is he suddenly bringing up Hajoon?

"Could it be...?"

"......"

Instead of responding, Liam showed her his Bell Points.

When Yoo Seolah saw the newcomer listed on Liam’s Bell Points, she felt like she finally understood why he had invited her to team up.

Liam then turned to Yoo Seolah with a serious expression.

"If either of us gets hurt, will you heal us?"

"......"

"I plan to go all out."

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