The Academy’s Time Stop Player

Chapter 37

Thump! Thump! Massive minotaurs approached.

Five minotaurs were moving towards Lee Joohee.

Lee Joohee took out her sword again.

A chilling coldness began to radiate from her, freezing the oncoming minotaurs.

The minotaurs couldn't struggle and met their end.

Just then.

Thump! Thump!

The sound of footsteps echoed once more.

As she turned her head, several more minotaurs started to emerge from the wall.

"This is..."

Lee Joohee moved quickly towards them, severing the arms stretching out before they could fully come through the wall and beheading them.

She then swiftly spun around to slice off the leg of another one trying to emerge from the opposite side.

This process repeated itself endlessly.

She beheaded and cut off the legs of those appearing from the wall, freezing them in the process. Lee Joohee was slaughtering countless minotaurs.

But like always, there was a limit.

Slowly, Lee Joohee started to lose her energy.

Just then.

Thump!!

"Ugh!"

A strong shock hit her entire body.

Her body flew into the distance and crashed against a wall. She coughed up blood and slowly raised her head.

The sight that met her eyes made her clench her teeth.

-Roar...

Another minotaur was emerging.

In fact, six more were coming up from the ground.

"Argh..."

Slowly, she picked herself up with the help of her sword stuck in the ground.

"Ha... Ha..."

She was finding it hard to breathe.

Her vision was getting blurry.

Her body was throbbing with pain.

Was it because she had withstood such a powerful shock?

Her left leg and right arm were no longer responding.

Thump! Thump!

The sound of their footsteps was getting closer.

Lee Joohee began to clench her fist.

She had dropped her guard.

I should have been more cautious about his abilities...

Thump! Thump!

The sound of their footsteps got louder, making the ground shake.

Lee Joohee tried to hold onto her slipping consciousness as she blinked repeatedly.

Just when she thought her end was near,

The image of her younger sister flashed in her mind.

'I should have talked to Jooah before coming here...'

Her face relaxed gradually, and a bitter smile appeared on her lips.

Before entering the Dimensional Dungeon.

She hadn't found the courage to see Jooah.

She was certain that seeing Jooah would have shaken her resolve.

If she had any regrets, it was leaving the girl alone.

But she had prepared herself for this.

'Even so...'

This situation might be the end for her.

But she would not allow these villains to overrun the rescue team.

Lee Joohee clutched her sword more firmly and prepared herself.

Her eyes began to close slowly.

She watched the oncoming villains, opening and closing her eyes repeatedly.

Once the villains were within her reach, she planned to use her ability, gripping onto her fading consciousness.

Just then,

-Ahhh!!!

-Scream!!!

Boom- Bang!!

Was it an illusion?

Six Minotaurs simultaneously cried out in pain and began to crash into the walls one after another.

The maze walls crumbled with a thunderous noise.

Soon, a huge body of a Minotaur toppled over and a 'thump!' sound, followed by a thick cloud of dust, rose.

And then...

In the middle of it all, a boy was calmly walking towards her.

A boy with a familiar face.

And a face that should not be here... a boy who should not be in this place.

"Why are you..."

But before she could finish her sentence, her consciousness faded.

A bitter, sorrowful expression was on her face.

Looking at Hajoon, she delivered her final words.

"...I'm sorry."

Finally, she passed out and fell into Hajoon's arms.

Elsewhere,

"Where do these things keep coming from!"

The group, running from the Minotaurs for their safety, found themselves cornered with no choice but to fight.

ROAR!!!

Thud! Thud! The ground shook under the enormous footsteps.

About ten Minotaurs blocked the path, starting to close in on the group.

Han Siyoung quickly drew his sword and charged at the creatures.

The moment the foremost Minotaur extended its large hand towards Han Siyoung, its hand was sliced off at the wrist and fell into the void.

Wiping the blood off his sword onto the ground, Han Siyoung turned towards the group.

"I'll clear the path."

With that, he dashed back towards the group of Minotaurs. Sensing something, Han Siyoung abruptly changed direction and sprinted towards his companions.

He ran past the group and swung his sword at the dead-end wall and with a thud the Minotaur's head dropped to the ground.

"This is... everyone, stay away from the wall!"

Realizing the situation, Young-jun swiftly drew his sword and took his place at the front.

The rescue team started to form a circle around the citizens, focusing on the Minotaurs emerging from the wall.

And their numbers were roughly twenty.

It was a challenging situation to protect the citizens while fighting.

That's when it happened.

CRASH!!! THUD!!

GROOOAAAR!!!

ROOOAAAAR!!!

Suddenly, one after another, they began to scream in pain and fall to the ground.

The Minotaurs surrounding them strangely twisted their ankles, starting to topple sideways.

"What, what's happening?"

"What the hell..."

People watched the scene with bewildered expressions.

That's when it happened.

"Look, over there!"

Soon, through the gradually clearing dust, people saw the silhouette of a boy wielding a hammer.

And from within the dissipating dust, the silhouette they saw earlier started to approach the crowd.

The figure that emerged was a boy.

A boy with the hood of his tee pulled low.

A familiar girl was being carried on the boy's back.

Recognizing the boy's identity, Yoo Seolah began to smile brightly.

'Hajoon!'

Though his face was hidden by the deeply pulled hood, Yoo Seolah could identify who the boy was.

The boy carefully set Lee Joohee on the ground and spoke to Yoo Seolah.

“Treat her.”

“Gasp! Senior Joohee!”

Yoo Seolah quickly approached Lee Joohee, extending her hand to activate her ability.

When she looked up again, Hajoon had disappeared.

“Whew... that's a relief.”

While looking at the spot where Hajoon vanished, Yoo Seolah smiled as if reassured.

Within the space where time had stopped, Hajoon had safely transported Lee Joohee to the group and was now navigating through the maze.

However, the more Hajoon explored the dungeon, the more perplexed he became.

"What's the problem here?"

What exactly was the issue that stopped the rescue team from conquering the dungeon?

The fact that the dungeon was a maze, periodically spawning intermediate monsters like Minotaurs.

All of these circumstances were not vastly different from the game.

'Could it be the boss monster?'

The owner of this dimensional dungeon.

The boss monster.

He felt he'd have to confront that creature to understand.

From what he had observed so far, there was nothing significantly unusual or altered in the dungeon.

'Well, for now...'

Hajoon scanned the maze around him.

The maze of this dungeon was not just complex, it seemed to be alive and shifting.

Of course, it was the boss monster that was controlling it.

Because that creature had such an ability.

What was dubious here was that the creature, given its nature, would not bother to do such mundane things for long.

At least, it would wait patiently when bored, but the maze was shifting so rapidly it was glaringly conspicuous.

Of course, it wasn't an issue.

There wouldn't be any movement in the maze once he activated Time Stop (SSS).

So, he strolled through the maze, taking breaks to sleep on the ground when tired, leaving marks to avoid getting lost, and navigated the path like a tourist exploring the labyrinth.

Whenever he saw a Minotaur, he shattered its legs just in case.

In case he needed to deactivate Time Stop (SSS), this would prevent them from charging towards the citizens and the rescue team.

How many days had passed like this?

One month went by, then two.

The path of the maze was vast, wide, and complicated, so he had no choice but to wander for a long time.

"Ha... I knew I didn't want to come here..."

Hajoon kept walking.

And just when he was about to lose track of time.

"I've finally found it."

He managed to locate the entrance.

A massive gate constructed from stone.

Hajoon used 'Unlock' to unseal the gate, and pushed the doors open with both hands.

Soon after.

Thud! Thud Thud!

Creak- The colossal stone gate began to swing open.

Hajoon slowly stepped through the opened door.

The area inside was a large round open space.

And in the center of the space, a monkey with a long tail and rough fur covering its body sat on the ground, meditating.

Its appearance was peculiar.

Its eyes were shielded with a white bandage, and a deep purple crystal was embedded in its forehead.

And the more I observed it, the more puzzled I became.

'What? It's the same?'

Honestly, I anticipated a different boss monster would appear, but the identical one I encountered in the game materialized.

So what's the problem?

For now, I lifted Time Stop (SSS).

Soon after, it leaped up in alarm and started shrieking at me.

-Woo, woo-eeek!! Woo-eeek!!!

It observed Hajoon with a terrified expression and began to go on guard.

Then it started to glance around and began to don a sinister grin that could send chills down your spine.

It had deduced that Hajoon was alone.

Simultaneously, it started to clap its hands together.

Shortly after, with a grating sound, the ground quaked, and a colossal spike started to emerge from underneath Hajoon's feet.

Hajoon triggered Time Stop (SSS) and sidestepped to evade it.

And he advanced straight towards it.

He took a moment to study its face and ponder.

"There's no difference, so what's the problem..."

The controller of the maze, Bardal.

I assumed he was the problem, but he looked exactly the same as Bardal in the game.

Hajoon continued to gaze at him.

If there was an issue, it had to be him...

'But was his voice always like this?'

Like an immature child?

The image of the creature I encountered in the game was more of a calm demeanor.

The way he was boasting because I arrived alone and acting cool was reminiscent of a petulant child.

"Huh?"

Soon after, recognizing something, Hajoon approached closer and began to scrutinize the creature's face.

And he could discern.

There was certainly a difference.

The face of the creature in the game, as far as Hajoon remembered, hadn't appeared this youthful.

More than anything, the beard he had observed in the game was missing.

After staring at the creature for a while, a thought crossed Hajoon's mind.

"Could it be…?"

At the thought that suddenly occurred to him, anger began to surge within Hajoon.

He picked up Maharazu and struck the back of the creature's head.

As soon as he released the Time Stop (SSS), a thud and a squelching sound rang out simultaneously, and the creature's head was smashed into the ground.

Hajoon lifted the creature's head and spoke while glaring at it.

"This damned monkey…"

Hajoon's body began to tremble with anger.

If his guess was correct, then the matter had escalated this much just because of the immature prank of a brat.

Was it because the dungeon opened too quickly?

It was completely different from the overflowing confidence he had in his power at that time.

And he could tell just from the attack the creature showed just now.

Contrary to the abilities he displayed in the game, he was clearly weaker.

'At first, I thought the difficulty level had increased…'

The dungeon's difficulty had not changed.

On the contrary, the creature was weak, and that's why it was more malicious.

The evidence was that the system did not react, and Philaten had consistently been indifferent towards him.

In the game, he merely waited arrogantly for those who invaded his territory.

He, who used to wait quietly in the boss room without such pranks.

He thought he had the ability to kill them even if they came.

In reality, the one he had seen in the game had shown overwhelming strength compared to this creature.

It's just that Han Siyoung and Lee Joohee cooperated, and the clichéd fortune was on their side, so they were able to defeat him.

Right now, that creature was nothing more than a vile, cowardly young monkey.

'In the end, was the problem that the dungeon opened too quickly?'

Hajoon, lifting the creature's head, activated Time Stop (SSS).

Just like that, he raised Maharazu and slapped the creature's face, then released the Time Stop.

As soon as the stop was lifted, Bardal was spun around and slammed into the wall.

Thud!!

-Cough! Ouch!!

Bardal started to growl, baring his white teeth in anger.

However, mirroring Bardal's expression, Hajoon's face was terrifyingly fierce.

Hajoon began to grind his teeth, baring them with a growl.

Seeing this, Bardal's expression started to strangely change.

What? Did I kill his family or something?

"This monkey bastard!!"

Because of this guy, precious time was wasted.

It took a whole three months.

Hajoon's troubles were all because of this guy's pranks.

-Cough!! Ouch!!!

As Bardal, who was slammed against the wall, folded his hands in prayer, the ground shook, and several spikes began to erupt from various places, including the ceiling.

-?!

And then, Hajoon simply vanished.

At the same time, Hajoon appeared right before Bardal's eyes.

Hajoon's face was twisted with rage.

Hajoon, glaring at the creature, set down Maharazu on the floor, breathing heavily.

He clenched his fist tightly and opened his mouth.

"I'll make you grow up in one minute."

At that moment.

Boom! Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!!!!

-Ouch!!!!

Invisible punches began to pummel Bardal's entire body.

The shock that seemed like it would last forever continued.

Oof! Ouch!

Thump, thump, thump!!!!

Bardal began to feel dizzy.

Time seemed to pass slower.

The pain that seemed to have no end abruptly - stopped at some point.

Bardal, holding onto his hazy consciousness, glared at Hajoon in front of him.

Ouch!!!

At that angry howl, the corners of Hajoon's mouth began to coolly lift.

Hajoon, loosening his wrist again, grabbed Maharazu (Mythic) and said,

"Only 30 seconds have passed."

·········· Ouch?

And the shock continued again.

Thump, thump!! Crash!!

His whole body began to be embedded into the wall.

As time passed, Bardal realized something.

The human in front of him was beating him to a rhythm.

Boom! Boom! Thwack! Boom! Boom! Thwack!

Two hits to the torso, one to the face.

He could now clearly understand.

This bastard was enjoying beating him up.

Ooh, ouch———————!!!!

Bardal's scream echoed through the space.

At the huge resonance that made the ground shake, Hajoon temporarily covered his ears and stopped the attack.

When the attack stopped, Bardal collapsed onto the ground and began panting heavily.

His body was covered with spots of fatigue, and his face was so distorted that it was unrecognizable.

Hajoon looked down at Bardal with an indifferent gaze.

Shortly after, Hajoon lifted his hammer high above.

At that moment, Bardal's mouth started to lift into a bitter smile.

Thump!

"··········What the hell?"

Hajoon's hammer hit the innocent ground.

Bardal swiftly brought his hands together and dove into the ground to avoid it.

Soon after, the entire open space started to shake like an earthquake.

Rumble!!

The ground shook and began to waver.

At that moment, a gigantic hand sprang from the ground and started to envelop Hajoon.

Hajoon used Time Stop (SSS) to evade it and then the creature that crawled out of the ground revealed itself.

A giant made of earth.

The creature had increased its size by covering its body with earth, manipulated through Bardal's ability.

Shortly after, a boisterous laughter echoed.

-Whoo! Hee! Hee!- Khuk!!!

Boom!!

In that instant, a powerful impact struck the giant's body. Bardal was bounced off from the giant's body and smacked into a wall.

Hajoon aimed his Time Stop (SSS) at the creature and found himself standing before its snout once again.

-Wo, Wooheeek··········.

Fear began to permeate Bardal's eyes.

His body trembled as he started to gaze upward at Hajoon.

Slowly, Hajoon raised his hammer towards Bardal.

In that moment, Bardal understood.

The human before him was an opponent he couldn't overcome, no matter what he tried.

But his understanding came too late.

Bang!!

How long had he been striking with the hammer?

The adversary had stopped moving.

Its entire body was merely buried in the ground, in its death throes.

[Sub Quest]

Possible Quest Character: Kim Hajoon (Liber Laphilton Phil Ehrman)

Description: Conquer the Dimensional Dungeon.

Reward: 1000P

[Quest Successful!]

[Rewards have been issued.]

As soon as the quest notification appeared, Bardal's corpse began to disintegrate into dust and vanished with a whoosh.

Shortly after, the dungeon also started to alter.

The space around them started to dissolve like melting snow, and soon, an open sky appeared.

What they saw simultaneously were numerous reporters who had rushed to the center of the dungeon, agents from the association, and beyond the police line, people were breaking down in tears.

"Th-there!!

"The rescue team! The rescue team is alive!!"

Eventually, people began running towards the rescued individuals across the police line.

However, no agent attempted to stop them.

Because the menacing dimensional dungeon had now vanished.

"I-I really did it........"

Association President Kim Jeongyong looked at the scene in disbelief.

It had been only ten minutes since the boy went inside.

And now, the dungeon was conquered.

"He...he really did it..."

Overwhelmed, Kim Jeongyong lost his strength and collapsed onto the ground.

Just then, he heard the voices he longed for the most.

"Dad!"

"Grandpa!"

At the sound of these familiar voices, he turned around.

Seeing his family, Kim Jeongyong couldn't help but cry, even at his advanced age.

He slowly walked towards his family.

"I'm... I'm so glad... you're alive."

"Oh, Grandpa."

"Dad... I've missed you so much."

After a while, while hugging his son and granddaughter, Kim Jeongyong started looking around.

But the boy he needed to thank was nowhere to be seen.

"I need...to thank him..."

He had made a choice to protect the citizens, knowing the rescue team would fail.

To seal off the Dimensional Dungeon.

If he hadn't, it was certain the entire area would have become a dungeon.

"Thank you so much..."

To the unidentified boy who saved so many from a national disaster.

Association President Kim Jeongyong knew he would always remember this act of kindness.

Lee Joohee slowly opened her eyes while being transported in the ambulance. She looked around.

She saw a gentle breeze, a blue sky, Yoo Seolah tending to her wounds, and her little sister crying her heart out.

"Where is this..."

"Oh, sis! Boo hoo hoo!"

"Don't worry. I've taken care of all your injuries."

Her younger sister was weeping pitifully beside her.

Lee Joohee managed a weak smile and patted her sister's head.

"I see..."

Just by seeing her younger sister, Lee Joohee understood the situation.

She had survived and had been helped.

She owed her life to the boy. He had conquered the dungeon and saved everyone.

"I'm sorry... Jooah."

"Sob...!"

The face of her sister, who she feared she might never see again, was right before her eyes.

With a comforting smile, Lee Joohee closed her eyes and softly stroked Jooah's head, as she continued to shiver and cry.