The Academy’s Time Stop Player
chapter-204

TL/Editor: looloo

Schedule: 5/Week Mon-Fri

Illustrations: Here

After freeing the people imprisoned in the cell, Han Ari took a moment to survey her surroundings. Something felt off—too off. Even if this was the base of those who had kidnapped her, the security wasn't very tight.

"I'm Han Ari, a student from Rokia Academy. Could you all stay here and pretend to be imprisoned for a bit? I'll be right back."

Han Ari spoke to the twelve people who had been imprisoned and cautiously approached the door. She pressed her ear against it, checking for any sounds of guards, and then carefully opened it.

As she had suspected, there were no villains on guard, which only heightened her sense of unease. She recalled the words of the villain she overheard earlier.

-This is a place no one will find.

Did they really think no one would discover this place? Or were they so confident that no one could escape?

Not knowing the way out, Han Ari couldn't take the imprisoned people with her just yet. She needed to find an escape route first, so she quietly began to explore the surroundings.

After walking for about ten minutes, Han Ari's face grew serious as she realized something.

"The path..."

The corridor she was in was wide and made of gray walls. After walking for a while, she noticed that the path was structured like a maze.

"How...?"

Moreover, she didn't see any villains who might be waiting. If this was really their hideout, she expected to see at least a few.

"No way?!"

As complicated thoughts swirled in her mind, a realization struck her. Han Ari quickly raised her hammer horizontally and placed it against the wall.

"Grow longer."

With those words, the handle of the hammer began to extend, pushing through the narrow passage with a crunching sound until it broke through the wall and continued to extend.

When the hammer finally reached the end of the space, Han Ari approached the hole it had made.

And, as she had feared...

"......"

Seeing what lay beyond the wall made Han Ari's face harden. Outside the space was nothing but a vast black abyss.

Han Ari knew this kind of space.

A dimensional space.

It was a personal space created by a mage of great power.

"Ugh!"

The moment she realized where she was, a flood of thoughts overwhelmed Han Ari. First was a sense of futility, then fear. Since this was a dimensional space created by someone, she couldn't leave without the owner's permission.

In other words, she was completely trapped.

And as that thought struck her, she heard a loud thudding sound from behind her. Something massive was approaching, shaking the ground with each step.

As she turned to look, Han Ari saw...

"Growl!"

"......"

A giant black-furred beast, drooling, stared down at her.

"Do you know about the Liberation Army, hero?"

"And what's that?"

Meanwhile, after confirming that Han Ari had disappeared, Hajoon went straight to the Hero Association to gather information. Kim Jeongyong, the head of the association, was explaining what he had learned about Valonte to Hajoon.

"They share a similar ideology with the Villain Alliance but are an even older group. They're an extremist group that emerged after the chaos period ended and society stabilized, following the passage of laws to limit the use of superhuman powers. While the group originated 30 years ago and has since become something of a rumor, some experts believe they have their base beyond a dimensional space."

"And what does that have to do with Valonte?"

"It's just a theory, but our association believes that Valonte is part of the Liberation Army."

He spoke with a grave expression, looking intently at Hajoon.

Hajoon scratched his cheek and spoke to Kim Jeongyong.

"So, you're saying that their hideout is beyond a dimensional space, making it difficult to find?"

With a troubled expression, Kim Jeongyong slowly nodded.

"They've been hiding for 30 years. I don't know why they're trying to be active again now, but since they are in a dimensional space, we have no way to find them."

"I thought they were a new group, but they're actually old-timers. I didn't expect them to be doing something as petty as stealing."

"They're not originally a group that operates only in Korea. The Liberation Army operates globally. It seemed odd that they were committing such minor crimes here, so we investigated and found a rather absurd reason."

"And what is that?"

Hajoon asked with a puzzled look. Kim Jeongyong sighed and continued.

"Hero Hajoon, who was at home, might not know, but the crimes they committed were close to your house."

"...?"

"According to what we've gathered from their words... it was an initiation test."

So, committing crimes near his house was part of their initiation test. Despite finding this a bit absurd, Hajoon recalled something from a week ago.

‘Come to think of it...’

It wasn't a particularly significant event. A week ago, Elaine, frustrated with Hajoon for never leaving the house, had given him a bicycle, which was stolen the next day.

At the time, he had let it go since he had plenty of money and didn't want to go out. But now, thinking back, he wondered if those bastards were responsible.

Who would have the guts to steal from his house?

"Unbelievable."

Hajoon couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity.

"Chairman."

"Yes, yes?"

"Leave this case to me."

"Ah! You're going to take action?"

"They provoked me, so I have to respond."

With those words, Hajoon rummaged through his pocket for the first time in a while. He then turned to leave the chairman's office.

Seeing this, Kim Jeongyong asked urgently, "Do you have a plan?"

As he asked, there was a swoosh!

In an instant, a hammer emitting a brilliant light appeared in Hajoon's hand. It was Maharazu. Though he hadn't held it in years, the grip still felt familiar.

Keeping his gaze on Maharazu, Hajoon answered Kim Jeongyong's question.

"I'm going to get some help from an old friend."

When Han Ari was ten years old, she remembered a particular hero. He was now known as the world's strongest hero. No villain could defeat him, and his very existence had become a symbol of peace. He was the hero who had saved her when she was trapped in a dimensional dungeon.

She could recall the scene from a video someone had taken. Alone, holding a golden hammer, he stepped through the gathered crowd and entered the dimensional dungeon without hesitation.

Watching that video on the monitor, young Han Ari felt her heart race and a sense of exhilaration. The great hero who had saved her—it was probably from that moment she began to dream of becoming a hero herself.

"Huff! Huff!"

Han Ari was running, panting heavily. She kept smashing the heads of approaching beasts with her hammer, running, and smashing again, but she didn't give up. By now, the academy would have noticed her disappearance. She held onto the hope that someone from the academy would come to rescue her if she could just hold on a little longer.

Moreover, she was familiar with such mazes from her childhood experiences. She would never give up. As long as she was alive, someone would surely come to rescue her.

“Huff! Huff!”

One beast, two beasts, three beasts.

At some point, she had taken down about twenty beasts. She continued the cycle of defeating beasts and running. The number of beasts she defeated increased, and time kept passing. Despite her exhaustion and a momentary lapse that caused her arm to be cut, Han Ari did not give up. Blood dripped from her left arm, but her legs were still functional.

She kept defeating the beasts until she had taken down about forty. Finally, her strength gave out, and she slumped to the ground, leaning against a wall.

“Huff! Huff!”

Catching her breath, she prepared to get up again. She had never defeated so many beasts before. This experience would likely benefit her in the long run. Deliberately thinking positively, she stood up once more. If she stayed here, the smell of blood would attract more beasts. She needed to move and find a way out of this place.

But at that moment, a man's voice came from behind her.

"Heh... To think you could kill forty Black Hounds on your own."

Han Ari's expression hardened as she slowly turned toward the voice. It was the first person she had encountered since entering this maze, but it wasn't a pleasant encounter. This place was the villains' den, after all.

Raising her head, she looked at the owner of the voice. An old man with long white hair and a purple cloak. On either side of him were burly men glaring at Han Ari.

"So, you're the top student of the academy? Impressive. What are they teaching these days...?"

"Who are you?" Han Ari shouted, eyeing the old man warily.

The old man chuckled and replied, "I'm the master of this space. I came to see how you would die after escaping the prison, but you've nearly exterminated the maze beasts. It's bothersome to replenish them, so I came myself."

Han Ari readied herself to charge at the old man. But before he could move, the two men beside him started to approach her.

The old man left her with one last remark. "Well, there's nothing more to say to a corpse. Die peacefully. You're lucky. It's better to die by a human hand than suffer at the Black Hounds."

Han Ari ground her teeth. The men approaching her and the old man were no ordinary superhumans. If he was the master of this dimensional space, he had to be a mage of the highest caliber.

‘I have to run.’

She couldn't fight them. She had to escape. She needed to hold out until help arrived.

As she thought this, suddenly...

Whoosh!

The two men who had been approaching her moved at an invisible speed and were now right in front of her. They swung their massive fists at her.

In that split second, one word flashed through Han Ari's mind.

‘I'm going to die.’

The moment their fists connected, she knew she would die. But before she could react, it was too late. She squeezed her eyes shut, unable to avoid the oncoming blows.

But then...

Crash! Boom!!

"Argh!!"

"Ugh!!"

The sound of something breaking and collapsing, along with the screams of the two men, reached Han Ari's ears.

As the sound reached her ears, Han Ari slowly opened her eyes to assess the situation. The moment she saw what had happened, her eyes widened in shock.

"A hammer..."

In front of her was a golden hammer, more massive and radiant than her own, which had smashed through the wall and knocked down the two men.

Then, from beyond the broken wall, a familiar voice rang out.

"Looks like we found the right place, Philaten."

-As long as there's a trace of magic, finding it, even in a dimensional space, isn't too difficult.

Step by step, the voice grew closer. When the owner of the voice finally appeared, Han Ari was stunned, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Mister..."

"Oh! Found you. Good to see you're in one piece."

Standing beyond the broken wall was a very familiar man, smiling gently. Han Ari instinctively ran toward Hajoon, wanting to embrace him.

But Hajoon extended his hand to stop her.

"Wait, hold on."

"Ugh!! Mister!!"

"Don't come closer, you're covered in blood."

"...Grr!"

Han Ari's tears stopped in an instant. She wiped her tears with her sleeve, glaring at Hajoon as if annoyed. Hajoon chuckled and approached her, placing a hand gently on her head.

"Good job. Now you can rest."

Relief washed over Han Ari, and she felt tears welling up again.

Hajoon turned away and reached out for Maharazu. The hammer, returning to its original size, flew into his hand, leaving Han Ari staring in awe.

‘No way, the mister is...’

Could he really be the Irregular?

Embarrassment flooded Han Ari as she recalled how she had treated him, her face turning red.

"Alright then."

Hajoon turned his gaze toward the old man, who had been hidden by Maharazu. The old man, trembling, stared at Hajoon in shock.

"Irregular?!"

How could he be here? This was his dimensional space. No one should be able to break through it. But how...?

The old man's mind was a whirlwind of confusion. Hajoon, however, had no intention of waiting for the old man to sort his thoughts.

"Surrender, or get beaten to a pulp."

Hajoon rested Maharazu on his shoulder as he addressed the old man.