The Academy’s Time Stop Player

“I’m worried about Hajoon. He annihilated one of their hideouts. They're likely planning some retaliation.”

Chairman Kim Jeongyong was concerned about Hajoon. Being the head of Korea's Hero Association, he had a grasp on the Villain Alliance's strength.

However, to Hajoon, the Chairman's concerns seemed unnecessary.

Hajoon spoke, “I can issue a warning.”

“Pardon? What do you mean?”

“Remember the small camera that doppelganger had?”

The doppelganger. A once-believed-deceased A-rank villain. The fact that he had been hiding a camera was surprising, but what Hajoon did recently overshadowed that.

Chairman Kim Jeongyong responded, “If you're referring to the mini-camera... Yes, our association has confiscated it.”

“Make sure you hold onto it. My face might have been captured.”

“Wait, what? Hold on!”

From the other end of the call, the Chairman's voice resonated with urgency. He was likely hurrying to secure the camera. Soon after, he sighed in relief.

“I have it. But what do you intend to do with it?”

“Do you think news about this incident will spread?”

“It’s unlikely. I've only taken trusted agents from the association to the remote location where the incident took place. If you wish, it can be kept confidential.”

Hajoon pondered for a moment.

In the past, he would have found it annoying to see related articles on TV or the internet, but now it didn't matter as much, especially since stories only mentioned the irregular and hardly mentioned the name Kim Hajoon.

With that in mind, Hajoon calmly replied, “No, release the news.”

“Excuse me?”

“Have you seen the footage on the camera?”

“No, it’s in USB format. It might take some time...”

“That footage alone will be a warning to the Alliance. Check it and contact me.”

“Alright, I will.”

The Chairman's voice was laced with confusion. What could be in that footage to elicit such a reaction?

Yet, Hajoon didn't elaborate. Seeing the video would explain everything.

“Where are you currently?”

“Heading to a nearby hotel.”

“If it's nearby... Oh! Alright then. Rest well. Our association will take care of everything.”

“Thank you. Take care.”

Hajoon ended the call with a contented smile. He could trust them to handle things from here. With that, he made his way back to the hotel, planning to rest and recover from the fatigue of the recent skirmish over the weekend.

A few hours later, after wrapping up at the scene, Chairman Kim Jeongyong returned to his office through the gate. Before leaving for the day, he planned to review the footage Hajoon had entrusted to him.

Turning on his computer, he promptly plugged in the small camera's USB and began to view the footage.

"Whew... That was certainly a close call."

The moment the video began, he couldn’t help but feel relieved.

As Hajoon had said, his own face was clearly captured in the footage.

If he had handed this over to an agent for investigation as it was, it would have led to a major incident.

"But considering this footage serves as a warning to the Villain Alliance..."

The might of the Irregulars was undoubtedly renowned worldwide.

It was obvious that the Villain Alliance was also aware of the Irregulars' unparalleled strength.

Still, Kim Jeongyong couldn't shake the feeling that the Alliance's retaliatory actions wouldn't cease.

After all, hadn't they single-handedly thwarted an ambush from the S-rank Karthon, and caused a fire at the boy's house who had conquered a dimensional dungeon?

Thus, Kim Jeongyong couldn't help but respond skeptically to Hajoon's claim.

No matter how impressive the footage was, he couldn’t believe it would serve as a warning to them.

However...

"What?!"

Only a few seconds in, the President's eyes widened in shock.

He stared intently at the video, sweat dripping down his forehead.

"How can this...?"

Swallowing hard, he rewound and rewatched the footage, becoming increasingly astonished.

"Is this really the work of a single individual?"

A hollow laugh inadvertently escaped him.

He tilted his head upwards, staring blankly at the ceiling, murmuring softly to himself.

"Isn’t the explanation too brief?"

The footage, depicting the decimation of one of the Villain Alliance's main bases, couldn’t simply be summed up with a mere sentence.

This video, just as Hajoon had claimed, would undeniably serve as a stark warning to the Villain Alliance.

The next morning.

"Unbelievable. This just can't be real."

A news anchor from a broadcasting station spoke, his disbelief evident.

Staring at the footage on the screen, he seemed lost for words, overwhelmed by what he saw.

"So you're saying this isn't a doctored video but actual footage?"

"If the Association has officially released it, it's probably real," the female anchor replied.

She too was struck speechless, taken aback by the unbelievable content.

The footage was short and straightforward.

It showed a boy defeating a doppelganger, believed to have died five years ago.

The controversial part was near the end of the video.

"So the exact time was...?"

"The Irregular came out of the gate in precisely 21 seconds. To be honest, we can't even confirm when he went in."

"You're saying he decimated a Villain Alliance base in less than a minute?"

The video merely captured a boy stepping out of the gate after a mere 21 seconds.

However, the implications of this brief footage were dire: 13 A-rank villains dead, 30 B-rank villains dead, 20 C-D rank villains dead, and 32 injured.

"Video experts say aside from the face pixelation and voice modulation, there's no manipulation. It depicts the real situation."

"To be honest, I can't believe it."

Naturally, scenes of the Irregular taking down the villains weren't shown.

Hence, even if the facts were laid bare, few readily believed them.

After all, how could over 90 villains be defeated in just 21 seconds?

"But we have to believe it. It's an officially verified video from the Association."

"Probably the only ones who know the truth are the Irregular who caused this situation and the injured Villain Alliance."

The general sentiment echoed that.

In some ways, this event could be seen as a warning from Hajoon to the Villain Alliance.

Meanwhile, in a hotel room in the U.S.

"I've found him."

A silver-haired woman, radiating a soft glow, sat on a sofa and smiled, her expression serene.

She was watching the news on the TV and began to smile gently.

Then, turning to the bodyguard behind her, she said, "Inform the Sage in Korea. I'd like to meet the boy."

"Understood."

The man behind her, a security officer from the American Heroes Association, nodded and quickly made a call.

The woman, seemingly pleased, continued to watch the TV with a warm smile, gazing at the pixelated face of the boy.

"That's him."

Meanwhile, Hajoon was relaxing in a massage chair near the sauna on the third floor of the hotel.

"Ah, this is good."

Maybe he overdid things yesterday? He had tried to take advantage of every opportunity, but the exhaustion was undeniable. He planned to relax here for a bit before lounging around in his room.

"Huh? Hajoon?"

A young girl approached him. It was Anna, with her platinum blonde hair and blue eyes. She naturally took a seat in the massage chair next to Hajoon and began to speak.

"Have you seen this?"

"...Huh?"

"Ah, so that's why you came back late last night."

Anna showed Hajoon an article on her smartphone. It was about the incident he had caused the previous evening, complete with videos.

Watching the footage, Hajoon couldn't help but ask, "Are you worried about me?"

"No."

Anna confidently shook her head and gave him a sly smile, "I believe that one day, I'll be just as strong as you, if not stronger."

Encouraged by her confidence, Hajoon smiled back.

"By the way, did you know you're listed in the international hero rankings?"

"My name?"

Hajoon's eyebrows furrowed, puzzled.

"Why would my name suddenly appear there?"

Anna shook her head, "Not under your name, but as 'Irregular.'"

"Oh, is that so?"

"Look here."

Anna tapped on her smartphone, showing Hajoon a website. As he scanned the updated rankings, he exclaimed in admiration.

"Wow, 'Irregular' is really something."

Anna gave him a look, "...You do realize that 'Irregular' is you, right?"

Despite having caused such a commotion, Hajoon's nonchalant attitude left Anna a bit flabbergasted.

"Anyway, being ranked 6th in the world... That's practically the same as being 1st."

"That's true."

Being ranked 6th globally was, in a way, just as prestigious as being 1st among the new generation of heroes. The top 5 spots hadn't changed for the past six years, and everyone worldwide acknowledged the reasons why.

"To me, you're on par with those ranked above you," Anna said.

"With those symbols of peace from various countries?"

Indeed, starting from the 5th rank, the list was dominated by new symbols of peace, representing various nations, succeeding the retired great heroes.

Their mere existence deterred crime. Some of them were even acknowledged by past great heroes for their power.

But in just three years, this ranking would undergo significant changes.

Hajoon turned his head to look at Anna.

She was still gazing at the global hero rankings, her eyes filled with a certain envy, even though she was the very person who could influence those rankings.

“Sigh... Anyway, the vacation is coming up. Anywhere you’d like to go?”

The vacation... In two weeks, after the final exams and the academy’s famed combat festival, the holiday Hajoon had been eagerly anticipating would begin. Of course, he hadn’t made any specific plans for the break yet.

At that moment, Anna looked at him tenderly and asked, "How about visiting us in England? I was thinking of taking the kids and training them.”

Hajoon responded with just a facial expression.

His face contorted, resembling someone who had bitten into something unpleasant, as if asking, 'Are you out of your mind?'