The Academy’s Time Stop Player

A heavy silence followed Hajoon's words.

Zhang Jiudong's eyes widened in surprise, as if he might've misheard something. Both Lee Jooah and the instructor looked at Hajoon with expressions of disbelief.

In the midst of this, Lee Joohee found the situation amusing and began to laugh quietly, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Hehe."

"Um... Sister?"

"Kim Hajoon has a point. You need to be firm with guys like that, or they'll just cling to you."

Zhang Jiudong's eyes narrowed as he glared at Hajoon.

It didn't sound like he said it that way...

Annoyed, Zhang Jiudong pressed Hajoon further.

"Wei, zhe sha yi si?"

"Do I look like your translator? Quit the nonsense and get on with the fight."

"..."

Zhang Jiudong appeared stunned by Hajoon's biting remark.

Hajoon gestured towards the fighting ring with a tilt of his chin.

Inside the ring, Han Siyoung, ready to go, waited for Zhang Jiudong with a calm demeanor.

"We'll settle this later."

With a displeased look, Zhang Jiudong shot Hajoon a glare. He left a message for Lee Jooah that they would talk later, then headed back into the fighting ring where Han Siyoung was.

Anticipating the start of the match, Hajoon settled back onto the bench and started munching on his popcorn.

When Zhang Jiudong stepped into the arena, the duel officially began.

Han Siyoung held his wooden sword at the ready in a formal stance, while Zhang Jiudong adopted a low posture reminiscent of those in martial arts films, prepping for the duel.

Given that this world was infused with magic and supernatural abilities, the martial arts often seen in movies could be blended with magic or special abilities and be applied in real life.

Once ready, Zhang Jiudong, with a smirk of arrogance, addressed Han Siyoung.

"You're Han Siyoung, aren't you? I've heard quite a bit about you. The disciple of the Sword King?"

"…?"

He was obviously speaking in Chinese.

Han Siyoung, not understanding, quirked an eyebrow in confusion.

Zhang Jiudong continued, seemingly unfazed by the language barrier. "But a wooden sword? Even if it's just a duel, I hoped you'd take it seriously."

With those words, the referee, an instructor, raised his hand signaling the beginning of the duel.

"Begin!"

"It doesn’t matter if you didn’t understand. The outcome won't change. You’ll regret not choosing a real sword!"

Whoosh! Thud!

Zhang Jiudong's taunting was cut short.

At the signal, Han Siyoung moved swiftly, closing the distance. He swung his wooden sword, smacking Zhang Jiudong squarely on the head.

The blow, devoid of any finesse, was powerful enough to send Zhang Jiudong spinning to the ground.

"Ugh! Grgh..."

"I might not know what you said,"

Han Siyoung gazed down at the fallen competitor, his face a blend of calm and slight pity.

Meanwhile, the Chinese team's coach glared at Zhang Jiudong with evident frustration. The other Chinese team members just shook their heads in disappointment.

Clearly, such incidents weren’t uncommon.

Han Siyoung continued, "But thank you for the duel."

It was Han Siyoung's way of maintaining decorum.

Although the duel was far from conventional.

The entire Korean team watched with bemused expressions.

However, one exception was Hajoon, who burst into hearty laughter.

Zhang Jiudong lay sprawled on the ground, wearing a dazed expression.

"Ha!"

Hearing the solitary laughter, anger surged within him, causing him to grind his teeth in fury.

"Hmm?"

"Who are you? You don't look like a starting member."

"I'm the interpreter."

His response was swift, without a hint of hesitation.

Li Chen was momentarily taken aback by his quick answer, wondering for a moment if he really was just an interpreter.

In truth, he answered swiftly because he was a bit annoyed by her probing.

Seeing his reply, she seemed momentarily stunned, then looked at Hajoon with a curious expression. From his demeanor, he didn't seem to be a mere interpreter.

"Hmm... Are you a superhuman?"

"No."

"Would you be up for a match sometime?"

Despite Li Chen's alluring smile and her clear disregard for his previous response, Hajoon's face contorted in disdain.

Yet, her expression remained unchanged against Hajoon's evident displeasure.

But then, something caught her off guard.

"Kim Hajoon, let's go eat."

"Yes, I'll come."

The instructor called out, revealing the boy's name.

Without a word, Hajoon left the arena with the Korean team, while Li Chen took a moment to ponder the name she'd just heard.

"Kim Hajoon..."

Kim Hajoon.

The most likely candidate for a hero in Korea with monstrous strength.

Upon hearing the name, a slight smile began to form on her lips.

After finishing his meal, Hajoon headed back to the U.S. team's training ground where Elaine was.

Upon arrival, he saw Isabella and Liam busily warming up. As Hajoon approached Liam, both Elaine and Isabella, noticing his presence, greeted him.

"Ah! Brother!"

"Huh? When did you get here?"

"Just now. Are you guys having a match with another team?"

"Yes, the Chinese team challenged us."

"...?"

The Chinese team seems to be preparing very diligently.

This felt like good timing to Hajoon.

He figured he'd be around for a few more hours anyway, and watching the matches had been unexpectedly fun.

"Can I watch?"

"Yeah, no problem."

"I'll be right back then."

With that, Hajoon briefly stepped out of the training area and headed straight to the snack bar.

After all, what's a spectacle without some snacks?

He grabbed some popcorn and cola from the snack bar and made his way back.

Returning, he found himself in the midst of an unexpected situation.

"Do you have some time after the match?"

"Um... about that..."

Zhang Jiudong was causing trouble with Elaine.

This guy, who had been harassing Lee Jooah just an hour ago, was consistently up to no good.

Hajoon walked up behind Zhang Jiudong.

Standing directly behind him, he delivered a powerful kick to the man's groin.

Whack!

"Argh!"

Doubled over in pain, the man clutched his injury. Hajoon looked down at him, eyebrows furrowed, and remarked,

"Can't defend yourself if you can't protect your lower half, huh?"

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