Instant Kill, Time-Stop Spellcaster

The media buzzed with excitement, but the atmosphere in the Seonghwa’s support office was somber.

“We… no, I failed,” the team leader murmured.

“Team Leader…”

In the end, the Perfect Clear Awakened had fallen into government hands—all thanks to Chief Choi.

“With this, the balance of power has completely shifted to the government.”

“The government will now be able to accomplish so much more.”

They could control the progression strategically.

They might one day wield the unrivaled force of the strongest S-rank.

And they could crush any powerful entity under sheer force.

All this, thanks to the power of a single Perfect Clear Awakened.

“At least this country will grow stronger.”

“But the domestic guilds will lose their influence. Seonghwa included.”

A bitter future.

This was the cost of defeat.

‘If only we had recruited the Perfect Clear Awakened…’

A pointless assumption.

Instead, it was time to focus on the future.

“Now that it’s come to this, we absolutely must find an S-rank Word Mage Awakened.”

“Team Leader, fighting!

Team Leader, fighting?

Perhaps she, too, will end up working overtime.

Until we find an S-rank Word Mage!”

“At least we managed to bring in Aden. But…”

“Our Aden. The best achievement of our team this year!”

“But.”

“Yes? But what?”

“Why is there an extra attachment incoming?”

Yoo Chae young’s glasses gleamed.

She pulled out an official document and showed it to her team member.

It was Kang Hyun’s profile.

“What’s this?”

“What else? A parachute.”

“Huh? A parachute?”

“Yes, a parachute! Seonghwa, the third-largest guild in the nation, and it gets a parachute!”

Usually calm, Yoo Chae young’s reaction was intense.

After all, it was a matter of Seonghwa’s pride.

“And why, of all things, is it under my direct supervision!?”

This was outright humiliation.

A parachute in the third-largest guild, Seonghwa!

And to have a team leader personally oversee a mere rookie!

Was Seonghwa’s prestige truly plummeting this far?

“Wow, approval from the Awakening Headquarters Director? This is a genuine mega-parachute!”

“Who is this person, anyway?”

“Still, at least he’s a freelance mercenary. Just let him finish his mandatory contract period and kick him out.”

“Which makes it even worse! A freelance termination clause? Seonghwa doesn’t even provide such terms for A-ranks!”

A state-affiliated freelance mercenary?

What a pompous title.

Nothing about it sat well with her.

But Yoo Chae young was a professional.

“Sigh… Kang Hyun’s meeting is tomorrow. Schedule an open dungeon for him. I’ll test him right away.”

Let’s see just how impressive this person is.

“Aren’t you tired?”

“Complaints are one thing, but work needs to be done properly.”

“Got it! Fighting, Team Leader!”

“Ah, wait.”

Chae young stopped the team member just as they were turning to leave.

“What about the report?”

“Sorry? Which one…”

“The one about the increase in guild members’ strategy efficiency from F-rank blessings.”

“Oh, haha… I’ll finish it before I leave today!”

Yoo Chae young pinched her brow.

“…Do it by tomorrow. In the meantime, get research data on E-rank blessings from the research team.”

The effects of E-rank blessings remained unknown.

The sooner they found out, the quicker Seonghwa could pull ahead of other guilds.

“Understood!”

The employee quickly scampered off.

Chae young tapped on the official document.

“Kang Hyun, Kang Hyun…”

The name sounded vaguely familiar.

###

Once again, Kang Hyun arrived at a dungeon.

Did he report his strategy attempt?

Not yet.

Instead, he dialed one of Chief Choi’s subordinates.

“Hey, I’m heading into the dungeon now.”

The call ended with a click.

How convenient.

‘Does the guild handle things like this, too?’

Kang Hyun was beginning to understand why awakened individuals were so desperate to join large guilds.

Though in reality, his case was unique.

No one else enjoyed such privileges.

“Let’s go in.”

He entered the dungeon.

An E-rank .

“Orcs, huh?”

“Yeah. Underdeveloped mini-orcs.”

Around 20 of them.

Mini-orcs were superior to goblins despite their size.

“This looks tougher than the last dungeon.”

“But there’s no boss here.”

“Ah.”

The key feature of this dungeon was the regenerative power each mob possessed.

Srrrng—

“【Ignite】”

Fwoosh!

Flames wrapped around the dark blade.

Aden’s eyes sparkled.

“Ooooh…”

Her excitement surged at witnessing sword magic again.

‘This must be how Lord Kyle fought, too.’

Magic Swordsmen were a rarity.

Outside of cinematic depictions, no one was insane enough to simultaneously train in both magic and swordsmanship.

Perhaps Kang Hyun was the first since Kyle.

‘I can’t wait to show others in the guild what my master can do.’

Aden eagerly anticipated the day she could share her master’s sword magic with others.

“Here we go.”

Kang Hyun charged straight into the cluster of orcs.

Squelch!

Slice!

With each swing of his sword, flames lingered in the air, carving fiery trails.

Mini-orcs fell as their wounds burned, halting their regeneration.

Tsss—

The creatures toppled one by one.

‘This blade really cuts well.’

It was worth every penny of the 120 million won.

And soon, he’d be able to afford even better ones.

After all, with his contract, even a platinum card was now at his disposal.

“Be careful!”

Three orcs flanked him, but he nimbly slipped away.

‘Raising my stamina has made such a difference.’

The Drake Mountain ginseng he consumed raised his stamina by 3, pushing him to E-rank.

Slice!

Tsss—

‘Still, it’s a bit unsatisfying.’

The mini-orcs’ thick necks meant their heads didn’t cleanly fall off in one go.

With higher strength, it would be possible.

He missed the feel of a clean cut.

Curse those stats!

“Master, you’re amazing!”

Soon enough, all 20 mini-orcs were wiped out.

‘I still have plenty of mana left.’

While mass-destruction Word commands like 【Stop】 were powerful, sword magic—imbuing himself with a command—proved far more efficient.

At this rate, he could probably tackle one more dungeon.

Perfect Clear might be pushing it, though.

‘But maintaining a basic command like 【Ignite】 is no problem for longer periods.’

His stability had improved.

He could feel himself growing stronger—rapidly so.

‘The system really is great.’

With future support, his growth would accelerate even more.

This was the elite path he had missed out on in his past life.

“Let’s wrap up here and prepare for Seonghwa’s meeting.”

What reward would he get this time?

Just as he was about to finish up—

“Is this really okay?”

“What is?”

“Exploiting both the government and Seonghwa for our benefit feels excessive.”

The government had hired Kang Hyun as a freelance mercenary.

Meaning minimal restrictions.

He wasn’t a civil servant but a mercenary.

Even in emergencies, conscription would take the form of a job request.

He could refuse.

Since it wasn’t conscription, he’d receive compensation and could keep spoils.

‘And yet, we still got all the benefits we agreed upon.’

It was an overwhelmingly one-sided contract.

“That’s the right of the strong. They chose this arrangement.”

“Ooooh… Master’s wisdom!”

His dramatic proclamation sparked awe in Aden’s eyes once again.

She really was dramatic.

For now, the government seemed content with having exclusive access to him.

As long as they kept him from joining a guild or foreign entity, it was still a win for national power.

‘And this will build up my résumé nicely for a diplomatic position in Thea someday.’

A win-win contract for everyone involved.

[Perfect Clear! (Solo)]

[Outstanding achievement! Clearing an E-rank dungeon has prevented the invasion of the World Tree….]

[Your accomplishment grants a ‘blessing’ to the surrounding area….]

Reward time.

[Special reward granted for achieving ‘Perfect Clear! (Solo).’]

[‘Bronze Box’ has been awarded.]

“Any extra achievements this time?”

“You’re getting greedy. Try clearing ten more first.”

Still, the Bronze Box reward was always satisfying.

And today felt particularly promising.

[‘Opening the “Bronze Box.”‘]

A familiar visual effect unfolded.

Swish—

Ding!

[A random linguistic command has been unsealed.]

[Word Command 【Vera】 has been unsealed.]

“Ooooh! It’s here!”

“Wait! You’re way too excited… don’t tell me…”

“A useless trinket!”

“Are you doing this on purpose!?”

Sorry.

I’ll explain everything in due time.

‘But it is fun teasing her a little.’

In his past life, Mila had been the same.

Maybe this was why mentoring felt so rewarding.

###

Oh Hyuk-jun, an executive of .

He nervously flung the documents aside.

“Who is that guy? Why’s an A-rank villain popping up out of nowhere?”

“It’s likely because that branch operates under the guise of a private loan business. Someone must hold a grudge.”

“Phew… Yeah, probably nothing significant.”

He didn’t have the energy to worry about villains.

Even though an A-rank villain was somewhat intimidating, it wasn’t a direct conflict with a guild.

It was just a subsidiary branch, after all.

“The bigger issue is losing the head of security we planted at headquarters.”

Oh Hyuk jun had been killing fledgling Awakened individuals, collecting subsidies from the demons in return.

But now, his most capable informant was gone.

Future murders would no longer go smoothly.

“The funding will decrease.”

“Damn it.”

Bang!

Hyukjun slammed his desk.

“Why is it that every damn thing keeps getting in the way…?”

The A-rank rookie went to Seonghwa.

The Perfect Clear Awakened fell into the government’s hands.

Now, some nobody villain appears, cutting off his funding.

His legs trembled.

His fingernails instinctively moved toward his mouth.

Then, with irritation, he lit a cigarette.

A sweet, medicinal scent filled the room.

The subordinate flinched at the smell.

“Hey, let’s push the ‘Distortion Project’ timeline forward. Trigger it right away.”

“Are you sure? The investigation isn’t complete yet.”

“The opponent’s a Corps Commander? Just proceed.”

Someone who had faced a Corps Commander might pick up on the project.

“Let them notice. So what?”

“Hmm… now that you mention it, it doesn’t really matter.”

“If they find out it’s related to the demons, does that directly point to us? Do they have evidence?”

The subordinate nodded.

Hyuk jun opened the safe, took out a bundle of scrolls, and handed it over.

[Distortion Generator]

Targets 10 dungeons and subjects them to the power of the Abyssal Corps Commander, triggering “dungeon anomalies.”

The items came from the system itself.

They were created to counterbalance the World Tree.

But they were harmful to humanity, corrupted by the World Tree’s intervention.

“Take it. Start the project.”

“Yes, sir.”

The project would cause anomalies in dungeons, increasing failure and mortality rates.

Awakened individuals would grow fearful, slowing their progress significantly.

By controlling the situation, they could gain influence and secure power.

Reducing the number of Awakened individuals would result in a hefty reward from the demons.

That was the essence of the “Distortion Project.”

“Stop panicking over the little things. Money comes from crises.”

“Understood. However…”

“What now?”

“What about the Perfect Clear Awakened?”

“What about him? Oh, the progress rate?”

Now that the Perfect Clear Awakened was affiliated with the government:

“The government will try to raise the progress rate using him.”

“He won’t be enough. The demons are fully committed this time.”

The dungeon anomaly crisis would be far worse than anticipated.

According to expert analyses, one Perfect Clear wouldn’t suffice to bridge the gap.

At least not until he advanced to C-rank.

“Besides, those anomalies will threaten him too. Didn’t you notice how Perfect Clears became rare in the E-tier zone? He’s reaching his limit.”

“I see. But… if he dies in the process?”

“Then he dies. It’s not like I could get him anyway.”

That might actually be better.

If that happened, Paran’s role in controlling the progress rate would become even more critical.

“Make sure nothing goes wrong.”

“Understood!”

After the subordinate left, Hyukjun took a deep drag on his cigarette.

His trembling subsided, and his gaze grew hazy.

“If this succeeds…”

He would gain recognition from the guild master.

Perhaps even achieve his dream of becoming the vice guild master.

His mind drifted, lost in reverie.