Instant Kill, Time-Stop Spellcaster

“Huh? They’re not stopping. Guess they’re pretty tough.”

“Oh? So I don’t need to pretend anymore?”

“I heard everything about your little scheme.”

“Wow, you’ve got great hearing.”

“I enhanced my senses with mana. I’ll teach you how soon.”

Leaving the monsters behind,

he walked, step by step,

toward the loan sharks.

“Hey, is this how you treat people just because they borrowed some money?”

There wasn’t much resentment to speak of.

Though the interest rate was absurdly high.

‘Even when they showed up at my house, I sent them away politely, and things quieted down. But now they come like this.’

And yes, “politely.”

Kyle’s kind of polite.

He explained the situation to Aden.

“What!? Are there really people like this in Korea!?”

“I know, right? Even I’m surprised.”

There were rumors about debt collectors killing awakened debtors.

But to think it was actually true.

“Humans never change.”

No different from a hundred years ago.

“Back then, there were defectors like them too.”

“Defectors?”

“Those who sided with Yggdrasil (Dark world tree).”

These days, it seems like even people who are simply awakened criminals are being called that.

The loan sharks, who’d been dazed, snapped back to reality.

The senior loan shark’s mind started racing.

‘Why did the monsters stop moving?

And how did they notice us?

What’s with that confidence?’

He couldn’t figure out the situation.

But something felt off.

‘Are they really F-rank?’

Aden followed behind Kang Hyun.

“But if the opponent is strong, can’t you stop them?”

“As long as I have enough mana, I can. But I ran out of mana.”

“Oh… Then, will you fight using other wor— I mean, other means?”

Aden almost accidentally spoke the “Word of Command.”

“Nope. Out of mana.”

“What?”

Then what about them?

Aden was momentarily at a loss for words.

“Wh-what rank are those guys?”

“D-rank, I think?”

“Then… doesn’t that mean you’re at a huge disadvantage…?”

What? Disadvantage?

“You’re calling me ‘at a disadvantage’? Wanna die?”

“But—but you’re just F+ rank! And now you’ve run out of mana, your only attack option…!”

This punk had clearly forgotten she was A-rank.

Exposed to hostility, her brain seemed to freeze.

‘So inexperienced.’

An A-rank trembling before D-ranks.

So much to teach her.

‘When will she finally grow into a real person?’

Meanwhile, the loan sharks,

after overhearing their banter, began to piece things together.

“F+ rank, huh?”

And a magic class, no less.

But if he’s out of mana…

‘Okay. he’s basically a regular person.’

The frozen scene before them?

It must be some special skill or item.

Of course, if the loan sharks had any magical knowledge—

if they understood what that frozen scene meant—

if they paid attention to dungeon analysis programs on TV—

things might’ve turned out differently.

But they didn’t.

‘The busty woman next to him doesn’t seem that strong, judging by how flustered she looks.’

‘We can take them.’

So the loan sharks thought.

“Newbie, let’s go.”

“Y-yes!”

The loan sharks charged.

Aden stepped forward too.

“I-I’ll protect you!”

“Stay still. Don’t get stabbed messing around.”

Even though she was A-rank, Aden had no close-combat experience.

She wouldn’t be much help.

A-rank magic?

A stab is a stab—she’d die all the same.

Kang Hyun felt a wave of frustration.

‘Those clowns, and Aden too. Do I look like such easy prey?’

It stung.

He’d once been the strongest.

“Inventory.”

From thin air, he pulled out a short sword.

It was old and dull, practically scrap metal.

But it would do.

The loan sharks swung their weapons in unison.

“Die!”

“Hrahh!”

The speed of D-ranks.

Far beyond what F-ranks could keep up with.

“Watch closely. Fighting isn’t just about stats.”

Two steps.

That was all it took to find a blind spot.

And then—

Squish!

The old short sword pierced the newbie’s neck.

So effortlessly it was almost laughable.

“Huh?”

Well, it pierced but didn’t go through.

No full penetration.

“Wow.”

Blocked?

Stats really do make a difference.

Blood bubbled from the newbie’s mouth.

“Ka-cough!”

Kang Hyun tilted her head slightly to avoid the spray,

pulled the sword from the neck,

and aimed for a softer target.

He thrust it into the jaw.

Squelch—

“G-gah—”

Shallow again.

It didn’t reach the brain.

“Seriously?”

This was ridiculous.

“Ggh, urgh….”

The newbie was already on the brink of death.

But now, it was a battle of pride.

From behind, the senior loan shark swung his knife.

Kang Hyun let go of her sword and sidestepped.

“Die, you bastard!”

One of them was finished in an instant.

Fear filled the senior shark’s face.

But Kang Hyun didn’t care.

He took another step forward, returning to his original position,

grabbed the newbie’s head from behind,

and pulled it down hard.

“Ugh!”

He kneed the sword that was lodged in the jaw.

Crunch.

This time, it pierced through the skull.

“Wow… Scratch that, disciple. Stop messing around and focus on building up your stats first.”

Stats really were something else.

Turning around,

Kang Hyun met eyes with another loan shark, who flinched.

“Ahhhhh!”

Consumed by fear, the loan shark charged recklessly.

Kang Hyun, however, took a few calm steps forward,

moving like a ghost past the man

to take his position from behind.

The loan shark was startled.

“Huh? Where did he go?”

In that moment,

Kang Hyun drove his elbow into the gap of the man’s exposed spine.

Crunch—

“Ghk.”

And that was it.

The loan shark crumpled to the ground, limp.

A sharp elbow,

its force focused precisely at the end.

If struck directly into the neural bundle between the vertebrae…

“Stats or not, paralysis is inevitable.”

But this time, Kang Hyun felt his limits.

Fighting purely on instincts like this would only work against low-ranked enemies.

“If I go up against higher ranks… I won’t make it without that.”

It was a reminder not to underestimate the power of stats.

“I’d better keep collecting those Perfect Clear rewards.”

“Ugh, my legs! My legs!”

The loan shark writhed on the ground.

For the rest of his life, he would likely remain paralyzed from the waist down.

“Disciple.”

“Yes, sir…!”

“I’m not just a one-trick pony with Word Magic”

“Yes!”

Kyle, who had vocal cord nodules,

had to conserve his voice as much as possible.

But how could the great hero Kyle rely solely on Word Magic?

He was a master of Magical Swordsmanship,

a style that imbued himself and his weapons with Word Magic in combat.

‘Aden… seems fine.’

Kang Hyun had worried she might tremble after witnessing the killing.

But then again, she came from Thea.

Unlike Earth, Thea didn’t place as much value on human life.

They had been at war with the Black World Tree for over a hundred years.

“What will you do with these bodies?”

“The corpses will disappear once the dungeon is cleared.”

Kang Hyun nudged a corpse’s head with his foot to retrieve his short sword.

“This thing’s completely ruined.”

“Yeah. Useless now.”

He missed his cherished blade from his past life.

“And this one…?”

“P-please spare me! I’ll tell you everything! There’s someone behind this!”

“Wow, no loyalty at all, huh?”

“I have none! Absolutely none! I only have respect and remorse for you, Kang Hyun!”

What a dramatic act.

“Are you handing him over to the police?”

“No. You don’t get law enforcement involved in matters like this.”

“Why not?”

It was advice drawn from experience.

“The state is too public and humane when dealing with criminals—unless it directly impacts those in power.”

“Ah~”

“If you leave it to them, complications will always arise. Your enemies? You take care of them yourself.”

“Yes, sir! But…”

“What?”

Aden hesitated for a moment.

“Have you, uh, killed someone before? No, wait, I didn’t mean anything by it—you just seemed so experienced…”

“Disciple.”

“Yes?”

How perceptive.

Ugh, how do I dodge this one?

…Let’s just make up something plausible.

Kang Hyun infused a hint of authority into his tone,

adopting what he called “teacher mode.”

“Disciple, do you know why heroes are called heroes?”

Aden’s eyes widened.

“…! I’m listening. Please teach me.”

Good.

She fell for the teacher act, just like his former disciple, Milla.

“Heroes aren’t called heroes because they feed orphans, care for the sick, or save young girls.”

“Then why…?”

“They are called heroes because they killed the most enemies.”

Kyle had killed an unimaginable number.

Not just the demons under the Black World Tree,

but also human traitors and rivals.

He was, without doubt, the man who had taken more lives than anyone in history.

“As the annals of history state, the enemies of heroes weren’t limited to enemy soldiers.”

Heroes faced countless assassins.

Many died at the hands of such foes.

But seven of them survived.

They showed no mercy.

They left no threats alive.

That’s why they survived.

“If you respect them, you should also learn their mindset. Don’t show mercy to enemies just because they wear a human face.”

“…Understood.”

Perfect.

It wasn’t even close to answering the original question,

but it was good enough to move on.

“Alright, let’s clear the frozen mobs and head home.”

“Yes, sir!”

Then, a voice came from beneath their feet.

“Uh, excuse me, I…”

“Oh. You.”

Kang Hyun decided it was worth extracting information about the organization.

If they knew their subordinates had died, they might try something else.

“Let’s interrogate him.”

“Huh?”

“Close your eyes, disciple.”

“Yes, sir!”

Sensing impending doom, the loan shark stammered.

“W-wait—”

“【Ignite.】”

Fwoosh—

“Aaaaaaah!”

The loan shark’s screams echoed horrifically through the dungeon.

###

Chief Choi Young-ho frantically sifted through papers.

He’d been like this since yesterday’s TV interview.

“Three consecutive Perfect Clears?!”

He couldn’t just storm off mid-broadcast, but the anxiety was unbearable.

“Bring me all dungeon clear records from yesterday!”

“Uh, there are tons of them…”

“Bring them all!”

The papers flew through his hands like a whirlwind.

“This is the perfect opportunity!”

Someone had cleared F-, F, and F+ dungeons consecutively?

The answer would reveal itself soon.

Just then—

Ding!

[Congratulations to one warrior for achieving a Perfect Clear in an F+ dungeon….]

“Ahhh! Bring me today’s clear reports too!”

The chief’s horn-rimmed glasses gleamed.

He wouldn’t be leaving the office tonight.

“We’re so close now!”

He wouldn’t rest until he found the answer!

A subordinate brought him coffee and casually remarked:

“But this time, it wasn’t a solo clear.”

“What?!”

What could this mean?

“Did they form a team?”

The mysterious Perfect Clear awakened.

They wouldn’t have taken a low-rank awakened without purpose.

“Could it be… a scouting attempt from another country?!”