I'm not active anymore and this is grave digging. But I've messed around with old zelda classic stuff some and played this quest again, and found it fun. I don't know why the records were in IRL time, but in game time on the final timer I finished the game in 7:29. Probably at least 45 seconds could be cut off. I'm just going to explicitly state the route I used:
Skip sword and candle, go immediately and get the double 20s. Fighting the octorocks you need to get at least 2 rupees
Buy the bow, pause exit to the start
Clip across the river on the first screen by water walking
Get the 20 in the chest
Buy the silver arrows
Get one rocs feather from the pols voice on the far side of the river, pause exit
Use rocs feather to get to the dungeon
Get a pols voice and go to the left, damage boosting using a darknut, resetting the room by exiting if need be
Get the 50 in the room
Get the boomerang and pause exit to the start of the dungeon
Get the meat, pause exit to the start again
Get one more roc's feather and exit, pause exiting to the starting screen
Cross the river using roc's cape and go to the final dungeon
If I got hit before the darknut room I just reset, as the sword beam makes that room so much faster
In the final darknut fight, you can stand over the water to avoid death