1st in Class Hides Regression - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Top Student Hides Her Regression
Episode 12
In my memory, Seo Jae-gyeom was chronically late.
Whether it was morning classes or promises with friends, he simply did whatever he pleased.
“Hey, Seo Jae-gyeom, where are you? You said you were coming.”
“Try calling him.”
“He’s not answering… Oh, there he is.”
“Jae-gyeom, why did you arrive so late?”
“Just because.”
I’d never once seen him rush, not even when the School Gate was closing right in front of him.
His friends never got angry at him for being an hour late, and neither did the teachers.
Perhaps only his girlfriends—who changed every two months or so—would’ve expressed frustration, but even that never changed him.
This frequent turnover in his romantic life was probably rooted in exactly that.
Yet today, for whatever reason, Seo Jae-gyeom was standing at the School Gate right on time.
…With Ji-su.
“Oh, Jae-gyeom! Is the sun rising in the west today? Everyone gets to see Seo Jae-gyeom arrive punctually?”
The P.E. teacher stationed at the gate to direct students suddenly slung an arm over Seo Jae-gyeom’s shoulder, feigning familiarity.
Seo Jae-gyeom clearly expressed his irritation, brushing the teacher’s arm away.
Despite his rudeness, the P.E. teacher laughed heartily and clapped Seo Jae-gyeom’s back several times.
Seo Jae-gyeom, wincing at the impact, steadied Ji-su’s bag as it slipped from her shoulder.
“This is really heavy.”
“Problem Set Books. That’s why.”
“Right.”
“Are you coming to hagwon today?”
“No.”
“How many times a month do you skip…?”
“The math teacher’s belly sticks out too much. Can’t concentrate.”
Despite Ji-su’s affectionate reproach—delivered with her usual warmth—his response was listless and terse, though it was probably just exhaustion.
In any case, Seo Jae-gyeom had left early specifically to walk to school with Ji-su.
“Look at the blackboard, not his stomach.”
“How can I not see it? It’s right in my line of sight.”
Trading easy banter, Ji-su and Seo Jae-gyeom passed through the School Gate.
I lowered the arm I’d been about to raise to call out to Ji-su.
‘Better not join in.’
Inserting myself between them now would only make things awkward. I deliberately slowed my pace—touching my hair, tightening my bag straps—killing time.
“Good morning…”
This should be enough distance now.
I was lowering my voice, moving slowly past the P.E. teacher, when—
“Oh! Da-hye!”
“…Good morning.”
“Da-hye! You look so down this morning! You need to cheer up! Fighting!
Fighting!
”
“……”
“Kang Da?”
At the P.E. teacher’s booming call, Ji-su and Seo Jae-gyeom, who’d been walking ahead, turned around.
Seeing my flushed face—embarrassed and caught off-guard—Ji-su’s expression clouded with bewilderment.
Our eyes met for a moment, then my gaze shifted to Seo Jae-gyeom standing beside her.
Upon seeing me, Seo Jae-gyeom clicked his tongue.
‘? Why is he like that.’
Clicking his tongue at someone? That seems harsh.
“Da-hye!”
Ji-su, separating from Seo Jae-gyeom—with whom she’d been walking arm-in-arm moments ago—rushed toward me.
“When did you get here?”
“…A few seconds ago…?”
“Why didn’t you call out to me!”
“Ah… I didn’t see you. I didn’t realize you were ahead.”
“Seo Jae-gyeom and I just happened to meet on the way. Our houses are close by.”
Ji-su emphasized several times that they’d run into each other by chance—definitely not arrived together.
Seo Jae-gyeom said nothing, standing silently.
Seo Jae-gyeom tilted his head to one side, his gaze settling on me with the weary indifference one reserves for an inconvenient object.
“Isn’t this a bit much? 2.”
‘Yesterday he seemed almost kind to me.’
Overnight, he’d reverted to his true self.
But then again, this is just how Seo Jae-gyeom is.
Capricious. Self-serving.
It’s not hard to understand.
‘The girl he likes and him walking together—I was in the way.’
I could only imagine how much he despised me for it.
When I said nothing, Han Ji-su glanced nervously at my face.
“Da-hye, are you upset…?”
“No! Not at all! Why would I be upset? The two of you can walk together.”
“But still…….”
“I’m serious. I’m in a great mood right now.”
Even as I waved my hand dismissively, Ji-su’s expression didn’t brighten. Watching her fidget as if she’d committed some terrible betrayal, a thought suddenly struck me.
What if Ji-su likes Seo Jae-gyeom too, but couldn’t bring herself to say it because of me?
If the only reason the two of them never got together in this timeline was because of me…….
Wouldn’t that make me the villain?
“I’m sorry. I really wasn’t being considerate.”
“Don’t say that. That’s not what this is.”
“Still.”
“Kang Da-hye.”
Seo Jae-gyeom cut off Ji-su’s repeated apology.
His gaze, heavy with irritation, raked over me from head to toe.
“Do I need your permission to walk to school with Han Ji-su?”
“…No.”
“Right. You don’t. Because you’re not my girlfriend. Never will be.”
“That’s…true.”
“Good. You understand. So why don’t you get going?”
“Right….”
I really was the villain in this scenario…….
Sensing Seo Jae-gyeom’s volatile mood, Ji-su also fell silent, watching carefully for any sign of change.
I felt awkward and had no idea what to do, so I was about to leave when—
A parasol suddenly descended over my head from behind.
The parasol cast a shadow across my vision. The morning sun blazed brilliant all around, yet suddenly my own small circle had gone dark.
What? Startled, I turned to look behind me.
On such a clear morning, whoever had shielded me with this parasol now lifted it away, revealing their face.
No. On second look, it wasn’t a parasol.
It was a lace parasol.
Jung Eun-seong, bearing a lace parasol absurdly tiny for his build and clearly uncomfortable to hold, was looking down at me.
Angling the parasol to the side, carefully blocking the sun’s rays, Jung Eun-seong spoke flatly.
“Hi.”
“Hi….”
You make entrances like you’re in some melodrama…….
Is the parasol just a prop to maximize the effect…?
“Is that parasol yours…?”
“Yeah.”
Jung Eun-seong replied flatly, lowering the parasol. Indifferent to the stares around him, he began folding the panels one by one.
With Jung Eun-seong’s sudden entrance, parasol in hand, I’d completely forgotten what we’d been discussing.
“What…?”
“That guy’s a trainee…….”
Everyone—students heading to class, even those in gym clothes—was staring at the sky-blue lace parasol wielded by the eighteen-year-old boy.
“But why would a guy use a lace parasol…….”
“Aren’t all parasols like that though?”
“I’ve never bought one, so I wouldn’t know…….”
Regardless of the murmurs around him, Jung Eun-seong folded the parasol with meticulous care and tucked it neatly into his bag.
“UV rays are the primary cause of skin aging.”
“I see….”
“Honestly, just being tall with good skin makes people call you handsome. But when you look closer, there’s nothing remarkable about it.”
As he said this, Jung Eun-seong’s gaze was fixed pointedly on Seo Jae-gyeom.
“…….”
“…….”
Did Eun-seong just call me ugly to Jae-gyeom?
“Aren’t you coming? You plan to just stand here under this intense UV exposure?”
“Oh, right, of course….”
Still dazed, I followed Eun-seong inside.
Behind us, as we vanished from view, Jae-gyeom let out a hollow laugh, utterly bewildered.
Eun-seong, who looked ready to stride off alone, surprisingly waited for me. We changed our shoes and climbed the stairs together, and as we did, he spoke.
“Why would you want to like a guy with no manners like that?”
I tried to say something, but Eun-seong pressed on, his tone cutting.
“Sure, he’s got no manners, but he’s got that face — pretending to be handsome when he’s actually ugly. That someone like him gets called handsome? The world really is something.”
“…….”
Are you a rapper instead of a vocalist?
I offered an awkward justification.
“No, I mean… he’s not usually this rude, but he seems on edge today.”
“Hmph.”
Eun-seong didn’t even acknowledge it.
If I kept defending Jae-gyeom any further, it seemed I’d end up getting roasted too, so I changed the subject.
“But why do you dislike Jae-gyeom so much?”
He’d only transferred a few days ago, so it seemed unlikely they’d had any real conflict in that time.
By my recollection, Eun-seong and Jae-gyeom weren’t fighting back around this point in time.
Even now, Jae-gyeom seemed to pay him no attention whatsoever.
‘It’s almost like Eun-seong is unilaterally nursing a grudge against him.’
Eun-seong answered my question without any change in expression.
“I.”
“Yeah, you?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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