The Regressor's Ice Is Golden - Chapter 15

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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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015.

What did I just see?
Choi Ji-hwan’s eyes faltered for a moment.
For an instant, he wondered if he’d somehow lost the ability to distinguish between six types of jumps.
“What is it?”
“Nothing much.”
He rubbed his eyes deliberately, but the consecutive jump that had burned across his retinas was unmistakable.
Right after the Triple Lutz, a three-rotation jump pulled upward without a moment’s rest.
‘There was another one.’
The coach, tearing off a length of tape, quickly recovered with an air of knowing.
“Ah, I heard Ha-seol is good at loop jumps. So she’s adding a combination loop to the program this season, I see.”
“I suppose so.”
Choi Ji-hwan watched Kim Ha-seol glide again.
She stepped backward with a series of crossovers, then snapped into a clean spiral and launched.
Three rotations, a crisp landing.
A solo Triple Loop.
The coach hadn’t been speaking carelessly.
One look was enough to see it was cleanly executed.
Good height, fast rotation.
Even elite male skaters rarely land combination Triple Loops.
Especially in men’s singles, once you reach senior level, you have the powerful tool of quad jumps at your disposal.
A Toe Loop or Salchow might be landed at lower quality, so it’s a matter of training rotation power and height.
Rather than attempting a fussy technique like combination Loop, it’s better to refine quad jump execution.
Skaters in medal positions often had three or four quad jumps in their Free Skate.
Choi Ji-hwan, limited to two quad jumps, had to patch together his base value however he could.
And lately, even that was complicated by his diagnosis to be careful with his hip joint.
While his mind wandered, the emergency repair on the Skate Boots was complete.
“All done.”
The coach snipped the tape cleanly.
The black Boots wrapped tightly in yellow Box Tape looked somewhat shabby.
But the boot collar was noticeably firmer than before.
Choi Ji-hwan rolled his feet experimentally.
“That’s incredible.”
Whatever the coach had done, he’d essentially rebuilt the boot collar.
The coach smiled with satisfaction.
“Now you go back up and try it out. If anything feels off while you’re skating, let me know. I’ll wrap it tighter if needed.”
“Yes.”
The blade clicked onto the ice.
When he pushed off cautiously, it felt much better.
There was a kind of support coming from his ankle now.
If handled well, it should hold for weeks.
Choi Ji-hwan returned to the coach.
“It’s fine.”
“Good. Shall we take today’s practice easier? Let’s focus on Salchow and Toe Loop, checking your form.”
“Understood.”
Scratch-scratch—the ice shaved away as he picked up speed.
Even as he practiced, Choi Ji-hwan found his focus wavering.
For instance, when the other skater was jumping.
Especially when executing the Lutz.
A deep Outside Edge, traveling backward.
There were things he could discern, as a fellow competitor.
The Edge remained deep right up until the boot sole grazed the ice.
This was definitely not incorrect technique.
Even if one tried to judge it harshly, there wouldn’t be a Wrong Edge deduction.
‘But jumping like that will wear down the neck quickly.’
It was obvious that the jumping form was hard on the boots.
Though granted, his own boots weren’t faring much better.
He decided he’d pass the feedback along through the coach later.
Choi Ji-hwan picked up speed again, his strides lengthening across the ice.
Meanwhile, the two coaches watched their respective students with steady attention.
“Ah, you must be working so hard.”
“Please, don’t say that. Thanks to you, this ice time isn’t going to waste.”
The concerns of skaters alone.
Different genders, different circumstances—but there’s always one shared hardship among them.
“We’ll need to sort out the Skate Boots situation, though.”
“Yes. Size 260 is a bit small, but 265 seems a little loose, they say.”
“Ah, that’s the tricky part of fitting boots. We went through so much of that in our novice days. We’d just pick the thickest socks and wear them.”
“Didn’t her feet hurt?”
“She managed through it, what can you do.”
Park Chae-ram rested his chin against the rink barrier.
At the far end of his line of sight, Kim Ha-seol was executing a spin.
A Biellmann Spin flowing from a Layback position.
The rotational speed had quickened compared to before.
“Ha-seol, come here for a moment.”
“Yes, Coach!”
Park Chae-ram tapped the Apple Pad he was holding.
“Your spin axis has improved from before. Normally, the older you get, the stiffer everything becomes. What kind of secret training have you been doing on me?”
“What are you talking about?”
Kim Ha-seol giggled, then twisted her lips wryly.
“Ah…….”
“Your knee still bothering you?”
“It seems to be, a little.”
Kim Ha-seol looked down and rolled her foot gently, testing it.
“‘Seems to be’? If you don’t tell me, how am I supposed to know?”
“I know, I know. But it’s not too bad.”
The coach poured her an ion drink and handed it over.
She took only a single sip so her stomach wouldn’t be too full, then headed back out.
Before long, the time slot ended and Ice Resurfacing began.
They were given ten minutes of rest.

***

I looked at my status window.

[Kim Ha-seol]
Age: 13 years old (Born February 27th)
Height: 163cm
Weight: 47kg
Secondary Sexual Characteristics Progress: 29%

Strength: B
Stamina: A
Flexibility: B+
Precision: B+
Artistry: C+

[Biological Metronome] (D/Active)

Special Notes: Regressor, indomitable spirit
[Points: 0]

Progress had been quite solid lately.
Each practice session brought improvement, and with Points coming in to refine my abilities, efficiency kept climbing in a virtuous cycle.
Thanks to that, I’d been able to acquire one more special ability.

[Self-Generated Heat] (E/Active)
Immunity to muscle dysfunction caused by cold. No problem even without heating facilities.

One curious fact: even an Ice Rink requires heating.
People ask why winter sports need heating at all, but cold has always been an athlete’s joints’ worst enemy.
When you’re typing on your phone, your hands work faster and more accurately when they’re warm, don’t they.
You have to consider the spectators watching the competition too.
‘Though I suppose it never hurts to prepare.’
The training venue was quite cold, and there were places far colder than this, so I needed to bring equipment anyway.
“Should we start first, then?”
“Yes. Shall I put on the music?”
“Oh, that would be wonderful.”
The moment the ice resurfacing machine left, Choi Ji-hwan’s coach headed into the broadcast booth.
I climbed onto the ice and took my position.
I brought my hands together and bowed my head slightly.
My left foot touched down with a toe pick.
It was the opening stance for this season’s Free Program—Turandot.
‘I hope the Costume gets ready soon.’
Soon, grand orchestral music flowed through the Ice Skating Venue—wait.
“Oh, I’m sorry! We put on the wrong one!”
Choi Ji-hwan’s coach stuck his head out from the broadcast booth and shouted.
“No problem! Play the right one!”
Park Chae-ram cheerfully loaded an Apple Pad into the system.
Moments later, the majestic strains of an orchestra swelled forth.
I began to glide, tracing a fluid line across the ice.
Slow and measured, yet with my weight fully centered in my lower body—building speed.
And now, the most crucial jump.
Whoosh!
The Triple Lutz, Triple Loop Combination—my greatest challenge.
White ice dust scattered from my Skate Boots as I landed.
The landing satisfied me, and I continued into the choreography leading to the next jump.
I finished the arc with my fingertips and reset my stance.
A single turn, then the launch—Triple Flip.
Crack!
The landing came faster than usual.
I must have been short a rotation.
‘I’ll need to work on that.’
Truth is, the Flip right now isn’t fully refined yet.
The textbook says to take off with a toe pick while traveling backward on a neutral, thin Inside Edge, but it’s not simple.
‘The problem is I keep drifting onto my Outside Edge.’
When that happens, judges call it a “lip”—and that costs points.
Right now I’m skating the razor’s edge, just barely getting it, but it’ll take time and work to fix.

[I was planning to give you this as a quest anyway.]

‘I figured as much.’
Edge correction for Lutz and Flip is a heavy task even for top-tier skaters.
But why did you stay quiet until now instead of speaking up sooner.
Meanwhile, the background music grew quieter and more subdued.
After the Flying Spin came a Step Sequence where the choreography intensified.

“Very dynamic,” Park Chae-ram observed.
“Isn’t it.”
Park Chae-ram smiled warmly while filming his student.
Choi Ji-hwan watched Kim Ha-seol in silence.
His coach tapped him on the shoulder.
“Remember? She choreographed one of your Gala Show programs too.”
“Did she.”
“Oh, I’m embarrassed.”
Park Chae-ram laughed sheepishly and focused on filming.
Kim Ha-seol’s performance was now in its final stretch.
The segment where the athlete’s stamina begins to fade.
And for precisely that reason, the segment where an extra ten percent in bonus Points was added.
Kim Ha-seol’s right skate traced a curve across the ice, setting her into a spin.
A Triple Salchow, followed by a Double Toe Loop, then seamlessly into a Double Loop.
The music swelled in grandeur as the jumps continued—only the Salchow remained.
The moment she landed the final jump, she transitioned into a Sit Spin.
A combination spin where she switched her supporting leg mid-sequence.
After cycling through five or six different positions, the lush orchestral swell fell silent.
Before the spin had even fully ended, Kim Ha-seol swept her arms upward in a graceful finish.
A clean, crisp completion.
Park Chae-ram clapped softly from the boards.
“Good work.”
“Yes!”
I tried to glide slowly off the ice.
But my blade caught on a small ridge—sharp and sudden.
It was nothing that should have mattered, yet in an instant, my balance vanished completely.
Thud!
“Oh my, are you all right?”
“I’m fine, I’m fine.”
Park Chae-ram quickly skated over to me.
“What happened? Does something else hurt?”
“I—”
I pushed myself up in a daze.
But I couldn’t stand.
The next moment, a sharp pain shot through my knee.
“Is it here that hurts?”
“Ah—ow!”
Park Chae-ram didn’t ask further, just helped me up and guided me off the ice.
Choi Ji-hwan’s coach watched with concern as someone called out.
“What happened? Did that girl get hurt?”
“Everyone, give her a moment.”
Among the chattering students, the coach returned with someone else in tow.
“This is our club’s medical trainer. She should be able to help a bit.”
“Ah, thank you so much.”
I grimaced as I carefully unlaced my Skate Boots.
And the diagnosis was…
“Looks like growth pain to me.”
Ah.
Park Chae-ram let out a long sigh and slumped down beside me.
The medical trainer examined my leg this way and that, then asked quietly.
“Have you been waking up at night with your legs aching lately?”
“Hmm? Oh, yes. But it was while I was asleep and it wasn’t too bad, so…”
“It’s not an injury, but you’re going to struggle through this for a while. You’re a middle schooler—it’s right when you’re going through your growth spurt and secondary sexual characteristics.”
“Will it be very severe?”
“It varies from person to person…”
It was mostly what I’d heard from the hospital last time.
The trainer then headed off to check the form of the elementary students at the club.
I clicked my tongue and put my Skate Boots back on.
“Why don’t you rest more?”
“It’s fine. If I’m going to have to wear them anyway, I might as well get used to it…”
The cold of the Ice Skating Venue seemed to do the work of an ice pack anyway.
“What are you, some kind of martyr? Just stubbornly enduring everything.”
Park Chae-ram shook his head and switched out my Heat Pack for a fresh one.
I’d looked like a newborn fawn when I’d stumbled off the ice just moments ago.
“Is she going to be all right?”
“I think she’ll be fine with a little rest. Don’t worry.”
“Still, we’ll need to manage her carefully.”
That we will.
Choi Ji-hwan’s coach looked back and forth between me and Park Chae-ram, then nodded slowly.
It was now someone else’s turn on the ice.
Choi Ji-hwan emerged from the changing room in his Costume.
‘She looks beautiful.’
White cubic decorations suited the deep green velvet fabric perfectly.
“Excuse me, do you happen to have a pen?”
“Yes?”
I pulled a pen and notebook from my bag and handed them over.
He wrote something on a blank page of the notebook, then gave it back to me.
“Thank you.”
“……? Yes.”
Choi Ji-hwan removed his skate guards and stepped onto the ice.
“Would you like me to cue the music this time?”
“Oh, I’d really appreciate that!”
Park Chae-ram headed toward the broadcast booth.
I glanced back and forth between Choi Ji-hwan and the booth.
Then I opened the notebook.
[010-XXXX-XXXX Choi Ji-hwan]
‘……?’
Choi Ji-hwan had written down his phone number.
The Regressor’s Ice — Chapter 15
E-book Publication Date | 2026.06.05

Author | Corcoroli
Publisher | Heo Heung-beom, Park Geon-won
Published by | Potent

Address | [04783] 10th Floor, 8 Yeonmujeong 11-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul
Telephone | 02-6320-8500
Fax | 02-6320-8585

UCI | G720:N+A101-20260514092.0015
List Price | Not for Sale

ⓒ Corcoroli 2026

This e-book is protected by copyright law.
This e-book is published under contract with the author, and unauthorized reproduction, duplication, distribution, or sharing without written consent from both parties is prohibited.

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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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