The Regressor's Ice Is Golden - Chapter 53

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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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053.

A cool wind is blowing now
Knocking on the closed door in my chest

This theme song had a Korean cover version.
The title ended with “(20XX Kor.ver)”, and it had been uploaded quite recently.
But this was just a song I’d heard ad nauseam while working part-time at the karaoke shop.

But someday you’ll understand—on your back there are surely
Wings that will let you soar into a distant future!

The moment the opening interlude played, Amasaki Rika and Cha Jin-hee’s eyes went wide.
The clueless upperclassmen had no idea what was happening.
So this Korean-cover version of a classic anime theme song was about to become the stage for those two to reconcile, and for us to intimidate the upperclassmen.
Park Ji-ho’s idea earlier in the hallway had been this:
‘Since you both speak Japanese well, let’s have them sing some appropriate song together and set the stage for reconciliation!’
So I went one step further.
‘Better to pick something that makes the upperclassmen feel awkward enough that they back off on their own.’
‘Let’s just execute a total “chill” move and have them sing something that’ll intimidate the upperclassmen.’
That’s why, from countless anime OSTs, I chose this one.
Back when I couldn’t afford to be picky about part-time work, this song’s Korean version went viral for some reason I never did understand.
Every single customer who came in would belt it out so hard their necks looked ready to snap, and by the time I realized it, I’d memorized all the lyrics.
And now, here I was singing it.
A famous but still-pending-viral classic anime OST—that’s all it was.
If you pick the wrong Japanese song, it usually turns into ‘what even is this, you anime nerd’ and kills the whole vibe.
So we flipped that on its head—have only those two nail a hundred points with their secret song, and we’d ride the momentum.
Once more than half the people thought the energy was good and got excited, those two would feel so awkward they’d bury the hatchet on their own.
Anyway, I scraped together every ounce of talent I’d ever had and sang my heart out.
‘You’d better recognize this, you bastards.’
Already picturing those two making up in the next song.
When the interlude came around, Park Ji-ho shook a tambourine in time with the grand, upbeat melody.
The sight of him thrashing his head around was hilarious enough that the mood stayed light and cheerful!
“Haha, what the hell is this lunatic doing?”
While the male upperclassman laughed with his belly, the female upperclassman pulled out her phone and started recording us.
For a moment I worried about what might happen if this went viral on the internet, but criticizing a bunch of middle schoolers for being stupid and having fun seemed pretty petty.

I want to stop time itself, trap it, hold it forever
But if by some chance our meeting holds special meaning
Then I will become the scripture needed to awaken freedom

Anyway, I sang my absolute best, and Park Ji-ho went all out with his antics.

O boy who shines with light, holding the blue cosmos—become legend!

The moment the song ended, Park Ji-ho let out a cheer and waved the tambourine enthusiastically.
The score: 99 points.
The two upperclassmen looked confused, and the two Japanese speakers who thought this was their secret song looked equally thrown.
“What? What even is that otaku song? And it’s in Korean too, of all things.”
“Oh, well, since we have native speakers here, we thought we’d give it a shot.”
And I flashed them a grin.
“Think they’re uncomfortable? I don’t know.”
“We totally nailed it.”
When Park Ji-ho and I high-fived, the other two finally responded.
“What does this mean?”
“Amasaki, it means we got them.”
Cha Jin-hee cracked a smirk and explained the situation in Japanese.
Basically… we’d totally pranked them.
In the middle of all this, Park Ji-ho started needling Cha Jin-hee again.
“Wait, wait—we hit 99, and you’re saying you’ll hit 100? No way, right? We totally nailed it, didn’t we?”
“Oh, just shut up for a second!”
Cha Jin-hee was about to complain further when our eyes met.
And something like understanding flickered across her gaze.
That seemed to be the cue—she picked up the remote and started whispering in Japanese with Rika.
“So what should we sing?”
“Wait, we need the song number. Let me find it in the system.”
A brief exchange followed about whether they knew the song, whether it was in the database.
It was nothing like the way they’d been at each other’s throats at the Ice Rink yesterday.
The song number was entered, and the title that appeared on screen was in Japanese—I couldn’t read it.
But the way both of them picked up their mics suggested they at least knew the song.
“Oh, there’s a music video too?”
The intro kicked in the moment Park Ji-ho finished speaking.
Bright and squeaky, the instrumentation had an almost eerie quality to it.
“One, two, three, four!”
Cha Jin-hee shouted out the count, and a squeaky rock-metal beat came roaring through.
On the yellow background of the music video, a roughly sketched blue-haired character and a red-hooded figure bobbed their heads in grotesque rhythm.
Taken aback, the two seniors whispered to each other again.
“What even is this song?”
“No idea. Is it famous or something?”
Probably not—or then again, if Cha Jin-hee knows it, who knows what’s popular back in Japan.
In any case, Cha Jin-hee and Rika threw themselves into singing the Japanese song.
Korean phonetic romanization appeared on screen alongside the Japanese lyrics, but I could barely make out what was being sung, let alone attempt to follow along.
‘That’s one bold song choice.’
Among ordinary people who only know Shinkai and Makoto when it comes to Japanese music, it’s exactly the kind of selection that kills the mood—or would have.
But somehow, the atmosphere never dipped.
“Whoo!”
Park Ji-ho was working hard beside them, acting like an absolute fool.
He was frantically hitting a tambourine and headbanging with all his might.
It was pure coercion—like he was threatening us to agree the vibe was good.
But I didn’t have the luxury of resisting.
“Waaah!”
I dredged up every bit of my social survival instinct and cheered along.
Emboldened, the two of them locked eyes and really committed to the song.
‘And they’re actually good at it too.’
I found myself wondering how much attention a video would get if someone posted it online.
The music video wound down, showing the red-hooded character’s swaying figure as it faded out.
The two of them, having sung their very souls into it, collapsed back into their seats.
“Phew, good work. Want some water?”
“Ah, arigatou…”
“Here, let me pour it for you.”
Cha Jin-hee opened a water bottle and handed it to Rika.
Looking at them now, they both seemed much more at ease with each other.
It seemed like my little prescription was working reasonably well.
And as for their karaoke score…
“Wow, a perfect hundred!”
“Waaaah!”
Park Ji-ho, making a dramatic fuss, turned back to look at our female senior.
“Hey, what score did you guys say you got when we were in the bathroom?”
“Man, we lost. This jerk sang like absolute garbage.”
“What did you say?”
“Come on, we get it—next song!”
The seniors declared themselves defeated in the karaoke score contest and spent the rest of the time singing.
They stuck to a mix of Japanese and Korean songs they all knew, occasionally mining anime soundtracks for nostalgia.
After an hour had passed, everyone’s voice was thoroughly wrecked.
The male senior said goodbye with barely any voice left.
“See you at school.”
“Wanna go again sometime?”
“Get lost.”
“Man, I had a blast though.”
Leaving the two seniors behind, Park Ji-ho and I started walking toward the Sports Complex, our pace unhurried.
Technically we should have taken the bus, but we needed to make up for lost training time anyway, and it wasn’t really that far in a straight line.
Ji-ho and I deliberately hung back, walking behind Cha Jin-hee and Amasaki Rika to keep an eye on them.
They still kept their distance from each other, but it didn’t look awkward like before.
Then Cha Jin-hee took out a water bottle and drank.
It seemed like she was asking if Amasaki’s throat was all right.
I couldn’t make out the words, but the atmosphere looked fine.
Ji-ho tilted his head slightly and whispered conspiratorially.
“Yeah, don’t worry. Seems like they’re talking things through okay.”
“You understand Japanese?”
“From the vibe.”
Well, I could read that much too.
By the time we reached the Sports Complex.
“Sono toki wa gomen ne.”
That was when I felt relieved.
Finally, the words I’d been hoping to understand had come.
The two of them bowed their heads repeatedly, exchanging apologies, and they seemed a bit sheepish about it.
Then they both smiled shyly.
“So, did you two make up, or what?”
“Can’t you tell by looking?”
“Yeah, guess I can.”
I looked up at the sky and patted both their shoulders.
“Just don’t fight in front of me anymore… try to get along from now on.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Thanks for your hard work.”
The four of us walked back toward the Ice Rink under a clear, bright blue sky.

***

“All right, let’s get the shot. One, two, three.”
Click!
I smiled slightly as I looked at the camera lens.
After the shoot wrapped, I made sure to greet my companions first.
“It’s been so long. How have you been?”
“Well, I’ve been great! Congratulations on making the Final.”
Lee Ji-su beamed and offered her hand for a handshake.
And there was one more person.
“It’s been a while, junior.”
“Hello. I heard you just got back from the Qualifying Event?”
Choi Ji-hwan nodded quietly.
“I wasn’t old enough for Worlds, so I was just grateful I could compete at the Qualifying Event.”
“Congratulations on both of you winning Silver Medals.”
“Thanks, hehe.”
Choi Ji-hwan smiled faintly beside her and nodded quietly in acknowledgment.
Now that some of the pressure was off, I could still see the tension written all over his face.
Even though quite some time had passed.
‘Makes sense, though.’
This season was an Olympic year.
As a Junior, I could brush it off, but if I were a Senior competitor, I’d be incredibly on edge.
The judges’ scrutiny was one thing, but there was also the Qualifying Event right before this where Olympic Entry Rights were on the line.
The Olympic Qualifying Event held back in September.
Normally, eighty percent of the Olympic Entry Rights are distributed through the World Championships held just before the Olympics.
And one of the B-level tournaments held at the start of the season gets selected by the Skating Federation to be designated as the Qualifying Event.
‘They distribute the remaining twenty percent of Entry Rights there.’
Those two had won medals and Entry Rights at that competition.
“So that means you both have two Entry Rights each—one for men and one for women?”
“Well… the results from the World Championships weren’t that great. The seniors who competed then weren’t in peak condition either…”
“But they all performed Clean, right? I think they did better than me—I couldn’t even land my Lutz.”
How could people’s temperaments be so different?
Though figure skaters come in all sorts—not everyone has the same personality—but still.
In any case, Lee Ji-su tapped my shoulder with a laugh.
“It’s fine. Just think of this as a warm-up, a chance to adjust to the equipment.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, well… you’ll do well, junior.”
“That’s the point. It’s not every day a Junior skater makes it to the Final in their first year.”
In the meantime, the coaching staff and Skating Federation officials had caught up and begun processing the paperwork.
We passed through security and drifted toward the boarding gate.
“So the Open Trophy is for accumulating Ranking Points?”
“That’s probably it. Honestly, I need to perform well — my career depends on my results.”
I gazed quietly out the window at the planes lined up on the tarmac.
“Like you said, I’m going to adjust to the equipment too. All things considered, this trip is for training.”
“Good. Let’s do our best.”
Lee Ji-su flashed a bright smile, and I returned it as best I could.
And with that, the plane bound for Beijing took off.
The Returner’s Ice — Episode 53
E-book publication date | 2026.06.05

Author | Korckarolli
Publishers | Heo Heung-beom, Park Gun-won
Published by | Potent

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

UCI | G720:N+A101-20260514092.0053
List price | 100 won

ⓒ Korckarolli 2026

This e-book is protected under copyright law.
This e-book is published under contract with the author and may not be reproduced, distributed, or shared in any form without the written consent of both parties.

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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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