The Regressor's Ice Is Golden - Chapter 54

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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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‘Nice choice of costume.’
The cameraman tracked the skater’s movements steadily through the lens.
Fluid, unhurried skating was captured frame by frame.
Then came the first jump combination—Triple Lutz into Triple Toe Loop.
Crack, snap, crack, whoosh!
For women’s senior singles, the Short Program layout was largely standardized unless a Triple Axel was involved.
3Lz-3T, 3F, 2A.
Lee Ji-su was no exception, and victory would come down to Bonus Points and Grade of Execution.
‘Still, with her condition this solid, it’s satisfying to film.’
She never fell, and she always completed her rotations fully, so she’d pick up plenty of bonus points.
As expected, Lee Ji-su executed a clean Short Program.
The cameraman checked her memory card with satisfaction.
‘He’ll pass out when I send him this.’
Her husband had been thrilled when he heard about the blue costume and thought of Yuina, but she was curious what he’d say seeing this footage.
Day one ended there, and Lee Ji-su breezed through the Free Skating the next day to claim gold.
The men’s singles competition that started the very next day followed suit.
With no real competition, Choi Ji-hwan swept through and took the gold medal.
Double gold for the pair!
Though it was a B-tier challenger event, figure skating fans and sports journalists alike welcomed the news.
‘Such a fresh start to the season.’
The community must be going wild. In a good way!
So the cameraman found herself looking forward to it.
To the junior women’s singles competition as well.
Four days after the competition ended, the cameraman returned to the hotel and sorted through her memory cards.
Then she picked up a carefully wrapped envelope.
What the cameraman carried in her hands to China wasn’t just photos.
An SNS friend had made a heartfelt request of her.
—Ms. Doobe, could you also pass this along when you meet Seol?
The SNS friend had earnestly asked her to deliver a letter sent by mail.
A fan letter, carefully handwritten character by character and even spritzed with perfume!
Deeply moved, the cameraman had gladly agreed to deliver it, but—
‘Where could they be?’
Unfortunately, the junior skaters couldn’t be found at the ice rink that day.
Well, if they weren’t here to cheer on others, they must have gone out somewhere.
With a rare chance at an overseas trip, they might have gone sightseeing.
The cameraman smiled to herself and set aside the autographs she’d received from both skaters.
‘Ms. Uni, I’m taking this awesome gift with me. Ha!’
She was very much looking forward to the newcomer’s reaction.
Without imagining how the next day’s competition would unfold.

***

“Now, exhale slowly. One, two, three, four…….”
“Haaaaah.”
Coach Park pressed down on his student’s back.
He was stretching her hamstrings fully for flexibility.
It was something he did routinely, but that day felt different somehow.
Her back was still so small.
It was strange seeing so much muscle packed into such a tiny frame.
“Coach?”
“Oh, yeah.”
Once fully warmed up, Kim Ha-seol rose slowly and stretched.
Group 4’s Short Program was about to begin.
And then it was time.
The announcement came over the speakers, and the pre-competition warm-up started.
Kim Ha-seol was skating first in Group 4.
‘Condition’s holding up well.’
She’d thought she’d be short on practice time from going sightseeing, but it turned out better than expected.
She seemed to be adapting well to the New Equipment too.
So she’d kept the Short Program Layout the same as always.
3Lz-3Lo, 3F, 2A.
Get the difficult jumps done early, then handle the back end with a clean Double Axel.
A textbook strategy—solid, straightforward.
Coach Park handed water to the skater after she’d landed all three jumps.
“The Jump Combination was good, but I’d like to see your core extended a bit more.”
“Yes.”
The Skating was strong, and the choreography was nothing short of excellent.
He still couldn’t quite believe how he’d managed to reel in such talent from a school.
The final group’s warm-up had concluded.
The remaining skaters left the ice, and only the first competitor remained.
Kim Ha-seol approached slowly toward him.
“You’ve got this, right?”
“Of course.”
“Don’t overthink it. Just skate the way you always do. Understand?”
The skater pressed both hands together against her forehead.
The coach wrapped his hands around hers and brought them to his lips.
“Go.”
“Yes.”
The announcement came over the speakers, introducing the skater taking the ice.
{Representing Republic of Korea, Ha-seol Kim!}
As cheers and applause erupted, the skater stopped in the center and took her position.
After a brief silence, the cheerful melody of a bandoneon swept through the Ice Rink.
Breaking into a smile, Kim Ha-seol began her performance, moving through the choreography with ease and building speed.
The details in her movements seemed noticeably richer than before.
‘That’s it—she’s doing well.’
Soon the moment for the first jump arrived.
Coach Park clenched his fists as he watched Kim Ha-seol approach the jump, building speed.
The first jump—a Triple Lutz.
Crack!
……???
‘What?’
The moment her right foot landed, instead of immediately flowing into the next jump—why—
Before he could fully process what was happening, her left toe pick slammed into the ice.
And then she fell again.
“……No.”
Coach Park clenched his jaw, his hand reaching out involuntarily to clutch his jacket.
Watching the skater scramble back to her feet on the ice.
As she regained her rhythm, his mind went cold.
‘She underrotated the first jump.’
The Triple Lutz hadn’t completed its final rotation, becoming a Double Lutz instead.
And the moment she landed, she must have realized it herself.
That there was no way she could attach the Jump Combination.
Instinctively, she’d planted her left toe pick to attempt a Triple Toe Loop, but she didn’t have enough momentum to complete three rotations.
As a result, the rotation came up short on the Double Lutz, and she fell attempting the Triple Toe Loop.
‘This can’t be happening.’
Coach Park turned his head away from the inexplicable dread, but he had to look back at the skater.
He had to.
No matter what happened.
The next jump—a Triple Flip leading into a Mohawk Turn.
Snap—whoosh!
“Yaaaaaaay!”
A groan transformed into a shout of relief.
He exhaled in relief, but his hands remained clutched on his jacket.
The Flying Sit Spin that followed immediately after the Flip—
“Huh?”
Coach Park grimaced, his gaze fixed blankly on the skater as she launched herself.
Because she’d raised her right foot to assume the spin position well enough.
But as she landed, she’d failed to hold the position in time.
Kim Ha-seol, barely avoiding a fall, began spinning in an awkward posture—neither fully folded nor truly sitting.
At least she managed to shift positions in the middle successfully.
But that was all.
‘Level 2, I’d say.’
After finishing the spin on bent knees and gliding, the music was already far along.
Yet the skater’s body immediately began executing an ornate, intricate Step Sequence.
Exactly as recorded in muscle memory.
So Coach Park, too, had instinctively started counting the clusters of steps and turns, but—
‘Wait, that right there.’
A Mohawk Turn shouldn’t collapse like that.
In that moment, his count went wrong and his mind went blank.
When he came to, the Step Sequence was already finished.
Probably Level 3, at best.
And then came the Double Axel.
Crash!
“…….”
Oh, for heaven’s sake.
Even so, the skater got back up and pushed off again.
There were still two elements left.
A Camel Spin, and a Change Foot Combination Spin.
Soon enough, as the music wound down, the skater took the ending pose.
Polite, muted applause rippled through the arena.
Only then did Coach Park release his hands, which had been clutching at his clothes as if to tear them.
He was grateful the last two spins had gone clean.
Otherwise, he truly might have lost consciousness.
But what made it harder still to keep his wits about him was—
‘Ah.’
The child’s face had gone deathly pale.
She stood there dazed, releasing her posture and gazing down at the ice, bowing to both sides as the skater does—
Kim Ha-seol came slowly off the ice after her performance.
“You did well.”
Coach Park simply pulled the child into a fierce embrace.
Kim Ha-seol said nothing, only took the towel and wrapped it around herself.
She remained silent even as they walked to the Kiss and Cry and sat down.
The wait for the scores felt like a thousand years.
When her face appeared on the Scoreboard, she only looked embarrassed.
“Ha-seol.”
Before he could say anything else, the marks came through and the announcement echoed out.
[54.18]
In the ISU Junior Grand Prix Series, the Short Program passing mark to advance to Free Skating is roughly the mid-40s.
Truth be told, she was still a junior, and so even at international competitions, skaters who open their Jump Combination with a Triple Lutz are surprisingly uncommon.
But, but here’s the thing.
“Let’s head out.”
“Yes.”
Coach Park swallowed hard against the burning ache in his chest and led Kim Ha-seol out of the Kiss and Cry.
The Golden Ice Rink of the Returnee | Episode 54
E-book Release Date | 2026.06.05

Author | Korkarolli
Publisher | Heo Heung-beom, Park Gun-won
Published by | Potente

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

UCI | G720:N+A101-20260514092.0054
List Price | 100 KRW

ⓒ Korkarolli 2026

This digital book is a copyrighted work protected under copyright law.
This digital book has been published under contract with the author, and unauthorized reproduction, copying, distribution, and sharing without written consent from both parties are 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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