The Heroine Stole My Regression-Chapter 92

The Heroine Stole My Regression-Chapter 92

Time inside the sanctuary passed much faster than expected.
It was supposed to be five hours.
But when I opened my eyes, it was already over.
“...Haa.”
I slowly pushed myself up from the spot. My whole body was drenched in sweat.
Maybe because the divine power had penetrated deep into my body, I had used up far more stamina and mental energy than usual.
As I wiped the back of my neck with a towel, I sensed a faint gaze from behind.
‘...?’
When I turned my head, I saw Cheon Yeoul on the other side, staring straight at me.
Not a single drop of sweat, her expression still composed. Not even her breathing seemed disturbed.
‘What the hell.’
She looked completely different from me.
“Why do you look so fresh and dry?”
“I’m always fresh and dry.”
“...You didn’t train?”
“I did.”
She raised a finger nonchalantly. At the tip of her long, slender finger, a small sacred spell circle shimmered into existence.
— Blink, blink.
Divine power gently flickering in the air.
“...Well, not bad.”
I nodded and began putting back on the outer garment I had taken off.
Just then, the sound of the sanctuary’s door opening echoed in from afar.
— Rumble...
“Brother Jeong Haein. Your time in the sanctuary has ended.”
A priest, robes perfectly arranged, quietly approached and bowed politely.
Before I realized it, Cheon Yeoul, now changed into fresh clothes, had come to stand next to me again.
“Three times in total. It seems you’ll be allowed to enter the sanctuary two more times.”
I gave a short nod.
Even this much was more than enough. From the Church’s perspective, opening the sanctuary at all must be a considerable burden.
I was just finishing up organizing my water bottle, satisfied in my own way, when—
Cheon Yeoul turned her head slightly and suddenly spoke.
“That’s all you’re giving him?”
The priest’s shoulders flinched. Though her voice wasn’t loud, it carried a strange pressure.
At her sharp tone, I turned my head slightly to look at her.
When she was with me, she always giggled so much I wondered if she was doing well in the Church at all—but apparently, she was.
The priest opened his mouth, unable to hide his fluster.
“...Yes. According to the final coordination within the Church, a total of three times...”
“Then.”
Cheon Yeoul smoothed her robe’s sleeve with her fingers and turned her head slowly.
“Tell them to reconsider.”
“...But, the Saint also needs to use it...”
“Does using it a few more times make you a full-fledged Saint?”
I didn’t show it outwardly, but I silently cheered her on.
She was essentially giving up her own chance to grow in order to let me grow instead. I was grateful.
“...Yes. I’ll try to negotiate further.”
In the end, the priest backed down.
I quietly opened my mouth and thanked her.
‘Thanks.’
Cheon Yeoul’s eyes widened, and she couldn’t hide her flustered expression.
With a briefly speechless face, she grabbed my sleeve, and a flush crept across her cheeks.
Then—
The priest cautiously spoke again from behind.
“This may be out of place to say, but the two of you... really do look good together.”
At those words, Cheon Yeoul’s eyes sparkled and she whipped her head around.
“Really? You mean it?”
The composed figure who had just been negotiating with the Church was nowhere to be seen—she was now brimming with excitement.
“You think so too, right? Right? Don’t you?”
She tilted her head, staring at the priest, then turned her gaze to me.
“Looks like it~”
I lowered my head slightly.
I didn’t respond, but she seemed to take that as affirmation.
“Heehee.”
Her grip on my sleeve tightened.
***
— Tap, tap, tap...
A darkened office. A woman stared at her watch.
In the unlit room, a single red eye glowed faintly.
[AM 12:00]
The watch’s hands pointed exactly at midnight.
Kang Arin slowly closed her eyes.
She turned off the watch and placed it on the desk.
Then, she let out a very short sigh.
“...Hoo.”
Jeong Haein was meticulous by nature.
He would never send a message past midnight.
So to put it simply—
He didn’t message her today, either.
“...What?”
Kang Arin murmured softly.
Her heart thudded lightly.
Lately, she’d started to feel something was off.
Cheon Yeoul? Complete. Yu Hana? Also complete.
And with the recent exchange tournament over, it was finally time for Yoon Chaeha to be set aside too.
Cheon Yeoul had dragged him to the sanctuary in desperation, grasping at straws—but it was still just flailing.
Now, it should’ve been her turn.
She thought her time was approaching.
She’d been prepared for a long time now.
And yet—
“Why isn’t anything happening.”
Kang Arin’s hands trembled.
She had built out every possible plan, prepared for whatever he might propose.
Whatever Jeong Haein wanted.
Whatever he said.
Plan A—if he suggested they go find a shard to give her?
She had already booked first-class seats on a flight to the U.S. for Pentagon access. Naturally, side-by-side seats.
Portals were fine, but sometimes she wanted to enjoy romantic conversation in the quiet of a plane cabin.
Plan B—if he wanted to retrieve the gauntlet from the dungeon in Hallasan?
She had preemptively cleared the trees on the mountain and planted flowers. Even paved the trails.
So they could ascend easily. And so the scenery would be beautiful.
Plan C—if he just wanted to train and grow together?
She planned to open the private training room owned by the guild master of Glory’s Domain.
Just the two of them, in the best facility, intimately.
Scenario A, B, C.
All preparations were complete. Plans fully laid out.
Perfectly.
Whatever he chose, she could respond immediately.
Then why—
“Why hasn’t he contacted me...?”
Kang Arin’s hand trembled.
She stared down at the watch on her desk.
It had already been quite some time since the last conversation with Cheon Yeoul.
By now, he should have reached out.
Her beautiful face reflected on the black screen.
Wait.
No way.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
A single unsettling possibility flashed into her mind.
“Don’t tell me...”
She whispered quietly.
“Am I... being sidelined...?”
Her red eyes trembled faintly in the dark room.
Her lips pressed tightly together.
Then, her cheeks puffed out with a look of frustration.
“Why... ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) what the hell...”
With a frustrated look, she sniffled quietly and turned her watch back on.
She checked her message history again.
Just in case—on the off chance she’d missed something.
But, as expected, there was nothing.
“...Ah...”
Kang Arin...
Let her head fall forward with a soft thud.
***
The day after that long night in the sanctuary, at Gaon Academy.
This morning’s class was self-study.
Final exams were approaching, and I definitely needed time to review as well.
Practical subjects stayed in the body’s memory, but theory didn’t.
This damn brain needed constant beating to retain anything.
I quietly opened my textbook.
— Rattle.
At that moment, the front door of the classroom opened.
A student with a gloomy expression quietly walked in.
She sluggishly made her way to an empty seat, dropped into it, and buried her head in her desk without a word.
‘Oof.’
I couldn’t tell if she was crying, but her shoulders were trembling slightly. Must’ve been quite a shock.
The reason today’s class was changed to self-study—
It was the day for academic counseling.
Based on grades up to midterms and entrance ranking, each student had a one-on-one session with a faculty advisor to evaluate their future path and growth trajectory.
It was also the day students first saw their guild offers.
Whether it was from the open bidding or official scout invitations—everything.
Even how many times their name came up on the recruitment list.
And the professors would compare their status to top-ranking students quite bluntly.
On top of that, they’d offer an evaluation.
“Looks like you might get into ~~ Guild.”
Or—
“You won’t make it.”
Like that, they'd make the student’s current position crystal clear.
It varied by professor, but generally, the evaluations were brutally honest. A lot of students ended up in tears.
They leaned more toward pointing out what was lacking than praising what was done well.
But there was a reason behind this harshness.
It was only the first semester, after all.
And this evaluation wasn’t the end—it was meant to encourage students to do their best with the time they had left.
“Oh dear... must’ve gone badly.”
Cheon Yeoul, sitting next to me, let out a sigh.
I glanced at the magic book she had open.
Same page as thirty minutes ago.
‘Worry about yourself first.’
I wanted to say that, but...
She was practically a full-fledged Saint and doing incredibly well. It felt awkward to say anything.
Just based on her current track record, she was more than commendable.
Maybe she knew that too—she gave me a bright smile.
The way she curved her lips upward was oddly annoying.
I lifted my hand slightly to flick her on the forehead—
“...Ugh.”
But I stopped.
“...Huh?”
“What.”
“You’re not gonna hit me?”
“You think I can hit a Saint?”
“......”
I turned to look at Yoon Chaeha, who was sitting to my right.
I figured she’d be dozing off, but surprisingly, she was scribbling something down in her notebook with intense focus.
I leaned in a little.
But it wasn’t notes on magic.
The entire page was filled with something else entirely...
— What kind of relationship even is this——
“Relationship?”
“Wah!”
As I leaned closer, Yoon Chaeha noticed and jumped.
I laughed and asked,
“What are you writing so seriously?”
“Nothing. Studying.”
“Studying?”
Didn’t seem like it.
But since it was counseling day, I got curious.
“So where are you going after graduation? Gonna graduate early?”
Gaon had an early graduation program to send talented young heroes out into society quickly.
As long as your skills were good enough, you could graduate early through guild contracts or agency scouting regardless of grades.
The graduation period could be shortened by up to a year.
Of course, while it was touted as being for the best, in reality, plenty of students with decent grades tried to leave early.
Conversely, some top-tier students chose not to graduate early.
Some were aiming for bigger opportunities, or simply felt they weren’t ready.
In Yoon Chaeha’s case, she was probably headed for the Magic Tower.
She had the background and the skill.
They were probably already keeping tabs on her.
So, I got a little curious.
“Me...?”
She quietly repeated.
“Yeah.”
She hesitated briefly, then answered in a small voice.
“...Vanquisher.”
“Van—what?”
I blinked and asked again.
Yoon Chaeha blinked and continued,
“Last time... that Yu Kal? Talking with him was kinda fun. There were a lot of books... the atmosphere wasn’t bad...”
“What about the Magic Tower?”
She paused at my question, scratched her cheek, and mumbled softly.
“The Magic Tower... doesn’t have you... so it’s boring...”
“...Huh.”
The reason was funny, but I had no complaints.
If it was Yoon Chaeha, getting into Vanquisher wasn’t a pipe dream.
And I could probably take better care of her there than if she went to the Tower.
‘Sion would like this.’
She’d probably be happy that she finally had a girl her own age to hang out with.
Yoon Chaeha’s personality was a bit odd, but Sion was sweet.
They’d get along.

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Chapter 92