The Heroine Stole My Regression-Chapter 98

"Yes... so, we'll conclude this matter here."

The seventh-floor conference room of the Hero Association.

From Association-certified guilds to private organizations.

A considerable number of guilds and groups were attending.

At the very center, seated at a rather prestigious spot, was Kang Arin, her mood extremely foul.

"...Arin, come on, cheer up a bit."

Seated next to Kang Arin was her uncle, Kang Yunhyeok.

The guild leader of Maengju and the very person who had dragged Kang Arin to this place.

"I'm not mad."

A short, dry answer.

But inside, she was boiling.

She felt like she was going to explode.

By now, she should have been touring the headquarters with Jeong Haein, guided by Kim Haeun, taking pictures together in the lobby, trying on equipment together.

Experiencing everything side by side.

But right now...

She was stuck in a boring, mind-numbing conference room.

Her uncle, Kang Yunhyeok, had dragged her here.

He said it was time for her to start making appearances, or something like that.

She knew it was all supposedly for her own good.

But she also knew very well that all of it was just empty formalities. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The meeting was finally winding down.

People started gathering their documents and rising from their seats.

'All this... just to hear this crap....'

"Haa...."

A deep sigh escaped from Kang Arin's mouth.

But just then—

"Oh, and you all know, right? Tonight's Strategy Exchange Meeting — we hope for a big turnout again this year."

The president’s cheerful voice echoed through the conference room.

"Haha, of course, we'll be there."

Polite laughs and responses spread across the room.

The Strategy Exchange Meeting.

An annual event held around this time every year.

Officially, it was for "cooperation against global threats" and a place to share strategies.

In reality, it was more of a networking party among the various guilds and organizations.

At that moment, Kang Arin's eyes suddenly lit up.

'This is it.'

Life returned to her tense, irritated face in an instant.

"Uncle, who's going to that?"

"Probably me...."

"I'll go."

"Huh? You? That's unexpected. I was thinking I'd have to go alone, but if we go togeth—"

"No."

Kang Arin smiled gently. The corners of her mouth curled in a peculiar way.

"I'll go."

"Uh...?"

Each invitation allowed one companion.

As for who Kang Arin would bring...

Truthfully, it was already decided.

***

Kim Haeun led the students into the research building.

Rows of equipment and relics awaiting analysis were lined up in neat order.

The air was dull and heavy, mixed with mechanical noises, keyboard clacking, and the low murmurs of researchers.

Among it all, one figure stood out.

A woman almost glued to a monitor in one corner.

Her hair hastily tied up, wearing glasses, her appearance was soaked in exhaustion.

Dark circles bloomed heavily under her eyes.

She would probably be quite pretty if she cleaned herself up, but right now, she looked terribly drained.

Kim Haeun cautiously approached her.

"Um... Hero Kang Sujin... I've brought the kids."

Kang Sujin, who had been staring intently at the monitor, only moved her eyes.

"Ugh...."

Thud. She rotated her shoulder and rose from her seat.

"Alright, kids, you're here."

She lifted her hand and gestured around her.

"This... this is your future."

"...I like it!!"

One student shouted energetically.

Kang Sujin blinked slowly.

"...Yeah, well. I don't."

Then, she pulled out a pack of cigarettes from her bag but shoved it back in.

"Ah. Sorry."

She glanced at Kim Haeun again.

"So, what am I supposed to do with them?"

"Ah, just... maybe a quick explanation of what you're working on~"

Kim Haeun tapped her own shoulder playfully. Kang Sujin snorted in disbelief, then spun the whiteboard around.

—Swipe.

"Alright then... let's start with this."

On the back of the board were dense formulas, structure diagrams, and circuit maps scribbled in red marker.

Something about it felt familiar.

'...Is this possibly...'

"This right here, you guys know about Shards, right? Shards."

The students nodded.

"My cousin sent me this hypothesis recently. About the essential conditions for extracting the power of a Shard. By the way, my cousin is your professor."

She continued.

"He said some random student came up with it, sent it to me out of the blue. I was going to ignore it, but... huh? It actually made some sense? The student's name was something like Jeong... something."

"In short, to extract the energy of a Shard, 'System’s Choice' is required."

She circled it boldly.

[System’s Choice]

"But here's the thing. The problem lies here. No one knows how the selection happens, or how the reaction is triggered."

Kang Sujin turned her head toward the students.

"This reaction — how would you figure it out? Okay, anyone got an idea?"

The students froze. Naturally.

It was a ridiculous question — even Kang Sujin, a first-rate researcher, hadn't found the answer.

She added.

"Relax."

Gradually, students began raising their hands.

"Um... could it be reacting to life signals? Since each person has a unique frequency...."

A boy sitting in the front row said cautiously.

"Okay, next."

"Maybe it manifests through specific genes... or diseases?"

"Alright, next."

A few more opinions followed, but her expression grew increasingly tired.

After hearing several responses, Kang Sujin closed her eyes and nodded.

"Alright, good work, kids. Miss Kim Haeun~ you can take them back now."

"Ah, yes!"

Kim Haeun reacted quickly.

Even then, I hesitated.

'Would it help if I said this?'

There was no downside to improving Maengju’s progress on Shard research.

I quietly opened my mouth.

"Maybe... neither the Shard nor the target is ready yet?"

Kang Sujin, who had slumped back into her seat, slowly turned her eyes toward me.

Kim Haeun hastily waved her hand, smiling awkwardly.

"Ah~ let's wrap it up, our researcher here is really busy—"

"Wait."

Kang Sujin stopped her.

Then she tilted her chin slightly toward me.

"Want to continue?"

I nodded and spoke quietly.

"System’s Choice — you can only observe it once the reaction actually occurs. But if the target isn't strong enough to withstand the Shard's energy, then no reaction would happen in the first place."

In the original story, the characters had to reach a certain level before they could interact with the Shards.

I had picked Yu Hana as the first candidate for a reason — she was closest to that level.

Simply put, the targets aren't ready yet, so the Shards aren't reacting.

And when the characters do reach that level?

The Shards react instantly.

"Shard energy is of a higher dimension. It naturally requires strength to extract it. If the targets aren't prepared yet, it’s only natural that no reaction is detected."

I finished speaking and looked around.

Before I knew it, researchers had started to gather.

"So...."

Screw it.

Since I’d gotten this far, I might as well.

I walked to the front of the board.

Among the dense formulas, there was a blank spot.

I boldly drew an X through it.

"If you're calculating based on something like 'System’s Choice,' which might not even exist, of course you won't find an answer."

For a moment, the lab fell silent.

Kang Sujin tapped her desk. Her expression was unreadable.

A researcher whispered.

"Um... Researcher Sujin, this..."

Kang Sujin raised a finger to her lips.

Shh.

"Then, when will they be ready?"

"I don't know that either."

Trying to mooch for free, huh.

Finally, Kang Sujin smirked.

Sensing the shift in atmosphere, even Kim Haeun stayed quiet.

"What's your name?"

Kang Sujin got up, rummaging through her pocket as she approached.

"Jeong Haein."

"Jeong Haein? Jeong Haein... Ah, it was you? My cousin talks about you a lot."

The professor who once recommended grad school to me.

She must be his cousin.

She pulled out a business card and handed it over.

"This is my card. Contact me anytime."

Then, brushing back her hair, she said to Kim Haeun,

"Miss Haeun."

"Yes?"

Kang Sujin handed her a blue card.

"You know the cafe on the third floor? Go buy the kids a drink each. They worked hard."

"Ah, thank you...."

"And also—"

She suddenly turned her head.

"You, eat cake too. Three or four slices. No, as much as you want."

She smiled at me.

Then she shouted at the gathered researchers.

"Alright, everyone?"

The researchers began avoiding her gaze.

"Looks like we're pulling an all-nighter tonight."

Groans rippled through the room.

***

The pride of Maengju.

The third-floor cafeteria.

Sitting across from me was Kim Haeun.

"Seriously, this is a big deal, okay? Kang Sujin is such a cold—no, such a frosty person, and she gave you her card...."

"Ah... yeah."

Kim Haeun was scarfing down cake.

Honestly, it just seemed like she wanted an excuse to eat cake.

Still, it was probably a huge breakthrough for them.

The research that had been completely stalled was finally moving forward.

Even the students' glances toward me had changed.

Earlier, it was like they were looking down on me.

Now, they looked at me like I was a major competitor — full of wariness.

And then—

"Oh, damn, she's here."

A small commotion spread among the students, and someone quickly stood up.

"Hello!!"

I turned my head and saw Kang Arin walking in from the entrance.

Even though she was a first-year, upperclassmen bowed deeply to her.

Confident, natural strides.

Kang Arin lightly nodded her head.

Then she locked eyes with me.

Her sharp, cold expression melted away.

She beamed brightly.

"Jeong Haein~"

"Oh, hey."

She then immediately glared briefly and sharply at the back of Kim Haeun’s head, who was sitting across from me.

Then she smiled again and casually plopped down right next to me.

"What did you do today? Was it fun?"

She started chattering excitedly.

She barely talked at school, but now that it was her company's space, she was clearly having fun.

Several students stared from afar.

Confusion, disbelief, suspicion.

'Why is Kang Arin...?’

It was written all over their faces.

"Oh! Arin, you’re here?"

Kim Haeun greeted her cheerfully while still eating cake.

Kang Arin nodded coolly.

"You know, Jeong Haein is really smart! He even got a business card from Researcher Kang Sujin!"

"Ah~ really?"

"Yes, and also...."

Kim Haeun started to continue, but Kang Arin interrupted.

"By the way, Hero Kim Haeun, aren't you being called?"

"Called? No, I’m off duty. Hehe."

"Ah... really?"

Kim Haeun happily continued eating cake.

Kang Arin nonchalantly pulled out her watch, tapped it twice.

And suddenly—

—Ding ding.

Kim Haeun’s watch started ringing.

"What about now?"

"Ah...."

Kim Haeun stared at her watch in dismay and finally stood up.

"Go quickly, I’ll keep your seat."

Kang Arin smiled regretfully as she waved.

Kim Haeun left, looking pitiful without even finishing her cake.

"Click."

Kang Arin clicked her tongue.

Then, she slid right next to me.

Bumping her elbow against mine, she said,

"Haein, tonight... want to go somewhere with me?"

"Where?"

"Hmm...."

Kang Arin gently touched her lips with her finger.

"A party?"

She smiled quietly.

Her eyes shimmered.

For a moment, I felt like I was back on ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ Baekdu Mountain.

'This feeling...'

She had exactly the same expression as she did back then.