The Heroine Stole My Regression-Chapter 46

The students who had transferred from Kalos to Gaon were being guided around the library by a teaching assistant.

It was essential for the Kalos students—who had just arrived at this place of exchange—to understand Gaon’s basic structure and the locations of its key facilities.

Thus, the teaching assistant was busy explaining Gaon’s infrastructure.

“This is Gaon’s central library. Nearly all known materials are stored here... some forbidden books exist as well, but students are not permitte—”

The explanation continued, but the students’ attention had already shifted elsewhere.

In the end, the assistant gave a bitter smile and allowed them some free time. As expected from students of a magic-specialized academy—they couldn’t resist a chance to dive into books.

“We’ll meet back here in an hour~”

And just like that, personal time began.

Yoon Chaeha quietly walked through the library, leaving Ju Seojun behind.

—Shff.

Brushing her fingers along the shelves, she pulled out a book.

Flip—she skimmed through it lightly.

“Nothing special.”

She tilted her head slightly and murmured.

The content of the book, the quality of the information—none of it stood out.

Compared to Kalos, there wasn’t anything particularly superior here.

She continued walking with indifference, until her gaze landed on something.

Deep within the library stood a shelf of books bound in thick chains and sealed tightly.

Forbidden texts.

The kind that existed even in Kalos—books that were difficult to handle.

The reasons varied. Some contained knowledge too dangerous to expose, others were restricted due to their high research value.

Most were sealed with a professor’s personal magical formula and couldn’t be accessed freely.

But she was different.

Her crimson eyes shimmered faintly.

====

[Authority: A Priori]

① Penetrating Gaze

— Nothing can be hidden, nothing can hide.

② A Priori Knowledge

— The essence is already determined.

③ ??? (Unreleased)

====

She analyzed the barrier.

Her fingers extended lightly.

Normally, the moment she touched it, it should’ve repelled her.

But—

—Slide.

Without any resistance, her hand passed through the barrier.

Yoon Chaeha glanced around once, then easily pulled out a book.

Her eyes moved rapidly.

With every turn of the page, the sentences were instantly imprinted into her mind.

The content...

“...Similar.”

Even as a forbidden book, it wasn’t much different from what she’d seen at Kalos.

They said Gaon was special, that it was different.

But the depth of knowledge, the density of information—it still didn’t meet her expectations.

It was always like this.

The things others hailed as “the best.”

The things they praised as “special.”

Once she saw them for herself—looked at them with her own eyes—

They never lived up to the hype.

Her eyes saw through to the essence of things.

And not once had that essence truly shone.

Yoon Chaeha returned the book to its place.

She watched the spine disappear back into the shelf for a while, then slowly looked away.

That’s why she never believed anything unless she saw it with her own eyes.

That was how she lived.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

And so, it was only natural that she developed an interest in Jeong Haein—because she had seen him with her own eyes and made her own judgment.

She had been waiting for the moment to see him directly—to meet him.

‘...’

She drew up a memory from earlier that morning.

The event held at the Exchange Hall.

That scene vividly replayed in her mind.

Before the event ended, she had encountered him.

And instinctively, her eyes opened.

Crimson pupils shimmered with light.

‘...!’

====

[Authority: Fragment of Harmony]

① Shatter Falsehood, Reveal Truth

— Break the dead and reveal the true.

② ??? (Unreleased)

③ ??? (Unreleased)

====

His Authority was revealed.

‘Fragment...?’

Even in academic circles, the Fragment was controversial.

Its application had never been clearly defined, and countless scholars had failed to decipher it.

And yet, Jeong Haein possessed such a Fragment.

In that instant, her heart raced.

It was a feeling close to awe and exhilaration.

‘As expected...!’

She rejoiced inwardly. As she thought—he was different from all the rest.

Unable to believe it still, she became even more excited and pushed her Authority further.

The second ability of A Priori—A Priori Knowledge.

That Authority would reveal the true essence of Jeong Haein.

At that moment, he also turned his head and locked eyes with her.

But then—

—Clang!

The Authority rebounded.

“...!”

Yoon Chaeha’s heart skipped a beat.

There was only one reason an Authority would be blocked.

If it was met with an Authority of equal or higher level.

Her eyes shifted to the short-haired woman standing beside Jeong Haein.

She wore sacred robes.

With a faint smile, she quietly followed at Jeong Haein’s side.

But Yoon Chaeha could tell.

It was she who had just deflected her ‘gaze.’

Like a mother shielding her child—

She had unfurled an invisible barrier right in front of Yoon Chaeha’s eyes.

Her mana was strong, but so precisely targeted at Yoon Chaeha that no one else noticed.

Mana reflects the caster’s intent.

Among high-level practitioners, even a single exchange can reveal the intent behind mana.

And now—

This content is taken from freёnovelkiss.com.

Her mana spoke clearly.

‘Where do you think you’re looking?’

A line had been drawn. Invisible, but unmistakable.

“...”

Yoon Chaeha slowly turned her head.

And smiled subtly, so that no one would notice.

Different. As expected, they were different.

Her first defeat.

Until now, nothing had ever blocked her gaze.

Not once since the day she was born.

But now, for the first time—it had been blocked.

She analyzed her own emotions.

Surprise?

It was there.

Defeat?

That too, unmistakably.

However—

There was an even stronger feeling flooding in.

Curiosity.

Who was this woman who had deflected her ‘gaze’?

And more importantly—who exactly was Jeong Haein, the one she was protecting so carefully?

That’s why—

It intrigued her even more.

***

‘She must be curious.’

By now, she was probably agonizing over it so hard it was giving her a headache.

This morning, the moment Yoon Chaeha saw me, her orange eyes lit up.

She must’ve tried to activate her Authority ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) to read my essence.

She didn’t show it on the surface, but I was sure she had read my Authority.

And what she saw—

‘Fragment.’

Something no one else in this world could possess right now.

For someone like her, who pursues knowledge, there was no way she wouldn’t be intrigued.

And my goal... was to use that curiosity and hunger for discovery against her.

The Exchange Duel.

One month later.

The students who transferred from Kalos to Gaon, and those from Gaon to Kalos, would face each other.

They’d duel directly, or do dungeon speedruns.

It wouldn’t be just friendly sparring—it would be full-on competition, close to actual combat.

Each exchange student would be paired with a student from the host academy.

In other words, each student would be assigned a mentor from the opposite school.

Simply put—

“Let’s see who teaches better.”

With each academy’s pride on the line, the participants had no choice but to take it seriously.

The amount of progress the student showed would be taken as a reflection of that academy’s educational quality.

So, the fact that fully-formed students like Ju Seojun and Yoon Chaeha had come to Gaon was practically a stroke of luck.

Mentors are chosen by the students themselves.

The Kalos students could pick anyone from Gaon, and no one had the right to refuse.

That was the official rule.

Which meant—

I waited.

For her to choose me as her mentor.

—Clang!

—Clang!

“Huff...”

In front of me, Yu Hana dropped to her knees.

We were in the middle of partner training.

“So?”

I asked for her thoughts. About the new weapon.

How did it feel fighting with a sword?

She placed the back of her hand to her lips, thought for a moment, and then answered.

“It definitely gave me another attack route, so I had more to think about. Overall, it suits me well.”

I nodded.

‘...What is this?’

For some reason, her skin looked oddly radiant today. Smooth, almost glowing. That dazzling, snow-white tone stood out even more than usual.

Could it be because of that elixir she took this morning?

I brushed off the idle thought and shook my head.

The spar was over now.

I checked the time on my wristwatch.

11 a.m.

Time to wrap things up.

“Well, we should probably—”

“Where do you think you’re going?”

She picked up the Camellia Sword from the floor.

Then she infused it with mana.

—Vmmm...

The sword began to hum faintly, glowing with a soft crimson light.

“You have to watch.”

Yu Hana always asked me to observe her sword form after a match, to give feedback on her Camellia Sword technique.

At first, I had plenty to say about her posture.

But now...

Honestly, there was nothing to criticize.

To be blunt, I started training with Yu Hana just to make sure she had enough strength to survive Moras on her own.

But she didn’t just survive.

She cut him down.

At this point, there was no real reason to keep doing partner training.

She would gain more from figuring things out on her own than from anything I could teach her.

Eventually, Yu Hana would carve out her own unique territory.

What she needed now... was self-discovery.

—Shff!

I sat down on the training ground and quietly watched her swordplay.

‘She’s good.’

That was all I could think.

Then—

—Beep!

My smartwatch buzzed.

I raised it and checked the notification.

And then, I let out a sharp, involuntary sound.

“Huh?”

✉ [Gaon]

✔ You have been selected as mentor by student Yoon Chaeha for the Exchange Hall.

✔ Please attend orientation by 10 a.m. tomorrow.

There it was.

She had chosen me as her mentor.

A smile crept onto my lips.

Just then, Yu Hana seemed to be finishing her form as well.

She lightly grabbed the hem of her t-shirt and wiped the sweat from her face.

For a brief second, her defined abs came into view.

“How was it, did I do okay...?”

“You’re good.”

—Clap, clap, clap.

I applauded as I walked over and gave her a few pats on the shoulder.

—Tap, tap.

Then I spoke.

“Let’s stop here.”

The partner training.

I kept it short.

“I don’t think we need to continue for a while. I think it’d be better if you worked things out on your own now.”

If I was going to be mentoring Yoon Chaeha, there was a good chance I’d be with her in the afternoons too.

Besides, I’d already handed over the Camellia Sword, passed down the Flower Butterfly Sword technique, and made sure she had the strength to survive Moras.

This was the right time to end the partner training. We still had morning workouts together anyway.

Originally, I had planned for this to last around two weeks. And now, it had gone well beyond three.

There was no need to drag it out any further.

“...What did you say?”

The moment I finished speaking, her eyes widened.

—Clang!

Yu Hana dropped the Camellia Sword in her hand.

The blade hit the ground with a heavy metallic thud.

She stood frozen, staring at me. Her expression shifted rapidly.

Like she was about to tear up at any moment.

“...What did you just say?”

The tips of her fingers trembled ever so slightly.