Chapter 121. Christmas
After waking up, Shuta An lightly thumped the mattress, then sat up and reached for his phone.
He did not immediately check the rewards he had obtained from last night's Dream World challenge. Instead, he first glanced at the time.
"Today's Christmas, yet I didn't prepare anything at all—" the young man muttered to himself.
He casually washed up, skipped breakfast altogether, and prepared to head out to buy Christmas gifts.
"I can't prepare elaborate decorations like before, so ordinary gifts will have to do this year."
Quietly leaving the house, Shuta An paused before driving away and finally checked last night's reward.
["Flashing Steps: Makes it difficult for the Uma Musume to become boxed in during the middle stages of a race."]
"This skill should be for Dober, right?"
Murmuring softly, the young man started the car and drove toward Minato Ward, preparing for a serious round of shopping.
—
When Shuta An returned home, he discovered the house completely empty.
"Oguri and the others probably went shopping."
He did not think too much about it.
"Good. This gives me a chance to put away their gifts first."
Shuta An moved efficiently. After all, once he finished delivering the presents at home, he still needed to head to Central Tracen Academy to distribute Christmas gifts to the Uma Musume in Team Sadalsuud. His schedule today was packed.
"I even ran into quite a few colleagues while shopping. Looks like a lot of people, just like me, only remembered this morning that they hadn't prepared Christmas gifts yet," the young man muttered.
He placed the wrapped presents neatly beside the bed in each room.
For Suzuka, he prepared a box of lily-of-the-valley scented candles. The fragrance was specifically chosen because lily of the valley was Suzuka's birth flower.
For Berno, he prepared a massage belt, even deliberately placing it on her office chair.
As for Oguri, Shuta An's gift choice was even more direct—he bought an entire stack of Wagyu beef gift certificates. For Oguri Cap, there was probably no gift more practical than that.
After leaving home once more, Shuta An drove toward Central Tracen Academy.
Although today was Christmas and should technically have been a holiday, not a single Trainer in the Academy chose to remain at home. As soon as he stepped out of the parking lot, he saw many colleagues carrying large bags while hurrying toward the Academy.
Naturally, he was no exception.
After entering his office and sitting down behind his desk, Shuta An took out his phone. After thinking for a moment, he decided not to contact the Uma Musume of Team Sadalsuud first. Instead, he opened a chat with Symboli Rudolf.
"Miss Rudolph, Merry Christmas!!"
The message instantly showed "read." Soon after, Symboli Rudolf replied:
"Merry Christmas, Shuta-kun! Is there something you need at this hour?"
Although Shuta An briefly wanted to tease her with a "Can't I contact Miss Rudolph without a reason?", he truly did have something to ask this time, so he quickly got to the point.
"Miss Rudolph, I'd like to ask whether Team Sadalsuud currently qualifies for its own clubroom at the Academy."
"Of course it qualifies," Symboli Rudolf answered without hesitation.
"If even a team with Team Sadalsuud's achievements isn't qualified for a clubroom, then probably no teams in the Academy would qualify anymore."
Then she added another sentence:
"But Shuta-kun never submitted an application before, so it was never approved. I thought Team Sadalsuud simply didn't need one."
"I thought the Academy allocated them automatically."
Shuta An pouted slightly before continuing:
"Then I'll apply now."
"In that case, the specific location of the clubroom will be assigned after New Year's Day. Remember to fill out the application form and send it over first, otherwise the procedures won't be complete," Symboli Rudolf reminded him.
"OK, OK, I got it. I'll fill it out now."
While replying on his phone, Shuta An simultaneously opened Central Tracen Academy's official website on the computer and searched for the clubroom application form.
As he filled out the form, he also privately contacted each Uma Musume in his team through LINE, arranging different times for them to come to the office and pick up their Christmas presents.
"I originally wanted to secretly leave the gifts in their dorm rooms, and I do have the keys; but if the dorm manager catches me, that'll become troublesome. Better not."
The total amount Shuta An spent on Christmas gifts this year was less than one-third of the price of a single piece of jewelry from last year.
"I also bought some simple presents for several Uma Musume outside the team. The money I saved should be enough to cover Dober's travel and accommodation expenses for next year's expeditions."
Just as he finished filling out the report, an email invitation from "Twinkle" magazine arrived in his inbox.
Just like last year, they hoped Shuta An could write a column evaluating this year's Classic racing Uma Musume.
"I don't think this year's Classic lineup is suitable for me to evaluate."
Shuta An politely declined.
The reason was simple.
"The undefeated Triple Tiara winner this year was Mejiro Dober, whom I personally trained. If I evaluate this generation, readers may question whether my evaluations toward the other Uma Musume are truly objective. I recommend inviting a top Trainer from Central Tracen Academy who did not achieve results in this year's Classics to write the column instead."
After replying to the email, a knock sounded at the office door.
"Come in," Shuta An looked up and said.
"Trainer! Merry Christmas!"
The one who entered was indeed Kurofune.
Before the young man could even speak, Kurofune enthusiastically handed over a beautifully wrapped present.
"This is the Christmas gift I prepared!"
Shuta Trainer accepted it. Judging from the weight, it felt rather light. He did not open it immediately. Instead, he turned around, retrieved the gift he had prepared beforehand, and handed it to her.
"This is my Christmas gift for Kurofune."
He did not explain what was inside, because Kurofune had already impatiently opened it.
Inside the box lay a Canon EOS5 camera.
"Wooow!!"
Kurofune's eyes instantly lit up.
"How did Trainer know I wanted this recently?! Curren Chan kept encouraging me to buy a camera with her and go out taking photos together!"
"I happened to overhear your conversation with Curren Chan before. She was promoting it pretty hard at the time," Shuta Trainer explained.
"I figured that since Kurofune hasn't debuted yet, buying a camera with your allowance might be difficult, so I bought it for you as a Christmas gift."
"I'll treasure it!"
Kurofune nodded vigorously.
After sending Kurofune off, Shuta sat back down and stretched lazily.
"Might as well finish the training plans for early next year too."
Otherwise, simply sitting around in the office felt unbearably dull. He had not brought his game console today either, leaving him with nothing to do except play on his phone.
Yet only a few minutes later, another knock sounded at the door.
"Come in," Shuta Trainer answered lazily.
Logically, there should still have been over half an hour before the next Uma Musume arrived, so he initially assumed it was Kitahara.
Instead, the one who entered was Rice Shower.
"Trainer..."
Rice Shower walked carefully to his side and handed over a framed painting she had been carrying.
"This is the Christmas gift Rice prepared."
"Thank you, Rice Shower."
After receiving it, Shuta Trainer discovered that Rice Shower had painted his side profile while he stood atop the Tokyo Racecourse grandstand. Judging from the scenery in the background, it appeared to have been drawn based on Oaks Race Day.
"Rice Shower really put a lot of thought into this. I like it very much."
After sincerely praising her work, the young man took out the gift he had prepared for her—a massive present box.
"This is—"
Rice Shower's eyes widened slightly and slightly waving her hand to oppose it.
"If it's too expensive, Rice Shower can't accept it—"
"I think this is something Rice Shower has always wanted."
Shuta Trainer sounded extremely confident.
Hearing this, Rice Shower slowly opened the box.
The instant she saw the contents, her breathing abruptly halted.
Inside was the complete 500-color colored pencil set released by Felissimo earlier this year.
"But Rice Shower remembers—this set was supposed to be delivered twenty colors at a time every month for twenty-five months—"
Rice Shower looked up blankly, unable to understand how her Trainer had managed to gather the entire collection less than a year after release.
"I used a little bit of 'money power.'" Shuta Trainer wagged his finger lightly. "Anyway, as long as Rice Shower likes it."
"Thank you, Trainer! Rice loves it very much!"
Clutching the huge box of colored pencils tightly in her arms, Rice Shower nodded repeatedly.
—
After Rice Shower left, nearly another hour passed before Curren Chan and Agnes Digital arrived together.
Although neither of them belonged to Team Sadalsuud, both maintained very close relationships with the Uma Musume in the team, so Shuta naturally prepared Christmas gifts for them as well.
Likewise, Curren Chan and Agnes Digital had also prepared presents to thank Shuta Trainer for taking care of them throughout the year.
Curren Chan gave him a photography guidebook focused on portrait shooting.
Agnes Digital gifted him an all-ages doujinshi. The protagonist looked suspiciously similar to Shuta Trainer, though the character had a completely different name and merely depicted an ordinary, uneventful day.
The gift Shuta Trainer prepared for Curren Chan was tail conditioner—a product strongly recommended by Oguri Cap.
As for Agnes Digital, he gifted her a copy of "Human System Anatomy."
After all, if an artist wanted to properly draw the human body, understanding anatomy was essential.
"I'll study it seriously!"
Agnes Digital looked extremely satisfied with the book. If she truly mastered it, her artistic ability would definitely improve tremendously.
Meanwhile, Curren Chan examined the packaging of the conditioner while unconsciously touching her tail.
"Curren already takes very good care of her tail—so why did he specifically choose this?"
Although such thoughts crossed her mind, she still obediently thanked him.
After the two Uma Musume left, Shuta looked around the office before deciding to head toward the cafeteria for lunch.
"I scheduled Dober for the afternoon. She should be at home right now."
Although he had already discussed most matters with Mejiro Nagasaki and the others beforehand, there was no way Mejiro Dober would spend Christmas alone at Central Tracen Academy. Therefore, Shuta intentionally arranged her visit last.
"Anyway, I hope the gift I prepared can cheer her up a little."
Ever since losing the Arima Kinen yesterday, Shuta could not shake the feeling that Mejiro Dober was probably not having an easy time back home.
After all, once her undefeated record was broken, public evaluations toward her strength had finally become somewhat more objective.
"Slightly inferior to Special Week and Grass Wonder."
That was currently the consensus among most experts.
Shuta himself had no objections to that assessment.
After all, this year was only Mejiro Dober's Classic season, whereas both Special Week and Grass Wonder had already completed another full year of physical development.
Considering the difference in maturity, the fact that Mejiro Dober only lost by a narrow margin during her first 2500-meter race was already enough to satisfy him.
One could not expect every Uma Musume one trained to possess talent completely beyond common sense.
Kitahara. Nishizaki Ryu. Tojo Hana. Minamisaka.
Compared to Shuta, the achievements of these Trainers were far less dazzling, and they had all experienced countless defeats. Yet who spent every day obsessing over those losses?
"But it's not enough for me alone to think that way. Dober herself also needs to relax a little."
—
In the afternoon, Mejiro Dober arrived at the Academy right on time and encountered Shuta Trainer directly outside the office.
"Trainer, Merry Christmas! This is the Christmas gift I prepared!"
Mejiro Dober quickly took out an exquisitely wrapped small box and handed it over with both hands.
"This is—"
After carefully opening it, Shuta blinked slightly.
"A pair of cufflinks?"
"They're platinum cufflinks. Senior Nagasaki helped me prepare them," Mejiro Dober explained softly.
"They're engraved with the Mejiro family crest, and each one is set with a 0.56-carat diamond."
"0.56—."
Ordinarily, Shuta Trainer would never think much about such a number.
But because this gift came from Mejiro Dober, he immediately realized the meaning behind it.
May 6th.
That was Mejiro Dober's birthday.
"Thank you."
Normally, the cufflinks he wore during formal occasions were extremely ordinary. He rarely paid much attention to such details.
"But now that Dober gave me something like this, I wonder whether the gift I prepared will still feel appropriate."
The young man led Mejiro Dober into the office before handing her the Christmas gift he had prepared.
"Thank you, Trainer."
Mejiro Dober accepted the box and gently held it against her chest without opening it. After curtsying politely, she prepared to leave.
"Dober, aren't you going to open it?"
Shuta Trainer lightly held her wrist.
"No." Mejiro Dober softly shook her head. "I'm sure I'll like anything Trainer gives me."
"Besides, the family's Christmas party is about to begin. I need to hurry back. Otherwise McQueen and the others will tease me again—"
As she spoke, her voice unconsciously softened further.
"The family...they didn't criticize Dober because of yesterday's race, right?"
Shuta An frowned slightly as he asked.
"No, they didn't."
Mejiro Dober shook her head once more.
"Actually, because I lost my undefeated record due to this proposal, everyone in the family instead seems to feel guilty toward me."
"That's good."
Only then did Shuta Trainer quietly relax, slowly releasing her wrist.
"Anyway, Dober, try to relax a little too. Take this holiday to rest properly."
"Mm."
After her hand separated from the Trainer's grasp, Mejiro Dober suddenly felt a faint sense of reluctance lingering within her heart.
After watching Mejiro Dober leave, Shuta shook his head lightly and muttered to himself,
"In that case, the gift I prepared probably won't be needed after all."
—
After leaving the main gate of Central Tracen Academy and getting into the car, Mejiro Dober gently opened the gift box resting on her lap.
Yet inside the box, there was nothing except a key, a rolled-up note, and a debit card.
"What is this?"
This was completely different from the Christmas present she had imagined.
With a slightly bewildered expression, Mejiro Dober slowly took the items out one by one. She first unfolded the note and discovered an address written on it, along with instructions regarding the debit card and the key.
The handwriting was unmistakably Shuta Trainer's.
"Trainer means, if I can't stay at home, I can temporarily live here? And this key is the front door key?"
The note explained everything very clearly.
Mejiro Dober raised an eyebrow slightly.
"But it's completely unnecessary now."
Even so, after quietly closing her eyes for a moment, she softly added:
"Not necessarily. I just hope tonight's family Christmas party can end peacefully."
—
Meanwhile, after finishing the training plan for the beginning of next month, Shuta Trainer finally left the office and prepared to head home.
"I only came here to distribute Christmas gifts today, but somehow I still voluntarily worked overtime."
As he walked through the atrium, the young man grumbled to himself:
"I really should ask Rudolph for overtime pay."
Just as Shuta was about to head toward the parking lot, Symboli Rudolf suddenly stopped him near the Academy's main entrance.
"Good thing I made it in time."
Symboli Rudolf sounded genuinely relieved.
Then, without giving the young man any chance to react, she tossed a small gift box toward him.
"A Christmas gift for Shuta-kun."
"I didn't prepare one for Rudolph."
Shuta's mouth twitched slightly.
"I'll make it up after the holidays."
"It's not anything expensive, Shuta-kun, so you don't need to think too much about it."
Symboli Rudolf casually waved her hand before walking past him and entering Central Tracen Academy.
Shuta Trainer lowered his head and opened the gift box.
After seeing the contents, he raised his eyebrows slightly.
Just as Symboli Rudolf had said, it truly was not some valuable gift. Inside was merely a coupon booklet for a café near the Academy.
"I should buy a box of ink pads for Symboli Rudolf later. She uses them every single day."
Shuta Trainer's thoughts immediately wandered elsewhere, and within seconds, he had already decided what present to prepare for her afterward.
—
After returning home, Suzuka and Berno were both busy in the kitchen, while Oguri sat in the living room watching television.
Shuta Ann was already accustomed to this arrangement.
If Oguri Cap were allowed into the kitchen, then tonight's dinner would most likely disappear before it even reached the dining table.
"I'll help too."
After hanging his trench coat on the rack, Shuta prepared to wash his hands and help with the ingredients.
After all, when it came to cooking, he was unquestionably the best in the household.
"You're finally done?"
After he stepped into the kitchen, Berno glanced sideways at her lover.
"You left early this morning and only came back now. Did you go to the Academy again?"
"Of course, he did," Suzuka answered before the young man could speak.
"Today we also had to distribute Christmas gifts to everyone in Team Sadalsuud."
"But simply delivering gifts shouldn't take this long."
Berno pouted slightly.
"Maybe you actually—"
"I also used the opportunity to finish the training plan for early January."
The young man decisively interrupted Berno midway through her sentence.
He knew very well that if she continued speaking, the topic would definitely drift in a strange direction again.
"Is that so..."
Suzuka lightly covered her mouth before smiling gently.
"Then Ann needs to eat more steamed fish later to replenish his energy."
"Good thing you said fish and not something else," Shuta muttered quietly to himself.
"After all, that only happened last night..."
—
Unlike last year, the other Uma Musume from Team Sadalsuud were not gathered at the house this Christmas Eve.
With only four people seated around the dining table, the atmosphere inevitably felt somewhat emptier than before.
"Anyway, everyone worked hard this year. Merry Christmas."
Shuta raised his wine glass before asking:
"We've got a short break now. Is there anywhere you all want to go?"
"Tokyo Daishoten," Oguri Cap answered immediately. "I want to watch this year's Tokyo Daishoten live."
"Then I'll accompany Oguri on the evening of the 29th."
Shuta nodded without hesitation.
"I'll contact Ohi Racecourse tomorrow and reserve a private box."
"I just want to stay home and rest."
Berno spread her hands helplessly.
"This year I've practically flown everywhere already, and next year I'll probably continue flying around too if nothing unexpected happens. I seriously don't want to go anywhere during these next few days."
"I also need to prepare for next year's Dream Trophy Series."
Silence Suzuka softly joined the conversation.
"So I don't really plan on going out either."
"In other words, Ann can just take Oguri out on a date then," Berno concluded while spearing a piece of fried carrot tempura and placing it into her mouth.
—
During the following few days, Shuta mostly remained at home.
It was rare for him to enjoy several consecutive days without work, and for the young man, this was a long-awaited opportunity to properly sleep in while staying in Tokyo.
Even on the day of the Tokyo Daishoten, because the race would only begin after eight in the evening, Shuta still slept until eleven in the morning before finally getting out of bed.
Inside the Dream World, Shuta was likewise temporarily on vacation.
The JRA season would not resume until January 5th next year, meaning the young man could continue lazily staying at home until New Year's Day.
Starting January 2nd, however, he would need to return to both the Ritto and Mihono Training Centers to resume riding racehorses during training sessions.
The Trainers of both Vega and Hokuto Vega had already contacted him beforehand. Once work resumed, Shuta Trainer would personally ride both horses during training.
"In any case, I hope both of them can display exceptional talent and ability."
He genuinely looked forward to it.
—
As for the matter of publicly blasting Iwasaki Kiichi during the post-race interview after the Arima Kinen, after extensive media coverage, support from Shadai Farm and several Horse Owners, as well as the "righteous outrage" expressed by many experts, public opinion had overwhelmingly shifted toward Shuta's side.
The JRA eventually released an official statement announcing that they would implement preventative measures to avoid similar tragedies in the future.
At the same time, they also announced an investigation into San-ei's Owner.
As for Shuta himself, the JRA did not mention punishment whatsoever. In fact, on the afternoon of December 28th, while announcing this year's rankings and awards, they even publicly congratulated him for successfully defending his champion jockey title.
"It should be fine now."
Yutaka Take brought the latest news with him during a visit to Shuta's house.
"Although some old-timers inside the JRA were dissatisfied with Ann-san's statements, nobody would willingly oppose money."
"The value Ann-san brings to the industry isn't something a single Horse Owner with only a few racehorses can compare against."
"In the end, they really didn't punish me—"
Shuta Trainer pouted slightly.
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