Rudolf stepped into the office with its door left open—and froze.
The doctor was sitting there with his head tilted, frowning as he stared at the X-ray film on the wall, looking utterly miserable.
Rudolf tried to suppress the bad thoughts rising in her chest, but her brow still tightened uncontrollably. She strode to the desk.
"Doctor… what's wrong with Meteor?"
Only then did the doctor snap out of his own world.
He turned, saw who it was, and rolled his chair—and his whole body—backward so Rudolf could clearly see the X-ray film on the wall.
"Lady Symboli Rudolf," he said, pointing at the image, "what is your first impression of these bones?"
It was the kind of question anyone would answer the same way.
"…Thin."
"Yes. Thin—so thin it's excessive."
The doctor adjusted his glasses, then pressed his right index finger against the lower-leg area of the X-ray, tracing along the shin bone.
"I genuinely don't understand why you allowed a child this young to race."
The faintly sarcastic tone carried a blade of accusation. Rudolf couldn't even argue.
For the debut race and the Tokyo Sports Cup, she could say Meteor hadn't realized she wasn't fully developed yet—and Rudolf hadn't known either.
But this Challenge Cup?
There was no shifting responsibility. This was purely because Rudolf hadn't been attentive enough, and Meteor had been able to enter.
"This is my negligence," Rudolf said.
The doctor's expression shifted. He realized his words had been inappropriate—after all, he was speaking to the current decision-maker of the Symboli family.
Even so, if she couldn't answer the next question, he looked ready to blow the whistle no matter what.
If he watched a child this young being destroyed and did nothing, he might as well reincarnate as an animal.
"Was this child's training arranged by you?"
"What?!"
For once, even Rudolf's voice jumped—up a full octave.
She checked Meteor every night. When she got up to use the bathroom, she'd still glance over to make sure Meteor was in bed. In the daytime she kept an eye on her as well.
So where would this "training" even come from?
"…All right," the doctor said, and he visibly relaxed. "So you really didn't know."
Then his tone hardened again.
"Because this isn't training. It's outright abuse of her body."
He pointed again.
"Look here."
His finger landed on the thinnest part of the shin bone, telling Rudolf to come closer.
Rudolf leaned in—and only then did she see it.
Several faint marks, like shallow slices from a razor, crisscrossing the bone.
"This is…?"
"Hairline fractures that healed," the doctor said. "Very slight, but they absolutely existed."
Just staring at those overlapping scars made it hard to imagine what kind of "practice" Meteor had been doing.
Did she not feel pain?
"And when we got this X-ray," he continued, "I immediately pulled her previous examination files for comparison."
He looked at Rudolf's face as it darkened and sighed.
"These scars are new. Recent. And while the fractures were mild based on how they healed… a fracture is still a fracture."
He stopped, as if he needed a moment just to breathe through the anger and the pity.
"She hasn't even fully matured yet. This is burning her future."
"Did the patient show any abnormalities in daily life?" he asked.
"No."
Rudolf closed her eyes slowly and replayed everything—the past few days, every detail. Her memory was excellent, and recently she'd been watching Meteor even more closely than usual.
But no matter how she searched, Meteor had never shown a hint of being injured. Always smiling. Walking normally. Running normally. Everything looked… fine.
"If what you're saying is true," the doctor said quietly, "then I strongly recommend you pay attention to her psychological state."
He tapped the film.
"These scars imply something very clear: she kept training even while the bone was cracked—healing, cracking again, over and over."
"Even imagining that kind of pain makes my scalp crawl. And she's just a child."
He looked at Rudolf straight on.
"Please. Watch her closely. This can become a catastrophe. I'm begging you."
When he finished, the doctor stood up and bowed deeply.
He truly didn't want such a young girl to lose her future like this.
And during the examinations, Meteor's every small gesture—how cooperative she was, how considerate—had made him think of his own child when they were little.
"I understand," Rudolf said.
She didn't have the presence of mind to help him up. She only answered and walked out.
Her chest rose and fell hard. Her fist clenched so tightly that her nails carved deep grooves into her palm.
Was I really that inattentive?
I didn't even notice this?
And I still want to build a world where every horse girl can be happy—when I can't even protect the one right beside me?
Symboli Rudolf… what a model student president you are.
She kept tearing herself apart inside.
She'd even naïvely believed Meteor's psychological issues were getting better.
What a joke.
Her fingers tightened more and more until blood seeped out, dripping onto the floor in slow drops.
Meteor's smile, her laughter, flashed through Rudolf's mind—Meteor even bringing lunch when Rudolf was too busy to eat.
And Rudolf's "repayment" for that kindness was this?
I'm trash. I'm a bastard.
"Uh, h-hello… your hand is—"
A nurse passing by saw the blood and started to step forward to greet her.
She didn't even finish.
A sudden gust of a punch—Rudolf's fist slammed into the wall.
CRACK.
The tile shattered, leaving a deep crater. Splinters of ceramic mixed with blood scattered across the floor.
The nurse jolted, dropped into a crouch, and covered her head with both hands, trembling uncontrollably.
"…Sorry," Rudolf said, snapping back to herself as she took in the scene. "I was thinking about something."
"I'll pay for the damage and the labor costs."
She started to reach out—then looked at her hands, now soaked in blood, and stopped.
Instead, she left only that sentence and walked toward the restroom to clean herself up.
I can't let Meteor see me like this.
This injury is nothing compared to what she's endured… but she's the kind of child who would still worry.
Behind her, the nurse remained crouched on the floor, staring blankly at Rudolf's back.
That familiar bearing—plus the voice she'd heard countless times—formed a guess she almost couldn't accept.
"…Symboli Rudolf?"
No way.
That outburst had been nothing like the calm, absolute Emperor.
But the posture, the gait, the voice…
Could something really push her into this state?
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter108)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 99
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 95
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 99
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 92
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 47
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 44
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 43
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 26
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