Early the next morning, Fujiwara Chiya opened his eyes. Hearing the steady breathing beside him, he turned his head and saw the small black Uma Musume sleeping close to him.
Sunlight fell across Rice Shower's face, reflecting a faint, crystal-like glow.
Fujiwara Chiya slowly lifted the blanket and looked down.
Sure enough.
Yesterday night, Shirayuki had already vaguely sensed something strange. That odd feeling had come from Chiya's side, but she had not woken him. She had only closed her eyes as if trying to avoid confirming it, forcing herself to wait until dawn.
But the truth had to be faced eventually. With such a clear result left behind, there was no way to brush it off as just a dream.
He had never expected that, in the end, things between him and his own Uma Musume would still reach this point. More accurately, he had been pulled into it while half-asleep. During the night, Rice Shower had quietly crossed a boundary that could no longer be ignored.
Fujiwara Chiya could not help covering his face.
Woken by his movement, Rice Shower opened her eyes. Her beautiful purple pupils reflected the man's figure. Seeing him, Rice Shower spoke softly.
"Onii-sama..."
Her voice still carried the soft, sleepy gentleness of someone not fully awake.
"Yesterday, Rice became a bad child."
Fujiwara Chiya no longer knew what to say. His feelings were complicated. Originally, he had thought that one day, when Rice Shower had achieved great things, they might slowly arrive at an answer together. He had not expected their relationship to move this quickly.
It felt as though there had been too much convenience involved. After all, he was the closest person to Rice Shower, treated her the best, and the two of them had already become far too intimate before this. For their relationship to develop into its current state was perhaps not entirely surprising.
But how was he supposed to explain this to Hayakawa Tazuna?
Fujiwara Chiya was one hundred percent certain that if he told her about what had happened between him and Rice Shower, she would absolutely lose control. By now, Fujiwara Chiya had already come to understand Tazuna's personality. Normally, she was gentle, considerate, and accommodating in every way. But once this kind of matter was involved, her behaviour could become unimaginably bold and intense.
I'm going to be killed.
A sudden feeling of despair rose in Fujiwara Chiya's heart. Matikanefukukitaru had once divined that he would inevitably face a calamity in life, and now Fujiwara Chiya felt that his calamity had already arrived. A huge word, misfortune, seemed to be written above his head.
Looking at Rice Shower beside him, Fujiwara Chiya stroked her head.
"You really... became a bad child."
What else could he do? Fujiwara Chiya could not truly get angry at Rice Shower for entrusting something so important to him.
If he were an ordinary person, he might have already accepted this adorable child who had given her whole heart to him. But Chiya's situation was complicated. Setting aside the deadly path his father had paved for him, the relationship between a trainer and his assigned Uma Musume could not be carelessly exposed either.
On top of that, every year at Tracen, several trainers disappeared for various reasons. That was not a joke. Fujiwara Chiya had now personally witnessed just how intense an Uma Musume's feelings could become. Whether it was Rice Shower or Tazuna, if they truly wanted to do something, they really dared to do it, and they did it boldly.
On the day he met this petite Uma Musume, could he ever have imagined that she would one day come this close to him at night?
If he angered any one of them, Fujiwara Chiya felt that he might really appear on next year's missing persons list.
So he had to handle Uma Musume's feelings with extreme caution. Now that he was caught in the middle of it himself, Fujiwara Chiya finally understood the meaningful looks his seniors had always given him.
Tracen was nowhere near as innocent as it appeared.
"If Rice does not take Onii-sama first, then Onii-sama will be taken away by someone else."
Hearing Fujiwara Chiya's words, Rice Shower moved closer and rested her head against the man's shoulder.
"Rice does not want to see that happen."
"I see."
"Did Rice make things difficult for Onii-sama?"
Not exactly difficult.
It was just that his life might now be under threat.
Fujiwara Chiya could already imagine the world collapsing around him if the news ever leaked. Even the Three Goddesses would not be able to save him.
"Don't worry, Onii-sama. Rice won't tell anyone about this! Rice only hopes that Onii-sama will always like Rice."
Like?
Hadn't he always liked Rice Shower? When had Rice Shower started thinking that she was not important to him?
Whenever he passed a convenience store, he instinctively thought about buying snacks for Rice Shower. When he had time, he would ask bookstores whether they had any recommended storybooks. He had even given Rice Shower a key to his room.
As if seeing through Fujiwara Chiya's thoughts, Rice Shower smiled.
"Mm. Onii-sama has always liked Rice. Rice knows. After all, even when Onii-sama was asleep, he was calling Rice's name."
Really...?
"Onii-sama has already given Rice his heart. So Rice also wanted to give Onii-sama something very important. That way, Rice and Onii-sama both have something most precious from each other."
So Rice Shower had always been thinking like that?
Just how afraid was she that he would leave her?
"And Rice also discovered Onii-sama's weakness."
She opened her mouth and gently bit his earlobe, then lightly touched it with her tongue. A shiver ran through Fujiwara Chiya's body, and he trembled.
"All right, Rice Shower. I'll make breakfast for you. After that, you need to go to class."
"Yes."
Fujiwara Chiya sat up. Only then did he realize that he was not properly dressed. Clearly, Rice Shower had quietly removed what he had been wearing during the night. Looking at the marks and disorder left on the bedding, Fujiwara Chiya's eyebrows twitched rapidly. He hurriedly gathered everything up, stuffed it into the washing machine, and replaced the bedding with a fresh set.
Rice Shower also got dressed and climbed out of bed.
Her steps were slightly stiff. When she lifted her legs, there was a noticeable awkwardness in her movements. A faint ache still remained in her lower abdomen. Perhaps she had been too reckless yesterday. Even though her body had hurt so much, she had still forced herself to continue. Although the feeling afterward had been wonderful, that intense pain had also been the most painful thing Rice Shower had ever experienced.
In order to prevent Chiya from seeing too much, Rice Shower turned sideways and carefully sat down on a chair. Uma Musume had strong recovery ability. If she rested for half a day, she should be fine.
Looking at the man standing in the kitchen making breakfast, Rice Shower happily swung her legs.
Originally, she should have been the one standing there, but having Onii-sama cook for her had its own special charm.
Yesterday had been the happiest day of Rice Shower's life. In every sense, she had obtained a perfect victory.
"How does it taste?"
"It's wonderful. As expected of Onii-sama!"
"Don't train this afternoon. Rest for today."
"Rice's body is fine."
"Even so, rest for a day. I'm worried."
"Yes."
Onii-sama noticed after all.
While feeling guilty for disrupting the training plan, Rice Shower also felt a little happy. After all, Onii-sama had always been paying attention to her body.
Come to think of it, the two of them were going out together on the weekend too.
That meant she could look forward to it properly.