"Is there anywhere else you want to go?" Satake Mei asked in the car.
They had already visited the Louvre, the Opéra, and the Palace of Versailles. How should he put it? They were huge and beautiful, and from an artistic point of view, they were all impressive places.
But from the perspective of having fun, they were clearly boring.
They were not even as good as an amusement park.
It felt different from what Gold Ship had imagined. She kept a long face the whole time, her tail swishing in dissatisfaction.
These buildings had less artistic spirit than she did.
"Is there anywhere you want to go?" Seeing that no one answered, Mei turned to Chiya.
"An underwear store."
The moment he said that, everyone's ears perked up.
"Chiya, that's not really…"
"Let's go to an underwear store!"
Rice Shower's face turned red as she clenched her little fists.
"Rice wants to buy new underwear."
"Mine doesn't fit very well either, so I'd like to change it too," Meisho Doto added.
"Now that's the kind of place a trainer should go. Who needs art? We need culture." Gold Ship rubbed her chin, fully agreeing with Chiya's suggestion.
Hearing the uma musume in the back speaking one after another, Mei looked at Chiya with a strange expression.
"Um… I just wanted to know where the uma musume underwear stores are, so it'll be easier to go there later."
"That still sounds strange! Don't go too far, Chiya. If something happens, I won't know how to explain it to Yayoi."
"I didn't do anything! I haven't done anything."
Mei brought Chiya and the others to the central shopping district. When the shop assistant saw the man leading several uma musume into the store, she looked surprised. But she quickly adjusted and put on a professional smile.
"How may I help you?"
She spoke French, so Chiya could not understand her. Mei handled the conversation for him.
After a few exchanges, the shop assistant led them to the uma musume section.
Ordinary underwear would probably get stretched or damaged after an uma musume ran a few times. If the fabric was not soft enough, it could even rub against their skin and cause bleeding. Because of that, most items made for uma musume were specially designed.
Of course, aside from racing gear, there were also pieces meant for other purposes.
Pure and innocent styles, bold mature styles, lace, thin straps, halter designs, low-cut designs. Everything was there, and Chiya's eyes nearly went straight.
This is different from the underwear stores I've been to before.
The stores Mejiro Dober had taken her to mostly carried student-like designs. This place was clearly more adult.
Were the uma musume in Paris all this mature?
As expected of the city of art. So the real art was here!
"Waaah…"
Rice Shower opened her little mouth and shyly covered her face, though she was peeking eagerly at the designs through her fingers.
Gold Ship poked Chiya.
"Trainer, which one caught your eye? Want me to try one on for you?"
She wore a wicked grin, clearly teasing him.
Chiya coughed a few times.
"I'll wait outside. Take your time choosing."
Of course, he was only pretending. Shirayuki was still inside.
You didn't expect that, did you, Ship? I still have—
Hm!?
Through Shirayuki, he saw Rice Shower looking left and right before quietly taking down a black strappy piece and running into the changing room.
Rice!?
Are you actually going to wear that?
Shirayuki was stunned.
Rice Shower's pure image was gradually disappearing. She was becoming more mature, more alluring.
"Uu… They're all so small."
Meisho Doto hesitated as she looked around. She needed a much larger size to properly support herself. After every training session, the most tired part of her body was not her legs, but her shoulders. They had to bear the full weight of her chest, and the bouncing while running only made the burden worse.
Doto had always worried that her chest might affect her training, but Gold Ship had once told her that having a large chest was an advantage at the finish line, because it could touch the finish line faster.
Since then, Doto had been using that to comfort herself.
"Could Trainer help massage my shoulders…? No, thinking that might be asking for too much."
Doto murmured to herself.
Nearby, Shirayuki's ears twitched.
"Shirayuki, what do you think of this one?"
After Chiya left, Gold Ship drifted over to Shirayuki instead. In her hand was an extremely thin white lace piece.
"Hah? Are you joking? How could anyone wear that outside?"
It was practically see-through!
"I think Trainer would definitely like it."
"I'm not here to find something Chiya likes."
"Then what are you here for?"
"Racing underwear."
"This is racing underwear."
"…You want me to run in lingerie?"
"Racing isn't limited to running, you know. There are other kinds of competition too."
Gold Ship glanced at Meisho Doto, then at Rice Shower.
"This outfit would let you stand out from everyone here."
Heh.
So without Chiya around, you've decided to target me instead, Gold Ship.
"Imagine it. Once you put this on, Trainer looks at you like his eyes are on fire. Once he loses his composure, you can order him to do anything. Whatever makes you comfortable, you'll have absolute control. Doesn't that tempt you at all?"
I can already order him to do anything right now. For example, I could make him punish you by running twenty laps around the track.
Shirayuki glanced at the piece in Gold Ship's hand and accidentally imagined herself wearing it.
That sheer white lace really would match her milky skin. Even if she could not use it for racing, it might be nice to wear before going to sleep at night.
The fabric in the middle looked soft too. When Chiya hugged her, maybe it would feel even better.
Thinking about it that way, buying it did not seem like a loss.
She would be comfortable wearing it, and Chiya would get to enjoy the view.
Just as Shirayuki was sinking deeper into that thought, she suddenly noticed the smile at the corner of Gold Ship's mouth.
Her body jolted.
She shook her head repeatedly.
"No. I'm not buying it."
She had almost fallen for Gold Ship's trick again!
What was she planning to do wearing something that sheer?
Seduce herself?
That thing was clearly meant for something before bed!
Seeing that Shirayuki had not taken the bait, Gold Ship clicked her tongue and placed the outfit on the table.
With the shop assistant's help, Shirayuki eventually chose a more student-like design. She stood in front of the mirror and looked herself over, adjusting the hair near her forehead and straightening the blue hairclip on her left ear.
Sometimes, she did dress herself up, dusting a little foundation over her face to make herself look even fresher. Later, Mejiro Dober stopped doing those extra touches for her. Dober said Shirayuki was already cute as she was.
Shirayuki did not dress herself up because she wanted to become prettier.
Rather, she wanted to move closer to the image in her heart.
To her, "Shirayuki" was the beautiful girl who could carry every wonderful fantasy. She was the best existence in the world. That was why Shirayuki had always shaped herself according to the most perfect image in her mind.
After fixing the slight curl at the ends of her hair, Shirayuki changed and left the fitting room.
Before paying, she looked at the lace piece on the table.
In her mind, she imagined herself wearing it.
Then she imagined how it would feel when Chiya held her.
After hesitating again and again, Shirayuki walked over.