Chapter 36
A while after T.M. Opera O left, Kitasan Black stared stiffly in the direction she had gone, her neck moving like it was rusted.
In her eyes, Opera O-senpai was one of the only "Seven Crown" horse girls in history. She also had the astonishing achievement of an undefeated season and was a Hall of Fame horse girl.
Although she hadn't known much about Opera O-senpai's trainer before, she assumed he must be incredibly skilled.
So she became nervous.
"Tr-Trainer… Is it really true?
"Ibuki's… no, Ibuki-chan's trainer…
"Is Opera O-senpai's former trainer…?"
Kitasan Black was stunned.
Because she suddenly noticed that Yasui Makoto, Daiwa Scarlet, and Vodka all had strange expressions on their faces. She stammered:
"Trainer… senpais… what's wrong?"
With perfect timing, Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka exchanged a glance, then silently looked at Yasui Makoto.
"No need to worry about that."
Shaking his head, Yasui Makoto said calmly:
"Even the best trainer can end up with a horse girl who's hard to handle.
"Even the worst trainer might produce a horse girl who's breathtakingly brilliant.
"It's exactly this uncertainty that makes the Shining Series so fascinating.
"I roughly understand what you're thinking, Kitasan, so let me ask you one question.
"Just because you found out your opponent's trainer is very strong, does that mean you're not going to race?
"Or should we just skip the race entirely, see whose trainer is the strongest, and hand the championship trophy directly to them? Is that how it works?"
Kitasan Black shook her head without hesitation.
"Of course not!"
Then she took a deep breath. The slight anxiety in her red eyes gradually turned into determination.
"I understand what you mean, Trainer.
"I'll prepare properly for the race and won't let you down!
"Also, before we came, I told you that Grandpa and the others are already on their way. I'm definitely going to win for them to see!"
Yasui Makoto smiled with relief, then pointed at the meal tray in front of the black-haired girl.
"Good, very spirited. Then…"
"Eat first! Hehe…"
Before he could finish, she answered first, gave a silly laugh, clasped her hands together, said "I'm digging in!", and seriously started eating.
Smiling in relief again, Yasui Makoto also began his meal.
Meanwhile, beside them, Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka quickly exchanged a glance, then simultaneously reached into their pockets while eating.
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: Is this for real ∑(Дノ)ノ This trainer is really a rookie?]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: I already told you Yasui is no ordinary person ￣へ￣ But even I was shocked at first]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: How could I not be shocked ヽ(ー_ー)ノ Pre-race mental coaching is something even many veteran trainers can't do well. You've seen horse girls throwing tantrums right before a race, haven't you?]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: You mean Gold Ship (￣_￣)?]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: I didn't say that ヽ(￣▽￣) You said it. I'm screenshotting this and sending it to Gold Ship later]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: ψ(*｀ー)ψ Why are you still so childish!]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: Just kidding, ehehe (<ゝω)☆ But I'm really getting interested in this trainer now]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: What do you mean [_?]]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: Being a dormitory manager shouldn't be too much trouble, right?]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: What, you want to copy me again?]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: Don't joke at a time like this. I was already thinking whether my research would be suitable to do at the academy. Since you can do it, why can't I?]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: That's true. And since Fuji-senpai applied to transfer and Amazon-senpai is thinking about it too, I'll ask for you]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: You really get me. Then I'll leave it to you. But you'll have to talk to Teio yourself]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: That's no trouble. But Kitasan probably doesn't know about Opera O-senpai's past]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: She probably doesn't. That's normal. We didn't know either when we first enrolled]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: True… But this trainer probably knows what happened back then? So he deliberately didn't tell Kitasan?]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: Probably. Kitasan has good talent, but she's sometimes as silly as you. Giving her a bit of pressure before the race is just right]
[Tracen's Coolest Horse Girl: Say that clearly! What do you mean "as silly as me"? We call that cool and free-spirited! You wouldn't understand!]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: (﹁"﹁)]
[Tracen's Most Beautiful Horse Girl: Alright, let's stop here. If we keep chatting we might get caught]
Quickly putting her phone away first and ignoring the resentful gaze beside her, Daiwa Scarlet wore a victorious little smile and happily enjoyed her lunch.
Kitasan Black finished eating the fastest.
Her lunch consisted of bananas, oats, corn, carrots, and other high-sugar, low-fat energy foods. They provided enough energy while also giving a good sense of fullness.
She ate quickly and digested quickly too.
This ensured efficiency while preventing blood from staying too long in the digestive system (which would happen with high-carb, high-fat, or high-protein meals). It was perfect for the upcoming race.
"I'm full!"
Picking up her tray and standing up, Kitasan Black saw that Yasui Makoto had also finished his ramen. She looked at Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka.
"Senpais…"
"No need to wait for us."
Vodka smiled first. "Your race is in about an hour. Go to the prep room and prepare well.
"Daiwa and I will be cheering for you from the stands.
"By the way, Trainer Yasui, where do you usually watch the races from?"
"The very front."
Yasui Makoto answered naturally. "That's the best spot to see Kitasan clearly. It also helps with post-race review and adjusting future training based on what I see during the race.
"I see a lot of trainers standing there. Isn't that normal?"
Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka exchanged another quick glance. Vodka smiled.
"That makes sense… Then we'll wait for you at that spot later. Kitasan is in your hands."
After that, they waved and watched Yasui Makoto and Kitasan Black leave. Vodka nodded thoughtfully.
"He's really different from most Japanese trainers…"
"Hm? What did you say?" Daiwa Scarlet hadn't heard clearly and looked puzzled.
"I've seen a lot of foreign trainers and horse girls while I was in Europe."
Vodka explained:
"Things over there are much more straightforward.
"For example, if a trainer has ability, they get excellent new horse girls to train, and the academy provides more resources.
"Over here, it's all about seniority, hierarchy, and all sorts of complicated rules.
"If I remember correctly, your trainer was troubled by exactly that at the beginning, right?"
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