The vibrant lights of the Winner's Stage bathed everything in a dazzling glow. Amid the roaring cheers of the crowd and the pulsating rhythm still echoing in her ears, Kitasan Black's sharp gaze suddenly caught a familiar figure quietly slipping away from the stands.
Her horse ears twitched instinctively. Without even realizing it, her feet began moving forward, drawn toward that departing silhouette.
"Kita-chan…"
A soft voice came from behind her. Satono Crown, who had been standing right there the whole time, noticed her friend's deviation from the choreography and whispered a gentle reminder.
"The new song is about to start…"
Kitasan Black's ears flicked again as the words pulled her back to reality. She took a deep breath, letting the enthusiastic cheers of the audience wash over her like a wave. With renewed energy, she vigorously waved her arms and took the lead in the next round of synchronized position changes on stage.
The stage lights gradually shifted in color and intensity as the melody flowing from the speakers transitioned smoothly from the final notes of "Winning the Soul" into the opening of the next energetic track.
…
As night grew deeper, the lively and energetic Winner's Stage finally came to a close. In the backstage preparation room, the atmosphere was filled with relief and joy.
Kitasan Black was the first to raise her cup high, her face beaming with a bright, satisfied smile.
"Everyone, you all worked so hard today! Let's toast to the huge success of this Winner's Stage… Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
The other Uma Musumes responded with warm smiles and raised their cups in unison. A relaxed, happy atmosphere quickly spread throughout the room.
After draining the refreshing drink in one go, Kitasan Black pulled out her phone. Ever since she had noticed her Trainer, Yasui Makoto, suddenly leaving during the performance, she had been keeping a close eye on that particular empty spot in the audience. Even after the show ended, it remained unoccupied.
Why did the Trainer leave so abruptly? They had clearly made plans to attend the celebration banquet together with Tokai Teio and the others later…
Puzzled and a little worried, she skillfully tapped in his phone number on the screen. The dialing tone started ringing, but before she could even bring the phone up to her ear, the call suddenly switched to a busy signal.
"Eh…? Is the signal bad…?"
She blinked in confusion and was about to redial when a new text message notification popped up on her screen.
[Yasui Makoto: If you're going to the celebration banquet, you can head there first. I ran into Almond Eye here, so I'll join you all a bit later.]
Little Almond Eye? Why would she be here at this time? Wasn't she supposed to have special tutoring sessions arranged by her family today…?
Questions swirled rapidly in Kitasan Black's mind. She was just about to type a reply asking for more details when a sudden chill touched one side of her cheek.
"Wah! So cold!"
She let out a surprised cry and quickly dodged to the side, only to find Satono Crown standing right beside her with a playful smile, holding a bottle of iced drink in her hand.
Satono Crown glanced curiously at the phone in Kitasan Black's grasp.
"You look so serious… and a little hesitant. Eh?!"
Her expression suddenly shifted into one of genuine surprise as she covered her mouth with her hand.
"Could it be… that our Champion Miss is secretly reading a love letter from someone?!"
Kitasan Black froze completely for a moment.
The very next second, her ears shot straight up, the fine fur on them bristling, while her tail puffed out in alarm. A fierce blush burned across her earlobes and cheeks as she shrieked in embarrassment.
"Wh-wh-what love letter?! Crown-chan, what on earth are you talking about?!"
"But if it's not a love letter…"
Satono Crown tilted her head with a puzzled expression, spreading her hands innocently.
"Then why do you look so anxious and worried?"
"Th-that is…"
Kitasan Black stammered, struggling to find the right words, when a slightly cool and thoughtful voice came from the other side of the room.
"Love letter… I heard Air Groove-nee say that it's a letter written between a man and a woman who love each other."
Duramente stood there holding her elbow with one hand while pinching her chin with the other, pondering seriously for a moment before looking directly at Kitasan Black.
"So, Kita-chan is going to write a letter to a man?"
"N-no! Dura-chan, don't listen to Crown-chan's nonsense…"
"Or perhaps she's waiting to receive a letter from a man."
Interrupting Kitasan Black's flustered explanation, both Satono Crown and Duramente struck identical thoughtful poses.
"But gender isn't something that needs to be taken so strictly."
Kitasan Black finally realized that Satono Crown was clearly teasing her. Not only that, she had also skillfully pulled in Duramente, who only seemed to understand half of what a love letter actually meant.
It had to be said… this teasing was extremely effective.
She really had been about to message her Trainer just now. Wasn't that exactly what Dura-chan described as "a man and a woman"?
Wait! Kita-chan… how did you let Crown-chan confuse you so easily like this?!
It was clearly just a normal, innocent inquiry! How did it suddenly turn into something about a love letter?!
There was absolutely no reason for her to be panicking like this!
"Wait a minute! I can explain…"
Kitasan Black waved one hand frantically while holding up her phone, trying desperately to clarify the situation.
However, before she could get the words out, a vivid scene suddenly flashed through her mind.
The dimly lit parking lot asphalt… She was sitting on the back seat of a motorcycle, and right in front of her was Yasui Makoto, squatting down carefully checking her running shoes. Without the shoes to cover them, her feet clad in long white cotton socks hung awkwardly in the air, her toes unconsciously curling and stretching with nervousness.
Along with that memory came the burning sensation she had felt when he grasped her ankle to help put the shoes back on, as well as the strange heat that had spread to the tips of her ears.
For some reason, she suddenly found herself completely at a loss for how to explain the situation. Panic surged up again, and her throat felt painfully dry.
Before she could gather her thoughts, exclamations began erupting one after another from the other Uma Musumes around them.
"Eh…? Is that true?! Kitasan… is she actually in love?!"
"Who is it with?! Who is Kitasan with?!"
"Wait, doesn't Tracen Academy have rules about this kind of thing…?"
"What does that matter? As long as no one finds out… Oh, and everyone, please don't tell anyone what you heard today, okay?"
"Mm-hmm! We definitely won't say a word!"
Kitasan Black could clearly hear the excited discussions spreading around her. She could also feel the scorching, curious gazes from all directions focused entirely on her. The burning sensation from her earlier memory grew even stronger.
Just as she caught the mischievous glint in Satono Crown's eyes, Kitasan Black took a deep breath and raised her voice, her tone a mix of annoyance and amusement.
"It's the Trainer! I was just asking the Trainer about the celebration banquet later! What on earth are all of you imagining?!"
"And Crown-chan, if you keep teasing me like this, I… I'm really going to get angry!"
To emphasize her point, she stared directly into Satono Crown's eyes and puffed out her cheeks in a pout.
"Alright, alright, it was just a joke. Just a harmless little joke," Satono Crown said with a bright smile, waving her hand apologetically and bowing slightly. She then turned to the others around them.
"We were only joking, everyone. Just a joke."
Once the surrounding Uma Musumes realized that the explosive topic was nothing more than friendly teasing, they lingered with a few more curious glances before reluctantly shifting their attention back to their own conversations.
Having successfully calmed down the commotion she had started, Satono Crown smiled and prepared to leave.
"But if Kita-chan is planning to go to the celebration banquet with the Trainer, then I should head over to Satono Diamond's side as well. I don't want to keep her waiting too long if I'm late."
"Then I also need to go see Air Groove-nee," Duramente replied calmly. She then reached into her pocket, pulled out her phone, and checked it.
"Air Groove-nee sent me a message, so I'll be going now."
"Mm-hmm! I'll go after I finish talking with the Trainer. Bye-bye, Crown-chan, Dura-chan."
After saying warm goodbyes to her two close friends, Kitasan Black looked back down at the message from Yasui Makoto once more.
"It's okay… I'll just wait for the Trainer so we can go together."
As her fingertip hovered over the send button, her gaze unconsciously drifted down toward her ankle, now elegantly covered by the purple suspender stockings of her stage outfit.
Her ear tips twitched slightly. She pursed her lips for a moment, then finally tapped the send button with determination.