Overtake Trap glanced at Terumi Shinji standing beside her and finally nodded in satisfaction.
Ever since King Halo began preparing for her mock race, much of Shinji's attention had been diverted there, and Overtake Trap had found it strangely hard to adapt.
She understood, of course. In any team, every assigned horse girl needed the trainer's guidance. Simply dividing a trainer's time equally among every runner would be terribly inefficient.
Like things were now, arranging the trainer's schedule according to each horse girl's racing calendar was obviously the most effective way to do it.
Still, Overtake Trap could not quite get used to it.
Once upon a time, she had been Terumi Shinji's only horse girl. His gaze, all his thoughts, would stop on her and turn for her alone.
Now there were two more girls competing with her for those things that had once belonged only to her.
Even so, no matter what, the next most important thing for Shinji would be the Dubai trip with her.
This race, which would mark the beginning of their overseas campaign, carried immense significance for both Overtake Trap and Terumi Shinji.
And for the fans behind them, who had been waiting for it all this time.
Seeing Overtake Trap's confident expression, Shinji remained calm on the surface, though he had by no means neglected her during the stretch in which he had focused heavily on King Halo's training. As the first horse girl he had ever taken on after gaining the system, Overtake Trap's autonomy and potential after the Lord of Vassals bond had fully matured still left him inwardly astonished.
For a rune bond with a cap of only five runes to display such upper limits… in actual effect, paired with a girl willing to work as hard as she did, it might well surpass many rune bonds whose synergies exceeded five.
He kept those thoughts from showing on his face, which remained as composed as ever, making Overtake Trap puff her cheeks a little.
She had finally gotten to the point where she could spend time with him again as his primary training target, yet his reaction was so flat.
Hadn't he been looking forward to this day all this time, just like she had?
[Negative energy +90]
Her gaze shifted to King Halo. The girl had clearly regained her confidence now, her eyes filled with longing for the Spring Triple Crown. Shinji was indeed planning ahead—although the Spring Tennō Shō was still some time away, he had already begun training specially geared toward long-distance racing.
No matter how Overtake Trap looked at it, Shinji now seemed to be paying more attention to King Halo.
She refused to become to Shinji what Narita Brian had been to Rigil.
Come on, Shinji, wake up already!
[Negative energy +50]
Although he still could not make sense of those large, unexplained bursts of emotional energy, one of Terumi Shinji's strengths was that even while puzzled by certain things, he never let important matters slip.
"The turf in Dubai isn't especially soft, not compared to Europe. If I had to say, I'd say Dubai's turf is actually closer to Japan's."
He had never been to Dubai. He had never personally experienced exactly what the turf there was like.
But for Overtake Trap's overseas challenge, he had once again crammed a huge amount of knowledge into his head. This time it was no longer training theory, but records of practical experience.
Neither his age nor his résumé could support him during an overseas campaign the way seasoned trainers—or those who had already led teams abroad—could support their runners. That was exactly why he needed to absorb every scrap of accumulated experience.
For the entire trip, this was just as important as anything else, and just as beneficial for his girls.
"Understood."
Hearing that, Overtake Trap first tilted her head thoughtfully, then her confidence only deepened. On European turf, even many of the elite girls might not be able to beat the current Overtake Trap. And in this year's Dubai Sheema Classic, there did not seem to be any especially dangerous opponent.
Even though the race was still a little ways off, Shinji could already picture Overtake Trap going in as the overwhelming favorite and the number-one choice.
"Depending on your draw, there may be small tactical changes, but the overall plan won't change."
As he spoke, Shinji noticed that Overtake Trap clearly was not taking those possible tactical adjustments too seriously.
She had enjoyed an entire autumn season of smooth victories, taking the Japanese Autumn Triple Crown, all built on the foundation of Shinji leading her.
She had absolute confidence in her own strength, and even greater faith in Shinji. Looking over the entry list, she had not seen a single opponent who could truly threaten her. And with Shinji there, however the tactics changed, Overtake Trap knew all she had to do was devote one hundred percent of her focus to executing them.
Watching her step back onto the track after listening to him, Shinji had to admit once more that she really was extraordinarily hardworking—so hardworking that in all of Central Tracen, it would be difficult to find even one or two who could match her in sheer effort.
"Then this will be the fourth set. You know what to do, Xiao Yue."
He watched the determined line of her profile, and a faint smile entered his voice. Overtake Trap was immediately encouraged by it.
"This time, you don't need to deliberately disrupt your own rhythm. We can lower the difficulty a little for this set and focus on precision instead. There isn't any runner in this race who can really break your rhythm."
If she could follow the frontrunner while still keeping complete control over her own pace, then Shinji felt there would be no issue at all in the Dubai Sheema Classic.
Overtake Trap was simply too strong now. For her, pace had become something almost fundamental—important, yes, but no longer decisive.
No matter how the pace unfolded, she could usually just force her way through it on raw strength and win anyway.
Still, that kind of concept was often the most important kind.
Shinji still hoped that in the end Overtake Trap would become the sort of horse girl who possessed overwhelming strength, yet whose mind remained clear, rational, and precise at all times.
Then, after a moment's thought, with Dubai drawing ever closer, he looked at Overtake Trap as she began her fourth run.
"Trainer, when are you actually leaving?"
It was King Halo asking from beside him. Shinji suddenly found himself wondering whether he ought to bring the other two with him as well—let them broaden their horizons a little, while continuing their training together.
After all, even if he could leave them here with Bunka Fumie, Nishizaki Ryu, or Tojo Hana, Shinji still felt that entrusting his girls to a trainer of slightly lesser ability, or to ones already too busy, was irresponsible in its own way.
So after a moment of thought, he finally answered,
"It's not completely fixed yet, but I more or less have a plan. When the time comes, I can consider taking all of you."
"Really?"
King Halo brightened immediately. Even Narita Brian raised her brows, visibly surprised and pleased.
Only one horse girl, who had just completed the fourth set and run back to the finish line, reacted differently.
It was a zero-frame opening strike. Just moments ago, she had been eagerly waiting for praise from her trainer. Now her expression froze in a daze.
Not until Shinji waved a hand in front of her face did she manage a strained little smile and barely recover from that blank look.
But the emotional energy rippling off her told the truth of what she was feeling.
[Negative energy +80]
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 147)
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 (Chapter185)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter105)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter215)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 185
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/1
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 206
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 190
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/23
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 106
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 125
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 90
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 80
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 86
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 81
Still playing traditional Honk 65
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 65
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 57
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 45
Transmigrated as Sukuna 59
Checking In in Demon Slayer 59
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 73
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 45
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 36
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 40
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 60
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 30
Why did they assign me to Uma 35
MYGO Beauties 43
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 30
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 31
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin