12: Chapter Eight: The Overlord of the Century’s End, T.M.
Opera O (2/2) 12: Chapter Eight: The Overlord of the Century’s End, T.M.
Opera O (2/2) “Trainer Kitano, let me ask you something.
If King Halo were your trainee, what kind of races would you have her enter?” “Her, huh…” Kitano’s gaze drifted for a moment.
“It’s not like I think that’d ever happen, but if I had to guess… I’d have her focus more on sprint and mile races.” Air Groove’s question pulled him back into memories from the previous loop.
His time with King Halo.
And honestly?
He didn’t want to take charge of her again.
Not because he disliked her.
Far from it.
The problem was simpler than that.
He couldn’t convince her.
In the last loop, when Kitano Ryuichi became King Halo’s trainer, he had done everything he could to tell her the truth.
Her real strengths were sprint races and miles.
That was where her talent shone.
But King Halo hadn’t listened.
To her, Kitano’s advice was just background noise.
She had set her heart on the Classic Triple Crown, and nothing he said could make her look away.
Of course, the Triple Crown was the dream for almost every Uma Musume in her classic year.
Kitano understood that.
But King Halo’s talent over middle distances simply didn’t compare to her aptitude for miles and sprints.
Maybe everything had gone too smoothly for her at first.
Three wins from four starts was enough to make her pride swell.
She began to see Kitano’s concerns as cowardice.
The more he pushed back, the harder she resisted.
In the end, Kitano had no choice but to support her Classic campaign with everything he had.
And what followed was almost painfully familiar.
In the Satsuki Sho, she watched Seiun Sky take the crown.
In the Japanese Derby, she collapsed to a crushing fourteenth place.
Even the Kikuka Sho, the race Kitano had desperately tried to keep her away from, couldn’t be avoided.
Once again, she watched Seiun Sky win.
That was why the current Kitano Ryuichi had given up on guiding King Halo himself.
He knew he couldn’t stop her.
And if he couldn’t stop her, then he had no right to drag her down again.
Better to find her a trainer she might actually listen to.
Or, at the very least, give someone else enough of a hint to wake her up before it was too late.
Kitano didn’t want to watch that proud young lady have her pride shattered piece by piece again.
He knew exactly how helpless that felt.
Once was more than enough.
“Air Groove-san,” Kitano said, his voice quieter than before.
“If you get the chance, could you pass my opinion along to King Halo?” It was a long shot.
A desperate one, really.
But he still said it.
“I’m not saying she has no chance at other distances.
And I know she probably won’t be willing to give up on the Classic Triple Crown.
Still… if possible, she should avoid too many middle and long-distance races.” He paused.
“If she wants to win, I mean.” Then, after a moment, he added, “Also, if you can, please help her find a trainer she likes.
Someone whose advice she’d actually accept.
I think that would help her.” “…” Air Groove fell silent.
After a short pause, she looked at Kitano with an expression he couldn’t quite read.
“I’ll pass it on.” Kitano nodded, unaware of the strange look in her eyes.
Is this man really not a genius?
That was the thought running through Air Groove’s mind.
He had only seen King Halo from a distance.
Just one glance.
Yet he had immediately identified her best distance range.
Not only that, he seemed to understand her personality as if he had known her for years.
Air Groove still didn’t have enough proof.
But Kitano had no idea that his attempt to make Air Groove help King Halo had produced the exact opposite effect.
His words had only strengthened her belief that King Halo should be entrusted to him.
Once we return to the student council room, I’ll ask the President for King Halo’s training records.
Whether King Halo was truly better suited to miles and sprints would be clear enough once she compared the data.
And if Kitano was right… Air Groove glanced at the man walking beside her.
Her decision quietly took shape.
“As for the senior division,” Air Groove said, returning to the matter at hand, “there are very few Uma Musume there without trainers.
Most have already competed in many races, and some are close to graduation.
If you’re trying to find a suitable trainee from the senior division, I imagine it will be difficult.” Just as Air Groove was about to continue her explanation, the school bell rang.
The quiet hallway instantly came alive.
Classroom doors slid open one after another, and Uma Musume began spilling out into the corridor.
In seconds, the entire floor turned noisy and crowded.
“…It seems this isn’t the best time to tour the senior division.” Air Groove glanced at the bustling hallway and sighed faintly.
“Trainer Kitano, let’s visit the recreation area first.
It’s lunch break now.
Trying to find a suitable Uma Musume at this hour would be terribly inefficient.” “Works for me,” Kitano said.
The two turned toward the stairs.
And then, from behind them, a laugh rang out.
A laugh both of them recognized.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!
What a most unexpected scene I have discovered!
The dignified Empress herself, standing side by side with a handsome young man, strolling through the academy while all others are held captive by their lessons!
Ah, what romance!
What drama!
Surely this deserves a place in my next script!” Air Groove’s shoulders stiffened.
“…I believe it would be better if you understood the situation before speaking, T.M.
Opera O.” The moment she heard that laugh, Air Groove looked like she had developed a headache.
Slowly, she turned around.
Standing there was an Uma Musume with glittering golden hair, her posture elegant, theatrical, and impossibly confident.
T.M.
Opera O.
The only one who didn’t turn around was Kitano Ryuichi.
The instant that familiar laugh reached his ears, his entire body locked up.
He stood frozen in place.
As if he had forgotten how to move at all.