“Oguri Cap, you saw it too.
What is your opinion on that child?” Symboli Rudolf, having left the Satono family’s private track, asked the expressionless Oguri Cap with great interest.
She knew this look didn’t mean Oguri Cap was uninterested, it was just her usual default face.
“She has immense talent, but there are flaws in her personality.” Oguri Cap replied seriously.
“Though I don’t know why, I kept feeling a sense of contradiction from her.
It was as if there were two people inside her body.
At the beginning of the race, her running style was completely free and unconstrained, like she was practicing all by herself.
But at the end, when she slowed down, she seemed to look toward the sidelines before unleashing that spurt.” “It’s rare to hear you say so much.” Symboli Rudolf looked surprised.
“Are you that interested in her?” “Purely in terms of ability, I prefer her opponent.
But her contradictory style is indeed…” Oguri Cap nodded.
“Well, that’s enough talk.
I’m hungry—” “…Didn’t you just eat the snacks provided by the Satono family?” Symboli Rudolf went silent for a moment.
“Oh well, let me buy you a meal.
But all the buffets nearby have blacklisted you, so we’ll have to go a bit further.” “I don’t mind.” “You never do.” — “I lost…” After finishing the run, Keiko was taken to the changing room by Satono Diamond.
With a towel draped over her head, she looked somewhat pitiful as she dried off.
Kitasan Black began to wonder if she had been a bit too serious.
After all, it was just a small test for Keiko; she could have held back a little.
But once she started running, her competitive nature took over, and now Keiko was back to being a recluse.
“U-Um…
I’m sorry, Keiko-chan.” Kitasan Black hovered around Keiko, wagging her tail submissively.
“How about I buy you some yakisoba?
From that same place last time.” “I think that’s highly debatable…” Satono Diamond sighed.
“Kita-chan, you get a lot of allowance, but it’s the end of the month.
You’ve probably spent it all, haven’t you?” “Ahahaha…
That’s true, but Dia-chan should still have plenty left.
I’ll pay you back next month—” Kitasan Black was a typical big spender, despite having a very generous allowance.
Although she could easily get more money by acting cute with her dad, she just couldn’t stop spending it.
If she wasn’t buying merchandise of famous Umamusume, she was spending it on hobbies she suddenly got interested in, only to lose interest a few minutes later.
“Please~ Dia-chan~” “I suppose I can—but Kita-chan, do you even remember how much you owe me?” Satono Diamond did some mental math, her face turning dark.
“It’s close to five hundred thousand yen.
When do you plan on paying it back?” “Eh?
Is it that much?” Kitasan Black was stunned.
“Are you sure there isn’t a mistake?” “Refraining from spending wasn’t that hard a few days ago, but didn’t you suddenly get obsessed with school idols recently?
You bought a ton of merch, so you borrowed a lot of money from me and haven’t paid it back.
And I also paid for your piano.
Even though you got bored of playing it after only one night.” Satono Diamond sighed.
“Kita-chan, you really can’t go on spending money without a plan.” “Ehh—” Kitasan Black knew her childhood friend didn’t really care about the debt itself, but rather thought her spending habits were a major issue.
Of course, for Satono Diamond to think someone’s spending habits were a problem meant it was a serious issue indeed.
Meanwhile, Keiko, who was watching from the sidelines, felt like Spider-Man watching Iron Man and Batman throw cash at each other while she searched the ground for loose change.
“The way both of you spend money is practically six of one and half a dozen of the other—” Keiko muttered.
“Whatever, a loss is a loss.
I didn’t plan on becoming an Umamusume anyway, and I don’t have any talent.” “…?” “Keiko-san…
are you even sane?” This time, it wasn’t just Kitasan Black; even Satono Diamond chimed in.
“After slowing down, you closed a four horse-length gap on the straightaway in less than four hundred meters with sheer raw speed…
If the track had been just a little bit longer, you would have won.” “…So is that supposed to be impressive?
I still lost in the end, didn’t I?” Keiko scratched her head.
“If I’m supposed to be amazing, isn’t Kitasan Black even more amazing?
And neither of you are even the strongest in our grade.
Just how competitive are you guys?” “…Actually, Kitasan Black is ranked second in our year, though Duramente-san in first place is indeed incredibly strong…” Sweep Tosho, who was standing nearby, also felt Keiko had a slight misunderstanding of Kitasan Black’s strength.
“And Kita-chan definitely didn’t hold back this time.
You did amazing, Keiko-san.
Even though you lost in the end, if it weren’t for that slowdown, I think you had a high chance of winning.” “I felt the same way.” Kitasan Black agreed, nodding.
“So why did you slow down so much at the turn?” “…I’m not too sure either.” On this point, Keiko was also quite puzzled.
“Probably…
probably the moment I realized Kitasan Black was next to me, it was like I forgot how to run…
my heart started beating super fast, and my breathing got all messed up.
If Diamond-san hadn’t been cheering for me, I definitely would have logged off…” “Does that really happen…?” Kitasan Black stroked her chin.
“Dia, do you feel that way when you run with me?” “No—I only think about how to pass you.” Satono Diamond shook her head.
“If you had that kind of effect, Kita-chan, I definitely would have noticed after running with you for so long.
So the issue lies with Keiko-san.” “Let’s have Dia run with Keiko-san next time.
Now that we’ve found the problem, we should solve it.” Kitasan Black proposed.
However, Keiko was already exhausted and raised both hands in surrender.
“I can’t…
I feel like I lost half my life running that.
And why did it rain anyway?
Didn’t you say it was going to be sunny today?” “…I don’t know either.
It seems to have been a sudden shower, and it’s already stopped.” Satono Diamond was also completely baffled.
“There was definitely something strange about that rain.” “Let’s not worry about that for now.
Aren’t you two completely soaked?
Your underwear is showing through your clothes.
Go take a shower and change first.” Sweep Tosho suggested quickly, worried they would catch a cold.
“We can talk about the rest after you wash up.” “Underwear?” Keiko looked down and realized her plain, unfashionable underwear was indeed showing clearly through her white sportswear.
Blushing furiously, she covered her chest.
“But I didn’t bring any spare clothes…” “I’ll go to the dorm and grab some for you…
Will your usual clothes be fine?” Satono Diamond offered.
“My usual clothes will be fine, then.” Keiko nodded.
“By the way, where is the shower room?” “It’s just to the left of the exit.
There’s also a sauna room.” Kitasan Black, who was familiar with the layout, explained.
“Since we have the chance, why don’t we all bathe together?” “…?” Before Satono Diamond even reached the door, she spun 180 degrees and pinched Kitasan Black’s side, twisting the flesh 360 degrees in punishment.
“No touching Keiko-san!
“Alright, alright.
Any more of this mutual flattery and you’ll catch a cold.” Sweep Tosho said, probably because she wasn’t very familiar with Tojo Keiko yet.
After all, their relationship was more like the awkward middle-ground of being a friend’s friend.
If Kitasan Black had been here, Sweep Tosho would probably already be in a cycle of Kita-chan trying to snuggle and Sweep kicking her away.
But when two shy people were together, Sweep Tosho felt—a sudden urge to take good care of this girl.
After all, according to Satono Diamond, Keiko had just come out of her shell and probably hadn’t fully adjusted to society yet.
Compared to her, even though Sweep Tosho had a little bit of pride, she wouldn’t actually hurt the other girl.
After all, she was a kind-hearted Umamusume at heart.
“You can rely on me.
Don’t worry.” “You’re so reliable, Sweep-san.” “…What you just said, could you say it again?” “…Huh?
Sweep-san?” “The sentence before that.” “You’re so reliable…” “Hmph…
not bad.” Sweep Tosho blushed and turned her gaze away, though her wagging tail betrayed her excellent mood.
“If that dummy Kita-chan bothers you in the future, just come to me.
After all, I’m a reliable person.” “I understand—” Both of them walked into the bath together, carefully unwrapping their towels before beginning to enjoy the rich people’s bath.
“This is heaven…” “You can say that again…” Sweep Tosho agreed.
She rarely took baths with others, so this experience felt a bit strange.
However, both of them were middle schoolers, and their bodies hadn’t fully developed yet, so they didn’t have any strange thoughts.
But when Sweep Tosho looked at Keiko, who had closed her eyes to enjoy the bath, she couldn’t help but notice how her pure white hair fell over her chest.
Her skin, which was terrifyingly pale due to a lack of sun exposure, had a somewhat sickly aesthetic beauty.
Although her physical stats were supposedly good, she looked like an incredibly fragile child…
Recalling what Satono Diamond had told her, she suddenly felt a bit of pity for this Umamusume she had never met before.
Losing her parents at such a young age, being wary of the whole world, yet summoning the courage to reach out to society—she must be exhausted by now, right?
It was no simple feat for someone with a closed heart to step out…
It required the help of many people.
Yet she still gathered her courage, endured her inner fears to socialize, make friends, and even run on the track just because of Kitasan Black’s whims.
Just how many times had she struggled internally…?
Thinking of this, Sweep Tosho’s nose felt a bit stuffy.
Meanwhile, Tojo Keiko was thinking— ‘Does bathing in a pool full of Umamusume count as brewing Umamusume soup?
Thinking about it that way, it’s actually kind of lewd—’