It had been four days since they started training.
Over these past few days, Kaito had been overseeing Rice Shower’s training while adjusting their daily schedule as needed.
He had originally planned to show his schedule to his senior, Hana, to get some advice.
However, the usually iron-willed Hana had ended up catching a fever and was bedridden at home.
Left with no other choice, Kaito could only proceed with his own ideas.
Rice Shower, on the other hand, had been working hard, balancing her training with her daily academic classes.
Perhaps the techniques Kaito had mentioned had sparked her thinking, because she was actually absorbing more from her classes than before.
As for her physical training, the two days of interval training had concluded, and her 200-meter sprint time had dropped from an average of 12.5 seconds to an average of 12.2 seconds!
That was a massive improvement.
Part of it was due to the natural growth of her rookie period, and part of it was thanks to Rice Shower’s own aptitude for learning.
Although some of the Uma Musume in Rice Shower’s generation could already run terrifying final legs in the 11-second range during races, making her current time still far from enough…
…for Rice Shower, this long-awaited progress was a crucial step in building her confidence.
Right now, Kaito was standing with her on the training grounds, moving on to the second phase of training.
This phase wasn’t about top speed; it was about mastering her pacing.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh…
Wearing her red and white track suit, Rice Shower sprinted across the turf, running alone along the inner rail.
Every 200 meters, there was a highly visible marker that Kaito had attached to the rail.
These not only reminded Rice Shower of the distance she had covered but also made it easier for Kaito to time her in segments.
“Rice Shower, your pace for this section is too fast.
Slow down!” “O-Okay!” “That’s better, you’ve slowed down for this 200 meters!” “Yes!” “Your current speed is perfect.
Keep it up, keep it up!” “Understood!” What Rice Shower was currently doing was a drill called a positioning pace run.
This training method dictated the running distance and required the completion time to be maintained within a specific window.
For example, the current requirement was to run each 200-meter segment in 12.5 to 12.8 seconds.
Going too fast was just as bad as going too slow.
As Rice Shower grew, these requirements would naturally increase.
The reason for doing this was to let Rice Shower’s body memorize this running rhythm, allowing her to distribute her stamina and speed during the middle of a race to maintain a leading position.
This process was incredibly dull, boring, and mechanical.
If a rowdy girl like Tokai Teio or a certain maverick Uma Musume were doing it, they would have lost their minds long ago.
But Rice Shower was perfectly capable of fulfilling Kaito’s demands.
“This kid is just too well-behaved!” Kaito was moved to the point of wanting to cry.
After another morning of training, Kaito called Rice Shower to a halt.
After a few days of scientific training, Rice Shower’s body felt as though its joints had been unlocked.
Her movements were more composed than before, and she seemed a bit more confident overall.
Although she still constantly apologized with “It’s all Rice Shower’s fault” whenever some unlucky event happened each day, she hadn’t called herself useless in the last two days.
“As expected, confidence-building education is the way to go.
All that stuff about pressure making diamonds is total garbage,” Kaito muttered to himself, nodding.
Just then, Rice Shower trotted over.
She gently unzipped her track jacket, revealing the white shirt underneath and the steam of her body heat rising.
Her hair, loosened from its ties by the run, gave off the rosy scent of her shampoo.
She then walked up to Kaito and accepted a bottle of soda water.
“Thank you, Onii-san!” “You’re welcome.” “Onii-san, how did Rice Shower do today?” “Just as amazing as you are every single day!” Watching Rice Shower pop the cap and drink heartily, Kaito couldn’t help but complain inwardly.
This freaking Tracen Academy didn’t even have a single bottle of soda water in stock.
He had to go all the way to a human construction site to find similar wholesale drinks.
What were Tracen and the JRA even doing?
How could anyone conduct proper training with these guys around?
But the lack of soda water wasn’t the only thing giving him a headache.
There was something even more important missing.
A heart rate monitor!
Although this world had medical heart rate equipment, they hadn’t yet developed portable heart rate monitors or chest straps that could be worn while running.
Only with those two items could Kaito accurately gauge Rice Shower’s heart rate during exercise, allowing him to scientifically adjust her training plan.
But a lack was a lack.
Praying to the Three Goddesses wouldn’t help.
“Let’s eat first.” Kaito let out a sigh, temporarily pushing the frustrating matters out of his mind.
The moment Rice Shower heard the word “eat,” her large horse ears instantly perked up.
For the past few days, she had been eating the lunches Kaito prepared.
They were different every day, nutritious, and delicious.
Rice Shower’s stomach had practically become a shrine to Kaito’s cooking.
Although relying on her Trainer like this made her feel a bit embarrassed, her body’s instincts couldn’t help but rejoice.
“Um, Onii-san, what are we having for lunch today?” “Grilled beef tenderloin with white rice, scrambled eggs with green bell peppers, and asparagus, paired with bananas.
Don’t worry, there’s plenty for both you and me.” “Really?
That’s great!” Rice Shower happily clasped her hands together, sitting in place to wait for Kaito to bring the food back.
…
Because the ordered bananas weren’t arriving until noon, Kaito had to go back to the staff room to get their boxed lunches, then head to the school gate to pick up the bananas, and finally return to the training grounds.
To save time, he chose to cut straight through the student activity building.
After grabbing the lunches, Kaito carried the heavy boxed meals back the way he came.
To accommodate Rice Shower’s massive appetite, he had been waking up at five in the morning every day to prepare the meals, working right up until his shift started.
The result was this nearly ten-kilogram lunch.
That’s right, ten kilograms!
For an ordinary person, finishing this meal would be completely impossible.
But Uma Musume were not ordinary people.
After all, Tracen Academy had gluttonous monsters like Oguri Cap and Special Week, who could eat like three pigs at once.
Even if Rice Shower’s appetite was a bit smaller than those two, handling a ten-kilogram lunch was still a breeze for her.
“I really wonder where all the food they eat goes.
Their weight doesn’t seem to go up at all.
Does it all just get burned off through exercise?” Kaito muttered to himself as he walked.
Since it was the lunch break, the various after-school clubs hadn’t started yet.
The entire activity building felt empty, and his shoes echoed with a dull thud against the floorboards.
“Speaking of shoes, Rice Shower’s sneakers need to be replaced.
She definitely can’t wear those for the next race.” “Other than that, I need to prep tomorrow’s lunch in advance, too.” “Then there’s the ever-present issue of soda water and heart rate monitors.
I’ve already reported the soda water issue to the President and requested the development of a Uma Musume-specific product, but a heart rate monitor isn’t something that can be solved overnight…” Kaito grumbled to himself as he pulled out his notebook and started writing.
A good memory is no substitute for a bad pen.
It was a habit he’d carried over from his past life, and many years had passed in a flash…
Thinking this, Kaito suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Right in front of him, lying prone in the corridor of the activity building, was an Uma Musume.
She looked like she had fainted.
The fainted Uma Musume was wearing a conspicuous white lab coat, making her look more like a scientist or medical staff than a student.
But from her chestnut-brown short hair and the thick black tights covering her long legs, Kaito still recognized her identity.
“Tachyon?” Kaito had no idea why this scientist-type Uma Musume was collapsed in the hallway.
She was in the grade below Rice Shower; although she had already enrolled, she wouldn’t be stepping onto the track until next year.
Because of her maverick genius in science, she had successfully persuaded the President to let her convert an activity room into a laboratory, and she had been holed up in there ever since, rarely coming out.
Did she accidentally drink some kind of potion and end up like this?
Thinking this, Kaito hurriedly bent down to carry Tachyon on his back to the infirmary.
But the moment he bent over, he found his ankle suddenly grabbed by a hand.
“I’m so hungry…
Food, I want to eat…” Tachyon spoke weakly from the floor, but her entire body was straining to reach toward the lunch in Kaito’s hands.
Kaito: “…” So this girl just fainted from hunger?!
(I-I-It is here!!!)