Pop!
The sound of a champagne cork popping echoed from a nearby table.
A fragrant mist curled up from the bottle, turning into golden liquid as it flowed into crystal-clear glasses.
While this wasn’t the most exclusive high end restaurant in the world, it definitely wasn’t a place an ordinary, working class school janitor like Kato Akira could normally afford.
The prices at this Tokyo Tower restaurant were absurdly high.
Akira couldn’t even afford to casually glance at the menu.
However, the reason he was here wasn’t to treat himself with his own money.
It was because of the person sitting across from him.
Mr.
C.B.
was wearing a Tracen Academy uniform in public, ignoring the countless stares from the other patrons, and casually stuffing her cheeks with stewed meat, her eyes curving in delight at the delicious taste.
Hearing the whispers and murmurs of the people around them, Akira felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.
He didn’t even want to imagine what kind of news headlines would come out tomorrow.
“Suspicious man brings Uma Musume cosplayer to high end restaurant in Tokyo Tower.
What are his intentions?”
Or even worse, if a few sharp eyed fans realized that this relaxed horse girl was actually the real Triple Crown winner Mr.
C.B.
herself, he would instantly become the number one trending topic online.
Fortunately, people in this world were generally very tolerant and friendly toward Uma Musume.
Without a horse girl’s permission, the paparazzi rarely dared to publish baseless rumors.
But correspondingly, it was perfectly normal for them to draw a ton of attention in a place like this.
Bathing in the gazes of countless people, Mr.
C.B.
didn’t seem to care about the crowd at all.
She naturally continued eating her meat, her eyes narrowing slightly at the sweet, savory taste.
“Mmm~ The pan seared veal and stewed meat here are really highly rated, and they definitely taste amazing!
Akira, can I try a piece of your grilled steak?”
“You’re paying for it anyway, so eat whatever you like.”
“Thanks!
I really love sharing food with people like this.”
Her eyes lit up with genuine delight.
Mr.
C.B.
smiled, reached out with her knife and fork, cut a piece of the steak right from Akira’s plate, and popped it into her mouth.
The delicious taste made her shudder slightly, and a completely relaxed, comfortable aura radiated from her entire body.
(Sigh…
I might as well just eat.)
Watching Mr.
C.B.
order high end restaurant food with the ferocity of someone at an all you can eat Tracen buffet, Akira looked down at his own meal—which was more than enough for a normal human—and slowly began to chew.
“You already know what I’m thinking, don’t you?”
Stabbing a piece of tender, fragrant stewed meat, Mr.
C.B.
Her clear, bright eyes felt as if they were piercing straight through his soul.
“This is just my childish war with her.
Even though it looks like some massive, world changing struggle, at the end of the day, she is an Uma Musume, and so am I.
We both hate losing.”
“When she faced the results of her defeats, she must have been incredibly frustrated, right?
Throwing things around in her room like a child?
Hiding under the covers crying, swearing she would change everything and force the world to follow her rules?”
“I’m exactly the same.
I hate losing too.
Even though my destined rival was Katsuragi Ace, Ace managed to defeat the Emperor, and I still haven’t.
It’s really unfair, isn’t it?
I want to face that Emperor fair and square, and snatch the crown of victory right out of her hands.”
“But unfortunately, we couldn’t do that.
Under the advice and pressure of the people around us at the time, we were told we shouldn’t race like that.”
Swirling her wine glass, Mr.
C.B.’s expression became increasingly hazy and relaxed, as if she were an ordinary person unknowingly sinking into a dream.
Uma Musume were, perhaps, all just ordinary children at heart.
They were immersed in the dreams of running woven for them by society and the adults around them, running desperately for their own desires and the expectations of others.
But in this era of massive support teams, everyone had to make compromises and sacrifices.
The Uma Musume couldn’t run freely, and their teams couldn’t fully let go.
Everyone was tripping over each other, eventually forming a massive, twisted whirlpool.
Symboli Rudolf wanted to sever this twisted, painful cycle using the most explosive, radical methods possible to achieve ultimate victory.
But what did Mr.
C.B.
want?
What did she represent?
Eating his tender steak and absorbing the energy from the food, Akira looked at the seemingly pure and transparent Mr.
C.B., constantly weighing his options and trying to read her.
But he quickly realized that his judgments were meaningless.
“So, I refuse.
I absolutely refuse to let my rivalry end with my defeat.”
Mr.
C.B.
cleanly and decisively expressed her true thoughts, dropping all the vague, cloud-shrouded hints she had used before.
“This is a childish war.
Even though its impact is massive and everyone around us is suffering, this is our childish war.
She refuses to accept defeat, so why should I?!
I had to bear the expectations of my entire team, unable to run as I pleased, bleeding with every race, only to watch victory slip away right in front of me!
Do you really think I was happy with that?!”
“I refuse to accept it.
That’s why my team dissolved after that.
I waited for a year, and everyone finally left.
And right at this moment, Rudolf made her decision and happened to find you. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
So, naturally, I found you too.”
“It’s just like destiny, don’t you think?
That day in the rain, I heard your true thoughts, and you happened to perfectly fit into Rudolf’s plans.
And because of that, our fates became tangled together.”
“That is why I need you, Akira.”
Looking at the dumbfounded Kato Akira across the table, Mr.
C.B.
smiled and reached out her hand, flashing a brilliant smile that burned as brightly as the sun.
“This is the continuation of our battle.
No matter what it costs, I want to shoot down the sun.
Let’s make that Tyrant pay the price, Akira.
Fall into hell with me.”
“…”
Looking at the smiling Mr.
C.B., Akira’s answer was blunt and unyielding.
“No.
I will not get involved in your war.
I just want to become a Trainer and survive in this world.
I don’t care about your battle, and if you push me too far…
I will personally tell Rudolf the truth.”
“Is that so?
Do you really think doing that will mean anything?”
Laughing off Akira’s threat, Mr.
C.B.
smiled and pulled a slender device from her chest pocket.
“This isn’t a multiple-choice question, Akira.
I didn’t come here to negotiate with you.
I came to give you an order.
Although I really didn’t want to resort to this…
I guess I have no choice.”
“…”
Watching the smiling Mr.
C.B.
slowly reveal the slender electronic device, Akira fell dead silent.
A voice recorder.
The ultimate weapon of corporate warfare had just appeared right in front of him.
When she pressed the button, the familiar sound of pouring rain, accompanied by the nervous voice of a certain horse girl, echoed quietly in the high-end restaurant.
‘I-Is it really okay for a bottom-tier horse girl like me…?’
“Making unofficial, secret contact with an Uma Musume…
I’m going to milk this secret out of you for the rest of your life.”
Mr.
C.B.
stood up, leaned slowly into Akira’s space, blew softly into his ear, and flashed the most sincere, brilliant smile she had shown all day.