“So, because the road was slick from the rain and going downhill, you couldn’t brake after you skidded…
and you ended up hurtling down the slope like a runaway train and slamming right into me, is that it?” Kouki asked as he looked at Rice Shower, who sat by the bedside with her head hung low, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Yes…
This is all Rice’s fault.
Rice only ever brings bad luck to everyone around her…” Rice Shower whispered softly, her voice barely audible “If Rice hadn’t insisted on practicing by herself today, it wouldn’t have rained, and she wouldn’t have crashed into Mr.
Kouki…
So, this is all Rice’s fault.” Kouki wasn’t at all surprised by her reaction.
From what he knew of her character, Rice Shower was basically an extreme mood-drop horse girl Her gloominess wasn’t because of some tragic family loss, but rather stemmed from a severe sense of inferiority.
She genuinely believed she was a “jinx” who brought misfortune to everyone, leading her to blame herself for every bad thing that happened around her Granted, she *did* occasionally cause accidental mishaps—like clumsily spilling a bucket while on cleaning duty, inflicting the “Soaked” status effect on her classmates Thinking about that, Kouki’s mind suddenly went off on a weird tangent: *Wait, I kind of want to see what it looks like when Rice Shower tearfully apologizes to the girls she accidentally drenched…* Snapping out of his brief daydream, Kouki suddenly caught onto a detail in her words “Wait, self-training?
You don’t have a Trainer yet?” “No…
Normally, only the Umamusume who place at the top of the school selection races get picked up by Trainers.
Rice was planning to run in today’s selection…” “Today?
That means you missed it, right?” Kouki glanced at the wall clock—it was already nearing dinner time.
“Yes…
Rice will just have to try again next time.” Kouki nodded thoughtfully.
Then, he suddenly remembered that Rice Shower and Mihono Bourbon belonged to the exact same generation.
Now that he thought about it…
“Rice, do you know Mihono Bourbon?
Does she already have a Trainer?” Kouki asked with a hint of excitement.
*Could I maybe cheat the system and recruit Bourbon first?* “Eh?
Mihono Bourbon?
She already has one…
It’s that devilish instructor.” Rice Shower replied timidly *…Well then, don’t blame me when I have Rice Shower shatter your Triple Crown dreams in all three races!* Kouki thought with a cheeky grin.
He had to admit—optimism aside, he could be quite a mischievous guy.
“Rice Shower!” Suddenly, Rice Shower felt Kouki’s gaze sharpen intense.
“Y-Yes!” Startled by his sudden intensity, Rice Shower snapped up straight.
“Become my Umamusume!
I’ll teach you how to beat her at the Kikuka Sho!” Kouki leaned forward from the bed and firmly grabbed Rice Shower’s small hands, a fierce look on his face.
“Eh?
EH?!
S-Suddenly saying something like that?!
Who is Rice supposed to beat?!
Waaaah!
I’m sorry!
You’re a really nice person!” Having her hands grabbed out of nowhere by a man, Rice Shower panicked completely, her brain jumping straight to assuming Kouki was confessing his feelings to her.
Without missing a beat, she handed Kouki an instant “nice guy” rejection card.
“Ah—no, no, you got it all wrong!” Kouki finally snapped out of his aggressive stance and laughed awkwardly.
“I’m a newly appointed Trainer at Tracen Academy.
I want you to join my team and become my very first Umamusume!” “Eh?
Not a confession, but a team invitation?” Rice Shower froze for a second, then looked up hesitantly.
“Even though…
Rice just crashed into you and put you in the hospital?” “Yep.” “Even though you know Rice is a curse who brings bad luck to everyone?” “What are you talking about?
Isn’t it because you want to bring happiness to everyone that you keep running?” “Eh?
W-Why…?
How did you know that?” Rice Shower’s eyes widened in sheer shock.
How could this Trainer—someone she had literally just met for the first time—name her deepest, innermost dream so effortlessly?
“Because I’ve been watching you all along.
You’re a sweeter, harder-working kid than anyone else.
Meeting you today was bound to happen.” “Y-You’ve been watching Rice…?
But…
Rice knocked you out…” “If you hadn’t knocked me out, you would’ve run in today’s selection race and probably gotten picked up by some other Trainer, right?” “Maybe…” “See?
So this accident between us…
was fate.” “Fate…?” Rice Shower’s train of thought was completely swept away by Kouki’s momentum.
*Great, she’s almost convinced.
Just need one final push!* “That’s right!
It’s pure fate!
Fate brought us together.
Under normal circumstances, I would’ve been buried under mountains of paperwork and couldn’t have made it to today’s selection race anyway.” “If that happened, you would’ve joined someone else’s team, and I’d be left all alone in a world where only I got hurt.” “But!
Because you knocked me down, you missed the selection today—which gave me the golden opportunity to invite you to be my Umamusume!” “Is…
is that really true?” *Just a little more.
She’s already wavering.
All it takes is one last push.* “Rice Shower, I promise you—I will train you into an Umamusume who brings happiness to everyone in the world.
Will you give me a chance to prove it to you?” To say Kouki wasn’t nervous would be a lie.
He realized that the System’s gacha pull only created an *opportunity* to recruit her; it didn’t automatically force her onto his team In other words, pulling an Umamusume from the System didn’t instantly grant ownership—it generated the perfect scenario for recruitment It was just like Tokai Teio’s story mode in the game from his past life.
Three Trainers, including the protagonist, applied to recruit Teio, and all three of them were exceptionally qualified The reason Teio ultimately chose the protagonist wasn’t because the protagonist was vastly superior in coaching skills, but because the protagonist truly understood Teio’s dream and was willing to fight alongside her to make it come true That genuine sincerity touched Teio’s heart, leading her to join the protagonist’s team.
It required a mix of luck and finding the key to her heart, but above all, the Trainer had to understand the Umamusume’s true feelings Kouki’s System operated under the exact same logic.
And the reason Kouki figured this out so quickly…
Was because just a moment ago, an affection meter for Rice Shower had suddenly popped up in his mind, showing that her favorability towards him had already passed the 50% mark!
And that meter only started rising after Kouki mentioned her dream of bringing happiness to everyone.
Connecting the dots was easy after that What mattered wasn’t how flashy your credentials were, but whether you could make the Umamusume believe that you were the one who could make her dream a reality.
“Rice…
Rice only brings bad luck…” “Rice trips all the time…
spills buckets during cleaning…
and brings misfortune to everyone around her…” “Can a gloomy girl like Rice…
really bring happiness to everyone?” Rice Shower kept her head bowed low, her horse ears drooping sorrowfully as a heavy gloom hung over her Kouki knew she wasn’t rejecting him; she was desperately seeking an answer—an answer that only Kouki could give her She was terrified.
Terrified that Kouki might say, “No, you can’t.” Even so, she opened up her fragile heart to Kouki, praying with all her soul that he would respond to her feelings And Kouki, of course, would never disappoint her.
He could never bear to crush the dream of such a gentle little girl “Yes, you can.
As long as you believe in yourself—and believe in me.” “If we work hard together, you can definitely do it.” “You will become the Umamusume who brings happiness to everyone.” “I am…
absolutely certain of it!” “So, become my Umamusume!” “Be the very first Umamusume of Team Lord!” “The path I build will take you all the way to the top of the Umamusume world!” Kouki reached out and took her hand once more.
This time, she didn’t struggle or resist Tears spilled from Rice Shower’s eyes, dripping onto Kouki’s hand.
They were cold, yet felt immeasurably warm “Yes!
I will…
I will…!” Rice Shower lifted her head, tears still streaming down her cheeks Yet the horse ears atop her head were twitching happily—a clear sign that she was overflowing with joy This was the very first time Kouki had ever witnessed someone crying tears of pure happiness right before his eyes *DING!* In his mind, accompanied by a flash of brilliant light across the System panel, the grayed-out Training button finally illuminated with a vibrant glow.
**[Rice Shower has officially joined Team Lord!]** **[Rice Shower: Condition boosted from “Poor ↓” to “Excellent ↑”!]**