"Yahoo! Ran! Good morning~!!"
"..."
"Huh? What's wrong, Ran? You don't sound very energetic!"
I picked up the phone only to hear a voice I hadn't heard in far too long—high-pitched, obnoxious, and brimming with the same reckless energy as always. It was my idiot disciple, Twin Turbo. She certainly sounds healthy, I thought, as a heavy sigh escaped my lips.
Hearing my sigh, Turbo piped up, sounding genuinely shocked. "Whoa! It's rare to hear you sighing like that!"
I had to pull the phone away from my ear to save my eardrums. "You brat... do you have any idea what time it is here?"
"Eh? It's noon!"
"Maybe in America, it is. In Japan, it's the dead of night—the 'Hour of the Ox,' you little gremlin. Learn what a time zone is before you call your master!"
There's a twelve-to-thirteen-hour difference between Japan and the US. If it was lunchtime for her, it was essentially the middle of the night for me. She'd probably called thinking I was on my lunch break, but instead, she'd blasted me out of a deep sleep. My head was already throbbing. If it actually were noon in Japan, I'd be shouting "idiot disciple" at the top of my lungs, but since it was 2:00 AM, I had to settle for a hissed reprimand.
"...Oh," she chirped.
"Don't 'oh' me... You know what? Forget it. I don't even have the energy to get mad. Why are you calling? Making an international call isn't cheap."
"Well, it's not a huge deal, but... Turbo's about to run in the Breeders' Cup Mile. I just wanted to hear your voice before the race."
The Breeders' Cup, where both Turbo and Teio were scheduled to run, was right around the corner. Hearing that she just wanted some encouragement made it impossible to keep scolding her. I shifted my weight, sitting up in bed to give her my full attention.
"As long as you've got me on the line, go get Minami-chan, Teio, and Sue-chan, too."
"Oh, good idea! Hey! Teio! Trainer! Sue-chaaaaaan!"
"Wait, you actually call her Sue-chan?" I muttered.
I'd been getting emails from Teio lately, lamenting the fact that even though the lady in question asked to be called Sue-chan, Teio couldn't bring herself to do it. But apparently, Turbo had no such reservations. I suppose for Teio, calling the grandmother of the "Emperor" herself something so casual was a bridge too far. Turbo, on the other hand, likely just saw her as "the nice old lady subbing in for Rampage."
"Ran! I brought everyone!" Turbo announced.
"Oh my, Ran-chan! It's been ages!" a warm, motherly voice trilled. "Are you doing well?"
"I was doing fine until I was jolted awake in the middle of the night. Sue-chan, do me a favor and talk some sense into Turbo. Tell her I don't mind the calls, but she needs to check the clock first."
"Of course, dear. Turbo-chan, did you hear that?"
"Yep! Understood! I have to think about the time difference!" Turbo replied brightly.
"That's a good girl~♪"
The call switched to video. On the screen, "Sue" was beaming as she pulled Turbo into a hug, and Turbo was grinning right back. In the background, I could see Tokai Teio and Minamisaka looking like they didn't quite know how to react to the display of affection.
"It's been a while, Rampage-san," Minamisaka said, stepping into view. "I heard Nice Neicha took the Tenno Sho. Please pass along my congratulations."
"Will do. How are things on your end, Minami-chan? It's been a while since you were last in the States, hasn't it?"
"Haha, for better or worse, this country never changes."
"Ran!" Teio suddenly cut in, her face popping into the frame. "Who is Minamisaka, anyway?! I ended up having a sit-down with the Director of the FBI, and then I had to take photos with Unbridled! My head is spinning!"
It seemed Teio had finally received the "Minamisaka Baptism." As soon as word got out that he was in America, his "friends" from all walks of life had come crawling out of the woodwork to greet him. Apparently, that list included the Director of the FBI and the legendary Unbridled. Turbo, meanwhile, had treated the Director like a movie star, her eyes sparkling as she begged for an autograph. To everyone's surprise, the Director had been a total sport about it—he even asked for Turbo's autograph in return, leading to a full-blown signing session and photo op.
"Amateur," I scoffed. "When I was over there, I had the President and the CIA Director as a matching set."
"...Okay, yeah. If you're bringing the President into this, I can't compete," Teio sighed.
"It's mostly a side effect of me winning the BC Classic," I said, turning serious. "Plus, Lady Saber and Amazing Dyna have been absolutely terrorizing the dirt circuit over there. I imagine the American press is screaming about 'exacting revenge' at the Breeders' Cup. Is the atmosphere as tense as I think?"
The American racing world had been shaken to its core by my victory. The fact that Sunday Silence had moved to Japan shortly after only added fuel to the fire. After all, Sunday Silence hadn't been shy about why he left. He'd openly blasted the American elite's obsession with pedigree and their hypocritical "fair-weather" fandom. He'd rejected the whole system without looking back.
"The racing community here has been... turbulent, to say the least," Minamisaka explained. "People are looking at the 'elite' stables with a very critical eye. There are protests, and the public perception of the 'common' horse girl is starting to shift—slowly."
"Sunday certainly left a hell of a scar, didn't he...?" I muttered.
"Actually," Sue added, "to try and fix things, there's serious talk about introducing the 'Finals' and 'Legend Race' systems you came up with over here in the States. Those were originally meant to bridge the gap between the Central and Regional circuits in Japan, weren't they?"
"Well, yeah... but I never dreamed I'd be performing surgery on the American racing industry," I admitted. That was the honest truth; I'd only been thinking about the girls' future in Japan. Hearing that it had evolved into something this massive gave me another headache.
"But my acquaintances here are all for it," Sue said. "They say that's how racing should be."
"If you say so..."
"Ahaha!" Teio laughed, her expression softening. "You know, Ran... being here in America made me realize just how incredible you really are."
It was rare for Teio to praise me so directly. She's an "Emperor" loyalist through and through—Symboli Rudolf will always be the pinnacle in her eyes. Seeing her say this left even Turbo and Sue looking surprised.
"Being on this expedition... it's hard," Teio continued. "Everything is different—the food, the dirt, the air. But you stayed here for a whole year and kept winning. And then you topped it off by taking the Breeders' Cup. People say I've surpassed the President... but if I want that to be true, and if I want to be someone who can truly challenge you, I have to win here. I'm going out there to take it all."
"Turbo thinks so too!" the brat chimed in. "Ran is amazing! I mean, you're my master, so of course you are, but you're really amazing. Turbo's gonna work hard! And then, I'm gonna fight Ran in a Legend Race!"
"...Hmph. Big talk from two little girls," I said, a smirk tugging at my lips. "You want to beat me? Come back when you've broken a world record or two. But... I'm expecting great things. Don't you dare lose."
Despite my gruff words, I meant it. I wanted them to win more than anything. And more than that, I was looking forward to the day I'd face them on the turf again.
"Minami-chan, Sue-chan... look after them for me."
"You don't even have to ask," Minamisaka replied. "I'm a Canopus Trainer, after all."
"Fufu, leave it to us, Ran-chan!♪"
I hung up. Silence returned to my room as I looked out the window at the starlit sky.
"...Yeah. I think I can have some good dreams tonight."
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