"I never imagined President Rudolf could be so sly."
After leaving the cafeteria, Narita Brian couldn't resist teasing Symboli Rudolf about it.
It seemed like she was giving Cafe a choice, but in reality, she left her no room to refuse.
By deliberately choosing such a busy time and openly stating her intentions, she was indirectly telling everyone that she wanted to invite Cafe to join the student council.
And those gossip-loving Uma Musume would definitely spread the word.
After all, for ordinary students, joining the student council was a dream come true.
'Keep good men company and you shall be of the number,' as they say.
Being able to get close to popular Uma Musume like the 'Empress' or the 'Emperor' could boost their own standing—both in ability and reputation.
Plus, with Symboli Rudolf making such a sincere invitation, if Cafe still refused outright, it would surely affect her public image.
'President Rudolf has gone this far, how can you still be so stubborn?'
'Some of us would kill for that chance and aren't even qualified.'
'Who do you think you are? Don't you know what's good for you?'
Narita Brian could already imagine the gossip and whispers.
Unless you were someone like Agnes Tachyon—stubbornly doing your own thing no matter what others said—almost anyone would fall for this setup.
It might not be a hundred percent successful, but the odds were very high.
"Sly? No, Brian, I genuinely want to invite her to join the student council."
"Genuinely... Not because of that matter?"
In the Chairman's office, Narita Brian had found that old, ancient note.
She had connected Sunday Silence to the names recorded and proposed an unbelievable hypothesis.
If that person really was the original, then her incredible strength wouldn't be hard to understand.
Back in the Eclipse era, races weren't 2,000 meters, or 3,000, or even 4,000—they were an astonishing 6,400 meters.
Yes, a full 6,000-plus meters!
For today's races, where 2,400 meters is considered a classic distance, that was simply hellish.
Narita Brian could say with full responsibility that there was basically no Uma Musume in this era who could run 6,400 meters at full speed.
A distance twice as long as the longest of the eight major races, the Spring [Tenno Sho]—no modern Uma Musume could endure it.
Yet, such an exaggerated race by today's standards was the norm in the Eclipse era.
The development of Uma Musume to where they are today had been a path of thorns, fraught with extreme difficulty.
A Maiden existing for a century, running across the earth in a spectral form...
No matter how you thought about it, it was just too surreal.
Narita Brian didn't outright state her speculation but told Rudolf that the black Maiden's identity might be extraordinary.
Symboli Rudolf fell silent for a long while, then nodded in agreement.
Right after that, Rudolf invited Manhattan Cafe to join the student council.
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed influenced by what Brian had said.
"Students who are qualified deserve a chance. Besides, Cafe has helped us so much—we can't just brush it off with a simple thank you," Symboli Rudolf said.
"Is that so... I'll take your word for it, then."
Narita Brian nodded and didn't press further.
After all, Symboli Rudolf had her own considerations.
Ring ring—
The phone chimed, reminding Rudolf it was time to return to the student council room.
"So busy already."
"You'll get used to it. By the way, Brian, how's your injury recovery coming along?"
"Not bad. Normal training isn't a problem."
She'd heard from Copano Rickey before that her injury risked worsening and that she needed that jade stone.
But Narita Brian had resolutely given it back.
She wanted to rely on hard work to overcome so-called 'feng shui.' This world had no preordained endings.
Now, Narita Brian could train normally, but she still felt an occasional dull, heavy sensation in her foot.
It's fine... Narita Brian thought to herself. This hardly even counts as a challenge.
"So, are you going to participate in the league races too?"
"If there are sufficiently interesting competitors."
"Oguri Cap is participating."
"Sign me up."
"But it's a dirt race," Symboli Rudolf added.
"Dirt?"
"Most of the local students are dirt track Uma Musume, after all. There are some entering turf races too, but not many."
Oguri Cap had signed up for the dirt race, saying she wanted to compete against her friend again. Symboli Rudolf had gladly agreed.
"Brian, you've never run on dirt before, have you?"
"Yeah, pretty much." She hadn't set foot on it since her debut race.
"Then it's better not to jump in so suddenly. Dirt and turf feel completely different," Symboli Rudolf advised. "Stepping onto an unfamiliar surface can easily lead to injury. Your foot hasn't fully recovered yet, has it?"
She saw through me?
Narita Brian tightened her arms across her chest.
"Just a feeling—your movements seem a bit different from before."
If it was just Rudolf's misperception, great. If not...
"My body is fine."
"Right." Rudolf had expected that answer and signaled she understood.
"But I think for this first league event, we should give other students a chance."
Rudolf couldn't change people's preference for turf, but in her view, both dirt and turf should be shining stages for Uma Musume.
Bridging the gap between local and central regions shouldn't mean rigidly forcing all Uma Musume to run on turf.
"This league will focus mainly on dirt, letting students who don't usually get many chances to perform take the spotlight for once. As for us, we'll take a back seat for now."
"There aren't many dirt-specialist Uma Musume at Tracen, right... Is that arrangement really okay?"
Wouldn't it lead to a shortage of participants?
The academy league wasn't just a matter between a few schools; audiences would come from all over. They might even have to expand the event beyond Tracen Academy grounds because the campus couldn't hold everyone.
If participant numbers fell short of expectations, it would disappoint the spectators.
It wouldn't reflect well on Tracen either.
Narita Brian hoped Symboli Rudolf would reconsider.
"I understand your concerns, Brian."
But, as they say, a long journey starts with a single step.
"We need to make changes, starting with what we can do within our power."
Symboli Rudolf had already discovered Manhattan Cafe and Agnes Tachyon's secret; she just hadn't called them out on it.
Rudolf knew that pressing them directly wouldn't yield the real answers.
So, she planned to try another approach.
Like keeping Manhattan Cafe close, observing her behavior, and indirectly tracking the black Maiden's movements.
That's right—Symboli Rudolf wanted to make contact with her one more time.
She wanted to have a proper conversation.
It wasn't just about the black Maiden anymore. The central region, local regions, even overseas—everything seemed to be pulled by some invisible force, stirring restlessly.
The whole world was quietly changing.
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T/N: HSR Fic out on MapleTL!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.