Recently, I've been incredibly busy with Rice's autumn Tenno Sho win, achieving her spring-autumn double, Urara's JBC Sprint victory, and King's third place finish in the Kikuka Sho after winning the Sprinters Stakes.
Because of this, the workload from Tracen Academy has decreased... or so I thought. But, if you really think about it, aren't the interview requests from the URA, publishers, and TV stations basically the same as the work assigned by Tracen Academy?
While it benefits my team, it also helps promote the URA, Tracen Academy, the girls, and their races. So, it turns out the decreased workload was just my perception; the nature of my work simply changed.
Since when did I think my workload had decreased?
I feel like my workload has increased with all these unfamiliar interviews. My physical fatigue is less than usual, but the mental exhaustion is significant.
Even so, I can't slack on Urara and the others' training. King is scheduled to run in the Mile Championship, and Rice's Japan Cup is also approaching. As for Urara... can she run one more race this year?
Maybe the Champions Cup in early December or the Tokyo Daishoten at the end of the year. There's also the Capella Stakes, a GIII short-distance race, but what should I do... It's really sad that there are so few dirt races compared to turf, with mostly open-class races left.
Turf has many G1 races even in the last month and a half, including the Mile Championship, Japan Cup, Arima Kinen, and for Junior class, the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes, and Hopeful Stakes.
Anyway, it's about Urara's race. The Capella Stakes is a good option, but since she won the JBC Sprint, maybe I should aim for a G1 mile race next?
The Champions Cup is a 1800m mile race. The Tokyo Daishoten is a 2000m middle-distance race. The problem is, in races longer than a mile, the possibility of running into Smart Falcon increases dramatically. If it's a short-distance race, Urara can have an even match with Smart Falcon... but for a mile, the chances are only 20-30%. For middle distance, maybe one in ten times?
The chances of winning a race would increase if she didn't have to face Smart Falcon, but the longer the distance, the more disadvantaged Urara becomes. Also, Smart Falcon, who deliberately came to talk to us during the JBC Sprint... it seems she's somewhat obsessed with Urara.
It's not out of the question to only enter Urara in short-distance races, but...
(That would be running away.)
I thought this while watching Urara train alongside Rice and King.
King, who I'd planned to have win G2 and G3 races at all distances, told me she wanted to challenge G1 races herself. Her current goal is the Mile Championship, but if she wins, she'll likely want to challenge middle and long-distance G1 races as well. What would Urara think after seeing King challenge her own limits?
(Besides, I have a losing record of 1 win and 2 losses against Smart Falcon... The question is whether to enter her in the Champions Cup or the Tokyo Daishoten...)
The option of entering her in both isn't impossible. But, it doesn't feel like the right thing to do to just enter G1 races indiscriminately just to beat Smart Falcon.
(I feel like if I asked Smart Falcon, she'd tell me...)
If I asked, "Which one are you running in, the Champions Cup or the Tokyo Daishoten?" she'd probably just tell me. That girl is hard to read sometimes, but there's no doubt she sees Urara as her rival.
With today's interview over, I thought about this as I watched the reporters film Urara and the others training. Just then, a young man and a horse girl approached me. Although he was young, he was about the same age as me.
"Um, senior... do you have a minute?"
"Huh? Yeah, what's up?"
The one who spoke was a rookie trainer who was assigned to Tracen Academy this year. He was also my junior in the sense that he came from the same trainer's school. Even though we attended the same school, we didn't interact much back then because we were too busy studying and preparing for exams.
"I'm training a girl right now... and I was hoping for some advice."
"Advice? Oh, sure."
It seems he came to ask for advice. I often exchange opinions with my同期, and we often brag about the girls we're training, and sometimes we even taunt each other, but it's rare to ask for advice. That's natural since everyone has their own training policy.
However, it was quite common for the rookies who joined this year to ask for advice. Of course, since they're trainers, too, I won't give them more than just advice.
"My girl won her debut race, but she lost twice in open-class races after that... I'm a bit troubled about the direction of her training from now on."
"This girl... oh, did she run in the Cosmos Sho and the Nojigiku Stakes?"
The Cosmos Sho is an open-class race held in early August, a 1800m turf race. The Nojigiku Stakes is an open-class race held in early September, also a 1800m turf race. Both are for junior-class horses.
"...You know me?"
The horse girl asked in surprise as I spoke with the junior trainer. She's a junior, so she still seems young and delicate.
It's only been about half a year since her training started, so she really is still delicate. She doesn't have the same trained physique as Narita Brian from Team Rigil, whom I saw during the summer training camp, but it would be too much to compare her to a top team.
"Of course I know you. You're my cute junior's trainee. You were third in the Cosmos Sho and fifth in the Nojigiku Stakes, right?"
"Yes, yes..."
"Wait, let me think... I remember your strategy was... yes, 'leading.' Ah, I remember now. I watched your race videos a few times. Hmm..."
I walked around the horse girl, looking at her legs. She was wearing a gym uniform and shorts, so I couldn't get a good look at her upper body muscles... hmm...
"You won a mile race in your debut, so you've been entering her in mile open-class races?"
"That's right. I think the mile distance suits her best right now."
"Yeah. The way her muscles are attached, the mile seems to suit her best. Hmm... but even so, she might need a little more stamina. She lost speed at the end of the Nojigiku Stakes, and I think she needs a little more stamina to push through."
"Ah, stamina. I thought she had enough stamina before her debut race, so I've been focusing on speed."
I continued to observe the horse girl as I talked with the junior trainer.
"Speed is important, but it's best to always train for stamina, too. You can never have too much. Also, training stamina naturally makes you stronger."
Just like my Urara... well, my Urara was in danger of not even finishing a short-distance dirt race if she didn't train her stamina.
"Also, if it were me, I'd make her more aware of her left leg. Your dominant leg is your right, right? See, with the right arm and left arm... even for humans, there's a difference in muscle strength and dexterity between the dominant and non-dominant arm, and the same goes for the legs, so you have to balance them well, or you'll have to worry about injuries..."
"I see... you're right. I try to be aware of it, but is it unbalanced?"
"It's a little skewed to the right. It's not a problem for now, but if the distortion gets worse, it could have a negative impact."
Even for humans, if the muscle strength in the body is unbalanced, it can have a negative impact somewhere. Poor posture can slowly injure your legs or back, and if you favor one side, you can injure the other, so balance is important. For a horse girl with physical abilities incomparable to a human, a slight imbalance can lead to a serious injury.
Thinking about that, Rice before I took over her training must have been on the verge of breaking. No, she really was on the verge of breaking.
"But, how you handle that is something you two have to discuss and decide together. I prioritize preventing injuries, but every horse girl has a different level of body toughness... If she's tough, you don't have to worry too much about it. On the other hand, if she's not tough, I think it's better to balance her to prevent injuries."
"Balance... hmm, I can kind of tell by looking, but beyond that, it's difficult."
"Huh? Then why don't you touch her and check?"
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
I tilted my head, looking at the junior trainer.
"Didn't you learn about palpation at the trainer's school?"
"I... did... but she's a horse girl."
"Hmm? You learned it to use it on horse girls, so why wouldn't you use it?"
I even rely on palpation more than just looking. You can understand things to a certain extent just by looking, but palpation is more accurate. However, it can't beat a medical machine, so right after I took over Rice's training, I went straight to the hospital.
The junior trainer looked away awkwardly after hearing my words. The horse girl he's training also looked away, seemingly feeling awkward.
"D-Do you really do palpation, senior?"
"Yeah. I do it every day."
Urara, Rice, and King are all cooperative. It's very helpful for their training and important for preventing injuries.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously."
Hmm? The junior trainer and the horse girl glanced at each other, looking a little embarrassed. Seeing that, I put my arm around the junior trainer's neck and dragged him away from the horse girl.
"What's the matter? What are you so embarrassed about with palpation, you innocent little kid?"
"Innocent... kid? I'm sorry, senior. What does that mean?"
"...Seriously? Is that a dead language? You don't get it? 'Zagin de shisuu' or 'mabui channe' or 'choberigu' don't work?"
"Senior, what are those words? Are they even Japanese?"
That's strange... he's supposed to be almost the same age as me... well, if you include my previous life, I'm more than twice his age, so maybe it can't be helped...? That's absurd...
"Hey there, 'mabui channe'!"
"Oh my? Are you talking about me? 'Mabui'... oh! You're making me blush!"
I called out to Maruzensky, who happened to be passing by. Yeah... she gets it.
"Bye-bye, Maruzensky."
"Bye-bye, Trainer of Kitarufa."
See, she gets it!
"Senior, forget about the dead languages. Let's talk about palpation."
"Your polite language is breaking down. It's fine, though... It's a waste not to use something you learned. Right?"
"But... if you can tell just by looking, isn't there no need to go out of your way to check by touching? Besides... you know, horse girls are at that age, don't they get embarrassed?"
No, I'm not embarrassed, he insisted. Is that really true...? And I can tell by looking, too, but there's a limit to what you can tell.
This is just my guess, but I think people like Tojo-san and the seniors from Team Spica can accurately gauge a horse girl's ability just by looking at her.
Since horse girls are living beings, their condition changes every day, and the strength they can exert also increases and decreases. So, being able to gauge a horse girl's ability just by looking is a huge advantage. However, that's where experience matters, and us young trainers, including me, can't possibly compete with the seniors. There's nothing we can do about that.
In my case, I've watched countless race videos to gauge their condition and ability, but my original measurement tool isn't that accurate.
For example, if a horse girl has stats like in a role-playing game, I can tell by a margin of 10. Tojo-san and the senior from Spica can accurately measure by a margin of 2 or 3... That's the kind of feeling it is.
It would be great if I could be on par with them by increasing my accuracy through past race videos.
With palpation, since you check by touching, you can tell by a margin of 1. That's what it feels like. It's like a skilled craftsman processing something to the nearest thousandth of a millimeter using the feel of his fingertips. No, I can't do that.
"My girls are fine with it. They understand it's necessary, and they've gotten stronger because of it."
"It's necessary to become a G1 horse girl... No, you can't fool me. They just can't say they really don't like it because it's their trainer."
"If they felt uncomfortable... No, if you can sense it before they feel it, you'll be fine. You have to feel the atmosphere. And my girls are... oh?"
As I was talking with the junior trainer, I heard a familiar sound of footsteps from behind. I leaned forward, and Urara jumped onto my back. I felt like the dinosaur from that side-scrolling action game who gets pushed into the magma by the plumber. De-yup.
"Trainer! I ran five laps on the turf course! What should I do next?"
"Onii-sama, what should we do now... Who are you?"
"Another trainer. What are you doing?"
Not only Urara, who jumped on me, but also Rice, who seemed wary of the unfamiliar junior trainer, hid behind my back while clutching my clothes, and King stood next to me and asked a question.
"Whoa... Rice Shower, King Halo, and Haru Urara... Amazing... G1 horse girls are really different..."
The junior trainer took a step back, intimidated. I looked, and his horse girl had stepped back about five paces.
The junior trainer looked stunned, but he soon came to his senses and waved his hands in front of his face.
"No, no... Senior, aren't you too close to your horse girls? This is the first time I've ever seen someone giving a piggyback ride to their trainee."
"That's absurd. There are others who do it."
"I'm serious. If you're that close, what would people say...?"
Hmm? The junior trainer's gaze went past me... Oh?
"Trainer! Turbo wants to beat Teio in the Japan Cup this time for sure!"
"To do that, you need to build up more stamina."
When I turned around, I saw a senior from Team Canopus and Twin Turbo. Twin Turbo was hanging onto the senior's back affectionately, and the senior was walking nonchalantly as if it were nothing. What a great core he has.
And, as I thought, there's another trainer besides me who's giving a horse girl a piggyback ride!
"See? There are others."
"There are... huh? Maybe that's normal? Was I wrong...?"
The junior trainer muttered to himself with a look of astonishment. Seeing that, I gave him a nod as I adjusted Urara on my back.
"And, it's good to learn from others, but be careful because it could break your relationship with them depending on their personality."
"What?! Then what should I do, senior?!"
The junior trainer complained that I had told him all this. But this depends on the chemistry between the trainer and the horse girl, and their personalities.
Urara innocently jumps on my back, and Rice also... yes, she innocently tries to climb on my back, but King isn't like that.
I often have direct physical contact with Urara and Rice, like patting their heads, giving them piggyback rides, having them hang from my arm, or hugging me, but with King, our connection is more mental. That must be because of her personality.
So, there's only one thing I can say.
"How about you two slowly get to know each other and build trust? Then you'll naturally figure out how to interact. A relationship like mine or the senior from Team Canopus who just passed by is an option, and so is a relationship like Team Rigil's or Team Spica's."
"Senior, I've never talked to the seniors from Team Rigil, Team Spica, or Team Canopus outside of work."
"...In any case, you should aim for a relationship that suits you two."
Come to think of it, I hadn't really talked to those three at this time in my first year either. I thought about that as I concluded our conversation.
"And, you should thoroughly understand each other, say what you want to say, and have a good talk about how you want to train, how you want to run, and what kind of races you want to run... I think that's how you get stronger."
"Oh! Me too! I've been working hard with Trainer like that! When I'm with Trainer, I feel all 'Ura-ra'!"
Urara, who had been listening to me on my back, said this and smiled, resting her chin on my left shoulder. Her hair is so soft, it tickles... hey, Urara's horse ears are flapping against the side of my head. By the way, what kind of feeling is an "Ura-ra" feeling? I get the gist of it, though.
...Huh? We were supposed to be talking about the junior trainer's horse girl's training policy, so why are we talking about this?
I tilted my head, and the junior trainer also tilted his head, seemingly not quite understanding.
"I see... I see? You're saying trust is important, right?"
"Well, something like that. You learned that in trainer's school, right? We're carrying these girls' lives on our shoulders, so we have to do whatever we can."
It's not a problem for a trainer to think, "Is this really the right training policy?" or "Isn't there a better training method?" It's natural to think and seek better results.
But on the other hand, it would be bad if the horse girl was constantly in doubt. If she thought, "Is it okay to follow this trainer?" I'd be genuinely depressed. If it was something like, "Isn't it better to do it this way?" or "Isn't this better?" I'd accept it and consider it together.
As I talked to the junior trainer, he seemed somewhat convinced. He bowed to us and walked away with his horse girl.
"Trainer, how was it?"
"Hmm... it was helpful, but actually doing it is another matter, I guess... 's... word... love..."
I watched the junior trainers walk away. As they got farther away, their words became more and more fragmented, but they seemed to be about a half-step closer than before.
I shook my head to refocus and gave Urara and the others instructions for their next training session... and I saw a familiar face in the distance.
(Huh? Is that... Tazuna-san?)
Tazuna-san was at the end of the practice course. However, she already had her back to me and was walking away, tilting her head. Did she have something to do with someone? But there was no one around her...
"Onii-sama, what's wrong?"
"Hmm... no, it's nothing. Okay, next training. Three of you, run up the hill 10 times! Go!"
I gave Urara and the others those instructions and focused on the training in front of me.
And so, the busy... no, the overly busy interviews finally settled down, and it's now late November.
The Mile Championship, which King wanted to run in, is right around the corner. I received the list of participants and couldn't help but frown.
(Seriously... This could be bad...)
I thought this as I looked at the names of the horse girls running in the Mile Championship.
I thought it could be a bad thing, but it wasn't a bad thing for King. In fact, it might even be a tailwind for King.
Of the powerful horse girls I was wary of, only two were running in the Mile Championship: Taiki Shuttle and Meek. The names of the other powerful horse girls were not there.
In other words,
(That means they're all aiming for the Japan Cup... It's true that there weren't many who were good at the mile, but I didn't expect El Condor Pasa to skip the Mile Championship...)
I looked at the list of participants and thought that the Japan Cup might be a clash between powerful Classic-class and Senior-class horse girls.
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