It seems that my current company going to lay off most of its people especially in clerical, operational, production positions, and I might get included in the list. In two week at most, I am going to be unemployed (maybe) T_T
So if I might not have any job or busy with anything, I will try to upload daily with two or three chapters in it.
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Shuta An gave a wry smile.
"I did try to apply," he admitted, "but I failed. My position at Kasamatsu was only possible thanks to a recommendation from the 'Emperor' in Central."
"Shuta-kun must be a Trainer from overseas?" Tojo Hana's eyes flickered with curiosity at his words. She adjusted her glasses, her tone turning analytical.
"Then you shouldn't have failed to receive an offer letter, should you? The old men at the URA Association are desperate for fresh blood to enter Central."
"I was forced to leave after only completing my internship on the West Coast." Shuta An's tone was calm, almost detached, as he shrugged. "Perhaps they suspected I lacked ability."
Tojo Hana's mouth twitched. "Those guys…"
Whether she truly agreed or not was uncertain, but for her to voice such disapproval was, in itself, a mark of friendliness. Sensing that lingering on the topic would serve little purpose, Shuta An shifted the conversation toward her work.
"Ms. Tojo, to be responsible for so many Uma Musume at such a young age—that's truly remarkable. You're much stronger than I am."
"I merely inherited the legacy of the previous Rigil team's Trainer," she replied solemnly. "Many of the Uma Musume in our team were recruited before he retired. I just… don't want to disappoint them. Every day, I'm on edge, afraid of making a mistake."
Shuta An could tell that the Central Trainer before him carried genuine nervousness.
He smiled reassuringly. "Still, on the first day, Miss Tojo only needed one sentence to make them quiet down. That alone shows how much they respect and trust you."
Uma Musume possessed superhuman strength; if they chose not to obey, most Trainers could only rely on strict school regulations. Yet here in Hokkaido, far from Tokyo, even the 'Emperor's' influence from Central could not immediately reach to punish rule-breakers.
"There are still some who give me headaches," Tojo Hana admitted with a wry smile, shaking her head as if to dispel the thought. She didn't seem inclined to elaborate further.
Shuta An tactfully refrained from pressing the issue.
As their conversation continued, he subtly steered it toward Silence Suzuka—the chestnut-haired Uma Musume who had been the first Tojo Hana personally recruited after assuming leadership of Team Rigil.
Much like Oguri Cap, Silence Suzuka had a tendency to over train. Tojo Hana had been worried about this habit, and thus, during this summer training camp, she planned to scale back the girl's workload. Her intention was to build Suzuka's endurance—teaching her to control her pace during races rather than sprinting from the start and exhausting her stamina too early. Ideally, Silence Suzuka would learn to conserve energy and still have the power to accelerate in the final stretch.
Incidentally, Shuta An's decision to assign Oguri to swimming stemmed from a similar rationale. Oguri disliked swimming; hence, she wouldn't over train in the water. She would likely complete the regimen he planned and stop there—precisely as he intended.
He nodded when Tojo Hana shared her views. "For a front-runner, learning to endure and control the pace is indeed crucial."
"Suzuka is obedient and follows my instructions faithfully," Tojo Hana said, her eyes brightening as she lifted her chin. "I believe she'll improve."
"There are at least three years until her official debut in the Twinkle Series," she continued with visible pride. "I'm confident I can turn Silence Suzuka into an excellent front-runner."
Her voice carried both ambition and conviction.
Shuta An merely smiled, echoing politely, "Three years—then I'm certain Miss Tojo will hone her into a new star of the Twinkle Series."
"She definitely will!" Tojo Hana clenched her fist with determination. "I'll prove that even without our predecessors' legacy, Team Rigil can still stand as Central's strongest!"
"I wish Miss Tojo great success." Shuta An raised his barley tea in a modest toast before sipping quietly.
By noon, Oguri Cap and Berno Light returned punctually to the hot spring inn for lunch. Shuta didn't wait for them; he simply grabbed a plate of curry for himself. After eating, he returned to his room, letting the air conditioner's cool breeze wash over him. A short while later, the two Uma Musume came back as well.
Sitting in the living room, Shuta tapped the floor lightly with his foot, turning his chair toward them. "Oguri, go take a nap first. You'll need to go out with me at 7 PM tonight."
Though uncertain of his intentions, Oguri Cap merely nodded with her usual composure. "I understand."
Berno Light, meanwhile, awaited her own afternoon assignment. Shuta An stepped into his room and soon returned, holding a black messenger bag. He handed it to Berno Light.
"Inside is Canon's new T80 DSLR camera released this year. I bought it for 130,000 yen in Nagoya before coming to Hokkaido. The film's all prepared as well."
"This is too valuable… I'm afraid I'll break it…" Berno Light's hands trembled as she accepted the bag.
"Berno knows how to use a camera, right?" Shuta An asked evenly, ignoring her hesitation.
"I can take pictures," she replied quickly. Having grown up in a family that ran a sporting goods store, she wasn't unfamiliar with such equipment.
"That's good." Shuta An retrieved his wallet, drew out two Fukuzawa Yukichi bills and some change, and handed them to her.
"I need you to go to Mombetsu Tracen Academy and photograph their training grounds. Then, when you're free on Friday—when you don't accompany Oguri Cap—go again. You don't have to capture the training sessions themselves. I just need to observe how the grounds change."
"Okay, Trainer!" Berno Light accepted the money without argument. "I'll make sure those Mombetsu guys don't notice me!"
"That doesn't matter much," Shuta An replied, his tone casual. "If possible, take photos when the grounds are empty. That way, the Uma Musume there won't feel uncomfortable about it."
Berno Light tilted her head, thinking it over. "That does make sense… Then I'll act according to your instructions, Trainer!"
With a bright nod, she turned to leave.
"The sun's scorching outside," Shuta An reminded her. "Put on sunscreen before you go."
"It's fine!" Berno Light grinned, waving one hand as she stepped out with light, confident strides. "I'm very resistant to the sun!"
And with that, she was gone, the messenger bag swinging lightly by her side as she disappeared down the corridor.
By around 7 PM, Berno Light returned from Mombetsu Tracen Academy, the messenger bag at her side heavy with her findings.
"Go have dinner first," Shuta An said as he took the bag from the chestnut-haired support Uma Musume.
"What about Trainer?" Berno Light's gaze flicked toward his midsection, intuitively guessing that he hadn't eaten yet.
"I'll skip it for now." Shuta An waved his hand dismissively. "I still have to train with Oguri Cap later. Since she can't eat yet, I'll endure it with her for a while."
"Then I won't eat either. I'll head to the training ground with you and Oguri!" Berno Light declared earnestly.
"You don't need to, Berno." Shuta An quickly shook his head. "You went all the way to Mombetsu this afternoon to scout their training grounds—resting now is the best thing you can do. Go have dinner, then enjoy the hot springs. No need to push yourself."
"…Okay, I understand," Berno Light replied obediently, though in truth, she had no plans to soak in the springs alone. In her mind, such things were meant to be done together—with teammates.
After setting Berno Light's evening plan, Shuta An changed into a light summer outfit and slipped on a pair of slippers before heading to the training ground. Under the bright field lights, Oguri Cap was already warming up. Her silver-gray hair gleamed faintly in the glow.
"You can do your morning exercise here as well, Oguri" Shuta said as he approached. "You don't have to go to the park like you did this morning."
"But this morning, all the Uma Musume were already training here," Oguri Cap turned toward him, her tone mild. "I felt… out of place with them."
"There's no need to feel that way," Shuta said, gently patting her shoulder. "You're all Uma Musume—just from different academies. None of you is nobler than the other."
He clicked his tongue, feigning irritation. "Tomorrow morning, come here for your exercise. We've already paid for access; might as well use it."
"I understand," Oguri Cap nodded quietly and resumed her warm-up, her posture neat and composed.
When she finished stretching, Shuta An checked his watch—the minute hand pointed squarely to the ten.
"It's 7:50," he murmured, then looked up. "Get ready. Once I signal, you'll run one lap—four hundred meters—as if it's an actual race."
"Okay," Oguri Cap responded briskly, waving to show she understood before walking onto the track.
There was a specific reason for this training schedule. The Hokkaido Shimbun Hai (G3), Oguri Cap's upcoming target, had a fixed start time of 7:55 PM Tokyo time.
Though many major races were held at night, this would be Oguri Cap's first under such conditions. Over the next two months, Shuta An intended to help her attune her body and focus to this precise rhythm—so that when race day came, she would naturally enter "competition mode" at that same hour. Local Hokkaido Uma Musume didn't need such adjustments. Any of them capable of qualifying for the Hokkaido Shimbun Hai had surely raced under the lights before.
"This is one of Oguri Cap's weaknesses," Shuta An thought to himself.
Unbeknownst to him, Tojo Hana and Silence Suzuka were quietly observing from the shadows outside the field fence. Every word he said reached their ears.
"Practicing a 400-meter dash with full intensity at this hour?" Tojo Hana's brows furrowed in confusion.
"Generally, there's no need to schedule training this late," Silence Suzuka whispered under her breath. She was equally puzzled.
Their bewilderment mirrored each other's. Yet within the field, Oguri Cap—though uncertain herself—did not question her Trainer. In the two months since joining his team, Trainer Shuta's methods had proven their worth more than once.
When the minute hand aligned perfectly with "11," Shuta An gave the signal.
At once, Oguri Cap's muscles sprang to life. She launched forward from her stance with startling precision.
"So fast!" Tojo Hana's eyes widened in disbelief. "That kind of reaction time would be considered excellent even in Central."
"Is she a front-runner like me?" Silence Suzuka frowned slightly. "Her intention to seize the lead after the gate opens is unmistakable—and her acceleration… incredibly sharp."
She visualized the scene of an actual race and, after a moment, her chestnut hair fluttered as she subtly shrank back.
"I couldn't take the lead from her," she admitted to herself, frustration tinged with awe. "Not in my current form."
Tojo Hana's gaze was steady, her expression tightening.
"This isn't mere talent," she murmured.
Oguri Cap's start was beautiful, yes—but what impressed her more was the seamless control of positioning and speed that followed. These weren't instincts born overnight, nor something local Uma Musume could display outside of actual competition.
All of it—Tojo Hana was certain—stemmed from the guidance of that self-effacing overseas 'intern' Trainer who, just that morning, had joked that he was "worse than a pig."
"If that is worse than a pig," she thought bitterly, "then what does that make us Central Trainers?"
Even as she scoffed inwardly, admiration mingled with humility.
"No wonder Rudolph suffered such a crushing defeat during her expedition."
Silence Suzuka nodded slightly beside her. "Indeed. Expeditions are far beyond what Japanese Uma Musume can handle right now"
Meanwhile, Shuta An remained unaware that he and Oguri Cap had an audience. His full attention stayed on the Gray Filly's gait, breathing, and transitions. Every movement reflected balance and strength.
He was satisfied.
The soil here at Hot Spring Inn's training ground, he'd noted earlier, was nearly identical to that of Mombetsu Racecourse—the texture, the compactness, the resistance of each step.
"If she can adapt to this terrain," he thought, "then the race at the end of August will be no problem at all."
A small, confident smile formed on his lips.
Under the lights, Silence Suzuka caught that fleeting expression and felt her heart skip a beat.
Tojo Hana, too, noticed it. Watching him smile, she murmured inwardly,
"If I ever trained a local Uma Musume to such a level, I'd wear that same confident smile myself…"
Yet despite her discovery of Oguri Cap's remarkable potential, Tojo Hana made no move to recruit her. She knew perfectly well why. Because in her eyes, the true lead in this duo was not the Gray Filly— but the young man guiding her.