"Today is a rest day, so everyone relax. For now, you don't need to worry about training or anything like that. It's good to have you two young people here. Come, I'm giving you two a task."
As everyone at the table was about to finish breakfast, Speed Symbol suddenly spoke, assigning a task to Maruzensky and Rudolph Symbol.
Both looked at Speed Symbol in confusion. Kagura also curiously looked at Speed Symbol on her right, hoping for some gossip. Then she saw Speed Symbol raise her hand and gently rub Kagura's head:
"This child still doesn't have any everyday clothes she can wear out. When I open her wardrobe, it's all work clothes. I thought I couldn't let this child keep running around in a maid outfit, but I'm not sure what's popular with young people these days. How about you two take her to a nearby clothing store?"
"Family Head… Ugh!"
Kagura, who was about to speak, was directly silenced by Speed Symbol stuffing a piece of bacon and fried egg into her mouth.
"Don't listen to this child's refusal. Pick out some nice, well-fitting ones, get a few sets. Just come back to me for reimbursement."
Speed Symbol didn't give Kagura a chance to speak, and Maruzensky and Rudolph Symbol also had no intention of refusing Speed Symbol's request. After all, Kagura genuinely lacked everyday clothes, and she was about to enroll. If she were to go out with friends later wearing her work uniform or school uniform, it would be somewhat inappropriate.
So, the two Uma Musume seniors hit it off immediately. Kagura, half-willingly and half-unwillingly, was thus carried away by the two big Uma Musume. She never expected her first time buying clothes in this world to be dragged along like this.
Clothing stores could be found not far from the Hotel Speed Symbol had booked. With the speed of the two big Uma Musume, they could run there in just about ten minutes. Along the way, the Return rate of Kagura and the others was very high, mainly because Rudolph Symbol had won the debut race here yesterday. Kagura could hear discussions about them everywhere along the way.
"Hmph hmph~ We've come all this way, so don't refuse! Come on, go in with Big Sister and try on some clothes~"
Feeling that Kagura was still a bit hesitant, Maruzensky, who was behind her, gently pushed her, sending her into the clothing store.
"Welcome~ Oh, isn't this…?"
The young shop assistant immediately recognized Rudolph Symbol walking in. The other assistants heard the commotion and all looked over. Even the customers in the store cast their gazes this way.
Kagura subconsciously hid behind Maruzensky, who was closest to her. Unaccustomed to being stared at, she was still not good at dealing with such situations. Maruzensky, however, seemed used to it, showing no reaction. Rudolph Symbol, on the other hand, was already naturally greeting the onlookers.
"Ah… Rudolph is indeed better at handling these situations. Let's go, Little Sister. While Rudolph is dealing with the others, let's go look at some clothes first~"
Seeing Rudolph Symbol over there diverting the crowd's attention, and estimating that she wouldn't finish dealing with the enthusiastic Fans anytime soon, Maruzensky took Kagura into the store first to see if there were any suitable clothes.
"I feel like Little Sister suits blue and white clothes. What about you? Do you have a favorite color?"
Maruzensky held up a dress with white as the main color, decorated with many small blue and golden-yellow accessories and lace, and compared it to Kagura. From a normal aesthetic perspective, the clothes Maruzensky chose were very suitable for Little Horse Girls, leaning towards a cute style. However, they didn't quite match Kagura's preferences, because Kagura never considered herself a Little Horse Girls.
"I think black with a bit of white looks better…"
Kagura was quite satisfied with her maid outfit. It didn't look childish, was quite attractive, and could be worn directly for formal occasions, giving a refreshing and capable impression.
"Don't just look at maid outfits all the time! Try this on!"
"Mmm mmm…"
Kagura used to like to buy black jackets and pants, which made her best friends and family always say that her overall color scheme looked a bit gloomy. At least, she didn't really like overly flashy clothes, and the set Maruzensky held already made her a little dizzy just looking at it.
Considering that this time she was here to buy some everyday clothes, and since she was already here, Kagura decided to try a new style different from before.
'Ah, Miss Maruzen is holding a sailor uniform… Should I say, as expected of Japan…?'
Taking the clothes into the fitting room, Kagura subconsciously observed her surroundings to confirm there were no eyes on her. Only then did she carefully unfasten her maid outfit, take it off, hang it on the nearby hanger, and then change into the clothes Maruzensky had given her.
'Hmm… Why is there also this thing?'
Only after putting on the clothes did Kagura notice that Maruzensky had also brought her a pair of white pantyhose. Although Kagura herself was more inclined not to wear such things, looking at the Little Horse Girls in the mirror, Kagura felt it might not be bad to try.
After taking a little time to tidy up her attire, Kagura slipped her small feet into the changing room's complimentary slippers and pushed open the changing room door to step out.
"Miss Maruzen, I feel… Whoa!!"
As soon as she stepped out, Kagura was startled by Maruzensky, who lunged at her. Fortunately, Maruzensky wasn't aiming to knock her down and stopped just in time in front of her.
"I knew Little Sister would look good in this!"
"Is… is that so?"
"I think it's really good, Kagura. You always gave off a serious and formal vibe in your maid outfit. It's also good to occasionally switch to this relaxed style. After all, you also said it yourself, it's better not to always be in work mode to get along with others, right?"
Rudolph Symbol, who had finally finished dealing with the enthusiastic onlookers, also walked over. She nodded in satisfaction, looking at Kagura's outfit. Compared to a capable maid, Rudolph Symbol still hoped Kagura would dress like a child her age, appearing more pure and cute.
After all, no matter how mature, Kagura was still just a child.
"Good. Kagura, how do you feel? If you think it's okay, we can take this one first, alright?"
"If both Young Miss and Miss Maruzen think it's okay… then I don't have much of a problem."
After looking in the mirror several times, Kagura was quite satisfied with her outfit. Uma Musume generally have very high Appearance, so as long as the clothes aren't intentionally matched to be strange or particularly old-fashioned, they usually don't look bad. Kagura couldn't help but sigh that having a good-looking face was indeed quite important.
After returning to the changing room and taking off her clothes, Kagura, following her preference, picked out a few more black and white outfits, which would certainly be enough for her daily activities.
Maruzensky and Rudolph Symbol looked at Kagura, who had gone to pick out a few more black and white outfits, feeling a bit helpless.
However, since Kagura liked clothes in this color scheme, they weren't in a good position to comment on someone else's color preferences.
"By the way, Little Horse Girls, haven't you bought any undergarments either?"
"Since we're already here today, let's just buy all those undergarments for you too."
"I'm not old enough to need to wear those things yet..."
"No!"
"How can a girl not take care of herself like that!"
"You definitely can't not wear these things; it wouldn't be good if your skin got hurt!"
After saying that, Maruzensky, without allowing for any argument, pushed Kagura towards the children's clothing section.
Rudolph Symbol wasn't very good at starting these kinds of topics, so the responsibility of guiding Kagura to buy things was left to Maruzensky.
Seeing her enthusiasm was unusually high, Rudolph Symbol couldn't help but mutter to herself, wondering why she was never that active when working for the Student Council.
Maruzensky picked out a bunch of little vests and similar items for Kagura.
Although Kagura did feel that her current development didn't require such things, after thinking about it, what Maruzensky said made sense, so she didn't refuse again.
She took the clothes, intending to go to the changing room to try them on and see if the size was right.
"Little Horse Girls, you haven't worn underwear before, have you?"
"Do you want Big Sister to help you?"
"No need!!"
Naturally, the introverted Kagura decisively refused Maruzensky's help.
The two Uma Musume seniors quickly helped Kagura sort out the new clothes issue.
Not only everyday clothes and underwear, but they also picked out many different socks for Kagura.
Of course, Maruzensky was still the main one doing the work throughout the process.
Rudolph Symbol, who wasn't very knowledgeable in this area and wasn't good at taking care of Little Horse Girls, could only stand by and watch Maruzensky continuously change Kagura's clothes as if she were a changing doll.
Rudolph Symbol felt there was nothing wrong with it; Kagura, this cute child, looked good in any clothes, except for certain bright-colored ones (like pink ones) which looked a bit odd on her.
Although Maruzensky usually gave Kagura the impression of an old aunt, her aesthetic sense for clothes was quite good.
The outfits she chose for Kagura satisfied both Kagura herself and Rudolph Symbol, fitting Kagura's age well without appearing too childish.
"Satisfied, satisfied~"
Maruzensky, looking refreshed and utterly content, carried large and small bags, humming a tune as she walked, seemingly in a very good mood.
Kagura, who had been treated like a changing doll and tossed around for nearly two hours, looked a bit tired.
She never liked shopping malls before; if her best friend hadn't always dragged her to buy clothes, she probably wouldn't have had much chance to visit clothing stores, let alone have someone like Maruzensky just now help her change clothes and put on socks.
"Kagura, when we return to Tokyo, I will arrange your dormitory at Tracen as soon as possible.
It should be done in a day or two.
Remember to pack your things and move to Tracen then."
Rudolph Symbol didn't forget to remind Kagura to pack her personal belongings.
In reality, Kagura didn't have many things to pack.
Aside from some documents, Kagura's only luggage was the elaborate miko outfit she had been wearing since she transmigrated.
It was a miko outfit that seemed quite inconvenient to put on and take off.
Kagura was already wearing this outfit when she first transmigrated.
She even wore that outfit for a great escape, and what she found incomprehensible was that she didn't know what material this miko outfit was made of.
Even though it was so troublesome to wear, it didn't hinder her running at all.
She felt that she could directly wear that outfit to run on the track without any problems.
'Perhaps that's another one of Eclipse's things?'
At this point, whenever Kagura thought of something unscientific, she could basically blame Eclipse for it.
Kagura also had a general understanding of the subsequent arrangements.
She would enroll in Central Tracen as a Support Musume, providing Rudolph Symbol with all the assistance she could while completing her studies.
'Ha, long-lost student days... why do I feel like I'm a young lady's study companion? It seems I really am...'
Speaking of this life, it was indeed Kagura's first time going to school.
She felt a bit emotional, having been out in the world for so many years, only to circle back and return to school.
For her, campus life was indeed a nostalgic memory.
Before transmigrating, Kagura never imagined she would have the chance to experience a leisurely campus life again, except this time, Kagura had no academic pressure.
When Rudolph Symbol dragged her to Tracen earlier, she also took the opportunity to learn about the Uma Musume's cultural courses.
She didn't know if it was because Uma Musume were generally not very good at academic knowledge, but Tracen's cultural courses taught very basic things, with nothing too difficult.
Given Kagura's educational background, those were all things she had already fully mastered.
'If I don't need to focus on studying, can I do other things?'
Kagura was planning her future in her mind.
Before she knew it, she, Rudolph Symbol, and Maruzensky had returned to the Hotel, carrying large and small bags.
"The children are back... Kagura, did you find any clothes you like?"
"Yes, Maruzen picked out so many for me... I'm really grateful for your care, Family Head, to bother you with such small matters, I'm truly sorry."
"That's not true, I'm happy to bother myself with it."
Speed Symbol stretched out her hand and stroked Kagura's little head.
She knew that after returning to Tokyo, Kagura would be going to Tracen for school in a day or two, and the opportunities to see Kagura would be much fewer then.
Although Tracen itself was not a closed campus and the Uma Musume's activities were quite free, it was still some distance away, and it would definitely not be convenient for Kagura to travel back and forth.
'What's wrong with me, an old woman? Am I reluctant to let the child go?'
Realizing her inner thoughts, Speed Symbol silently ridiculed herself in her heart.
When she sent Rudolph Symbol to school back then, Speed Symbol didn't really feel that sense of reluctance, but Kagura wasn't her child, and they had only known each other for less than two months, yet she felt reluctant when she had to send Kagura away.
'Do I really want a child like this?'