"Hmm..."
Symboli Rudolph woke up groggily from her sleep. She felt as if she heard someone calling her.
"Young lady, it's time to get up."
Slightly more awake, Symboli Rudolph finally confirmed that someone was indeed calling her. The voice was calm and gentle, like soft sunlight caressing her ear.
"Kagura... why are you in my dorm?"
Symboli Rudolph recognized the voice, and she instantly became fully awake. She saw Inari Kagura standing by her bed, looking at her.
"You gave me the dorm key last night and asked me to wake you up this morning. Don't you remember?"
"Uh..."
Feeling like her memory was a bit fragmented, Symboli Rudolph tried hard to recall what happened last night.
She remembered it was around eleven o'clock at night. She was in her office, going through the last document, when she heard a knock on the door, and an Uma Musume walked in... "Last night, I received a call from Miss Tojo, saying you were still working overtime at the Student Council, and asked me to bring you back to the dorm to rest."
Seeing Symboli Rudolph still groggy, Kagura guessed she must have had a blackout while sleeping, so she filled her in on what happened last night.
Symboli Rudolph remembered some things. After Kagura entered the office, she told her to rest immediately. She said she would go after finishing the last document. She vaguely remembered that after signing the last document, Kagura gave her a massage. She felt an incredibly warm and comfortable aura enveloping her, and her subsequent memories became completely blurred. Only the long-unfelt peace and relaxation remained deeply in her memory.
"You managed to walk back to the dorm, then half-asleep, you showered and changed clothes, and fell asleep directly on me... *cough*, Young lady, while hard work is commendable, being this exhausted is not appropriate."
It's no exaggeration to say that Symboli Rudolph's behavior when she returned to the dorm last night could be described as sleepwalking. Around eleven o'clock, Kagura, who was already scrolling through food videos to lull herself to sleep, received a message from Tojo Hana, asking her to drag Symboli Rudolph back.
Kagura, upon receiving the task, rushed downstairs to report to the dorm leader, then ran all the way to the Teaching Building. When she entered the Student Council office, Symboli Rudolph was still quite awake. Later, after she offered to help with a massage, Symboli Rudolph started sleepwalking.
"Ah..."
Listening to Kagura's detailed description of her activities last night, Symboli Rudolph couldn't help but blush a little. However, she felt exceptionally energetic today, indicating that her sleep quality last night was quite high.
She looked around her dorm. Due to being busy with her debut race and internal school matters, her dorm, which she had neglected to tidy, had been cleaned at some point. All sorts of items, big and small, were back in their places, scattered clothes were neatly hung, and the desk and floor seemed to have been cleaned, with no dust visible, gleaming brightly in the sunlight.
"Alright, let's not talk about last night anymore. Young lady, since you're up, hurry and get ready. The clothes you need to change into are already hung in the wardrobe, and breakfast is ready on the table. I woke up a bit late today, so I could only get breakfast from the Dining Hall. Next time, I'll bring you my homemade breakfast."
Symboli Rudolph, who still wanted to ask something, was thus pulled up by Kagura and pushed to get ready. Long before Symboli Rudolph woke up, Kagura had already gotten up, cleaned and tidied her dorm, and also brought breakfast.
When she had changed and eaten breakfast, preparing to leave, Symboli Rudolph, still a bit dazed from her excellent sleep quality last night, remembered Speed Symbol's evaluation of Kagura.
"Just this once should be fine, right..."
Symboli Rudolph, who had been too busy to take care of herself lately, thought to herself. She rarely felt so good when going out. This feeling of being taken care of was indeed very nice. And besides, Kagura was just a child, after all, she couldn't possibly do this every day. She would just enjoy it occasionally... After taking Symboli Rudolph to the Student Council to start her day's work, Kagura also temporarily entered a state of free activity. Since it was still summer break, Central Tracen had not arranged any theoretical courses, so she currently had no classes to attend.
However, earlier, she heard the sound of a loudspeaker speech in the Teaching Building, and out of curiosity, with the super hearing of an Uma Musume, she quickly followed the sound and found its source: a place like an auditorium, where a lecture seemed to be taking place.
"Hmm? I remember..."
Kagura vaguely remembered glancing at the school gate when she passed the atrium, and Hayakawa Tazuna was still standing there.
She didn't understand how Hayakawa Tazuna could appear at the auditorium entrance when it took her less than half a minute to walk from the atrium to this auditorium.
'Does Miss Hayakawa have instant transmission!?'
Having already experienced supernatural phenomena like Eclipse, Kagura couldn't help but suspect that Hayakawa Tazuna might also be some unconventional being.
"Good morning, Kagura. Are you up so early?"
Seeing Kagura walk over, Hayakawa Tazuna greeted her.
"Miss Hayakawa, is there a lecture going on in there?"
Kagura decided to temporarily ignore how Hayakawa Tazuna appeared here; she was more interested in what was being discussed inside.
"Yes, it's a meeting for Trainers. The recruitment of new Trainers has just finished, and the senior Trainers are going to share their experience with the newcomers."
"Sharing experience, huh... Can I go in and listen?"
In her impression, the duties of a Trainer and a Support Musume had some commonalities.
Kagura also wanted to learn about this aspect, and since she happened to come across a Trainer's lecture, she was willing to listen.
"Well... Kagura, do you really want to go in and listen? Trainer courses aren't very useful for Uma Musume and are quite boring.
No Uma Musume has ever attended a Trainer's meeting before, you know?"
"I am a Support Musume, and I want to understand how Trainers usually take care of Uma Musume.
It's also to better care for the Young Lady. Can I go in and listen?"
"...Please wait a moment."
Hayakawa Tazuna did not immediately agree to Kagura's request, because no Uma Musume had ever participated in such a lecture before.
Other Uma Musume were usually busy with training, studying, or going out to relax.
Moreover, there were few Support Musume at Tracen, so even fewer would come to listen to something like this.
Watching Hayakawa Tazuna type messages on her phone for a while, Kagura guessed she was communicating with someone.
After a short while, Hayakawa Tazuna put away her phone and nodded to Kagura:
"If Kagura is interested in learning, we can make an exception and let her attend.
However, Kagura, the content discussed at the meeting might involve some small secrets of the Trainers' work, so please be discreet."
"Alright!"
And so, having received permission to enter, Kagura carefully pushed open the door and slipped inside.
Kagura, being a small person, was quite inconspicuous in the back row, so her quiet entry didn't attract anyone's attention.
She quickly ran to the back row, found an empty seat, and sat down.
'Why does the person on the left feel a bit familiar...'
After sitting down, she instinctively observed her surroundings.
Kagura noticed that the young man on her left, who was sucking on a lollipop and exuded a frivolous air, looked somewhat familiar.
The young man on the left also noticed Kagura slipping in and sitting down, and quickly looked over—
"Ah! That lollipop weirdo from that day!"
Seeing the other person's face, Kagura quickly remembered that this was the weirdo who had stopped her on the street about a month ago and asked if he could touch her leg.
"Why is an Uma Musume here?!"
Fortunately, both of them controlled their volume, and their exclamations did not attract anyone's attention.
This was a Trainer's lecture, but by regulation, Uma Musume were not forbidden from obtaining Trainer licenses, so theoretically, an Uma Musume Trainer could appear here.
However, such Uma Musume were extremely rare, as most Uma Musume did not have the inclination to learn the complex and tedious knowledge of a Trainer.
Just focusing on race training already took all their effort, leaving no time to learn about such things.
Even after retirement, they generally wouldn't think about becoming Trainers, so Uma Musume usually didn't appear here.
"Hey, what's with all the sudden commotion, you kid... Kagura? What are you doing here?"
However, the commotion from the lollipop weirdo still attracted the attention of another Trainer in the back row—Tojo Hana was also sitting in the back row, listening to the meeting, so she naturally couldn't miss the activity here.
"I wanted to understand the work content of Trainers, so I applied to come and listen... Uh, is it strange?"
"Frankly, I've been at Tracen for so many years, and this is the first time I've seen an Uma Musume at such a lecture.
While it's not impossible, such Uma Musume are truly rare."
Tojo Hana nodded; she seemed much calmer and quickly accepted the fact of Kagura's presence here.
She knew that Kagura was a Support Musume, and thus indeed a person who might come to observe.
"By the way, do you know this kid? How did you two meet? He didn't do anything rude to you, did he?"
"Well... not really? He just asked if he could touch my leg on the street that day... but I refused."
"Good, progress.
At least he knows to ask first, instead of just grabbing."
Saying that, Tojo Hana raised her pen and tapped the lollipop weirdo's head.
"Hey... Hana, at least let me leave a good impression in front of the cute student..."
"This is for your own good.
If you scare away a few more Uma Musume like that, you'll be expelled for academic performance.
Control yourself.
When the new students enroll this semester, find a few to be in charge of.
It's a pity for your skills to go unused."
"Yes..."
The lollipop weirdo nodded very humbly.
Kagura suddenly had a subtle feeling; the relationship between these two seemed surprisingly good.
"Let me introduce you.
This is Trainer Nishizaki Ryu, also called Okino by some colleagues.
And... this is Inari Kagura, a new student enrolling in the elementary division this year."
"Hello, Mr. Nishizaki."
Kagura nodded; she hadn't expected to meet this acquaintance, in a sense, here.
"So, Kagura, your interest in the Trainer lecture is... are you planning to get a Trainer's license, or do you want to learn how to apply this knowledge to your work?"
Although Tojo Hana accepted the fact that an Uma Musume had appeared here, she couldn't help but be curious as to why Kagura would come to listen to this Trainer lecture, which no Uma Musume ever attended.
"For now, I just want to apply it to my work, yes."
In fact, besides obtaining relevant certifications for a Support Musume, Kagura did have plans to get a Trainer's license.
This was also one of her reasons for sneaking into the lecture today, as having an extra certificate meant an extra path.
What if this certificate really came in handy?
"While I'm not entirely against students learning more, Kagura, to be honest, I'd prefer you to focus on running.
Your talent is truly exceptional."
Tojo Hana had seen Kagura run and knew how good her talent was.
She wasn't saying she didn't want students to learn more, but from what she had seen, few Uma Musume could simultaneously manage daily physical training and the level of theoretical study required for a Trainer.
Those who tried to do both often ended up grasping neither.
"The things you were curious about earlier, I've analyzed them today, Kagura.
I'll say a few things now, and you can listen; it should be useful for your future planning."
"Yes?"
Seeing that the host at the front was still giving the opening remarks, Kagura temporarily shifted her attention to Tojo Hana.
"Regarding Kagura's talent, based on her running performance that day, her compatibility with grass is excellent, and her stamina and explosiveness are both exceptionally strong.
As for running style, I believe 'Escape' suits her best, but her concentration has some flaws, which might affect her Escape style."
"However, her explosiveness can also support her running 'Chaser'... Hmm, I can't be certain about this yet, as I haven't seen her state when competing with other Uma Musume.
Additionally, given her introverted and quiet personality, I'm unsure how much other Uma Musume affect her.
Some Uma Musume are easily startled, making them unsuitable for running in crowded Chaser groups."
Nishizaki Ryu, who had been looking down, had somehow recovered and was listening attentively to Tojo Hana's analysis.
Although Kagura was also listening, she hadn't yet fully understood the professional terms, as she was not very familiar with Trainer and Uma Musume common knowledge.
"As for distance adaptability, although there's still a lack of experimental information to prove it, I speculate she should be adaptable to all distances."
"All-adaptable?? Is this child that amazing?"
"Most likely.
You must have seen the recording of that training race I sent you.
A full 1600-meter 'Great Escape,' and she could still unleash such terrifying final speed at the very end.
After finishing, she even had stamina left.
Her explosive limit and distance limit still have considerable room for extension."
After speaking, Tojo Hana and Nishizaki Ryu both looked at Kagura, who was sitting obediently beside them.
Although Kagura's displayed abilities still had a gap compared to those Uma Musume at the peak of G1, they both knew that Kagura had not yet undergone her 'Full-scale' (full awakening) and hadn't even reached the age to compete.
Her potential was far from limited to this.
"It's truly exaggerated.
I can almost see the Track sides packed with Trainers wanting to scout her during the Tracen Academy's internal selection race."
After a long pause, Nishizaki Ryu finally spoke in a hushed tone.
Fortunately, Tojo Hana's voice was not loud, and in this back row, only Nishizaki Ryu and Kagura could hear her words.
If so many Trainers here had heard about such a promising talent, this place would surely have erupted, and this meeting probably couldn't have continued.
"What, you're not planning to scout her?"
"Of course I want to! Who could refuse such a promising talent? But she has to be willing. There are so many Trainers at Tracen, and this child has no reason to constantly focus on me. I can't exactly just throw a sack over her and drag her back, can I?"
"Mr. Nishizaki, that would be kidnapping, and I would call the police."
Kagura smiled as she responded to Nishizaki Ryu's words, which she wasn't sure were a joke or not. It should have been a joke, but for some reason, Kagura felt as if someone at Tracen could really do something like that.
"Hmm… you're still young, so there's no rush for this kind of thing. It's not too late to make your choice once you understand these matters better."
Saying this, Tojo Hana reached out and stroked Kagura's head.
'They have such high expectations for me. Am I really that strong?'
Kagura, who had always been a little unconfident, couldn't help but think. Although she didn't fully understand Tojo Hana's analysis, she could tell from their reactions how high their expectations were for her. Being anticipated made her happy, but she also worried if she would be able to live up to such expectations. After all, her strengths used to be in reading, memory, and exams, not sports.
However, if it was true, as Tojo Hana said, that she had such talent, she felt that she could spare some time to train on the Track. After all, it would be a bit of a waste not to make good use of such an excellent body.
"Children aren't suited for overly intense training yet. However, Kagura, you can try to train your concentration. This is quite important for you. Besides that, from my observation, Kagura, your running style is almost identical to that of an ordinary human. You subconsciously conserve energy, which affects your full performance. You'd best modify it."
Even with her human running posture, Kagura's performance was already approaching the professional level of an Uma Musume. This indicated that she was still holding back. If she could correct her running style and the existing problems, then she would very likely… no, Tojo Hana was certain, she would be the next Symboli Rudolph, or even a stronger existence.
"I see… I understand. Thank you, Miss Tojo."
Although she still didn't know how to train concentration and running style, Kagura still noted down Tojo Hana's advice.
It was also at this moment that Kagura heard the host's voice from the podium. It seemed the meeting had begun. She stopped speaking, and the two Trainers beside her also said nothing more.