Since it wasn't during a race period, there weren't many people at Tokyo Racecourse. Besides Kagura, the only people who would come in at this time were some Uma Musume Kagura didn't know and who were likely their Trainers.
However, the Racecourse didn't allow him to run on the track. Even if he applied, he could only walk around the outer circle up to the viewing stands. He could understand this, as the grounds also needed maintenance. They couldn't just let people run around wildly at any time. The extent of damage an Uma Musume's foot strength could do to the ground was evident from Tracen's turf, which needed repairs every now and then.
Recently, Kagura had even seen the Chairwoman personally operate machinery to help students compact the Racecourse, which greatly surprised him. He really hadn't expected Akikawa Yayoi to have mastered such a peculiar skill.
—Closer, closer, look carefully!
Eclipse urged Kagura to get as close to the Racecourse area as possible and to observe and memorize the conditions of the grounds as thoroughly as possible.
—Look closely, it's best if you can touch it a few times. Once I recover, I'll take you to run a few laps here in your dreams to try it out!
'Ah? Is that even possible?'
It must be said, Eclipse always managed to come up with new tricks. Although Kagura thought about it carefully and realized it was reasonable; last time, Eclipse also recreated the Niigata Racecourse in his dream based on Kagura's memory, and then left Kagura more than ten body lengths behind in a big escape.
Since he had this advantage, Kagura naturally wanted to utilize it. However, with the fence blocking the way, Kagura could at most only touch the outermost circle of the Racecourse, but Eclipse said that was enough.
—Why are the grounds here, one and all, so hard? It's truly annoying! What's the difference between ground this hard and the concrete in the city?! Who will be responsible if the children's feet get injured from running on it?
After walking a full circle around the grounds, Kagura had roughly memorized the Racecourse's conditions. Eclipse also seemed to have finished memorizing it, and Kagura quickly saw Eclipse's complaints on his phone.
Kagura also realized that when he used to stroll on the Symboli Family's Racecourse, he didn't feel that foot-aching sensation from running, at least not significantly. Later, on Tracen's Racecourse, he noticed his feet were distinctly more uncomfortable after running a lap. It seemed that it wasn't his imagination.
"This place has many straightaways… the sprint distance is very long."
—A great place for a strong dash, and the turns are wide, so there's no need to worry about colliding. You can let loose and shake off opponents. It's my kind of Racecourse, but the ground is a bit too hard.
While Eclipse was commenting on the Racecourse, Kagura was also taking notes in a small notebook. He compared the features and quickly remembered that Tracen also had training grounds similar to Tokyo Racecourse. Not only did they have many long straightaways, but even the daunting slope on the straightaway was identical, likely built to imitate this place.
'Speaking of which, Eclipse, have you ever thought about running again?'
—Although I love to run, a Racecourse without opponents is too boring. And even if there were opponents now, what could I, a spirit, possibly do?
'Uh… As a spirit, Eclipse, don't you have those traditional horror movie functions, like possession?'
—Just assume I don't.
Although she said she didn't, Kagura felt that what Eclipse meant to convey was not that she truly didn't.
It took Kagura almost an entire morning to survey the Racecourse. She chatted intermittently with Eclipse while taking notes. After finishing the basic situation record, Kagura thanked the Racecourse staff and left.
Kagura had taken the day off, expecting the survey to take a long time, so she still had plenty of time left. She wondered if she should go back now to catch lunch, but looking at the time, it was already afternoon, and she would have missed the mealtime if she went back.
'Should I just wander around outside?'
—How about we go to that shop over there for lunch? It looks delicious.
Just as this thought popped into Kagura's mind, she saw Eclipse's message on the screen.
Kagura looked around; there was only one shop nearby, so Eclipse must have been referring to this one. However, Eclipse never usually recommended food, which made Kagura feel a little strange.
'Why is Miss Eclipse suddenly recommending food? Also, what item in there caught Miss Eclipse's eye?'
—I'm not sure what you modern people call that item. Look at the display window, the third item from the left on the second row.
'Isn't that a waffle? Let me see...'
Kagura was indeed a bit hungry now. The rich aroma of baking wafting from the shop made her hunger even more apparent, but she still didn't understand why Eclipse would recommend it to her.
Although she didn't understand, Kagura still followed Eclipse's request and sat down in the bakery, ordering the waffle Eclipse mentioned. To be honest, for Kagura, who was usually frugal, ordering this item made her feel a little pained.
'Has Miss Eclipse eaten waffles before? Why would she suddenly recommend this?'
—I ate it when I was alive. Afternoon tea at home... I remember seeing it often. It's been so long since I've tasted it, I miss it a little.
'Eh... So, does that mean Miss Eclipse wanted to eat it, which is why she asked me to come? But what's the point of asking me to eat it?'
—You just eat, I have my own way.
After Eclipse finished speaking, Kagura felt a cool sensation slowly wrap around her neck to her chin, like Eclipse was gently hugging her from behind.
Although she didn't quite understand Eclipse's meaning, Kagura still obediently complied. Picking up a freshly baked waffle, Kagura opened her small mouth and took a gentle bite. The intense aroma of caramel and milk, accompanied by a crispy sound, burst in Kagura's mouth, intertwining with the taste of honey on top, making her feel her motivation rise!
—The heat is good, baked golden and crispy, rich in aroma, sweet, truly nostalgic.
Kagura quickly saw Eclipse's words on her phone. It seemed her mood was also quite good. Kagura then understood that Eclipse's sudden recommendation of this item was truly because she was craving it, and she was sharing perception with her through some unknown means.
'Does Miss Eclipse like waffles? I can also learn to make them for you to eat, you know?'
—It's just been a long time, so I'm inevitably a bit nostalgic. This is a dessert, baked hard, with a lot of oil added, so it's easy to get fat if you eat it. It's fine to eat it once or twice for a craving, but what if you eat these things all the time and get fat? Forget it, forget it.
Eclipse consciously controlled her desires. Clearly, anything Eclipse wanted to eat now, she could only experience through Kagura's mouth. And she always had to consider Kagura's physical condition, which made things inconvenient and quite pitiful.
'Then... Miss Eclipse, can you recommend other foods?'
—Forget about other things. Besides afternoon tea desserts, there's nothing else I'd be comfortable mentioning.
Kagura felt a hint of helplessness subtly revealed in Eclipse's words.
After enjoying a long-awaited leisurely afternoon tea with Eclipse, Kagura herself was in a pleasant mood from the delicious food. Judging by Eclipse's message, she should also be in a good mood now.
To make it convenient to make them anytime in the future, Kagura also went to ask the shop owner for the waffle recipe. The young female shop owner seemed to have no reservations and enthusiastically explained it to Kagura. Coupled with Kagura's good cooking foundation, she quickly understood the specific method.
"By the way, lovely young lady... I've been curious, are you Teacher Inari Kagura?"
While chatting after learning, Kagura suddenly heard the female shop owner mention her online name. She looked at the shop owner with a hint of surprise. She remembered never showing her face in her videos.
"I've always followed Teacher's food channel. I recognized Teacher because I just saw Machikane Tadahashi's post... Hehe~ I didn't expect Teacher to be such a cute girl too. Can I take a picture with Teacher?"
'I almost forgot about Machikane Tadahashi... Well, never mind.'
Kagura, who had just been puzzled, suddenly realized. It seemed Machikane Tadahashi's influence was much greater than she had imagined, and she didn't expect to meet her Fans here. Kagura remembered her Fans count was only forty to fifty thousand, with a large number of chinese netizens among them. To still encounter a Fan made Kagura sigh at how small Japan was.
As for taking pictures, Kagura wasn't very particular about it, so she agreed. After taking a photo with the enthusiastic young shop owner, Kagura bid farewell to the owner and left the shop.
—Yo, I didn't realize you were quite famous. So, posting videos online every day can really gather Fans, huh?
'Miss Eclipse, what you're saying... If I couldn't gather Fans, what would I be posting videos for?'
Kagura took out her phone and checked the time. It was almost time to go back. She planned her route to the nearest station and also glanced at her Umastagram account.
Kagura had originally intended to see what the female shop owner had posted, but when she saw her Fans count had doubled, breaking through one hundred thousand, Kagura couldn't help but suspect there was a software bug:
"Huh?"
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