"I thought you'd be hiding and crying secretly because you lost the race."
"Hmph! I'm not a little pushover like you. I can afford to lose this race, and Rice Shower is a very powerful opponent."
"Next time, I will definitely win, no matter who I face!"
"That's the spirit~ Alright, let's go train!"
Watching McQueen and Teio's antics, Starlight waved her hand with a smile.
"Mm..."
"Okay!"
The three Uma Musume ran together on the grass, their thoughts suddenly drifting back to that summer.
"What are your plans for later?"
"The Takarazuka Kinen!"
"The Yasuda Kinen..."
"Those are both good. If I want to participate in a race, I'll probably have to wait a long time."
"I hope I can make it to this year's Arima Kinen..."
"Though it might be improper to say, I think you should rest, Starlight-chan."
Mejiro McQueen looked at the silver-haired Uma Musume beside her.
At some point, a burning flame had appeared in the other's eyes, bright and inextinguishable.
"Resting is fine occasionally, but once I stay still for too long, I can't help but want to run. Even if it's troublesome now, needing rest and recovery after a race, so what?"
"I feel happy because I can still run, because I can still gallop on the turf. That's enough."
"I'll do my best in the races too. If we meet at the racetrack, I won't hold back!"
As she spoke, Starlight's pace quickened.
Under the setting sun, the silver-haired Uma Musume's shadow was cast long across the ground.
But her figure grew further and smaller, as if she were about to vanish...
"I won't let you disappear from my sight, Starlight! If I really catch hold of you, I'll never let go for a lifetime!"
Muttering, Mejiro McQueen suddenly accelerated to catch up.
"Hey, Starlight-chan, McQueen-chan! Why did you suddenly speed up?! Hmph! It's impossible to leave me behind—"
Teio raised her hand, paused, then smiled as she strode forward to chase after the two.
In the early morning, a gentle sea breeze blew.
Starlight crawled out of her sleeping bag and glanced at her phone charging on a power-bank in the corner.
8:23 A.M.
Scratching her messy hair, she yawned and snuggled back into the covers.
Beside her, in the sleeping bag near the tent flap, a black Uma Musume slowly emerged from the covers.
Rice Shower put on her rose hair ornament and picked up a comb to tidy her messy hair.
Checking herself in the mirror and finding it smooth, she put it back in her bag.
Glancing at Divine Starlight, who was preparing to go back to sleep, Rice Shower clenched her fists, took a deep breath, crawled over, and began to shake her blanket.
"Starlight-chan. Wake up... Didn't you say today's lunch depends on your fishing?"
Hearing this, the originally squinting Divine Starlight was startled.
Her golden eyes widened as she flipped over and sat up, grabbing Rice Shower's hand.
"Rice-chan, you brought other food, right?"
"Well...I did, but it's planned for the next few days... Maybe the only extra things are two bags of bread I bought on sale."
Hearing this, Starlight immediately breathed a sigh of relief and gave Rice Shower a hug.
"That's good... I'm heading out to go fishing now~"
"Mm. I'll go set up the campsite..."
The two Uma Musume began their separate tasks.
After changing, Starlight put on her slippers, unzipped the tent, and walked out.
The sound of crashing waves mixed with the cries of distant seagulls.
A faint briny scent carried by the breeze blew against her face.
Starlight squinted, soaking in the unique seaside atmosphere.
After a while, she picked up a nearby bucket and a pair of sharp tongs and headed toward the distant shore.
Today and the next three days were the camping trip she had agreed upon with Rice Shower.
Since everyone else had races and training, only the two of them were here, which was a wonderful time for Rice Shower.
'Starlight has many friends and is accompanied by others every day, while Rice has few friends, so my time with Starlight was limited...'
Thinking this, Rice Shower's purple eyes focused.
"Okay! Rice Shower needs to finish her tasks well, then wait for Starlight to come back so we can eat lunch together by the sea..."
Taking out a sun umbrella, Rice Shower carried it swaying step by step to a spot not far from the tent and planted it.
Then she spread a blanket and set up two lounge chairs under the umbrella.
On the other side, she marked out a spot for a fire in front of the tent, found several branches of similar size to surround it, and was currently assembling a rack nearby for grilling.
On Starlight's side, she had walked on the beach for quite a while.
Looking back at her footprints, she saw they were being washed away from time to time by the seawater.
The tongs in her hand was also covered in wet sand.
Wiping the sweat from her face, she looked at the few small crabs in the bucket and sighed.
"No big catches. A few more steps forward and I'll reach the tide pools."
"I hope the little pools over there have some fish or something..."
Glancing at the sun in the sky and estimating the time, Starlight decided to pick up the pace, or else high tide would soon arrive.
Besides the rustling sound, there was the sound of her fair, delicate feet stepping with her slippers.
Starlight sped up and soon arrived at a small pool surrounded by rocks.
Peering inside, she suddenly saw a lobster hiding in a dark corner.
Opposite it were three huge crabs.
Starlight's eyes lit up.
She set down the bucket and quickly modified the tongs into a spear-like device.
Circling around to the spot above where the lobster was hiding, Starlight's eyes narrowed as she focused.
She instantly lunged forward with the spear.
Whoosh.
The spear pierced into the sand and stones, kicking up a cloud of dust and sending a few bubbles to the surface.
The silver-haired Uma Musume slowly lifted the spear out of the water.
Seeing nothing on it but a few green leaves, she turned her gaze back to the calm water.
The lobster floated slowly, unscathed, its small back legs still paddling away.
"It's fine... again!"
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
...After several attempts, Starlight lay slumped over the rocks, looking dejectedly at the lobster as it leisurely swam and waved its claws.
The way it moved looked as if it were mocking the incompetent Uma Musume.
"Dammit... I was outplayed... I'll catch these three crabs first."
Switching the spear back to tongs, Starlight moved to the three crabs and struck accurately.
Compared to the lobster, these crabs were much duller.
After a few tries, they all ended up in the bucket.
Looking at the rocks beneath her feet, the seawater was about to submerge them.
Starlight decided to try one last time.
She slowly approached the lobster with the tongs.
She just needed to clamp down quickly and firmly.
Her heart couldn't help but race as Starlight stared unblinkingly at the slowly drifting lobster.
Whoosh!
She clamped down hard, but with a flick of its tail, the lobster swam away and instantly appeared to the side.
Starlight immediately stabbed at it again.
Clang.
Hearing a different sound, Starlight curled her lips and slowly lifted the tongs.
"Hmph, you think you can still hide from me— Eh? Who are you?"
Looking at a sea bass pierced by the tip of the tongs, Starlight was a bit dazed.
"Whatever, I don't care who you are. You look like you've still got some meat left, so get in."
After tossing the fish into the bucket, Starlight glanced back at the lobster one last time, sighed, and hurried back toward the campsite.