Faced with Gold Ship's aggressive kick, Kitahara instinctively retreated a few steps, simultaneously recalling his experiences from the game.
In the game, Gold Ship's victory animation after winning a championship was to charge the player with such a double-barreled kick.
Later, when she got new swimsuit and formal dress skins, there would be new types of "sharing the joy of victory with the trainer" animations, such as a "butt-stock strike" and an "over-the-shoulder throw."
Due to the overly joyous display of this peculiar horse girl in her victory animation, Kitahara once suspected that the reason she tried so hard in the races was likely for the purpose of giving him a kick, a butt-stock strike, or an over-the-shoulder throw after the victory.
And after kicking air, the little Gold Ship in front of him had an eager expression, seemingly confirming his suspicion.
"Ooh-hoo, to be able to dodge my 'Gold Ship Invincible Cyclone Flying Kick,' that's quite impressive, you fellow."
She bounced twice in place, stood on her tiptoes, and looked ready to charge again. "Besides Takumi, Tsu-chan, Taka-chan, and a few others, I haven't seen anyone else who can dodge this kick."
"No way, I have to kick you again! You definitely won't escape this time!"
...Hey, hey, hey, you seem to only have a few playmates, so doesn't that mean anyone can dodge it? Also, don't compare a horse girl to a normal human like me!
Facing this odd horse girl, Kitahara felt his urge to complain multiply countless times more than usual. Just as he wanted to voice a few complaints to the little Gold Ship, a persuasive voice, laced with laughter, came from the side.
"Alright, alright, little Gold Ship, stop fooling around. Didn't I tell you we're taking you out for hamburgers tonight?"
Smiling and walking over from the side, Imanari Takanori stood between Kitahara and Gold Ship with his hands clasped behind his back, a smile on his face.
"Eh? Eh?! Grandpa, when did you get here?"
Upon seeing Imanari Takanori, Gold Ship immediately beamed with joy. The odd, mischievous aura from before instantly vanished, replaced by an extremely obedient demeanor.
Gold Ship has the gray coat lineage, but being young, her hair wasn't the silvery-gray yet. Most of her long hair was still chestnut, with only a part of her bangs having the silvery-gray characteristic of the gray coat.
This made her look completely different from the Gold Ship Kitahara remembered.
"Grandpa, Grandpa, are we going to eat that really big hamburger? Can I eat a huge one all by myself?"
Holding up her two small hands to gesticulate in a very docile and cute manner, the little one looked full of anticipation.
"Of course, when has Grandpa ever lied to little Gold Ship?"
Imanari Takanori nodded affirmingly with a smile, then bent down, picked up the little Gold Ship, and affectionately rubbed her cheek. After laughing heartily at her giggling expression, he looked at Kitahara.
"Kitahara, you should join us, too."
"I remember the director mentioning when he contacted me earlier that Maruzensky and your partner horse girl, Oguri Cap, have also arrived."
"We can talk while we eat, and I can formally introduce you to these little ones in my care."
Following Imanari Takanori's suggestion, Kitahara quickly contacted Maruzensky and Oguri Cap, who had been searching for the Gold Ship for a while. After meeting up, the group headed to a hamburger restaurant.
It was here that Kitahara realized that the "little ones in my care" Imanari Takanori spoke of were indeed the most famous horse girls from several generations of the "Gold Family".
Not only them, but Dream Journey and Nakayama Festa, who were in elementary school, also came. Even Fenomeno, who hadn't started kindergarten yet was carried along by Stay Gold.
As Kitahara experienced the unique "quirky atmosphere" of the "Gold Family" filling the table, he couldn't help but secretly lament.
Goodness gracious, I've stumbled into a nest of gold, haven't I? Bringing out so many horse girls from the Gold family...
"Noriko, can you please eat properly and stop playing with that dice?"
"I can't do that, Big Sister. I have an exam tomorrow, and I need to get familiar with the luck of this dice in advance, or I'll fail the test tomorrow."
"Why would you use something like a dice for an exam? Can't you just take a proper test?"
"Little Dream, how can you scold her? You've already failed several tests. If you keep this up, you'll have to repeat a grade. Don't you want to test into the Central Tracen Academy?"
"Of course I want to study hard and pass, Big Sister, but these few tests weren't my lucky days, what can I do?"
"Ugh, Little Dream-sis, you criticize me for playing with a dice, but aren't you relying on things like lucky days?"
"Is a dice the same as a lucky day? Your dice is something you came up with completely on your own, right? I properly consulted with Tosen Ra, and she told me I need to take the test on a lucky day to pass."
"Tosen Ra... Can't you two take a normal exam?!"
"Uh... Big Sister, don't raise your voice so much, you're scaring little Fenomeno."
"What did Kyosho say... Oh, oh, I'm sorry, little Fenomeno. Big Sister's voice was a bit loud. Don't cry, don't cry... Okay, all of you, stop arguing. Can't you all just eat quietly like little Gold Ship?"
"Hmm? You all want to try eating the special 10-patty hamburger in one go, too? I think it's very fun to eat like this."
"...No, we don't want to try it, you weirdo..." xN.
Since arriving at the hamburger restaurant, this group of horse girls had been chattering like this.
Kitahara even felt that, compared to his sister, who relied on lucky days and dice to pass exams, or attempted to eat a 10-patty hamburger in one bite, Stay Gold, the eldest sister, seemed surprisingly normal, even though she was famously strange at the Central Academy.
So, hearing their unanimous complaints now, he couldn't help but feel helpless.
...I think all of you are weirdos, alright? As expected of the horse girls of the Gold Family...
"Heh heh, I apologize for this, Kitahara."
Clearly long accustomed to the character and style of his children, Imanari Takanori not only didn't discourage Stay Gold and their arguing but looked at them with a loving expression and offered an explanation.
"They just have very lively personalities and enjoy fooling around like this normally."
"...I was somewhat mentally prepared, so please don't worry about me, Old Man."
Smiling bitterly internally, Kitahara outwardly responded as calmly as possible, then reached out to his side.
"Coincidentally, among the children here, I believe this is the first time you've met them, Old Man. I'll help introduce them."
The gathering wasn't just for the Gold Family horse girls. Matikanetannhauser, who always sticks to Oguri Cap, had also come along.
This child was very familiar with Imanari Takanori, who also knew her parents. After a brief contact, her parents agreed to let her attend the dinner, promising to drop her off afterward, and thus she was able to join.
Besides Matikanetannhauser, Maruzensky, and Oguri Cap, two other horse girls were joining the meal at the table.
"This child is Special Week. She is in the same elementary school as Dream Journey and Nakayama Festa, and recently moved up to the higher grades. She should be able to test into the Central Tracen Academy next year or the year after."
Kitahara pointed to the Special Week, who was eating voraciously. According to the child, she happened to hear Dream Journey and Nakayama Festa mention his name after school, and very spontaneously mixed in with them to join the meal.
Hearing someone introduce her, Little Special Week, who lifted her head from a pile of fries and hamburgers, politely nodded to Imanari Takanori and raised her hand, saying:
"Hello, Grandpa. My name is Special Week, and I'm from Hokkaido. I just transferred here a while ago."
Then, she thoughtfully introduced the companion next to her to Kitahara.
"This is my good friend I recently met, her name is Opera O. She heard I was coming here and said she was bored eating alone in the cafeteria and dorm, so I invited her to come along."
"Hah~ Hahaha! Everyone, I am the most elegant, most powerful, and most beautiful existence in the Horse Girl Elementary School! Next year, I will head to the Central Tracen Academy like Spe-chan! Please look forward to my performance, which will be as magnificent as a song!"
In a clear, carefully rehearsed dramatic tone, the horse girl, wearing a crown-like hair ornament and bright earrings, swiftly stood up and performed a very formal, classical bow to the people around the table.
She then sat back down with complete composure, continuing to elegantly and quietly enjoy her hamburger.
"...Uh hehehe, Grandpa, please don't pay too much attention to her. Opera O... she's just usually like this..."
Seemingly still not quite used to her newly acquainted friend, Little Special Week embarrassingly tried to explain on her behalf.
The arguing between Stay GOld and the others also stopped because of Opera O's "extremely strange" introduction, and they all looked over.
"...This child is so strange."
"Hmm, I agree with Big Sister. Very strange."
"She is indeed very strange, but I feel like she's very strong."
"I don't think we have the right to call other horse girls strange... But what Noriko-sis said is right, this strange older sister does seem very strong..."
"Hmm? What's strange? Can she also eat a 10-patty hamburger in one go?"
However, facing her friend's introduction and explanation, as well as the Gold Family's complaints, Opera O continued to eat her hamburger with an undisturbed expression, as if she hadn't heard anything.
"Heh heh, she is a very interesting child."
Having likely encountered many strange horse girls before, Imanari Takanori smiled naturally at Opera O's demeanor: "And she's much more well-behaved than my children."
"...Indeed, Opera O is certainly a very quiet and well-behaved child."
Kitahara agreed, but couldn't help but complain internally again.
If we don't talk about that exaggerated theatrical personality, but even if we don't, she still seems very strange, such as the way they met...
He felt that his encounter with Opera O was truly dramatic, just like her name.
The most direct example was that he specifically went to Hokkaido to find her, only for her to unexpectedly be on a business trip/vacation with her father.
And the location of this business trip/vacation was precisely Tokyo, where he had departed from.
When he returned to Tokyo and planned to find her after his team affairs were somewhat settled, the child appeared before him prematurely.
Sigh, well, she appeared, so she appeared. Anyway, after meeting so many Gold Family horse girls at once, I won't be surprised by anything strange anymore...
With this final thought, Kitahara was about to have a serious discussion with Imanari Takanori about how to arrange meetings between the two sides and the corresponding training schedule, when the latter spoke up.
"Kitahara, I believe you must have a very complete plan if you are considering using Gold Ship's situation to assist with training."
Amidst the noisy chatter of the horse girls, the old man mused: "I was thinking, perhaps you could enrich those plans even more."
Saying this, he pointed towards the horse girls beside him.
"For example, little Gold Ship has the gray coat lineage. Combining this with your training of Oguri Cap and Tamamo Cross, you should be able to conduct more comprehensive research on this lineage."
"Journey and the others, however, are of different lineages. Special Week and Opera O are also of lineages other than the gray coat."
"Why don't you consider combining their situations with those of the other horse girls in your team to further explore the potential of different lineages?"
The old man's expression grew expectant.
"The reason I became a research assistant is that I hope all horse girls can fulfill their potential and showcase their style in their respective fields of expertise."
"It's a shame I'm only a person with mediocre talent. Otherwise, I would have chosen to be a trainer instead of a research assistant back then. A trainer is better positioned to achieve this."
"It would be very difficult for me to realize that dream relying solely on my own strength."
"A trainer like you can definitely do it."
"So, I thought, if it's not too much trouble for you, I'd like to entrust these children to you."
"Whether it's assisting your current training or their future training, I believe that if it's you, you will definitely be able to bring out their full talent, and more horse girls will benefit from it."
Imanari Takanori's entrustment was both a source of happiness and a headache for Kitahara.
The happy aspect was naturally that, as a trainer, the more horse girls he could nurture, the happier he would be, especially since the Gold Family, Special Week, and Opera O were all extremely top-tier talents.
The headache, however, was not just the bizarre personalities of the Gold Family—he hadn't prepared any training plan for them—but also the impossibility of guiding everyone at once with the current team staffing.
However, after that night's dinner, he specifically pulled Oguri Cap along to work a bit more, and a concrete plan quickly materialized.
His partner horse girl had a very natural personality, and this trait made her particularly "stubborn" about certain things.
For example, her insistence on watching him and preventing him from working late—she had been persistent since Kasamatsu, and trying to work overtime without her knowing was impossible.
So, he simply brought her along to "work overtime."
"Look, Oguri Cap, if we are together, then we are training, right? And training is something you think the more, the better, right?"
He explained, "So, since it's training, spending a little more time and staying a little longer in the office should be fine, shouldn't it?"
Upon first hearing this logic, Oguri Cap was very much in agreement.
"Oh, if it's training, the more, the better, indeed."
She thought: "And you also said, Kitahara, that I should wake up later and have less training every day later on, so training a bit more now seems fine."
Thus, the trainer and the horse girl "worked overtime" that day.
In fact, Kitahara didn't spend too much time. He simply followed his consistent training philosophy, combined with the suggestions made by Imanari Takanori, and uniformly arranged a series of long-term plans.
In Kasamatsu and when he first arrived in Tokyo, he didn't have contact with so many horse girls, and those he instructed were all from the same generation, so many ideas were universally applicable.
Now that he was in contact with so many horse girls from different generations, he naturally had to plan everything comprehensively. Otherwise, arranging things on the fly would certainly lead to many problems.
Fortunately, the area of management was actually what he was best at. After spending just a few dozen extra minutes, a complete plan appeared on the computer.
The first thing to do, naturally, was to arrange the active horse girls.
Oguri Cap, Super Creek, and Mejiro Ardan's recent schedule, and even the year-end arrangements, would remain the same, still focusing on new running styles and domain mastery.
Before the year-end, the focus would be on the Classic Triple Crown races, interspersed with several other races to maintain race adaptability.
By the end of the year, this goal would shift to the two major highlights: the Japan Cup and the Arima Kinen.
Tamamo Cross and Inari One would continue on the Senior Circuit. These two horse girls did not have any urgent problems to solve. Only after they had fully assisted Gold Ship and other pre-Bloom horse girls in gathering necessary information would their condition receive a more definitive adjustment direction.
The scheduling for these two horse girls would follow the same logic as Oguri Cap's group: targeting major stakes races like the Takarazuka Kinen and the Takamatsunomiya Kinen before the year-end, and still focusing on the Japan Cup and Arima Kinen at the end of the year.
Similarly, the long-term adjustment plans for Oguri Cap's group would also be refined based on the growth data of the younger horse girls.
The longer-term plans concerned the strategy for future generations.
In the generation immediately following, talented athletes encountered at the welcoming ceremony, such as Tokai Teio, Mejiro McQueen, Sakura Bakushin O, Mihono Bourbon, and Rice Shower, were all excellent competitors.
[Mihono Bourbon: Please Rice Shower I need this. My Crown is kinda Jeweless, I have a double Jewel and I want to fill it up.
Rice Shower: 😔😌
Haru Urara: Rice Shower, Why are you trying not to laugh, bruh? That's disrespectful as shit, bruh.
Someone make one with different horses.]
Even if they had not yet expressed interest in joining the Eisei team, there would likely be a good chance if invitations were extended.
Narita Brian, for example, proactively approached him for an autograph, suggesting an active desire to join the team. A confirmation might lead to arrangements for her debut race.
Further down were the generations of Stay Gold, Special Week, and Opera O. They had all competed on the same stage and had significant connections with the Eisei team, making invitations not difficult.
The generations of Dream Journey, Nakayama Festa, and Gold Ship would follow sequentially.
It could be said that by simply using the generational line of the Gold Family children, the subsequent plans could be easily mapped out.
However, after completing this set of arrangements, Kitahara pondered for a moment and then typed the words "Overseas Expedition" into the document on his computer.
In his view, this was the only factor that could change the development path he had just mapped out.
Once the "Overseas Expedition" route was decided, arrangements for the currently active horse girls would have to be adjusted, and many subsequent plans would change accordingly.
This is because "Overseas Expeditions" require prior consideration of adaptability issues.
The traditional "overseas expedition" for racehorses was already quite complex, involving factors like transportation adaptation, climate/environmental adaptation, and track adaptation. It was not uncommon for horses with particularly sensitive temperaments to perform excellently at home but poorly overseas.
The situation for horse girls is even more complicated, as they must consider more psychological issues.
Simply moving to live in a foreign country brings countless adaptation problems. Competing under conditions of language barriers, unfamiliar tracks, and different racing systems makes achieving excellent results far from easy.
In fact, within the historical context corresponding to this timeline, there weren't many racehorses with overseas experience, and the same was true in this world, which posed another difficulty.
The only horse girls that could serve as references were Symboli Rudolf, Tama-chan, Maruzensky, Mr. C.B., and Symboli Kris S, among a select few.
Considering all these factors, the only simple yet extremely effective strategy Kitahara could think of for an "Overseas Expedition" was "going abroad early and adapting early."
Given the current records of Oguri Cap's group, if things go smoothly, the question might not be whether I am willing to undertake the expedition.
Staring at the words "Overseas Expedition" on the computer screen, Kitahara fell into thought.
Especially for Oguri Cap, if she truly wins the Classic Triple Crown and achieves sufficient results in the Japan Cup and Arima Kinen, public opinion will absolutely demand that she go overseas to showcase her abilities to the world.
Just like Symboli Rudolf did back in the day.
Of course, it might not be a trip to America like Symboli Rudolf's. Given the current sentiments of the Japanese public, it is likely that more people would prefer a trip to Europe.
After all, Europe has the "obsessive grand prize" of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Following this line of reasoning, he might need to consider going abroad after the Arima Kinen at the end of the year.
And once the trip happens, I, as her main trainer, must follow, at least until the Arc finishes in October.
That would be over half a year, and only with that much time would I have enough confidence to let Oguri Cap and the others adapt to the various conditions in Europe.
In that case, the arrangements for the next generation must also change.
So, how exactly should I adjust...
He was slightly troubled, but he quickly composed his thoughts, stood up from behind his desk, and walked towards the indoor projection screen.
Oguri Cap was watching a recording there, and he intended to ask his horse girl for her opinion.
The recording on the projection screen was of a car race, kindly provided by Maruzensky, a car race enthusiast.
Kitahara was right next to Oguri Cap when Maruzensky gave her the data, so he was clear on the legendary horse girl's intention: she wanted Oguri Cap to experience the feeling of "super high-speed lane changing" or "drifting" through the car race.
Later, she would invite Oguri Cap to do some high-speed driving to understand exactly what that running style involved.
Kitahara initially only agreed to the first suggestion.
He also felt that letting Oguri Cap watch car races would help her better understand speed. In this world, the only thing comparable to a horse girl besides another horse girl is a race car.
The specific training Oguri Cap was preparing for had never been attempted by any horse girl before. Even Maruzensky, who was highly supportive, only understood the theory but hadn't tried it.
After all, her speed in her day was so superior that she never had an opponent who could challenge her enough to necessitate such a lane change.
"How is it, Oguri Cap? Can you sense anything from the car race?"
Walking up to Oguri Cap, Kitahara asked with a smile.
"Huh? Kitahara..."
Snapping out of her intense focus on the recording, Oguri Cap also smiled. "Yes, I have a little feeling."
"I've thought about this before. The running style we talked about is essentially about how difficult it is for me to manage the inertia at such high speed."
"Drifting in car racing is a technique that uses inertia to change direction."
"With a car, I feel like that method is only chosen when there's no other way, because machinery can't make very subtle adjustments to the running style."
"We are different. Our inertia is smaller, and we have more choices, whether running straight or taking a corner."
"So I was just thinking that perhaps I could perform that kind of drifting multiple times in a short period. That should have a better effect."
"That's impressive! To think of all that just by watching a race, it looks like this training will be smoother than I expected."
Nodding in satisfaction, Kitahara thought for a moment and then said seriously: "However, there is one thing you must pay special attention to."
"A race car is steel, but you are flesh and blood."
"Many maneuvers a race car can perform are due to its structure being strong enough that it doesn't need to worry about injury, but you cannot."
"Muscle, heart, blood vessels, nerves—these biological tissues all have a limit to their tolerance. Furthermore, if you change direction in an extremely short time, your vision will experience changes that are normally hard to encounter."
"You need to understand these beforehand, confirm the tolerance limits of your various physiological systems, and prepare to adapt."
At this point, Kitahara smiled, "Fortunately, our current equipment is comprehensive enough. For instance, the wind tunnel equipment alone can measure your tolerance limits. As long as you stay within that limit, there won't be any problem."
"As for visual adaptation..."
Thinking for a moment, he looked at the projection screen and sighed a little helplessly.
"If mature VR technology existed, we could actually use that for simulation."
"Not only for visual simulation, but it could also simulate multiple versions of you running together. I think if you can defeat a dozen Oguri Caps, you'll have virtually no rivals in future races."
"Oh? Multiple versions of me running together?"
Oguri Cap became excited. "That sounds so interesting! Could that really happen?"
"Yes, it could, but judging by the timeline, it might take many years, perhaps even more than a decade. That's a bit like a pie in the sky... Eh?"
Mid-sentence, he suddenly paused.
Originally, he felt that, based on the technology tree of this era, truly mature VR technology or similar tech would indeed take a long time to materialize.
But his recent experiences—the welcoming ceremony, the Hokkaido trip, and the kindergarten visit—suddenly made him realize that many things in this world cannot be judged by his common sense from another world.
For example, Bloom, domains, and the "eye technique" like that of Sunday Silence—these are existences that cannot be explained by science in the other world and can only be analyzed according to the "mythology" of this world.
With this subconscious awareness, he suddenly thought of some "special" horse girls that existed in this world.
Regardless of whether their talents came from the Three Goddesses, they absolutely possessed the ability to introduce unheard-of "black technologies" and change the entire world.
Just like Manhattan Cafe, who is very similar to Sunday Silence, she has the power to see ghosts.
And, coincidentally, in the same generation as Manhattan Cafe, there are two other horse girls with very "special" abilities.
Agnes Tachyon and Jungle Pocket.
The former became a legendary existence with only four races, nicknamed the "Phantom Triple Crown" by fans due to her four unquestionable major victories.
The latter achieved the Classic Two Crowns in the Satsuki Sho and Kikuka Sho. Even though she failed in overseas expeditions and the Japan Cup, her inherent strength was still commendable.
However, Kitahara valued the "black technology" talents of these two more than their raw racing ability.
Agnes Tachyon is a horse girl extremely obsessed with science. She firmly believes that through research, the potential of horse girls can be truly unleashed, and to achieve this, she is willing to conduct any permissible or impermissible experiments.
Her right ear cuff, a "chemical element bond line drawing" of Indane (Inman), is highly consistent with this personality and philosophy. Indane is a "toxic and flammable" colorless liquid widely used as a raw material for organic synthesis in the chemical industry.
This demonstrates her character trait.
Under this philosophy, the reagents she develops indeed have various miraculous effects, but they also have unspeakable side effects.
For example, there is a potion that maintains health and relieves fatigue. Horse girls and trainers who have drunk it say the effect is excellent, but the side effect of their bodies glowing after consumption is quite a headache.
The only one who seems able to consume the potion normally is Daiwa Scarlet, a horse girl who is particularly close to her.
But even with strange side effects, Agnes Tachyon's research capability is beyond doubt. With the correct guidance, she alone might be able to change the world.
Similar to Agnes Tachyon, Jungle Pocket also possesses "black technology" talent.
Her ability manifests in the realm of data and computer programs. She has the highest Intelligence bonus in the game, and her support card is called the "Strongest Intelligence Card."
She is extremely logical, to the point of being pedantic. The laptop and software she uses are self-developed, which she calls "Parae," capable of comprehensively simulating any data from training and races to provide corresponding suggestions and content.
Thinking of these two horse girls, Kitahara couldn't help but feel that if he could get their help, the VR technology that appeared much later in the other timeline, or the "gravity chamber," data modeling, and other training methods he had previously considered, might not need to wait long to be used.
The only issue is that Agnes Tachyon and Jungle Pocket are currently still in elementary school.
Perhaps those "black technology" talents are already showing some signs, but to have a real impact on training and racing now, it might be necessary to wait until they hit their Honkakuka (Bloom).
...They happen to be not too far apart in age from Special Week and Opera O. I didn't pay extra attention before, but now that I think about it, they should all be in elementary school.
Kitahara thought to himself:
Later, I can ask Spe-chan for a favor to see if she can get to know these two little ones.
He had paused mid-sentence and thought for a while without speaking, and Oguri Cap, not in a hurry, continued watching the car race video, only keeping an eye on Kitahara's subtle change in expression.
Seeing her trainer looking like he had just thought of something, she turned her head, somewhat eagerly saying:
"Well, Kitahara, did you think of something?"
"Ah, I did. Didn't I just mention having multiple Oguri Caps run together in a VR device? I've thought of a way."
Kitahara nodded with a smile.
"I originally thought that such a thing would take many years for the specific technology to appear, but I just discovered a way to speed up this process."
"In that case, that fun thing should be achievable before long."
"Perhaps when we reach that stage, not only can you, Oguri Cap, race with many versions of yourself, but I can also adjust the data and design an avatar of myself to run with you in that environment."
He couldn't help but joke at the end.
"Whoa?! Running with Kitahara? That sounds even more interesting!"
Oguri Cap became excited. "Then I must practice hard. I feel like if Kitahara could run as fast as us, he would definitely be a very strong rival."
"Hey, hey, it's just computer data. In reality, I'm still this slow speed, alright?"
Chuckling, he then brought up the issue he had been struggling with earlier.
"Speaking of which, after the Japan Derby, it's almost time to consider the arrangements for the second half of the year, or even next year."
His expression gradually became serious. "I initially had two ideas. One is to continue with the older horse races next year as usual, just like Tama-chan and Inari. You would be competing in the same races next year."
"The other idea is to go on an overseas expedition."
"You should have some understanding in class. Your senior, Sirius Smboli, had a race schedule like that."
Hearing this, Oguri Cap nodded.
"I know that senpai. She seems to have just returned to the country and has been focusing on recovery and adaptation training for the domestic tracks recently."
She always remembers race details very clearly. "I heard from Tama-chan and the others that her results overseas weren't very ideal, and she's not very willing to talk about it."
"Also, the tracks abroad are very different from those in Japan. She spent a considerable amount of time overseas and now needs time to adapt back."
"Exactly. The difference between domestic and overseas tracks is the crucial factor I consider when deciding between these two plans."
Kitahara nodded. "The differences between the two types of tracks are quite obvious now. Achieving excellent results on our track doesn't necessarily mean the same performance on an overseas track."
"In addition to that factor, differences in local eating habits, sleeping habits, language barriers, differences in customs, and so on, all affect your performance in a race."
Saying this, he paused, deciding to briefly explain the overseas expedition plan to his horse girl.
"If we go with the Senior Year circuit, everything is easy to arrange. I already have a clear plan, written on the computer, and it would be easy to communicate with Komiyama and the others."
"But your performance, as well as Tama-chan and the others, was excellent in the races earlier this year."
"If the performance remains the same throughout the middle and second half of the year, the public and fans will hope for you to go on an overseas expedition."
"Especially you, Oguri Cap."
His expression became complex. "You now understand the weight of the 'Undefeated Triple Crown' and have considerable confidence in striving for this honor."
"Once this honor is truly secured, the matter of an overseas expedition will likely be a done deal."
"If we consider it from that perspective, many arrangements for the second half of the year will be geared toward that direction."
"For example, trying to adapt to the tracks in advance, learning more about the conditions there, and even finding trainers or horse girls familiar with the area to act as consultants—these all need to be prepared beforehand."
"And..."
Thinking about the many young horse girls he had considered earlier, many of whom had the talent for overseas competition, he couldn't help but say with some anticipation:
"If you, Super Creek, Ardan, Tama-chan, and Inari can all perform exceptionally well in this expedition, the entire Japan URA association, the media, and the fans will be even more eager to see such horse girls emerge."
"For many of the horse girls you've met, regardless of age, they have outstanding potential. We might need to consider taking them abroad in advance to understand the situation and adapt to the tracks."
"If they can adapt earlier, perhaps they will achieve outstanding results overseas once they reach Bloom, or we might even find that this early adaptation affects the Honkakuka status itself."
"That's roughly my plan, but I'm not sure what your thoughts are, so..."
He looked at Oguri Cap and said sincerely, "I wanted to start with you and ask for your opinion."
"My opinion, huh..."
Oguri Cap was silent for a moment, then quickly smiled. "I think it's very simple."
"...Huh?"
Kitahara was stunned. "Simple?"
"Yes, as we just mentioned, Symboli Rudolf's results overseas weren't very ideal, so the horse girls over there must be very strong, right?"
[it was Due to Rudolf being overworked]
Nodding, Oguri Cap's eyes sharpened, and her aura visibly increased.
"Then it's simple."
"If the horse girls over there are strong, and I have the chance to race against them, I definitely won't miss it."
"This might mean missing many races with the horse girls here, but it's not like I'm not coming back after going overseas. After competing with the horse girls there, I can just come back and continue competing here."
"As long as I can keep racing and running, I'm okay with it."
"So, Kitahara, you actually don't need to ask for my opinion."
At this point, she looked thoughtful for a moment and then smiled, "And I think you don't need to ask Tama-chan and the others either."
"For a horse girl, competing against a strong rival is a dream come true. They, like me, will absolutely not miss such an opportunity."
"So, don't worry, Kitahara."
She nodded forcefully, clenching her fists. "You just said that to go overseas, we need to achieve even better results, right?"
"We will achieve those results."
"Tama-chan and the others definitely will, and as for me..."
Her fists clenched tighter, and her gaze became more resolute. "The Japan Derby and the Kikuka Sho—I will win them with all my might."
"I promise."