Leap of Faith, clad in workout clothes and glistening with sweat, made her way toward the villa, the lush green lawn stretching out beside her.
The house where Platinum and the others were staying was ancient.
So old that Leap of Faith and Golden Sixty's grandfather had already lived here.
Now, whenever it rained, the place became unbearably damp, plagued by termites, and the floorboards creaked as if they might splinter apart with every step.
Leap of Faith hated this house. Because all her childhood memories in Hong Kong were tied to this very place.
And Golden Sixty lived here with her. Every time she looked back, Golden Sixty's figure inevitably appeared in those memories.
Leap of Faith woke up early every single day, and even after returning to Hong Kong, that habit hadn't changed.
After waking, she never lingered in bed.
Instead, she'd get up right away, splash her face with water, and head out for her morning run—rain or shine, day after day, year after year.
That was the reason Fuji Kyoji admired her—Fuji Kyoji considered herself plenty strong-willed, but even she had moments of laziness or wanting to sleep in. Leap of Faith, though? Not once.
From the day they'd met till now, she'd never stopped. Even during torrential downpours, she'd head to the indoor training ground, determined to complete her daily training.
Naturally, Fuji Kyoji didn't understand. Nor would anyone else at Tracen Academy.
Leap of Faith actually loved sleeping in too; she also wanted to just forget everything and laze around.
But it was as if a boulder was constantly rolling toward her from behind—only by running endlessly could she avoid being crushed by it.
Leap of Faith had realized long ago: she had no talent. So she had to push herself even more, even harder—
She crouched by the entryway, clutching her stomach as she retched dryly. Having eaten nothing, Leap of Faith brought nothing up. But that slimy sensation, like tentacles slithering down her throat, lingered.
She couldn't let her thoughts go down that road again. Every time she remembered Golden Sixty, the pressure made her want to vomit...
'Cheer up, Leap of Faith.'
She patted her cheeks lightly, stood up again, and pushed the door open to step inside.
"Sham, sis— Oh, everyone's already up."
As soon as Leap of Faith entered, she saw everyone seated around the tea table.
Except for Agnes Tachyon, who'd gone out early after saying goodbye, the rest were all in the living room, each with a bowl of plain noodle soup in front of them.
Platinum, Urban Sea, and Agnes Digital sat with their hands on their knees, obediently not daring to touch their chopsticks, looking exactly like schoolchildren being scolded by their teacher.
Meanwhile, Sham had the other sofa all to herself, a pink apron tied around her, glaring fiercely at the three across from her.
Leap of Faith felt a little embarrassed, like she'd been caught secretly catching up on homework.
There was nothing wrong with her morning exercise, but with all the Uma Musume present being stronger than her, finishing her run before anyone else said anything felt a bit… performative.
"Ah, Faith, you're back." Sham turned her head, shark-like fangs clicking lightly as she spoke.
"I was afraid you'd be back late, so I didn't make your noodles yet. Just a moment."
With that, Sham shifted and headed toward the kitchen. As she left, the three opposite visibly relaxed, Platinum even wiping sweat from her brow.
Leap of Faith understood immediately—these three had definitely been intimidated by Sham. Honestly, she'd been startled too when she first met Sham.
Now, as Sham's only acquaintance here, she ought to take on the role of explaining things.
So Leap of Faith set aside the idea of showering first and plopped down on the same sofa as Sham.
"Hey, hey, Leap of Faith…" Platinum squirmed uneasily, reaching out as if to grab her and pull her over.
Listening to the sounds of Sham busy in the kitchen, Leap of Faith grinned and lowered her voice, explaining to the three: "Did Sham sis startle you? Did you think she was some kind of gangster?"
"Actually, she's really gentle, and she's super socially anxious too. That's why she speaks so deliberately—she's not trying to scare you on purpose."
"Last night when we were chatting, Sham sis told me she wanted to welcome you all, so she asked me how best to host you."
"The tea this morning, and this noodle soup—she got up early specially to prepare it all. If you don't finish it, Sham sis will be really hurt, like she did something wrong."
"In a way, it really fits her name, doesn't it? 'Sham'—though she looks fierce, she's unexpectedly a good person. That's a kind of successful deception in itself."
Hearing this, Platinum remembered the scalding hot water someone had prepared this morning, and how hesitantly Sham had offered the tea…
So it wasn't deliberately meant to torture them after all?
Platinum licked the inside of her mouth, feeling like the roof of it had been scalded raw, and couldn't hold back a tear.
But then, thinking about Sham's appearance and the fact that she was friends with that unreliable Golden Sixty… Platinum still couldn't quite feel at ease.
So she pressed further: "Then… what about the teeth? I've never seen anyone with words carved into their teeth before."
In this life and the last, it was a first for Platinum. Sham's look wouldn't be out of place in a series like JoJo's Bizarre Adventure—she could probably at least be a minor boss, giving the protagonist some EXP.
"That's from an injury at the Kentucky Derby."
Leap of Faith pointed toward her own upper palate.
"Sham sis is the type to run like her life depends on it, especially in that final showdown with Secretariat. In that race, as she crossed the finish line, she crashed head-first into a fence and was knocked out on the spot. Nearly all her teeth were shattered."
"The Kentucky Derby… that was Secretariat's revenge race, right?"
Urban Sea murmured thoughtfully.
"I heard that in that race, Sham burned herself out completely, running even as she coughed up blood… but Secretariat still pulled ahead by a chasm-like margin."
Running on turf, coughing up blood… Platinum couldn't help but shrink her neck in, feeling a newfound respect for Sham.
Thinking about it, carving [VICTORY] onto her repaired teeth—wasn't that Sham's own form of irony?
"Then… what about the tattoos?" Platinum pressed on, unwilling to let it go.
"You mean the ones on her legs? Those are to cover up her scars." Leap of Faith continued explaining.
"In the Belmont Stakes—Sham sis's final race against Secretariat—she fractured her right leg. After a long recovery and three steel pins, she was left with horrible scars on her leg."
"So as not to scare people, Sham sis got those tattoos… though it seems like it had the complete opposite effect."
Platinum's lips moved wordlessly for a moment, finding nothing left to say.
So that meant… she'd wronged a good person from the very start?
The thought made Platinum so ashamed she wished she could burrow into a crack in the ground.
'It's all Secretariat's fault—Secretariat, you've done nothing but wrong!'
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.