Mejiro Training Grounds.
Kuroha crouched beside Rice Shower, his brows slightly furrowed as he watched her.
He could not directly peer into the scenery inside Rice Shower's heart lake. He could only guide her by relying on the girl's unconscious murmurs.
Now, combining the information he had gathered before with what she had just muttered to herself, Kuroha finally understood the full picture of Rice Shower's psychological problem.
It could roughly be divided into three stages.
The first stage was the education and care she had received in childhood, which engraved the meaning of the name "Rice Shower" deep into her heart.
Because of that, she wholeheartedly hoped that she could bring happiness to everyone.
The second stage began after Rice Shower entered Tracen Academy, where she encountered many uma musume whose talent and nature were no weaker than hers, and in some cases far stronger.
Those uma musume also had more positive personalities than she did. They were better suited to standing under the spotlight, guiding people's emotions, and being admired by countless fans.
So, in comparison, the timid and gentle Rice Shower developed the idea of voluntarily stepping back and becoming a supporting presence.
The third stage came after she met Mihono Bourbon.
According to Kuroha's understanding of the original timeline, if he and Chasing Light had not existed, Rice Shower's mindset would still have gradually changed because of the unrelenting effort of her dear friend, Mihono Bourbon.
Because in truth, Bourbon's talent was not much weaker than hers.
In Rice Shower's heart, the two of them should both belong to the category of faint lights, unable to compare with those dazzling morning stars.
But Bourbon advanced one step at a time, relying on hard work to overcome her running-style aptitude and forcefully defeat every genius of her generation, achieving the glory of an undefeated double crown.
That was what gave Rice Shower the thought that she wanted to shine as brilliantly as Mihono Bourbon.
Only after that did the fully realized Black Assassin of the future Kikuka Sho and Tenno Sho come into being.
Thinking of this, Kuroha could not help feeling a bit of a headache.
The idea of becoming a supporting presence should have been a negative thought born from her belief that she lagged behind others.
But now, because Rice Shower had joined Chasing Light early, there was no one among her classmates in her generation who could rival her except Bourbon.
Could she really get stuck in a dead end just because Bourbon alone was stronger than her?
This unlucky child...
"Trainer Onii-san..."
At that moment, Kuroha realized that Rice Shower had opened her eyes at some point and was staring blankly at him.
"What is it, Rice Shower?" Kuroha asked softly.
After a moment of silence, Rice Shower asked in a quiet voice, "Trainer Onii-san, back then... why did you accept me onto the team?"
"I'm clearly not as strong as Bourbon, and I don't have the same faith or determination she does."
The black-haired girl paused, then lowered her head slightly.
"Bourbon will win the Triple Crown. A lot of people hope she wins, and that has always been her wish."
"But the Triple Crown... isn't my wish."
"..."
Kuroha was left speechless after hearing that, but in the next moment, he suddenly laughed aloud.
So that was it.
So that was what this was about.
He had finally found the root of the problem.
After a brief silence, Kuroha looked at her seriously. "Rice Shower, do you want to win?"
Rice Shower paused when she heard that. First, she nodded. Then, after thinking about it, she shook her head.
Kuroha asked again, "Because if you win, they'll be very happy, right?"
The black-haired girl instantly froze. She abruptly raised her head and looked at her Trainer, then pressed her lips together tightly.
Yes. She did not yearn for victory.
It was only because if she won, her mother and her old family and friends would be happy for her. They would obtain happiness.
That was why she had developed the idea of racing.
That was why she had started wondering whether she should win the Triple Crown.
Rice Shower had been born to bring happiness to others...
At that moment, a finger lightly brushed across the tip of her nose, and Kuroha's gentle voice reached her ears.
"Even if the race you win isn't the Classic Triple Crown, they'll still be very happy."
Rice Shower froze for an instant, then stammered in response, "B-But... everyone thinks I can win the Triple Crown. And isn't the Triple Crown the best set of races in the Classic year?"
Who said they would only be happy if she won the best races?
Kuroha sighed.
No wonder in the original timeline, Rice Shower, a pure Long-distance race uma musume, insisted on clashing head-on with Mihono Bourbon in the Classic races early on. So this was one of the reasons...
At this point, the logical chain behind Rice Shower's third stage had completely closed.
Her family thought the Classic Triple Crown was incredible. Then Rice Shower believed she had to win that incredible Triple Crown to bring happiness. Bourbon's dream was the same as hers, but Bourbon's faith and resolve made her feel ashamed of herself. Because Bourbon was the first among Chasing Light's generation and all of Central had high expectations for her, Rice Shower felt that competing with Bourbon for the Triple Crown would destroy other people's happiness. She fell into self-doubt and confusion because of that, then became depressed.
"Rice Shower, do you believe in me?" Kuroha asked.
Rice Shower froze for a moment, then nodded hard.
In the next moment, a large, warm hand covered the top of the girl's head.
That familiar touch made Rice Shower feel as if she had returned to the day she first met her Trainer.
That day, he had smiled and ruffled her head just like this.
"No matter what races Rice Shower runs, whether it's the Classic Triple Crown, the Triple Tiara, or even a G3 or OP-level race, I'll be very happy."
Kuroha said softly, "Victory is only one part of what makes me happy."
"True happiness is seeing Rice Shower run on the track with real joy."
"The emotions you give off when you run are what truly move others, let them resonate with you, and bring them happiness."
"T-T-T-Trainer Onii-san... happiness and all that..."
After hearing this, the blue-rose girl's eyes immediately spun in dizzy circles. Her small face turned so red it looked ready to drip blood, and her lips wobbled into a shaky line.
Kuroha casually pinched the girl's horse ear and continued.
"In this world, not everyone only cheers for the winner, and not everyone only cheers for the strongest. Even someone who keeps failing still has the ability to bring happiness to people."
"...Failure can bring people happiness too?" Rice Shower lowered her head, squeezed her small hands together, and sounded almost unable to believe it.
"Of course!"
Kuroha answered decisively.
Right, Haru Urara?
If time were fast-forwarded to the end of the century, then that local race uma musume from the same generation as the Century-End Overlord, T.M. Opera O, who went undefeated for an entire year while she herself lost again and again, would perfectly prove one thing:
Victory was absolutely not the only way to bring people hope and happiness.
"Though, Rice Shower doesn't need to go lose on purpose either," Kuroha said with a smile.
Feeling the warmth and ticklish sensation around her ear, Rice Shower's delicate body trembled slightly, but she still mustered her courage and raised her little head.
"So even if I don't enter the Classic Triple Crown, and even if I enter other races instead, whether I win or not, Trainer Onii-san and Mama will still be happy?"
"As long as Rice Shower gives it everything she has and feels no regret about it, of course we will."
Kuroha withdrew his hand and gently pressed it to his chest.
"Because for us as spectators, the prerequisite for obtaining happiness is that the race uma musume herself must feel happiness from the bottom of her heart."
"So if Rice Shower wants me to be happy, you have to be happy too."
"..."
The black-haired girl stared blankly at Kuroha's face. Her eyes seemed to glitter with stars, and the ponytail behind her swished happily in an instant.
"...I understand, Onii-sama," the girl murmured softly.
"That's more li-" Kuroha's words abruptly stopped. "...Rice Shower, what did you call me?"
Rice Shower suddenly realized what she had said and hurriedly waved her small hands.
"No, I mean Trainer Onii-san! No, that's not right, Trainer!"
Kuroha directly grabbed the girl under the arms and lifted her up, then said with a serious expression, "Wrong. Say that last one again."
"Trainer Onii-san..."
"Wrong. The one before that." Kuroha shook his head.
The blue-rose girl shyly covered her burning cheeks.
"...O-Onii-sama."
"That's right!"
Kuroha nodded in satisfaction, put Rice Shower down, rubbed her hair again, and smiled.
"No matter what happens in the future, remember this. I'm your Trainer, and you're my charge."
"And, Rice Shower..."
Rice Shower instinctively raised her head and met Kuroha's gentle gaze.
"As your Trainer, I hope you can keep moving forward forever with joy and happiness. All right?"
...
Mejiro Training Grounds.
"Good, Bourbon. Rest for two minutes." Nase Fumino looked at her tablet and gave instructions.
She had just turned around to drink some water when she noticed Kuroha holding Rice Shower by the wrist and moving back into the corridor.
"You only helped train her for ten minutes? Since when did you get this lazy?" Fumino rolled her eyes as she drank.
Kuroha raised his index finger and wagged it, laughing brightly.
"Sometimes, finding the right direction is more effective than ten months of pointless, bottled-up training."
"Hmph. I don't believe that." Fumino stuck out the tip of her tongue slightly.
"Haha, then I'll go handle something else first. Fumino, I'll leave this side to you." Kuroha shook his head with a smile. After handing Rice Shower back to her, he turned and left.
"Go, go." Fumino waved casually.
At that moment, Rice Shower also obediently waved softly at Kuroha's departing figure.
"Okay, Onii-sama."
"Pfft!"
Before her words had even finished, Fumino nearly sprayed out a mouthful of water.
The corner of her mouth twitched as she looked at Rice Shower, who had tilted her head with an innocent, pure expression, then at Kuroha's gradually receding back in the distance. She could not help grinding her teeth to herself.
Again?
Damn it. Just wait until tonight and see how I deal with you... Actually, I should call Maruzen too.
Mm... And Oguri Cap.
Behind Fumino, Rice Shower was already holding a bottle of water and walking briskly toward Mihono Bourbon.
"Bourbon, have some water."
Bourbon, who was wiping off her sweat, froze for a moment. Then she accepted the water and nodded.
"Thank you."
As she spoke, the cyber little horse raised her eyes to look at Rice Shower, only to abruptly pause.
In her field of vision, Rice Shower's deep blue pupils were now flickering with faint, intermittent purple-black lightning.
The most troublesome issue with Rice Shower had finally come to an end for now. As for the rest, she could only slowly come to understand it herself through her future races.
And on the very next day after that matter was resolved, Tokai Teio could not wait to fulfill their promise. She dragged Kuroha out the door and joyfully played with him for an entire day.
However, although their daytime outing had been very satisfying, when it was almost time to go home, Teio stared at a certain spot by the street, a few traces of distress appearing on her face.
"Huh? Why don't I get that feeling when I come out to play with Trainer?" the girl said, touching her chin with a somewhat disappointed tone.
"What feeling?"
At that moment, Kuroha walked over with two ice creams.
Teio took one from him, licked it with her pink tongue, and narrowed her eyes in satisfaction before answering.
"That sort of... How do I put it?"
She thought hard for a few seconds. Then she went "Oh," as if a light bulb had appeared above her head, and raised one finger with sudden realization.
"Like before, when I secretly followed you and McQueen on a date, Trainer."
"Halfway through, you two would always kiss, right? And around this time, you'd also go to a love ho-"
Thump!
"Owie!"
Before she could finish, Kuroha's knuckle chop landed precisely on the girl's forehead.
Teio immediately clutched her head in exaggerated fashion and crouched down, looking deeply wronged.
"You actually followed me and McQueen on a date?" Kuroha looked at her speechlessly.
"I-It was just by chance... Right! By chance! I was just passing by!" Teio's eyes darted around as she defended herself guiltily.
Kuroha sighed. "So what you mean is, when the two of us went out today, it didn't feel like the kind of couple's date I had with McQueen. Right?"
"C-Couple..." Tokai Teio's body stiffened slightly. Then she bashfully lowered her head. "I... I was thinking something kind of like that."
"..."
Another straight-ball player.
At this point, Kuroha was already used to it.
He took Teio's small hand and pulled her up, then casually pinched her cheek with a helpless expression.
"You really have the nerve to say that? Think about where you dragged me today."
"We played rhythm games and fighting arcade games all morning at the game center. In the afternoon, you ran off to drive go-karts, but you floored the gas by yourself and sped around the whole track, leaving me behind where I started. Where in that is there any couple-like daily life?"
After hearing this criticism, Tokai Teio finally scratched her head in belated realization.
"Ahaha... Is that how it was?"
Then she carefully glanced at Kuroha and humbly sought instruction.
"Then, Trainer, if I want that kind of atmosphere and feeling, what should I do?"
As a girl who had been in True Blooming for less than a year and a half, she clearly knew nothing about this profound-sounding pink "atmosphere."
"..."
Kuroha was silent for a long while, then helplessly rubbed the girl's head.
Seeing her comfortably narrow her eyes, he looked around. After confirming there was no one nearby, he finally let out a soft sigh.
"Trainer?" Teio had just raised her head to ask a question when she felt a tightness around her waist.
A broad hand steadily supported her waist. With a slight pull, it drew her entire body into that familiar embrace.
At the same time, as Kuroha deliberately lowered his head, the face that made her heart race and her cheeks burn rapidly enlarged in her vision.
When his movements stopped, the two of them were already close enough to feel each other's breath.
Teio instinctively blinked. Her long lashes nearly brushed the tip of the young man's nose.
"Eek!"
The brown-haired girl instantly overheated. Her eyes turned chaotic, and steam seemed about to rise from the top of her head.
However, what she did next completely exceeded Kuroha's expectations.
Relying purely on instinct, the girl immediately activated facehugger mode.
She threw away the ice cream in her hand, wrapped both arms tightly around Kuroha's neck, and then coiled her long, strong, rounded legs around him as well before opening her mouth and going in for the bite.
"???"
This sudden fierce assault left Kuroha completely stunned.
Wait, no.
According to the usual pattern, weren't you supposed to lower your head shyly here?
All your Chasing Light seniors were like that. Even the boldest one, Maruzensky, would at least act symbolically shy for a moment before making a move.
How did it turn into you charging straight in?
A proper date doesn't work like this!
But those thoughts flashed through Kuroha's mind for only an instant.
In the next second, a cool, soft sensation pressed against his lips. Immediately after, a mischievous little tongue barged in without the slightest politeness.
Where did she even learn this?
A few minutes later.
The two of them walked along the road home again. Teio was holding Kuroha's ice cream now, licking it with immense satisfaction.
I made a profit. I made a huge profit today!
The girl with crescent-shaped bangs cheered loudly in her heart.
Not only did I play with Trainer all day, I successfully kissed him too! Teio really is the strongest!
Her mouth was sweet, and her heart was even sweeter as she secretly thought:
The internet was right after all. When you do that kind of thing, you're supposed to use your tongue.
Hehe, Trainer didn't refuse anyway. Kissing makes me so happy. From now on, I have to kiss him every day!
As she was making plans, the two of them passed by another love hotel.
Teio froze. Then her eyes suddenly lit up.
She grabbed Kuroha's hand and whispered excitedly, "Trainer, Trainer! Should we do that too while we're at it?"
Thump!
"Owie!"
With his face full of dark lines, Kuroha rewarded her with another knuckle chop.
"I'm going back to Ireland in two days. Wait until my expedition is over for that! What exactly goes on in your head all day?"
"Also, while I'm overseas, if Aoi tells me you've been slacking off in training or getting careless in races, then your punishment will be..."
"...Uh... Your punishment will be no kissing for the rest of the year!"
Although it sounded a little abstract, after thinking it over, Kuroha realized this was probably the only thing that could scare Tokai Teio.
Hearing this, Teio did not get discouraged at all. Instead, she confidently patted her slightly curved chest.
"Don't worry, Trainer! Because Teio is invincible!"
...You really are invincible.
Kuroha sighed inwardly.
Only today did he learn that the most suppressed person in Tracen Academy was not Maruzen or McQueen, but Tokai Teio, the one standing in front of him with a harmless-looking face.
(End of Chapter)
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