"Your friend here is truly quite a character."
Madam Satomi was dumbfounded.
She turned to Chairman Satomi with a subtle smile. Mr. Kitakami was probably expressing his displeasure, right?
Though she also didn't think that Kitasan Black child could become a GI uma musume, such future matters were uncertain. And even if she did think so, she shouldn't say it so directly. Yet her husband seemed completely oblivious to such social niceties.
So seeing the Kitakami father and daughter's behavior now, she suspected that gentleman was expressing his dissatisfaction through this display.
Madam Satomi had originally thought that even if her husband's emotional intelligence was low, he could at least understand what she was trying to convey.
But Chairman Satomi's next response left her somewhat dumbfounded.
"But of course. Saburo is a friend I've acknowledged. My dear, you can absolutely trust my judgment."
Chairman Satomi thought his wife was praising his eye for friends and proudly puffed out his chest.
Obviously, in his view, among tonight's guests, only this good friend of his was truly enjoying the dinner party, rather than coming with the intention of networking with his company and the Satomi family. For someone who now possessed such family status and social position, such pure friendship was even more precious.
Had his self-perception always been this excellent?
Madam Satomi was rendered speechless by her husband's stupidity.
So you genuinely consider Saburo-san a friend.
But if you genuinely considered him a friend, how could you have said those things earlier?
He couldn't possibly have sincerely meant those words, could he?
No.
This was very possible.
After all, this was her stupid husband.
He very likely genuinely believed that Mr. Kitakami's dream was unrealistic, which was why he'd said those things.
His original intention was probably to make Mr. Kitakami recognize how naive his dream was, fearing that Mr. Kitakami had too high expectations for his daughter.
Because no one understood the difficulty of becoming a GI uma musume better than the Satomi family.
Though they were descendants of a prestigious line, though they carried noble bloodlines, the Satomi family's uma musume just couldn't win GI races.
And it wasn't that the Satomi family's uma musume were truly weak—they just seemed cursed, never able to win GI races.
Because of this, rumors of the Satomi family curse spread—that their uma musume could never win GI.
Even within the Satomi family itself, quite a few people had come to believe such foolish claims.
Living in such a family, they naturally had a different kind of obsession with GI uma musume. This man was no exception, so what he'd said to Mr. Kitakami earlier wasn't mockery—it was his concern and action as a friend.
As for why Madam Satomi would think of all this—
It had to do with something Chairman Satomi had asked her to help with not long ago, using the Satomi family's connections.
"By the way, dear, how did that matter I asked you to help with turn out?"
Chairman Satomi had also just remembered this matter.
His expression was somewhat nervous, afraid of hearing bad news.
Madam Satomi found it somewhat amusing.
Because if Chairman Satomi were calm enough, he should realize this matter was extremely simple for the Satomi family.
"No problem. When do you plan to tell your friend? After all, there are some subsequent procedures that need to be handled by them personally."
Chairman Satomi's initially anxious expression returned to pride upon receiving his wife's response.
"Thank you for your assistance, dear. On behalf of Saburo and his child, I thank you first."
"Hehe, I'm already looking forward to seeing his reaction when he finds out."
Madam Satomi looked toward the father and daughter pair over there.
Seeing Mr. Kitakami, who'd filled up an entire service cart and still didn't feel it was enough, she found it hard to connect the man on stage just now with the one before her.
On stage, that man was like the center of the world, a king upon the stage, completely unlike an ordinary person.
But off stage, he was just a silly father who doted on his daughter. The contrast was simply too great.
Tonight, this father and daughter pair would certainly leave an unforgettable impression on everyone in this special way.
Reportedly, the food this pair packed to take home could fill an entire cart.
That was enough for forty to fifty people.
And in fact, it was indeed packed for over thirty grown men to eat.
As for who made this decision? Kitasan Black stated that she wouldn't take the blame for this.
She'd originally just wanted to bring a little back for her mother. She wasn't really that shameless.
It was the old man who said since they were already packing, they might as well pack more so his disciples could also taste something fresh. That's how this result came about.
As for whether the old man was deliberately venting his dissatisfaction this way—Kitasan Black didn't know, and she didn't care about such things.
And so, Kitasan Black's first fateful encounter with the Satomi family came to an end.
Afterward, returning to her normal life, Kitasan Black also thought her connection with the Satomi family was severed.
After all, first there was the rift between Chairman Satomi and the old man's friendship, then there was the embarrassing display she and her father had put on at the party.
Plus, that day, her mind had been entirely on eating. She hadn't gotten any closer to those two young ladies.
So as long as they didn't meet again, their acquaintance would probably be like a passing breeze, soon becoming the past, right?
But—she seemed to have greatly underestimated fate's power. The threads of connection had long since been tied together.
"Kita-chan, great news! You can attend the Uma Musume Development Elementary School!"
One day, the old man came home excitedly and announced this to the Kitakami mother and daughter pair.
Huh? Kitasan Black's face was blank with confusion.
How was this "great news"?
Old man, do you even hear what you're saying?
This was clearly terrible news!
And hadn't she deliberately failed the Uma Musume Development Elementary School's entrance exam before?
I get it now. You must have bribed the principal with money!
Damn it, so even retired uma musume could be bought with money.
The news was so sudden and frightening that Kitasan Black couldn't help but want to curse.
What the hell!
A normal school would've been fine. Only an idiot would want to go to some Uma Musume Development Academy.
"Honey, today isn't April Fools' Day."
Even her mother didn't believe it.
After all, the Uma Musume Development Academy wasn't comparable to ordinary schools. That place could even be said to be a direct subsidiary of Central Tracen Academy. Not just anyone could get in—only outstanding uma musume seedlings were specially recruited.
Though Kita-chan had once been lucky enough to receive an evaluation when she was young, she hadn't passed.
"I'm not joking!"
The old man began explaining the reason.
It turned out this was all thanks to that Chairman Satomi.
Though Chairman Satomi believed Kitasan Black couldn't possibly become a GI uma musume, after learning that his old friend wanted his daughter to become an uma musume, he'd secretly helped his old friend's daughter, arranging a spot at the Uma Musume Development Academy.
He'd waited until everything was confirmed and the certificates were processed before calling the old man to share the good news.
Though his actions were truly bewildering, it had to be said that this maneuver actually mended the friendship that had nearly shattered.
After all, the old man really did want Kita-chan to debut as an uma musume.
Meanwhile, having heard the full story, Kitasan Black just wanted to curse that Chairman Satomi as crazy.
Don't you have anything better to do?!
"Dad, something's wrong about this. There's a conspiracy!"
Kitasan Black shouted.
The old man laughed: "Kita-chan, I know you're excited, but relax, I've already called the principal to confirm."
"Dad, do you really trust—trust that guy who insulted your precious daughter as worthless the first time you met?"
Kitasan Black's face was full of panic.
The old man thought she was worried this was fake, worried he'd been deceived by Chairman Satomi.
But little did he know, what she feared was the exact opposite!
Precisely because Kitasan Black believed this was very likely true, she was scared. She really didn't want to go to some Uma Musume Development Elementary School.
Why was Kitasan Black so resistant?
First, let's explain the difference between Uma Musume Development Elementary School and regular elementary schools.
Uma Musume Development Elementary School was a private school. The principals and teachers there were basically all retired uma musume.
There were even active uma musume who went there as volunteers.
Moreover, on Tracen Academy's open day, they had priority access for visits. The school itself also had the authority to host elementary-level uma musume races. In short, it was incredibly impressive. In one sentence: it was a world for geniuses and young ladies!
This kind of school wasn't created for profit. It was essentially a training institution for major uma musume families to cultivate talent.
Uma musume who graduated from there could generally advance directly to Central Tracen Academy by middle school. The degree's value was substantial!
The students there had the goal of becoming professional uma musume from the start, with the minimum ambition being to become a Graded Stakes (G-series) uma musume. So one could imagine how intense the study load was there. When Kitasan Black had just briefly looked up the curriculum online, her scalp had gone numb.
That's why she'd deliberately failed the entrance exam back then. With her ability, how could she possibly not get in?
Even the original [Kita-chan] could get in on her own merit, let alone a cheater like her.
But she hadn't expected that after escaping the first tribulation, the next calamity would actively chase after her.
Indeed, she should have taken the old man straight home the moment she saw the Satomi family logo!
"Wonderful!"
After confirming the truth, her mother was overjoyed.
"Alright! To celebrate Kita-chan's transfer, let's have hot pot tonight!"
After the old man finished speaking, the senior disciples who'd been eavesdropping in the courtyard all applauded together.
For a moment, the entire Kitakami household was filled with joy—except for Kitasan Black, the person concerned, who had gone numb.
She felt she was truly miserable. Even someone as talented as Teio-senpai had attended a regular elementary school before middle school, not some Uma Musume Development Elementary School. That showed just how hellish that place was.
(It shouldn't be as intense as McQueen-senpai's study regimen, right?)
Thinking of this, Kitasan Black felt even sadder.
What was going on? She was someone who just wanted to slack off—when did she start having to compare study intensity with a demon like McQueen-senpai?
Wasn't there something wrong with this development?!
Kitasan Black looked at the happy people before her, her small mouth opening and closing, hesitating to speak.
She knew that if she directly said she didn't want to go, the old man and mom would probably respect her choice, even if they felt regretful.
But looking at how happy they were, Kitasan Black really couldn't bring herself to say it.
But if she didn't resist, she would feel unwilling.
So during dinner, she suddenly said to the old man: "Dad, you haven't forgotten that I took the exam before but didn't pass, right? What if I go there and find I can't adapt to the environment?"
"What then? We'd just have to transfer schools. Of course, if you feel you can still push yourself, your dad will support you too. But remember, to your dad, you're the most important. If you really feel you can't fit in when the time comes, tell me directly."
Though the old man's tone was casual, he looked serious.
He did want Kita-chan to become an uma musume, but the premise was that Kita-chan herself wanted this too.
If Kita-chan herself didn't like it, then it was meaningless.
However, up to now, he'd never heard of an uma musume who didn't want to be a racing uma musume.
Kitasan Black was lost in thought.
"Since you've said that, then I'll go take a look."
If I find I can't stand it, I'll just find an excuse to run right back!
"Oh right, honey, should we prepare that for Kita-chan?"
"Oh, you're right. Since it's Uma Musume Development Elementary School, they definitely need that."
Kitasan Black: "?"
"Kita-chan, go out with Mom later."
"Wait, what are you two even talking about?"
The old man glanced at her, taking small sips of his shochu: "Your racing shoes, of course. You don't have any yet, do you? Since you're attending Uma Musume Development Elementary School, you'll need a pair of specially crafted racing shoes for uma musume, plus custom horseshoes that match your shoes."
"..."
She'd actually forgotten about this.
At the beginning, the system had prepared a racing outfit for her that was the same as the original [Kita-chan's].
But after entering this world, those clothes had disappeared. According to the senpais' memories, that outfit could only be requested from the system again after clearing Story Mode. But by then, they all had their own racing outfits and didn't need them anymore.
...
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