Stare...
"..."
Stare...
"...Seriously, Norn, you've been staring at me this whole time. What are you trying to say?"
Two days had passed since the Derby, and in one of Tracen Academy's training lounges, Norn Ace was staring fixedly at Sakuraba Ryo with a very strange look in her eyes.
It was making Sakuraba deeply uncomfortable.
"When Oguri finished the Derby and said all that stuff... don't you have any thoughts about it?"
Sakuraba blinked. He hadn't expected that to be what Norn Ace wanted to talk about.
Come to think of it, Oguri Cap's comment really had caught him off guard too.
Who would've thought that Oguri, who usually looked so spacey and absentminded, would come out with something that direct after the Derby? It practically sounded like a confession and a declaration of war rolled into one.
You really couldn't judge a book by its cover.
The only problem was that Sakuraba had no idea who Oguri Cap was in love with.
That silly girl could really eat. Whoever ended up becoming her boyfriend was probably going to be under a lot of pressure.
He gave a moment of silence for that person's future.
Though to be fair, Sakuraba really was curious about who had stolen the heart of one of the Umamusume he had invested in. At the very least, he wanted to know what kind of guy he was.
But every time he tried asking Oguri Cap about it directly, she would start hemming and hawing, change the subject, and turn bright red.
Man... total maiden behavior.
Sakuraba felt like a father watching his precious cabbage get snatched up by some wild boar. It hurt.
His girl had grown up. She wasn't willing to confide in him anymore.
"What am I supposed to say? It was Oguri's own decision. What's an investor like me supposed to say about it...?"
"...You really don't get it at all."
Seeing Sakuraba look completely clueless, Norn Ace let out a sigh.
But maybe that was for the best...
If Sakuraba really understood how Oguri felt, then Norn wouldn't stand a chance, would she...?
With that thought, Norn Ace dragged over a chair and scooted it closer to Sakuraba.
"By the way, Norn, how much longer are you planning to stay at Central? March already went back to Kasamatsu, so why are you still here?"
"What, are you trying to chase me off?"
Sitting right up against him, Norn Ace casually played with her phone, acting like Sakuraba's words hadn't bothered her in the slightest.
"Uh, that's not really what I meant..."
Catching the orchid-like fragrance drifting off her, Sakuraba quietly edged away a little. But every time he moved back, Norn Ace silently moved closer, until before he knew it, he was pinned against the wall.
"Um... Norn? Aren't you a little too close?"
The corner of Sakuraba's mouth twitched. Realizing he had nowhere left to retreat, he had no choice but to speak up.
"Hmph."
At the sight of him like that, Norn Ace curled her lips, then lightly nudged him with the little leather shoe on her foot.
I'm already this close, so why is he still acting so proper...?
Is my charm not enough or something?
Damn it!
"I was planning to head back to Kasamatsu today, but now that you've said that, I kind of don't feel like going anymore."
"Besides, aren't you not planning to stay at Central either? So what's wrong with me going back with you?"
"So that was your plan all along? You were going to go back with me?"
"Yeah. Otherwise, why do you think I stayed here waiting for you this whole time?"
Norn Ace turned her head and met Sakuraba's eyes, her arms folded across her chest and her cheeks puffed out slightly. She looked like a soup dumpling you could swallow in one bite.
"I thought you just wanted to stay in Tokyo a little longer and sightsee... ow, hey, why are you pinching my waist?!"
"Hmph!"
Norn Ace rolled her eyes.
Sakuraba honestly had no idea what was going on inside this gyaru's head, but he did have reasons for staying in Tokyo.
First, there were still some post-Derby matters involving Oguri Cap that Kitahara was planning to brief him on.
Second, the principal of Kasamatsu Training Center Academy had asked him to do a bit of promotion for Kasamatsu while he was here at Central.
And Tamamo had messaged him over the past two days too, saying she wanted to talk to him about something.
Now that he thought about it, he really did have quite a lot to do.
"Well, you should head back first. I'll come find you at the shop when I get back."
Although he didn't really understand why Norn Ace was this attached to him, Sakuraba could vaguely guess the reason.
It was probably that debuff the system had given him acting up.
If I'm not around them, they get anxious...
And possessive too.
Norn Ace fit that description perfectly right now.
Still, this level of possessiveness was whatever.
I thought she was going to tie me up and drag me off or something.
What a joke.
So this is all the system's got, huh?
Don't make me laugh.
Even so, he did need to calm Norn Ace down right now. If just being around him was enough to put her at ease, then Sakuraba didn't mind lending a hand.
"Relax. It's not like I'm staying at Central forever. Just go back and keep an eye on the shop."
Sakuraba smiled and patted the girl on the shoulder.
At times like this, you had to say something about trust or bonds to calm her down.
"With the kind of relationship we have, don't tell me you can't even trust me with something this small?"
You're one of my important loss-making employees. There's no way I'd abandon you.
What Sakuraba didn't notice, however, was that the moment his hand landed on Norn Ace's shoulder, her body trembled slightly.
"...Fine, then."
"Since you're putting it like that..."
Her voice lifted just a little as she turned her head away so Sakuraba wouldn't see the expression on her face.
"Then I'll head back first. When you're going back to Kasamatsu, make sure you call me."
"Okay, okay."
After seeing Norn Ace off back to Kasamatsu, Sakuraba's phone chimed with a bank deposit notification.
"One hundred million yen..."
Sakuraba's mood turned complicated as he looked at the newly added funds.
If he didn't spend all of this, the system would definitely judge him as still being in profit.
He needed to think of some way to burn through the money.
Maybe he should start some kind of money-losing project at Central too?
Or invest in a new Umamusume...?
No, no.
He had already invested in two Umamusume, and both times things had gone wrong.
By this point, Sakuraba had finally realized that his luck lately had been absolutely terrible.
What if he invested in another one and she started getting results too?
Wouldn't that be like trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to bait it?
No way in hell.
Even if he was going to invest again, it would have to wait a while.
It wasn't like he could keep accidentally picking geniuses forever, right?
Ha.
And just as Sakuraba was thinking over a new money-losing path, his phone gave another soft buzz.
He picked it up and looked. Symboli Rudolf's name was displayed clearly on the screen.
...Wait.
Why does Luna-san have my phone number?
Oh, crap.
Looks like I'm the one who gave it to her, huh?
It's over!
---
T/N: mmmmmm braing empty right now