"Shirayuki, do you have time?"
After returning from the laboratory, Mejiro Dober came to find her.
After worrying over it for five whole days, Mejiro Dober had finally decided to tell Shirayuki how she felt. The cause of everything lay with herself. After becoming Shirayuki's rival, Mejiro Dober had gradually started relying on Fujiwara Chiya. By the time she came back to her senses, she realized Fujiwara Chiya's shadow had already been imprinted in her heart.
For some reason, Mejiro Dober felt that Shirayuki's attitude toward her was so similar to Trainer's. The two of them often mixed together inside her heart.
Mejiro Dober wanted to tell Shirayuki what she was thinking, and then have Shirayuki scold her harshly. If she did that, maybe she would no longer be so lost.
"Can you come for a walk with me? By the river."
"Sure."
Shirayuki agreed readily. These past few days, Mejiro Dober had always been deliberately avoiding her. Now that she had finally invited her out, Shirayuki naturally did not mind.
The two left the room and went to the riverside. Mejiro Dober hesitated several times, then finally took a deep breath and slowly spoke.
"Shirayuki, actually… I've developed special feelings for Trainer-san."
Shirayuki's body paused.
"I've been troubled over this the whole time. I didn't know how I should tell you, but I can't keep deceiving you forever, so I wanted to tell you properly."
For the first time, Mejiro Dober felt like she was such an awful person.
Even though she already had Shirayuki, she still could not stop looking at Trainer. She often mixed up the two figures in her mind.
Having the younger sister and still wanting the older brother, who in the world would take both at once? Even if she wanted to do that, Shirayuki would definitely never agree.
That was why Mejiro Dober hoped Shirayuki would scold her.
As long as Shirayuki scolded her awake, she would no longer hold special thoughts toward Trainer.
Mejiro Dober waited for Shirayuki to explode in anger at her.
But unexpectedly, Shirayuki only showed an extremely subtle expression, then hummed softly twice.
"I had a vague idea already, but I didn't expect Dober to say it herself…"
"Shirayuki?"
What was going on?
Her reaction was completely different from what Mejiro Dober had imagined. Mejiro Dober had thought Shirayuki would absolutely argue with her over this matter. She had even prepared herself mentally for it.
Who would have thought the other girl would simply nod and let it pass?
Wait a second!
"Does Shirayuki not have any thoughts about this?"
If you're this calm, it makes me look strange! And I spent so long hesitating over it too!
"My feelings are a little complicated, I guess. But I also feel somewhat relieved. Originally, I thought it would be enough as long as you didn't dislike him."
"…A lot of things have happened, after all. Shirayuki really cares about my relationship with Trainer-san, doesn't she? Even so, this kind of feeling definitely shouldn't be allowed, right? I confessed to you, after all."
"Actually, my situation is also quite complicated. It was supposed to be a secret, though now I guess it isn't really much of a secret anymore."
"A secret?"
Mejiro Dober did not understand what Shirayuki was talking about.
Shirayuki herself was also very conflicted. Should she tell Mejiro Dober about herself or not? After thinking for a while, Shirayuki decided to keep quiet for now.
Mejiro Dober had gone to Trainer because of the race with Shirayuki, precisely because she did not want Shirayuki to know her determination toward the race. If Shirayuki told Mejiro Dober now that she herself was Trainer, she had no idea what Dober would think.
Shock.
Anger.
Or perhaps some other emotion.
In any case, things would definitely not be the same as before. At least until the race ended, she had to keep this secret. This was also to let Mejiro Dober maintain her mindset for the next race.
Otherwise, Chiya's side would not be able to train properly either.
"Dober-nee, can I give you my answer after the Yushun Himba ends?"
"You can, but…"
Could Shirayuki actually be considering it?
Considering what?
Allowing me to take both of them!?
Is that really possible?
Mejiro Dober's mind became chaotic. The current situation had honestly exceeded the processing capacity of her brain.
Just as Mejiro Dober was struggling with her thoughts, Shirayuki suddenly widened her eyes. It seemed she had seen something. Then she said to Mejiro Dober, "There's someone I know. Dober-nee, I'm going to say hello!"
After saying that, she ran off.
"Shirayuki?"
Mejiro Dober watched that white figure rush into the distance, then lowered her hand.
Since Shirayuki had said to wait until after the race, then she would wait until after the race.
It was not that far away anyway.
On the other side, Shirayuki quickened her steps.
Just now, she had seen a familiar figure among the crowd.
Beautiful red hair.
Brown skin.
There was no doubt about it.
That person was the shop assistant who had once granted her wish.
Of course, calling her a shop assistant no longer seemed appropriate now. After experiencing so many strange and bizarre things, Shirayuki had long since gained a new understanding of this world.
Ghosts.
Fortune.
The Domain.
Since those things existed, then naturally, that person existed as well.
A true goddess.
Shirayuki ran after her. The red figure turned into a corner.
"Please wait!"
Shirayuki shouted, drawing gazes from the people around her. But she could not care about that anymore. After half a year, she had encountered that person again.
Her horseshoes scraped against the road as Shirayuki turned the corner and rushed into the alley.
The moment she showed herself, she collided head-on with someone. The two of them fell to the ground at the same time. Shirayuki clutched her head. It felt like she had crashed into something very soft and very springy.
The red figure had disappeared.
In her place was an uma musume lying on the ground.
The other girl wore a white hat. Her water-blue hair spread across the ground, and her ears, covered with jewel-colored ear covers, twitched slightly.
When Shirayuki saw her, she covered her mouth.
Oh crap.
I didn't kill her, did I!?
She had just been running over at full speed. If she had killed someone by crashing into them, that would be a huge problem. Even if the other girl was not dead, passing out would still be bad.
Shirayuki hurriedly helped her up.
"A-Are you okay?"
"That hurt…"
The girl held her head and opened her emerald-green eyes. Her clear pupils seemed as though they might suck Shirayuki's soul inside.
Thank goodness.
She's still alive.
Shirayuki let out a breath of relief.
Fortunately, the other party was an uma musume, so her body was sturdy enough. If she had been human, that collision just now might have taken half her life.
"Wait a moment. I'll take you to the hospital."
Shirayuki lifted her up.
"There's no need for the hospital. Take me there instead."
She pointed toward a nearby café.
"I've wanted to go there for a long time, but I never had the chance. It wasn't easy for me to get out this time."
"It wasn't easy for you to get out, and I still ran into you. I'm really sorry!"
"It's fine, it's fine, little one."
She smiled.
"Rather, what were you in such a hurry for just now?"
"I saw someone I knew and wanted to go greet her…"
"Someone you knew."
Those emerald-green eyes looked at Shirayuki, and then she smiled.
"Maybe she didn't hear you. Or perhaps she had something else to do."
"Maybe."
Who knew when the next time they met would be?
"If fate connects you, there will always be another chance."
She had Shirayuki put her down, then bent over and patted the dust from her blue tracksuit.
"Could you treat me to a drink, Trainer?"
"Sure…"
Shirayuki nodded.
At the same time, she realized that this person had just called her "Trainer."