The weekend arrived.
Fujiwara Chiya changed into the outfit the store clerk had carefully coordinated for him. As the saying went, clothes made the man. Once he put on that outfit, the clerks' eyes lit up. Some of them even directly asked Fujiwara Chiya for his contact information, though Mejiro Dober refused them on his behalf.
In the end, the bill was also given an outrageous discount because of the Mejiro family. It was so low that even Fujiwara Chiya felt embarrassed.
But sometimes, insisting on pride for a moment only created more trouble. Occasionally, he had to be a kept pretty boy for once. Otherwise, his wallet really could not endure it. Ever since the races began, he had barely had any money to spend on himself. Almost all of it had been consumed by his uma musume. His Engel coefficient had to be at least eighty percent.
So, taking a little advantage of an uma musume once in a while shouldn't be too much, right?
After changing clothes, Fujiwara Chiya arrived at the agreed meeting place. Satake Mei would drive them to the venue. Aside from the European representatives, the people attending would be him, Mei, and Fumino.
"Not bad, Chiya. You even dressed yourself up specially."
Satake Mei came up to him familiarly.
"You're becoming quite the handsome young man. Very good. No matter what, first impressions are important."
"Thank you for the compliment."
Fujiwara Chiya looked toward Nase Fumino beside her. She was still dressed the same as before, in that women's suit.
It felt like Fumino barely changed clothes across all four seasons. Even when going out, she wore this same style.
Noticing Fujiwara Chiya's gaze, Nase Fumino adjusted her bangs.
"I have several identical sets of clothes. I change them every time, so don't think I only wear this one. I'm not that filthy."
"No, I wasn't thinking that!"
Nase Fumino snorted, then, like Satake Mei, came up in front of Fujiwara Chiya. Her beautiful eyes stared at him.
"What is it?"
"You seem to be getting thinner and thinner. Have you been eating properly lately?"
"I have. I eat a lot."
His appetite had increased at least threefold compared to before.
It was just that no matter how much he ate, he did not gain muscle.
"That's good."
Recently, Nase Fumino had also heard about Chiya training together with the uma musume.
She could not understand why her childhood friend had somehow turned into a monster. Could it be that he had inherited Aunt Maito's genes? Nase Fumino had never heard of a human whose strength could rival an uma musume.
Now, Fujiwara Chiya's situation had already become a topic of discussion. Everyone was saying that Chiya was about to become an uma musume.
Nase Fumino did not particularly care about that. Whether Chiya became an uma musume or not, he was still Chiya.
But there was one issue.
If Chiya were treated as an uma musume, then his training could only be described as awful. He knew how to train uma musume, but he did not know how to train himself. When Nase Fumino looked at him, he seemed completely like someone else's supporting role. His training program was a total mess.
Looking at his increasingly balanced body, Nase Fumino could not help saying,
"Why don't I train you instead?"
"Huh?"
"…No, never mind."
Nase Fumino shook her head.
She had accidentally spoken her thoughts aloud.
Although Nase Fumino was not obsessed with muscles, she still preferred the way Chiya used to look. Back then, he gave people a sense of security. Of course, she knew that the current Fujiwara Chiya merely looked less muscular. His strength was far greater than before.
What exactly had he done to make his body change so much?
"If you run into trouble, remember to tell me. Don't keep everything to yourself without saying a word. Got it?"
Nase Fumino tugged his tie and looked up at him. Beneath her soft hair, the hollow diamond-shaped earrings gave off a silver glow.
"Mm, got it."
"All right, you two. If there's a problem, talk about it at home. Let's go to the venue first."
Satake Mei interrupted their conversation. For some reason, she felt like she had turned into a third wheel.
"You both speak English, right?"
"I do."
"More or less."
"Good. Then communicate in English when the time comes. I won't have to act as your interpreter."
Satake Mei gave herself a break.
"Get in the car. Remember your manners when you meet them."
The group headed to the venue, which was a small meeting room. The guests were French representatives with Western features and beards. After they met, the other party greeted Satake Mei in French, then turned toward Fujiwara Chiya and the others.
"You must be Mr. Fujiwara and Miss Nase. I have long heard of you."
"Hello, hello."
Fujiwara Chiya shook his hand.
"We are here on behalf of the French racing group to observe the races at Japan Central. I hope we have not caused you any inconvenience."
"Not at all. We are honored."
Several people exchanged formalities and polite words. For the rest of the time, it was mostly Satake Mei doing the talking. Fujiwara Chiya and the others were basically there to provide support.
I hate this kind of serious occasion so much.
Fujiwara Chiya smiled on the surface while cursing internally.
"Miss Nase's father is Mr. Nase Hideto, correct? We often hear about Miss Nase from Trainer Hideto."
While Satake Mei was speaking with one of the representatives, the remaining people began talking to Nase Fumino.
Hearing her father's name, Nase Fumino's body visibly stiffened.
She hated it when other people mentioned her father in front of her.
But in front of these representatives, she could not act too impolitely. She could only force herself to smile.
"Trainer Hideto is also an outstanding trainer at our academy."
"We have heard that Miss Nase Fumino is known as a 'genius trainer' at Tracen. As expected of father and daughter."
"As expected, a trainer's child becomes a trainer too. Miss Nase Fumino truly has talent in this area."
Perhaps they simply wanted to get closer to Nase Fumino, but every word they said struck precisely at her sore spot.
Looking at Nase Fumino beside him, whose shoulders were trembling more and more, Fujiwara Chiya spoke.
"I don't think that is necessarily the case."
In an instant, everyone's gazes gathered on him.
"It is true that Fumino's father is a trainer, but he was not the reason she became one."
Fujiwara Chiya held her hand.
"Fumino and I are childhood friends. A long time ago, we were both captivated by uma musume, and we promised each other that we would become trainers together. That was our own decision."
"My father is also a trainer. When I told him about that decision, he neither agreed nor objected. He only told me to do what I wanted to do."
"Even if my goal had not been to become a trainer, he would have said the same thing. Fumino is the same. She did not become a trainer because of her father's influence. She became one because she wanted to."
"The achievements she has today come from her effort and dedication. They are not because she has a genius trainer for a father."
Hearing those words, Nase Fumino's eyes grew hot.
She turned her head and wiped the corner of her eye, then tightened her grip on Fujiwara Chiya's hand. Afterward, she said to the representatives,
"I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in talking about my father. I am only an ordinary uma musume trainer, and…"
She looked at Fujiwara Chiya beside her.
"…the rival who must defeat him."