Terizumi Shinji's expression darkened even further, especially when Offside Trap looked at him with wounded, aggrieved eyes. Before he could stop himself, he flicked her on the forehead.
"Ow~"
Putting on a show of being hurt, Offside Trap clutched her head and looked up at him with those still-damp, glistening eyes.
Only then did Shinji realize what had happened. Offside Trap had not misunderstood him at all—she had just gotten more and more sly around him, to the point where she could now fool him on purpose.
He was just about to say something when the horse girl whose face had moments ago gone utterly bleak suddenly seemed to come back to life. With righteous indignation, she stepped between Shinji and Offside Trap and declared in a tone full of justice:
"You're not allowed to bully her! If you want to hit someone, hit me instead!"
"?"
"?"
[Negative Emotion +60]
Completely unaware that the idol behind her had already gone dark-faced, the girl looked back smugly at her companion.
"See, Guangmang? Didn't I tell you? I knew it was like this—"
Nicknamed Guangmang, the other horse girl helplessly covered her face, not daring to look at Xiaoxing at all, which only left Xiaoxing even more confused.
"Who are you?"
The voice behind her was not gentle in the slightest. If anything, it was cold and distant.
Xiaoxing's expression froze as she slowly turned around.
She saw her idol wearing a thoroughly impatient look, stepping around her and moving straight to that trainer's side, naturally looping her arm through his.
The trainer, of all people, even hesitated for a moment. That made Xiaoxing feel indignant—but mixed in with that indignation was something deeper, something close to grief.
She simply could not understand why a trainer whose reputation in Europe was so divisive, whose actual ability was constantly being questioned, could receive this much favor from Offside Trap.
If the horse girl behind her, Guangmang, had known what she was thinking, she would have gently told her, "If the trainer has ability or not, would his own horse girl not know better than anyone?"
But Xiaoxing had completely trapped herself inside her own assumptions, and now that those assumptions had shattered—
"I... I'm your fan. I've watched every single one of your races. Really—you're incredibly, incredibly strong."
"In the future, I want to become a horse girl as outstanding as you."
Xiaoxing was fumbling over her words. In contrast, Offside Trap only wore a puzzled expression as she looked at her.
"Is that so?"
The moment Offside Trap replied, joy flashed across Xiaoxing's face, and she was about to say more when Offside Trap abruptly changed tone and continued:
"Then tell me about my Derby."
Xiaoxing's expression froze all over again.
Offside Trap did not particularly care. This horse girl had just been openly rude to her trainer, and had even made him angry.
To Offside Trap, that was absolutely unacceptable.
Besides, what exactly was with that questioning look she had aimed at Terizumi Shinji? What right did some unknown horse girl have to look at him like that?
She could not even outrun Saint King Halo!
Saint King Halo: ?
Seeing that Offside Trap had already taken a strong dislike to her friend, Guangmang hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed hold of Xiaoxing before she could say anything else. Right now, she could not even spare the energy to be exasperated at how ridiculous Xiaoxing looked.
The truth was, her friend had this exact problem—obsessive fans were never well liked anywhere. Even she thought Xiaoxing was in the wrong.
But the important thing now was containing this situation before it became completely irreparable. Thinking about that, Guangmang could not help regretting it. She should never have agreed to Xiaoxing's absurd plan to come looking for Offside Trap in the first place.
Now that she was the one who knew where they were staying, even though Xiaoxing was the one acting like a fool, the more serious fault really belonged to her—the one who at least appeared normal.
Bowing her head, the girl spoke in a soft voice.
"Mr. Terizumi, hello. My name is Curious Radiance, and I'm also one of the participants in this year's Eclipse Stakes. My friend here is Offside Trap-senpai's devoted fan, and she really only came here because she wanted an autograph."
"As for how we knew where you were staying... I did learn that through certain channels, and for the trouble it's caused you, I'm truly sorry. We won't tell anyone, of course. Really, the most appropriate thing would be for you to change hotels. If there are any losses involved, please contact me directly. I'm very sorry."
Still bowing, the horse girl watched as Shinji's expression showed no sign of softening at all.
This was not the sort of thing that could simply be brushed off as either big or small. Shinji turned to look at the luggage they had just finished unpacking inside the room and let out a sigh.
"There's no need for compensation. Just take her and go."
As he pointed at Xiaoxing, Curious Radiance's face flushed with embarrassment. She nodded repeatedly.
She had already wanted desperately to leave anyway.
Once the door shut, Shinji finally turned to look at Offside Trap.
Her fragrance still lingered at the tip of his nose, and it made him instinctively want to pull his arm free.
"Trainer."
The voice was gentle. Offside Trap's hair still had not completely dried, and the towel she had used to dry it hung loosely around her neck, slipping over her half-bared shoulder.
Her oversized shirt made Shinji wonder where exactly she had picked up that style of dress. In the end, it was more than he could properly handle, and he turned his face away.
"I already found another hotel nearby. Shall we move there?"
There was even a trace of excitement in Offside Trap's voice, though Shinji, despite finding it odd, did not think too deeply about it. He turned back and started repacking the luggage he had only just taken out, growing increasingly irritated as he did. This sort of thing—could he not just file a complaint with the URA and get those two horse girls suspended for a period of time?
Letting out a deep breath, Shinji took the suitcase and followed Offside Trap out. First they checked out, then took a car to the new hotel. It was another fine hotel, though more remote in location, which only made Shinji sigh inwardly. From now on, even their schedule would need to be planned earlier and more carefully.
What he did not notice at all was the mischievous, excited look in the receptionist's eyes as Offside Trap handled check-in.
Clack-clack-clack...
The crisp sound of horseshoes tapping the floor. Shinji could almost hear the excitement in her steps, though he could not be entirely sure.
As they turned the corner and he finally saw the room assigned to them, he felt something was off the moment he looked at the door alone.
"Is this right?"
"There's no other choice. You can check if you want—there aren't any other rooms nearby with separate inner bedrooms."
As she said that, Offside Trap turned to look into his eyes.
The girl's gaze reflected his own as Shinji unconsciously took two steps back.
"What? Do you really mind that much?"
Tilting her head, her long smooth hair spilling down as she smiled, she asked him that question.
Join here to read ahead.
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 180)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter260)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter135)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (This matter is completely finished.)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 240
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 210
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 280
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 260
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 130
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 155
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 120
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 135
My Harem Is Indescribable 105
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 110
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 110
Still playing traditional Honk 91
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 95
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 80
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 90
Checking In in Demon Slayer 95
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 105
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 95
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 100
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 95
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 85
Why did they assign me to Uma 80
MYGO Beauties 75
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 80
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 90
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 105
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 65
The Uma Musume Who Became 70
I'm Definitely Not the King of 85
After Maxing Out Every Class 85
Naruto: I'm Konoha's Local Men 44
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 70
I, the Elden Sword Saint 60
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 60
No One Knows Pokémon Better 55
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 55
From Trilobites to Titans 55
Chainsaw Man: Contracted with 66
DanMachi: My Party Members Are 70
An Anime Heroine Darkened 60
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Duel Links 50
Honkai: The Fire Devil 30
Honkai Transformation Cards 35
Age of Heroes, I'm Just a Back 45
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin