Dusk was the perfect time for a heart-to-heart.
Scarlet gestured for Vodka to follow. Both wore sour expressions the entire way, and it wasn't until they reached the stream that they finally had a chance to talk.
"Curfew's already passed. What are you still doing loitering around here?" Scarlet began, her tone accusatory.
"You haven't gone back either, so who are you to talk?" Vodka shot back.
"Me? I'm only here because—" Scarlet caught herself mid-sentence. "Because we're roommates. If you're not back, Senior Fuji will bother me about it, and wasting time like that will interfere with my training."
"Oh," Vodka replied coolly.
"Oh?! Is that all you have to say?!" Scarlet suddenly exploded, startling Vodka.
"What's wrong with you?! Why are you overreacting like this?!" Vodka demanded, completely bewildered.
"Hmph!" Scarlet turned her face away, clearly displeased with Vodka.
"If you keep this up, victory in the Oaks will be mine," Scarlet said, glancing sideways to gauge Vodka's reaction.
"I'm not running in the Oaks anymore," Vodka stated calmly.
"Wait! You can't be serious!" Hearing this, Scarlet could no longer maintain her nonchalant attitude.
"What do you mean? I'm pretty sure I told you already."
"I thought you were joking!"
Vodka's silence was the only answer she needed. Furious, Scarlet pointed a finger right at her face. "Are you running away because you lost to me in the Oka Sho?! Just like everyone's saying! Are you scared? You coward!"
Vodka's expression flickered, but she simply turned her body away, ignoring Scarlet.
"You—!" Scarlet closed the distance, forcefully spinning Vodka around to face her. "Not going to say anything?! Coward!"
A flicker of anger crossed Vodka's eyes, but she held it back, remaining silent.
"What's wrong with you?! This isn't cool at all, Vodka!" Scarlet screamed hysterically.
That last shout seemed to flip a switch. Vodka's expression instantly changed.
"You're always the one talking! You're so damn loud!" Vodka shoved Scarlet hard. Caught off guard, Scarlet stumbled back several steps, her grip on Vodka's arm slipping away.
"What are you doing?! I'm trying to show I care about you!" Scarlet, forgetting her own delicate feelings, roared back at Vodka.
"What do you mean, 'care about me'?! You just assumed I was scared, Scarlet! How does that make you any different from them?!"
Scarlet froze, stunned. For a moment, she found herself utterly unable to refute Vodka's words.
"I'm not..."
"Yes, you are! Anyone else can say those things about me! But not you, Scarlet! Because! Because...!" Vodka stared at Scarlet's flustered face, suddenly unable to get another word out.
"Idiot!!!"
With that, Vodka turned and fled. Scarlet wanted to chase after her but found her feet rooted to the spot. What could she even say if she caught up?
"...Idiot..."
Vodka ran blindly, not knowing or caring where she was going. She just kept running until she slammed into someone.
"Oh? A lost little lamb?"
Wincing in pain, Vodka rubbed her head and pushed herself up. When she saw who it was, her expression immediately brightened.
"Tanino Senpai!"
It was Tanino Gimlet, the victor of the Derby.
"Vodka, isn't it? So, have you fallen into darkness, unable to escape?"
Gimlet seemed to see right through Vodka's worries. Vodka's ears drooped.
"I had a fight with Scarlet. She doesn't understand me at all."
"A rift between dearest friends... How heartbreaking."
"No! We're not dearest friends!" Vodka hastily denied.
Gimlet simply smiled without a word, then continued, "If you are truly dearest friends, even if you walk different paths, you will surely meet again at the end of your journey."
"If it were you, Tanino Senpai, what would you do?"
"Hahaha!" Gimlet threw her head back and laughed wildly, clutching her forehead. Even at Tracen Academy, she was known as an eccentric who spouted incomprehensible nonsense. Her current behavior was as bizarre as ever.
"I am Tanino Gimlet! I pursue my ideal self. I have no intention of deceiving the self hidden deep within my heart. I am the Destroyer God! I am Destruction itself!
"I am the one who defies concepts and embodies my own truth. When the Omen Star descends, all will end. Destroy, then advance—toward that Finality."
"When the Omen Star descends, all will end...?"
That was Tanino Gimlet—a person who radiated an impulse of rebellion from her ears to her tail. She was utterly out of step with the times, yet that very quality drew Vodka in with an irresistible pull.
Kousei, Tanino Gimlet... Vodka had always wanted to be like them: a Cool Girl who stayed true to herself.
"Vodka, you must find the answer yourself. No one else can guide you. But if it's you... I'm not worried at all."
"Tanino Senpai..."
Senpai's reassurance was exactly what Vodka needed to hear. The idea of running in the Derby grew stronger in her heart, so much so that she completely ignored the information revealed in Gimlet's words.
But it didn't really matter. After all, as long as she kept moving forward, the path would continue to stretch out before her.
Speaking of eccentrics, another one at Tracen Academy was even more widely known.
"She actually said that! Don't you think that's awful, Tachyon Senpai?!"
"Oh my~"
On the other side of campus, Scarlet was also venting her frustrations to Tachyon.
"I was just trying to show I cared, but look at her attitude! It's infuriating!" Scarlet poured out her grievances, complaining about Vodka's behavior.
Tachyon listened silently, one hand poised to add sugar to her coffee. Suddenly, she felt a wave of resentment—an invisible black specter seemed to be glaring at her. She quietly put the sugar cube back down.
"Tachyon Senpai, don't you think she's being completely unreasonable?!"
Tachyon took a small sip of her coffee, then set it down again. Her face remained impassive, but inwardly she grumbled, This is so bitter...
Turning to Scarlet, she said, "As they say, 'caring leads to chaos.' You were too impulsive, Scarlet. Normally, you're much more level-headed."
Scarlet was speechless. After all, the moment she heard Vodka was skipping the Japanese Oaks, she'd lost all ability to think rationally.
"From a purely results-oriented perspective, Vodka withdrawing from the Oaks is actually more advantageous for you, isn't it?" Tachyon pointed out. "While there are other strong contenders for this generation's Triple Tiara, none are as formidable as Vodka. Without her, wouldn't it be easier for you to claim the crown?"
"That's true, but..."
"Listen, Scarlet," Tachyon continued, "there are people in this world who single-mindedly pursue their own goals. I know what you're worried about, but has Vodka herself said she's scared? In your heart, is she the kind of person who would give up after a small setback?"
"Because she's an idiot, she probably wouldn't give up," Scarlet muttered.
Tachyon smiled knowingly. "Exactly. Since you're her dearest friend, you should trust her more. When the time is right, she'll surely tell you herself."
Scarlet nodded, still a bit dazed. As a top student who always strived for first place, her ambition was a good thing. But sometimes, her pursuit of "perfection" made her overlook the most obvious truths.
With Vodka around, Scarlet will surely go further in the URA, just like Kousei and McQueen, Tachyon thought to herself.
"Thank you, Tachyon-senpai! You listened to my worries so patiently and gave me advice... just like a mother!" Scarlet's bright smile made Tachyon a little flustered.
She deliberately raised her coffee cup to hide her face, thinking, A mother, huh? Why am I so concerned about Scarlet anyway?
Tachyon didn't quite understand it herself. Perhaps she really had changed.
"Oh, right, Scarlet," she said, changing the subject. "Take these medicines back with you. Be sure to take them as prescribed, and don't forget."
"Okay! Thank you, Tachyon-senpai! It's getting late, so I should be going."
As Scarlet left the dorm room, she muttered to herself, "Tachyon-senpai seems perfectly normal. Why does everyone call her a weirdo?"
The coffee was as bitter as ever. Tachyon lost interest and stared blankly at the instruments scattered across her desk. Rising from her chair, she slipped out of Tracen Academy through a secret passage and headed to the usual spot, where she ran into Tanino Gimlet.
"Fancy meeting you here," Tachyon said.
"It is fate that has guided us to meet," Gimlet replied.
As Tracen Academy's two legendary weirdos, Tachyon and Gimlet were old acquaintances.
"Care to hear about something trivial?" Tachyon began.
"Hmph. Just as I'd expect from one who shares my destiny."
It seemed they had reached an understanding.
"I met this girl," Tachyon started, launching into her story. The two chatted animatedly, but as the conversation progressed, they both realized something was amiss.
She's talking about Vodka, isn't she? Gimlet thought.
She's talking about Daiwa Scarlet, isn't she? Tachyon thought.
Their eyes met, and their expressions turned strange.
"Oh~"
"Heh heh~"
In perfect sync, they both rose and took a step back. The air crackled with tension as they spoke in unison:
"You clearly don't understand a thing."