Central Tracen Academy.
Inside the Student Council President's office—
Symboli Rudolf sat at her desk, face twisted with a bit of conflict as she read the newspaper in her hands.
"Ah... these reporters, honestly..."
She pressed a hand to her forehead and set the paper down. On the front page were two massive photos: one of Yayo Invincible, the other of Oguri Cap.
"Two wins, two flawless victories—Yayo Invincible! Versus Oguri Cap, riding a nine-race winning streak..."
"A high-stakes clash between two titans—who will triumph?"
Phrases like these were plastered all over the page.
"They always love doing this—using these confrontational headlines to draw attention and manipulate public opinion..." Rudolf sighed.
Maruzensky placed a freshly brewed pot of tea on the desk and smiled gently.
"I've never really liked them either."
"Who would?" Rudolf sighed again, nodding her thanks. Just as she was reaching for her teacup—
"PRESIDENTTTTT—!!"
BANG!
The office doors burst open, and a lively little figure dashed in like a rocket, leaping into Rudolf's arms!
Despite being built like a child, the little loli showed off jaw-dropping agility—easily clearing three or four meters to dive straight into Rudolf's flustered embrace!
"..."
Maruzensky stared in mild astonishment at the Emperor snuggling up to Rudolf, who wore a look of helpless indulgence.
"Rudolf, this kid is...?"
"Ah, this is Tokai Teio. She hasn't debuted yet..."
Rudolf pulled the overly energetic loli—who was about to climb onto her head—into her lap. "Teio! Settle down!"
Gripping the back of her collar like fate's hand, Rudolf added helplessly, "For some reason, this kid's really clingy to me..."
She placed Teio on her knees and tried to sound stern. "Teio, why are you in the Student Council room again?"
"Because I missed you, Prez~"
The girl rubbed her cheek against Rudolf with a sweet, spoiled voice.
As a pre-True Blooming Uma Musume, Teio looked no older than eight or nine. Her childish tone felt just right for her age.
Rudolf's stiff expression instantly crumbled.
"Teio, you can't keep bothering upperclassmen like this, okay?"
Rudolf could never seem to get mad at her, so she tried to advise her seriously.
The little loli nodded obediently, still sneaking little cheek rubs against Rudolf's face.
"Prez, Prez, what were you two talking about just now?"
"About little Teio's debut race~" Maruzensky teased with a grin, catching on quickly to just how close these two were.
"Eh? Me?" Teio blinked, utterly missing the sarcasm—her undeveloped brain still stuck in grade school logic.
She hopped off Rudolf's lap and scurried over to Maruzensky, holding out her hands and making some gestures.
"But I'm not grown up yet..."
"Well, that just means you should prepare ahead of time! Your debut race will be the true starting line of your Uma Musume career." Maruzensky crouched down and spoke gently.
"You want to do your best in training, right?"
"Mm..."
After a brief pause, Teio suddenly clenched her fists, declaring loudly, "Right! I'm going to follow in Prez's footsteps and become the second undefeated Triple Crown winner!"
"Undefeated... Triple Crown?" Maruzensky raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Prez, Maruzensky-senpai! I'm off to train now!"
The excitable little loli waved, then—before they could react—sprinted toward the window and jumped out of the third-floor office!
"!"
"!"
Both Maruzensky and Rudolf rushed to the window in shock.
They saw Teio already landing on the ground below, skipping off with a joyful smile.
"That girl..." Rudolf wiped away a faint, nervous sweat.
"She's always so explosive."
"She's got real potential," Maruzensky chuckled, pouring more tea into Rudolf's cup.
Taking a sip, Rudolf glanced at the retreating figure of Teio, then down at the paper—at the faces of Yayo Invincible and Oguri Cap.
"Yes... she's got tremendous potential..."
...
Shopping District.
One man, two Uma Musume—happily spending an afternoon shopping.
Or rather, Kuroha was doing the shopping. Inari One and Fujimasa March were just nibbling on local snacks with blissful faces.
"Trainer, ah~"
Fujimasa March walked beside him, holding up a piece of takoyaki toward his mouth with a sweet smile.
"Mmm..." Kuroha took a bite, chewing as he glanced at his phone's map.
"This 'Penguin Sports Store' has great reviews. Let's stop by there next."
He turned to Inari One, "Oi, little Inari, you're our local expert—ever been to this store? How's the stuff?"
Inari One quickly gulped down her snack, stood on tiptoe to peek at his phone, and then puffed up with false confidence.
"No idea. My gear's usually picked by Boss. Everything she gave me worked great!"
"...Knew it. Shouldn't have asked." Kuroha sighed and pinched her cheek, making her yelp.
Before long, they reached the shop marked by a life-sized penguin plush out front.
Penguin Sports – Specialized for Uma Musume.
Since Uma Musume racing was the world's biggest sport, even sports equipment had its own sub-industry.
Their strength and speed were too absurd—human-grade gear was useless for them, and vice versa.
"Welcome!"
An automatic mechanical greeting rang out as a neatly dressed clerk approached to greet Kuroha.
A single glance was enough to guess he was the trainer of the two girls.
"You two browse a bit. I'll talk with the manager."
Kuroha waved the two glowing-eyed horse girls off, then turned with the clerk toward the shoe section.
"Waterproof, anti-slip, custom synthetic fibers—comfortable to wear. For Inari One, we'll also need reinforced resin tips since her power output is crazy."
"As for March..."
Kuroha came prepared, listing off their needs in detail while inspecting pair after pair.
"Three pairs each—for training and racing."
Fujimasa March, her curiosity satisfied, had already returned to Kuroha's side.
Inari One, meanwhile, was fixated on a pair of sneakers covered in elegant, traditional Japanese designs—her eyes practically sparkling.
"Geez..."
Kuroha glanced over and couldn't help but smile.
"That pair's design—could we add that same pattern to this one?" he asked the clerk, holding up the training shoes he had picked out for Inari One.
"Of course, sir! Our store has full customization facilities. It'll take about twenty minutes."
"Great. We'll go with these six pairs then."
With the shoes settled, Kuroha moved on to the horseshoe section.
Training horseshoes, light steel for general work. Aluminum alloy for race day. And of course, each one needed to be fine-tuned to the horse's foot structure.
He decided to get seven per girl.
Four light steel for training.
Three aluminum alloy for competition.
After reviewing their running styles, he made additional adjustments.
Nearly two hours later—
Kuroha finally emerged from Penguin Sports, flanked by two sleepy-eyed Uma Musume, both yawning wide under the afternoon sun.
(End of Chapter)
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