After returning to the academy, Kitahara's life settled back into calm.
Even with all the new information he'd learned—between his own tangled thoughts and Sirius's meddling—his head was a mess. And even though Rudolf now knew he was her Trainer, she didn't come looking for him—not even once—right up until school reopened. She didn't even message him on LINE.
As for Tokai Teio, after going back to the Tokai family, she went completely quiet too—no news, no visits to the Symboli main house, not even returning to the academy. No one knew what she was doing.
And time passed.
After a stretch of peaceful routine, Tracen Academy opened again. The Umamusume students and the Trainers who'd vanished before the break began returning one after another.
The academy's chilly emptiness faded. Foot traffic returned to the streets. Hidden corners of campus buzzed again. And outside the abandoned warehouse behind the school, a long line formed once more.
Looking at it all—the familiar sights—Kitahara felt like he'd been dropped back into the moment he'd first started working here last year.
"In the end… I couldn't escape."
He let out a long sigh, stared up at the academy sign, and repeated the same words he'd said when he first took the job.
Only this time, he wasn't the green Trainer who'd just arrived at Tracen and knew nothing about anything.
Now he was a well-known Trainer with a huge team and a solid network on campus.
And precisely because of that, at the last Trainers' meeting the Chairwoman held, he'd been assigned a special task.
The gist was simple: to deal with the surge in Umamusume numbers, Tracen had lowered its hiring standards for Trainers.
They'd recruited a batch of youngsters still in training—decent character, but lacking in skill and experience—as an emergency measure.
Given time, these kids would grow into towering trees. But right now, they were nowhere near ready to stand on their own.
So the Chairwoman wanted experienced trainers to take them under their wing for a while—at least through the opening stretch. Once they adapted, they could develop on their own.
Because he was already a campus figure—and thanks to certain off-campus factors—Kitahara got one of those mentorship slots.
And the person he drew was someone he didn't know… but who felt weirdly familiar.
"Hello, Kitahara-senpai. My name is Kiryuin Aoi. I'm a new Trainer. I still have many shortcomings, but for the Umamusume's future, I'll give it everything I've got."
The short-haired girl spoke with earnest seriousness.
Yes. That Kiryuin Aoi.
The famous "Iron Will wholesaler," owner of a certain super-white horse, the only daughter of the prestigious Kiryuin Trainer family—Kiryuin Aoi.
The only difference was that the Kiryuin in Kitahara's memory had already been in charge of that super-white horse with all-A stats. This Kiryuin Aoi, though, hadn't taken on anyone yet—and today was her first day at Tracen.
A genuine rookie.
"Nice to meet you, Trainer Kiryuin," Kitahara said, then suggested he take her on a tour so she could get familiar with the place.
"Mm. Then I'll be in your care, Kitahara-senpai."
Even though she was a young lady from a Trainer dynasty, for various reasons—despite dreaming since childhood of becoming a legendary Trainer—Kiryuin actually didn't know Tracen's day-to-day very well.
And now that she'd finally entered the school she'd longed for, she was intensely curious about everything inside it.
So the moment Kitahara offered to show her around, she agreed at once and followed behind him, wide-eyed with interest.
But as they walked… her expression slowly started to go wrong.
"Um, Kitahara-senpai… is Tracen dangerous? Why are there so many injured Trainers…?"
She stared at the people passing by: pale faces, unsteady steps, some even in wheelchairs being pushed by their Tantou.
Her expression turned… complicated.
"Danger…" Kitahara glanced at the wobbling Trainers, face calm. "Yeah. It can be."
"But you don't need to worry. These people got hurt because they brought it on themselves. As long as you act conservatively like I do and don't go looking to die, Tracen is still pretty safe…"
"Ah… is that so…?"
Kiryuin nodded, only half convinced. Then her gaze snagged on something in a corner, and her steps faltered.
"Um, Kitahara-senpai—over there…"
Kitahara followed her line of sight, and saw an Umamusume in an inconspicuous corner pinning her Trainer down and gnawing on his lips like her life depended on it.
"Oh, that," Kitahara said, waving it off like it was nothing.
"You're from a Trainer family, right? You probably know a lot of Trainers and their Tantou have that kind of relationship. It's not that rare on campus. You'll get used to it…"
Kiryuin glanced again, cheeks flushing. Hesitantly, she asked, "But… isn't that inappropriate in the academy? Does the Chairwoman not do anything about it?"
"Oh, they do," Kitahara said—just as a figure in green stepped into his field of view.
"You see? Right on cue."
The smiling Hayakawa walked into the corner. Before the Umamusume could even react, Hayakawa chopped her once with a hand strike, knocking her out cold, then hoisted her up and slung her over her shoulder.
"After this, that girl will probably get three days in solitary for violating school rules," Kitahara said. "But usually her Trainer can't stand it. He'll go plead with the Chairwoman in less than a day, and she'll get released right away…"
"The one in green is Hayakawa. She's recognized as Tracen's guardian deity. If you ever run into danger or trouble you can't handle, go to her."
Kiryuin Aoi nodded, committing it to memory.
Though for some reason—maybe it was her imagination—when Hayakawa left, it felt like she glanced their way… and her eyes looked faintly dangerous.
Before Kiryuin could think about it any more, Kitahara started walking again and led her onward.
"This is the cafeteria. Unlike most schools, the cafeteria at Tracen Main Campus is completely free, and there's no limit. That's especially great for Umamusume with big appetites…"
Staring into the cafeteria, Kiryuin fell silent for a moment, then looked toward a certain direction.
"When you say 'big appetites'… you mean like that?"
Following her gaze, Kitahara saw it:
On a small table, three mountains of rice had been piled into an impenetrable wall.
And at the edge of those mountains, three legendary gluttons were devouring the terrifying heap at an astonishing speed, forming a spectacle all their own.
"…Those three are kind of special cases," Kitahara said after a beat, sounding a touch less certain.
"Most Umamusume have… fairly normal appetites. Probably."
After lingering in the cafeteria for a bit—with not much else to say—Kitahara led Kiryuin out.
Only, the moment they left, Kiryuin once again felt that faint, dangerous presence watching her.
…Was it really just her imagination?
She glanced back toward the cafeteria, but aside from the three rice mountains, she couldn't see anything else.
Leaving the cafeteria behind, Kitahara took her next to the Student Council.
"This is the Student Council. If you have any student-related issues later, or if the Chairwoman's busy, you can come ask here…"
"The Student Council President is Symboli Rudolf—the 'undefeated Triple Crown.' She looks very dignified out in public, but she's actually quite kind in private, so you don't have to be too stiff…"
As he spoke, Kitahara pushed open the Student Council door, intending to show Kiryuin around properly.
But the instant it cracked open—before he even saw what was inside—a suffocating pressure slammed into his face.
With the door open, the two people inside—Sirius and Rudolf, locked in a standoff—both turned their eyes on Kitahara at the same time.
And when they realized it was him, that already oppressive atmosphere climbed another notch, carrying the faint sensation of being stared down by a predator.
"…Excuse us," Kitahara said.
Then, with impeccable decisiveness, he closed the door, turned back to Kiryuin Aoi, and spoke as if nothing had happened.
"We might've come at a bad time today. When they're working overtime, it can get a little… different from normal. Don't take it to heart."
"I-Is that so…?"
Kiryuin had been startled by the atmosphere too. Once she recovered, she followed Kitahara away.
And as they walked away from the Student Council, Kiryuin felt something like what she'd sensed earlier—only far more dangerous—seeping through the crack beneath the door, locking onto her like a blade.
This time, she didn't doubt it.
It wasn't her imagination. Someone was looking at her with unmistakable hostility.
But why?
Today was her very first day setting foot inside Tracen's gates. She hadn't even interacted with anyone yet. There was no way she'd gotten into any conflict.
And yet, from the streets to the cafeteria to the Student Council—everywhere she went, she could feel that hostile gaze…
No matter how she turned it over, Kiryuin couldn't come up with a reason.
Was that just how Tracen was? But then why wasn't anyone looking at other Trainers like that…?
Or had someone from her family offended half the academy before she arrived? But she'd never heard anything like that…
With those questions gnawing at her, she followed Kitahara to the training grounds, the track, and several other places Trainers frequented.
It was the same everywhere. No matter where she went, that faint, persistent gaze—laced with clear hostility—clung to her like a shadow, making her increasingly uneasy.
When people feel uneasy, they instinctively gravitate toward someone they think they can trust.
And in a Tracen where it felt like everyone was glaring at her, the only person Kiryuin could trust—at least, the only one she felt she could trust—was that block of wood beside her.
So, without meaning to, as they toured more and more of campus, Kiryuin gradually drifted closer to Kitahara.
Which, naturally, drew even more hostile looks.
A vicious cycle.
Kitahara, for his part, was focused on explaining Tracen's layout and didn't notice her subtle movements.
Or rather—even if he had noticed, with his personality, he'd have chalked it up to a shy girl sticking close to someone familiar. He wouldn't have overthought it.
Either way, by the time they finished, Kitahara had given the rookie Trainer a full tour of Tracen… and a small taste of "Tracen shock."
Afterward, figuring she might be tired, he found a place for them to sit and rest—and began going over some of Tracen's "rules."
"They'll probably tell you in a meeting later, but I'll say it now too…"
"Tracen Rule Number One: stay away from any Umamusume wearing a white lab coat, and try your best to keep your Tantou from getting involved with them."
"If you fail, and you notice your Tantou always sneaking around and hiding things, watch what you eat—and contact Hayakawa-san or me immediately…"
"Tracen Rule Number Two: the Tracen forum has an anonymous option, but it does not guarantee complete anonymity."
"Try to restrain your urges and don't post anything weird. If you absolutely can't help yourself, we do have a private group chat… but that isn't completely safe either."
"Tracen Rule Number Three: at Tracen, a Trainer going missing isn't something worth being surprised about."
"If you discover a colleague has disappeared, don't panic. Just follow procedure and report it to the Chairwoman. After that, the Chairwoman and Hayakawa-san will handle the rest…"
Compared to a year ago, Tracen's rules had changed a lot.
And the biggest changes, naturally, were because of someone's influence.
Kiryuin didn't know that yet. And because what she was hearing sounded too bizarre to be real, she couldn't quite digest it.
Kitahara could tell she didn't understand, but he didn't push. After all, even when he'd arrived last year—despite his "foreknowledge"—he still hadn't been able to fully make sense of those weird rules.
He checked the time and realized they were close to missing lunch, and it looked like Kiryuin had hit her limit for information.
So after finishing Tracen's rules, Kitahara didn't add much more. He took her to the cafeteria for a meal, then walked her back to the dorm.
After that, time passed.
It took Kiryuin a long while to sort through the chaos in her head. Right as she finally finished, a meeting notice from the Chairwoman arrived.
A Trainers' assembly…
It was her first day. She didn't want to leave a bad impression on her superiors, so she quickly washed up, fixed her appearance, and hurried to the meeting room as fast as she could.
What happened next was much like Kitahara's first meeting.
Faced with Trainers sporting pale faces and unsteady steps—some being supported by their Tantou, bodies marked with bite marks—Kiryuin and the other newly hired young Trainers were shaken to their core.
But what gave Kiryuin a small sense of relief was this:
Even if many Trainers at Tracen looked… deeply unwell…
Kitahara looked like a lotus rising from the mud—clean, dependable, and normal to an almost unbelievable degree. Among all those battered Trainers, he stood out as someone you could trust.
It eased her chest more than she wanted to admit.
After the meeting, as usual, the veteran Trainers began explaining precautions to the newcomers.
Kitahara had too many "kids" under him and left early to handle his own matters. The other veterans didn't stop him. In fact, once he was gone, they exchanged looks and seemed to relax—subtly, but noticeably.
"Alright, rookies. Quiet down," one of them said. "What we're about to tell you is very important. It may even involve your personal safety. We call it the 'Tracen Rules'…"
Since she'd already heard them once from Kitahara, Kiryuin wasn't too surprised.
But strangely, after the veterans finished the twenty-four rules Kitahara had told her—and mentioned you could find them on the forum—they exchanged looks and continued.
"Alright. You've heard the first twenty-four rules, and you can search them on the forum too. If you didn't memorize them, just look them up later…"
"But what we're going to tell you next is something you can't find anywhere—yet you must obey it. You could say it's the most critical rule of all."
Their expressions turned solemn.
And quite a few of them looked straight at Kiryuin Aoi, eyes complex enough to make her scalp prickle.
Then they spoke again, their words carrying a trace of pity.
"The nonexistent twenty-fifth Tracen Rule: Do not approach Trainer Kitahara."
"No matter what happens—even if it conflicts with the rules above, or even school regulations—keep a certain distance from Trainer Kitahara. Do not act overly familiar with him."
"Especially if you're a female Trainer."
"Otherwise… the consequences are yours to bear."
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T/N: NOOOOOOOOO KIRYUINNNNN WAS SABOTAGED AT VERY BEGINNING!!! MY IRON WILL GIVER WAHHHH (LMAO THIS WAS IN MY DRAFTS AND I FORGOT TO UPLOAD IT)
OMG ITS BECAUSE I WAS TAKING A BREAK THIS WEEK!!!!!!! IM SO FUCKING STUPID!!!!
oh well enjoy this chapter :sob: