Meanwhile, Air Groove was planning to return to the student council to discuss the new student friendly race with Symboli Rudolf. Although the purpose was to vie for the position of Kitano Ryuichi's charge, the real focus was on using this race as a pretext to motivate the new students to train and compete actively, thereby improving their overall quality.
After Air Groove and King Halo left, the crowd of onlookers also dispersed, chattering among themselves. Judging by the lingering excitement on their faces, the events that transpired in the cafeteria would likely spread like wildfire on the official Tracen Academy forums, attracting even more spectators...
Suddenly, the only ones left in the cafeteria were Ryuichi, T.M. Opera O, and Mihono Bourbon. At this moment, Ryuichi finally regained his right to speak. After being confused from beginning to end, he finally reacted and turned a "resentful" gaze towards the instigator of this incident—Opera O.
However, when his eyes met her familiar face, the words of blame that were about to come out were unconsciously swallowed. After a long while, his expression shifted from grief and indignation to helplessness. Finally, with a wry smile, he asked:
"Opera O... what exactly are you trying to do?"
"Hahahaha! Isn't it obvious? My dear Princess, who possesses both beauty and wisdom~"
Even though almost everyone had left, Opera O didn't change her rather dramatic nickname for him in the slightest. She seemed to feel no shame, instead saying to him:
"This concerns the position of your First Knight. Of course, this Overlord must select the most suitable candidate for Her Highness. This is a matter of the dear Princess's personal safety."
"Even this Overlord cannot guarantee to be by Her Highness's side at all times. If there's a time when I cannot help, your First Knight will be your last line of defense."
She sounded as if she were genuinely concerned for his safety, though he himself didn't know how selecting a suitable Uma Musume was related to personal safety... Was it to guard against the day some other Uma Musume came looking for revenge, and his charge could stop them for him?
In that case, he thought, he might need to expand his team. It would be best to bring in the other half of Tracen Academy. Otherwise, if all the girls from his many loops came looking for him, his skinny arms and legs wouldn't be able to escape.
—Of course, how could something like that happen? He had restarted. No one would know what he had done in the past.
"So, Opera O, you're so actively involved in this... does that mean you're also going to participate in this friendly race?"
"I remember you're in the high school division, right? Don't you have your own trainer?"
"Hahahaha! That's a good question!" Opera O let out a hearty laugh. The next moment, she looked at Ryuichi with great solemnity and said with a smile:
"Being this Overlord's retainer is not something that can be done casually. At least for now, the position of the Overlord's retainer is still vacant."
"As for whether this Overlord becomes the Princess's knight, or if Her Highness is willing to become the Overlord's retainer... well, please allow me to leave that as a cliffhanger."
She left him hanging. At this point, Opera O hadn't yet recognized her own inner feelings. She sensed the joy welling up inside her when she imagined standing with Kitano Ryuichi, running for him, but she hadn't yet determined the source of this emotion, so she didn't make an immediate decision.
The next moment, she performed an elegant curtain call bow, suddenly took one of his hands, and said with extreme tenderness:
"Then, until we meet again, my dear Princess."
With that, she lifted his hand and placed a light, courteous kiss on the back of it. She then gave him a small wink and turned to leave.
Ryuichi was stunned by her actions. The back of his hand still retained a faint warmth. He subconsciously looked down at it.
But soon, another figure appeared before him—Mihono Bourbon, who had been standing beside him, now stood in front of him, staring at him with an expression that, though placid, clearly showed dissatisfaction.
"Mr. Kitano."
"Ah... Ms. Mihono, I..."
His attention was quickly drawn to her. He opened his mouth, seeming to want to say something, but after a long pause, he simply sighed and said slowly:
"...I'm sorry."
"?" Mihono Bourbon tilted her head, seemingly not understanding why he was apologizing.
"The situation just now... although it wasn't the result I wanted, when you were confronting King Halo, I couldn't speak up for you. I'm really sorry."
Ryuichi explained with a troubled expression, "Everyone was looking at you. You said we were discussing a contract. If Opera O and the others hadn't come, I wouldn't have known how to respond to you."
"And I got you involved in something like this... I'm truly sorry, Ms. Mihono. You just enrolled, and I've already dragged you into this farce."
"—Mihono Bourbon understands," she nodded, but then asked him with a deadpan expression:
"Question. Does Mr. Kitano have no intention of becoming Mihono Bourbon's highest authority?"
"No, no, no, I... I actually really want to be your trainer, Ms. Mihono. I know your talent!"
Ryuichi thought he heard a slight tremble in her voice. Never wanting to cause trouble for others, he immediately refuted it, pulling out his ultimate move, his "future vision."
Relying on this advantage, he had persuaded many Uma Musume to become his charges over multiple loops, especially those who had been looked down upon or were unaware of their own talent. He used his advantage to affirm them, thus convincing them.
Although the final results didn't seem to change much—they all still achieved what they were destined to in their original histories—this move was extremely useful for him, whether for comforting or persuading.
"It's just... I don't know if I can train you right now. I'm not sure of my current skill level. If I become your trainer, I don't know if I can truly help you, instead of holding you back."
Of course, the real reason was that he didn't want to use the same methods to train Bourbon again. That method, while effective, would eventually break her. Her body couldn't sustain such high-intensity training for long. It would only lead to many hidden injuries, causing her to suffer from pain in her later years.
To trade a year of glory for a lifetime of pain—that was definitely not a result he wanted. So, he had to choose a more suitable method, or he couldn't continue as her trainer.
"...Understood."
Mihono Bourbon was silent for a moment. The next second, a faint smile appeared on her face again, disappearing just as quickly. But she still said to him:
"Mihono Bourbon will participate in the race, aiming for victory. After I have claimed this victory, I hope that you, Mr. Kitano, can become Mihono Bourbon's highest authority. Mihono Bourbon will also run for you."
"Please look forward to it, Mr. Kitano. Mihono Bourbon will definitely be victorious."
With that, she gave him a deep bow, then turned and walked towards the cafeteria exit. As Ryuichi watched her retreating back, he felt a sense of relief, but also noticed a small problem.
...Doesn't Bourbon not know the way? If she just walks out on her own like that, will she be able to find the registration office?
Mihono Bourbon, who had just walked out of the cafeteria, was of course oblivious to his thoughts. Her mind was completely occupied by Opera O's proposal. She realized this was her closest chance to get to Kitano Ryuichi. As long as she could win, she could become his assigned Uma Musume.
So, the opponents she needed to watch out for... were King Halo? And that T.M. Opera O...
If it were the past, she might have been more cautious. But now that she knew many things in advance, to win this race, she had to start training early.
"—Accessing database memory. Searching for Master's training records for Unit 01 Mihono Bourbon."
She knew very well how to train herself. So, she just needed to continue using the training methods Master had used back then.
This race, she had to win. The person closest to Master could only be her.
-------
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