Falling in love with him... happened much later. Rudolf herself couldn't remember when she finally started to feel that she couldn't live without this man.
Perhaps it was when she could no longer get used to being alone, or perhaps she simply wasn't accustomed to blow-drying her own hair anymore, or maybe she had gotten used to having someone cut up Fuji apples into a platter for her... There were many reasons, but she could no longer distinguish them.
At the very least, after she had thoroughly become the undefeated Triple Crown winner and held the title of a seven-time champion, she took the seat of the student council president she had once dreamed of, becoming Japan's true "Horse King."
She thought that after all this perseverance, she and her trainer had finally reached the pinnacle of Japanese Uma Musume racing together, and the old rumors would vanish. However, reality seemed to be different from what she had imagined.
From the day she became the new student council president, many controversies, as if they had been brewing for a long time, finally erupted, pouring down on the unprepared Rudolf all at once.
"These people are really gossipy... They used to criticize you, Trainer, for being a hack. Now they're bringing up the incidents with Mr. C.B. and Sirius Symboli, saying I'm a tyrant who suppresses my seniors and peers, even my own family's sisters."
Rudolf sat in the student council president's chair, while Kitano sat on a nearby sofa. At that time, Air Groove and Narita Brian had not yet joined the student council. The office only contained a newly appointed president and a mediocre trainer. The two of them looked at the news in the Uma Musume-exclusive newspaper, at the various criticisms and doubts about her.
Looking at the news, the old Rudolf might have been furious. But now, whether it was because she had gotten used to being angered by that foolish man, or because she had truly matured, she only frowned at the news, without losing her temper.
"Now you understand my good intentions, right, Rudolf?" Kitano put down the newspaper. A year or two had passed, but he didn't seem to have changed much, looking just as old as when she first met him—which added another layer of strangeness to his reputation.
Most news outlets and fans thought her trainer was a disposable hack who couldn't offer any help.
But, because of his good looks, and after she had given him a good makeover, he now had quite a few fans, most of whom were attracted to his "cool old man" vibe.
"You've been too much of a 'villain' on the track. All your contemporaries have been overshadowed by you. Even if they're not angry, how could their fans not have an opinion?"
"Can't you offer better advice than just sarcasm, Trainer?" Rudolf put down the newspaper, looking very troubled. "How did I get labeled a 'tyrant'... It's only my first day in office..."
"—I think that evaluation is very pertinent, just like my consistent evaluation as a hack."
"If you keep this up, I'm going to hit you, Trainer."
Rudolf playfully raised her small fist. But Kitano showed no fear. Instead, he came forward, took her fist, and gently guided it down.
"Hitting me is useless, Rudolf. What's done is done, but it's not too late to mend the pen after the sheep are gone."
"Do more things that let everyone see your change. Don't worry, let me handle the public opinion. If nothing else, I still have ways to argue with those trolls."
Kitano didn't like arguing online, mainly because he didn't like conflict, especially with trolls who would find fault with you no matter what. Spending a lot of time arguing with them would only exhaust you physically and mentally, with no meaning.
But not liking it didn't mean he couldn't do it. For his assigned Uma Musume, what was a three-day, three-night online war with trolls? At worst, he'd prepare two blood pressure pills. At his age, it was inevitable to have some minor ailments. He didn't want to get into an argument with someone and just pass out from anger.
Rudolf fell silent. Her gaze fell on his hand, which was holding her fist, whether intentionally or not. After a long moment, a smile appeared on her face. She placed her own hand over his and said softly:
"Thank you... Trainer. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know what to do."
"Even without me, you would know what to do, Rudolf," he said at the time. "You always find a way."
...Always find a way?
What Rudolf didn't know at the time was how ironic that statement would become. Day after day of being together, their growing affection, made her unsure of what her feelings for this man truly were.
But to outsiders, it seemed everything was already clear. The "Emperor," who on one hand said "romance is forbidden at Tracen," yet was so intimate with her trainer, had already given her heart to someone. The Uma Musume and trainers of Tracen, whether they understood romance or not, could all see that this emperor treated her trainer differently from everyone else.
Whenever she was about to lose control of her emotions, only his words could calm her.
Whenever she was exhausted, he would always be there to massage her shoulders and head.
Whenever she wanted to go for a run to vent, his figure, holding water and a towel, would always be waiting by the side.
Over time, almost all the Uma Musume and trainers at Tracen tacitly assumed the two were already dating. And the fact that the famously strict and dignified president had her own trainer boyfriend seemed to have helped a lot in changing her image later on.
Ah, so the president is just an ordinary Uma Musume too. She also falls in love with her trainer. This kind of thought made her later transformation work go very smoothly.
But as time went on, those days grew fewer and fewer. Until one day, she returned to the Symboli household. There, she met the head of the family, Speed Symboli.
This time, she thought it would be a very ordinary meeting, just like in the past. But unexpectedly, the family head's expression was very serious, and for the first time, she asked about Rudolf's affairs at the academy.
"About your relationships... Rudolf, although I'm not one to meddle, I have to remind you, you and that trainer are getting more and more out of line."
"He's already in his forties. In three or four years, he'll be pushing fifty. He's more than a full cycle older than you. More importantly, this man's talent... If it weren't for Mr. C.B. begging me to agree, I wouldn't have turned a blind eye for so long."
"But your relationship now, someone told me, is getting more and more intimate. Rudolf, are you planning to have that man, who has no talent and is old enough to be your father, marry into the family?"
"If that's what you're thinking, then as the head of the family, I'm telling you now, it's impossible. Get rid of that idea quickly."
"As the next head of the Symboli family, no family member will allow your husband to be an incompetent and old man. Rudolf, this is for your future, and for the future of the Symboli family."
That day, Speed Symboli had a long, heartfelt talk with her. However, it ended with Rudolf storming out in a rage.
And as she rushed back to Tracen Academy, hoping to leave all this behind, she didn't realize that even if she didn't accept Speed Symboli's words, the outcome of her separation from Kitano would not change.
...The term of their contract was about to expire. And on that day, even if Rudolf didn't admit it, her relationship with Kitano would come to a complete end.
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