"Yes, it's true that I'm currently helping Spe-chan with her training."
Faced with the confused expressions of the mother and daughter, Platinum smoothed her long hair.
"But you don't actually know much about being a trainer, do you? Or perhaps only the basics?"
"…"
The woman silently set down her chopsticks, her face turning serious.
She was, by nature, a rather easy-going person. She believed life should be comfortable—no need for great wealth, but no reason to pinch pennies either.
An easy, simple job was best; the salary didn't really matter.
Whether the house was perfectly tidy wasn't important, as long as it wasn't a mess.
When it came to clothes and daily necessities, she wasn't picky—whatever felt comfortable was fine. She was just an ordinary, simple person.
But not anymore. Because she had a daughter now. She had Special Week.
Alone, she could choose a comfortable way to live. But for Special Week, she had to provide the best.
Work hard, keep a proper home, learn to cook, and provide a sound upbringing.
All these changes stemmed from a mother's responsibility towards her daughter, stemming from love.
But she was, after all, just an ordinary person. She had her limits.
Life and work already kept her busy enough; finding the time to study the intricacies of being a trainer was incredibly difficult. Even now, she had only grasped the basics.
But there was no way around it. She wasn't capable of providing Special Week with a proper training regimen. In fact, Special Week's current training could hardly be called a regimen at all—it was just basic physical conditioning.
This approach was born of necessity. Spe's mom was too afraid to push too hard, terrified of causing some hidden injury she didn't know about, something that could ruin Special Week's entire future.
While this daily training helped Special Week build a solid foundation, it also limited the ceiling of her innate talent.
Because time is precious. While you spend yours polishing the basics, others are exploring their potential, not to mention the gap in understanding the racetrack itself.
"Yes, I'm really not a qualified trainer, much less worthy of the title 'trainer'." After a long silence, Spe's mom finally admitted it.
"But, Rea-chan, why are you bringing this up so suddenly?"
"Because I want Special Week to become stronger."
Patting Spe-chan's head beside her like tapping a watermelon, Platinum smiled lazily but cheerfully.
"Hmm? Don't tell me you know a trainer, Rea-chan?"
Spe's mom fell into thought, but then a lightbulb seemed to go off in her head as she remembered something.
"That's right! Nearl is your sister. She's so famous now, she must know many trainers…"
"But I'm sorry, that probably won't work."
"Eh? What do you mean?"
Platinum was covered in question marks, but seeing her expression, Spe's mom seemed to misunderstand and launched into an explanation on her own.
"If you're planning to introduce a trainer, I've actually thought about that before. But considering the cost, I ultimately gave up on the idea."
"I was hoping that when Spe is old enough, she could take the entrance exam for Central Tracen Academy directly. Her dream is to become Japan's number one Uma Musume, after all. If she enrolls in a local branch, transferring to the central academy later would be a hassle."
"But here's the problem. The trainer's exam is extremely difficult. Even local trainers aren't exactly plentiful. It's common for one trainer to be responsible for several Uma Musume. Under those circumstances, finding a dedicated professional trainer just for Spe is almost impossible."
"Even if a trainer, out of respect for your sister Nearl, was willing to take Spe on as a private student, the cost would still be far too high for us."
"Ah, that… you're overthinking it."
After listening to this long speech, Platinum felt helpless.
She looked at Spe's mom, whose face said 'I've wasted your kind intention,' and at Special Week, who just looked confused, and didn't know what to say.
"What I meant was, let me train Special Week."
"…"
"?"
Mother and daughter stared at Platinum with identical 'ovo' expressions, the atmosphere turning comical for a moment.
"Ehhh!!!!"
Then they both cried out in unison.
If they hadn't been living on a farm with almost no neighbors, that shout alone would have surely brought someone knocking on their door immediately.
"Rea, do you really know how to train?"
Special Week flailed her arms in front of her chest in a panic, her tail swishing wildly behind her.
"I-I-It's not that I doubt you! It's just, how do I put it? After all, Rea, you're the same age as me…"
"That's right, Rea-chan. Being a trainer isn't something you learn from reading a few books. Knowing and applying are two different things."
The two of them earnestly tried to talk Platinum out of the idea. To them, this seemed like a child's naive boasting, not understanding the difficulty involved.
Thud.
Platinum pulled a small booklet from her pocket, placed it on the table, and gently slid it towards the mother and daughter.
"What's this?"
Special Week curiously opened the leather-bound booklet, which exuded an air of authority, and read the words on it.
"Central Trainer Certification. Non-Transferable. Report Loss Immediately."
"Holder… Centaurea!!"
"!"
"What is this?!"
The shocking reality struck the mother and daughter like a lightning bolt. Their two faces, comically exaggerated with shock, pressed together, looking particularly silly.
"…"
Platinum wore a 'Aren't I impressive?' expression as she sipped her drink, privately thinking about the origin of her certificate.
To put it simply, it was the work of the all-powerful Three Goddesses!
As goddesses, creating a mere certificate was trivial—guaranteed completely genuine, with records of Platinum passing the exam existing even in the computer systems.
But what about the knowledge? She couldn't risk leading the girl astray. Even with the goddesses' tacit approval, her own conscience wouldn't allow it.
This was the time to call upon the other all-powerful 'me.'
'Nearl~~~ Oh other me, help me out, help me out! Centaurea requesting backup!'
'Huh? You want to teach Special Week?'
'That's right. Consider it a bit of fun. Besides, this kid is quite likable.'
'I have no other demands, only that you don't treat this as a game. You must be a serious and responsible trainer.'
'I know. When it comes to these Uma Musume, I would never toy with them, not even a little.'
'The memories are ready. Come and receive them.'
--+--
'Phew, memory download and sync complete.'
Platinum shook her head, processing the entire period of Nearl's studies.
'Wow, I knew this stuff was hard, but experiencing it myself really shows how ridiculously difficult it is. What kind of monsters are those central trainers?'
Muttering this useless complaint to herself, Platinum, having now lived through Nearl's study period, had become a knowledgeable trainer herself.
"Don't worry, leave Spe-chan to me. I'll make her the brightest star in the Twinkle Series."
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.