"...So, you agreed? You just accepted Meisho Doto's confession like that?"
"I didn't say anything... but my reaction at the time was probably no different from agreeing..."
Some time later, still in Wada's room within the team building, the scene and atmosphere of the place had changed dramatically.
Sitting on the bed was no longer Meisho Doto and Wada, but rather T.M. Opera O, while the person kneeling on the floor was none other than Wada Ryuji.
After the matter between Wada and Meisho Doto concluded, Meisho Doto, once she fully digested what had happened, finally began to feel unbearably shy and ran off to who-knows-where.
On the other hand, Wada, after pondering for a long while, decided that this matter... needed to be known to T.M. Opera O.
...Huh? Hide it from her? Are you kidding? Something like this would be impossible to hide!
Wada had never even considered that option to begin with; after all, he was the one who had bound his fate with T.M. Opera O in front of the Three Goddesses.
Although their pseudo telepathic connection was somewhat inconsistent, there was a huge chance T.M. Opera O could glean some information from it.
Not only that, don't forget that T.M. Opera O had awakened her "other self" even earlier than Meisho Doto. Her managing to figure out "Meisho Doto's" existence was a high possibility.
And even if we disregard all of that, the bite mark on Wada's neck, combined with the now strong smell of Meisho Doto, would definitely expose him.
Once T.M. Opera O found out her 'private property' had been encroached upon by another Uma Musume, she would definitely question Wada.
If he did not try to calm things down now, the situation could easily escalate into a lifelong grudge between T.M. Opera O and Meisho Doto.
Combined with Wada's own guilt, he decisively decided to take the initiative to grovel in front of T.M. Opera O and beg for forgiveness.
Truthfully telling T.M. Opera O the entire story, she listened to him calmly without showing any strong emotions.
And... that was what truly scared Wada. After all, there was no way T.M. Opera O wasn't angry, right?! She had definitely gone beyond the point of anger to even show it!
As Wada thought of this, his prostrating posture straightened even further, not daring to even look up at T.M. Opera O... because, without a doubt, she was definitely staring at him with an expression like he was worse than trash.
However, contrary to Wada's imagination, T.M. Opera O truly didn't look that angry at him at all, though her crossed arms and legs clearly indicated the Overlord's current inner turmoil.
What made T.M. Opera O the most displeased was, of course, the scent on Wada's body.
Just as Wada had confessed, T.M. Opera O could smell it from a mile away— clingy and slimy, if she had to put how the smell felt to her, an extremely uncomfortable feeling.
"Meisho Doto... my most favored vassal, not only did you covet this Overlord's throne, but you also attempted to defile my consort too...?"
"Good... very good! You despicable woman, I'll make you pay the price...!"
But, despite saying this, T.M. Opera O did not intend to go and physically fight Meisho Doto; that would escalate the problem to the point it might cause rifts within their team.
Moreover, subconsciously, T.M. Opera O did not have the confidence to defeat Meisho Doto in a battle of fists...
Still, there were many ways to 'fight,' just as there were many ways to rule a sovereignty.
While crushing Meisho Doto on the racetracks would be a pretty easy task, it would only serve as an outlet for her rage; it wouldn't solve the root problem of Meisho Doto getting close to Wada.
"Ryuji, get up."
"Um..."
Hearing T.M. Opera O's unexpectedly calm words again, Wada couldn't help but break out into a cold sweat, though he still obediently stood up.
As Wada finally stood up from his pathetic groveling, T.M. Opera O too rose from the bed, patting his shoulder with a smile.
"Ryuji, I can understand why you would feel conflicted. In such a situation, it's normal for someone like you to not be able to make a decision immediately."
"During such an important time in both mine and that rebellious Meisho Doto's careers, your idea of making sure none of us are too affected is also quite admirable."
"And, most importantly, you didn't hide it from me. That's very good, Ryuji. This shows that the trust we entrusted unto each other wasn't misplaced."
"—Nonetheless, this Overlord can't easily forgive your transgressions this time. Prepare yourself, Ryuji."
Then, as soon as T.M. Opera O finished speaking, she forcefully grabbed Wada's shoulder, her gaze fixed on the mark Meisho Doto left on his neck.
Without even a second thought, T.M. Opera O opened her mouth wide and chomped on the marked area on Wada's neck.
"Ugh?!"
"Don't move, Ryuji. I'm cleaning you up— no, this isn't enough, I'd better add a few more to make sure."
Saying this, T.M. Opera O looked pridefully at her own bite mark which covered over Meisho Doto's, before turning her attention towards other areas of Wada's neck.
Despite feeling a constant sharp and stinging sensation of pain, Wada merely winced and gritted his teeth, not daring to speak while T.M. Opera O bit his neck in several more areas.
"...Hmm, that should be enough."
After quite some time, T.M. Opera O finally wiped her now slightly sore mouth, which had a few stray strings of saliva.
Taking in Wada, whose neck was now covered with her tooth marks, the displeasure in her chest finally began dissipating, a feeling of satisfaction filling in instead.
"Alright, this is the Overlord's victory! Let's go watch me train, Ryuji!"
"...T.M. Opera O, I can't go out like this. People will say things, you know?"
Without looking at or even touching his neck, Wada knew that he had at least five to six very noticeable tooth marks on his neck.
If Wada were to go out just like this, anyone who saw him would immediately come to the conclusion that he had just experienced the most unspeakable umapyoi session ever.
At that point, the already present rumors like 'Wada and T.M. Opera O umapyoing' would just become facts in the eyes of Tracen Academy.
Although Wada suspected that this might be T.M. Opera O's goal, he still didn't want such personal and scandalous things to be spread about them.
Regardless of the social consequences, if a scandal like a Trainer umapyoing their still active Uma Musume were to spread, Wada's S Rank status could possibly even get revoked.
Just as Wada was brainstorming how to get out of this situation, a sudden knock, followed by a familiar female voice came through the door at this moment.
"Wada, are you there? I've received more information about T.M. Opera O's expedition to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. We might need to discuss some things about it."
"Uh... please wait for a few seconds, Nase, I'm coming."
Wada, not having expected Fumino Nase to arrive at such an inconvenient time, cursed inwardly.
However, there was no reason to panic; neither he nor T.M. Opera O had done anything wrong; still, the bite marks all over his neck were hard to explain.
In a hurry, Wada swiftly searched for and wrapped a scarf around his neck, pulling his collar up as well to conceal the bite marks even better.
Only then did Wada somewhat anxiously open the door.
"Please come in, Nase. I heard you say something about the l'Arc?"
"Yes— oh, T.M. Opera O is here too."
Entering the room, Fumino Nase immediately saw T.M. Opera O, though she didn't think much of it.
Instead, she was instantly attracted by Wada's weird choice of attire.
"...Wada, why are you wearing a scarf? It's April now."
"Ah, hahaha... it seems I got too used to wearing a scarf that I instinctively wore it today; I'll take it off later."
Lying through his teeth, Wada felt beads of sweat forming on his forehead as he quickly diverted the topic.
"So, Nase, is there anything new we have to pay attention to in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe?"
"...There's nothing too major, except for the fact that we might have to directly fly to France right after we finish the Takarazuka Kinen."
From her fully accepting Wada's excuse to her slightly visible dark eye circles, it was obvious that she had been incredibly busy lately.
"There's also another piece of news that I think you'll find very interesting, Wada."
"Oh? What is it?"
Seeing Wada's questioning expression, a look of anticipation appeared on Fumino Nase's face as she showed a smile.
"It's about the training slots for the Trainer training institution as well as the Uma Musume training institution in Paris."
"Though they don't call it that over there, you could consider the two as Paris's Central Academy."
"Going back to the topic, France's URA branch has told us that if T.M. Opera O's performance at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is sufficiently outstanding, they would recognize and recommend the status of Japan in the Uma Musume scene."
"This means that they will steadily open up a quota for Japanese Uma Musume and Trainers who performed brilliantly enough to have the opportunity to study in France for advanced training."
"Wada, do you know what this means?! With this, we have opened up a path to the world for Japan! We can usher in a new era!"
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Rather sleepy while translating this~
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.