"This…should be fine, right?"
Beside one of the classroom buildings.
Despite the scorching heat, someone was wearing a hoodie with the hood pulled tight, completely hiding her face and hair. She leaned forward from a shady corner, looked around anxiously, and kept muttering to herself repeatedly, reassuring herself after each glance: "Yeah! It'll be fine! Believe in yourself!"
The overflowing hesitation was obvious.
Beneath the hood, faintly visible odd-colored eyes confirmed the mysterious person's identity.
Garden Gale.
Her charcoal-black and crimson-red eyes intertwined beautifully, reflecting a unique charm. Despite wearing an inconspicuous gray hoodie, her scattered hair, hooded figure, and gloomy aura radiated a quiet, melancholic beauty.
Like a flower on the verge of wilting.
Still holding traces of fiery bloom, quietly awaiting decay.
—Returning to the main point, memories cut back half an hour ago.
At that time, Garden Gale thought she was about to reach the peak of her life… However, after reading the system manual, she'd completely calmed down.
It was clearly an incredible cheat, clearly a fantastic chance at a new life. The story from here should've been an effortless reversal, acting cool, face-slapping—one cliché after another! Even if the plot was a bit tacky, this was exactly what Garden Gale wanted. Right now, she'd rather be clichéd than so tangled up.
…Starting from the system itself.
This was the Selas System.
Simple—formulaic, and clear-cut: just get clingy and flirt with other Umamusume.
Improve relationships with them, and after reaching the critical point, Garden Gale could obtain some of their abilities. For example, if one Umamusume excelled at the final sprint, unstoppable in the last 3F, she'd copy that sprinting talent. If another was unmatched in 3000M races, possessing monstrous stamina, she'd copy that stamina for herself.
100% imitation and learning.
No exaggeration—even if this system were given to a random Umamusume on the street, she could surpass everyone else and become the strongest.
Because it was just ridiculously OP.
No drawbacks, no penalties—just be clingy and flirty, and she'd become strong. Simple as that.
But… this was difficult for Garden Gale, alright!?
You're asking a socially anxious person to actively flirt and cling to others? She probably couldn't even get words out properly, let alone engage in clingy-flirting. She was terrified of building close relationships. It wasn't as if friends meant carefree chatting—no, even friends were terrifying. Garden Gale was genuinely, truly, an extremely socially anxious wreck.
But.
If she didn't cling…
What about the debut race seven days from now?
Instant social death? Just give up?
No way!!
Just imagining that scene made her scalp crawl with embarrassment, desperate to hide under the covers and never speak again. Finally, driven by this hesitation—
Garden Gale summoned all her courage, stepped out of her dorm room, and arrived at Tracen Academy. Her eyes fell on passing strangers. Most were cheerfully chatting with classmates, and even the few solitary figures carried an air of quiet confidence… as if none of them knew about social anxiety at all!
Again pouting gloomily, she fretted inwardly.
What should I do? What should I do?
Before coming out, she'd agonized endlessly over whether or not she should even leave. Eventually, she ruthlessly pushed herself out…but now she stood here, completely aimless.
Maybe I should just go back?
Once I figure out exactly who I should approach, then I'll come back.
No, you can't retreat! Garden Gale, you can't back down now! Even if she was a national-level retreat champion, she absolutely couldn't retreat right now!
So—
Charge.
Charge ahead! Garden Gale-san! Just pretend you're not yourself, find a strong Umamusume—literally anyone strong would do—and cling to her using roleplay techniques. Pretend you're a koala, latch onto her side, and never let go. That way you'll definitely become strong!
Charge! Charge! Charge!!!
"Garden-san…?" As Garden Gale stood frozen in place, lost in thought, someone suddenly approached, her voice gradually getting closer, directly questioning.
Eeep!!?
Garden Gale visibly trembled, then slowly turned around in disbelief.
Why does someone here know who I ammmmm!? Who even is she? Somebody help me!!
"Oh, it really is you." A gentle girl wearing large-framed glasses smiled warmly, her presence calm and graceful. Her eyes were as deep and serene as the Aegean Sea—Santorini-blue. Realizing the girl seemed quiet and bookish, Garden Gale relaxed a little.
However, before she could say anything—
"I'm Desert Hero, remember me? Why haven't you been to the library lately? I haven't seen you for ages. Oh, I read the book you recommended last time—it was amazing, and I've got some thoughts I'd love to share, but no rush! Anyway, have you been reading anything else lately? I have some fantastic recommendations, books I read recently that were really, really great—I thought you'd love them too…"
TERRIFYINGGGG!!!
Garden Gale shrank back instinctively.
She'd initially glanced at the other girl, but immediately turned away sharply, half her face flushed red as sunset clouds.
Because she was too embarrassed to meet her gaze directly.
This is exactly why I stopped going to the library! Why is she so talkative!? The type who rambles endlessly once she gets onto a topic she likes…
AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!
And Desert Hero seemed entirely prepared to continue indefinitely unless Garden Gale stopped her, transitioning seamlessly from adventure stories to the origins of Halloween, her eyes sparkling with dreamy enthusiasm. Clearly, she wished she could become a protagonist of her own adventure tale—this tiny wish was taking root, sprouting, accompanied by her endless stream of words.
I can't take it anymoreee!!
Garden Gale felt if she kept listening any longer, she might genuinely die—she was already struggling to breathe.
All the courage she'd gathered earlier vanished instantly, dissolving into nothingness.
Unable to even look Desert Hero in the eye, she stared numbly at the distant grass, eyes dull and lifeless. Then, in a quick, emotionless voice, she suddenly blurted out, "Uh—I just remembered I have something urgent to do! Sorry!"
After that—
She fled.
RUN.
Without bothering to see Desert Hero's reaction or what she said next—
Garden Gale's slender legs tensed slightly, toes lightly touching the ground—
She ran off immediately.
…Meanwhile, Desert Hero watched Garden Gale's rapidly retreating figure. She opened her mouth briefly, then slowly closed it again, scratching her head in confusion. She thought to herself, So it's true? Garden Gale-san really is an incredibly strong Umamusume. That speed… that burst of power was incredible.
But was the matter really that urgent?
---
T/N: desert hero is a real horse also SEE YOURE NOT SO GARBAGE!!