You Really Do Have a Problem, Logistics Uma Musume

You Really Do Have a Problem, Logistics Uma Musume Author: Laziness Unleashed

Synopsis:

Inari Kagura, an overworked girl from the Heavenly Dynasty who died from exhaustion, had just awakened in a remote shrine when a sudden fire forced her into a desperate escape. In the end, she collapsed at the entrance to the Symbol family's home after running out of strength.

She had no system unique to transmigrators, no money, no power or influence, and not even a usable identity. This body was only eleven years old—an age when no one dared hire her for work. To survive, she accepted Old Symbol's proposal and became a maid of the Symbol family.

"This world is completely abnormal. If I'd known, I should've listened to my best friend and gone to see Uma Musume..."

In the student dormitory at Tracen Academy, Inari Kagura looked at herself in the mirror, already transformed into a young Uma Musume, and helplessly sighed at the uncertainty of her future.

--On the bright side, at least being a maid doesn't involve anything strange, and there isn't some young master with a fetish for little girls specifically demanding that you serve him.

"Miss Eclipse, I think people should still look upward..."

Looking at the line of text that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere on the mirror, Inari Kagura felt even more conflicted.

Besides, was that really true?

Prologue: A Rainy Night

'Rumble--!'

Lightning tore through the pitch-black night sky as torrential rain poured down.

It was almost eight in the evening. Because of the terrible weather, most people had already taken shelter at home. On top of that, for some reason, the streetlights along this road had broken today, making this already deserted road even quieter.

In the midst of the night rain, only one person was slowly moving along this pitch-black road.

"Is the light at the entrance broken...? Sigh, I'll have someone from the family repair it tomorrow..."

A woman with slightly graying hair carefully walked along the road with a black umbrella, complaining in a very soft voice. From her aged voice, it was clear that she was no longer young.

'Rumble--!'

Another dazzling bolt of lightning split the sky, bringing a moment of light to the woman who was almost home.

"What...?"

Her eyes widened slightly, and she involuntarily stopped.

By the light of the flash, she vaguely saw a black mass beside the bushes near her home's gate—in other words, right by the road she was about to pass.

She took out her smartphone, turned on its built-in flashlight, and shone it toward the spot. Then she saw what the black mass was: a black-haired girl who looked very young, perhaps only around ten years old.

The girl's long, jet-black hair lay messily beneath her. She wore an outfit resembling a shrine maiden's clothes, but no one knew what she had gone through shortly before. Her clothes were covered in wounds and grime, and even her tender white skin, exposed through the tears, bore marks resembling burns.

"An Uma Musume?"

After crouching down beside her, the woman saw the long ears on the girl's head and the tail behind her. That made the girl's race clear—she was not human, but an Uma Musume like herself.

"She's badly hurt..."

Even with only a cursory glance, the woman, who knew little about medicine, could tell that the girl's injuries were severe. She frowned, quickly put away her phone, and, ignoring the pouring rain, tossed her umbrella aside. She pressed a hand against the girl's chest and checked her breathing. It was very faint, but at least the girl still had a heartbeat.

She felt around on the wall beside her, passed over a metal plaque engraved with "Symbol family," found the approximate position, and pressed the doorbell button above it. Before long, a young woman's voice came from inside:

"This is the Symbol family. Who is speaking?"

"It's me, Speed Symbol. Open the courtyard gate, and contact the family doctor while you're at it."

"Head of the Family!? Are you hurt?!"

"Not me. I found an injured child at the gate. Her breathing is very weak. Hurry and have them come over!"

The old Uma Musume named Speed Symbol quickly issued her orders. She could feel how faint the girl's breathing was. If the girl had not happened to collapse at the Symbol family's gate, and if Speed Symbol had not happened to be returning from an errand that evening, then in such heavy rain, it was uncertain whether the girl could have lasted until morning.

There was a reason this road saw so little traffic: the Symbol family's estate was located here. As one of the most famous Uma Musume families, the Symbol family's territory was naturally expansive. Aside from reporters and students from Tracen Academy, few people usually visited.

Soon, the gate opened, and the servants in the courtyard hurried over. Some came to welcome the head of the family home, while a physician in a white coat brought a stretcher and carefully lifted the girl from outside the gate onto it.

"Head of the Family, that child seems to be badly injured... What happened?"

"The child collapsed at the gate. She has quite a few bruises and burn marks. I don't know whether she escaped after a fire broke out at her home."

Confronted with the maid's confusion, Speed Symbol, who knew little about the incident herself, could only shake her head.

"What a poor child..."

"Investigate whether any nearby shrines caught fire. This child looks a little like a shrine maiden. She might be from one of the nearby shrines."

"Yes, Head of the Family."

"So hot... It hurts..."

The unbearable burning sensation roused the girl slightly, and an unconscious twitch brought another wave of piercing pain.

"Awake?"

Before the girl could tell whether the ceiling before her was familiar, an aged voice reached her ears and drew her attention.

She came to her senses and realized that the other person was not speaking her familiar native language. For some reason, however, she could understand every word.

"I..."

What happened to me...?

The girl stared blankly at the woman who had spoken. It was obvious that the woman was quite old, but even more obvious was that she was not human—what human had such strange ears and a tail? Surely this old lady wasn't playing at cosplay? And weren't those ears and tail a little too flexible to be props?

And... is something wrong with my body...?

Although she could not yet make any large movements, the girl could feel that something had appeared on her head and near her hips—biological structures she had not possessed before. She even seemed able to control them and make them move.

"Child, you were injured. Do you remember what happened to you?"

The old woman walked to the bedside and sat down, gently stroking the girl's head. She looked extremely concerned.

"Chi...ld?"

The girl knew that, compared to an elderly person, she was indeed quite young, so the form of address was not strange. But the moment she spoke, she noticed something even more bizarre.

My voice? What's going on!?

Clearly, this was not the clear voice of a twenty-something office worker who had already entered society. The soft, sweet, adorable voice sounded more like that of a two-dimensional little girl from an anime.

Although she had always been a woman, she was not the sort of person who never went online and knew nothing about the world. A disturbing guess formed in her mind, and she hurriedly lowered her head to look at her palms.

These tiny palms clearly aren't mine... Oh no, did I work myself to death after pulling several all-nighters... and then restart in another life?

Thinking of the research report she had been typing that she had not yet saved, the girl felt a headache coming on and instinctively raised a hand to cover her forehead.

"Child, are you all right? Does anything hurt?"

Seeing the girl suddenly cover her forehead in silence, Speed Symbol hurriedly questioned her, thinking she might have some internal injury.

"It hurts..."

The words came out in a language she had never used before, yet she spoke them without the slightest awkwardness, as though this body had long since learned and mastered it.

"You were injured. Although the doctor says your condition is stable now, you still need to rest for a while... A nearby shrine caught fire this afternoon after being struck by lightning. Did you escape from there?"

"Injured... Shrine..."

In the dream she had just had while unconscious, she had run through a sea of flames, desperately trying to escape. That scene appeared before her eyes again.

--Inari Kagura.

She remembered it. That was her current name. The fragmented pieces of her memory had also reconnected somewhat. Her first awakening had been inside an unfamiliar building. The moment she woke, she encountered a sudden fire. She had had no time to investigate where she was or examine her own condition; her instinct for survival had urged her to flee.

"I... remember. There was a fire..."

"Then you really did come from there. Child, where is your family?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know... I... can't remember my family..."

That was the truth. Inari Kagura seemed to have spawned out of thin air as a unit. There had only been her inside the shrine, and as far as she knew, she had no family. The only useful information in her memories was her name. Everything more distant belonged to a different body and had nothing to do with this one.

Although she had guessed that she had transmigrated, she had not expected her background to be completely blank. She had nothing—not even the lousy system had appeared.

This is bad... Could I be an undocumented person with no identity?

"Have you lost your memory? What a poor child..."

Seeing the girl's expression suddenly darken, and noticing that she had just unconsciously covered her forehead again, Speed Symbol stroked the girl's head sympathetically. She could tell that Kagura was not lying. The girl truly could not remember anything about her family.

She escaped alone. Perhaps her family also died in that fire? Such a young child...

According to the information she had gathered, the people who went to put out the fire and conduct rescue operations had found no remains inside the shrine. Outside, there were only traces indicating that this Uma Musume had escaped alone. No one knew where her family was. Surely they could not have left such a young child to live alone in a shrine?

There were many causes of memory loss, such as severe emotional trauma or an overly powerful physical blow. This young Uma Musume's amnesia was likely related to the injuries covering her body. Whatever the cause, it was probably something no eleven- or twelve-year-old child could accept. Thinking of this, Speed Symbol felt even more sorry for her.

"Do you remember your name?"

"Inari Kagura... Yes, Inari Kagura."

Kagura knew that this strange name certainly was not hers, but the body's name. She did not mind. Since she was still uncertain of her identity, using a name that fit her current circumstances was undoubtedly better.

"Inari Kagura... Would you mind if I called you Kagura?"

"I don't mind... You saved me, so please call me whatever you feel comfortable with."

Inari Kagura nodded slightly. She could more or less guess what had happened. She had been injured in the fire that broke out soon after she transmigrated, and this stern-looking old lady had found her and arranged treatment. After all, her arms and body were covered in signs of emergency treatment, and her injuries had been severe enough to make her lose consciousness. If no one had helped her, she probably could have restarted right there on the spot.

Should I be glad I didn't break the senior transmigrators' record for the fastest restart...?

Thinking about it, Kagura felt relieved. In her panic, she had run on instinct and had no idea where she had gone along the way. Fortunately, after collapsing from exhaustion, she had happened to find people nearby. If she had fallen somewhere deserted, she really would have been finished.

At least this old lady did not seem to harbor any ill will toward her. She even gently stroked Kagura's head as though afraid of frightening her. Exhausted from her injuries and strenuous exertion, Kagura did not want to think any further. Since her surroundings were safe, she no longer needed to force herself to keep going.

"Phew..."

Before long, Kagura closed her eyes.

What will happen to this child in the future?

Speed Symbol's hand remained on Kagura's head, gently rubbing her black hair. However, perhaps because she was too exhausted, Kagura had fallen asleep again during that brief silence. Even in sleep, her brows remained furrowed, and her ears had folded backward, as though she were dreaming of something unpleasant.

"She's still so young. I hope we can find her family soon..."

The Symbol Family's Help

The next morning, Speed Symbol was taking a walk through the garden when she discovered that the young Uma Musume she had rescued the previous day had awakened. She was sitting in a wheelchair in the corridor near the garden, staring blankly at the sky.

Speed Symbol turned and walked toward the seated young Uma Musume. Then she carefully reached out and stroked her head. The girl seemed to tremble as though startled, and the two ears atop her head immediately stood upright.

"Ah!... Good morning, old lady."

"You're up so early? Your injuries aren't minor. Why don't you rest a little longer?"

"They don't affect me that much... I told the young lady taking care of me that I wanted to come out and have a look, so she carried me into the wheelchair and pushed me out... Thank you very much for your help yesterday, old lady."

Because she was injured and sitting in a wheelchair, unable to make any large movements, Kagura could only bow her head slightly to express her gratitude to the kind old lady.

"Don't worry about it, child. What matters is that you're safe. The doctor says you're in good health and recovering quickly. You should be back on your feet in a few days. Where is the person who brought you out?"

"I said I wanted to stop here and look around, so she went to get me breakfast."

"Good... Good..."

Seeing that the young Uma Musume seemed to be in decent condition, Speed Symbol sighed in relief and gently patted her shoulder.

"Child, have you remembered anything? Anything about your family?"

"I'm sorry, old lady. I really can't remember anything..."

Kagura shook her head. There was no doubt that she had no family. She could not find the slightest memory connected to any family. It seemed she really was an undocumented person who had spawned out of nowhere.

"Were you alone in the shrine when the fire started?"

"I was alone. I was alone the entire way."

"Hmm..."

Speed Symbol frowned. Inari Kagura did not look as though she was lying. They had found no useful information at the scene. The fire had been too intense, and the shrine had been burned down until only some stone structures remained. It was impossible to find any trace of people. If anyone had really been inside, there was no chance of surviving such a fire. And as for a child as young as Kagura, common sense dictated that she could not have been living alone in that shrine.

After investigating the previous day, they had found no matching person for Kagura's photograph in the identity system. Undocumented Uma Musume were not especially rare. Some were born without being registered, and several orphanages housed girls in that situation. That part was not unusual. But for anyone trying to find her family, it was extremely troublesome. With no identity records and the girl suffering from amnesia, the trail had been severed completely, making Speed Symbol's efforts to find Kagura's family extremely difficult.

"Um... old lady, thank you very much for your help. Once my injuries heal in a few days, I'll leave on my own... I won't trouble you."