"Haha... I might really need to trouble you the day before the race. And during this period, too—you've been cooking and cleaning for me ever since you came to the academy, constantly running around for my sake. You're still so young..."
"It's no trouble, and you don't need to worry about me. I'm a Logistics Uma Musume. Taking care of you and keeping you in peak racing condition is exactly my duty."
Rudolph Symbol had once felt that having one Trainer to assist her was enough. But after Kagura became her Logistics Uma Musume, she gradually realized that having more people to help her was not necessarily troublesome.
Although her original intention in bringing Kagura to the academy had been to let her familiarize herself with Tracen Academy ahead of time, Rudolph Symbol discovered that this goal had gradually begun to go astray. She had originally wanted to take better care of the girl, but now it seemed...
With Kagura by my side, it should be fine to relax a little...
With the race drawing near, Rudolph Symbol had less and less time to spare. During this period, Kagura had done an excellent job of helping her maintain a balance between work and rest. Suddenly, she understood where Speed Symbol's assessment of Kagura had come from when she had sent her over.
"...Young Miss? Young Miss? Are you listening?"
Kagura's voice brought Rudolph Symbol back to reality from her daze.
"Sorry, my mind wandered for a moment. What is it?"
"That's all for today's training. We still have more than a week to practice. With your talent, Young Miss, I'm sure you'll master this new running style in just a few days."
40. Akikawa Yayoi's Test
"How strange. Why haven't I seen Kagura today?"
When Rudolph Symbol arrived at the track to train as usual, she noticed that Kagura was nowhere to be seen.
"The chairwoman said that although she agreed to let Kagura enroll, she still wanted to test Kagura's abilities herself. So she called Kagura over for an individual exam today."
Toujou Hana had received a notice from the chairwoman that afternoon. Akikawa Yayoi had organized a test for Kagura and would personally supervise it, requiring Kagura to attend alone. So Toujou Hana had lent Kagura to her for the afternoon.
"Oh? So she gave Kagura a make-up entrance examination covering the required academic level?"
"You could put it that way. After all, Kagura didn't enter through the normal process. I'm not entirely sure what the chairwoman is thinking. Perhaps she simply wanted a more legitimate and reasonable excuse to add Kagura's name to the student register."
"That certainly is..."
Rudolph Symbol was somewhat surprised. The entrance-exam questions would not be difficult for her, but if the chairwoman stood beside her and watched her throughout the examination, she suspected even she would find it extremely stressful. She was a little worried that something might happen to the introverted Kagura.
"Don't worry about her. She's more reliable than you think. You, on the other hand, are racing tomorrow. Train properly today, review the running style Kagura has taught you, and see whether you can still complete it perfectly without her beside you."
Meanwhile, in Akikawa Yayoi's office.
Kagura had been called to the office by Akikawa Yayoi shortly after two in the afternoon. She was sitting beside the chairwoman, with a blank exam paper freshly printed from the printer in front of her.
"Um... the reason you called me here, Chairwoman, is... this paper?"
"A test! Although I trust your academic level, Kagura, you didn't enter the academy through the normal process. This is simply to make up the procedure you should have gone through."
Akikawa Yayoi's voice was as lively and expressive as ever, but Kagura was not concerned about that at the moment. What worried her was that she had never received any formal education at all. How was she supposed to take this test?
"Relax! Don't put any pressure on yourself. It's only a formality. Even if you fail, it won't matter!"
Akikawa Yayoi had no intention of making things difficult for the Kagura she wanted to admit. She had been watching Kagura's performance around the academy during this period. Forget newly enrolled students—even most of the Logistics Uma Musume who had been at the academy for a long time were far inferior to Kagura. When it came to skills and basic ability, Kagura's capabilities were beyond doubt.
The reason Akikawa Yayoi had organized this test anyway was, on one hand, that she genuinely wanted to complete the original process and give Kagura a formal reason for enrolling, so that Kagura would have an explanation to give her classmates later.
On the other hand, this was not the actual entrance examination paper that students would normally take. It was a special paper Akikawa Yayoi had created by adding many difficult questions of her own to the entrance exam. Many of the later bonus questions were beyond what new students could solve. She had heard Speed Symbol praise Kagura's intelligence long ago, and wanted to see just how far the girl could go.
"The exam will last two and a half hours. Read and check the questions carefully, and don't write in the wrong boxes."
"..."
While Akikawa Yayoi briefly explained the exam rules, Kagura had already skimmed through the paper. Apart from some knowledge related to racing, the rest consisted of standard language, mathematics, and English theory. The questions at the beginning were extremely easy, and even the more difficult questions later were not particularly hard after a glance. They were only roughly at the level of a high-school entrance examination.
You scared me. I thought taking this test without studying would be a disaster... So it's just middle-school questions and general knowledge...
After roughly confirming the contents, Kagura let out a long sigh of relief. When she had received the notice that afternoon, she had thought she was doomed. Now, she felt that her worries had been completely unnecessary.
Even the racing knowledge she had previously been unfamiliar with had been crammed into her by Toujou Hana and Eclipse during this period. It was not particularly complicated or difficult, so Kagura had memorized it easily.
If there was anything about this exam that made her feel pressured, it was probably Akikawa Yayoi, who was staring intently at her from the side.
They're just middle-school questions! Don't underestimate a battle-hardened medical student!
After Akikawa Yayoi finished explaining the rules, the clock reached two-thirty. Only then did she announce that the exam could begin and that Kagura could start answering.
After announcing the start of the exam, Akikawa Yayoi moved behind Kagura, intending to watch the girl solve every question. But right at the beginning, she noticed something was wrong. Kagura picked up her pen and swept through the first twenty multiple-choice questions without even looking at them. Her writing was decisive and completely unhesitating, so fast that it made one suspect she had not read the questions at all and was simply guessing. Yet when Akikawa Yayoi carefully checked the answers, she found that Kagura had not gotten a single question wrong.
Huh?
If she had not needed to remain quiet, Akikawa Yayoi would have been unable to stop herself from voicing her confusion.
When she reached Question Twenty-One, Kagura's speed slowed slightly. She went from answering as quickly as if she were guessing to glancing at each question for one or two seconds before writing. Even so, she was still far too fast—far faster than any new student of this age Akikawa Yayoi had ever seen.
The multiple-choice questions did not hold Kagura up for long. Under Akikawa Yayoi's incredulous gaze, Kagura turned the page and began answering the written-response questions. Her speed dropped again because of the limits of her hand speed, but Akikawa Yayoi could tell that Kagura's thinking was crystal clear. She barely paused at all. The answers to these questions had already existed in her mind; her hand simply could not transcribe them onto the paper quickly enough.
She's eleven?
Akikawa Yayoi could not help wondering whether there was something wrong with the age recorded in Kagura's registration information. But Kagura was unquestionably still a child.
Akikawa Yayoi had originally worried that two and a half hours might not be enough for Kagura to finish so many questions. Now, it seemed that concern had been unnecessary.
Half an hour into the examination, Kagura had completed the entire "original entrance examination" section and checked it twice. Akikawa Yayoi had followed along the whole time and knew that Kagura had not lost a single point on those entrance-exam questions.
No wonder that student called Nice Nature has such good grades. I heard Kagura usually tutors her... What an extraordinarily gifted child.
In other words, if Kagura had taken the examination normally, she should have been the top scorer in this year's theory exam instead of Nice Nature. After all, she had not lost a single point. At most, someone else could have tied with her for first place.
Once Kagura entered the bonus-question section Akikawa Yayoi had designed herself, her answering speed visibly dropped. This section not only contained more difficult calculation problems, but also began to involve actual racecourse situations.
Even so, Kagura completed the entire paper after an hour and a half and checked it several times. Only after confirming that there was nothing more she could change did she look toward Akikawa Yayoi and ask:
"Chairwoman, may I hand in my paper early?"
"Amazing! What incredible answering speed!"
Akikawa Yayoi had actually already checked every one of Kagura's answers. On questions with definitive answers, Kagura's responses could be described as flawless. On questions without definitive answers—those requiring practical experience—Kagura's responses had clearly gone wrong, exactly as Akikawa Yayoi had expected. Kagura lacked relevant experience, so her answers leaned noticeably toward theory rather than reality.
Kagura was not completely without experience, but what little she had accumulated from training with Eclipse during this period was not enough to deal with the questions Akikawa Yayoi had personally designed.
By the time Kagura finished answering, Akikawa Yayoi had already completed her grading. Although Kagura's answers to the additional questions had been somewhat lacking, Akikawa Yayoi was already very satisfied.
"Then... should I go back and wait for the results?"
"No need! Kagura, I've already graded your paper. Your scores from the two sections add up to 193 points out of 200. Your performance was outstanding! I almost want to give you a reward!"
Kagura's first reaction was that Akikawa Yayoi had simply given her an arbitrary score. But then she thought about it. If Akikawa Yayoi were handing out points randomly, she could have given her a perfect score. There would have been no need to leave an odd number like 193. This had clearly been the result of a serious assessment. Still, the score did not surprise Kagura much, because all of this was genuinely very easy for her.
Akikawa Yayoi was happy for one reason because she now knew that, beyond her tremendous physical talent, Kagura also possessed a solid theoretical foundation. But on another level, Akikawa Yayoi had also confirmed what Toujou Hana had mentioned not long ago: Kagura truly lacked practical experience, so that strategy guide could not possibly have been completed by Kagura alone. There was a very high chance that she knew another powerful Uma Musume and was keeping that person's identity secret.
Who could that person you know be, little miss...?
41. The Night Before the Race
"Are you nervous?"
Kagura sat beside Rudolph Symbol's bed, massaging her as she asked.
"I'm all right. I'm much calmer than I expected to be."
Perhaps it was because she had been practicing the new running style continuously during this period. Like a student who had worked through most of the practice questions before an exam and knew the actual questions would only come from the question bank, Rudolph Symbol felt that she was not as nervous today as she had expected.
"That's good. It's just an easy race, so Young Miss only needs to run according to her feelings."
"Mm... I'm sorry to trouble you by coming all the way to my dormitory."
"I told you, you don't have to be so polite."
Kagura had come to Rudolph Symbol's dormitory at her request that evening. She had originally been tutoring Nice Nature's homework in the Ritto Dormitory. Now that the term had begun, Nice Nature had daily assignments again. She would save up any problems she encountered and wait until Kagura was free so they could solve them together.
So when Kagura had to leave unexpectedly that day, Nice Nature had looked rather dejected. Kagura could only hug her in consolation and promise to bring her some of her favorite radish cakes the next day.
Kagura's massage technique had improved considerably during this period, and Rudolph Symbol seemed to be enjoying it immensely. Even while lying face-down, her ears swayed cheerfully. Kagura rarely saw her show this side of herself in front of others, which proved that she was genuinely in a good mood.
Actually, it would have been easier for Kagura to apply force if she simply sat on Rudolph Symbol while massaging her. After all, her arms were not particularly long, and a light little child like her would not have weighed enough to cause any discomfort. Kagura refrained mainly because she felt it would be too disrespectful to Rudolph Symbol.
"Kagura... have you ever thought about home? Do you miss home?"
Rudolph Symbol, who had been lying face-down, suddenly asked the question.
"Why are you suddenly asking that?"
The word "family" did not evoke much feeling in Kagura anymore. She could not return to her original world, and she was living perfectly well without family in this world, so she did not have much attachment to the idea of home.
"I just remembered something a friend mentioned before. I was curious, so I asked on impulse."
"No, I've never really thought about home. I can't remember anything about it at all, and I'm doing fine on my own now."
"I see..."
Seeing that Kagura had answered almost without hesitation, Rudolph Symbol nodded. The question she had wanted to ask for a long time had finally been answered, and she no longer intended to bring it up.
Rudolph Symbol had to admit that Kagura's technique was truly excellent, and she controlled the pressure perfectly. She felt that her own grandmother must have used up a great deal of luck to find a child like Kagura at the entrance to their home. But if luck really existed, Rudolph Symbol felt that it had been well spent.
As she felt Kagura's comfortable, peaceful presence and enjoyed the massage, Rudolph Symbol gradually became drowsy. She noticed that Kagura's pressure was beginning to weaken.
"Good night, Young Miss..."
Kagura saw that Rudolph Symbol was growing sleepy, so she gradually reduced her strength to avoid waking her. Tomorrow would be Rudolph Symbol's second race, and it was also the first race Kagura had supported her in. Naturally, she hoped Rudolph Symbol would perform well. That would also help Kagura improve her daily work in the future.
After stopping the massage, Kagura quietly turned Rudolph Symbol over so that she was lying normally and could rest properly. Only then did Kagura leave Rudolph Symbol's dormitory quietly, close the door, and return.
After returning from Rudolph Symbol's dormitory, Kagura pushed open the door to her own room. She had planned to go to bed early and wake up the next morning to watch Rudolph Symbol's race. But when she returned to her dormitory that evening, she caught a faint fragrance. It clearly did not belong to her, which meant that someone else had been inside.
Kagura immediately turned her gaze toward the other bed in the room. Sure enough, the bedding and other items that had not moved for several months had been disturbed.
After looking carefully, Kagura also found a note on the desk:
Thank you, Kagura. You've been cleaning my bed while I was away, haven't you? I've really troubled you! Thank you so much! Please accept this small token of my gratitude!
The handwriting on the note was elegant and refined, resembling that of a young lady from a prominent family. It was clear that the writer had specifically practiced calligraphy.
—Oh, your roommate is back? I wonder what kind of girl she is.
Eclipse had also been curious about Kagura's roommate for quite some time. Unfortunately, so much time had passed—from the summer vacation all the way until the start of term—yet the mysterious roommate had never appeared, nor had she returned to the dormitory. If Kagura had not kept cleaning, that bed would have been covered in dust long ago.
Besides the note, a small pink gift box had been placed on top of it. The petite box was wrapped exquisitely, and its soft pink appearance was very charming. Kagura could faintly smell cream and fruit wafting from inside.
This smell... it's cake. Could this be my roommate's welcome gift for me?
As a veteran foodie, Kagura was highly sensitive to the aromas of all kinds of delicacies. She immediately identified what was inside. Curious, she opened the package, and as expected, there was a cake inside, covered with strawberries, yellow peaches, mangoes, and other fruits. The entire cake also carried a faint durian fragrance. Judging by its appearance, it had certainly not been cheap.
After tasting a bite, Kagura became even more certain that this was absolutely not an ordinary cake that could be bought at a regular bakery. Its price must have been far higher than anything people normally saw. It was definitely the kind of high-end cake Kagura would usually not even dare look at. It seemed that her roommate came from a very wealthy family.
Unfortunately, Kagura still did not see the mysterious roommate that night. Although the girl must have returned and had even left her a gift, she did not seem to have much time to remain at the academy and interact with anyone. After leaving these things behind, she had hurried away.
"How strange... What does this student do every day? She hasn't come back to the academy for class in so long. She could at least skip out during physical education."
After happily finishing the cake she had received, Kagura considered it an unexpected delight. Unfortunately, she still had not seen where the other girl was, nor had she figured out why she never came back.
Still, today's events showed that her roommate had not left. Some reason prevented her from coming to the dormitory regularly, so she could only appear briefly from time to time, like today.
Who could she be?
—All right, all right. You'll have plenty of chances to meet your roommate in the future. You still have a race to watch tomorrow, so be careful not to sleep too late and fail to wake up.
Eclipse's reminder soon appeared on Kagura's phone. After thinking about it, Kagura decided Eclipse was right. She had to get up early to go to the racetrack the next day, so she temporarily set the matter aside. After quickly washing up, she turned off the light and went to sleep.
42. Maruzensky's Dream
The Icho Special was not a particularly large-scale race. Its audience would normally not have been especially large, but today, before Kagura had even reached her destination, she had already felt how frightening Rudolph Symbol's popularity was.
So this train can actually get this crowded...
Kagura finally squeezed onto the train. She felt as though her small body was about to be swallowed by the crowd. Everyone around her was pressed tightly together, bumping into one another, making her feel as if she had returned to the days when she squeezed onto a bus to work every morning.
Fortunately, Maruzensky was beside her. Although they were also packed tightly together, Maruzensky blocked her with her body, at least sparing Kagura from having to worry about encountering one of the strange men commonly seen in those neon romance-action films on the train.
"Miss Maruzensky... Is everyone on this train a fan of Young Miss?"
Held in Maruzensky's arms and pinned against the train door, Kagura managed to turn her head and ask.
"Well~ I can't say everyone, but most of them probably are."
"That's scary..."
Before you continue