There's Something Wrong With You, Logistics Uma Musume

Rudolph Symbol and Toujou Hana quickly joined forces to stop Kagura. They had both watched Kagura busy herself for so long, and this time they wouldn't let her work so hard again. She was still a child and needed to rest.

"But..."

"Listen to me, Kagura. Consider this my order, okay?"

"...Alright, Milady, as you wish."

With Rudolph Symbol's words reaching this point, Kagura couldn't refuse any longer and nodded in agreement.

44. Rudolph Symbol's Invitation

"Miss Rudolph, you've once again won the race with an overwhelming advantage. What are your thoughts on this?"

"Trainer Toujou, are there any plans for your next race?"

"Miss Rudolph..."

Leaving the racetrack through the exit tunnel and entering the backstage area, Toujou Hana and Rudolph Symbol were immediately surrounded by a large group of reporters. Kagura, who had been following behind them, was grateful that she hadn't walked too fast, or she would have been on camera as well.

As a young lady, Rudolph Symbol was already accustomed to being in front of the camera. She greeted the reporters naturally and looked at Kagura, who was standing in the doorway, watching but not coming in. Rudolph Symbol understood her logistics Uma Musume's personality, so she didn't try to bring her in.

'Milady handles these reporters with such composure...'

During Rudolph Symbol's debut race, Kagura hadn't seen so many reporters. She didn't know what had happened in the media over the past two months, but the number of reporters had exploded this time, and the backstage area was almost filled with these noisy paparazzi.

"Seriously, they're disturbing Milady's rest at a time like this..."

To be honest, Kagura didn't like these reporters. After all, Rudolph Symbol needed to rest, and in her opinion, reporters who barged in to disturb her rest at this time were very tactless. However, seeing that Rudolph Symbol and Toujou Hana didn't seem to mind, Kagura didn't plan to worry about it too much.

"You can't think that way, little sister. After all, being interviewed is very helpful for increasing your fan base."

Maruzensky, who had just come down from the audience and followed them, saw Kagura's dissatisfied expression and reached out to rub her little head again.

"I don't think Milady lacks fans?"

So far, Rudolph Symbol had participated in two races and won them all. Every time Kagura came to watch Rudolph Symbol's race, she had to squeeze through the crowd of spectators outside for a long time. Even though she came in through the special channel, she still had to wander around in the crowd for a while. She didn't think Rudolph Symbol was the kind of person who lacked fans.

"You can never have too many fans~ Moreover, high popularity doesn't just mean having fan support. It can also bring you some unexpected conveniences."

"I think being recognized by all sorts of people on the street is inconvenient in itself..."

"That depends on the person. Anyway, I don't dislike that feeling. Rudolph has long since adapted to it. You'll definitely have fans in the future, little sister. You can't go out on the street wearing a trench coat, pulling up your hood, and wearing a mask, can you?"

Maruzensky could already foresee that Kagura would likely become the next terrifying existence like Rudolph Symbol. She would be as well-known as Rudolph Symbol before her debut race. Maybe Kagura would have even more fans in the future, and Kagura would have to face this kind of thing sooner or later.

"Then I'd rather dress more discreetly when I go out..."

"You won't think that way when you grow up~"

'Is it possible that I'm already pretty big now?'

Kagura silently retorted in her heart.

--In any case, it's always good to have more fans. After all, it also means that more and more people are attracted to your running. And you already have a lot of fans online, don't you?

Eclipse seemed to be very supportive, so she didn't seem to mind this way of becoming famous.

Standing outside and eavesdropping, the reporters' questions gradually began to change direction. At first, these reporters were asking the two inside about Rudolph Symbol's future plans, but now the topic had gradually shifted to Rudolph Symbol's views on her own victory.

"...Maintaining Rudolph's competitive state isn't just my effort alone. Rudolph's classmates have also provided a lot of support in this area."

"Yes, in addition to the trainer, my classmates have also helped me a lot during my preparation for the race. My victory is also inseparable from the strong support of my classmates."

Kagura suddenly heard the topic seemed to be jumping to her head, and her heart sank subconsciously.

As expected, the reporters followed up with questions. Fortunately, Rudolph Symbol and the others didn't plan to go into detail about the true identity of 'Tracen's classmates' here, nor did they reveal whether it was one person or a group of people. Instead, they simply glossed over this part, and the reporters assumed that Rudolph Symbol was thanking Tracen Academy for its care.

'That scared me... I didn't expect these reporters to ask about the logistics so clearly. Fortunately, Milady and the others didn't plan to talk about my affairs...'

"What's wrong, little sister? Don't you want everything you've done to be praised by Rudolph?"

Kagura's relieved expression was naturally seen by Maruzensky, and she jokingly asked.

"...It's just ordinary daily work. It's not worth mentioning in front of so many people, right? I don't need others to know what I'm doing. Milady's race performance is the best praise and proof of my work."

"Hmm~ So you think what you do is just ordinary logistics work..."

Maruzensky nodded thoughtfully. She knew what the original job responsibilities of Tracen's logistics Uma Musume were. Although they also supported Uma Musume, they would never do it as meticulously as Kagura, and they were far from being as professional as Kagura.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just think that you are as humble and serious about your work as Rudolph said."

"Eh? Is that how Milady evaluates me?"

After Rudolph Symbol finished dealing with the reporters, it was almost time for the winner's stage.

Kagura waited for the reporters to leave before entering the backstage to prepare Rudolph Symbol for her appearance on stage. She saw Rudolph Symbol sitting in a chair, leaning against the wall, with her eyes closed, resting.

"Kagura, were you standing outside listening just now?"

Seeing that Kagura followed in right after the reporters left, Toujou Hana and Rudolph Symbol knew that she must have been standing outside the whole time.

"Yes, there shouldn't be anything I can't hear, right?"

"No, on the contrary, I was actually thinking of introducing you, this excellent Logistics Uma Musume, to the reporters earlier, but you probably wouldn't want me to do that, would you?"

"I don't think there's any need to bring up something like that specifically..."

While applying makeup to Rudolph Symbol, Kagura responded to Toujou Hana's question.

"I think you've put in a tremendous amount of effort in supporting Rudolph, and this victory wouldn't have been possible without you. Without your usual meticulous care, I wouldn't be able to keep Rudolph, this workaholic, in such good condition on my own."

"While I don't deny that... Kagura, am I really that difficult to take care of, as the trainer said?"

"At least the fact that you work late into the night every day and are hard to pull away from work is true... I still hope that you can relax more, Miss President."

Kagura, who had to run out and drag Rudolph Symbol out of the office at eleven o'clock at night every now and then for the past few months, knew her workaholic master's habits all too well. Toujou Hana probably couldn't get Rudolph Symbol to rest on time on her own.

"Is that so... It seems I should put aside work a little after today..."

During their conversation, Kagura had already finished Rudolph Symbol's simple makeup. Looking at herself in the mirror, Rudolph Symbol nodded in satisfaction.

"Kagura, why don't you take a few days off after today too?"

"Me?"

"Yes, you've been busy for so long, you need to rest for a while too. By the way, how about relaxing with me tomorrow?"

Rudolph Symbol extended an invitation to Kagura.

This was the first time that Rudolph Symbol, who usually buried herself in work every day, had made such a suggestion to her. Kagura naturally wouldn't refuse, and she quickly nodded:

"Okay, if you have a plan, Miss President, I can join you."

45. A Shrine Maiden Who Knows a Little Marksmanship is Reasonable, Right?

"Haa..."

Kagura raised the bow in her hand, staring intently at the target in the distance. Her hand was trembling slightly due to unfamiliarity and nervousness.

"Relax, relax, Kagura. If you want to aim properly, you need to calm down and concentrate."

Rudolph Symbol bent down slightly and stood behind Kagura, gently holding Kagura's hand to steady her arm while using her other hand to hold Kagura's waist and help her adjust her posture.

After finishing her second race, Rudolph Symbol decided to relax for a few days. Just as she had nothing to do, Rudolph Symbol dragged Kagura to Tracen Academy's Archery Club the day after the race.

Although it's called a club, there's actually no one in this club now. Only Rudolph Symbol comes over to shoot a few arrows when she has nothing to do. After all, this hobby is just too retro.

This was Kagura's first time trying this sport. Although the natural strength of the Uma Musume allowed her to easily draw the bow that Rudolph Symbol usually used, even as a child, she still had a big problem with aiming and needed Rudolph Symbol to constantly guide her.

"Concentrate... concentrate..."

Holding the bow and aiming constantly also required a lot of arm endurance. Kagura felt that she couldn't aim accurately not only because she had never shot an arrow before, but also because her arm felt sore after holding it for a while, and her accuracy was constantly shaking. The few arrows she shot just now would have made Bo Le call her a good horse.

Kagura was quite impressed that Rudolph Symbol could casually aim and hit the bullseye in the distance. Just looking at how relaxed and casual she was, one could tell that she had been practicing archery for a long time.

After aiming for a while, Kagura finally stabilized her aim again with Rudolph Symbol's help. She squinted her eyes at the target in the distance, and after steadying her hand, she released the next arrow.

With the sound of an arrow piercing the air, Kagura's arrow hit the target, or rather, the outermost edge of the target, almost missing it completely.

"Ah... it's so far off..."

"It's okay, this is your first time drawing a bow today, right, Kagura? It's already very good that you can hit the target even once in such a short time."

"How long have you been practicing, Miss President?"

"I don't remember, I've liked drawing a bow and shooting a few arrows since I was a child, and I don't know how many years it's been now."

As she spoke, Rudolph Symbol put her hand on Kagura's head and rubbed it. For some reason, she felt particularly addicted to rubbing Kagura's head, and it was a good thing that Kagura didn't mind her rubbing her head like this.

"Kagura, you stay here and shoot a few arrows yourself, I'll go get you some water."

"That... Miss President, I should..."

"I told you, today is for you to rest, be obedient and wait here."

Without giving Kagura a chance to refute, Rudolph Symbol ran off in a puff of smoke.

--Your archery skills are terrible!

As soon as Rudolph Symbol left, Kagura immediately saw a line of text pop up on her phone screen, written specifically in Chinese as if afraid she wouldn't understand Japanese.

'Miss Eclipse, you're so annoying!! By the way, where did you learn Chinese!?'

--I'm very international, so I definitely know a little bit! Never mind that, relax your body, and I'll show you how to play this thing!

'Miss Eclipse, you even know archery??'

--I know a little, I wouldn't say I'm proficient.

On the one hand, Kagura was indeed curious about how Eclipse would demonstrate it to her, and on the other hand, she really wanted to learn how to shoot arrows, so she quickly obediently relaxed her body as Eclipse instructed.

Soon, she felt a strange sensation coming from her body. She didn't issue any commands to her body, but her body was already moving involuntarily. She found that she seemed to have become a third-person perspective, able to see her body but unable to control it.

If anyone was close enough to see, they would be able to see that Kagura's eyes had turned dark red.

'Miss Eclipse, you really have a way to possess me!!'

"I don't like doing this kind of thing, it's too draining. If I do this, I won't be able to give you track guidance in your dreams this month. I just think I should give you some pointers on this kind of thing, after all, learning archery will help improve your poor concentration. I don't have much time, so you have to learn well--"

Controlling Kagura's body while talking to herself, Eclipse, who had possessed Kagura, skillfully drew an arrow from the quiver on her back and nocked it on the bow. She released the arrow almost without aiming.

"Whoosh—!!"

The arrow, carrying astonishing force, struck the bullseye. Kagura was completely stunned. Eclipse's process from taking the arrow to releasing it was frighteningly short, as if there was no aiming stage at all, yet her arrow didn't stray.

"Ah… sorry, sorry, just a reflex. I forgot you're just starting out. Here, remember this feeling. Take an arrow, nock it, then concentrate, aim…"

As Eclipse's voice faded, Kagura felt she had regained control of her body. She was still holding the bow in a drawn position, her hand holding it in a relatively effortless state, without the slightest tremor.

After the possession ended, Kagura could no longer hear Eclipse's voice. She couldn't look down at her phone screen either, so she could only try to remember the feeling of drawing the bow as Eclipse had said.

Kagura aimed for a while before releasing her hand. The arrow flew out and hit the target. Although it didn't hit the bullseye, it was much better than the outer ring shot she had taken at the start.

—That's it! Just like that. Take advantage of the feeling before you forget it, and shoot a couple more!

—Later, tell your Ojou-sama that if you have nothing to do, have her let you come here and practice a bit. You're a runner-escape type, so you need to improve your terrible concentration. Don't expect me to run for you on the track. I won't help you, okay?

No wonder Eclipse was so concerned about this. It seemed she had been paying attention and looking for opportunities to help her correct these old habits.

"Kagura, take a little break, have some water—oh, you can already hit the bullseye? You're very talented!"

Not long after Eclipse ended the possession, Rudolph Symbol returned with bottled water. Seeing the few extra arrows on the target in the distance, she raised her eyebrows in surprise.

The arrow in the bullseye was perfectly straight, clearly hitting the bullseye through direct aiming, not some random lucky shot. Considering that Kagura was just a beginner who couldn't even hold the bow steady, Rudolph Symbol couldn't help but be shocked.

"Ehehe… it was just an accident… Um, Ojou-sama, I feel like practicing archery can help me train my concentration. Can I come here more often to practice?"

"Of course, of course, you can. I was worried you wouldn't be interested. There are several sets of protective gear and bows here, and no one usually comes here. You can come whenever you want."

Hearing that Kagura wanted to use archery to train her concentration, Rudolph Symbol was naturally even more pleased. She had been worrying about how to stimulate Kagura's competitive spirit so that she could have the mentality of a competitive athlete. Since Kagura was willing to actively train her concentration, it meant she wanted to run better, which Rudolph Symbol was naturally happy to see.

"To be honest, after so long, you're the first student who's told me they're interested in archery… Kagura, you really always manage to surprise me."

"Is that so? Is it usually just Ojou-sama here alone?"

"Pretty much. Very few other people come here. After all, there really aren't many enthusiasts like this. The students are usually busy with training, and when they have free time, they just want to rest, so naturally no one comes."