There's Something Wrong With You, Logistics Uma Musume

[Does the chairwoman know the details?]

[Unknown! The contract is in the hands of Old Symbol and Kagura-san. There's no way for me to get it, and no one else has revealed anything, so I have no idea!]

[Okay, thank you for telling me so much, Chairwoman.]

After thanking Akikawa Yayoi, Tokai Natural ended the conversation, turned off the screen, leaned back on the big bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling.

Thump!

The door to the room was suddenly opened. Before Tokai Natural could react, a small shadow darted in from outside. Before she could do anything, a powerful impact pressed her back onto the bed.

"Mom! What are you doing?"

"Oh dear... Teio... I know you have good legs, but if you keep jumping on Mom's stomach like that every time, Mom's body won't be able to take it."

Tokai Natural lifted Tokai Teio, who had jumped on her stomach, and placed her on the bed. Tokai Natural sat up herself, smiling helplessly as she ruffled her daughter's hair.

"Ahaha... I lost control of my strength for a moment. Sorry."

"What's with you being so happy ever since you came back this morning? Was running with that Kagura-san that much fun?"

Tokai Natural stroked Teio's head. The little one had been excited ever since she came back this morning, like she was on steroids.

"Yeah! Mom, when will I have another chance to see Kagura-san?"

"Didn't you add her on Umastagram? If you want to see her, why don't you ask her yourself?"

This was the first time Tokai Natural had seen her daughter so proactively wanting to see someone, especially someone she had only met twice and just met today, Inari Kagura.

"Do you want to go running with her?"

"Yeah! Running with Kagura-san is really fun! I can completely let myself go, it feels so good!"

"Really? I heard you say this morning that there was more to it than that, though?"

"Ehehe... well, Kagura-san is really nice... gentle and kind. She even promised to bring me something tasty next time she sees me!"

As she said that, the usually lively Tokai Teio seemed a little shy. Tokai Natural couldn't help but smile at her daughter's embarrassed look. She looked at the hair accessory on Teio's right ear, remembering that when she saw Kagura this morning, Kagura's hair accessory was on her left ear.

Teio really has a good impression of Kagura-san.

Tokai Natural knew that children that young didn't understand anything, but Kagura was indeed a gifted child, and she had an excellent upbringing and a good personality. If she could get Teio to have a good relationship with her, it would be a good thing. Then, if Teio successfully got into Tracen Academy, having someone she knew there would be a good support for each other.

She returned the phone, which had already been cleared of her recent chat history, to Tokai Teio to play with, and Tokai Natural picked up her own phone and set an alarm for six o'clock tomorrow morning.

It's been a long time since I've woken up that early since I retired...

The next day, Tokai Natural went to the park a little earlier than planned. She had arranged to meet at seven o'clock, but she snuck into the park at six forty. She found that Kagura was already waiting there with a small bag. There were few people in the park in the early morning, and Kagura, standing there alone, was particularly conspicuous. However, Kagura wasn't wearing her maid outfit today, but had changed into casual clothes, which almost made Tokai Natural not recognize her.

"Ah, Natural-san, good morning."

Before Tokai Natural could approach from behind, Kagura had already noticed her and turned around to greet her. She found that this child's anti-reconnaissance awareness seemed a little scary.

"Morning, Kagura-chan."

"Are you here with Teio? Speaking of which, where is Teio?"

Inari Kagura looked around Tokai Natural, not seeing Tokai Teio, who had asked her to come, and couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.

"She didn't come, Kagura-chan. I'm the one who asked you to come."

"Hmm? Is Natural-san using Teio's account to chat with me? No wonder it didn't feel like Teio."

Kagura didn't seem surprised, as if she had expected this. Tokai Natural had a feeling that she was communicating with someone her own age.

"So... Natural-san, did you ask me to come out for something?"

"Yesterday... Kagura-chan, you held back, didn't you?"

"...Oops, you saw through it. Teio shouldn't know, right?"

Kagura, who hadn't intended to hide anything in the first place, readily admitted it. She was just a little worried that Teio might be upset if she found out.

"No, she didn't see it, and I didn't tell her. But, Kagura-chan, why did you hold back?"

"I was just afraid that Teio-chan would be upset and sad..."

Eclipse and Kagura had both agreed, due to the influence of the Mejiro McQueen incident, that they would hold back a little when racing with children in the future, otherwise they wouldn't be able to handle any unexpected situations that arose in such unprepared circumstances.

"I see... Kagura-chan is indeed as gentle as Teio said."

The simple and honest reason matched the Tokai Natural mother and daughter's first impression of Kagura. She was indeed a very gentle child.

"Well, you're making me blush with your praise... By the way, Natural-san, you asked me to come out so early in the morning, it shouldn't just be to ask me about holding back, right?"

"Yes, that's right. I have one more thing to ask. You can refuse if you don't think it's appropriate, Kagura-chan."

"Oh? What kind of thing requires such a disclaimer first? Is it something difficult?"

Kagura looked at Tokai Natural curiously, not saying anything, quietly waiting for her to continue.

Tokai Natural was silent for a moment before extending her hand to Kagura:

"Kagura-chan, please don't hold back, give it your all, and race me!"

"Eh?"

Tokai Nature lost without any suspense.

In official races, large margins are rare. Tokai Nature had never been left so far behind in her own racing career. But this time, against a young Uma Musume who hadn't even completed her honkaku-ka yet, she felt that dangerous sense of despair.

This time, Kagura adopted a running style that was the complete opposite of her previous ones—a full-on lead. Tokai Nature then understood that yesterday, Kagura hadn't just held back on speed; she had even deliberately used a running style she might not be familiar with. After all, judging by today's performance, Kagura's forte was actually leading. Her dominance as a frontrunner was terrifying. Her consistent speed was extremely high, enough to force the Uma Musume groups behind her to accelerate in pursuit. Moreover, her stamina was excellent; at least 2000 meters seemed to be no problem for her. Therefore, opponents couldn't possibly hope for her to lose speed on the final straight and then catch up. The only way to close the distance was in the middle of the race.

In the final sprint, Tokai Nature accelerated with all her might. She didn't lose speed, and neither did Kagura. But even with her running at full speed to catch up, she only managed to close the distance by one or two lengths. But closing that little distance was meaningless. She knew that in a race, one or two lengths wouldn't change anything. There was no scoreboard nearby, so she could only rely on experience to guess how far behind she was. Her own visual estimate was about 7-9 lengths.

"Kagura-chan... is too amazing."

"Nature-san hasn't run in a long time, has she? I can tell your movements aren't very practiced."

"Yes... after all, I've been retired for so long, and my child is so big."

Tokai Nature smiled helplessly. She had already achieved her goal for today. She didn't know if Inari Kagura had held back again today, but the strength of Inari Kagura that she had tested out today was already quite frightening. Not to mention a child like Tokai Teio who hadn't even debuted yet, even G1 Uma Musume would have to be careful when facing Kagura. If Kagura had gone all out yesterday when running with Tokai Teio, the distance would have widened to at least 15 lengths or more, which was a gap that could prevent an Uma Musume from competing for a month.

Grumble—

Just as Tokai Nature was about to say something more, her stomach suddenly let out a very loud protest.

Tokai Nature blushed instantly. She then remembered that she had woken up too early this morning, preoccupied with coming here for the appointment, and had forgotten to eat breakfast. After that intense confrontation with Kagura just now, her stomach definitely couldn't hold out any longer.

"Nature-san, I originally guessed that since the appointment time was so early, Teio-chan most likely hadn't eaten breakfast, so I made some breakfast for Teio-chan myself and brought it over. But I really didn't expect it to be you... If you don't mind, would you like to try some? Don't worry, I made it myself, there are no bad additives."

As she spoke, Kagura picked up the small basket she had placed on the nearby bench and shook it at Tokai Nature.

It wasn't anything particularly difficult to make; it was just that Kagura had successfully made her favorite pumpkin pancakes yesterday morning, so she brought some out for Tokai Teio to try. Considering that Tokai Teio's appointment time was so early, she probably hadn't eaten breakfast, so she also brought a small bowl of congee with fish slices.

The aroma of fish wafting from the basket made Tokai Nature couldn't help but swallow. Kagura was just smiling and waiting for her answer.

"Okay... then thank you, Kagura-chan."

In the end, Tokai Nature couldn't resist the temptation of the delicious smell and nodded, accepting the basket Kagura handed her.

After tasting a few bites, Tokai Nature opened her eyes wide in disbelief. She couldn't believe that an eleven-year-old child could have such skill. Whether it was the fresh congee with fish slices or the freshly made, steaming, sweet pumpkin pancakes, although they weren't high-end dishes like those in hotels, at most they could be called home-style cooking, but home-style cooking could also reflect the maker's skill. Tokai Nature raised Kagura's impression score in her heart quite a bit.

Kagura-chan is not only gentle and kind, but also has excellent cooking skills... and thinks so thoughtfully... what a mature and steady child.

"Kagura-chan, is this called pumpkin pancake? Can I take a few back? Teio likes sweet things, I think she'll like this."

"Please do, I originally wanted to give them to Teio-chan to eat anyway. I think children should like this kind of fragrant and sweet thing, so I made them and brought them here. This lunch box is also disposable, so Nature-san can take it back if you want."

"Thank you!"

Attached is a picture that should have been included in the previous chapters.

87. Maruzensky took a sip and thought it was great.

"Good morning, Ojousama."

As usual, Kagura arrived at Rudolph Symbol's office with the breakfast she had made. Because Rudolph Symbol was always rushing to the office to work, Kagura basically always brought her breakfast like this.

However, this morning, Kagura saw that there were many unfamiliar Uma Musume in the office, making it look particularly lively. Kagura, who had never seen so many people in Rudolph Symbol's office, curiously looked at those Uma Musume, who all seemed to be freshmen.

"What's going on?"

"Kagura, you're here? Sorry, I have to trouble you to bring me food again. Now I'm considering that there's more and more work on the student council's side, plus those few executives can't always be found, so I've decided to recruit some new people."

"I see."

Kagura nodded. It seemed that these children were here to run for the student council. She had actually been wondering for a long time why she could only see Rudolph Symbol permanently stationed in the student council for such a long time. It seemed that Rudolph Symbol had finally remembered to recruit people now. Kagura had once proactively offered to join the student council to help Rudolph Symbol share some daily affairs, but Rudolph Symbol righteously refused, on the grounds that Kagura was usually busy enough and couldn't join the student council to find work for herself. She needed time to rest.

"By the way, Kagura, can you help me call Maruzensky over? It's very busy here today and I need her help, but as you can see, I haven't seen her yet at this point, and I can't get through on the phone. My efficiency alone is really not enough."

"Okay, please give me Maruzensky-senpai's address, I'll go find her."

"Well, look at your phone, I've already sent you the location."

Thus, Kagura received her task for this morning: to call Maruzensky, who was either sleeping in or slacking off, back to help.

Maruzensky's house wasn't too far from Tracen Academy. Although Kagura got lost for a short while on the way, with the speed of an Uma Musume, she still managed to reach the entrance of Maruzensky's residence within ten minutes. She even had time to detour to a supermarket on the way, because considering that Maruzensky might not have moved yet at this point, it was very likely that she hadn't eaten breakfast, so she brought some ingredients along the way.

Speaking of which, Maruzensky-senpai's financial situation seems to be quite good. She can afford to buy a house outside, and even has a car...

Come to think of it, the Uma Musume attending Tracen seem to be quite rich. They're clearly students, but they can already buy their own cars and houses. Thinking of how she had worked hard for several years in her previous life and couldn't even reach half or even a quarter of this goal, and then looking at the car downstairs at Maruzensky's house, Kagura couldn't help but feel some emotion in her heart.

Coming out of the elevator on the floor, walking to the end of the corridor, Kagura looked at the house number Rudolph Symbol had given her, confirmed that it was correct, and then raised her hand to knock on the door.

After a moment of silence, Kagura heard Maruzensky's footsteps coming from inside, along with her somewhat lazy voice:

"Who is it..."

As Maruzensky's voice fell, her door was also opened. Wearing a set of pajamas, disheveled, sleepy-eyed, and even with messy hair, Maruzensky saw Kagura standing at the door, smiling and looking at her.

Maruzensky was stunned.

"Good morning, Maruzensky-senpai."

"L-Little girl!!"

Before Inari Kagura could finish speaking, Maruzensky excitedly pulled her into a hug. Her messy pajamas weren't buttoned properly to begin with, and this jostling completely defeated their purpose. Kagura's face made direct, intimate contact with the woman's soft, fair breasts, the scent of shower gel overwhelming her.

Gasping for breath, Kagura struggled, wriggling free from Maruzensky's embrace and back onto the floor. Then, she glanced at the room behind Maruzensky.

'Wow... I always thought rooms this messy only existed in those "Hall of Shame" videos from cleaning companies...'

The post-apocalyptic scene inside left Kagura speechless. She had thought she'd only ever see a room like this in a video; never did she imagine she'd witness it firsthand.

Noticing Kagura's gaze drifting repeatedly into the room, Maruzensky realized something was amiss. She flushed with embarrassment.

"Ah... Little sister, stay right there!! I'll be right back!!"

With that, Maruzensky slammed the door shut.

Kagura then heard a series of crashes and bangs from inside, like an avalanche, mixed with Maruzensky's grumbling. She couldn't imagine what kind of disaster was unfolding in there.

Five minutes later, Maruzensky, now dressed in a neat red outfit, reopened the door, this time properly welcoming Kagura inside.

"Come, come, little sister, sit over here! I'll make you some tea!"

"Okay..."

Sitting down with nothing to do, Kagura looked around. She saw the cabinet holding the TV was crammed full, as if she could hear the cabinet doors groaning in protest. Looking around further, the refrigerator door seemed to be forced open a crack due to being overstuffed, a few wilted vegetable leaves peeking out from inside. The remnants on the dishes in the dish rack seemed to tell the story of a battle fought the previous night...

'It's so messy!!!!'

Kagura's eyebrows twitched incessantly. She felt her cleanliness obsession threatening to flare up, and she was struggling to resist the urge to get up and start cleaning.

Watching Maruzensky rummage through the cabinets for tea, only half her body visible, her tail wagging excitedly, Kagura sighed and covered her forehead. She couldn't take it anymore.

"Maruzensky-senpai! Please, sit down!"

Half an hour later, Maruzensky stared at her practically brand-new, sparkling clean interior with an incredulous shriek.