Your Support Uma Musume Has Problems

"We happen to have an open spot on our track right now, little miss. How about you come up and run a couple laps to experience what it's like for horse girls during class?"

Having guessed at something, Toujou Hana tried inviting Kagura.

As she expected, after saying that, she saw Rudolph Symbol behind Kagura visibly become more motivated!

"Me? Won't I be disturbing the students' class?"

"The track is spacious, and there aren't any other teams training here right now. Just don't get in the way of the other horse girls who are exercising."

Speaking of teams, Toujou Hana only had two horse girls with her right now. One was naturally Rudolph Symbol next to Kagura, and the other was the chestnut-haired, blue-eyed horse girl who had just come off the track and was excitedly sprinting over here – Maruzensky.

"Little miss—!"

"Ah…"

It's that familiar horse girl I saw the other day!

Kagura's two ears stood up in fright. Just as she was about to retreat and dodge, Maruzensky, who was running wildly, had already locked onto her prey. The moment Kagura made a move, she was picked up, her feet left the ground, and then her face was pressed hard into two soft mounds.

A tragic chest murder case… well, at least you could tell Maruzensky had been exercising for a while; her clothes were damp.

"Please let go, I can't breathe…"

"Sorry, sorry, I got a little excited and forgot I was just exercising."

Seeing Kagura's ears folding down, Maruzensky quickly released the little horse girl who was two heads shorter than her.

Compared to the mature-bodied Maruzensky, Inari Kagura, who was only 1.4 meters tall, looked very helpless, which made her miss her former height of 1.7 meters even more.

It's really inconvenient being a child… I wish I could get bigger.

Kagura sighed helplessly in her heart.

After struggling for a while, she finally returned to the ground. Missing her former height, Kagura remembered Eclipse, whom she had seen in her dream. Eclipse had a face very similar to hers and an impressive, shapely figure. You could say she was exactly what this body would look like when it grew up—or so it seemed, but Inari Kagura had a feeling that even if she grew up, she wouldn't grow that much.

"Little miss, are you here to visit Tracen Academy today?"

"I guess… you could say that."

"Then how about running a couple of laps with me? Our team's track happens to be open right now!"

Maruzensky looked eager to try. While Kagura was still hesitating, she felt Rudolph Symbol gently push her from behind:

"Just think of it as exercise. Want to run together?"

"I don't mind. If you don't mind another person disturbing you, I can run a couple of laps with you."

Seeing the two of them looking expectant, Kagura, who had originally planned to walk a couple of laps on the track anyway, agreed without much hesitation.

Kagura herself wasn't too averse to running. After running with Speed Symbol that day, she found that running was quite fun. She liked the feeling of freedom, but she didn't quite understand what Rudolph Symbol and Maruzensky were so insistent on dragging her up to run for.

Is running together something to look forward to?

While wondering in her heart, Kagura followed the two of them towards the track.

8. Aren't you two just here to smurf? (Annoyed)

After warming up with the two of them on the track, Kagura walked to what seemed to be the starting line and stopped. She couldn't make out the position of the starting line, but she heard that the place with the standees of unknown horse girls was the starting point.

"Weather: sunny. Grass: good. Track condition: good. 1600 meters."

Toujou Hana was saying something beside the track. Kagura heard the gist of it. It sounded like she was describing the track conditions and training distance.

Kagura remembered that she had also run 1600 meters with Speed Symbol before. That distance wasn't even close to her physical limit. Thinking about it carefully, her stamina was much stronger than before.

Looking at Maruzensky and Rudolph Symbol standing next to her, for some reason, Kagura felt that they were both full of fighting spirit, which gave her a sense of inexplicable pressure.

I remember I was just here to run a couple of laps to exercise, right?? Are you guys always so serious about training!?

Inari Kagura, covered in black lines, tried hard to turn her gaze away from the two weirdos who were emitting strange auras and focused on the track in front of her, waiting for Toujou Hana's starting command.

Tracen's track was different from the Symbol family's. The Symbol family's grass was soft and comfortable to run on, but it wasn't easy to exert force. Tracen's track was much harder. Although it was easier to exert force on this kind of hard grass, it wasn't so friendly to the feet.

The moment the whistle sounded, Rudolph Symbol and Maruzensky shot out like arrows. Inari Kagura was clearly half a beat slower to react. In that brief moment at the start, she had already been left behind by a full body length.

"Such a bad start… Well, that's to be expected, since she seems to be a child who has never trained or attended horse girl school before…"

Toujou Hana had actually already obtained some information about Inari Kagura from Rudolph Symbol. She naturally wanted to pay more attention to the horse girl who had aroused Rudolph Symbol's interest so much. This training session in name only was not only her idea but also Rudolph Symbol's wish.

She originally thought that Kagura would wait in the back and look for an opportunity to squeeze forward, but Kagura quickly made a move that surprised her—after falling behind by a full body length at the start, she actually accelerated with all her might and forcibly overtook Rudolph Symbol from the outer lane on her right!

"This child… is running as an escape artist?"

Toujou Hana frowned. In terms of race pace, it wasn't a wise move to fight for first place with all your might after being delayed at the start and blocked in the back. She originally thought that Kagura just wanted to rush back to the front, and she would slow down once she reached the lead, but after Kagura passed the two of them, there was no sign of slowing down at all. On the contrary, the gap was getting bigger and bigger!

"No, this speed, is she going for a grand escape??"

Seeing the distance between Kagura and the two of them widening, Toujou Hana revealed an incredulous expression.

A little horse girl who hasn't even gone through Honkaku-ka running a grand escape sounded like a fantasy. The little horse girl's stamina and stride were not as good as a horse girl after Honkaku-ka. Even if they chose the 1600 meters that she had completed before to take care of her this time, it would be problematic to maintain her speed if she ran a grand escape.

"Oh oh… is this the legendary grand escape!"

Rudolph Symbol, chasing behind Kagura, felt a little excited. She was also staring intently at Kagura in front of her. Seeing such a running style was indeed a surprise to her.

"Oh my… to lose the lead to a child… But if she keeps accelerating like this, this child's stamina…"

Maruzensky, running in front of Rudolph Symbol, still had her usual relaxed look, but she had also increased her speed to prevent herself from being left too far behind. She was now almost three body lengths away from Kagura. If the distance was any greater, it would be a little dangerous for her, the senior, if Kagura didn't lose speed. She didn't want to lose face in front of a junior she had just met.

As for Inari Kagura, who was running in the lead, she didn't really have any competitive thoughts, nor did she observe her surroundings at all. She was just following her running instincts. She felt like there was no one around, so she ran comfortably and without restraint. The feeling of excitement made her unconsciously speed up.

"Running like this once in a while isn't bad..."

While running, Kagura was planning whether she could ask Speed Symbol to borrow the grass field for a couple of laps when she had time. Relaxing like this for a while seemed to release a lot of the day's unpleasantness and stress. Anyway, there was no phone to play with right now, so she might as well run a couple of laps.

The distance of 1600 wasn't that long. A little over a minute later, Kagura had already dashed through the final bend and onto the final long straight. Having had that previous experience, she knew that 1600 still didn't touch the limit of her stamina, so when she stepped onto the final straight, she suddenly lowered her posture and increased her speed even faster than last time.

"!"

Toujou Hana couldn't help but open her mouth slightly. She originally thought that Kagura was about to lose speed, but Kagura not only didn't slow down at all, but accelerated significantly again!

"A runaway, and... can still accelerate at the end? An un-awakened child?"

It didn't make sense for these things to appear on a horse girl who wasn't even old enough to enter the race. Toujou Hana felt that even if Inari Kagura was pulled into a G1 race now, she could go toe-to-toe with those professional athletes, and might even be able to place. Although she was still some distance behind her two seniors, she was already above many other horse girls.

"No wonder Rudolph is so concerned about her... such talent, it's a good thing there aren't any other trainers in this area right now..."

If Inari Kagura's performance just now was seen by other trainers, it would probably attract a lot of people to surround her and ask her if she wanted to sign a contract. She probably wouldn't be able to leave for a while—who would have thought that she wasn't a student here at all, just a horse girl who came to visit Tracen Academy today?

As expected, the two who had been closely following Kagura also began to increase their speed significantly after entering the final straight. Kagura's current disorganized running method was definitely no match for those two well-trained professional athletes. She was still far behind in terms of awareness of the track and speed. Soon, the two had narrowed the distance to half a body length, and then surpassed Kagura.

"They're both running so fast..."

Looking at the two horse girls who passed her, leaving only a gust of wind, Kagura sincerely praised them. She didn't have the idea of ​​accelerating further to catch up. She still followed her own pace, maintaining her current speed towards the finish line.

Rudolph Symbol and Maruzensky arrived at the finish line almost simultaneously, while Kagura ran up two body lengths behind. After crossing the finish line, Kagura, who was breathing a little fast, adjusted her breathing slightly to calm her rhythm.

"Haa... Maruzensky, you're as oppressive as ever. Kagura, you ran so hard just now, do you feel okay? Is your leg okay?"

"Little girl, you ran so hard just now, does your leg hurt?"

Knowing that this little horse girl had just experienced a runaway that was completely inconsistent with her age, the two seniors came up to ask Kagura how she felt with concern, in case Kagura was injured in this training.

They had all witnessed Kagura's strength just now. As Rudolph Symbol said before, Kagura was indeed a very promising child. Even if she didn't win them in the end, this one lap was enough to show her talent.

"Yeah~ I'm fine, thank you for your concern."

Kagura, who was in a very good mood after exercising, nodded to the two with a smile. Maruzensky looked like she wanted to hug her but stopped, while Rudolph Symbol reached out and gently rubbed Kagura's little head twice.

This training race had completely verified her guess. Kagura undoubtedly possessed excellent talent. Even if she and Maruzensky weren't going all out, Kagura was only left behind by a little more than two body lengths with her un-awakened strength, which was indeed good.

Having verified her guess, the next question was Kagura's own wishes, and how to ask her mother-in-law for someone. Rudolph Symbol heard from the maids at home that Kagura had been taking care of Speed Symbol very well during this time, and was deeply loved by Speed Symbol. She didn't know if she would be willing to let Kagura go.

'That child doesn't seem to dislike me bringing her to school to interact with other horse girls. Maybe I can think of a way to bring this child to Tracen... Even if she's not old enough, it's good to let her get in touch and understand these common sense things in advance.'

Looking at Inari Kagura, who was surrounded by Toujou Hana and Maruzensky asking questions, Rudolph Symbol made a decision in her heart.

9. Mejiro

"Eleven years old, not yet awakened, and already has this kind of speed and stamina. Should I say that she truly deserves to be the head of the Symbol family? Her eye for talent is also so unique."

While Inari Kagura was watching Maruzensky train next to the track, Rudolph Symbol also walked towards Toujou Hana to ask how Kagura's results were just now.

"No wonder you're so concerned. Have you already talked to the head of the family about bringing that child to Tracen?"

"...No, I'm still thinking about how to talk to that old woman about this. I heard from the other maids at home that she is very good at taking care of people, diligent, gentle, and careful. My old woman likes her very much. I don't know if she will let me take her away."

"Your relationship with the head of the family is still so bad. Do you hate her that much? She's your mother-in-law, after all, right?"

Hearing Rudolph Symbol's constant use of the term "old woman" in her long speech, Toujou Hana knew that Rudolph Symbol had not taken the initiative to repair her stiff relationship with the head of the family.

"It's not that I hate her... it's just some things from the past. She interferes a little too much. Although it's not out of malicious intent, doing everything herself shows distrust. I... don't like it very much."

Rudolph Symbol knew why Speed Symbol was always interfering with her. She had caused a lot of trouble during the time when her temper was very bad, and Speed Symbol had always been the one to clean up the mess. Now that she understood more and could be independent, Speed Symbol still treated her like the irritable old sister she was back then.

"Speaking of which, there's a strange thing. The old woman used to chase after me every day asking this and that, but she hasn't contacted me much recently... When she does contact me, it's to ask how my body is doing and to tell me not to overwork myself, etc..."

"Oh? That's a good thing for you, right? Maybe she's seen the light?"

"That old woman has been the same for so many years, how could she suddenly see the light recently?"

Holding her chin, Rudolph Symbol said with some disbelief.

After thinking for a while, Rudolph Symbol's gaze drifted into the distance, and she saw Maruzensky trying to pick up Inari Kagura, and Inari Kagura running around the track.

Counting it, Speed Symbol also said that she picked up Inari Kagura, who had fallen in front of the Symbol family's gate, more than a month ago. If Inari Kagura had any influence on Speed Symbol during this time, the timing would also match.

'Could it be that such a small child can also influence that stubborn old woman?'

Rudolph Symbol and the others still had to train, and plus this young lady arranged a day off for her today, Kagura was temporarily free. She got the opportunity to stroll around this school.

Inari Kagura, who was in a good mood after running for a while, hummed a little tune and left the training ground. She was actually a little puzzled by her good mood. In her memory, she wasn't someone who loved sports, and was even the type who would be panting after moving a little. But since becoming a horse girl, not only was she not tired, but she even felt a little happy when she ran?

'Is running something that makes people very happy... Why didn't I ever feel that way before? Could this be the biological instinct of the horse girl race?'

Although puzzled, Kagura felt that it wasn't bad.

Since getting to know the good child, Fine Motion, Kagura had been curious about the horse girls' cultural courses for a long time. This time, she finally had the opportunity to visit the top school for horse girls. She wanted to go to the teaching building to see what the horse girls were like in class, so she left the training ground and kept walking towards a building that looked like a teaching building.

Whether it was because horse girls had more sensitive senses or for other unknown reasons, Kagura felt like someone was following her as soon as she approached the teaching building. She also actually noticed the other person out of the corner of her eye. She became vigilant, pretended that she didn't know, deliberately changed her route and detoured, and then used the reflection from the iron bulletin boards next to the teaching building to see the person following her.

'Who are these people...'

Kagura saw the person following her, and felt like they were the same type of person as Toujou Hana, a middle-aged man wearing a suit and glasses, who looked serious and somewhat stern.

She felt rather dejected. She was just an eleven or twelve-year-old child. She couldn't imagine what value a penniless, unregistered person like herself had that would make someone want to follow her. It couldn't be that they were interested in her, could it?

'Sigh… sometimes walking alone is really helpless.'

--The one behind you should be a trainer. He was already watching you from afar when you were running with your young lady and the others over there.

Suddenly, Inari Kagura saw a line of white, mist-like text appear on the notice board. She remembered that she wasn't entirely alone; Eclipse was still with her.

'I don't understand what makes me worth following. Does Miss Eclipse think that person is trustworthy?'

Inari Kagura, pretending to look at the notice, asked Eclipse in her mind. She heard the person behind her stop moving for the moment, as if they had paused.

--Here, at least, he won't do anything too outrageous. I reckon he saw you running just now and followed you. He probably wants to recruit you.

'I'm still so young, and what's worth recruiting about a rookie like me who always comes in last…'

--That's why he's here, because you're still so young! Can't you have a little faith in your own abilities, you silly child… Sigh, anyway, that's my guess. Whether you choose to turn around and respond or just run away is up to you.

After that sentence, no further words appeared on the notice board. It seemed that Eclipse didn't intend to provide her with any more hints.

Inari Kagura didn't really want to bother with the person behind her. She hadn't even gained a firm foothold in this world yet and didn't want to get into any trouble. Speaking of recruitment, she didn't even understand the specific workings of a team. Right now, she only knew that trainers would form teams and lead horse girls to participate in races, but these things had nothing to do with her for the time being. Firstly, she wasn't old enough, and secondly, she was still an unregistered person.

After much deliberation, Inari Kagura decided to ignore the person following her. She decided to go into the teaching building first. If the other person still followed her inside, she would speed up and shake them off.

However, just as Kagura lifted her leg to leave the front of the notice board, she heard the man behind her call out to her:

"Hey there, little girl, please wait a moment."

"...Is there something you need?"

She considered whether to run away immediately, but after thinking about it, the other person hadn't shown any bad intentions, so Kagura ultimately gave up on that plan and turned to look at the man.

"I saw you running just now. Your footsteps were light and agile, like a shadow, elegant yet powerful. It's been a long time since I've seen a child as talented as you. With your talent, you're sure to shine on the racetrack."

"..."