About the Future-Have You Found Your Answer?

For a long time afterward, Kitasan Black carried a heavy object in each pocket as she went to and from school, trained, and rested.

They were, of course, the two halves of the cobblestone Anjing Zhen had split with his bare hands.

After she'd been stunned for a long moment, she'd asked for the two halves, unable to believe her eyes, and was astonished all over again.

The cross-section was remarkably smooth—almost too smooth. It looked as if something sharp had sliced through it, or as if it had been cut with a power saw and then polished.

In that moment, she had no doubt that Anjing Zhen was telling the truth. Once she learned and mastered all those strange poses, she, too, would be able to split a stone with her bare hands...

No, she'd be able to fully control her own strength and run at a speed that would astonish everyone.

The thought made her a little impatient. She wanted to know what the next poses would be.

But as if he'd anticipated that, her Trainer sternly cut her off before she could say anything.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush.

"There's no use hurrying with this. You have great talent—in fact, you could say you have too much. It'll actually take you longer than most people to fully control and bring it out.

"What I'm teaching you can help you get there faster, but you have to follow my plan and take it one step at a time. Otherwise, you could get seriously hurt.

"Now, it's time for your regular training. Go for a run."

To be honest, she still wanted to know what the next part of the training would involve.

But she believed that even if she wasn't good at much else, she'd always been good at listening to her elders and seniors.

Her Trainer wasn't much older than she was, but somehow he seemed as mature as many of the adults in her family.

Besides, he always seemed so confident, knew so many things, and had even ranked first in the Trainer exam.

So it was probably best to listen to him.

When will I be as good as my Trainer...?

Without realizing it, Kitasan Black thought of it again. She couldn't help pulling the two halves of the cobblestone from her pocket to examine them closely.

"...So, the answer to this question. Kitasan Black, you answer."

On reflex, Kitasan Black stood up and answered loudly.

"Yes! The answer is Tokai Teio!"

The classroom fell silent for a moment, then scattered, muffled chuckles began to spread.

At the front of the classroom, the teacher sighed with his back to the blackboard.

"Kitasan Black, I know Emperor (Teio) President is your idol, but...

"You can't give that answer to every question, can you?

"Also, could you explain to me what you're holding?"

"Huh...?"

After a moment of confusion, Kitasan Black realized she was still holding the two halves of the cobblestone.

She instinctively hid them behind her back. A moment later, face red, she lowered her head and obediently held them out.

"They're... two stones..."

"Stones..."

The teacher seemed to choke a little, then shook his head helplessly.

"Don't daydream in class, and don't do things unrelated to the lesson.

"Sit down for now, and come to my office after class.

"All right, everyone, please stop laughing. Now, the answer to the question... Satono Crown, you answer."

"Yes."

From diagonally across the front of the classroom, a horse girl with long black hair stood up and replied:

"The first undefeated Triple Crown winner in the Shining Star Series was the former Student Council President and current chair of the University Department, Symboli Rudolph."

"Correct. It was Symboli Rudolph. You may sit down, Satono Crown."

Only then did Kitasan Black, who had hurriedly stuffed the stones back into her pockets, understand what the teacher had asked. She muttered a little unhappily, "Teio-senpai only missed the Kikuka Sho by one race..."

"Now, the next point... Hmm? Kitasan Black, I think you just said something!"

"Yes! N-no, nothing! I didn't say anything, teacher!"

"Sit down and pay attention. Remember to come to my office after class."

That evening, in the Dance Hall, after training.

"I heard you got sent to the office today for daydreaming?"

Anjing Zhen asked casually as he looked down and ran some calculations on his tablet.

"Huh? Trainer, you... heard about that?"

Kitasan Black was doing her cooldown stretches, and now she felt awkward.

"Well, um... hehe, I just spaced out for a little, and got caught by accident..."

"If you hadn't been caught, would you have kept spacing out?"

Anjing Zhen glanced up, exasperated, and shook his head.

"Academic classes are important too. A lot of what you learn can come in handy in races and training.

"Thinking long term, it doesn't matter what you plan to do after you retire and graduate—you can't get by without studying.

"And thinking short term, if you have to retake a test because you fail a class or something, I'm not going to beg your homeroom teacher for you."

At the Academy, academic studies and specialized training were separate. Teachers and Trainers generally didn't interfere with each other's teaching plans.

"That's okay! I always ask Diamond-chan to help me study!"

Kitasan Black confidently patted her chest, then her expression drooped.

"Chinese and history are fine, but math is really hard... Physics and biology, too...

"Oh, right! You seem really good at math and biology, Trainer. How about you tutor me?"

"Then I'd recommend paying attention in class."

Anjing Zhen shook his head.

"Just because I know those subjects doesn't mean I can teach them. The Trainer exam doesn't require any of that."

"I see... Then I'll pay attention in class from now on."

Kitasan Black nodded obediently.

"And math and all that is hard, but my grades... should be okay. I'm not as good as Diamond-chan or Crown-chan, but at least I won't fail."

Anjing Zhen nodded at that.

Academic performance wouldn't directly affect her racing results, but mastering a lot of knowledge would certainly make training twice as effective.

Retaking exams after failing a class was a hassle. Not only did the Trainer have to get involved, but the Student Council had to mediate as well.

He'd only just become Kitasan Black's Assigned Horse Girl's Trainer. It would be pretty awkward to have her fail a class before she'd even run her debut race.

"That's a relief. I'll also make time to keep an eye on your grades."

Anjing Zhen nodded, added that, and began gathering his things to leave.

As before, when he heard her say, "Trainer, let me carry your things," Kitasan Black eagerly slung his shoulder bag over her shoulder for him.

After that, they went to the cafeteria for dinner as usual. Once they'd finished eating, Anjing Zhen took his tablet out of his backpack.

"I asked you before what you planned to do in the future. So, have you found your answer?"

Planning a racing career was the Trainer's responsibility.

Only a Trainer could apply to the Academy and the URA Association to arrange races for his Assigned Horse Girl.

But as a matter of custom, unless a horse girl had no clear ideas of her own, every Trainer respected her wishes, patiently discussed any disagreements, and worked with her to decide on a direction for the future.

Anjing Zhen considered himself a very decisive person.

In his previous life, he hadn't needed companions. He'd taken full responsibility for the consequences of everything he did.

During his first few years in this world, he'd made decisions on his own, too, without discussing things with his parents.