Thanks, Trainer

At the very front of the stands, Yasui Makoto finally lowered the binoculars he had been holding the entire time. He let out a relieved, excited chuckle.

"Heh, she won the race, crossed the finish line, and then made a complete fool of herself. I don't even know what to say..."

At his words, the astonished Satono Crown and the delighted Rizumu Hikari both looked over.

Satono Crown sighed.

"...Trainer Yasui, isn't it a little inappropriate to talk about your own Uma Musume like that?"

Meanwhile, Rizumu Hikari's delight turned to concern.

"Big Sis, let's leave that aside for now...

"Trainer Yasui, Xiao Bei took a tumble... Aren't you going to go check on her?"

From a rational standpoint, Yasui Makoto wasn't worried that Hokubu Genkoma's fall would cause any problems.

He kept a close eye on all kinds of data every day, and knew full well that his Uma Musume had an astonishingly sturdy constitution.

Besides, a few things Hokubu Genkoma had mentioned over lunch in the cafeteria had only reinforced that impression.

They'd been talking about her constitution when Hokubu Genkoma said she'd been strong and healthy since she was little.

She'd hardly ever been sick, and she'd rarely been injured.

Whether they were hiking in the mountains and woods or going on seaside outings, her companions would be worn out while she was still happily racing around everywhere.

Back in elementary school, she and her classmate Rizumu Hikari had once spotted a kitten in a tree.

The kitten didn't seem able to get down, so Hokubu Genkoma tried to rescue it. She lost her footing and fell from the equivalent of a three-story building.

All she got was a few scrapes.

And she left a shallow dent in the ground.

In short, she was fine. Rizumu Hikari, on the other hand, was badly frightened.

At the end of the story, she'd added that her usual training wasn't very intense, and she hoped Yasui Makoto would make it tougher.

Yasui Makoto certainly wasn't going to change the training plan on a whim.

His plan was to increase the intensity gradually. There was no need to rush.

But rationality was one thing; seeing Hokubu Genkoma fall with his own eyes had left him unable to hold back his worry.

So when he heard Rizumu Hikari, he gave a slight nod and hurried toward the rear of the stands.

Rizumu Hikari followed worriedly for a couple of steps, then felt someone grab her wrist.

"Big Sis...?"

She looked at Satono Crown in surprise. "What is it...?"

"...There's something I wanted to ask you."

Satono Crown looked toward the Race Information Board.

"Take a look at the race data up there.

"1:51.9 and 34.1. That's Xiao Bei's finish time and her final three-furlong time."

Rizumu Hikari looked at the board too. After confirming that her sister was right, she grew even more puzzled.

"That's true, but I haven't made my debut yet, so I don't think I can tell what these numbers mean."

Satono Crown pondered for a moment.

"What if I told you my debut race finish time was 1:50, and my final three furlongs took 33.5 seconds? It was also an 1,800-meter race here. Does that tell you anything?"

Rizumu Hikari was astonished.

"Wait, does that mean Xiao Bei...

"Wasn't actually faster than you, Big Sis?

"Then why did she look... so much faster than you were back then?"

Of course she'd been there to cheer her sister on during her debut race, and she'd watched the whole thing from start to finish.

Her sister had won beautifully, and her race data had been excellent.

But for some reason, even though her friend had taken longer to finish and had a slower final three furlongs, Rizumu Hikari's instinct told her that she'd been faster than her sister.

"I don't know either. I thought that since you and Xiao Bei are roommates, you might understand, so I wanted to ask you. But you're right. If I can't figure it out, and you haven't even made your debut, it'll be even harder for you."

Satono Crown shook her head and looked in the direction Yasui Makoto had gone.

"Xiao Bei is in our class, so we've been able to see how she trains.

"And for the past month, that trainer has been in charge of her special training.

"It's obvious that the methods used by that trainer, who looks so young, are very different from everyone else's.

"It seems the answer to what neither of us can figure out might lie with Trainer Yasui."

Yasui Makoto found Hokubu Genkoma in the Infirmary, but not because anything was wrong with his Uma Musume.

Every race was strenuous, so routine physical checks were required before and after each one.

Especially after what had just happened. Everyone had seen Hokubu Genkoma take a spectacular spill after the race, so the staff weren't about to neglect her.

The examination results were just as Yasui Makoto had expected: his Uma Musume was perfectly healthy, as if the fall on the track hadn't happened to her at all.

As soon as she saw Yasui Makoto, Hokubu Genkoma showed unbelievable energy. She didn't look at all like someone who'd just run 1,800 meters. In only a few steps, she darted over and threw her arms around him.

"Trainer! Did you see?! I, I... I won!"

"I... ahem, I saw you win. Congratulations... But could you let go of me first...?"

"Huh? Ah, s-sorry! I, I was just so excited..."

Hokubu Genkoma froze for a moment before noticing that Yasui Makoto's face had gone red. She quickly let go and stepped back a few paces, looking him up and down as guilt and panic washed over her.

"A-Are you okay, Trainer...?"

Yasui Makoto moved his arms a little. They were only slightly numb, so he relaxed and shook his head with a laugh.

...She was incredibly strong. If he hadn't known a thing or two about how to absorb the force, that hug might have dislocated his arms.

"I'm fine. Congratulations, Xiao Bei. You've won the first championship of your career."

He shook his head again and congratulated her once more.

Then, with the excited Hokubu Genkoma, he thanked the doctor and said goodbye before heading toward the lounge.

The black-haired girl chattered excitedly the whole way.

She said she hadn't felt a thing as she crossed the finish line, and had won before she knew it. She'd only realized she'd won when she heard the cheering.

Then she said she should've invited her grandpa and the others to watch in person, though they'd probably watched the race live on TV.

Next, she said Senior Emperor might have watched too. Either way, she was going to call her idol later and share the good news.

After that, she brought up the Winner's Stage.

It was an indispensable part of Uma Musume racing events.

Like other idol industries, Uma Musume had singing and dancing performances in addition to races, and the Academy Dance Hall had been designed specifically for that purpose.

There were also solo concerts, endorsements, merchandise, and other ventures.

On top of that, a performance was held every race day evening, with all the competitors taking part.

The star of each performance was the champion of each race. That was the "Winner's Stage."

As she talked about the Winner's Stage, the black-haired girl suddenly stopped. Her jewel-like red eyes fixed on Yasui Makoto.

"Hey, I've said so much, but I just realized I still haven't said what I most wanted to say. Hehehe..."

She gave a familiar silly laugh and walked over.

Just like in the Infirmary, she opened her arms and hugged him, resting her cheek against his chest.

Compared with last time, her movements were much slower, and her hug was much gentler.

"I thought of lots of ways to thank you. I even wanted to write them down when we were in the Infirmary.

"But I thought about it for ages, and even tried writing a little on my phone. Then I realized I had no idea how to say it.

"Hehe, you probably know this already, Trainer, but I'm pretty silly.

"So, it must've been tough winning the race with someone as silly as me.

"So, thank you, Trainer."