On the pasture, quite a few horses had their heads lowered, intently searching the ground for the few remaining blades of grass.
Mejiro Tenma, turned out alone, seemed completely uninterested in the grass beneath her hooves aside from occasionally going to the fence for a few drinks of water.
The gray horse stood quietly like that, yawning from time to time.
"After her rest period ends, the training plan should still focus primarily on building strength."
With his arms crossed, Ogawa Joe explained his projected training plan for Mejiro Tenma to Kitano.
Although there had not been much progress with weight management, Ogawa Joe still wanted to do everything he could.
For dirt racing, Mejiro Tenma's current muscle mass was still far from sufficient.
Kitano nodded and opened Mejiro Tenma's panel.
On the panel, basic attributes such as [Speed] and [Stamina] all had inconspicuous upward arrows beside them.
The arrows were tilted at different angles. He guessed that this might be related to the system's assessment of her growth rate.
However, every one of them pointed upward at only a very slight angle.
For abilities like [Wisdom], whose base value was already high, he had to look closely to even notice the upward tilt.
And apart from [Wisdom] and [Growth Type], the other abilities were still followed by a long string of question marks.
Doesn't that mean I can't tell anything at all?
Closing the panel, Kitano continued listening to Ogawa Joe's training plan.
"At least in the short term, we probably won't assign Pegasus any overly demanding training."
In truth, there was not much training that could be arranged anyway.
Whether it was gate practice or desensitization, neither seemed to be a problem based on her performance in her first race.
Ochiai the Jockey had even commented that she seemed to possess "something like an instinct for racing."
As for programs with high facility requirements, such as swimming training or forest hill work, Nishiken Farm was not equipped to conduct them.
That was also the norm for local Racehorse racing.
In the brief intervals between races, it was already quite good if a horse's fatigue could recover even a little.
"What do you think, Mr. Kitano? Regarding both training and racing?"
After explaining the farm's projected training plan, Ogawa Joe turned to ask Kitano for his thoughts.
Mejiro Tenma's smooth escape from maiden company in her first race was exciting news for everyone involved.
That way, they at least had far more room when selecting races, rather than having to scramble from one maiden race to the next.
"As for training, let's follow Mr. Ogawa's plan."
Kitano had always respected the advice of professionals in fields he did not understand.
"As for racing..."
He paused briefly before continuing, "At least for this year, it's enough to race with the goal of gaining experience. There's no need to rush."
As he spoke, he patted Mejiro Tenma's dusty gray head, which was sticking out past the fence.
Unlike most new horse owners, Kitano had not been carried away by this short-lived victory and made unreasonable demands of the Trainer and Jockey, such as insisting that they had to race for the win.
He had given Teacher Tanaka the same answer when asked on the day the race ended.
Both Tanaka back then and Ogawa Joe now were somewhat surprised by Kitano's choice.
While the physical strain was not especially severe, prize money in local racing was very limited.
And boarding fees, one of the major expenses, might not compare to the nearly one million yen per month often seen in the central circuit, but they were still no small sum.
Because of this, many local owners had their Racehorses compete frequently.
Kitano's expectations for Mejiro Tenma were simply that she would not lose too much money.
If she could complete more tasks along the way, that would naturally be even better.
And if she failed to complete them, there was no need to force the matter.
From that perspective, Kitano had a rather laid-back temperament as an owner.
"Besides—"
Drawing back his hand, Kitano continued, "With her body still developing, having her race too often probably wouldn't be good, right?"
As a veterinarian, Kitano likewise would not consider arranging an overly packed racing schedule for a Racehorse.
"That's true—"
Ogawa Joe nodded, then turned to look toward the group turnout paddock in the distance, seemingly lost in thought.
"Mr. Kitano, I've finished putting down the bedding!"
Ogawa Masaru's voice came from the direction of the Horse Stall.
The boy jogged all the way over to the pasture.
"Thanks for the effort."
Kitano nodded at the boy.
"It was nothing, nothing~"
Wiping the sweat from his face with a towel, Ogawa Masaru wore a bright smile.
At that moment, Mejiro Tenma suddenly lay down and rolled on the ground.
She failed to roll all the way over.
After trying a few more times, she got back to her feet looking somewhat dejected.
Everyone burst out laughing at the slightly comical sight.
Only Ogawa Masaru looked at the mud all over Mejiro Tenma's body and rubbed his head in distress.
After Kitano left the farm, Ogawa Masaru sighed as he picked up a bucket, preparing to wash Mejiro Tenma.
Apparently satisfied with her turnout, the filthy gray horse kept shaking her head all the way to the wash area.
"She was clearly the quiet type when she was little, but now she's become such a handful."
As he fastened the tie rope to her halter, Ogawa Masaru muttered under his breath.
After turning down the water flow and testing the temperature with his hand, he aimed the shower nozzle at the filthy gray horse.
Mejiro Tenma's relatively short coat was quickly soaked through, faintly revealing the muscle lines on her chest that had not been very noticeable before.
Ogawa Masaru got to work.
When he washed the top of her head, her little gray-and-white ears nimbly dodged away. When the nozzle moved lower, she cooperatively closed her eyes.
At least in that regard, she was still as clever as she had been when she was young.
She could practically be called an expert at bathing.
Ogawa Masaru moved the shower nozzle in front of her, and Mejiro Tenma took the chance to bare her teeth and gulp down water.
"You look awful."
Ogawa Masaru laughed and gently patted Mejiro Tenma's upper lip. "If you want water, wait until you're back in the Horse Stall. It's bath time now!"
With that, he set down the shower nozzle, picked up a brush, and began grooming Mejiro Tenma's messy mane.
Mejiro Tenma shook her head even more violently, splashing Ogawa Masaru's clothes with droplets of water.
Later, while he was drying her off, Mejiro Tenma took advantage of his inattention to seize the towel in her mouth. She only reluctantly let go after Ogawa Masaru pleaded with her for quite some time.
After a considerable amount of fussing around, the washing was finally finished.
After sending the clean and refreshed Mejiro Tenma into the Horse Stall, the utterly exhausted Ogawa Masaru plopped down onto the floor.