Uma Musume: Slacking Professionally

The morning of the next day passed uneventfully, spent in blissful slacking.

After training, the usual group of five headed to the cafeteria for lunch. Under the wary eyes of the cafeteria staff, who braced themselves as though facing a natural disaster, they finished their meals, then briefly rested in the team clubroom until afternoon.

Tokai Teio had afternoon classes, so she didn't return to the track, but Special Week and Oguri Cap continued training with enthusiasm.

As for Eclipse…

She had no classes at all today and had been silently trailing Kitahara since morning.

Like a ghost, she neither trained nor spoke. She merely stared blankly into space or glanced around absently, lost in unknown thoughts.

To others, Eclipse's behavior might seem odd, but to Kitahara, this was perfectly normal.

Eclipse rarely showed interest in anything and disliked speaking. Aside from necessary interactions, she typically spent her time quietly spacing out when they were together.

It wasn't that Kitahara deprived her of entertainment—quite the opposite. Whenever he had money, he'd taken her traveling or encouraged her to make friends at school.

Yet each attempt ended in failure.

Eclipse seemed devoid of desires, displaying zero interest in games, TV, novels, or even running. In her free time, she simply hovered near him in a daze, sometimes for an entire day.

She'd always follow his instructions precisely, but only mechanically, never showing happiness or excitement.

He'd tried asking her what she liked, but never got an answer.

Usually, Eclipse did her best to respond to Kitahara's questions—except when it came to personal matters. Questions about her interests, thoughts, or goals went unanswered. She'd either pretend not to hear or give absurd, obviously made-up answers—just as she'd done when he'd asked whether she'd plotted against Tokai Teio.

Initially, her cryptic behavior had irritated him, but gradually he grew accustomed to it and gave up trying to change her.

As long as Eclipse stayed near him willingly, seemingly content, that was enough. Let her be herself.

Still, although he'd adapted, others found her odd. In just three days, Tokai Teio had frequently cast puzzled glances toward Eclipse, who always stood silently at the edge of the training field without ever joining in.

Even Special Week and Oguri Cap had begun noticing something off about her, occasionally looking like they wanted to ask Kitahara about her, but always hesitating at the last moment.

I'll need a believable excuse soon, he realized.

Telling the truth wasn't an option.

What am I supposed to say? "I've never seen Eclipse train, but I've also never seen her lose"?

That would just earn him a beating.

Besides, this was Tracen HQ, not some branch school. The Uma Musume here were on an entirely different level.

Even if Eclipse had never lost before, many girls at HQ could claim undefeated records against regional schools, so Kitahara couldn't confidently say how Eclipse would stack up here.

Mulling these idle thoughts over dinner, he finished his meal.

Afterward, the five returned to the clubroom, relaxing and fiddling with their phones.

Perhaps exhausted from an afternoon of intense study, Tokai Teio was nodding off.

Eclipse continued blankly staring into space, occasionally glancing at the others, her thoughts unreadable.

But Special Week and Oguri Cap were far more restless.

Being early in their training, their afternoon routine had been relatively light. Now, freshly energized after dinner, neither felt like sitting quietly.

Oguri Cap had taken out her phone, tapping quietly—either texting someone or browsing.

Special Week had intended to do the same but paused, suddenly remembering something. Quietly, when no one was looking, she got up from her seat.

One step, two steps, three steps…

Because everyone was absorbed in their own business, no one noticed or cared about her sneaking around.

Special Week easily slipped behind Kitahara and leaned forward, peeking curiously at his phone screen.

Ever since yesterday, she'd been curious:

Though Kitahara was Tokai Teio and Eclipse's trainer, he never gave them actual training instructions—instead, he always watched something on his phone during downtime.

Could he be using his phone to secretly guide them? Or maybe watching something exciting…?

Her curiosity was killing her.

Carefully peeking over Kitahara's shoulder, she saw his browsing history:

"Advanced Combat Techniques," "Uma Musume Behavioral Studies," "Reconnaissance and Counter-Surveillance," "How to Quickly Escape Restraints"…

…Wait, what are all these?

Special Week froze, completely confused.

"You interested too?" Kitahara asked suddenly without looking back. "If you want, we can study them together."

Special Week stood frozen briefly, then panicked, hastily retreating.

"N-no thanks! I'm good!"

If it were physical training, Special Week wouldn't complain no matter how exhausting. But studying…

Last semester, she'd been forced into remedial lessons for failing grades, leaving deep mental scars. Now, even hearing words like "study" made her hair stand on end.

Kitahara shrugged it off. He wasn't looking at anything shameful anyway. If Special Week wanted to peek, it didn't matter.

Why am I watching these things?

Well, I have free time anyway. It never hurts to be prepared—maybe this could save my pelvis one day.

After this brief episode, silence settled once again over the room.

Evening faded into twilight outside the window. With no classes or obligations tonight, no one left. Each quietly occupied themselves with their phones.

Training at night was discouraged, both due to limited visibility increasing injury risks, and because nighttime was for resting and recovery after intensive daytime training. Adding more exercises at night could even reduce effectiveness.

Most trainers would typically spend this time walking with their tantou, discussing upcoming training or other casual topics.

Or, if they had a team, they'd chat together or play casual games, using relaxation to strengthen their bonds.

But Kitahara wasn't your typical trainer.

Forget initiating conversations or team bonding activities—he'd refuse even passive participation.

He wasn't like those oblivious idiots who couldn't grasp boundaries, nor was he a mouthy hypocrite claiming to keep his distance while constantly flirting.

Kitahara Sota was a man of his word: if he said he wouldn't get close to Uma Musume, he wouldn't. If he said he'd slack off, he'd slack off to the bitter end.

Chatting? Team-building? Don't even think about it!

I'm slacking off today. Even Jesus couldn't change my mind. So says Kitahara Sota!

—Knock, Knock, Knock.

Just as he was mentally boasting, someone knocked on the clubroom door.

Annoyed, Kitahara pocketed his phone and went to answer it.

Outside stood an Uma Musume with black hair, yellow eyes, and a small bandage on her nose.

Narita Brian, Vice President of Tracen's Student Council.

She glanced inside at the Uma Musume gathered, eyes widening slightly in surprise, then looked back at Kitahara.

"Trainer Kitahara, the President wants to see you."

Kitahara blinked. "Right now?"

Narita Brian nodded firmly. "Right now."

...

After quickly excusing himself to the girls in the room, Kitahara followed Narita Brian away.

The remaining Uma Musume glanced at each other, unsure what to do next.

Suddenly, Oguri Cap raised her head, turning her phone screen toward the others.

"Earlier, when browsing the forum, I found this."

Curious, the other three girls gathered closer, and their eyes immediately landed on the thread that had topped the campus forum all day, now reaching thousands of replies and still growing:

[Shock! Tokai Teio actually picked a freshly hired rookie trainer!]

Low whispers filled the room briefly, then faded into silence again, punctuated only by the sound of doors quietly opening and closing.