Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live

"In that case, we will now arrange for accommodations for Trainer Kitano and Nakayama-san."

"Ah, that won't be necessary. He and I will be living together."

The moment Kitano and Festa's contract was finalized, just as Student Council President Rudolf was about to arrange their respective lodgings at Tracen, Nakayama Festa, who never shied away from stirring up trouble, dropped another bombshell.

The ever-intuitive Nakayama Festa quickly noticed the slightly stunned gazes of everyone around her, realized the problem with her statement, and, suppressing her emotions, pulled down her knit cap and said:

"Don't get the wrong idea... After he was taken in by the Gold Family, he often lived with us. He has his own house in Tokyo, and we sometimes go over to his place."

"He has his own house in Tokyo, so it shouldn't be a problem if we don't live in the school dorms, right? I, for one, feel more comfortable at home."

"I think that should be fine? I heard from that Sirius person that some of the seniors in the high school division live off-campus, and they don't even need to submit an application for it."

"Sirius? You're close with Sirius?" Rudolf was a little surprised to hear her sister's name. But the thought that it was Sirius's words that led Festa to make such a concerning proposal made Rudolf's mood darken slightly for some reason.

Especially when she heard the news that Kitano "often lived with them," she felt an inexplicable sense of frustration. But just as Rudolf was about to object, the previously silent Mr. C.B. unexpectedly spoke up.

"That's different, Nakayama-san. While it's true that I and some seniors like Maruzensky live off-campus, not all high school division horse girls are eligible to do so."

"Rudolf and I, while we're students, don't really have classes anymore. But you've just enrolled in the middle school division. You have a full course load and daily training quotas. If you live at home, you'll get less sleep than the other students."

"C.B.-senpai is right." At this point, Kitano moved his wheelchair forward, agreeing with Mr. C.B.

Tracen Academy was divided into two levels: the middle school division and the high school division. In Kitano's understanding, it was like a combined high school and university. The middle school was a three-year system, and the high school was a four-year system, which was why so many horse girls from different eras coexisted at the academy.

That being said... Kitano did find it strange that Mr. C.B. and Rudolf hadn't graduated yet. And Maruzensky was another story entirely; when he first entered Tracen, Maruzensky was already his senior, and she was still here now.

Putting that aside, Kitano definitely wouldn't agree to Festa living with him. It was one thing for a group of Gold Family horse girls to stay over, but it was another thing entirely for just the two of them to live together after signing a contract. Kitano didn't want any messy rumors, especially when the horse girls at Tracen were extremely sensitive about such things...

With his understanding of Tracen, he knew that the horse girls from later eras had increasingly intense "heavy track" rivalries. If they found out a junior was living with her trainer right after enrolling, some might follow suit, causing the trainer suffering rate at Tracen to skyrocket. Then he, Kitano, would be a sinner in the eyes of all trainers.

More importantly, Kitano didn't want Festa to delay her classes and training. In fact, he was the person who least wanted her to slack off. His life was riding on her. He was terrified that some small matter would affect her debut race. If that happened, he was done for.

"Festa, let's just listen to everyone this time."

"What a pain." Kitano's persuasion was undoubtedly much more effective. After staring at him for a long while, a strange look of regret appeared on Festa's face, but she ultimately agreed.

After that, Festa also refused Rudolf's offer to have Air Groove show them around campus. She pushed Kitano and left the student council office without delay, as if there was some great beast in there she couldn't wait to escape from.

"What an interesting pair. Don't you think so, Rudolf?" Mr. C.B. quietly came to Rudolf's side. Although her words were about Kitano and Festa, her eyes were subtly fixed on the slightly dazed Rudolf.

At that moment, the already frustrated Rudolf was pricked by C.B.'s "compliment," hitting a sore spot.

"The horse girls of the Gold Family certainly have infinite potential. But for now, looking just at Stay Gold, how much of that potential can be unleashed... one can only say, the future is promising."

Rudolf forced herself to calm down. The comment that came out of her mouth sounded like a compliment at first, but everyone present could sense its deeper meaning.

It was like a teacher's comment on a poorly performing student's report card. Unable to criticize directly, they would just write "You are a smart child" or "There is a lot of room for improvement." It looked like praise, but it really meant there was nothing good to say.

And such words would never have come from the mouth of Rudolf, who prided herself on "creating an academy where all horse girls can be happy."

Air Groove and Narita Brian, unaware of the full story, just twitched their lips. Thinking of Stay Gold's performance in races and the rumors about the "abstract" nature of the Gold Family members, they couldn't help but feel the President's assessment was accurate.

But Mr. C.B. sensed another layer of meaning. She knew better than anyone how calm Rudolf was. The reason for Rudolf's uncharacteristic lapse in composure this time all pointed to the newly met Kitano and Nakayama Festa.

Looks like it wasn't my imagination. Trainer Kitano definitely has some connection to me and Rudolf... Mr. C.B. concluded in her heart. A voice within her seemed to be urging her to solve this mystery.

She had a vague feeling that the answer to this question might be very important to her.

...

"Kitano, you should avoid the student council office in the future. And if you do go, remember to call me to come with you, understand?"

The moment they left the student council, Nakayama Festa immediately said to a puzzled Kitano with a solemn expression, "I have a bad feeling about the way they look at you. Be careful, they might be trouble."

"Trouble for me?" Kitano was slightly taken aback, then a knowing smile appeared on his face. Turning his head slightly, he could only show his profile to Festa behind him and said softly:

"Don't worry, Rudolf and the others are assertive, but they're not unreasonable. You don't need to be so sensitive. Your own authority will be no less than theirs in the future."

As a veteran Uma Musume fan, Kitano was well aware of the stories behind the Gold Family prototypes. The real-life horses were famous for being small and having sensitive nerves, which manifested as short tempers and high aggression, but this was actually a sign of their anxiety. In the world of Uma Musume, with the exception of one alien who had Mejiro blood, the rest of the members were still the small, extremely sensitive type. So Kitano assumed Festa was just intimidated by the presence of Rudolf and C.B., and he tried to comfort her.

What? Why didn't he think C.B. and Rudolf would be trouble for him? How could that be possible?

First of all, in this new playthrough, it was impossible for them to remember him. Even if the fun-loving Three Goddesses did restore their memories, Kitano didn't believe Rudolf and C.B. would do anything to him.

Needless to say, Rudolf had long forgotten her "childhood friend." As for Mr. C.B.... Kitano didn't think he had done anything to wrong her. The only thing he worried about was whether time in that playthrough stopped or continued after he died...

But even if it was the latter, Kitano believed C.B. would definitely move on. After all, they had talked about this many times. C.B. was very open-minded; she would certainly come to terms with his death. He had faith in her.

"That's not what I meant..." Seeing that Kitano wasn't listening, Festa opened her mouth to say something, but lacking a solid reason, she silently kept her thoughts to herself.

"Forget it. I'll take you for a tour of Tracen Academy. We'll be living here for the next few years. I'll have to ask my family to bring over some of your things from your house."

"Okay, thank you for the trouble, Festa."

"You... I told you, we're so close, you don't need to say thanks."

But just as they were chatting, a particularly tall, white figure silently approached them from behind. The moment her shadow fell over Festa, she reacted instantly, a fierce light flashing in her eyes!

"Thwack!"

"Oww!!"

Without hesitation, an elbow strike landed, followed by an exaggerated cry of pain. Festa immediately spun around, pushing Kitano's wheelchair, to see the "dying" face of an ash-colored horse girl clutching her chest in agony.

"Save, save me, Kitano... Golshi's heart—"

"I hit you in the chest. You wouldn't be hurt unless you're padded. Those two mounds of flesh would definitely cushion the blow."

Nakayama Festa showed no sympathy for her younger sister, retorting coldly. It was Kitano who, upon seeing the ash-haired horse girl, showed a subtle smile but still greeted her kindly and inclusively:

"Gold Ship, long time no see."

And as if Kitano's voice had some magical power, Gold Ship, who had been on the verge of "death," was instantly revived. Her mournful face turned sunny as she giggled, bypassed Festa, and ran straight towards Kitano.

In an instant, Kitano felt a fragrant breeze as a body, soft at first then firm, burrowed into his arms. Under Festa's slightly trembling gaze, Gold Ship buried her head in Kitano's chest and cooed in a spoiled tone:

"Kitano-chaaan~ Heehee~"

"There, there~ Be a good Golshi."

Kitano was clearly used to this situation. Though his expression was complex, he fearlessly ruffled Gold Ship's hair just as he always did, and she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the moment, showing no signs of stopping.

No matter how many times I see this, it gives me a headache... At this moment, Nakayama Festa watched the scene, her eye twitching, as the most lawless horse girl in the Gold Family became as docile as a purring cat in front of this man. Even though this had happened many times, she still found it hard to accept reality.

Someone in this world can actually handle Gold Ship... Am I crazy, or is the world crazy?

In the sunlight, while Festa was doubting herself and reality, too distracted to notice, Kitano's hand stroking Gold Ship's hair moved a little wider, lifting her long, ash-colored hair slightly.

And beneath that snow-like hair, a small tuft of black, as if yet to change color, was hidden like a patch of dark earth under a blanket of white snow. In the sunlight, that black hair reflected a color faintly similar to Kitano's own dry hair...

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