Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 433 I... absolutely cannot fall too far behind!
The images and sounds swirling in his mind and ears caused Yasui Makoto to pause several times while typing, which was unusual for him.

Even when staring at the track simulation on the screen, he would only realize he was daydreaming after a few seconds.

"...What am I doing...?"

When he cut off the simulation diagram and replaced it with a half-organized WCT system mind map, he chuckled and muttered to himself:

"This won't do. I need to focus more, otherwise... I'll be letting down the role of a trainer..."

Meanwhile, alone, curled up on his bed in the dormitory, Beifang Xuanju hugged a pillow, held his phone (which was now off), and stared blankly at the ceiling.

She put a lot of thought into her date last night.

These thoughts had been accumulating little by little for a long time. She had long thought about where she would go and what she would do with Yasui Makoto if she had the chance.

Many of the carefully prepared plans were not needed. After that event, everything began to unfold according to the guidance of the two seniors.

But the date was quite successful, even more successful than I had anticipated last night.

She was extremely satisfied and could also sense the pleasure emanating from Yasui Makoto, which made her even more satisfied and delighted.

With barely concealed excitement, she pushed open the dormitory door and excitedly called out, "Guangzuan-chan, listen to me!"

Then she realized that in order to prepare for the Japanese derby, Mitsuzu Satomi had gone to the Tokyo stadium, and she had been alone in the dormitory for the past two days.

Without much thought, she decided to make a phone call to share the joy of the day.

When I pick up my phone, I realize that my friend might be practicing or resting, and it's not convenient to disturb them.

Thinking that she should call Crown-chan and the others, she flipped through her contacts to the line with Crown Satomi's name.

Just as she was about to dial, she inexplicably stopped and stared blankly at the ceiling.

She didn't know why she suddenly stopped, but in the end she couldn't resist the urge to share.

I looked down at my phone screen, tapped it, and my finger lingered on the name "Satomi Crown" for a few seconds.

She bit her lip and pressed the call button.

The moment the call connected, almost instinctively, an excited smile spread across her face, her ears twitched back and forth, and she said impatiently:

"Hey, hey? Good evening, Crown-chan, listen to me..."

As if time had turned back, just like when she returned to the dormitory, she paused, stunned, after saying only half of the sentence.

After hesitating for a moment, she asked doubtfully:
"...Eh? Crown-chan...are you training...?"

On the other end of the line, before Satomi Kouhachi could speak, all that could be heard was the panting that had started as soon as the call connected.

She knew her friend on the other end of the phone well, and being a fellow racehorse enthusiast herself, she immediately recognized that it was definitely the breathing rhythm after a run.

"Phew... I ran a little."

Once he had calmed down, Satomi Takako's voice, tinged with amusement, came through: "I just got here and was about to rest when I received your call."

"How was your date today, Xiao Bei?"

When it came to dating, Genkobu Kita didn't hide anything.

Not only that, in order to take Yasui Makoto on a good trip, she had been intentionally or unintentionally asking her friends for advice beforehand.

When she was preparing the plan last night, she made a special trip to confirm it, and when asked about it, she readily admitted her intentions.

Just as he had wanted to share the joy of this date, now, like the pause before the call, Kita Genko's thoughts were once again uncontrollably shifting.

"Just a short run... but isn't today a rest day?" she couldn't help but ask the question that had just crossed her mind. "Yeah," came the matter-of-fact voice from the other end of the phone, "so I didn't train much, just a regular 2000 meters... What's wrong?"

"Ah, nothing..."

Unconsciously shaking her head, Beifang Xuanju tried to return to the initial topic, but as she opened her mouth, she asked, as if possessed:
"Crown-chan, you...you must have run more than 2000 meters, right?"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, followed by the rustling sound of fabric rubbing together.

A moment later, Satomi Takako's voice rang out with a hint of surprise:
"Isn't that...certain? Where would you find a training session where you only run 2000 meters once? It must be a complete training session."

After saying that, the voice on the other end of the phone suddenly realized:
"Oh, don't worry, I specifically asked the trainer to check the intensity for me. This little bit of practice won't affect the subsequent special training."

"Tell me about your date, I'm really interested!"
"So, so, tell me! Maybe I'll go to Shibuya tomorrow too~"

The Northern Black Horse did not respond immediately.

During breaks in training sessions, she had seen her friends and other racehorse girls training.

At first, she was worried and nervous, feeling that she was resting while others were training, and wondered if she would fall behind.

Fortunately, Yasui Makoto often told her that all the training arrangements had been repeatedly confirmed and the intensity was at a just-right level. Any additional training on this basis would create an unnecessary risk of injury.

Moreover, many things are not distinguished as good or bad, right or wrong; they are simply different.

The same applies to training as to competitions.

Every racehorse girl is different, and every trainer has a different style; there's no need to copy everything you see.

Gradually, she came to understand these things and became more at ease with many things. She also continued to follow the plan and complete the tasks step by step.

But at this moment, she had a vague feeling that her friend on the other end of the phone... sounded like she was trying too hard to be cheerful.

So... is this just an illusion?
Thinking this, she hummed in agreement and then recounted the date much more briefly than she had planned. Finally, she hesitantly changed the subject:

"That's about it. If Crown-chan wants to go to Shibuya, you can borrow my dating notes, and then..."

"Crown-chan... are you feeling unwell? You seem a bit agitated?"

As Kita Genko was narrating, Satomi Kouhan would occasionally ask a question with a smile.

Upon hearing that last question, the breathing on the other end of the phone suddenly stopped.

A moment later, a slightly helpless voice came through the receiver:
"...So sometimes, I feel like Xiao Bei is a bit silly, but other times... you're too smart."

Beibu Xuanju pursed his lips and remained silent. After a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, a voice with a complex tone slowly came through:
"Actually... I should thank Xiao Bei, after all, you reminded me that I have been a bit impatient these past two days."

"However... there's probably not much we can do."

"It's ugly, isn't it? Shatian, and... Tokyo."

Northern Black Horse immediately confirmed his guess.

The Queen's Cup is held at Sha Tin Stadium, while the Emperor's autumn viewing is in Tokyo.

In these two matches, Satomi Crown's performance was by no means impressive.

But she didn't expect that her friend hadn't finished speaking:
"It's not just these two matches, but also your performance in the practice matches, Xiao Bei."

"I just thought, you run so beautifully, and you've become so strong without me even realizing it..."

"I... I absolutely can't fall too far behind!"

(End of this chapter)