I have asked Ramonu to invite your trainer to our year-end ball.
Please guide him all the way from Tracen to our mansion.
With Regards
- Mejiro Asama
"... Haaah… Haaah… Haaaah…"
"McQueen? Is there something wrong?"
In a certain dorm room in Tracen, an orange bob-cut umamusume looks at her roommate with concern. That's because her roommate has been staring blankly at the letter in her hands for a good 30 minutes.
Ikuno wasn't alien to the concept of the Mejiro Family sending letters to their members, as McQueen has received quite a few letters this year alone. This mostly has to do with her winning two of the Triple Crowns, but this one seems different. Ikuno has never seen so much horror in her roommate's face before. That's how she knew this letter was serious.
Why did Grandmother ask Big Sis Ramonu to invite him instead of me? He is my trainer, right? How did she know that Big Sis Ramonu knows the trainer anyway? I've never told her, and I don't think Trainer ever cared for the Mejiro Family as a whole.
The only way is for Big Sis Ramonu to tell Grandmother directly. But why would she? Why would Big Sis Ramonu consider her relationship with Trainer so important that she needs to report to Grandmother?
Could it be… she sees Trainer Igo Heita's potential as a trainer?
Ahh…
A dark memory reemerges from deep inside McQueen's brain. It was during the Fan Festival when she was trapped inside the haunted house.
No… Everything is playing out like that time!!!
Trainer will be taken from me for my failure at the Kikuka Sho!!!
That must be why Grandmother asked Big Sis Ramonu instead of me!!
Grandmother wants Big Sis Ramonu to start developing a relationship with Trainer!!
"McQueen… Should I call for help?"
"I HAVE TO STOP THEM!!!"
"EEEEKK!!!"
XxX-XxX
I'm really at the edge of how good a common trainer could be, huh?
The next day, the young man can be seen gorging himself on books inside the library. Tracen Library provides good learning materials for trainers, but like many jobs, practical experience triumphs over theoretical reading.
If I'm going to improve, then I would need to be someone else's assistant, just like I was with the old man.
But if I do that… Team Minaz would need to disband first, and I don't want that. It takes a lot of effort to invite them, and I don't want to do that again.
"Good morning, Trainer Igo Heita."
"Oh? Hello, Little Princess. Are you here to ask me on a date?"
"No. I'm simply here to return some books and borrow some new ones."
"Aaww~~ Who is the cute, smart princess?"
"Please stop pinching my cheeks."
The young man couldn't help himself. His hands had always had their own minds, and they decided that Daiichi Ruby's cheeks needed some pinching.
Daiichi just let the young man have his fill of her cheeks. This is not the first time her cheeks have been pinched, but it usually comes from her grandparents.
"If I may ask, what are you doing here, Trainer Igo Heita?"
"I'm trying to look for a training book that I might never have read before. Didn't find any, though…"
"You can read English, Trainer Igo Heita?"
"Yes. I'm not exactly your ordinary Japanese person, am I, Cutie?"
"I suppose you are not. So, what will you do now, Trainer Igo Heita?"
"Well… I'm stuck… Don't know where to go after this…
Say, Cutie Princess. What do you do after you read a book?"
"Depends if I like the book or not. If I like it, I'd look for a sequel or another series from the same author.
I might even look to see if the book has any film adaptation."
"Visual…"
"Yes?"
"Can I kiss your cheeks, Ruby? Please~~~~"
Daiichi didn't answer immediately–she didn't reject his request nor accept it. She could feel that something had changed about the young man, as if he had found the answer he had been looking for.
"What did you find from my answer?"
"Let me kiss your cheeks first."
"Fuuh… Fine… You may kiss my cheeks."
"Yaaay~~~"
*Smoooooooch* *Smoooooooch*
"Mmmh… So what do you find from my answer?"
"Just like you said. I have only been reading books, watching races on video, or listening to trainers' podcasts. That is still far too limited to replicate a training method completely."
That is still a lot more than what most trainers do…
"Just like how it is a completely different experience when seeing a movie at home and in the box office, watching an actual race or training in person would be much different than via books or videos. I need to feel the atmosphere, feel the pressure, and sense the vibes.
Only then can I replicate a training method up to eighty percent.
My answer is to go to Europe and America and fill the holes in my knowledge."
Ruby knew that Trainer Igo Heita was an amazing trainer, but she had not expected him to impress her to this degree. Most trainers would consider entering Tracen Academy as their final goal, and would only improve to keep their jobs here.
This young man is entirely different. He acts as if Tracen Academy is a mere stepping stone to his goal. It's like a newly graduated college student who enters a low-paying job just to fill his portfolio with needed experience for a higher-paying one.
"Thanks, Cutie Princess. See you later~~"
"Ah… See you…"