Kuroha walked the streets of Tokyo with Godolphin Barb drifting along at his side.
It felt strangely surreal.
A progenitor Umamusume who existed only in myth and legend was right here with him, yet the people around them passed by without a second glance.
Godolphin was like a little bird finally let out of a cage, curious about everything.
But her curiosity came out in weird ways.
When she saw pedestrians talking on their phones, she did not react much.
When she saw a vending machine spit out a drink, though, she stared like it was sorcery.
"Hane-kun, that glowing metal box… how does it get the water inside?" she asked, floating in midair, green eyes fixed on the machine's lit display.
"That's a vending machine, Godolphin."
Noticing that what caught her attention was mostly tech that had exploded forward in the last few years, Kuroha understood immediately and explained patiently.
"If you want one, I can buy you a bottle."
"But before that, if you want to stay here long-term, you need to go register for a new residence certificate."
"Got it, Hane-kun." The blue-haired goddess nodded obediently, looking unusually well-behaved.
Then, watching the world around her, so different from what she remembered, Godolphin murmured softly, "Technology… it really is amazing."
She reached out a pale finger, trying to touch the roadside railing, but right before contact, her palm gave off a faint glow.
"Mmm."
Her hand met the railing.
But Kuroha saw it clearly. At the instant of contact, fine, cool, luminous Blessing Power welled up at her fingertips.
"No wonder she keeps flying…"
Kuroha thought it over.
After he had poured two portions of power into her, she had said she could maintain her existence for two months.
But that was probably under the condition of touching nothing at all.
If she interacted with physical objects, it would consume the Blessing sustaining her form.
That also explained why she wanted to stay close to him so badly.
Only near him could Godolphin truly touch the world, continuously.
Instead of being forced, like before, to cling to a single fixed vessel.
"Godolphin, when was the last time you came down here?"
Kuroha asked casually.
"Hm? Last time?" Godolphin tilted her head and thought for a long while, her blue ponytail swaying behind her. In the end, she answered uncertainly.
"Umm… it was probably when that kid Symboli Rudolf just achieved an undefeated Triple Crown."
"At the time, Darley and Byerley came too. We played around in this world for a few months."
"Back then, Tokyo didn't have so many big glowing screens."
"Rudolf…" Kuroha's thoughts stirred.
That explained it. Godolphin knew about things like phones, but she was clueless about the most recent tech.
After looping around Tokyo and giving Godolphin a rough feel for this new era, they headed for Chasing Light's villa.
…
It was breakfast time.
The Chasing Light girls who had morning classes had already returned to the villa.
Kuroha pushed the front door open, and warmth rolled over him, carrying the scent of food and the lingering heat of girls who lived together.
The living room was lively as always.
Obey Your Master was sunk into the soft couch with a book.
Not far away, Inari sat cross-legged in front of the TV, locked in a fierce fighting game match with Mr. C.B. beside her.
Ever since Mr. C.B. and Inari had formed their little "skip-class duo," the free-spirited legendary racer had basically become a regular here. She showed up more often than she went to the student council.
In the corner, McQueen, Teio, Chiyono, and a few others were gathered around a small round table, with two newcomer Umamusume sitting across from them.
They were whispering and muttering, like they were plotting something.
"I'm back," Kuroha said lightly as he changed into house slippers.
"Trainer, the onigiri are super loaded today."
"Did you bring anything tasty?"
"March and the others are in the kitchen. They're waiting for you."
The moment their trainer returned, a chorus of chirpy greetings filled the room.
Kuroha smiled and was about to head inside.
Behind him, Godolphin Barb had been following step for step in "invisible" mode.
Now she looked like a kid walking into an amusement park.
Her emerald eyes glittered as she curiously examined this modern, lived-in "Umamusume home."
She floated past the entryway, feet hovering a few inches off the floor, and drifted several meters toward the older girls in the living room.
"?"
Oguri Cap, in that direction, suddenly lifted her head and looked straight at her with a puzzled stare.
Who was she?
The fluffy-minded ash-gray girl had not fully processed it yet. The ones who had processed it were the ones who could see the figure hovering in midair.
Right in front of Oguri, McQueen, who should have been able to see her too, was completely absorbed in her pre-meal dessert.
Aside from turning back to greet Kuroha happily before he came in, she had not turned around once, so she naturally missed Godolphin entirely.
After quietly greeting Oguri, Godolphin chuckled and floated toward Inari.
She circled the couch where Inari sat twice.
"Huh?"
Inari was shoving an orange slice into her mouth when her movement abruptly froze.
She wrinkled her nose and sniffed, then looked around.
"What's wrong, Inari? I was only gone for an afternoon. Are you starving already?" Mr. C.B. teased, an orange slice dangling from her own mouth, words muffled.
"Mmm… it just feels like something's off…"
Inari scratched her head. That unexplainable, hard-to-pin-down wrongness made her heart pound.
Buzz.
All at once, inspiration struck.
A faint, dark red crackle of electricity rose in her eyes.
Unlike Super Creek, Inari's development of Domain ran deeper.
Even though her peak had passed and decline was unavoidable, her old foundation had still pushed her into the tenth step of Domain.
And then she saw it.
Right beside the couch, that blue-haired figure watching her with gentle eyes.
"Hello."
"Wahh!"
The petite Edo girl launched into the air like she had seen a ghost, instantly diving into Kuroha's subspace.
"T-Trainer! She, she, she… who is that?!"
"Haha, scared you?" Kuroha laughed, looking at the rare expression on Inari's face, and rubbed her head.
Seeing that her trainer looked like he already knew, Inari's frantic heartbeat gradually eased.
After she calmed down, she dropped out of Kuroha's arms and landed, eyes narrowing as she studied the blue-haired girl by the couch.
But that shout had already shattered the room's calm.
Mr. C.B. was still sitting there with an orange slice in her mouth. She blinked, sensed something wrong, and immediately retreated a few steps.
Obey Your Master closed her book too, brow creasing as she scanned the room.
Inari pointed at her own eyes.
Obey Your Master followed her gaze. Seeing the electric shimmer in Inari's pupils, she frowned, and in the next instant, a dim starlike glow rose in her own eyes.
Then she looked at the girl who had suddenly appeared near the couch, and she fell silent as well.
Clack.
At that moment, the kitchen's sliding door opened.
"Trainer, you're back at the perfect time. The last soup is almost…"
Ardan's sentence cut off halfway.
Her gentle smile froze.
March, right behind her, stopped in the doorway too.
Those two, Oguri, and McQueen, who had been facing away from the entry the whole time.
Because the Three Goddesses' Blessing had not faded and their peak had not ended, they were currently the ones in Chasing Light with the deepest control over Domain.
In their sight.
On the couch.
A mysterious Umamusume with blue hair, wearing a blue-and-white tracksuit, was smiling and waving at them.
The aura coming off her was vast and ancient.
It even carried a pressure rooted deep in the bloodline, a kind of divinity that was neither fully god nor fully mortal.
"Huh? Why are you all staring like you got petrified?"
Maruzensky, the last one out, looked at the stunned juniors by the kitchen door and blinked in confusion.
"Alright, Godolphin. Since we're home, there's no need to play hide-and-seek anymore," Kuroha said softly, looking toward the figure beside the couch.
"Okay."
Godolphin chuckled. With another infusion of Kuroha's Blessing Power, her half-transparent form instantly shifted from hazy to solid.
In the next moment, the blue-haired, green-eyed girl appeared openly on the couch, hands folded neatly on her knees, looking gently at the Umamusume around her.
"Nice to meet you, children who are running so hard in this era."
Godolphin dipped her head slightly. Her voice rang like wind chimes, not in the air, but deep in everyone's soul.
"My name is Godolphin Barb."
"And in your terms… I suppose I'm one of the Three Goddesses."
"I know it's sudden for a first meeting, but for a while, I'll probably be imposing on Hane-kun and all of you."
"…"
"?"
"???"
One by one, question marks popped up over the Chasing Light girls' heads.
(End of Chapter)
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