Yet another day of training ended with Teio's complaints, McQueen's gritted persistence, and Gold Ship's unusually quiet demeanor. That evening, Mejiro McQueen returned to her dorm exhausted, and after showering, she collapsed onto her bed with difficulty.
"Ah… I'm so tired… Why is Teio's body so flexible? It's simply unscientific. There are some moves that make me feel like my bones are about to dislocate when I try to do them... But Teio can do all of them with ease, and her balance has improved a lot from today's training. Yet, my flexibility hasn't improved much…"
"What should I do…"
Mejiro McQueen truly didn't know how to express this deep anxiety that had nestled in her heart. Ever since Tokai Teio joined, she, as Imanami's first Uma Musume, had undergone several more months of training than Tokai Teio. So why had Tokai Teio's improvement speed been so rapid since she joined the team?
Could it be that Teio was just that much more talented than her? Mejiro McQueen thought, slightly raising her head, but soon, she unwillingly cast that thought aside.
"—Dictus, in your opinion, whose talent is better, mine or Teio's?" McQueen had no choice but to turn to her roommate, Ikuno Dictus. This Uma Musume, with her strong analytical mindset, was her best "strategist," providing her with many valuable and objective opinions.
As McQueen's roommate, whenever McQueen sought Dictus's help, Dictus would always provide very correct advice. This time, after hearing McQueen's question, Dictus couldn't help but ask curiously: "Why are you suddenly asking me this, McQueen? You've never lacked confidence before."
"Tch, it's because I'm going against Tokai Teio. I mean, she is known for being the most talented one among our generation." McQueen also shook her head, flipping over from the bed to ask Dictus directly: "So, Dictus, from your point of view, who'll be stronger in the future, me or Tokai Teio?"
"…In terms of current strength, you are definitely stronger than Tokai Teio. After all, you've had more training time, ran in many races already and even placed pretty well in a GI race. But, as for a comparison of talents… I'm sorry, McQueen, even I don't know. After all, for me and most Uma Musume, geniuses like you are basically the same to us. Plus, talent isn't really something that's quantifiable in pure numbers."
Dictus also waved her hand rather helplessly. Though she was considered smart among her peers, her level of judgment still wasn't on the same level as professional Central Trainers. As an Uma Musume who has never gone through proper Trainer studies, her own perception of strength is thus limited by her own. And for now at least, her level wasn't high enough to judge who was more talented between Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio.
"But I think, McQueen, you shouldn't be too far behind Teio. Teio even considers you as her biggest rival. If you can't have confidence in yourself, have confidence in Tokai Teio's talent in choosing worthy opponents."
"B- but even so, I feel that Teio has been progressing way faster than me..."
However, even so, McQueen still felt uneasy. Her time with Tokai Teio had made her feel increasingly anxious. Teio's progress was rapid while she, herself, was gradually slowing down to a stop... She felt that this couldn't continue like this. Her next race will very likely be the Kikuka Sho against T.M. Opera O. This was her last chance at seizing one of the Classic Triple Crowns before challenging the Tenno Sho. If she couldn't break through this bottleneck and reach the next level, she would have a completely zero percent chance of defeating a rapidly evolving monster like T.M. Opera O.
She needed to get stronger as soon as possible... If only Teio weren't here, then her Trainer would absolutely have the ability to make her stronger faster... If only Teio weren't here...
Unconsciously, McQueen's thoughts seemed to momentarily fall into a darkness, but soon, McQueen managed to snap back in time, immediately casting such dark thoughts aside.
"What's wrong with me… Why am I thinking this way? Teio is my friend, and Trainer Imanami is an excellent choice for her. Why would I think this way…?"
"…Actually, McQueen, if you really think that you're falling behind, can't you just directly tell Trainer Imanami how you feel?"
Seeing McQueen looking so conflicted, Dictus found it a bit amusing and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Though I don't personally know him, from what you say of him, he's probably not someone who plays favorites. If you want to get stronger faster, shouldn't you just proactively ask him to help you?"
"It won't work, Dictus."
McQueen sighed slightly and shook her head upon hearing Dictus's suggestion. Of course she knew that Imanami cared about her, but it's precisely because he cared about her that he wouldn't allow her to overly push herself in the pursuit of strength. If she asked Imanami to give her a more rigorous training schedule, he would definitely refuse.
Back then, McQueen was still able to physically feel herself improving every day under his guidance. The results were gratifying, and McQueen felt herself rapidly getting stronger every day—then Tokai Teio joined. McQueen believed that Imanami had a much greater burden now and had to devote some of his energy to train Tokai Teio. After all, Teio's training methods and schedules were different from hers; thus, Teio's arrival was the most likely cause of her own training plan being put on hold.
—This idea was not very outlandish; after all, Imanami visibly became much more busy every day.
But in reality, if Imanami knew what McQueen was thinking, he would surely give a wry smile and tell her that she was overthinking it. He had not neglected McQueen's training for even a single day even after Teio joined. Though he was indeed very busy in recent times, it definitely did not cause him to delay McQueen's training. McQueen's feeling of "improving slower" had a rather simple explanation: it was simply because she had improved so much that her physical capabilities had reached their respective peaks.
At this point, increasing McQueen's training intensity would be meaningless; she really only needed to do the bare minimum of training to keep herself from regressing. Currently, one of the reasons Imanami was busy was because he was seeking ways to fix the minor flaws in McQueen. To put it simply, the rough jade has now been shaped, and Imanami was now in the process of adding the little details to it. Really, McQueen's feeling of rapid improvement before showcased Imanami's talent and abilities as a Trainer rather than her own talent.
But now, McQueen never told Imanami her worries, and so, he thought that she was doing fine and that he didn't need to interfere with her too much. Like a feedback loop, this lack of communication led to misunderstandings which were left unresolved due to the lack of communication which led to even more misunderstandings... And thus, their thoughts, their hearts, began to diverge.
"What's more, I can't act like Teio, acting like a spoiled child and clinging to him every day. There's no way I, as an Uma Musume of the Mejiro Family, can have such a close, almost zero-distance contact with my Trainer every day, what kind of decorum is that?"
McQueen said, her words seemingly full of disdain towards Teio's clingy nature, yet her expression didn't reflect that disdainful tone and instead showed a sense of unease.
"—In that case, why don't you ask Gold Ship for help?"
At this moment, seeing McQueen's contradictions in full display, Dictus immediately deducted what McQueen was going through right now. Fortunately, she managed to quickly suppress her uncontrollable smile in time as she suggested:
"McQueen, didn't you say your Trainer dotes on Gold Ship the most? Think for a moment, if your Trainer likes her so much, then she surely must have some shining quality that attracted him so much, no? So why don't you go ask Gold Ship? When it comes to how to get your Trainer's attention, Gold Ship should be the most experienced, right?"
"Gold Ship…"
However, at the mention of Gold Ship, McQueen also felt a little depressed. She didn't actually dislike Gold Ship, but whenever she was diligently training, Gold Ship was always slacking off at Imanami's side. She rarely trained at all, but strangely, Gold Ship's progress was not inferior to hers at all.
Could it be that the Trainer was secretly giving Gold Ship special training? McQueen couldn't help but wonder. After all, with Gold Ship's usual attitude towards training, McQueen simply couldn't believe that Gold Ship could still maintain the same level as them. (T/N: She's simply built different)
Thinking this, McQueen felt that Dictus's suggestion was becoming more and more reasonable. She clenched her fists and said with determination:
"Dictus, you're right. I should go ask Gold Ship on how to make Trainer focus solely on me. I'll be right back, Dictus, thank you."
With that, McQueen immediately changed into a set of clothes and ran towards Gold Ship's dorm. Dictus, watching McQueen's frantic demeanor, couldn't help but chuckle and murmur to herself:
"She's not even trying to hide it anymore... but she doesn't seem to even realize that she's falling in love. The dignified young lady of the Mejiro Family, doing so much just for her Trainer's attention… If I told Twin Turbo and the others, they'd laugh for a long time, wouldn't they?"
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Yeah, I'm sure Double Jet would laugh a lot.
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.