Currently, Maruzensky and Ikezoe, who were inside the private room, had no idea that they had been completely surrounded by Team Miracle.
Apart from the newly joined Fumino Nase, the entire team was present, completely covering the walls and doors of the private room, leaving no space.
Countless Uma Musume ears and human ears were pressed against the room, awaiting any movement from inside while speaking softly from outside.
"It's so tight, T.M. Opera O, could you move over there a bit?"
"McQueen, don't lean your back against me—ah wait, it's your front? Then why is it so flat? It feels the same as your back?"
"Meisho Doto, turn sideways, you're taking way too much space. What? What do you mean it'll be even more crowded if you turn sideways?"
Inside room 002, a group of Uma Musume pressed their ears against the walls, while at the doorway, Orfevre and Curren Chan occupied the space, pressing their ears against the doorframe.
"Orfevre, no matter what they discuss inside, don't get too agitated, okay? We can't cause trouble for Onii-chan."
"I know, I know—Curren Chan, lower your voice. I can't hear what they're saying inside anymore."
...
...
...
"...Huh? Why is there suddenly so much noise outside? Did a lot of guests arrive?"
At this moment, Ikezoe, who was inside the private room flipping through a textbook in his hand while taking notes, began to sense that something was off with the situation outside.
As an Uma Musume, Maruzensky's hearing was much better than Ikezoe's. At first, she was surprised that his two Uma Musume managed to find this place this fast, but as more and more people arrived, she increasingly needed to hold back her laughter as her smile grew wider.
They truly are a group of adorable children...
Are they really that nervous just because their friend went with some unknown Uma Musume? They truly are quite protective.
However, how did they follow? Especially the Trainers—are the speed and stamina of those children really that strong that they can carry them all the way here?
Maruzensky, who was unaware of the many new functions a mobile phone can have, couldn't quite wrap her head around how they did it.
After all, she was an Uma Musume from a bit of an earlier era. Although she did buy a smartphone to look younger, she typically just used her good'ol reliable pager instead...
"Alright, don't worry about what's happening outside. Kouhai-kun, right now, your beautiful teacher is right in front of you, yet you're still concerned about unrelated things. You're breaking my heart, you know~"
Maruzensky made a small provocative joke, then squinted her eyes and asked, "How is it? Are these textbooks helpful to you?"
"They're amazing, Teacher! I couldn't even find anything half as good as this anywhere I searched. How did you get your hands on them?"
As soon as this topic came up, Ikezoe immediately praised with great satisfaction.
Though the number of books Maruzensky brought were not many, each of them detailed the training techniques of foreign Trainers, as well as many suggestions for handling relationships between Trainers and Uma Musume, most of which were very straight to the point and practical.
Although somewhat dry, for Ikezoe, practical information was the most important. He also took extensive notes on his own notebook on information he found useful.
"Heh heh, do you really think these books can be obtained through public channels? These books are on a whole different league from the standard textbooks the URA sells."
"Most of these are composed of real top-tier advice and techniques that would never appear in a regular textbook."
Speaking of this, Maruzensky proudly puffed out her chest and said, "These are all things that your teacher painstakingly observed from the best of Trainers to record, then re-organized and printed into books."
"Though I really want to print and release them en masse, those foreign Trainers I 'took inspiration' from would definitely raise hell with me. Thus, there is only a single copy of these books in the entire world."
"These are some of the most valuable pieces of knowledge in the Uma Musume field, whether for honing your current skills or for your future journey when you might leave Japan. They will be extremely helpful."
"With this knowledge, believe me, even if you go to a country with a highly competitive Uma Musume scene like the United States, you are guaranteed to be at least on par with a central-level Trainer there."
Maruzensky answered with a smile, but that answer didn't just go into Ikezoe's ear, but the ears of Curren Chan and Orfevre outside the door as well. Soon, the two Uma Musume quickly caught the most important sentence in Maruzensky's words.
"Leave... Japan?"
Orfevre was stunned, muttering to herself subconsciously. However, as quickly as her mind went blank, her heart suddenly panicked.
Ikezoe... is leaving Japan? Why? Is he going to another country? Why would he do that? Isn't staying in Japan good?
The same doubts were now swirling not only in Orfevre's mind but also in Curren Chan's. Upon learning the news that Ikezoe was leaving Japan, Curren Chan also subconsciously clenched her fists.
However, Curren Chan was able to think more clearly than Orfevre. She knew that Ikezoe was not the kind of person who would abandon them and leave for the sake of a so-called "better future."
There must be some kind of missing context somewhere; maybe he wasn't leaving Japan permanently, or perhaps it was for some other reason.
"But speaking of... Teacher huh, Maruzensky-senpai is actually Onii-chan's teacher? I didn't know that."
"Could it be that the reason Onii-chan is already so skilled at such a young age is because Maruzensky-senpai has been Onii-chan's teacher since before he joined Tracen Academy?"
Curren Chan speculated after a few moments of contemplation, but still listened intently to the situation inside the room.
"Teacher, I am only learning. I can't just run off alone to another country to become a Trainer there. I need to at least train Orfevre and Curren Chan into world-class Uma Musume. Otherwise, I won't even consider leaving Japan."
"My my~ you really are quite devoted Kouhai-kun. I really like young boys like you~."
Maruzensky said with a mature tone. Clearly, these words were deliberately spoken to incite the two girls outside the door.
With her having participated in hijinks like these before, she knew that the two people outside the door were most likely Curren Chan and Orfevre. She also knew that the reason why they chased them all the way here was because they were wary of her.
So, other than to directly open the door and tell them, the best approach to appease those two obsessive little goblins was through this method.
While making it seem like Ikezoe didn't know they were listening, make him tell everything that was happening here to put their minds at ease.
They have a really good Trainer, Maruzensky had to admit this. It's just a pity that the two of them are too controlling.
For paranoid young Uma Musume like them, Maruzensky felt that it was necessary to teach them to be more trusting of their Trainers.
Of course, she didn't get anything out of this; she merely wanted to help her adorable student with his relationships.
Although Maruzensky admired Ikezoe's silent dedication, she also believed that those who do good behind the scenes should receive their due diligence and be recognized as well.
"Kouhai-kun, you care for your two Uma Musume a lot, even intending to teach them the knowledge you learned here. But have you ever considered if your two children don't perform as expected?"
"If, we were all mistaken, and it was you, not them, who reaches the level of an international-class Trainer?"
"Would you consider switching to a more talented Uma Musume?"
Maruzensky's words were undoubtedly a harmless trap, because first, she couldn't be mistaken. Both Orfevre and Curren Chan absolutely had that potential.
Although Curren Chan is a sprint Uma Musume, no one said that sprint Uma Musume couldn't reach the international level. There are many popular and highly acclaimed short-distance races out there after all.
As for Orfevre, there's even less to say. Whether it's Maruzensky or Symboli Rudolf, they all acknowledged her potential.
Perhaps one person might be mistaken, but an entire group of highly-skilled and experienced people being mistaken? That situation is almost impossible to happen.
If it did happen, then it could only be said that the Uma Musume had a god-like talent for deception and acting.
Maruzensky's words were meant for the two children outside. She wanted them to know just how good of a Trainer they had, and that, no matter how high he flew, he would never abandon his in-charge Uma Musume.
And when Maruzensky said this, Ikezoe, unusually, let out a somewhat mocking tone, but soon, he looked up and said with great confidence:
"There can be no better Uma Musume than them, Teacher. On this point, I have full confidence in Curren Chan and Orfevre."
"If the two of them, even with the skills you taught me, still can't make it onto the international stage, then 99.999% of central Uma Musume in this world would also fail too."
Saying this, Ikezoe seemed to feel it wasn't enough and specifically added:
"—Let's put it this way: I'd rather believe that even after your guidance, Teacher, I would be the one not qualified to enter the international stage; than believe that Orfevre, even if she hadn't been taught by me, wouldn't step onto the international stage."
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Maruzensky the master baiter.
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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.