Just as Special Week had said, in less than half an hour, El Condor Pasa's 'special training' quickly devolved into them playing with each other, with both T.M. Opera O and El Condor Pasa deliberately splashing mud onto each other.
They were somewhat reserved at first, but as time went on, they started practically slinging mud at each other! Did they think this was the beach or something?!
And unlike seawater, the mud on their bodies only gave the three Trainers a throbbing headache just by thinking about the cleanup later.
Among them, Imanami, as a former stablehand, felt the most pain from seeing the two play around.
He only felt slightly better when he remembered that these two were Uma Musume and not horses.
If this happened in their previous world, he would probably want to instantly quit his job the moment he saw two horses rolling in the mud.
"Hahahaha! You've got some moves, T.M. Opera O-san! Then it's time for me to get serious!"
Seemingly having completely forgotten about the training, El Condor Pasa no longer put up any pretenses anymore.
She pulled off her jacket, throwing it to the side before confidently declaring to T.M. Opera O:
"Let's wrestle! Don't let my appearance fool you; my wrestling skills are top notch, even among professional wrestlers!"
"This place is perfect for it! The smell of earth, the vibes! Come at me! I'm going to suplex you to the Three Goddesses, deeeesuuuuu!!!!"
"Heh! Whether it's racing or wrestling, I never lose!"
T.M. Opera O wiped off some of the mud on her face as a confident smirk appeared on her face.
She seemed to have also gotten caught up in the excitement as well, not even questioning why they were wrestling in the first place.
Then, as if to uphold her position as an Overlord who feared no challenge, she started to rush towards El Condor Pasa.
However, El Condor Pasa, who had never even expected T.M. Opera O to accept her challenge, froze for a moment.
Looking at T.M. Opera O, covered in mud, and clearly full of openings, she found herself at a loss for how to proceed.
It was then that Wada finally couldn't wait any longer.
Without a word, he quickly walked out of the bush he was in, with Grass Wonder also just as timely following suit.
With her Uma Musume physique, she quickly got ahead of Wada and gently spoke to El Condor Pasa, sparing both of them the awkwardness that would've happened if Wada and El Condor Pasa had talked.
"Oh, El-chan, why are you here? Didn't Trainer tell you not to wander around this area anymore?"
"Eh?! G- G- Grass?!"
The moment Grass Wonder's voice registered in El Condor Pasa's brain, her muscles instantly tightened and her tail stood straight up.
Then, incredibly carefully, she slowly turned her head and saw that Grass Wonder, alongside Trainer Wada, was walking towards her.
'How did Grass know I was here?'
El Condor Pasa thought this in her mind, but unfortunately, she had no time to ponder it.
Because when she saw Grass Wonder's 'kind' smile and closed eyes, she knew, she was fucked.
"El-chan, if I'm not mistaken, I've told you before not to get your clothes so messy, right? Clothes with mud can't be washed in the washing machine."
Grass Wonder's tone remained gentle, but the dark shadow over her face was enough to show her inner emotions as she spoke to the trembling El Condor Pasa:
"And, I've always been the one to wash our clothes, right El-chan~?"
"S- SORRY!"
Grass Wonder's scary demeanor almost made El Condor Pasa burst into tears on the spot.
Luckily, Grass Wonder had long expected this. Before El Condor Pasa could cry, she quickly sighed and spoke with a helpless tone,
"Alright, since you know you're wrong, El-chan, let's go back now. Remember to take a bath, okay? After that, I'll teach you how to wash your clothes, got it?"
"You can use my tail conditioner and shampoos this time, I'll tell you which one to use. I can also lend you my laundry detergent, but this time, you need to learn how to wash your own clothes properly, understood?"
"W- w- waaaaa~... Grass, you're so good to me!"
El Condor Pasa, who had originally braced herself for a lecture from Grass Wonder, was surprised by Grass Wonder's unusual gentleness today.
But soon, she was moved by Grass Wonder's tolerance, almost crying from joy on the spot.
Truly, Grass was her best friend!
"Okay, okay, let's go now, El-chan."
Grass Wonder, without a hint of disgust, grabbed El Condor Pasa's mud-covered hand, and started to bring her back to the dorm.
Then, she smiled and turned to Wada and T.M. Opera O,
"Trainer Wada, thank you for your help; it would have taken me quite a long time to find El-chan otherwise."
"I hope you don't mind her getting T.M. Opera O-chan all muddy. After all, everyone has bad days. She's not a bad child."
Leaving behind a remark that seemed ordinary, but actually had a hidden meaning for those who knew, Grass Wonder led El Condor Pasa away without looking back.
However, just then T.M. Opera O, covered in mud, suddenly looked in their direction and shouted to El Condor Pasa:
"El Condor Pasa, thanks for training me today! I hope we can train together again another time!"
"Also— I really want to compete against you! Let's decide on when to race!"
"This is a challenge from the Overlord, El Condor Pasa! Let's have a showdown!"
As T.M. Opera O's words fell, El Condor Pasa, who was being led away by Grass Wonder, shivered slightly.
However, after a few seconds of silence, she quickly turned around with great energy, to the point of even splashing some mud on Grass Wonder, saying:
"Alright! Then—I'll see you at the Aoba Sho in April, T.M. Opera O!"
"Even against an Overlord, El won't lose! El Condor Pasa is the strongest in the world, deeeesu!"
"El-chan~ talk about races later, let's go back first, okay?"
"Kay, Grass— W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w! S- s- so, so, so, s- sorry, Grass! I splashed mud on you! P- please forgive me..."
Despite getting mud on her, Grass Wonder did not look as angry as one might expect.
After all, T.M. Opera O's words had somewhat appeased Grass Wonder, who was angry on El Condor Pasa's behalf for having her spot in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe taken.
Seeing that El Condor Pasa had seemingly recovered to her usual, cheery self, Grass Wonder was more grateful to T.M. Opera O than anything else, choosing to let go of her anger for now.
Not far away, T.M. Opera O and Wada, standing together, watched El Condor Pasa and Grass Wonder leave.
The two exchanged glances, but neither said much.
"—Ryuji, I want to take a shower. Could I trouble you to accompany me? I wouldn't want anyone to see me like this."
"That might be difficult. Your dorm is quite far away so there'll be quite a lot of people, and whether Fuji Kiseki would even let you into the dorm is another question."
Wada looked at T.M. Opera O, covered in mud, and shook his head helplessly, smiling,
"Let's go to the team building. There are showers there, and I'll help you grab your training clothes."
After a brief discussion, the two quickly walked towards the team building.
As they were walking, T.M. Opera O suddenly curiously asked:
"Um... Ryuji, if I had really wrestled with El Condor Pasa just now, do you think I would have won?"
"I don't know if you would have won, but I definitely would have stepped in before that and taken your place if she was really insistent on wrestling."
Wada said directly,
"It's not your fault, T.M. Opera O, I also bear some responsibility. So, if El Condor Pasa really needed to vent her emotions then, it would be my responsibility to take that role."
"Hmph, that's not necessarily true. After all, I also wouldn't want you to be wrestled by El Condor Pasa like that."
As the two gradually walked away, the rest of the people watching finally emerged from their hiding spots.
Just then, Special Week patted her chest with lingering fear as she sighed.
"Phew, that was close… I thought T.M. Opera O was really going to get wrestled… El-chan's wrestling skills are really terrifying."
"Hmm? Special Week, have you wrestled with El Condor Pasa before?"
Tokai Teio asked curiously, but the only response she received was Special Week shivering.
Meanwhile, Orfevre, beside Ikezoe, curiously looked at the now somewhat solidified muddy ground.
She couldn't help but walk forward, extending a foot to test the softness of the soil.
"Ah, Orfevre, don't step in there, your shoes will get dirty."
Curren Chan immediately noticed what Orfevre was doing and kindly stepped forward to remind her.
Orfevre, hearing this, silently withdrew her foot and rubbed the mud off the sole of her shoe on the ground.
But at this moment, a very strange thought popped into Orfevre's mind.
'This ground... doesn't feel too unfamiliar to me?'
'Could it be… that I also have the potential to run the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe?'
This seed of thought planted itself into Orfevre's mind, though she quickly dismissed it.
Perhaps one day, this seed would take root in her heart and even sprout.
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Translating set up chapters like the last couple ones genuinely feels like hell, I feel like my soul is getting drained each sentence I type.
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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.