When the sobbing in her ear finally faded, Eternal Meteor pulled out the tissues she always carried and—without breaking the posture—handed them over while still holding Tokai Teio.
Only after the sound of Teio wiping her face stopped did Meteor loosen the hug and take two small steps back.
"S-sorry, Meteor… your clothes…"
"It's fine. Stuff like that doesn't matter."
Teio, eyes still red, glanced awkwardly at Meteor's shoulder. A big wet patch had soaked through—there was even a bit of drool mixed in.
Meteor didn't care. She pulled out another tissue, wiped it off casually, then tossed both that and Teio's used tissue into the trash.
"Come on. Let's go!"
At those words, Teio—head lowered, lost in thought—suddenly saw a hand extended in front of her.
A hand pale as white jade.
She snapped back to herself and looked up.
Warm sunlight poured over her face, making her squint. Eternal Meteor stood with the sun behind her, looking at Teio—her pure white hair almost glowing, her expression as bright as ever, like a clear sky that warmed anyone who saw her.
Teio couldn't help it.
She grabbed Meteor's hand—hard—like she was afraid Meteor would dissolve into light if she let go. Her fingers locked tight, leaving no gap at all.
With her other hand she wiped away the fresh tears—maybe just from the sunlight in her eyes—and then, like Meteor, she forced out a big smile.
The clouds in her heart had been chased away.
She let herself be pulled along by the strength in Meteor's arm.
Today really did look like a clear, sunny day.
—Cute Divider Line Appears—
Even when they reached the training room door, Teio still wouldn't let go of Meteor's hand.
So Meteor had to knock with her free hand—while yelling loudly into the room:
"Open up! I'm here to collect a debt! Open the door!"
"Stop, stop, stop—my reputation is already bad enough! Please don't make it worse!"
Trainer Nishizaki Ryu rushed to open the door. He flashed a friendly smile at the curious onlookers outside, then quickly yanked Meteor and Teio inside.
Meteor raised the hand she was holding Teio's with and called out to the whole room until everyone looked over.
"Alright, everyone, eyes on me! I've got an announcement!"
All attention focused on her.
"Trainer Nishizaki is treating us to high-end barbecue tonight!"
"WOOHOO?!"
"What?! Wasn't it just you he was treating?!"
Ignoring the cheers, Nishizaki leaned close to Meteor's ear and whispered urgently:
"If I'm treating everyone, I'm saying goodbye to the paycheck I just got—one I haven't even had time to warm up in my hands!"
"You never said it was only me," Meteor replied, blinking her big sparkling eyes and spreading her hands innocently.
"Don't play dumb! You're totally laughing!"
"I'm not~"
"You're STILL laughing!!!"
"Even if I am, so what? Bleh~!"
She stuck out her tongue at him.
Served him right for tricking her in the first place instead of honestly saying he wanted to collect her data. Meteor hated lies most of all.
X, in her head, spoke up dryly:
"I'm honestly impressed."
"Huh?"
"Your ability to lie without blushing, and your absolute peak double standards. Look—you literally made Nishizaki faint from anger."
Meteor was about to argue back—
Then she noticed Nishizaki's steps wobble.
Thud.
He collapsed onto the floor.
"Hey—Nishizaki! Are you okay?!"
Now Meteor panicked. If she scared him into an actual medical issue, that would be… really bad.
"He's fine," a voice cut in lazily. "He's just pretending to die to escape."
Next up on stage: Gold Ship.
She stood up from the nearby sofa, brutally exposing the truth, ignored Nishizaki's frantic eye-signals, and started rummaging through his pockets like a professional thief.
"Ah—found it…! Hey! Let go!"
"Gold Ship! You traitor!!! I'm never letting go!"
Gold Ship successfully pulled out his wallet. Nishizaki, still "playing dead," couldn't keep it up anymore—he grabbed the other end and began wrestling her for it.
But sadly—
He was just a human.
Compared to a horse girl's strength, he was hopeless.
All he could do was watch his wallet slide out of his hands… as if the money itself was being extracted from it… as visions of washing dishes for part-time work flashed before his eyes.
"No! Noooo! Think of the time we shared together! Gold Ship!!!"
"Gimme that."
No mercy. No sentiment.
Gold Ship yanked the wallet free—along with the last shred of hope in Nishizaki's soul.
His eyes went dead in real time.
"Nice. It's pretty heavy. Looks like we can eat well tonight."
Standing tall, Gold Ship bounced the wallet in her palm a couple of times, savoring the satisfying weight, smiling with deep contentment.
"Good job, Nishizaki Ryu. You dared to lie to me!"
Nearby, Eternal Meteor pulled her hand free from Teio—who was still staring, stunned—and started clapping for Gold Ship, while shooting Nishizaki a look of pure contempt as he twitched on the floor.
To Nishizaki, that applause sounded like a judge's gavel.
Sentence confirmed: wallet execution.
His eyes died for real.
But Meteor apparently didn't want him to depart this world so easily.
She crouched beside him and whispered—so only he could hear—like a devil offering a "kind" deal:
"For the race payment, I won't take your cash."
"Just treat me to another barbecue meal later."
"You demon!"
The first half made Nishizaki's mood soar into the heavens.
The second half smashed it straight back down.
And once his heart hit the floor and shattered, Meteor ground the pieces into dust with her heel.
"Alright, let's go!"
"OHHH!"
Gold Ship waved Nishizaki's wallet overhead like a victory flag, and the horse girls erupted into cheers as they all headed out together.
"Wait for me!"
Nishizaki scrambled up and sprinted after them—because if everyone was spending his money, and he didn't even get to eat, that would be too tragic to bear.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 175)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 126)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter134)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 87
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 79
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 64
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 73
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 45
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 49
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 45
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 45
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