—Everyday World, Shuchiin Academy—
After school, only Hori and Diego remained in the classroom.
To be precise, Hori was handling student council work delegated to her, while Diego sat in a chair waiting for her to finish so they could go home together.
Rustle rustle…
The accounting report flipped continuously in Hori's hands as the missing entries in the tables were steadily filled with her elegant handwriting.
"Hey, hey, Dio—what are you planning to do about club activities?" Hori seemed to remember something. She paused her work, lifted her head with interest, and looked at Diego.
"What meaning could that possibly have? Besides, Kyoko, you didn't join any club either." Diego thought for a moment, gestured vaguely with his hand, and gave a bored assessment. "Feels less fun than going home to play Stellaris. I wanna play online games! Give me back my PS5!"
Hori rose from her seat, walked behind Diego, and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Her chestnut hair fell past his head under the pull of gravity.
Sniff sniff… sniff sniff…
"Familiar scent…"
Diego reached up and gently grasped Hori's long hair. The image of that busy figure surfaced in his mind, and his expression grew slightly dazed.
[When I grow up, I'm gonna comb Mama's hair and make it look really pretty!]
…What am I even thinking? I can't cling too much to someone who's already gone, or she won't rest easy in heaven.
"…Anyway, joining a club gives you credits. If you don't have enough, you might get held back. Wait—Dio, are you even listening?"
"I've been listening the whole time. Clubs are just something you slap together. But seriously—do you really not need my help with these documents and files?" Diego snapped back to reality, tilted his head up to meet Hori's profile, and pointed at the papers on the desk.
"If it were you doing it, Dio…" In Hori's mind flashed an image of Diego cackling while scribbling nonsense with his eyes closed. She shook her head vigorously to dispel the thought and deadpanned:
"You'd definitely just fill in random garbage. So no thanks. Anyway, isn't the sports field doing club recruitment right now? Go take a look. I'll head home as soon as I finish this."
"Yeah, yeah. Why are those student council bastards dumping their work on you? If it's so important, why don't they do it themselves? If the data gets messed up, that's on them!" Diego's tone carried heavy dissatisfaction and irritation, but he was quickly pushed out the door by Hori.
"Okay, okay. I volunteered for it after all. The student council members are appointed by the president. Sengoku-kun is someone the current president has high hopes for. Most likely he'll take over as president after the handover and is building his own faction right now…"
"Kono Dio is leaving—stop pushing me…"
...
"Since I promised to go find a club to mess around in, I'll join one! But… naturally it's better to visit the clubrooms directly."
Games are only fun when you follow the rules.
Diego arrived at the bulletin board in front of the sports field. It was plastered with club recruitment posters and a club distribution map.
Simple enough. Let this great one sample the current offerings.
Ball sports clubs—instant trash. This great one only needs to make a slight effort and he's already at the limit of those sports. All crossed out.
What even is this "Diving Club" that enthusiastically provides oolong tea and plain water? Crossed!
Light Music Club… does rock count as light music? Crossed!
Service Club—sounds so erotic~ No way. It's either this great one babysitting others or others babysitting this great one. No one qualifies. Crossed!
Board Game Club… seems kinda fun. Shortlisted… wait, that crazy woman Fujiwara Chika is in it too? From chocolate to trash. Dead cross!
Why does Diego hate Fujiwara Chika so much?
It all started with his abysmal reputation. The "molester" incident spread across the entire school in a single day, and Fujiwara Chika played no small part in that.
On top of that, the woman was raised very strictly. Every time she tried to look at anything romance-related, she was stopped. Lacking proper sex education, her views on love and partner standards are extremely bizarre.
(She has an intense yearning to be treated forcefully—basically a mild masochist.)
Being taken, being dominated, wanting to be possessed, wanting to be devoured.
In modern civilized society, no one displays that side in public—except this primitive from another world, Diego.
In short, due to various factors, Diego perfectly matched Fujiwara Chika's ideal type, which resulted in her harassing him every single day.
Every time he was woken up from sleep by this noisy woman, Diego could barely suppress the urge to strangle her. And whenever that thought was picked up by Fujiwara Chika…
She got even louder and more obnoxious…
A perfect vicious cycle.
Hiss—
Headache.
That innocent-looking crazy woman is terrifying. Board Game Club is absolutely off-limits!
His gaze continued downward and landed on a strangely worded club recruitment poster.
『Far East Magic Club』, club president is… Takanashi Rikka?! What the hell!
"Wahahaha! I hear the echoes of fate! My greatest bond—I knew you would come to the stronghold I established in this school!" Behind the bulletin board, Takanashi Rikka was hanging upside-down from a tree branch, unable to move, yet still stubbornly maintaining her aura. "As long as one lives, one's coolness must never drop! This is truly our fated encounter!"
"Are you cosplaying a failed Man up in the tree?"
"This is my secret base to evade the evil old geezer."
"Speak normally."
"Homework not submitted. Got reality-checked."
"…Hard to believe you used to be a cool, top-student honor student before you went full chuuni." Diego walked under the tree, yanked Takanashi Rikka down with one pull. "You really live life to the fullest."
"Ahem, ahem. So join us." Takanashi Rikka pulled an application form from her pocket and pointed at the vice-president slot. "Sign your name here."
"I refuse." Diego raised his right hand expressionlessly and chanted without hesitation. "Spirits of wind, please transport this person. Coordinates set… Spirits of light, bend the light around her…"
"As you wish." ×2
"Huh? My body turned transparent." Takanashi Rikka stared incredulously at her see-through hands. Panicking, she cried, "Wait wait wait, I still have something to say…"
Whoosh!
A powerful gust lifted Takanashi Rikka and sent her flying along the coordinates Diego had set.
"I, Takanashi Rikka, will definitely come back—!"
"Feels incredibly refreshing!" Diego dusted off nonexistent dirt from his hands. From the corner of his eye, he spotted a club that genuinely caught his interest. "Hm? Shuchiin actually has this kind of club? As expected of a school that used to be exclusively for nobility~ They really go all out when it comes to personal hobbies."
Horse Racing Club. Unconsciously, Diego reached out and gently stroked the three characters. An image of his mother on her deathbed involuntarily surfaced in his mind.
Just before she passed, she spoke these words to her beloved son…
[Don't be sad. This is all my fault. You haven't done anything wrong.]
[But, Diego…]
[In the Zenin family stables, no matter how disobedient the horse, the moment you approached, it would obediently listen to you and eat the feed from your hand…]
[When you're a little older, try riding one and see…]
[That is your innate talent…]
"…The racetrack is next to the archery range. Let's go take a look." Diego pulled his cap brim low, stopped time, summoned Silver Bullet in a blind spot, mounted it, and rode toward the racetrack.
Shuchiin's Horse Racing Club wasn't founded by students. It was a partnership with Tracen Academy—a training institution that gathered top-class racehorses from both domestic and international sources.
Every year, students interested in horse racing chose to become trainers and embarked on the path of the racetrack.
"…Given the proud nature of horses, if they refuse to let you ride them, even after joining you'll end up with no mount. Therefore, the entry conditions for the Horse Racing Club are extremely special—only those acknowledged by the horses themselves can join."
At the racetrack, clad in green, Hayakawa Tazuna was explaining the basics of the club to Diego. Diego held the reins and scanned the horses in the stalls.
"But someone like Dio-kun who brings his own horse to join is a first in all my years working here." Hayakawa Tazuna touched the powerful thigh muscles of Silver Bullet and smiled lightly. "Your beloved horse has truly impressive physical conditioning. That explosive muscle hidden beneath gives it tremendous speed and power. A true king of short distances."
"'Silver Bullet' truly lives up to the name."
Holy crap, what's with this woman? Just from a few glances and one simple touch, she already figured out Silver Bullet's specialty field—like she raised the horse herself.
?!
Diego extended one finger and pointed at a comical scene in the distance. A blue-haired woman wearing a bucket hat kept trying to mount a white horse. The white horse's clear resistance and struggle flung her to the ground over and over.
"Who's that?"
"That's the president of the Astronomy Club—Ryūju Momo, daughter of the boss of the wide-area delinquent group 'Dragon Ball Gang.' She has a serious passion for horse racing. The horse under her is named Gold Ship, a famous member of the Gold family. Momo has her eye on Gold Ship and comes every day to spend time trying to tame it."
Thud!
Another beautiful toss. The sound marked yet another failure for Ryūju Momo as she was flung off again.
Gold Ship pranced proudly left and right across the track, exuding an overwhelming sense of cheekiness.
"Damn it, you jerk! Horses should act like horses—let me ride you obediently already!" Ryūju Momo was covered head to toe in mud, her eyes and expression terrifying.
Gold Ship noticed the two in the distance. It bypassed Ryūju Momo and bounced over to Diego, curiously inspecting him up and down before affectionately rubbing its head against his arm.
Beside them, Silver Bullet's eyes widened in disbelief—how dare another horse try to steal affection right in front of it: Cheap streetwalker horse!
Displeased, Silver Bullet silently moved beside Gold Ship, tossed its head to shove Gold Ship aside, and took its place rubbing against Diego's hand.
Silver Bullet: You get it? Step aside—I'm taking over!
Gold Ship: The hell you doing? Come fight me! (╬•̀皿•́)!
Silver Bullet: You think I care about you? Bring it—fight me!
Gold Ship: Let's go!
The two horses squared off and began racing laps around the track.
Ryūju Momo watched everything with a displeased ꐦ≖ ≖ expression… Why ignore me completely but turn into a total simp for that blond kid?
Diego wasn't thinking that deeply. Watching Gold Ship run, he analyzed thoughtfully.
An alien freak horse—weighing a full five hundred kilograms, yet agile and enduring. Thick, powerful hooves. An outstanding come-from-behind horse.
Most importantly, its legs lacked the common ailments of dedicated racehorses—almost perfectly intact and extremely healthy.
Unbelievable…
"How did you do it? I've been trying to tame this guy for a while now, but he's never been this affectionate with me!" Ryūju Momo walked over, glaring with unwillingness, and struck up a conversation with Diego. Her eyes were full of confusion as she sized him up. "You don't even look that special. Does he like the way your cap has your initials embroidered on it?"
"No way—a grown man wearing a bow on his cap…"
Diego glanced at her once and ignored Ryūju Momo entirely. He walked to a nearby feed trough, mixed hay with water, and waited for the two horses to return.
"Hey, you jerk—what's with ignoring me?" The hot-tempered Ryūju Momo exploded instantly and glared furiously at Diego.
"This great one has no obligation to reply to you. Someone like you who can't even ride properly—go home, kid. Go home." Diego leaned against the railing and whistled to signal Silver Bullet to stop playing.
Receiving the command, Silver Bullet suddenly accelerated, leaving Gold Ship far behind and winning by four full horse lengths.
"Ship, dinner time!" Diego shouted toward Gold Ship.
Gold Ship, who had been dejected after losing, instantly perked up and bounced cheerfully over to the feed trough, devouring the soaked mixture with gusto.
"Ship hasn't eaten this happily in ages." Hayakawa Tazuna took out a handkerchief to dab the tears from the corners of her eyes, looking deeply moved. "That Gold Ship who tormented every trainer to death…"
"Of course he wouldn't eat dry feed. This guy clearly prefers it mixed with water." Diego stroked Gold Ship's head, displaying the sharp eye he had developed from working in the stables.
After eating his fill, Diego picked up a soft volleyball used for playing with the horses in the paddock.
"Ship, wanna play catch? Here!"
Gold Ship: ヾ(●´∇｀●)ﾉ Wow~
Its eyes sparkled as it played.
Sure enough—this guy doesn't want to run at all. Free-spirited, total goofball.
After playing for a while, Gold Ship voluntarily came to Diego's side and lowered its proud head—a gesture of submission, inviting Diego to mount.
When Diego rode Gold Ship over to Ryūju Momo and looked down at her with that lofty, untamed gaze—what exactly was going through her mind at that moment?
(I'm so pissed!!!)
Clap clap clap…
"Congratulations. You joined the Horse Racing Club in just one day. This is the first time Ship has ever acknowledged a rider." Hayakawa Tazuna clapped as she completed Diego's membership application.
"Thanks, Hayakawa-san!" Then Diego casually glanced at the mud caked on Ryūju Momo's clothes and tossed out a remark.
"Since you've been staring at this great one the whole time, I'll be generous just this once and give you a hint. Gold Ship doesn't hate you. If he did, he would've kicked you away long ago. The problem is you keep trying to make him run, which pisses him off."
"Obviously he treats throwing you off as a game. Your name's Momo Shirayuki, right? See ya."
"My name is Ryūju Momo! Call me that again and I'll kill you!"
It was time for running laps. Gold Ship didn't wait for their chat to finish and immediately carried Diego around the track several times.
Diego savored the wind whistling past his ears. The exhilarating feeling rose to a whole new level.
Ding-dong…
Hori Kyoko: Sorry~ There were too many files. It might take a while longer. Go ahead and play some more.
...I'm basically being ghosted, aren't I?