"Ma-Maruzensky-senpai... ah, um... is this really the kind of place we're allowed to come to?"
Inside Sakuraba Ryo's shop in Kasamatsu, Sakura Chiyono O looked utterly flustered.
This was her first time ever coming to a place that looked this upscale...
This gorgeous decor...
Ugh, just looking at it makes me feel pressured...
Is this really somewhere students are supposed to come...?
While Chiyono O was practically dripping with nerves, Mejiro Ardan, beside her, looked thoroughly intrigued by the shop.
"To think someone opened a place like this inside an academy. The owner must be quite an interesting person."
She took a careful look around the interior. Everywhere she looked, it radiated the air of something built at great expense.
It was obvious at a glance that the owner had poured a great deal of money into it.
And not only that, the shop's reputation was apparently strong enough to have even the student council president of Central vouching for it.
That only made her more curious.
"Maruzensky-senpai, do you know the owner of this shop?"
"Mm, you could say I do, but we're not really that close. We've only met a few times."
Maruzensky tilted her head, one finger resting against her chin as she thought it over before answering.
"Eh? Then why did you bring us here...?"
Ardan was a little puzzled. She had assumed Maruzensky was close with the owner, and that was why she had come to support the business...
So they were not actually connected after all?
"Well, obviously because this is the place to come if we want to get your legs healed, right?"
"Eh?"
Ardan blinked.
After the Japanese Derby, both she and Chiyono O had injured their legs from overexerting themselves during the race.
They had both gone to the hospital, and the doctors had told them that if they wanted to make a full recovery, they would need to rest properly for a while. They would not be able to run in any upcoming races for the time being.
Coming to a foot-massage parlor to heal a leg injury...?
Maruzensky-senpai did not seem especially reliable...
"I know what you're thinking. But some things you really only understand once you've experienced them yourself, okay?"
Seeing the look on Ardan's face, Maruzensky more or less guessed what she was thinking and said so.
If she had not seen Symboli Rudolf lose her composure like that in the student council office... she would never have believed Sakuraba's techniques could really have that kind of effect.
Even so, Ardan was still not particularly convinced by Maruzensky's explanation.
"Then have you personally tried this shop's services, senpai?"
"Nope. This is my first time too."
"But I know what you're worried about, Mejiro-san~ Since I'm the one who brought you here, naturally I'll cover all the costs~ Even if this place doesn't help your leg recovery, you can just treat it as a free massage and enjoy yourselves~"
"A free massage? That does sound rather nice~"
Mejiro Ardan said that with a smile, then picked up some of the fruit in the shop and started eating.
After waiting around for a while, the three of them started entertaining themselves inside the shop.
Since Sakuraba spent so much time traveling back and forth between Hokkaido and Kasamatsu, the shop had quite a few facilities for customers to use while they waited.
So the three of them ended up having a pretty good time there, and by the time Sakuraba returned, Maruzensky and the others were already having a blast.
"Oh my, you're finally back~~"
Maruzensky was the first to notice him. She immediately sprang lightly up from the cushion she had been sitting on and waved with a smile.
"Sakuraba-san, sorry to bother you again!"
At the sound of her voice, Sakuraba turned, his gaze settling on Maruzensky. A polite smile, touched with a hint of apology, appeared on his face.
"Maruzensky-san, sorry about that. I just got back from Hokkaido. I kept you waiting."
His voice was not loud. It carried a trace of hoarseness from all the travel, but it was still clear and gentle.
While they were exchanging greetings, Sakura Chiyono O and Mejiro Ardan both quietly stopped what they were doing and turned their eyes toward the legendary shop owner.
Standing half a step behind Ardan, Chiyono O peeked out curiously from behind her, quickly sizing Sakuraba up.
So this is the shop owner the student council president vouched for—the one Maruzensky-senpai went out of her way to bring us to?
He looks... really young. And kind of tired, too.
Is he really that amazing?
As she thought that silently, her fingers unconsciously tightened on the hem of Ardan's clothing.
Mejiro Ardan, on the other hand, was more composed, though her gaze carried the same scrutiny and curiosity.
She stood there elegantly, violet eyes calmly observing Sakuraba.
From his slightly travel-worn clothes, to the unhurried ease with which he nodded to Maruzensky-senpai, to those eyes that seemed able to take in the entire situation at a glance...
She assessed him quickly in her mind.
Nothing about him seemed particularly remarkable on the surface, but if both Maruzensky-senpai and President Rudolf recognized him, there had to be a reason.
A polite little smile stayed on her lips, but inside, her curiosity only deepened.
Sakuraba seemed to notice the other two quiet gazes on him. He looked past Maruzensky, met Chiyono O's timid stare and Ardan's poised appraisal, then gave them both a slight nod and a businesslike smile meant to put people at ease.
"These two are today's clients, I take it? I'm Sakuraba Ryo. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Hello, Sakuraba-san."
Mejiro Ardan stepped forward, smoothly inclining herself in a perfectly proper greeting.
"I'm Mejiro Ardan, and this is Sakura Chiyono O. Thank you for seeing us today."
Her voice was clear and gentle, carrying the effortless elegance and upbringing of the Mejiro family. She was neither overly warm nor distant, but perfectly courteous and respectful.
"I-I'm Sakura Chiyono O... p-please take care of me!"
Seeing that, Chiyono O hurriedly shuffled out from behind Ardan and bowed as well, copying Ardan's example. But her movements were clumsy with nerves, and her voice came out as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
The moment she finished, she quickly retreated back to Ardan's side, her cheeks faintly pink.
Keeping his mild smile, Sakuraba nodded.
"Mejiro-san, Sakura-san, it's our first meeting. Thank you for your trust."
He paused briefly, his gaze passing over the two of them before settling back on Maruzensky.
"However, I should explain something first. My treatment method requires a fair amount of concentration and fine control, so I can only work on one client at a time. So among the three of you... who would be most convenient to go first?"
"Obviously me first~~"
Maruzensky cut in almost immediately, smiling as she lightly patted her own chest, her tone easy and matter-of-fact.
"Since I'm the one who brought them here, I should test the waters first, right? I need to see whether Sakuraba-san's skills really are as miraculous as the rumors say before I can feel comfortable handing my juniors over to you, don't I?"
As she said that, she even winked at Ardan and Chiyono O, carrying a playful little leave it to me reassurance.
Ardan looked at Maruzensky, then at Sakuraba, and a trace of understanding flickered through her violet eyes.
Having their senpai try it first really was the most prudent arrangement.
With that, she nodded and smiled.
"Then we'll leave it to Maruzensky-senpai to go first."
Chiyono O followed suit in a small voice.
"Please go first, Maruzensky-senpai..."
Sakuraba had no objection. Turning slightly, he made a gesture of invitation.
"Then, Maruzensky-san, please follow me to the treatment room inside. Mejiro-san, Sakura-san, I'm sorry to keep you waiting a little longer. Please feel free to use the shop's facilities while you rest."
"All right~~"
Maruzensky answered brightly and followed after Sakuraba, heading toward the treatment room in the back of the shop, her heels tapping against the floor in a crisp, rhythmic pattern.
But as Mejiro Ardan watched her retreating back, she could not help feeling that Maruzensky-senpai seemed rather less calm than expected as she followed behind Sakuraba...
More like... a little uneasy?
But uneasy?
Why would Maruzensky-senpai feel uneasy?
Could it be that there was something odd about Sakuraba's technique after all?
Her suspicions began to grow, and she decided she wanted to get to the bottom of it.
Turning to Sakura Chiyono O, who was still glancing around curiously, she lowered her voice to nearly a whisper.
"Chiyono O, could I trouble you to follow them and take a look? Quietly. Don't let them notice you."
"Eh?" Sakura Chiyono O blinked, her reddish-violet eyes fluttering with confusion. "Go-go look at what, Ardan-san?"
"Maruzensky-senpai seemed a little strange."
Ardan's gaze remained fixed on the direction of the curtain, her tone calm but leaving no room for argument.
"I want to know what exactly is happening in there. Just have a quick look—make sure senpai is safe... or find out what exactly is going on with Sakuraba-san's technique."
Even though peeking felt wrong, when she saw the seriousness on Ardan's face—and felt the same faint curiosity and worry rising inside herself—Chiyono O finally nodded.
"O-okay..."
She took a deep breath, made herself lighten her steps, and quietly crept over to the curtain like a nimble little cat before slipping through it.
...
More than ten minutes passed...
Then the curtain rustled.
Sakura Chiyono O came staggering out of the inner room with her face blazing red and spirals in her eyes.
"C-Chiyono O? What happened?!"
Mejiro Ardan hurried forward to catch her, the girl looking as though she had just come out of a steam bath.
"Ardan-san..."
"That was the gate to hell...!"
Before the steam practically rising from her head could finish her sentence, the curtain was drawn aside again.
Sakuraba stepped out from the treatment room.
"So... which one of you would like to go next?"
Looking at the two Umamusume in front of him, he asked the question plainly.
Seeing Sakura Chiyono O on the verge of fainting from what looked suspiciously like embarrassment, Mejiro Ardan's curiosity flared.
"Oh?"
"I'll go."
Mejiro Ardan looked at Sakuraba as she said it.
She was going to see for herself just what this shop owner was really up to.