Rice Shower overtook Shirayuki, her speed steadily increasing as she pulled farther and farther ahead. After crossing the finish line, she finally slowed to a stop.
Clutching her chest, she opened her mouth and breathed heavily.
Just now, she had run at her mock race speed.
…Was that a bit too much?
She glanced back.
A full five seconds passed before Shirayuki caught up.
After taking one more look at her, Rice Shower quickly made her way back to Fujiwara Chiya.
"Onii-sama… how was Rice Shower's result?"
Checking the stopwatch in his hand, Fujiwara Chiya nodded.
"Very good. If you keep improving like this, you'll definitely win a graded race. No, not just that, even the Triple Crown wouldn't be out of reach."
"Really…? Onii-sama truly thinks so?"
"Of course. I could tell from the beginning. You've got a heart that won't lose to anyone."
"Thank you… Rice Shower will keep working hard. Please continue guiding me…"
She lowered her head slightly as she spoke.
"Of course. Leave it to me."
On the other side, Shirayuki also returned to Chiya's side.
Although she had been interrupted midway, this body's potential was clearly excellent. From Chiya's perspective, he could see that every step Shirayuki took, every lift and landing of her legs, was clean and precise. Her movements were smooth, full of strength. She was a rare talent.
In that case, training himself through her might actually work.
He could observe from his own perspective, analyze her form, identify what needed improvement, then switch to Shirayuki's perspective and directly feel the difference.
This was practically the perfect training model.
In just one hour, he might gain more experience than other trainers would in an entire day. At this rate, becoming a seasoned trainer felt within reach.
With speed and strength testing done, the next step was flexibility.
Shirayuki sat down on the ground and began stretching forward.
Doing it alone was a bit difficult. Glancing at Rice Shower nearby, Chiya spoke.
"Rice Shower, go help Shirayuki stretch. After that, we'll move on to hill training."
"H-help Shirayuki…? Y-yes, I understand."
Her eyes flickered slightly before she walked over with small, careful steps.
Meanwhile, Fujiwara Chiya called over Gold Ship and Meisho Doto, who had already finished warming up, and moved them on to the next phase of training.
"Shirayuki…"
From Shirayuki's perspective, Rice Shower's soft hands pressed gently against her back.
"Hmm?"
"How long have you known Onii-sama?"
"One day."
"O-one day? Not… a year?"
"No, just one day. Actually, not even a full day. I only met him this morning."
"…I see."
Rice Shower seemed hesitant.
"But… if it's only been a day… why does it feel like you're so close to Onii-sama?"
"How can you tell?"
"Because… every time Onii-sama speaks, you're already moving before he finishes. So I thought… the two of you must be very close."
…What sharp observation.
Shirayuki couldn't help but admire her. She hadn't expected something so subtle to be noticed.
"If we're talking about closeness… then yes, I suppose we are. After all, we're family."
Of course, that was something Shirayuki made up on the spot. Whether they actually shared blood was questionable. No one even knew if this body had appeared out of nowhere or split off from Chiya himself. The only thing certain was that their consciousness was connected.
"Then… what do you think of Onii-sama?"
Rice Shower asked as if it were casual, but there was something behind her tone.
Hearing that question, Shirayuki immediately perked up.
"I think he's an amazing person. Even though my cousin can seem a bit carefree sometimes, he's actually very thoughtful. He empathizes easily and can't help but step in when someone is in trouble. He's incredibly kind. If there were a standard for what a man should be, then without a doubt, that standard would be my cousin."
Saying all that through someone else's mouth felt incredibly satisfying for Chiya.
"I-I see… Rice Shower thinks so too. Onii-sama is very kind… very considerate… and he was willing to help someone like me, who had been abandoned… he's a wonderful person…"
For some reason, Rice Shower's smile looked a little forced.
…Did I overdo it?
"Of course… he has his flaws too. For example, he eats slowly, he likes to sleep in, and sometimes at night he gets too lazy to even change out of his clothes before going to bed, so he ends up going to work looking all messy the next day."
But instead of improving her expression, that only made things worse.
…Wait, did I go too far in the other direction?
This is way harder than I thought.
"Um… Shirayuki… I need to get back to training. Onii-sama told me to do hill training, so… I'll be going now!"
Without waiting for a reply, Rice Shower quickly ran off.
Watching her retreating figure, Shirayuki pressed a hand to her forehead.
…Did I mess that up?
…
"Trainer Chiya, how did it go?"
In the afternoon, after training ended, Tazuna approached him.
"Miss Tazuna." Seeing her calm expression, Chiya instantly felt his fatigue fade. "It went well. Everyone trained seriously."
Perhaps his incentives had worked. With the promise of a cart of carrots, Gold Ship and Meisho Doto had actually put in some effort. As for Rice Shower, she had been quieter than usual, but trained harder than anyone.
"That's good to hear. What about Shirayuki?"
Tazuna specifically brought her up.
"As for her… even though it's her first time running, I think she has great potential. With proper training, she'll definitely become an excellent Uma Musume."
This wasn't Chiya praising himself. He genuinely believed it.
"I see." Tazuna smiled, resting a hand lightly against her cheek. "That's a relief."
"This morning, I mentioned to Shirayuki that I would introduce her to some senior students to help with training. Did she tell you about that?"
"She did."
"They'll be coming to the training grounds tomorrow at one in the afternoon. I'll leave it to you to guide them when they arrive."
"Leave it to me, Miss Tazuna."
Chiya tapped his chest confidently.
"And one more thing." Tazuna glanced toward the white-haired girl on the field. "Her class and dorm have already been arranged. You can pick up the necessary items later. She'll be able to start school normally tomorrow."
"…Huh?"
Her class… and her dorm?