The tests were divided into morning and afternoon sessions. The morning consisted of basic checks and various physical fitness tests, while the afternoon was for course familiarization.
According to the exam rules, once the morning session ended, examinees were not allowed to leave the academy in the interim, and lunch would be provided by Tracen Academy.
This, too, was part of the school's educational considerations. In a sense, it could be considered a kind of hidden test.
Nearly all the examinees who had come to apply were standouts from their respective Tracen elementary schools, and their chances of entering the academy were high.
The academy cafeteria had indeed taken many aspects into account, including nutrition and flavor. Nutrition in particular could be considered the balance most suited to an Umamusume's needs.
But even that could not cover every single Umamusume's individual circumstances. And after debuting, they would race at venues all across Japan and even the world, so the ability to adapt when it came to food also counted as an important underlying requirement.
After the morning tests ended, Almond Eye and Lucky Lilac followed the flow of people toward the cafeteria.
Along the way, the two excitedly talked about their morning test experiences, bursting into cheerful laughter from time to time.
When they entered the cafeteria, they saw that it was spacious and bright, with tables and chairs arranged neatly. The smell of food filled the air.
"Wow, the cafeteria looks amazing!" Lucky Lilac exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
Almond Eye looked around as well and nodded in agreement. "Yeah. And I feel like the food here should be pretty good, since it's prepared for future Umamusume like us."
As they chatted, the two obediently lined up under the guidance of the senior Umamusume in charge and received their trays in order.
The trays held a rich variety of food: protein-packed grilled chicken breast, a nutritious vegetable salad, fragrant brown rice, and a refreshing fruit platter.
After finding an empty spot and sitting down, Almond Eye looked at the food on her tray with some hesitation. "I don't usually eat much salad. I wonder if I'll be able to get used to it."
"You don't like salad, Almond Eye?"
After asking curiously, Lucky Lilac took a bite of chicken breast and gave her a thumbs-up. "It tastes pretty good, Almond Eye."
"You can give it a try. Maybe you'll like it."
"And for this afternoon's course familiarization test, we need to get enough nutrition."
"It's not that I don't like it. I just haven't eaten it very often..."
After explaining, Almond Eye nodded, picked up her fork, and cautiously tried a bite of salad.
At first, her expression still showed some unfamiliarity, but little by little, she discovered that the salad did not taste as bad as she had imagined.
"Mm, it seems all right," she said to Lucky Lilac with a smile.
"Mm-hmm, I told you," Lucky Lilac said with a nod, starting on her salad as well. "The food here tastes really good... Mmph, this salad is so refreshing. It's even better than what we make at home!"
The two ate and chatted, and before they knew it, they had begun observing the examinees around them together.
Some examinees were eating with relish and praising the food nonstop. Others, like Almond Eye, were not used to certain foods, but were still doing their best to try them.
"Looks like everyone's trying to adapt," Lucky Lilac whispered to Almond Eye. "This should be part of the exam too. We can't fall behind."
Almond Eye agreed deeply and seriously finished all the food on her tray.
Some of it was not food she usually liked, but when she thought that this might be part of the exam requirements, and also a necessary step on the path to becoming an outstanding Umamusume, she felt full of motivation.
After finishing lunch, they did not immediately leave the cafeteria. Instead, they sat in their seats and rested for a while to digest their food, and they also started talking about the afternoon's course familiarization test.
"This afternoon, we have to get familiar with the racecourse. I wonder what it'll be like," Almond Eye said thoughtfully.
Lucky Lilac thought for a moment, then comforted her. "I'm not too sure either, but I feel like we don't need to worry too much."
"We did so well on the morning tests. The afternoon should be fine too."
"Let's do our best together!"
As she spoke, Lucky Lilac smiled and held out her palm. Almond Eye's spirits lifted, and she gave her a crisp high-five.
After resting, they felt that they could either go rest at the academy's designated area or walk around for a while, so the two stood up with their empty trays.
Just as they were about to leave, they suddenly heard a faint stir in the cafeteria. Immediately after, the commotion grew louder and louder.
The two instinctively looked around and found that everyone was looking toward the front of the cafeteria. They quickly looked over as well and saw that the large screen hanging on the wall was slowly displaying list after list of names.
"That's...?" Lucky Lilac murmured.
"The lists for the afternoon course tests, and also..."
As Almond Eye spoke, her gaze shifted. "The mock race lottery results..."
The two of them were still together for the course tests. They had to run 800 meters, 1600 meters, and 2400 meters on both dirt and turf.
But they were not together for the mock race. Lucky Lilac had been assigned to a 2000-meter dirt race, while Almond Eye was in a 1400-meter turf race.
Lucky Lilac immediately looked troubled. "Huh? Why dirt? I'm... really not good at dirt." Her brows drew tightly together, her face full of worry.
Almond Eye, meanwhile, said nothing and stared at the entry list for her own race.
She had spotted some familiar names.
"Lily Noble, Sayakachan... Cantabile..." she murmured despite herself.
She did not know these Umamusume personally. However, while preparing for the mock race over the past few days, Yasui and Kitasan had mentioned them to her.
These were opponents that her trainer and senior considered worth paying attention to.
I'm running into them this soon? Good... Almond Eye felt herself shiver.
It was the kind of shiver that came from facing strong opponents, excitement and tension intertwined from the bottom of her heart.
But she quickly took a deep breath, tried hard to calm herself down, and looked at Lucky Lilac with a smile.
"Don't worry too much."
"It's a dirt race, but we still have time to prepare."
"And you can use this time to recall the techniques from your dirt training in your head. They might come in handy when the time comes."
"Besides, everyone's group was decided by lottery on the spot. The other examinees assigned to the dirt race might not all be good at running on dirt either."
Lucky Lilac had originally been biting her lip in worry, but when she heard Almond Eye's words, her eyes lit up.
"You're right. It's not like I'm the only one who isn't good at dirt."
"And if I really think about it... it's not like I've never run on dirt before. Whether at home or at Grandpa Imanami's, I've practiced on it."
"Thank you, Almond Eye. I feel like there won't be any problem now."
She nodded hard and looked at Almond Eye gratefully, then her gaze shifted.
"What about you? How do the opponents in your turf race look?"
"For me..." Feeling that shiver again, Almond Eye looked at the names on the screen.
Before she could speak, Lucky Lilac let out a low cry of surprise beside her.
"Lily Noble? She... I remember Orfevre-senpai and the others saying that she... seemed pretty strong..." After choosing her words, she settled on a moderate description, then looked at Almond Eye and bit her lip.
"But if it's you, Almond Eye, then probably..."
"Orfevre-senpai... You mean Orfevre-senpai?"
Before Lucky Lilac could finish, Almond Eye stared at the screen and broke into a grin. "If a senior like that praised her so much, then I'll just have to give it everything I've got."
---
T/N: meh its fine using senior and junior since technically it is called senior division and junior division
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