"Next! Give me the next menu!"
"W-wait, hold on… let me check. Okay, next is the stamina reinforcement menu, but—"
"Stop talking and start the timer, you fool! Let's go!"
"Hey! I said wait a second?!"
"Next set, please!"
"Next? That would be the distance runs, but—"
"I'm off!"
"They're certainly full of spirit today."
I stood at the edge of the Canopus training grounds, sketching out the upcoming menu for the Nemesis girls while keeping one eye on the field. In front of me, Air Groove and Mejiro Dober were tearing through their drills with a ferocity that bordered on desperation. They had always been hard workers, but since their talk with Flora, their sincerity had shifted into a higher gear. It seemed Flora's "tough love" had hit the mark perfectly.
"Rampage-san, I've finished the distance run."
"Alright. Next is the hill climb. Don't overdo it—keep a pace you can sustain all the way to the top. Just one rep for now. You don't need to do the insane sets Bourbon and I used to do."
"Understood," Suzuka said, already turning toward the incline.
I had no intention of letting go of Suzuka as my charge, nor did I plan on taking anyone else for the time being—not until I was officially granted permission to run a full team. I had no idea when the Chairman would sign off on that, but I was content to wait.
"Did Flora prove useful?" a voice asked from beside me.
"Beyond expectations," I replied to Hana. "The idiot actually does something right occasionally."
"Only for you, it seems. At Rigil, she's actually a very reliable leader who keeps the team together."
I gave Hana a skeptical look. Flora? Reliable? Whenever she was around me, she was a walking disaster of poor decisions and boundary-crossing. If she actually behaved like a normal professional at Rigil, then I supposed I owed her even more than I thought.
"I'm just glad Groove and Dober reached an understanding," I said.
"There's no need for them to rush," Hana agreed. "They just need to grow at their own pace. Though, in your case, that 'pace' was more of a vertical climb."
"My home environment was… complicated," I muttered.
"The Mejiro family?"
"That too, but mostly what came before."
"I see… I won't pry."
Hana headed back to her own team after we agreed that I'd settle my debt to Flora by buying her a drink at the izakaya later. I made a mental note to recommend the stuffed peppers; they were cheap and delicious. I finished the Nemesis menu and synced it to Sunday's tablet. She was off today, likely looking at cars—probably a GT-R. She'd test-driven a Lancer Evo recently but told me it "didn't have enough soul."
"How is Suzuka-san's form?" Minamisaka asked, joining me. He was busy enough with the upcoming Yasuda Kinen and the Japan Derby, yet he still made time to check in on my progress.
"Excellent. Her time with Maruzen-nee provided a lot of necessary stimulation."
"I saw her earlier," Minamisaka noted. "Her line along the inner rail has become incredibly tight. Usually, even the best runners keep a thirty-centimeter buffer for safety, but she's… what, five centimeters from the rail?"
That was the "Impreza Effect." During our trip to the mountain pass, I'd handled the hill climb while Maruzensky took the wheel for the downhill. Even I had to admit the gap in our driving experience was massive; Maruzensky's technique was supernatural. Suzuka, however, had been enamored with the hill climb. She'd learned the secret of cornering by watching the way the car shifted its weight to maintain grip—and she was already translating that to the turf.
"Her footwork has evolved," Minamisaka continued. "You used your stride and sheer power to 'dig' into the ground for extra grip, but her style is different. It's lithe. It's fluid. She's still green, but if you keep teaching her weight transfer, her growth will be exponential."
"That's the plan. She's got terrifying acceleration; there's no reason she shouldn't carry that into the turns. But we have to nail the fundamentals first."
Usually, runners have to decelerate in the corners to fight centrifugal force. Only monsters with my kind of build and power can ignore that rule. Suzuka, however, was researching a way to use her acceleration to "slice" through the turn. It would take years to master, but the potential was mouth-watering.
"There is… one problem, though," I said, rubbing my temples.
"Oh? What's that?"
"Nothing, never mind."
"U-um, Rampage-san…"
"Ah, you're asking about that again? Fine, fine. I'll take you."
"Yay!"
"I think I'm being too soft on her because she's my first student," I confessed to Minamisaka.
"Fufu, it's only natural. I went through the same thing. But you look happy, Rampage-san."
"I suppose I am. I guess this is just part of the responsibility of scouting someone."
The problem was that Suzuka had become a complete junkie for the mountain pass. She talked about the way the scenery blurred, the exhilaration of the speed, and the specific "feeling" of G-force in the corners. She had started begging me to take her back every weekend. I wasn't a street racer by trade, and the cost of gas and tires for the Impreza was starting to make me wince.
"My wallet is going to be the death of me…"
"Buying something expensive?" Minamisaka asked.
"Maruzen-nee shredded my tires on the last run. I'd just put new ones on, too…"
"Ah… my condolences."
I couldn't exactly bill a legend like Maruzensky for tires, so I just ate the cost. I was finally beginning to understand why Okino was always broke.
"Hill climb finished!" Suzuka chirped, jogging back.
"Good work."
"I feel like I could have attacked that last turn harder. I want to go again and practice my entry angle."
"No," I said firmly. "Attacking too hard at this stage will lead to an injury. Maintain your current line and focus on increasing your exit speed. Once you clear that, we'll tighten the line."
"Understood! I'm going!"
"Wait fifteen minutes! Sit down and rest!"
"Yes, ma'am…"
She sat, though she looked like a coiled spring. She really did love to run. As she settled in, Air Groove and Mejiro Dober approached us, looking hesitant.
"S-Suzuka? Rampage-san? Do you have a moment?"
"Sure," I said.
"I don't mind," Suzuka added.
"In that case, I'll head over and check on Ticket and the others," Minamisaka said, making a graceful exit. I made a mental note to learn that level of tact.
Groove and Dober stood there, shifting their weight, looking like they were struggling to find the words.
"The thing is…" Dober started, her voice barely a whisper. "We were… jealous of you."
"Of me?" Suzuka blinked.
"Yes!" Air Groove interjected, her voice loud and clear. "We admire Rampage-san more than anyone! We were envious that you were the one she chose to scout!"
Dober took a breath and followed up. "We spent so much time wondering 'Why wasn't it me?' that we stopped looking at our own runs. We directed our own failures at you. It was pathetic."
"We want to formally apologize for our behavior," Air Groove said, bowing deeply. "It was beneath us."
"Wait, I… I didn't even notice you were upset with me," Suzuka said, looking bewildered.
"I noticed," I said, placing a hand on Suzuka's shoulder with a small laugh. "Go ahead and answer them. You don't have to overthink it; just respond to their sincerity."
"Oh… okay. Um, I didn't really mind at all, but I'd really like to be friends with both of you. So… let's do our best together!"
"Yes! I'd like that!" Dober said, her face lighting up.
"I look forward to it… um… Suzuka-san."
"Just 'Suzuka' is fine, Dober-san."
"Then you can just call me Dober."
They shook hands, and I felt a wave of relief. No drama, no lingering resentment—just a clean slate. This was what youth was supposed to look like.
"Oh, that's right!" Suzuka chirped. "Since we're friends now… Rampage-san and I are going on an outing soon. Would you two like to come along?"
"What? An outing with Rampage-san?!" Dober's eyes turned into dinner plates. "Of course!"
"I'm in! I'm absolutely in!" Air Groove shouted.
"Wait," I cut in. "Suzuka, I don't think that's a good idea—"
"It'll be fine! I'm sure they'll love it as much as I do!"
"I have a bad feeling about this…" I muttered.
Two Days Later
"Urgh… blegh… the lateral G-force… is killing me…!"
"I… I feel like my butt is floating… off the seat…!"
"This feeling… this scenery… it's the best…!"
I had ended up taking all three of them to the mountain pass. Suzuka, in her infinite kindness, wanted to share her new favorite "scenery" with her friends. Groove and Dober, however, were not prepared for the reality of a "Blue Meteor" downhill run. By the end of the night, the two of them were draped over a guardrail, looking like they'd been through a centrifuge.
But the results were undeniable.
"Rampage-san," Minamisaka remarked a few days later. "Air Groove and Dober's cornering has improved significantly. Did you give them some secret advice?"
"They've definitely gotten sharper," Hana added. "What did you do?"
"Oh, you know…" I said, looking away. "A little of this… a little of that."
[Training Results]
Air Groove and Mejiro Dober's Stamina decreased by 40.
Speed increased by 5.
Power increased by 5.
Grit increased by 15.
Hint Level for [Curved Line Professor] increased by 2!
Hint Level for [Downhill Specialist] increased by 1!
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