For Wada's little group, the Aoba Sho was merely an appetizer before the Takarazuka Kinen.
Now, they no longer had any business in April, leaving only Orfevre's Satsuki Sho and McQueen's Tenno Sho (Spring), two highly anticipated GI races. (T/N: Do note there is a minor mistake in the timeline here since the Satsuki Sho should've been earlier than the Aoba Sho)
Leaving the Tokyo Racecourse and returning to Tracen Academy, along the way, Wada's mind replayed Meisho Doto's strange behaviour, as well as T.M. Opera O's later silence, feeling something was amiss.
Deciding that simply doing guesswork like this won't yield any results, Wada turned towards the currently still silent T.M. Opera O.
"...T.M. Opera O, what's wrong? You haven't said a word the whole way."
"—Ah... Ryuji."
Snapping out of her silence, Wada noted that T.M. Opera O did look a bit different from usual, with a subtle hint of melancholy apparent between her brows.
After a few more awkward moments of silence, T.M. Opera O finally opened her mouth.
"I was just thinking... if we keep winning like this, won't we hurt other Uma Musume?"
"How right is it for us to continue running for our dreams like this if we inadvertently cause immense harm to Uma Musume like El Condor Pasa?"
"They say 'Eclipse First, The Rest Nowhere'... but even if it is correct, is it truly right? Ryuji, do we really have the right to continue on like this?"
"...Right or wrong, T.M. Opera O, we'll face it together."
"As an Uma Musume, it's natural for you to want to pursue victory; the same goes for all your competitors."
"Everyone is racing to sit on the 'throne' at the top; such tragedies are just a natural consequence of choosing to enter the race."
"Still, I'm the one responsible for dealing with these things for you, T.M. Opera O. This is my job. All you need to do is just to continue running freely as always."
Saying this, Wada ruffled T.M. Opera O's hair, who seemed used to this intimate gesture, not reacting much and only showing an expression of enjoyment as a slight blush rose on her cheeks.
After that, T.M. Opera O turned her body and leaned into Wada's chest, greedily inhaling his scent— only then did she feel fully secure.
"...I'm worried Ryuji, I even started to feel that without you, I won't have the ability to run with my usual confidence anymore."
"Don't worry, even if our era might be short, I will make sure that it will be enough for us to make history."
With a reassuring tone, Wada continued to ruffle T.M. Opera O's hair.
"I am your Trainer. If you feel troubled about anything, you can rely on me anytime. As long as I can help, I will do everything in my power to help you."
"Of course, I won't be able to personally lift you onto the throne. So the next part of your journey will require you to run alone."
"I'm sorry... for being such a mediocre Trainer."
"Idiot... I don't need a genius Trainer."
This time, it was T.M. Opera O's turn to comfort Wada, as she gently clutched his shoulders.
"Your Overlord will run to the throne herself... but, an Overlord can't always sit on the throne day and night."
"Sometimes, she gets tired too and needs someone to lean on... So Ryuji, let me lean on you for a while more; I'm a bit tired."
"Heh, as you command, my Overlord~"
Watching T.M. Opera O fully snuggle up onto his body, Wada showed a gentle smile.
For how physically and mentally exhausted she must've been, a well deserved rest was the least he could do for her.
However, unbeknownst to Wada, T.M. Opera O still couldn't bring herself to tell him the real reason she was feeling so worried.
—T.M. Opera O was afraid that if she told Wada about the feeling in her legs, and it later turned out to be severe, he would then bar her from participating in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
'Not telling him... it should be fine, right? My legs don't feel anything strange and the numb feeling in my feet already disappeared.'
'I'll just get a quick checkup at the infirmary, and if that doesn't work, I'll secretly go ask Trainer Imanami to check my condition. Nothing should go wrong...'
Reassuring herself, T.M. Opera O couldn't hold on any longer, and drifted into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, as Wada watched T.M. Opera O slowly fall asleep, he failed to notice that the sleeping Meisho Doto, who was on the other side of him, had vaguely woken up again.
Like earlier, her eyes flickered a few times.
However, this time, they didn't return to Meisho Doto's original eye color.
Yet, she still closed her eyes and rested, as if waiting for something...
...
After the three returned to Tracen Academy, it was already nearing dusk.
Just then, Meisho Doto and Wada entered the now currently empty team building, with T.M. Opera O being nowhere in sight.
"Thanks for carrying T.M. Opera O back to her dorm, Doto. You're a real lifesaver, you know that?"
"It's no problem, Trainer. T.M. Opera O is very tired after all; it's what I should do."
'Doto is so considerate.'
Sore from having T.M. Opera O lay on him, Wada smiled and went into his room, not spotting how oddly gentle Meisho Doto sounded.
With his back to Doto, Wada stretched tiredly as he yawned.
"Well then, Doto. I'm a bit tired right now so I'm going to sleep as well."
"You should go back first, there's no need to train today. I'll go take a shower..."
Click.
But, just then, the ominous sound of the door locking made Wada feel a little uneasy.
Turning around, he found that Meisho Doto had not, in fact, left the room.
Instead, she was currently leaning against the door, her hand conspicuously turning the lock on the handle.
"...Meisho Doto?"
Belatedly realizing Meisho Doto had been acting strange the entire journey, he couldn't help but instinctively call out to her softly.
Clink.
However, it seemed as if Meisho Doto did not hear Wada's voice.
With a gentle movement of her hand, accompanied by the crisp sound of the chain lock, the two of them were completely locked inside.
"Trainer... it seems you have forgotten."
"You only have your eyes on T.M. Opera O. But did you forget... who was the one who became your first Uma Musume? The one you promised to support wholeheartedly?"
"Without me... you wouldn't have been able to be with T.M. Opera O at all, but now, it seems as if you've completely forgotten me."
"D- Doto...?"
As Wada fearfully took a few steps back, he finally noticed the change in Meisho Doto's eye colour.
Having experienced something similar with T.M. Opera O before, Wada quickly realized just who the "Meisho Doto" in front of him really was.
"Y- you're not, you are..."
"Finally caught on, Trainer? No, perhaps I should call you... Wada Ryuji?"
"Long time no see. Or maybe this should count as our first time meeting. After all, this time around, I can think way more clearly."
Hearing these words, Wada was essentially certain that this was "Meisho Doto," the Racehorse.
Although she acted vastly different from how Wada would expect, it was clear that she still retained a certain 'wildness' in her personality.
"This... is unexpected, I suppose."
Smiling wryly, Wada sneakily stepped back a few steps from the "Meisho Doto" in front of him.
As Wada recalled how Meisho Doto the Racehorse treated him back then, he couldn't help but feel his personal safety was quite precarious right now.
"Um, you didn't come specifically to beat me up, right? Although I can understand if you do. Won't Doto be very sad when she wakes up?"
"Don't worry, I don't intend to beat you up because of a past misunderstanding."
At this point, a smile appeared on "Meisho Doto's" face.
"Rather, I should actually thank you. If you hadn't helped fulfill this little one's wish, I wouldn't have been able to appear here. Me managing to manifest after the Osaka Hai is already a blessing."
"But, I didn't come here today to reminisce with you, or simply to say hello."
"I'm going to help "me" to do something she doesn't dare to do."
Her smile becoming increasingly dangerous, "Meisho Doto" instantly closed the gap Wada had painstakingly made and forcefully gripped his collar, all the while she sensually started to unbutton her shirt.
At that moment, Wada knew, he was fucked. (Figuratively and literally)
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The CEO of sex reveals a new DLC to the highly acclaimed game, Sex: Umapyoi
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.