"...'Silent Sunday', huh? I didn't realize it was about to happen in this world."
"Needless to say, we'll help you out, Wada. Now that we know about this, we absolutely won't let it happen a second time."
"We'll make sure to monitor Silence Suzuka's condition as much as possible. As for the Tenno Sho... I think we should prepare in the event we fail to stop her from participating."
After Wada's conversation with Fumino Nase, he quickly went to find his fellow transmigrators.
First meeting Imanami, Wada immediately explained the predicament Silence Suzuka was in and told him his intentions, causing Imanami, who had originally given the Uma Musume on his side a day off, to become much more serious.
As a man who had spent most of his years in the companionship of these Racehorses, Imanami naturally deeply cared about their safety, which applied to the Uma Musume in this world as well.
Although Silence Suzuka's fracture would not only not affect them, but benefit them, a man with Imanami's stature would never stoop so low as to allow a tragedy like this to repeat.
It was for this reason that as soon as Wada said he wanted to change Silence Suzuka's fate, Imanami agreed without hesitation, promptly beginning to plan out solutions.
"Um... so you're saying it's possible that we can't stop Silence Suzuka from running in the Tenno Sho?"
"—Wada, think about it carefully. Who among us has the power to stop an Uma Musume from stepping onto the track, or has a close enough relationship to Silence Suzuka to advise her against running in the race?"
"Moreover, we don't even have solid proof; unless we manage to get lucky and spot the signs before the Tenno Sho, it's likely impossible for us to convince them otherwise."
"...But how do we deal with Silence Suzuka in the race? Only maybe Orfevre can keep up with her Runaway running style, right?"
Scratching his head, Wada was feeling quite troubled.
If Silence Suzuka were anything but a Runaway, it would not have been an issue. After all, their team's Uma Musume were no slouches when it came to seizing the initiative; there would be a myriad of ways for them to trap Silence Suzuka.
Without even mentioning anything else, just having so many Uma Musume in possession of Aura would make suppressing Silence Suzuka, who did not possess any of the two major powers, an easy task.
However, this was exactly the problem, Silence Suzuka is a master at the Runaway style, capable of consistently leading from start to end, creating a gap so wide it was impossible for the others to catch up.
To stop Silence Suzuka from seeing the unobstructed scenery from the lead... would be truly arduous.
"...We could give up on winning the Tenno Sho and instead block Silence Suzuka the entire way. Two or three of us would suffice."
"This way, the risks would be nigh nil... the worth of a single GI is nothing in the face of the future and safety of a promising child, after all. But..."
"...But that's just like Shadai."
Completing Imanami's sentence, Wada found it difficult to even continue this train of thought.
If they truly were to employ this method, even if they had good intentions in mind, would they be any different from what Shadai did in the past?
"For the greater good," "for your own safety"... all of these were merely excuses to justify despicable means; unfairly taking away one's opportunity to win.
Having been subjected to that feeling of injustice, like the entire world was against them... how could they willingly inflict the same type of pain onto someone they were supposed to 'save?'
Furthermore, such a shameless display by them would destroy the hard earned honours and reputation of their team, with endless contempt and scorn sure to follow their every step.
Even if the three Trainers of Team Miracle were willing to give up their reputation and future employability, their Uma Musume— these children were innocent.
All of this... made employing such a plan truly impossible to do.
However, if they didn't do this, how could they make sure Silence Suzuka wouldn't overstrain herself? How could they prevent Silent Sunday from happening?
"What should we do...?! Do we really have to become a 'Shadai' this time?"
"Sigh... It's nothing if we can trade off our reputation for Silence Suzuka's safety. But the last thing I want to see is our children getting implicated."
Living a long life beforehand in their previous world, Imanami gradually viewed materialistic things like money or fame to be of no major significance.
Yet, Imanami refused to let these children suffer this undeserved calamity.
"...I'll talk with those children first; at least we need to know their opinions."
Looking up at Wada, Imanami said slowly.
"Leave this matter to me, Wada. What you need to do is make sure you and T.M. Opera O are in good condition. You two have more pressing concerns right now; don't overly focus on this."
"...Let this old man handle this. Also, don't tell Ikezoe. With his personality, he'll surely do something impulsive."
Closing his eyes, Imanami voluntarily took this matter upon himself.
Regardless, his group's Mejiro McQueen was going to run in the Tenno Sho (Autumn) anyway, and none of the Uma Musume in his group had any major races like the Classic Triple Crown with Ikezoe and Orfevre.
Additionally, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was also important; the entirety of the Japanese Uma Musume world was depending on him to win it.
As for what he would do... Imanami certainly hadn't figured it out yet, but it would be prudent of him to prepare for the worst case scenario so as to ensure her career would not be permanently ruined.
Still, was the future of a single tragic child he did not know so well worth the futures of the innocent children on his team...?
'We definitely need to find a better solution...'
"By the way, Miss Nase is currently...?"
"—She's already gone to find Suzuka, probably to build rapport."
Pointing his finger towards a certain direction, Wada continued.
"Though she's separate from him, I hope that the subtle connection between them can help Silence Suzuka."
Having this topic brought up, Imanami couldn't help but sigh.
"Sigh... right. It's a pity Yutaka Take isn't with us. Otherwise, he'd surely have found a way."
"Indeed..."
Nodding, Wada sighed in conjunction with Imanami.
However, just then, Wada's phone suddenly rang with the sound of a notification.
Taking it out, Wada quickly saw that it was a message from an unfamiliar phone number.
The content, however, made Wada frown slightly.
There were no superfluous words, just one sentence:
"I'm interested in your premonition. Meet me at XXX bar tonight at 10." -Tanino Gimlet
Seeing Tanino Gimlet's name, Wada immediately knew that this unknown number belonged to that veteran Uma Musume who was currently guiding Special Week, though he was a bit curious about how exactly she got his number.
'Should I go?'
Thinking carefully, with Tanino Gimlet's relationship with Team Spica, perhaps she could also serve as a breakthrough point— provided she was willing to believe him.
Nonetheless, Wada had to try. At least, it seemed Tanino Gimlet was interested in what he had to say... which was a good sign.
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My yapinator 9000 ran out again...
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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.