"Isn't this child just adorable?"
"Yes, she is. So lovely. She looks so much like me, almost like a younger version of myself. She must be a bay horse girl. But unlike me, she's a bay who hasn't grown a roan-like coat."
A warm, hazy scene unfolded. On a pristine white bed, a horse girl with sky-blue hair gazed with infinite tenderness at the swaddled baby horse girl in her arms.
But... the blue-haired horse girl looked incredibly weak, not with the exhaustion of childbirth, but with a kind of chronic, familiar illness.
Even so, it couldn't hide her affection for the infant—a mixture of surprise, bliss, and a natural maternal instinct, as if she were looking at a treasure that had fallen from the heavens.
"This is a rare opportunity... Mr. Trainer, would you do me the honor of naming this child?"
"Hmm? Me?" the man she addressed asked, sounding surprised and hesitant. The blue-haired horse girl noticed and tilted her head slightly, her smile growing even gentler.
"It's alright. I'm sure you can give this child a perfect name, Mr. Trainer."
"Well..."
The man gazed at the baby in her arms for a long, long time. Finally, as if he had made up his mind, he spoke with an intention only he understood.
"—In that case, how about we call her Mejiro Muteki?"
"...Hm?"
Waking from a half-dream, half-memory, Kitano blinked in confusion before realizing he was still in the Mejiro family car. Beside him, Mejiro Takamine, who had woken him, spoke with a light smile.
"How interesting, Mr. Trainer. I've never seen anyone fall asleep so peacefully in my presence, let alone with such a contented expression."
"We're almost at the Mejiro estate, but if you don't mind, could you tell me about your dream? A dream that could bring such joy to someone as composed as you has piqued my curiosity."
I can't possibly tell her that. Kitano realized that the sudden surge of vitality had been followed by a wave of fatigue from his previously frail constitution, causing him to doze off next to Takamine.
...He had done this before, but that was long after he had stopped being her trainer. In Takamine's presence, Kitano had always been on high alert, terrified that the highly discerning horse girl would utter the word "boring." He would rather she call him troublesome than boring.
Fortunately, after Takamine had transferred his position as her trainer, Kitano, though somewhat hurt, felt a great sense of relief. While being the trainer for that young lady was demanding in its own way, the mental pressure was far less.
But... Kitano wouldn't dare tell Takamine any of this from his past life. He certainly wouldn't tell her he had just dreamed about her precious younger sister. This deeply closeted "sis-con" might have him secretly eliminated, erased from existence.
So, Kitano changed the subject. Maintaining his etiquette, he replied, "I was just dreaming of... someone very important to me."
"Oh? Important, you say? I suspect not in a familial way," Takamine saw right through him, her smile unwavering. "I'd guess the person you dreamt of was a woman, a horse girl, to be precise."
"And if I'm not mistaken, you have feelings for her."
"...Nothing gets past you, Miss Mejiro."
With his thoughts laid bare, Kitano's heart pounded with anxiety. But thankfully, he was sure Takamine couldn't read minds. She couldn't possibly know his feelings for her sister... probably.
The anxious Kitano didn't notice that the moment he admitted it, the relaxed smile on Takamine's face faded ever so slightly. The alpine flower maintained her elegance, but her mind couldn't help but wonder who this "woman he liked" could be.
Quickly, the faces of Suzuka, Mr. C.B., and Nakayama Festa—all likely candidates—floated through her mind. As for Rudolf... Takamine felt that Kitano was probably oblivious to Rudolf's one-sided affection. Otherwise, with C.B. constantly orbiting him, he would be under much more pressure, not looking so at ease.
"Speaking of which, Miss Mejiro, why have you brought me to the Mejiro estate?"
"...Call me Takamine. Though I enrolled before you, you are a trainer, an educator. It is I who should be using honorifics."
Seeing Kitano change the subject, Takamine replied, "I've invited you here because I believe there's a member of my family who could allow you to fully display your talents. She is in desperate need of the particular qualities you bring."
"Oh? A horse girl from the Mejiro family? Takamine... are you entrusting a Mejiro to me for training?"
The Mejiro family. The name was quite familiar to Kitano. Though he had only been their trainer once, the Mejiro horse girls were all sisters. So when he had first accompanied Takamine to meet the family matriarch, he had gotten to know every prominent member. He had spent years with them, earning the approval of everyone except, perhaps, Takamine herself.
One might wonder, if Kitano had the Mejiro family's approval, with their stable of high-quality horse girls, how could he have still died young as he had in the past?
In hindsight, Kitano could only conclude it was because his official position was as their older sister's trainer. And his relationship with that sister had been a bit too close. Their reluctance to get involved was understandable... even if it had led to his death once again.
But overall, his impression of the Mejiro family was quite good. Despite what some fan works might depict—portraying the Mejiros as a den of succubi—the family he remembered was one where the sisters lived in harmony, genuinely helping one another without reservation.
In an era where sisters often competed in the same races, their ability to remain close, unswayed by victory or defeat, was truly remarkable. Because of this, Kitano wasn't worried about which Mejiro Takamine might recommend.
But to his surprise, Takamine smiled and shook her head. "Training... if you had started your career a few years earlier, Mr. Trainer, I certainly would have considered it. But unfortunately, this sister of mine no longer needs your training plans."
"However, I still wish for you to meet her. To show her the same passion and skill you showed Silence Suzuka. What she needs most is also courage."
"Ah, we've arrived. Please, follow me. We're going to the back garden. I'll take you to her."
Takamine's words made Kitano's heart race. He had a feeling he knew which sister she was talking about... a figure from his dreams, someone who had left a deep mark on his heart, even though he had never sought her out again after passing through her life.
The car came to a slow stop. Takamine got out first and immediately instructed a nearby attendant, "Please get the wheelchair from the back. You don't need to follow us. I will... reluctantly... take care of Mr. Trainer myself."
"—No. I can... walk to meet her."
To Takamine's surprise, just as she offered to push him, Kitano refused. Under the astonished and slightly panicked gazes of Takamine and the attendants, he slowly got out of the car. With an unprecedented vigor, he stood tall.
For a moment, Takamine was in a daze. Seeing the perpetually sickly Kitano standing upright for the first time, even knowing his secret, she was startled by his solemnity. "Are you... alright? Can your body handle it?"
"...It's fine. Just for a short while."
Kitano took a deep breath. He was, in fact, eager to see her. If this hadn't been his first visit to the Mejiro estate this time around, he would have already found his way to the back garden from memory.
But if he was going to see her, he couldn't be in a wheelchair... That would only make her lose more confidence. He no longer needed that girl to pity him.
"Let's go, Takamine."
"...Alright."
Wait, whose house is this again? Coming to her senses, Takamine glanced at Kitano beside her. Her keen observation noticed his unnatural calmness. He wasn't looking around like a first-time visitor, nor did he show any curiosity. He just walked straight ahead, his pace so quick it seemed he was hurrying her along.
A seed of doubt, followed by an inexplicable irritation, sprouted in Takamine's heart. She felt as if she had become some kind of intermediary, an unnecessary obstacle between two people.
She quickly suppressed the thought. After about five or six minutes, they finally arrived at the back garden. There, under a strikingly beautiful gazebo, a figure with long, sky-blue hair sat with her back to them, looking serene and captivating.
Hearing footsteps, the figure's listless horse ears perked up. She turned around, her voice cheerful. "Sister? Is that you? I—"
"Ardan, are you well? You seem a little listless."
The moment Ardan turned, she immediately noticed Kitano beside Takamine. And the instant their eyes met, her words caught in her throat. Her heart felt as if it had skipped a beat.
What is... this feeling?
Suddenly, she felt an unbearable tightness in her chest, a throbbing pain in her heart. Her eyes began to sting... What is happening?
For a moment, Ardan couldn't suppress her pained expression, her beautiful face instantly paling. Noticing her distress, Takamine and Kitano both rushed forward. Takamine helped Ardan sit down while Kitano poured a cup of tea from a nearby pot and handed it to her.
"Th-thank you..." Ardan took the cup, but the moment her fingertips brushed against Kitano's, she flinched as if shocked, quickly pulling away. She took small sips of tea to hide her awkwardness.
"...I knew you weren't well, but it seems worse than I thought," Takamine said, relieved to see her sister's color returning. She then turned to Kitano, her tone exceptionally grave.
"You see her, Mr. Trainer. Let me introduce you. This is my sister, Mejiro Ardan. She is the horse girl I wish to entrust to your care."
"She doesn't need training, but a strengthening of the spirit. That is why I brought you here. I want you to help my sister overcome her fear and anxiety. That is all I ask of you."
-------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (250 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (225 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (90 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (100 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (270 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (98 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (120 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(59 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (160 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (80 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (50 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (80 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (90 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (65 Chapter)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (50 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (60 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (60 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (50 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it.