Mr. C.B. had been feeling lately like Kitano had been scamming her.
"Didn't you say you could go at any moment? It's been over a year! We're one race away from the Undefeated Triple Crown, and you're still here, looking healthier than when we first met!"
A year had passed. Now, sitting with Kitano in their usual coffee shop at Tracen Academy, C.B. looked completely different from when she had first enrolled. The stubbornness in her eyes had been replaced by a new liveliness and ease, making her dashing smile seem more genuine, more like a refreshing spring breeze.
The bigger change was in their surroundings. Around them, many other horse girls in their school uniforms were also taking a break in the coffee shop. But unlike a year ago, when C.B. had thought of them as "fellow outcasts," the other horse girls were now looking at them with a mixture of envy and affection, whispering to their friends and giggling shyly.
"They really have a great relationship."
"Well, they're the kind of mutual salvation duo you wouldn't even dare to write in a sci-fi novel."
"Ugh—I'm so jealous. I wonder if I'll ever have a chance to join their team."
"I'd advise you against that. Look, on Mr. Trainer's middle finger."
"Hey! Is-is that a ring?!"
"Exactly. Mr. Trainer is definitely already reserved by C.B. They have such a good relationship, and besides, C.B.'s parents fell in love around this time. You'd better not think about causing trouble."
"Besides, if you join now, you might become a public enemy at the academy. You know, right? Everyone is eagerly waiting for Mr. Trainer and C.B. to announce their relationship."
"Ugh, it's so nice. I wish I had a trainer who could save me too. I'm so jealous of C.B."
The whispers around them occasionally reached C.B.'s sharp horse ears. She had gone from being uncomfortable with it to being used to it in less than a year... And she knew that all this change was, in the end, because of the "big scammer" trainer in front of her.
C.B. had never really expected much from Kitano, a trainer who couldn't even get into Tracen Academy at first and was so terminally ill he only had a few months to live. She had just been taking it one step at a time, trying to live up to his expectations as much as possible while he could still watch her, to let him see her victory.
This way, perhaps he could pass on more peacefully... It was the only thing she could do to thank him for his support.
And C.B. herself had long made up her mind—she would not cry or grieve for his death. She would keep him in her heart forever, carrying his hopes and his support, and continue to run, no longer alone.
In the beginning, everything had followed this script. As C.B. was preparing for her second race, she noticed her trainer's health deteriorating, to the point where he had to be hospitalized.
From then on, she treated her next race as the last one he would be able to witness.
"I will let you see it. My victory. I will absolutely not let you leave with regrets."
It turned out that when C.B. had a belief, a hope she didn't want to disappoint, she became more focused on the track, able to unleash her full potential. With a powerful finishing kick, and after intense concentration had cured her usual habit of a "late start," she won her second race by a huge margin.
C.B. had thought this was the only thing she could do for him. But to her surprise, after her victory, the terminally ill Kitano had miraculously regained some of his spirit and was able to return to her training.
C.B. was initially surprised by his improved health, but she was overjoyed that he was out of danger. After all, she didn't want to see him die of illness. He was her only supporter, her only trainer... she would never find another one more suitable for her.
So, I'll just cherish every minute, every second he has left.
But as time went on, as C.B. repeatedly entered the racetrack with the thought, "This might be the last race he can witness," she began to suspect—this free wind that was her was being manipulated by Kitano in a strange way.
The most obvious example was the first leg of the classic Triple Crown she had decided to challenge at the beginning of the year, the G1 Satsuki Sho. That was the sickest she had ever seen him. He had suddenly collapsed and been rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, only being declared out of danger after a full day and night.
Everyone thought that this time, he wouldn't be able to make it. Even the doctors had advised her to give up... C.B. also believed that this time, it might be the end of his life... She had seen him fight his illness several times, miraculously pulling through each time... But the danger he faced this time was probably beyond what willpower or luck could overcome.
"So the day has finally come... But it's okay, Mr. Trainer. Don't worry about me."
"I will keep my promise to you and not let this affect my performance. You just need to watch me become a wind blowing across the racetrack, winning for you. Then you too can become a wind and blow past me, out of my life."
"I... will be fine running on my own. Don't worry."
The day before the race, C.B. said her final farewell to the semi-conscious Kitano on his hospital bed, who could have breathed his last at any moment.
Even though she had always adhered to his "no interference outside of training and races" way of interacting, after spending more than half a year with him and going through several terrifying crises, this time, seeing the truly critically ill Kitano, the pain she felt was clearly incomparable to before.
The G1 Satsuki Sho became C.B.'s best performance ever. In the pouring rain on a heavy track, she unleashed all her potential. In the rain, she was like a hurricane, tearing through the mud, and ultimately winning the Satsuki Sho as the victor.
After her victory, C.B. could no longer contain her emotions and burst into tears in the rain... She knew that this Satsuki Sho would be the last race where she could feel his support, the last reward she could give him.
But she could still bear it. She believed she could still accept his departure. She could still keep her promise and continue to run on her own.
However, just as she was embracing this resolution, her heart shattered, her mood sinking to an unbearable low, she received a piece of news from the hospital—Kitano was alive again.
Hearing this, C.B. remembered her mind going blank. Having just finished the Satsuki Sho, she had run, almost in a frenzy, through the pouring rain to the hospital.
Inside, drenched, she didn't even care how disheveled she looked. When she burst into his room, she saw him, in his hospital gown, his face much better, smiling at her.
"I saw it, C.B. You won beautifully."
C.B. forgot everything that happened after. She only remembered that for the first time in her life, she had hugged this trainer with a complete loss of control, as if holding a lost and found treasure. She buried her wet face, indistinguishable from tears and rain, in his chest, as if wanting to merge with him, to never be separated from him again.
"You scared me! You scared me again! Weren't those few times enough?! You scared me again!"
"Do you know how scared I was—I thought you were going to die, I thought there would be no one in the world to support me anymore, do you know that..."
"...I'm sorry, C.B." At a loss for words, Kitano, seeing the vulnerable C.B. for the first time, gently stroked her wet hair without a care, letting her sob in his arms. His voice was gratified and gentle. "I don't know how to explain... but maybe it's because if I didn't see you win the Undefeated Triple Crown, how could I die willingly?"
"I promise you, from now on, I will never scare you like I did today again. Never again."
...From that day on, both Kitano and C.B. knew that their so-called "non-interference" relationship had completely gone bankrupt after the Satsuki Sho. The distance between their hearts was uncontrollably closing, and having made promises to each other, they no longer harbored the same fears as before and began to truly interact.
And with Kitano's recovery, the news of "Mr. C.B. in tears on the field, the terminally ill Mr. Trainer miraculously saved" spread like wildfire. This news exploded in Japan, spreading with astonishing speed, and with each exaggeration, each artistic embellishment, it gradually evolved into a story of their intertwined fates.
Gradually, titles like "the duo abandoned by the world" and "the mutually supportive pair" were repeatedly hyped by the media. And all this, with C.B. now aiming for the unprecedented achievement of "Undefeated Triple Crown horse girl," became even more convincing.
So much so that after C.B. won the crucial Japan Derby, this once-doubted pair had become the most watched entity in Japan.
Of course, people were not only watching to see if she could achieve the "Undefeated Triple Crown," but also to see when this "child of fine genes," with her parents' precedent, would announce her romantic relationship with her trainer.
Though neither Kitano nor C.B. had ever responded to these rumors, everyone knew that day was not far off. And almost everyone believed that C.B. would definitely end up with her trainer, just like her parents.
"I have to say... this rumor is getting out of hand," C.B. said, her tone a bit wistful, but the relaxed smile on her face never changed. "My parents were vilified when they eloped, but now everyone is looking forward to me and you getting together, Mr. Trainer. I don't get it."
"Perhaps it's precisely because of your parents' precedent that people are more mentally prepared and more accepting," Kitano chuckled, using his fork to take the strawberry from the cake. Seeing C.B. open her mouth slightly, he smiled wryly and obediently brought the strawberry to her lips.
"Ah-nom." C.B. carefully ate the strawberry. This kind of interaction had become a habit for them at some point. But this simple act made the circle of horse girls around them let out a few small gasps. Many of them were blushing, their tails wagging as they stared, too shy to look away but unable to resist watching.
"—But we're not in that kind of relationship, Mr. Trainer," C.B. said with a smile after eating the strawberry. "Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to let you go. That's not what you want to see, right, Mr. Trainer?"
"That's right... I hope that even after I'm gone, you can still run well, C.B.," Kitano chuckled, bringing a piece of his own cake to her open mouth.
"Hee hee, trying to scare me again? I'm not so easily scared anymore, you know? Ah-nom."
After the Satsuki Sho, if there was one way C.B.'s psyche had been strengthened, it was that she had experienced firsthand the pain of losing Kitano.
She knew that his current seemingly healthy state, even his too-good recovery, was only temporary... But at least, after the Satsuki Sho, she had endured this heart-wrenching feeling once. Her current carefree interaction with him was also because she had already faced this pain.
She knew she could do it. She could run on her own... So, what was there to be afraid of?
C.B. smiled and opened her eyes, her gaze falling on the silver-plated ring she had personally put on his left middle finger. A genuine smile bloomed on her face.
This was the first time she felt her world had been illuminated. This world that she thought had abandoned her, this world that had accused her of being the "child of sin," had become so lovely because of this person's existence.
The hurricane beat against the sand, stirring up dust. But as the ice melted, the hurricane transformed into a gentle spring breeze, cherishing the tenderness of the spring water, so careful even as it brushed against her cheek, afraid to disturb this tranquility, to break this warm spring.
For now... let this self that has become a spring breeze linger a little longer in the warmth and happiness of this spring by my side...
-------
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 (260 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (230 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (100 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (110 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (280 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (110 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (130 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (162 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (130 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (90 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (60 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (90 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (100 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (90 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (75 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 (70 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (70 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (40 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (50 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (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.