"Hm? It failed? Rudolf, what do you mean?"
The next day, Mr. C.B., who had returned to her parents' home, was calmly enjoying her mother's breakfast after her usual morning run when she was interrupted by a call from Rudolf.
"It means exactly what it sounds like, Chigiri. I can no longer persuade Teio. She's even starting to avoid contact with me. Her memories... seem to be in some kind of disarray."
In the student council room, a defeated Rudolf sounded unusually serious. Before calling Chigiri, she had already gone to find Teio again. To her surprise, Teio, whose moods usually only lasted three minutes, was incredibly focused this time. When she went to the training grounds, she found Teio was already there.
And judging by the wear and tear on the track, which had to be resurfaced daily, Teio had likely been there for a while. She was training to overcome her only weakness that could cause her to fail in the Triple Crown races—"stamina."
"President, I know you might not understand, but I've already made a promise with someone. Whether he is in this world or not, I believe he will always be watching me, watching me achieve the undefeated Triple Crown."
"I have to fulfill this promise. I will let him see that day. So I can't slack off. I can't lose to my rivals in any field!"
"I will do everything I can to make up for my weakness in long distances. Sooner or later, even Seiun Sky, I will make her lose to me in a long-distance race!"
Clearly, during her training with Seiun Sky, whom she considered a formidable rival, Sky's incredible endurance and stamina had left a deep impression on Teio. Teio knew that Sky's innate stamina, which was largely due to talent, was something she couldn't match. But her goal was different from Sky's; she only needed enough stamina to win long-distance G1 races.
Besides, Teio didn't really intend to benchmark her long-distance ability against Sky. She knew Sky seemed weak now only because she wasn't yet accustomed to Japan's tracks and rhythm. But with Sky's talent and diligence, it would be easy for her to adapt—after all, Sky hadn't even had her formal debut yet; she had plenty of time.
Therefore, for her classic year, Teio only planned to beat Gold Ship in the long-distance races.
After running with Kitano's team many times, Teio had a good grasp of her two main rivals' strengths and daily performance. She had concluded that she didn't need to worry much about Nakayama Festa. Festa was a pure competition-type runner; her performance depended entirely on the conditions of race day. Even if she wanted to guard against her, she couldn't.
Fortunately, based on Festa's average performance in training races, she wasn't enough of a threat.
But Gold Ship... Tokai Teio was now certain that the biggest obstacle on her path to the undefeated Triple Crown was undoubtedly this horse girl who was always goofing around at the academy, making people forget how strong she was. She and Teio were complete opposites.
Teio was a technique-based runner, maximizing her stamina and tactics to win with the least amount of effort.
Gold Ship, on the other hand, was the epitome of a power-based runner. With her innate talent and incredible stamina, she could overcome many problems that would stump Teio. Brute force was Gold Ship's signature style.
But what scared Teio was that Gold Ship didn't run without brains or technique; she was just too lazy to use them most of the time... This formidable enemy, who possessed both stamina and skill, was the only rival Teio needed to worry about.
That was why she was here, diligently honing her stamina. Teio felt that the final showdown between her and Gold Ship would definitely be on the Kikuka Sho track. She needed to train her stamina to a level where she could perfectly execute her techniques in the 3000-meter race.
But all of Teio's efforts now, and her unprecedented obsession, were a source of great worry for the observing Rudolf... Although it hadn't happened in their past life, Rudolf was very concerned that this level of intense training would break Teio's body.
"Chigiri, in our past life, do you know if anything happened to Teio after her undefeated Triple Crown?"
"Of course I know that." On the other end of the line, Chigiri listlessly poked the yolk of her half-cooked fried egg with her chopsticks and replied nonchalantly, "But something like that, as the mother figure in that child's life, shouldn't you know better than I... ah."
However, before Chigiri could finish, she suddenly remembered something about the Rudolf from their past life and stopped herself.
For the Rudolf with recovered memories, she really wouldn't know much about what happened to Teio after she achieved the undefeated Triple Crown.
Because on the day after Teio achieved that feat, Rudolf had collapsed from accumulated fatigue. Her physical and mental state deteriorated rapidly, and a month later, she passed away at a young age...
At that time, Chigiri had just returned to the country. The news of Teio's Triple Crown was still the talk of Japan. And just as she was coming to terms with Kitano's death, her rival Rudolf had also died young...
Rudolf's death was like adding frost to snow for the already fragile Chigiri.
Although she and Rudolf had constantly fought over Kitano, Rudolf's death meant that the traces of Kitano in this world were fading, and fewer and fewer people remembered him... Chigiri fell into a long depression, and her spirit never recovered.
"...Compared to Teio, I think you should be more concerned about yourself."
"My mental state is fine, don't worry." Rudolf naturally understood what Chigiri meant. In her past life, it wasn't so much that she had fallen ill, but rather that her spirit had completely dissipated after Teio completed the Triple Crown. She couldn't even muster the will to live anymore.
It was less that she died of illness and more that she chose to die... At that time, she was no longer worried about Teio's future; she just wanted to let go and reunite with her Kitano in heaven as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, she didn't remember seeing heaven. Instead, in this cycle, she had seen Kitano again. Now, Rudolf didn't want to die at all. She wanted Teio to run well, so that Kitano could see their "daughter" achieve the undefeated Triple Crown with his own eyes.
"Tell me, Chigiri, how much did you know about Teio in our past life? Did any accidents happen to her?"
"...If you hadn't died so quickly in our past life, Rudolf, I think you would have fought to the very end, just like Trainer-san."
Hearing Rudolf's sincere question, Mr. C.B. fell into a long silence. Finally, after a deep breath, she slowly revealed everything she had learned during the time she had looked after Teio, out of the sentiment that Teio was the last living person, besides herself, who knew about Kitano.
"First, Rudolf, I need you to calm down. No matter what, don't panic, and don't let it affect Teio, understand?"
"I know." Hearing Chigiri's solemn tone, Rudolf's heart couldn't help but beat faster. She vaguely realized that, contrary to her belief that Teio could take care of herself, her own death might have caused a very bad blow to Teio. She braced herself for bad news.
But the next moment, the news about Tokai Teio that came from Mr. C.B.'s mouth made Rudolf fully understand just how severe the butterfly effect of her death had been.
"...After you died of illness, Teio's career began to go downhill. From the highly anticipated undefeated Triple Crown winner, she couldn't even win a GII race. Her condition became extremely poor."
"In a later Spring Tenno Sho, Teio faced Mejiro McQueen and suffered a major defeat, finishing in tenth place. After the race, she was found to have suffered a bone fracture."
"After that fracture, Teio never returned to the racetrack. Her achievement was forever frozen at the undefeated Triple Crown—and only the undefeated Triple Crown."
Clatter.
As soon as Mr. C.B. finished speaking, Rudolf's phone, loosened from her grip in that moment of shock, fell to the floor with a crisp sound.
But Rudolf, her mind a complete blank, surprisingly did not lose her composure. She didn't scream and shout as she had when provoked by Chigiri before. She calmly bent down, picked up her phone, looked at the slightly shattered screen, and emotionlessly placed it back to her ear. After a deep breath, she replied coolly:
"—I'm going to find Teio right now and make her stop her intensive training."
"Rudolf, do you think Teio will listen to you now?" As an outsider, Chigiri, who hadn't invested as much emotion in Teio, was calmer at this moment. "If you force her to stop, it will only be counterproductive."
"Besides, I think in that Spring Tenno Sho, it wasn't so much the fracture that broke her spirit, but rather that she lacked the courage to get back up. After all, the two people who supported her most, you and Trainer-san, had both passed away. Who did she have to support her to keep going?"
"Believe me, Rudolf, on this matter, Trainer-san is definitely more concerned about Teio's condition than you are. We just need to let him know and let him decide what to do."
"But, Teio, she..."
Rudolf opened her mouth, thinking of how Teio, due to her jumbled memories, had righteously refused to join Kitano's team. She didn't think that Kitano, who had already been "passed" by the now strong-willed Teio, could still interfere with her wishes...
But at this point, Rudolf couldn't think of anyone else besides Kitano who could possibly stop Teio...
"Wait, Chigiri, are you not with Kitano?" Suddenly, Rudolf noticed the implication in Chigiri's words and asked with surprise.
"Of course not. Trainer-san went shopping with Suzuka and the other three kids today. Said they were going to pick out clothes and running shoes."
"...You actually didn't go with them?" Rudolf's surprise was evident. To this, Chigiri just gave a faint smile, with a hint of teasing and provocation.
"I'm not like you, Rudolf. I give the person I like their personal space. Although we are bound to each other, what connects us is the distance of our hearts. It doesn't matter if our bodies are thousands of miles apart."
"Chigiri, you—"
"Alright, I'm hanging up now. See you at the academy, Rudolf."
However, before the furious Rudolf could reply, Chigiri hung up. At that moment, Chigiri looked down at the runny yolk she had been poking with her chopsticks. Thinking of Teio, Rudolf, and the other horse girls now by Kitano's side, her mood underwent a subtle change...
"Oh, Trainer-san... now that we all know your secret, don't expect us to do nothing, like in the past."
"And don't think you can stay safe forever. I won't make the same mistake I did in my last life."
Muttering to herself, Chigiri applied a little pressure with her finger and finally broke the egg yolk. Watching the semi-cooked liquid spread across the plate, a faint smile on her face, the Mr. C.B. of this moment seemed to have a new, unprecedented edge of danger and desire...
-------
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