Mizuno Sora had been on sick leave from the Academy for a week now. Except for Gold Ship, all the members of Team TAC hadn't seen him face-to-face for that whole week.
Even though little angel Urara did her best to heal and cheer them each day, Rice Shower and the others' motivation still dropped noticeably.
Rice Shower, King Halo, and Tokai Teio didn't even need to be mentioned—each of them harbored feelings for Mizuno beyond the trainer–Uma bond. Without seeing him, food lost its taste, sleep grew restless.
Though they could glimpse him via video calls during afternoon training, that clearly wasn't enough.
Strangely enough, even Mejiro McQueen—who always insisted her relationship with Mizuno was nothing more than "customer and vending machine"—seemed low-spirited.
After all, her sister Mejiro Ardan was chatting happily with Mizuno. Ardan loved China, Mizuno seemed to know a lot about China, they were an unexpectedly good match. It was starting to seem like McQueen herself wouldn't need to complete the grandmother's task.
And besides, Gold Ship had already learned how to make Honey Drinks, bringing them to McQueen daily. Logically, McQueen should have had no reason to feel down about not seeing Mizuno...
Yet there was still a hollow emptiness in her chest. She couldn't stop asking herself—
Was it really just the Honey Drink that she liked...?
Maybe McQueen still needed to search for that answer herself...
Among them, though, it was Tokai Teio who was in the worst state. Anyone could see how restless she had become lately.
Her longing for Mizuno made her seek out Symboli Rudolf far more often, always demanding hugs—just like when she clung to Mizuno, curling up in her arms for long stretches of time.
Rudolf, of course, saw through the child's heart. She herself wanted to see Mizuno again too.
But she had no choice. After all, Mizuno's leave had been personally approved by her.
Still... the reason he gave was suspicious.
His official leave request read: "I've been cursed. Because my surname is Mizuno (Tang in Chinese), I've developed Tang Syndrome. It causes sudden spasms and fits. I must stay bedridden, unable to return to the Academy."
Rudolf had shown the face of an old man discovering smartphones on the subway.
What nonsense?! That's not where Tang Syndrome comes from! And the symptoms don't even match!
Even though she doubted him, there was, annoyingly, an Uma in his team who had testified on his behalf. And according to Academy rules, she had no choice but to approve the request.
But then an idea came to her.
"Could it be... Trainer Mizuno is faking?"
The more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. With his personality, this was exactly the sort of thing he'd pull.
And the Uma who vouched for him was none other than the prank-loving Gold Ship. That made it even more suspicious.
Rudolf decided—she needed to confirm this for herself.
And conveniently, as the Student Council President, she had privileges other Uma did not...
At that moment, Mizuno was holed up in the dorms, sitting cross-legged on the floor, reading [Training Equipment: From Building Treadmills to Building Children's Toys] while assembling parts.
Unlike Teio and the others, who were all miserable, Mizuno was thoroughly enjoying his closed-door life.
The secret boys' dorm was truly heaven for trainers!
No Uma around, no fear of being Uma Pyoi'd, and fully furnished facilities meeting every need. Mizuno felt—paradise couldn't be better.
No wonder the veteran trainers loved this place so much, even calling it their "true home." Now Mizuno understood it firsthand.
And with Gold Ship by his side, fussing over him so carefully, he was practically becoming shaped like Broshi already.
In short, holed up in his room, he was extremely comfortable. He had no desire to step outside...
But Mizuno also knew it wasn't good to stay in hiding forever.
If Urara and the others grew too sad from not seeing their trainer, or if Teio's possessiveness swelled from being starved of him for too long—it would be bad.
So Mizuno decided: starting next week, he would devote one day per week to going back.
He'd pat Urara and Rice Shower on the head, praise King Halo to make her happy, and lower Teio's possessiveness meter a little. Once everything was stable, he'd retreat again.
Week after week, cycle after cycle. Until he helped each Uma reach her dreams and fulfilled his responsibilities... then he could fade away in peace.
And even if he accidentally provoked the wrong Uma while visiting, he could just retreat back into the boys' dorm. No Uma knew where it was. No matter how terrifying she might be, she couldn't touch him here.
So long as the boys' dorm didn't explode—his future was bright!
Knock, knock, knock.
Suddenly, someone rapped at his door.
"Broshi?" Mizuno set down the parts in his hands and looked up.
The only people who ever knocked were the old dorm supervisor—or Gold Ship.
But he wasn't close with the old supervisor, who had never once sought him out.
And just earlier, Gold Ship had gone shopping, saying she'd be back in about an hour. By his count, it was about time.
So surely—it had to be Broshi!
Mizuno stood, opened the door.
"Broshi, you're back... hm?"
But what greeted him outside wasn't Gold Ship. It was the one Uma he least wanted to see...
Symboli Rudolf.
"Hello, Trainer Mizuno." Rudolf smiled warmly, raising a hand in greeting.
"Eh?" Mizuno thought his eyes deceived him. He rubbed them, looked again carefully.
But it was still Rudolf standing there.
"Maybe I opened the door the wrong way..."
He shut it, then opened it again.
"Broshi?"
Still Rudolf.
"This..." Mizuno froze.
Weren't Uma absolutely forbidden from entering the boys' dorms? How could Rudolf be here?
As Student Council President, she couldn't possibly be sneaking in the way Gold Ship did... could she?
"Unless... Broshi in disguise?"
Since Gold Ship loved pulling stunts, Mizuno thought maybe this "Rudolf" was just her in a lifelike suit.
So he reached out—pinched Rudolf's cheek, ruffled her fluffy hair—trying to find the seams between fake and real.
But Rudolf didn't resist his touch. She only kept smiling.
"..." Feeling the undeniable realness beneath his hand, Mizuno finally realized.
"Oh, so it's really Rudolf!"
He nodded in dawning enlightenment, smiling like it all made sense now.
They stared at each other for a few seconds.
Then Mizuno suddenly grabbed the door handle, yanked hard, trying to slam it shut before she could react!
But right before it closed, Rudolf pressed her hand against it.
No matter how hard Mizuno pushed, straining with all his might, the door didn't budge an inch.
With the gentlest of pushes, Rudolf swung it wide open.
She looked down at Mizuno still struggling with all his strength to shut it. Her eyes gleamed with danger.
"Trainer Mizuno... you seem awfully healthy."