Despite setting a pile of ominous flags before the race, drawing tons of hostility, and being unable to exert her full strength due to health issues, Agnes Tachyon still easily claimed victory in the Basic Race, leaving the second-place Uma Musume four full lengths behind.
As for the race itself, there wasn't much to describe.
A fast start to seize the lead, tactical blocking mid-race by disrupting her opponents' pacing through calculated positional shifts, baiting them into premature sprints, exhausting their stamina, and finally, a well-timed burst of acceleration in the home stretch…
This wasn't Kitahara Sota's pre-race strategy—it was Tachyon's own improvisation according to the circumstances at hand.
She wasn't called a mad scientist for nothing. With her top-tier theoretical knowledge and precise analytical abilities, her tactical execution and adaptability might not have been perfect, but were unquestionably impressive.
Combined with her outstanding innate talent as a top-tier Uma Musume, even burdened with multiple self-inflicted debuffs, defeating a group of beginner-level rookies posed no problem at all.
She didn't think this victory was something particularly impressive either. After all, it was just a Basic Race.
Her competitors were simply beginners like herself, either fresh out of training or stuck grinding URA ranking points in minor races. Her ambition stretched far beyond this.
Still, a victory was a victory. After winning, Tachyon was in undeniably high spirits. She politely exchanged words of encouragement with the other runners, then hummed cheerfully as she skipped out of the venue, blissfully ignoring the increasingly sour looks of envy behind her.
Shortly afterward, she spotted Kitahara Sota already waiting for her at the exit of the track tunnel.
"Congratulations on your first win," he congratulated her genuinely.
Even though it was only a Basic Race, it marked the first competition since they'd become partners. He had personally assisted in Tachyon's training, so seeing her win filled him with pride and joy.
Observing the smile on his face, Tachyon's eyes sparkled as she tilted her head slightly.
"Guinea pig-kun, surely you haven't forgotten what you promised me earlier?"
Hearing this, Kitahara froze briefly.
Honestly, he genuinely considered feigning ignorance with something like "Hmm? What are you talking about?" or simply refusing outright. After all, he never explicitly agreed—she had just announced it unilaterally and dashed off before he could object. How could that count as an agreement?
But looking at the dirt and grass stains on her clothes from the race, and the rare, pure joy illuminating her face after achieving victory, Kitahara suddenly understood why so many trainers would lose control of the situation after a race.
Because resisting was too damn hard.
He knew perfectly well that Agnes Tachyon was fundamentally still that troublesome mad scientist; he knew this innocent-looking smile probably concealed a wicked agenda. He knew that one nod right now might doom him to disaster.
Yet…
Standing before him, fidgeting shyly with those oversized sleeves fluttering in soft, rhythmic pats, she looked nothing like her usual mad-scientist self. All he saw was the happiness of a young girl enjoying her first real victory.
No matter how she tried to maintain her usual composure, her uncontrollably bright smile and the excited flicking of her tail betrayed her true feelings.
She was genuinely happy—and she wanted to share that happiness with him.
Like a child who had just scored top marks on a test, she'd rushed home proudly waving her report card, eagerly awaiting praise and perhaps a small reward.
Whatever her past mischievousness, in this moment, Tachyon truly matched the pure-hearted, innocent image of Uma Musume that the outside world adored. Just looking at her would warm anyone's heart.
Should I reject her now?
Kitahara was well aware that he could easily shake his head, reminding her that he'd never actually agreed, and sternly advising her to quit getting any strange ideas.
With Tachyon's logical personality, she would soon understand his refusal without becoming too upset or lingering on it too long. It could even conveniently lower her growing affection level and help maintain a safe distance between them.
But if he were really capable of that, he wouldn't have found himself in his current perilous situation in the first place.
Sighing internally, he finally nodded in resignation.
"Alright, I remember. But I'm warning you—if your request is too outrageous, I'll pretend you never said anything. After all, I never explicitly agreed; you ran off before I could refuse."
After weighing his options, Kitahara decided on this compromise.
To flatly refuse Tachyon right now would be like telling a child proudly showing off her perfect exam results, "What does that have to do with me? Go play by yourself." It would be unnecessarily harsh.
Besides, he'd contributed to Tachyon's current success. Seeing the seed he'd planted bear fruit naturally made him happy, so giving her a small reward felt entirely appropriate.
Yet despite agreeing, Kitahara still set a firm limit—he had to. Tachyon was notorious around Tracen for her reckless experiments. Letting her run wild with this request could easily mean disaster.
That said, as long as it was something small and harmless, it probably wouldn't have too great an impact.
However, lost in his own thoughts, Kitahara completely missed the fact that Tachyon had momentarily frozen upon hearing his easy agreement.
Wait—what just happened?
Seeing Kitahara respond so quickly caught Tachyon completely off guard.
Despite her earlier playful confidence, Tachyon had never seriously expected him to agree to what was clearly a whimsical demand born from impulsiveness.
After all, she'd spent enough time around Kitahara to understand his cautious nature, particularly towards her. She'd never expected him to accept such an obviously childish demand in the first place; she'd just wanted to tease him a bit out of pure joy.
In fact, even if he'd refused, it wouldn't have mattered, as what she actually planned to do wouldn't have changed either way.
Originally, Tachyon had wanted to playfully tease Kitahara after the race by gifting him her shoes—the shoes she'd worn to her first victory.
This practice, known as "shoe gifting," was common among Uma Musume, symbolizing gratitude toward their trainers after achieving a win. Initially limited to trainer-tantou pairs with healthy relationships, it eventually became a widespread custom.
While winning trophies and medals were always awarded exclusively to Uma Musume, trainers usually received nothing tangible. So the act of gifting shoes—personal, meaningful items associated with victory—became a thoughtful and symbolic gesture, something trainers could cherish after their Uma Musume graduated and moved on.
Tachyon had originally intended to mischievously present her shoes after changing into spares, enjoying Kitahara's startled expression when he realized what was happening, and then teasing him mercilessly for it.
But now…
After regaining her senses, Tachyon felt mildly irritated by Kitahara's unexpected cooperation.
He's not sticking to the script!
Still, considering he'd finally shown some rare compliance, she shrugged it off and prepared to straightforwardly give him the shoes.
But just before she could open her mouth, an earlier memory suddenly flashed through her mind, igniting a daring impulse that halted her words in her throat.
"You alright?" Kitahara noticed her sudden pause.
"…It's nothing. Let's head back to the waiting room first."
Tachyon feigned composure, though her tail swished with noticeable excitement behind her.
Kitahara chalked it up to post-victory excitement, nodding without suspicion as he escorted her back to the room.
With everyone else still watching from the stands awaiting the winner's ceremony, only Kitahara and Tachyon were in the quiet waiting room. This might've seemed risky, but Kitahara wasn't worried.
First, he believed their relationship was strictly professional—a mad scientist and her test subject—without romantic complications. Second, even if Tachyon had some ulterior motives, he wasn't defenseless. She was still physically fragile, and he had plenty of means to protect himself, even from her notorious potions.
Reality soon proved his assumptions correct. Despite being alone together, Tachyon calmly retrieved her spare shoes and sat down quietly.
Yet when Kitahara looked over questioningly, Tachyon suddenly flashed a playful smile, placing the spare shoes aside before lifting her foot toward him.
"Help me change shoes."
"…Huh?" Kitahara wondered if he'd misheard.
"I said, help me change shoes."
Tachyon's voice took on a teasing tone, eyes gleaming mischievously as she gently swung her foot.
"Surely that isn't too much to ask?"
Technically, it wasn't.
But… Why now?
Kitahara stared at her blankly for a moment before realization struck.
Ah, she's probably just sulking because I didn't personally massage her legs earlier. Fine, whatever.
Shrugging inwardly, he moved forward to help her change shoes quickly, thinking he could send her off to the winner's ceremony promptly afterward.
Seeing him obediently approach, Tachyon's smirk deepened, eagerly imagining how she'd tease him during the process.
However, Tachyon had forgotten one crucial detail...
Though she constantly portrayed herself as an experienced, battle-hardened expert adept at manipulating Kitahara…
In reality, she was nothing but a sheltered novice with paper-thin defenses.