More than an hour later, in the luncheon hall.
Kitahara sat at the dining table, head lowered, staring blankly at the tabletop as if lost in thought.
Beside him, Symboli Rudolf and Sirius Symboli sat to his left and right. They exchanged not a single word, yet a subtle tension was steadily building between them.
How exactly they'd ended up like this… that went back an hour earlier.
At the time, Kitahara had no idea how to respond to the deadly question they'd posed.
Both had offered to help him; choosing either one now would feel pretty terrible.
As for saying, "I want both"—taking them both along—though it seemed like a solution, in reality, it was even worse than choosing just one.
Picking one or the other would, at worst, make things temporarily awkward. Given their personalities, neither Rudolf nor Sirius would likely hold such a minor issue against him.
But saying, "I want both," regardless of their actual feelings, would make it look like the Symboli family's two brightest stars had fallen into his hands.
Instantly, he'd become the center of attention—perhaps even overshadowing Rudolf herself—and who knew what kind of chaos would follow.
After careful consideration, Kitahara decided not to answer at all. Instead, struck by sudden inspiration, he changed the topic to his own circumstances.
"Wait—calm down a second. There's something on my end I need to explain first…"
Kitahara then told them about Kudou's messages from last night and how he'd initially been invited to a matchmaking meeting.
Since the discussion involved the "Black Market" and Kitahara's personal safety, Rudolf and Sirius put their earlier question aside for the moment and began analyzing the situation with him.
As for Kitahara's matchmaking meeting—once they'd reviewed Kudou's intel, Rudolf and Sirius helped him break that down, too.
They concluded the elderly Umamusume who'd invited him was probably someone important from a prominent family, but she must have gotten busy and temporarily forgotten about him today.
"No wonder you arrived so early. You were already supposed to be here beforehand…"
From then on, the atmosphere had relaxed significantly.
With lunchtime approaching, the three of them naturally continued chatting, eventually walking together to the dining hall and sitting down.
Only after sitting and feeling everyone's gaze on him did Kitahara suddenly realize something.
Wait a minute. Wasn't something wrong here?
He glanced at the two beside him, his expression turning complicated.
Wasn't this exactly the same as saying "I want both"?!
No—calmly considered, there was still a difference. If he had openly said "I want both," at least Rudolf and Sirius might have been more at ease.
But now, with no clear agreement—simply because he'd absent-mindedly sat with them—things had started off normal…
Then, as Rudolf and Sirius gradually came to their senses, that awkward atmosphere reappeared. Yet, with so many people watching, neither had the courage to openly react.
Which just made things worse!
Even though he was sitting on an expensive, comfortable chair, Kitahara felt like he was sitting on needles instead.
The worst part was that this wasn't the end—it was only the beginning.
As previously mentioned, because the Symboli pair had hardly attended such gatherings over the years and now carried multiple social "buffs," they were essentially the stars of this event. Countless people were probably here specifically for them. From the moment they appeared, all eyes had been on them.
Now, with Kitahara's appearance, all the attention directed at Rudolf and Sirius started shifting toward him instead, causing murmurs to spread among the guests.
What a sin.
At this point, Kitahara didn't have much choice left.
All he could do was silently thank Rudolf for tidying him up earlier—making him look a bit more suitable as her escort—and even providing him with a fresh set of clothes from Sirius.
If he'd shown up in the same state as when he first entered the hotel, he'd probably be drawing twice the attention he was now.
This thought slightly calmed him. Kitahara sighed, accepted reality, and began scanning the surroundings.
Then—after looking around—his mood suddenly improved, the corners of his lips lifting faintly into a smile.
"…What's wrong, Trainer Kitahara? Did you spot something?" Rudolf asked.
"I saw—No, it's nothing."
Kitahara had nearly pointed out several members of the grab-your-bucket-and-run group chat he'd spotted—those who'd been missing until now—but after some thought, he decided to spare them a little dignity in front of Rudolf.
In this faintly amused mood, time passed slowly.
Even with Kitahara seated between Rudolf and Sirius, his position was peculiar enough that outsiders couldn't determine if he was with Rudolf, Sirius—or surely not both?
Eventually, some who'd only watched from afar began making their moves.
"Good afternoon, Lady Rudolf, Lady Sirius, and this is…"
"Kitahara," he said.
"Ah, Mr. Kitahara. A pleasure…"
The visitor reached out and shook Kitahara's hand before glancing at the three empty seats remaining at their table.
"May I ask if these seats are taken? If not, would it be alright if I—"
Since it was a social gathering, seating arrangements at the luncheon weren't strictly fixed. Other than high-ranking family members who had private rooms, everyone else was mostly free to choose their seats, allowing younger guests room to mingle.
But before the man could finish his sentence, a gentle voice sounded from behind him.
"Sorry, but these seats are ours."
Kitahara looked up and saw Satono Diamond and Kitasan Black standing behind the man, having appeared unnoticed. They took their seats naturally, smiling at Kitahara.
"Good afternoon, Trainer."
Trainer?
The visitor froze slightly, then asked hesitantly,
"Lady Satono, this gentleman is…?"
"Mm-hmm. He's mine and Kitasan's Trainer—he's amazing."
Diamond smiled brightly as she spoke, sounding like a child proudly showing off a favorite toy.
The Satono family's young lady and Kitasan Black's Trainer…
Hearing Diamond's words, the visitor's gaze shifted thoughtfully.
If Rudolf and Sirius—the Symboli "twins"—were the biggest draws at this gathering, Satono Diamond and Kitasan Black came next, alongside the rumored Mejiro family genius who was staging a comeback.
Of course, Diamond and Kitasan's appeal had nothing to do with matchmaking. They'd only recently graduated from the junior division—anyone who entertained that thought deserved to be thrown behind bars.
Rather, their attention stemmed from the news that, after the New Year, these two were transferring directly into Tracen's main campus.
Considering their outstanding talent as Umamusume, combined with powerful family backgrounds, it was natural many Trainers had their eyes on them.
Kitahara Sota… The name rang a bell. Where had he heard it before…?
As the visitor pondered, another gentle female voice came from behind him.
"Excuse me—could you please step aside?"
Mejiro Ardan approached with a smile, calmly claiming the last empty seat.
"I'd like to sit with my Trainer."
Everyone else: "…?"
This time, it wasn't just the nearby onlookers—even Kitahara himself was stunned.
Since when had he become Ardan's Trainer?
While Kitahara was still frozen, Ardan silently mouthed an explanation.
'Trainer Kitahara, many people now know my health has improved. A lot of them want to become my Tantou. Please help me cover for this. You're the only person I know here.'
After reading Ardan's lips, Kitahara's eye twitched slightly. Then he glanced toward Satono Diamond and Kitasan Black.
They didn't say anything, but he didn't need explanations. Those two undoubtedly disliked being bothered by persistent suitors, and now they'd dragged him out as a shield.
No—he couldn't even call it "dragging him out." Technically, he'd already agreed to be their Trainer.
But why did it have to be now…?
As the atmosphere around the two "generals" beside him grew increasingly delicate, Kitahara felt immense pressure under the smiling gaze of the three new arrivals—as if the whole world's eyes were suddenly fixed upon him.
"…Sorry for the disturbance."
The visitor seemed to want to say more, but sensing the increasingly intense gazes around them, he merely gave Kitahara a complicated look before decisively retreating.
Afterward, perhaps due to the unusual atmosphere at Kitahara's table—even though it held some of the most influential guests in the room—no one else dared approach for quite some time, let alone strike up a conversation.
Meanwhile, as people recognized him more clearly, quiet murmurs spread through the hall. It wasn't long before snippets of gossip circulated widely.
"I heard he's Hayakawa-san's lover—yes, the 'Green Devil.' But I've also heard that's just a disguise…"
"I heard someone from Symboli say he's always with 'The Emperor,' constantly in and out of the Student Council. They even take care of kids together…"
"He's been working less than a year but already leads a team with double-digit Umamusume—and they're supposedly all incredibly attached…"
"He's more of a dense blockhead than even that legendary 'Three Heroes with Great Ambition.' Some wonder if he's blessed by the Three Goddesses—otherwise, how hasn't he been mare-jumped to death yet?"
Through waves of whispered conversations, rumors about Kitahara spread gradually. Gazes shifted from Why is he with those Umamusume? to genuine curiosity about Kitahara himself.
Seated far from the murmurs—and given the peculiar mood at his table—Kitahara couldn't clearly hear the details.
But even without specifics, the growing attention around him clearly indicated how bad the situation was becoming.
The worst part was that knowing did nothing to help him. In these circumstances, there wasn't much Kitahara could do.
People were merely whispering privately; he couldn't exactly run over and silence them.
Besides, since he'd agreed to Rudolf and Sirius's request to attract attention, he couldn't leave either. He had to maintain appearances to avoid causing trouble for them.
Unable to fix the situation or escape, all Kitahara could do was silently pray for a miracle.
Just as he was about to lose hope, Sirius Symboli suddenly let out a quiet "Hm?" She turned toward Kitahara, passing him her phone.
"Trainer Kitahara, I think you need to see this."
Huh? What now?
Confused, Kitahara took the phone. Displayed on the screen was a news webpage.
Following Sirius's finger, his eyes quickly landed on what she wanted him to see.
An article—with his name clearly visible.
[Exposing the Infamous Unscrupulous Trainer within Tracen—]
[Kitahara Sota]
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T/N: YES EXPOSE THIS PLAYBOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
UMMM WOW okay i need to change the bonus chapter rewards :SOB: dw you'll still get this week's bonus chapters ^_^
bonus chaps
200 stones -> 1 chapter
400 stones -> 2 chapters
600 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
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