Due to exhaustion last night, Kagura's sleep was unusually deep and peaceful.
What Kagura found incredible was that even though she'd slept so soundly, she still woke up at her usual time. Glancing at the clock, she realized she even had time to head to the cafeteria to make Rudolf ojou-sama some breakfast.
"Why…? Ah, that's right…"
When Rudolf opened her eyes and saw Kagura standing by her bedside once again, she momentarily froze, then recalled she'd handed Kagura the keys two days ago and had forgotten to ask for them back. It made perfect sense that Kagura would appear here again this morning.
Sitting up slowly, Rudolf instinctively scanned the room. As expected, her clothes were neatly prepared, hanging on the wardrobe door. The room was filled with a fresh, delicious aroma—something fishy—that made her mouth water involuntarily.
"…Kagura, I smell fish. Did you cook breakfast yourself?"
Clearly, such a dish wouldn't appear in Tracen's cafeteria, so it had to be Kagura's own handiwork.
"Yes~ Breakfast today is fish congee, Ojou-sama. Get up quickly and go wash up. It won't taste as good when it gets cold."
As Kagura spoke, she gently pulled Rudolf up from the bed.
Half-guided, half-pushed into the washroom by Kagura, Rudolf brushed her teeth while spending some time rebooting her brain.
…This child was so exhausted yesterday she had to be carried home by Nature-san. Is it really alright for her to wake up this early again?
Actually, Rudolf herself hadn't slept very well last night, leaving her somewhat groggy.
She suddenly found herself missing the rare, refreshing, high-quality sleep she'd enjoyed the night before last. Waking up refreshed and fully energized had been wonderful, doubling her efficiency the next day. The problem was, she had no idea why she'd slept so well that night.
Did I do anything special that night?
Struggling to recall what exactly had happened, Rudolf left the washroom, head full of question marks. Seeing Kagura tidying the room, carefully cleaning and arranging various items, Rudolf suddenly realized she might know what "special thing" she'd done two nights ago.
"Kagura."
"Yes?"
Holding a broom, Kagura paused her sweeping and turned to face Rudolf.
Rudolf guessed her excellent sleep quality that night likely had something to do with Kagura, but unsure whether it was really true, she wanted to ask Kagura to help test her theory. However, the words stuck in her throat—how could she possibly say something like, "Could you please sleep with me in my dorm tonight?"
Wait, why does that sentence sound so weird no matter how I put it?!
Even setting aside whether Kagura would accept such a request, Rudolf was afraid it'd just scare her off completely.
"What is it, Ojou-sama? Did you have something to tell me?"
Seeing Rudolf hesitating for so long, Kagura gently prompted, slightly puzzled.
"Uh…well…um, if I happen to overwork myself tonight, please remember to drag me back again."
"I would've done it even if you hadn't asked, Ojou-sama. Tojo-san specifically instructed me to pull you out of your office at a certain time."
Facing Kagura's innocent expression, Rudolf struggled internally for a while but ultimately lacked the courage to say the words. Hastily, she rushed out to begin her workday.
Kagura sensed something strange in Rudolf's behavior, but unable to pinpoint exactly what, she didn't dwell on it. She quickly finished tidying Rudolf's dorm and left shortly afterward.
With more free time on hand, Kagura planned to go buy ingredients and tackle a complicated recipe. Of course, before leaving campus, she first prepared breakfast for Nature-san and delivered it, then swung by the track to ensure no Mejiro Uma Musume were doing anything reckless again.
The morning track showed no sign of Ardan. Kagura guessed that after yesterday's collapse, Ardan wouldn't get permission to leave home easily, so not seeing her today made sense.
"Kagura-chan! Good morning!"
Although she didn't find any Mejiro family Uma, Kagura spotted another Uma Musume who instinctively made her want to take two steps back. Even from afar, Kagura clearly recognized her voice.
But Maruzensky didn't seem to be training today. It looked more like she'd just finished breakfast and was leisurely strolling on the field. She wore her school uniform rather than sports gear, without a trace of sweat on her.
"Morning, Maruzensky-san. I was just worried some students might recklessly train again despite their health, so I came to check."
"Ah, you mean Ardan-chan, right? I heard about yesterday's incident. Really scary, wasn't it? Good thing you were there, Kagura-chan."
"It scared me too. Noon-time, scorching heat, that track must've been fifty degrees at least. If she'd collapsed there, she would've literally become barbecue… I don't understand. Ardan-san's health is already so frail; why does she push herself so harshly?"
Kagura had heard something about Mejiro Ardan's physical condition and genuinely couldn't comprehend why she would continue training in that state, even secretly from her family and trainer.
"Ardan-chan is stubborn like that… Sigh. Everyone knows she can't run much, but she genuinely loves it and desperately wants to bring honor to her family. Sadly, fate hasn't been kind to her."
"It really is unfortunate…"
Both sighed softly while discussing Ardan. Maruzensky seemed quite familiar with her, probably because of Rudolf's connections.
"Oh right, Kagura-chan, now that you've checked Ardan isn't here, what are your plans afterward?"
"I wanted to cook a special dish. It requires very fresh, high-quality ingredients that Tracen's kitchen can't provide right now, so I woke up early planning to buy groceries from outside."
Kagura intended to prepare a highly complicated hometown specialty—something extremely challenging and rarely cooked in daily life. She had two reasons: firstly, she wanted to treat her friends to something special, and secondly, she'd settled on a direction for her videos, deciding to become a food content creator. This dish would become material for her first video.
"Oh~ That sounds exciting! If you're going shopping for ingredients, why not let big sis tag along with you?"
Maruzensky visibly perked up upon hearing about the shopping trip—whether genuinely helpful or just greedy for good food, Kagura couldn't quite tell.
"If you'd like to come along, Maruzensky-san, I have no objections. Thanks in advance for your help, then."