"Question! What are you two doing here!?"
After finishing a busy day's work, Akikawa Yayoi had come to the cafeteria hoping she'd be lucky enough to find Kagura still cooking and maybe score a meal. But as soon as she entered, she immediately spotted two suspicious "students" in the usual corner seat, along with Nice Nature and the recently returned Mejiro Ardan.
Seeing so many people gathered, it basically confirmed that Kagura was indeed cooking here today. But that also meant Kagura was probably overloaded again—and possibly that Yayoi would be out of luck getting her meal!
"I'm just worried about my grandchild, so I came over to take a look. I didn't want to disturb you students—don't worry, I'm not here to steal your meal."
Old Mejiro knocked Yayoi lightly on the head, explaining the situation rather helplessly.
"And I'm worried about my Kagura-chan too, so I came by to check on her. Wasn't she supposed to be on break today? Why is she working again?"
Symboli Speed had given Kagura a week off specifically so she could properly rest, yet Kagura had somehow made herself busy again, leaving Speed completely baffled.
Yayoi had excused Kagura from theory classes, meaning she didn't need to attend them regularly and had more free time than most students. Her intention had been for Kagura to relax or spend more time as she pleased—but it seemed this child was always determined to find work for herself.
Nice Nature sat quietly nearby, nervously listening as the adults discussed Kagura's schedule, hearing many tasks she'd never heard Kagura mention before. Watching this scene—almost like a court convened to judge someone—Nature wondered if she should speak up. She feared accidentally saying something wrong and ending up tied up and tossed into Tokyo Bay.
"Ardan, weren't you following Kagura-chan around today? What exactly was she doing?"
"Ah... Kagura-san seemed to be preparing for the upcoming selection race."
After hesitating for a moment, Ardan decided to answer honestly.
"The school selection race? But Kagura hasn't even reached maturation yet—what's she busying herself for?"
When Speed heard that Kagura was busying herself with preparations for the selection race, her first reaction was that Kagura had finally decided to find a trainer—perhaps she needed to personally oversee this. But upon reconsideration, Kagura hadn't even reached maturity yet; there was no reason for her to participate.
"Um… I'm the one competing in the selection race…"
Realizing sooner or later they'd question her directly, Nature spoke up first. Instantly, Yayoi and the two elderly Uma Musume turned their gazes toward Nature, making her shrink with sudden pressure. After a nervous pause, Nature finally revealed everything Kagura had done today.
"This is simply nonsense…"
After hearing the full story, Symboli Speed felt a deep wave of helplessness. Indeed, this was precisely something Kagura would do. According to Trainer Tojo's feedback over the past months, Kagura was incredibly intelligent and diligent, possessing a surprisingly solid grasp of trainer knowledge.
Moreover, Kagura could freely test theories on herself at any time. The practical difficulties that usually plagued rookie trainers were basically non-existent for her—she could solve almost anything through trial and error on herself.
"Trainer Tojo mentioned Kagura could already fulfill the role of a rookie trainer completely. It seems that's entirely true."
"Suggestion! After the selection race, maybe we should send Kagura-chan back to Symboli estate for a while. If she stays at school, she'll never get proper rest."
Yayoi knew Kagura's personality well enough. If she remained at Tracen, she'd never stop finding tasks to occupy herself. The best solution might be to send her back home to Symboli estate for forced relaxation. Although this meant Yayoi couldn't freeload meals for a while, the sacrifice seemed worthwhile.
Hearing this suggestion, Nature stiffened slightly. She indeed wanted Kagura to rest—but if Kagura returned home to Symboli estate, wouldn't that mean Nature couldn't see her for quite some time?
"Ardan, you're her roommate, right? Could you perhaps invite Kagura out somewhere fun? Or maybe you know what Kagura likes? If we could find something enticing, maybe we could convince her to go out and unwind."
Old Mejiro had been frowning just listening to this conversation. If this were her own grandchild pushing herself this way, she'd have already taken her home for a forced break.
"Kagura-san's hobbies… I'm not sure. She's quite difficult to read."
Ardan shook her head lightly. She'd only just moved in recently, and Kagura rarely showed personal preferences, so she had no way of knowing.
"M-maybe... I could do it? I think… I might know what Kagura-chan likes…"
Seeing everyone out of ideas, Nature timidly raised her hand. She wasn't fully confident, but she remembered Kagura mentioning before that food was one of her greatest passions. Kagura loved tasting new dishes, and even more, replicating them herself. Finding delicious snacks happened to be Nature's specialty—provided she had ample time to prepare. Otherwise, she'd malfunction on the spot, just like the last time they'd gone out together spontaneously.
"You think you can do it? Well, maybe that'd work best. Kagura might listen more willingly if it's her friend inviting her."
Symboli Speed nodded approvingly. Compared to elders like themselves, surely someone Kagura's own age, like Nature, would be more persuasive.
"What's going on here? Why are you all clustered around like it's a meeting?"
Just then, Kagura emerged from the kitchen, pushing a small serving cart. She noticed the group crowded around the table, talking intensely. While setting dishes down, she casually asked.
"N-n-nothing! Just talking about some normal everyday stuff!!"
Startled by Kagura's sudden appearance, the already-nervous Nature stuttered terribly.
"Really? Then why are you panicking so much, Nature?"
"That's because you suddenly came up behind me and scared me!"
"Oh, just that scared you? Nature, you're surprisingly timid~"
Kagura teased Nature gently as she placed dishes on the table. Because of the unexpected guests today, she hadn't prepared enough ingredients, and Tracen's kitchen supplies had nearly run out. Thus, apart from Nature's and Rudolf Ojou-sama's meals—which were made strictly according to nutritional standards—the others only received fried rice.
"Sorry, Speed-sama, I didn't know you were coming today, so I only managed to make fried rice. If you're hungry, just bear with it a bit."
"I don't mind… Honestly, you didn't even need to prepare something for me. Aren't you tired, Kagura?"
Symboli Speed didn't particularly care what she ate. Having tasted Kagura's cooking before, she knew even ordinary fried rice would be delicious. Her concern was more about Kagura wearing herself out.
"I'm fine… I don't really feel tired. By the way, Nature, you exercised a lot today. I need to massage your legs a bit. Is your roommate in the dorm?"
"You mean Nice Nature? Usually, yes. Why do you ask?"
"I wanted to massage you there, but I don't want to disturb anyone or cause a misunderstanding."
Although Eclipse-san had explained the reasons for Uma Musume leg sensitivity, Kagura still couldn't accept it fully—especially since Nature made rather misleading noises every time she massaged her. Kagura feared the disciplinary committee would break in and drag her away someday.
"Why not come to our dorm, Nature-san? I don't mind at all."
Mejiro Ardan paused eating her fried rice to offer the suggestion, her interest piqued about Kagura's massage process.
"If Ardan-san doesn't mind, that's fine with me."
Kagura had only asked because she worried Ardan disliked noisy interruptions. After all, Kagura wasn't a proper trainer with her own massage room. At this hour, it wasn't convenient to ask Trainer Tojo for access either, so the dorm was their only option. Since Ardan didn't mind, doing it there would be fine.
Meanwhile, Old Mejiro silently devoured her fried rice, occasionally glancing sideways at Speed's untouched bowl. Speed, knowing her old friend had skipped lunch and waited all day, simply pushed her plate towards Old Mejiro.
"How about it? Didn't I tell you her cooking was fantastic?"
"Shut it, or I'll lose control and punch you…"
Head down, Old Mejiro ate stubbornly, refusing to engage with the smug Speed. She'd never felt more keenly what it meant for someone to rub their luck directly into your face.
"Heh, petty as ever. When you snatched my trainer years ago, I didn't give you that kind of attitude."
"Don't slander me! He chose me willingly—how is that snatching?!"
"Yeah, sure. What goes around comes around."
"Tch. Why does it have to come around now…"
Muttering moodily while eating, Old Mejiro looked like a sulking schoolgirl. Seeing her in that school uniform brought back nostalgic memories of their racing days, making Speed smile fondly.
"Are you planning to have Kagura compete under the Symboli name someday?"
"If she wants to, why not? But if not, I won't force her. I'd rather let her fly free."
"You're still too kind, even after all these years."
"If I'd been ruthless like you, would you ever have gotten that trainer?"
"Can we stop talking about the trainer already?"
"Oh, by the way, I found Kagura a few months ago."
"You…!"
Old Mejiro almost slammed her hand down on the table, but stopped herself at the last second, choosing instead to poke Speed's forehead sharply in annoyance.
"Haha, you're adorable when you're angry, old friend."
"Shut up. Who asked you…"
Old Mejiro stubbornly resumed eating. Speed, satisfied, finally noticed the curious eyes of Yayoi and the young Uma Musume silently watching their exchange.
"That was amazing! Don't stop now!" Yayoi grinned expectantly.
"Quiet! Just eat your dinner!"