Kitahara's first attempt at teaching Oguri Cap had ended in failure, but after adjusting his approach, he didn't feel discouraged.
"Looks like you're not suited for the rigid, textbook-style explanation I just gave," he said to the half-asleep Cap.
"Then for the next few days, just follow your usual routine. I'll observe for now; formal training can wait until school starts."
Having successfully recruited Cap into his team, Kitahara had no rush to start training.
It wasn't just because he trusted her talent. More importantly, he wanted to use the time before Central Tracen's exams to combine his experience with the head trainers, gain more professional knowledge, and thus teach Cap more effectively.
Oguri Cap, clearly pleased she didn't have to attend lessons, instantly perked up.
"Then… can I run on the track over there? I saw it earlier; it looks really nice to run on."
Standing up energetically from her chair, Cap pointed toward the office window, her fuzzy ears twitching and her tail wagging behind her.
Kitahara noticed her excitement. Twitching ears and wagging tail were signs of a horse girl's heightened emotion, though he didn't yet know what had her so excited.
"A track that's nice to run on?"
Repeating the phrase, Kitahara pushed the blackboard used for earlier explanations aside, puzzled. "A track that's nice to run on?"
"The one you can see from the cafeteria. It's huge, a big training ground."
Raising both hands high, she drew a large semicircle in the air to indicate just how big the field was. Her eyes shone with expectation. "Can I run there?"
From her description, Kitahara quickly realized she meant the training ground not far from the cafeteria.
It wasn't the largest in the academy and was mainly for sprint training, but the basic facilities were fine. For a horse girl, it was indeed a very comfortable place to run.
"Oh, that training ground, huh."
Nodding, Kitahara thought there was no need to teach Oguri Cap common knowledge right now and agreed.
"Sure, you can go run there first. I'll just observe your usual training level."
Cap became even more excited; her ears and tail wagged continuously as she dashed toward the office exit, with Kitahara following behind.
On the way, they chatted briefly.
"Trainer said you want to see my previous training, but I haven't really trained much," Oguri Cap said, shaking her head.
"Hmm… I just want to see how you run. I saw a bit this morning; your speed seemed pretty good, but seeing it firsthand is better," Kitahara replied casually.
"My speed… pretty good? Really? This morning in the garden, I just ran casually. I wasn't going that fast," Oguri Cap asked, puzzled.
"Uh…"
Kitahara was momentarily speechless. He had known Cap's potential was extreme, but he didn't expect her to think running 600 meters in around 40 seconds wasn't fast enough.
Still, this only proved her potential—she could definitely become an extraordinary horse girl.
Chattering as they walked, they soon arrived at the training ground.
There were already some people there, though not many—just two, the same trainer-and-horse girl combination as Kitahara and Oguri Cap.
The trainer was Kitahara's colleague, a broad-shouldered man in a suit, Shibasaki Hiroichi.
The horse girl, by coincidence, was also a gray-hair horse girl, just like Cap.
However, her hair color was slightly different—more silver, with softer, shinier strands, suggesting meticulous grooming.
Her demeanor was completely different from Cap's.
Cap wore an old light-gray tracksuit, her worn sneakers and pant legs covered in morning dust, looking like a classic "Cinderella" image.
The other horse girl wore a brand-new black-and-white Kasamatsu Academy uniform with pristine running shoes. Her aura was elegant and refined, like a well-bred young lady.
"Huh? Also gray-haired, and that demeanor… that must be the horse girl Shibasaki Hiroichi was after before—Fujimasa March."
Kitahara quickly recalled the name.
If it were another horse girl, he might not have recognized her.
But because he had been planning how to recruit Cap for over a month, many of his pre-crossing memories involved Cap. In those memories, "Fujimasa March" carried some weight.
Cap had 10 wins and 2 second-place finishes in local races; the horse girl who had beaten her twice was Fujimasa March.
"In the manga, March was also originally portrayed as Oguri Cap's rival, though later she couldn't truly compete with Cap…" Kitahara thought.
He also realized that in the story, Oguri Cap and Fujimasa March met during training races after enrolling. Now, thanks to him, they would meet early.
With that in mind, he stopped and signaled Cap to pause. The two on the training ground were talking.
"As for joining Mr. Shibasaki Hiroichi's team, I will discuss it with my family first. Please allow me to reply later," March's voice was gentle yet strong, her tone firm but well-mannered, showing excellent upbringing.
Shibasaki Hiroichi remained composed and steady, his neat hairstyle, tailored suit, and measured tone emphasizing his reliability:
"No problem. Your training level is already understood. From the test just now, I've also seen your excellence. I believe we'll make a great team."
To this, March only bowed politely, saying nothing further, then walked toward the edge of the training ground.
Kitahara and Oguri Cap stood at the training ground entrance, briefly making eye contact with March.
Seeing them, March paused slightly, bowed in turn, and then continued walking away.
Out of courtesy, Kitahara bowed, then, having no intention to communicate further, planned to take Oguri Cap to run on the training ground.
However, just as he was about to call her, he noticed Oguri Cap's expression had completely changed.
Gone was her usual vacant, dazed look. Her face was solemn, her gaze unusually serious.
Her eyes were fixed on the direction March had left.