For most Uma Musume, they're typically scouted by trainers in internal selection races at Tracen even before their debut race.
After that, the Uma Musume would train under their trainer, honing their skills until the trainer deems them ready to officially debut.
Dream Weaver didn't bother with such selections. Winning her debut race was practically a given. Rather than waste time building rapport with a trainer before entering, she decided to treat the debut race itself as her stage.
She would win with absolutely dazzling brilliance, and make those trainers come to her.
But then, the day after her debut race, when Dream Weaver confidently stepped onto Tracen's track, the expected swarm of trainers rushing to invite her was nowhere to be seen.
'Did the trainers just assume any Uma Musume in a debut race must already have been chosen?'
She wondered, puzzled.
It couldn't be that Tracen's trainers were all blind to her talent, right? She'd won by a huge margin—even a blind man could tell from the cheers alone.
The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
She also noticed that whenever she glanced toward the trainers gathered by the track, they'd awkwardly look away, as if deliberately avoiding her.
Finally, tired of guessing, Dream Weaver decided to just pick one lucky trainer from the group to answer her questions.
She immediately strode toward them, causing a stir among the trainers clustered trackside; they began shoving each other, trying to put someone else in front.
By the time she arrived, a young trainer, clearly new to Tracen, had been pushed out front.
Dream Weaver glanced past him at the trainers hiding behind him, now whistling innocently at the sky, and couldn't help but feel exasperated.
In a way, their coordination was impressive, but even an idiot could tell something was up with how they were acting.
She turned her attention away from the old-timers, looked up at the nervous young trainer, and said:
"Well? Care to explain?"
The young trainer broke out in a cold sweat but still tried to play dumb.
"E-explain what?"
Faced with such a weak attempt, Dream Weaver didn't even feel like arguing. She just pointed wordlessly at the sky-gazing trainers behind him and stared.
"Go easy on the kid, I think his brain's about to short-circuit."
Just as the young trainer's mental gears were whirring into overdrive, threatening to crash, a middle-aged man's voice spoke up from behind Dream Weaver.
She turned to see a middle-aged trainer in a gray cap who looked somewhat familiar.
After a moment's scrutiny, she ventured:
"You're… Narita Top Road's trainer, right?"
"Oh? You remembered me after just one distant glimpse at the racetrack? Pretty good memory."
He chuckled as he walked over, patted the young trainer on the shoulder, and gestured for him to leave.
"Thank you, Mr. Oki!"
The trainer bowed to Oki, then wiped his sweat and hurried off.
Dream Weaver didn't stop him. Only after he'd left did she slowly say to Oki:
"Well? Care to explain?"
"Let's talk somewhere else—still too many people here."
Instead of answering directly, Oki smiled and pointed to a bench on the far side of the track.
Once they'd walked over and sat down, Oki glanced around to make sure no one was nearby before speaking.
"Wondering why no trainers are approaching you?"
"After that scene, anyone who wouldn't find it strange would be the weird one."
"So, why? And why all the secrecy, shooing everyone else away? What is this, 'The Dark Truth of Tracen' or something?"
Dream Weaver's tone was annoyed. First, her plan had failed, then she'd been avoided like the plague by all those trainers—no matter how you looked at it, she had a right to be angry.
Okita laughed heartily before replying.
"No 'dark truth' here—you've been spending too much time on the school forums, kid."
"The trainers are avoiding you because of you, actually."
Dream Weaver pointed at herself, puzzled.
"Avoiding me? Why? Am I the type of Uma Musume who flies into a kicking rage the second she sees a trainer?"
"I really hope that kind of Uma Musume is just something you made up."
Okita gave a wry smile, cleared his throat, and then spoke to Dream Weaver with a serious expression.
"To be precise, it's because of your mother, Goodbye Halo."
"As her daughter, you might not grasp the weight of that name, but to us trainers, it's legendary."
"After all, she's a world-class Uma Musume."
"She sought out the trainers herself and asked us not to recruit you. Who would dare say no to that?"
The answer left Dream Weaver's mind reeling. She never would've guessed Goodbye Halo was behind it.
But why would she do that? What could she possibly gain by preventing her own daughter from finding a trainer?
Stunned by the revelation, Dream Weaver didn't stop to think—she instinctively rose from the bench, looking ready to confront Goodbye Halo immediately.
Seeing her fierce expression, Oki didn't try to stop her, but added:
"No use looking for her. You've been living at school, so you might not know—she went abroad a few days ago for an exhibition."
Hearing this, Dream Weaver immediately pulled out her phone, ready to dial Goodbye Halo's number using the international format. But the moment her fingers touched the screen, she realized she didn't know which country she was in.
To make an international call, you needed the country code first.
She instinctively looked toward Oki.
He just shrugged helplessly.
"You think she didn't anticipate this? She's probably changed her number by now."
Only then did it sink in for Dream Weaver. She gripped her phone tightly and murmured:
"Avoiding me, huh…"
Without even facing her, she'd used her influence to make the trainers steer clear. What was she trying to do?
Watching Dream Weaver purse her lips and lower her head in thought, Oki looked away and gazed at the sky as if talking to himself.
"Trainers shape an Uma Musume's future. Choosing one requires parental notification."
"Even if she hadn't preemptively warned everyone, she could've just rejected them one by one until they gave up."
"But to say it upfront and then avoid you like this…"
"She probably doesn't want your relationship to turn sour, either—"
Dream Weaver, standing beside him, silently tightened her grip on the phone. Her tone was calm, unreadable.
"And that's an excuse to treat me like a puppet?"
Oki turned to look at her. Her bangs covered her eyes, hiding her expression.
He sighed deeply and gazed up at the sky.
"Who knows? I've never been a mother, after all—"
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.