As the next morning came...
The academy slowly came to life beneath the gentle morning sun.
Students poured through the gates as usual, filling the corridors with lively chatter before classes began.
Yet...
Something was different.
Instead of arriving alongside her usual companion—
King had come alone.
Much earlier than usual.
With her school bag resting neatly over one shoulder, she quietly made her way through the corridors toward her classroom.
And as she passed one of the classrooms...
The three familiar figures happened to notice her.
"Is that King?"
El looked toward the hallway.
Grass followed her gaze.
"...It is." She blinked.
"But..."
"Where's Urara?"
"I wonder if something happened between the two of them."
Meanwhile, Seiun Sky remained slumped over her desk as though she were still half asleep.
Her face was buried in her folded arms.
At least...
That's what it looked like.
Hidden beneath her sleeves, her one eye quietly peeked open.
Without El or Grass noticing...
She silently watched King disappear down the corridor.
Her gaze lingered for a few moments longer.
As if trying to piece together what had happened.
Something...
Had changed.
Again.
And whatever it was...
It had clearly affected both King and Urara.
...
...
...
Not long after...
The morning bell rang, signaling the start of classes.
Soon, the classroom settled into silence.
At the front, Ishida stood behind his desk, flipping through the day's textbook before beginning the lesson.
One by one, the students took out their notebooks and textbooks.
Pens were clicked, and pages turned.
Several students even uncapped their highlighters, ready to mark down the important parts of the lecture.
Everyone was prepared.
Except...
One seat remained empty, Urara's.
Ishida paused midway through opening his textbook.
His eyes drifted toward the vacant desk.
"...Hmm." He glanced around the room.
"Has anyone seen Urara this morning?"
"Is she coming to class?"
The classroom instantly fell into a soft murmur.
Students exchanged confused looks and quietly whispered among themselves.
No one raised a hand.
No one had an answer.
Among them...
Despite knowing the truth, King, too, remained silent.
She stared straight ahead without reacting.
Her eyes were fixed on the front of the classroom, yet they seemed strangely unfocused.
As though her thoughts were somewhere else entirely.
Until—
"King." Ishida suddenly called her.
And King visibly jolted.
"Y-Yes?!" she stammered.
Straightened in her seat as she startled out of her thoughts.
There, Ishida looked at her.
"Have you seen Urara?"
"Do you happen to know if she's at school today?"
Since neither Ishida nor most of the class knew the two shared a dormitory, the question seemed perfectly natural.
King parted her lips.
"I... I don't know—"
Suddenly—
*BANG!*
Before she could finish—
The classroom's sliding door burst open with a loud crash.
The entire room jumped.
Every pair of eyes turned toward the entrance.
Standing proudly in the doorway was a familiar pink-haired Umamusume.
One hand raised high in salute.
A confident grin stretched across her face.
"Urara reporting for duty!" she declared at the top of her lungs.
And it was none other than Urara herself.
In the meantime...
Something about her immediately caught everyone's attention.
Her hair, it was completely down.
Usually, it was neatly tied up before class.
Today, however...
It flowed freely behind her as though she hadn't bothered fixing it at all.
After all...
Without King helping her get ready that morning...
Urara had eventually given up trying to tie it herself.
Even Ishida blinked in surprise.
And her sudden entrance had startled him more than he cared to admit.
Without long, he cleared his throat.
"Y-You're late, Urara."
Urara scratched the back of her head sheepishly.
"I'm sorry!"
"I had a really nice dream last night..."
"So I kind of overslept."
At that response, Ishida simply sighed.
"Fine..."
"Just go ahead and take your seat."
"We're only just about to begin today's lesson."
"But please try not to be late again."
"Yes, sir!" Urara once again saluted enthusiastically.
Then she happily skipped toward her desk.
As she passed by, Ishida's eyes briefly lingered on her untied hair.
"A new hairstyle...?" He quietly muttered to himself.
With Urara finally seated, the lesson resumed.
She immediately began rummaging through her backpack, searching for her notebook with her usual carefree energy.
Meanwhile...
Behind her...
King silently watched.
Her eyes rested on Urara's loose hair.
Her hand slowly tightened into a fist beneath the desk.
Her expression shifted ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly.
As guilt quietly settled into her heart...
...
...
...
As lunch break arrived, the cafeteria quickly filled with students chatting over their meals.
Like every other day...
Urara made her way to the same table where her friends were already waiting.
The moment she sat down beside them, she beamed.
"Hi, guys!"
The three of them looked up at once.
Then...
Their eyes drifted to her hair.
For a brief second, all three stumped.
"New hairstyle...?" And the exact thought crossed their minds.
Before anyone could ask, Urara rubbed the back of her head apologetically.
"I'm sorry I couldn't come talk to you guys this morning!"
"I overslept!"
El immediately laughed and gave her a thumbs-up.
"It's okay, amiga!"
"We always meet during lunch anyway, don't we?"
"Yep!" Urara grinned.
Then Grass spoke up gently.
"...Urara."
"Hm?"
"Did something happen between you and King?"
"You two seemed..."
"...distant."
Urara tilted her head.
"Really?" She blinked innocently.
"I didn't notice."
"Maybe she was just busy?"
"Hmm..."
El rested a finger on her chin.
"But she usually comes to school with you, too, doesn't she?"
"And today... She didn't."
Grass nodded.
"And she also ignored you this morning."
"She hasn't joined us for lunch either."
"It almost feels..." She hesitated.
"...like she's deliberately keeping her distance from you."
Urara looked down for a moment.
Then she shrugged with her usual smile.
"Maybe she's getting ready for a race?"
"...Maybe." Seiun Sky finally lifted her head from the table.
Her half-lidded eyes quietly settled on Urara.
"...Or maybe..."
"...she just doesn't want to be around us anymore."
"What?!" El's eyes widened in surprise.
"Why would she do that?!"
Seiun Sky merely shrugged.
"Who knows...?"
"Maybe she convinced herself she doesn't need us anymore."
"People do that sometimes."
"They come up with excuses in their own heads."
"They start believing they're better off alone."
"Especially when they're chasing something they thought they wanted for a long time."
El's ears drooped.
"That's not right..."
For a brief moment, silence settled over the table.
Then—
"Hahaha!"
Urara suddenly burst into laughter.
The others instantly turned to her.
"You guys are funny!" She smiled as brightly as ever.
"King would never leave us."
"She's our friend, remember?"
"And friends don't abandon their friends."
She then happily picked up another bite of her lunch.
"I'm sure she's just busy."
"That's all."
With that, Urara continued eating as though the matter had already been settled.
Across the table, Grass, El, and Sei quietly exchanged glances.
None of them shared Urara's certainty.
Still...
Seeing how confidently she smiled...
They couldn't bring themselves to press the subject any further.
The three simply sighed almost in unison.
"Let's... leave it at that."
Before long, the conversation naturally drifted toward lighter topics.
And the four of them continued eating lunch together...
...
...
...
A few hours later...
The final bell finally echoed throughout the academy, and classrooms burst into life once more.
One after another, Umamusume hurried out into the corridors.
Some rushed toward the training grounds.
Others headed back to their dorms.
And among them, Urara practically shot out of her classroom.
"Training time!"
She threw both fists into the air with her usual excitement.
After taking a few steps, she instinctively stopped.
She turned around with a bright smile.
"King!"
"Let's go train together!"
However... when she did...
Silence.
No single answer came, let alone her presence.
There, Urara blinked, taken aback slightly.
"King...?" She muttered as she looked back into the classroom.
The seat behind hers was already empty.
Yet... King wasn't there.
She then glanced down the corridor.
Then toward the staircase.
Nowhere.
Usually, King would already be walking behind her, complaining about her endless energy while reluctantly following along.
Yet today...
Just like that morning...
King wasn't beside her.
It was as though she had quietly stepped out of Urara's daily routine.
There, Urara remained standing for a few seconds.
Her head slowly tilted.
"King...? Where are you?"
Meanwhile...
Not long afterward...
On the training field...
King was already running laps with Yuiji, timing her from the sidelines.
As she crossed the finish line—
*Click*
Yuiji stopped the stopwatch.
He lowered it and frowned.
He had felt it since yesterday.
Something was wrong.
First...
King had completely ignored Urara during training.
Unlike the outburst she'd had before, this wasn't anger.
It was a distance. A cold, deliberate distance.
She barely even acknowledged Urara's presence anymore.
Whenever Urara spoke to her, she either gave the shortest reply possible...
Or none at all.
As though Urara were simply another passerby.
And that worried him.
While... Today was no different.
In fact...
King's performance had slipped even further.
Her times were longer, her movements lacked conviction, and her focus wandered.
It was as though she wasn't truly running with her whole heart anymore.
As though...
Something...
Or perhaps...
Someone...
Had taken hold of her thoughts.
Until—
"Trainer."
King casually walked over to Yuiji after finishing another run.
"How did I do?"
Yuiji blinked, snapping out of his thoughts.
"O-Oh! Y-You did..."
He looked down at the stopwatch in his hand.
"...Uh..."
The words somehow caught in his throat; he simply didn't know how to tell her.
How her performance had declined again.
Not by much.
But enough for him to notice.
Before he could come up with an answer, King quietly spoke.
"I'm getting worse..." She lowered her gaze.
"...Aren't I?"
Yuiji's eyes widened.
"W-What?!"
"N-No!"
He hurriedly waved both hands.
"Of course not!"
"You're just..."
"...stumbling a little."
"That's all."
"Stumbling...?"
King repeated under her breath.
Her eyes slowly fell to the ground.
"I..."
Just as she was about to continue—
"King!" The same cheerful voice she knew echoed across the training field.
"There you are!"
Urara enthusiastically waved both hands as she ran toward them.
Not far behind her...
Seiun Sky lazily followed at her usual pace.
The moment King heard Urara's voice...
Her shoulders visibly stiffened.
Without turning around, she looked back toward the track.
"L-Let's continue." She spoke quietly.
"Huh?" Yuiji blinked.
"Wha-What about your friend?"
King shook her head.
"She'll be fine without me..."
"Let's just... go."
Without waiting for a reply, she briskly walked back toward the starting line.
"King!"
Urara called again.
This time, she was much closer.
But King silently lowered herself into her starting stance.
Determined not to turn around.
Yuiji slowly raised the whistle toward his lips.
Just before he could blow it—
Urara finally reached them.
She stopped beside the track with her usual bright smile.
"King!" Urara came to a stop beside them, slightly out of breath but still smiling.
"There you are!"
"I've been looking everywhere for you!"
King let out a quiet sigh before finally turning to face her.
"I'm busy." She gestured toward the track.
"I'm training."
"Can't you see?"
"Whoa!" Urara's ears perked up immediately.
"Can I join?"
"Can I join too?!"
Yuiji instinctively smiled while scratching his face.
"Sure, you c—"
"No." But King interrupted.
She slowly rose from her starting stance and looked directly at Urara.
"Not today." She hesitated.
"...Maybe..."
"...Not ever."
Urara blinked.
"...What?"
"Why?"
King remained silent for a brief moment before answering.
"Because..."
"You're not on my level, Urara."
"And all you're doing..."
"...is slowing me down."
"I..."
"I can't keep improving like this."
Urara's smile gradually faded.
"...I'm..."
"...not on your level?"
She lowered her head.
"But..."
"I thought we were doing well together..."
King closed her eyes.
"Maybe you were."
"But I wasn't."
Urara quickly looked back up.
"But I thought—"
King interrupted before she could finish.
"Have you ever stopped to think how selfish you've been?"
Instantly, Urara froze.
"Every single day..."
"You insist on training with me."
"And every single day..."
"I'm the one who has to slow down."
"I'm the one who has to match your pace."
She clenched her fist.
"Tell me."
"How am I supposed to become faster..."
"...if I constantly have to lower my own limits just to keep up with yours?"
"But have you ever thought about that?" Her voice lowered.
"Have you ever considered how I feel?"
"My own goals."
"My own progress."
"My own future."
"Or were you only thinking about your own shortcomings..."
"...and relying on me to make up for them?"
Urara stood speechless while King drew a slow breath.
"Grow up, Urara."
Her fist tightened at her side.
"You're not a primary school student anymore."
"So stop clinging to me..."
"And learn to stand on your own."
Then King quietly delivered the final words.
"Because..."
"...I'm not..."
"...your mother."
With those words...
Urara fell silent.
Her head slowly lowered.
Her hands curled into trembling fists.
For a long moment...
She said nothing.
Until—
"I..." She stammered.
"I'm sorry, King..."
She forced out a small smile despite her lowered gaze.
"I'm sorry for being..."
"...such a burden to you."
King's eyes widened.
Her hand instinctively rose to her chest, clenching tightly against her shirt.
"I'm sorry for thinking..." Urara continued.
"...that training together would help both of us."
"I really thought it did..."
"But..." She looked down.
"I guess..."
"...I was wrong."
Another brief silence followed.
Then—
Urara suddenly lifted her head.
A familiar spark of determination lit up her eyes.
She raised a clenched fist beside her face.
"But!"
"I promise I'll become faster!"
"So one day..."
"We can train together again!" Her smile returned.
"And then we'll be friends again!"
She pointed confidently toward King.
"Just wait, King!"
"I promise I'll beat you in a race someday!"
"And then..."
"You'll finally see me!"
"I'll become someone who's worthy of being your friend!"
"Just like how Mary-chan and I did!"
She then placed a hand over her chest.
"Because I..."
"...Haru Urara..."
"...will never abandon a friend!"
King's body visibly shook upon hearing that, and her fists tightened even harder.
"And friends..."
"...never abandon their friends!"
"So just wait! King!"
"I promise!"
With that, without another word, Urara turned and began running away from the training field once again.
Leaving the track behind.
Seiun Sky instinctively reached out toward her retreating figure.
"Urara...!"
But before Seiun could catch up to her...
Urara had already disappeared into the distance.
There, King remained motionless.
One hand was pressed tightly against her chest.
Her fingers trembled as they clenched the fabric of her uniform.
Nearby, Yuiji quietly watched her, and his frown deepened.
"King..."
The silence lingered for several moments.
Until...
King took a slow breath before she stated.
"Let us continue the training..."
"I don't want to waste the daylight we still have."
There, Yuiji hesitated.
His lips parted, and he wanted to object.
Everything he had seen today told him the same thing.
King wasn't in the right state to train.
Not today.
Perhaps not until she sorted out whatever was weighing on her heart.
Just as he was about to speak—
Someone else beat him to it.
"You know, King..." It was Seiun Sky.
"...That wasn't very cool."
King slowly turned toward her.
Sei continued with the same calm expression.
"Sure."
"Urara isn't as fast as we are."
"And she isn't as polished either."
"But..."
"That doesn't mean you get to tear her down like that."
King instantly clicked her tongue.
"Tsk..."
"And what gives you the right to lecture me again, Sei?"
"Our business isn't yours to interfere with."
She folded her arms.
"And besides..."
"Coming from someone like you?"
"You spend half your time sleeping and looking for shortcuts."
"Wouldn't having one less thing to worry about suit you better?"
She narrowed her eyes.
"Seiun Sky..."
Sei simply shrugged.
"Well... I don't know..."
"Didn't you hear what Urara said?"
"A friend never abandons a friend."
Then...
Her expression became unusually serious.
"Just like how I won't abandon her..."
"...The way you just did."
King's eyes sharpened.
"What exactly are you trying to imply...?"
Sei shrugged, then smiled again.
"How about..."
"...a friendly race?"
King let out a short scoff.
"A race?"
"You?"
"Against me?"
She shook her head.
"Have you lost your mind?"
Sei's smile remained unchanged.
"Don't underestimate people, King."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Or have you already forgotten what happened with the race you shared with El and Grass?"
King's expression stiffened as Sei took one step forward.
"Just like you shouldn't underestimate Urara."
She then looked directly into King's eyes.
"Because..."
"...you don't know the first thing about me."
"Yet."