"Hey, you're not planning to pull another prank on this special admit, are you? Don't do anything nasty."
Norn Ace tapped her well-manicured fingers on Mini the Lady's desk, urging her to drop any malicious ideas.
"We promised Oguri Cap, remember? We said we'd behave better from now on."
"Pfft, of course I remember. I'm just planning to give the new girl a little welcome gift, that's all."
Mini the Lady immediately tucked away her little notebook, putting on an innocent expression that made Norn Ace roll her eyes in disgust.
"Do you really think I don't know you? You're the biggest troublemaker among the three of us. But whatever—go ahead with your harmless little jokes if you must. Just don't actually make her angry, got it?"
Resting her forehead in her hand, Norn Ace sighed and waved Mini the Lady off, telling her to tone it down.
"Mhm, mhm."
Mini the Lady nodded, thinking to herself, 'I don't even need to do anything special. That little issue is bound to trip her up as long as I don't warn Norn Ace. Heh, it's not like I'll be the embarrassed one when it happens.'
"Alright then, Miss Nearl, there's a spot at the very back of the classroom. How's your eyesight?"
The balding teacher at the podium glanced at the clock, decided it was about time, and tapped his desk to quiet the students before assigning Nearl her seat.
"No problem, teacher. My eyesight is excellent. I can see the blackboard clearly even from the last row."
Nearl had no objections to the seating arrangement. In fact, sitting in the back row suited her just fine for self-study. She'd already mastered everything being taught in class—what she really wanted to learn now was trainer-related knowledge, something Tracen Academy in Kasamatsu certainly wouldn't cover. So for now, self-study was her only option.
Under the gaze of her classmates, Nearl calmly made her way to the last row, sat down, and pulled out a stack of books and notebooks from her bag, neatly organizing everything before diving into her studies.
"Hey, am I seeing things, or are those books way beyond our level?"
"No way, who could possibly study something that thick?"
The trio who'd been watching Nearl felt genuinely startled. They instinctively glanced down at their own finger-thick textbooks, then back at the brick-like tomes on Nearl's desk, feeling like something was seriously off.
"I've never actually seen a book thicker than a person's head before. Is she really studying that?!"
"What kind of genius horse girl is she?! Everyone who comes to Tracen Academy wants to be an Uma Musume, right? Who actually focuses on classes and exams?"
Right then and there, the trio's impression of Nearl quickly shifted to "weird horse girl" and "someone with questionable priorities."
Nearl did notice their odd looks but paid them no mind. Her time was already stretched thin—after finishing the central trainer curriculum, she needed to dive into equine medicine. These days, she wished she could work around the clock without stopping.
Time is funny like that—when you're bored, it drags on endlessly, but when you're fully absorbed in something, it slips away in a flash. That's exactly how it felt for Nearl, immersed in her studies. Before she knew it, the lunch bell rang, and it was already noon.
A few horse girls had actually tried to approach her during earlier breaks, but seeing how intensely focused she was, they'd all held back, not wanting to disturb her. That's why Nearl was able to study straight through until noon without interruption.
As for the teachers? The academy director had already given them a heads-up, so they turned a blind eye to Nearl's behavior. After all, she was still studying—what exactly she was studying was none of their concern.
When her classmates saw Nearl finally look up and take a break, they could no longer contain their curiosity. They swarmed around her, peppering her with questions all at once—it was pure chaos, a real circus.
But Nearl just smiled and answered each of their questions one by one, satisfying the horse girls' curiosity. By the time the crowd dispersed, everyone was all smiles, still chatting excitedly about Nearl among themselves.
"Miss Nearl is so kind—she answered every question, and her voice is so pleasant to listen to."
"Don't you think her features are really noble? I kind of want to call her 'big sister'!"
"She studies so seriously—it almost makes me want to buckle down and learn something too. I just wonder how fast she is when she runs."
Rudy Lemono watched the chattering horse girls with clear impatience.
"Tch, these guys are so noisy. Honestly, I'm impressed that the special admission student has so much patience—smiling and dealing with each one of them. If it were me, I'd have snapped already."
"Yeah, I really can't imagine you smiling and playing nice, Rudy."
Mini the Lady giggled in response, but then she paused, suddenly noticing something, and called out to her friends.
"Hey, Norn, Rudolf, look—the special admit's packing up her bag."
Hearing this, Norn Ace glanced over at Nearl and saw that she was indeed getting her things together.
"This time of day… is she heading to a club room?"
"No way, she just got here. How would she have a club room? Does she even have a trainer?"
At that, both Norn Ace and Rudy Lemono looked puzzled. Then Mini the Lady made a suggestion.
"How about we follow her and see? I really don't feel like going to endurance training this afternoon anyway."
The other two were tempted for a moment, but the memory of their trainer's furious shouts quickly made them shake their heads and decline.
Seeing her friends weren't interested, Mini the Lady lost enthusiasm too. She just packed up her bag with them and got ready to head to the track—that's where they'd be training that afternoon.
--+--
Nearl was currently making her way toward a remote corner of the campus—a spot Oguri Cap had told her about. Oguri Cap's former trainer, Kitahara Jo, had a training room there where he used to coach Oguri Cap and Berno Light. These days, that room had become Kitahara Jo's personal study—a place where he could immerse himself in trainer knowledge.
"Here we are."
After walking along the wall for quite a while, Nearl spotted a small outbuilding tucked away in the corner. The structure was old, but the area around it was tidy—clearly well-maintained. It was secluded and peaceful, far from any usual foot traffic, making it an ideal spot for studying.
Approaching the door, Nearl gave it a few light knocks—tap tap—and soon enough, a voice responded from inside.
"Who is it?"
With that brief question, a disheveled middle-aged man appeared in the doorway. His hair was unkempt, his beard scruffy, and his eyes tired. His sweater had a few holes, his pants were wrinkled, and his shoes were downright filthy.
Based on first impressions alone, most people would've written him off as unreliable.
But Nearl wasn't one to judge by appearances alone. Since Oguri Cap had recommended him, she decided to reserve judgment until she'd observed him more carefully.
So she handed him the letter Oguri Cap had given her.
--+--
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!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.