"What brings President Rudolf here?"
"I came to visit Narita Brian, but I didn't expect you all to be having a celebration."
Rudolf raised an eyebrow.
"Perhaps it would be better if I waited until you're finished?"
After all, this was her team's gathering.
Rudolf was an outsider.
"No, no need to wait, please join us, President," Air Groove urged her to stay.
"Won't I be imposing?"
"Not at all, how could you be? The more, the merrier!"
Hishi Amazon chimed in, "Right?"
"Is that so… well, in that case, I'll gladly accept your invitation."
"Having the President grace us with her presence truly brings honor to our little team."
Fuji Kiseki said with a laugh.
"Stop teasing me," Rudolf shook her head helplessly. "Besides, I'm not the student council president anymore."
Not the president anymore?
What did that mean?
Was it about not discussing status within the dorm, that everyone was equal here?
"You'll know the details in a few days. For now, I've temporarily stepped down from the student council president role. I'm just an ordinary student at the moment. Speaking of which, isn't this Brian's celebration? Don't forget the guest of honor."
Rudolf waved a hand, signaling everyone not to press further.
Seeing Rudolf's demeanor, everyone could only suppress their curiosity for now and shift their attention back to Narita Brian.
"Come on, Brian, we've prepared quite a few good things for you."
Fuji Kiseki said.
At this hour, all the students had gone to the cafeteria, so they could freely use the dormitory kitchen.
For the first time in a long while, they had personally prepared a feast for Narita Brian.
"A feast, huh…"
She was grateful for their effort, but the doctor had advised her against eating too much food that would burden her stomach and digestion.
"Don't worry about that, all the ingredients were personally selected by the trainee."
"Silence?"
Hearing this, Narita Brian looked at the girl behind her.
"I only selected ingredients that would aid your recovery. Amazon and the others handled all the cooking. And with my cooking skills… ahaha, rather not embarrass myself."
Looking at the girl's shy smile, Narita Brian slowly walked up to her.
The reason she could be discharged from the hospital so quickly was entirely because this girl came to her room every day to help regulate her body.
Whether it was unraveling her inner knots, helping her run, or taking such diligent care of her during her hospitalization.
And now, helping to arrange this celebration.
Even if the girl said it was her duty, Narita Brian couldn't help but see her as someone special.
Under everyone's gaze, Narita Brian opened her arms and pulled the girl into a hug.
"Thank you…"
She whispered softly into the girl's ear.
Everyone was stunned for a moment.
Then.
"Whoa—!"
A collective gasp erupted from the group.
Was she seeing this right? That battle maniac Narita Brian was actually hugging the trainee so passionately!
For real?!
When did that blockhead figure things out?
And not long ago, weren't you fighting tooth and nail over Manhattan Cafe against Green Grass? How did you find a new sweetheart so fast?
Isn't that moving on a bit too quickly?!
"T-truly worthy of our trainee, winning over Brian's heart so swiftly…"
Fuji Kiseki's eyes widened, savoring the rare scene.
"I always thought of Silence as a little sister… What's with this complicated feeling?"
Hishi Amazon wore a pained expression.
"Well, it's good for a trainee to be close with the Uma Musume she's in charge of… But I hope you won't get too carried away. At least don't let the other students see…"
Air Groove held her forehead, looking at Narita Brian. She couldn't bring herself to say anything too harsh.
Even Rudolf beside her raised an eyebrow, looking thoroughly surprised.
"U-um, Brian, everyone's watching…"
Muffled against Narita Brian's impressive chest, the girl's voice came out in a hum.
Why are you so excited all of a sudden?
"It's fine," Narita Brian looked back at the others.
"I've received a lot of care from Silence during this time, so I'm just expressing my gratitude. Don't misunderstand."
"Ahh, understood, of course we understand. After all, the trainee did a lot for Brian. We've all seen it. I'm relieved to see you two getting along so well. Right, Amazon!"
Elbowed in the stomach by Fuji Kiseki, Hishi Amazon nodded repeatedly.
"That's right. Although Silence seems very young, she's surprisingly capable. Makes you want to rely on her."
The two shared a knowing look, wearing expressions that said 'I get it.'
"Ahem, Brian, let's head inside. It's not good to linger at the entrance. And also… President Rudolf is here too."
Thinking things were becoming a bit indecorous, Air Groove stepped in to intervene promptly.
"Mm, understood."
Narita Brian nodded.
"I don't mind… And Air Groove, I told you, I'm not the president."
Rudolf reminded her.
"Even if you say that…"
Air Groove couldn't adjust to it right away.
After all, at Tracen Academy, mentioning the student council brought Rudolf to mind, and mentioning Rudolf brought the student council to mind.
She was the symbol for the students, and the symbol of the student council.
"From now on, just call me Rudolf. Treat me as an ordinary student. And occasionally breaking free from the busy student council life is a novel experience too."
"President…"
"That title doesn't exist anymore."
"…Right."
Air Groove took a deep breath.
"Rudolf."
"Yes, that's it."
Rudolf smiled.
"I'll leave the future of the student council to you and Brian."
"Presi… Rudolf." Air Groove struggled with the switch.
"If you're not president, have you decided what you'll do from now on?"
"Actually, I've been thinking about that too—what to do with my free time if I'm not president."
Rudolf looked at the four girls who had already taken their seats.
Watching their smiles, Rudolf wondered if she could integrate into such a scene so easily herself.
"I suppose… I might not be able to adjust so quickly."
Air Groove fell silent.
After a moment, she spoke. "In that case, why not do the things you've wanted to do?"
"Things I've wanted to do?"
"That's right. All the things you wanted to do before but never had time for. Do every single one."
These past few years, you've worked hard for Tracen's sake.
Now it's time to give you a proper break.
That's what Air Groove thought.
Meanwhile.
"Trainee, aren't you going to eat?"
Seeing the girl not touching the food on her plate at all, Fuji Kiseki asked.
"Does it not suit your taste?"
"Not to your taste?! I poured years of culinary skill into this…"
Hishi Amazon immediately slumped.
"Even though this one's usually slacking off, her cooking is unexpectedly good."
"Fuji, you can praise me more boldly."
"Afraid you'll get cocky, so I won't. But no matter how well you cook, it's meaningless if you can't win over someone's stomach."
"I think there are still ingredients left…"
Seeing Hishi Amazon about to go make another dish, the girl quickly stopped her.
"No, it's not the food!"
Just as even the most delicious food wouldn't appeal to someone already full.
She had no desire for food. Even if she smelled it, her body wouldn't react.
Moreover, anything she ate would trigger rejection, making her entire esophagus feel like it was on fire.
Even just pretending was something she couldn't bring herself to do.
After a whirlwind of thoughts, the girl slowly spoke.
"I want to watch everyone…"
She said.
"Ever since I became a trainee, I've been hoping to see the Uma Musume I'm responsible for stand on stage. No… rather than standing on stage, I suppose I want to see them happy."
Her golden eyes swept over everyone.
"That's right. I chose to become a trainee because I wanted to help Uma Musume achieve happiness!"
The girl declared with solemn conviction.
"Seeing your smiles fills me with immense satisfaction. My stomach, too, seems… unknowingly filled by this warmth."
She tenderly placed a hand over her chest.
The kitchen fell into silence.
Then.
Mmm…
"Mmmwah! What a good kid, such a good kid! Don't worry, Silence, I'll help you protect it. From now on, if you have any troubles, tell your big sister Amazon, okay? I can do anything for you!"
Pulling the girl into a hug, Hishi Amazon proceeded to shower her with enthusiastic cheek-rubbing.
"Hey, Amazon, you're getting too excited!"
Even as she said this, Fuji Kiseki was also deeply moved by the girl's words.
Even a trainer might not be capable of such sincere devotion.
To hear such words from a girl around her own age was truly something…
"I was curious about what kind of person the trainee assisting Trainer Toujou Hana would be…"
Watching the girl being hugged by Hishi Amazon like a doll, Symboli Rudolf's expression was unusually gentle.
"She's a wonderful girl. No wonder Brian has grown so close to her."
Bringing happiness to all Uma Musume, huh.
Wasn't that her own ideal as well?
Silence, was it?
Seems worthy of attention.
"Yes, I think so too."
Air Groove rested her chin on her hand.
"I kind of regret how I treated her before."
Under everyone's gentle gazes, the girl showed a soft smile.
For the sake of my identity…
She thought silently.
This is a necessary sacrifice.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 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.