Because he didn't know what was happening outside, the sound of him opening the door caught the attention of Oguri Cap and Silent Suzuka.
He glanced over. Oguri Cap was acting as if nothing was wrong, but Silent Suzuka's cheeks were already flushed.
"This is bad," he complained to himself.
Then he waved his hand, signaling for them to continue their conversation, and quickly walked past them, soon leaving the corridor.
He was very curious about what they were talking about, but didn't plan to stay and eavesdrop.
"In any case, it won't be anything harmful to me." He was very confident in this.
Rewinding three minutes, when Silent Suzuka had finished washing up and stepped out of her room, preparing to go for her morning run, she was surprised to find the horse girl who had just won a Graded Race yesterday standing at her door.
The moment she saw Oguri Cap, the chestnut-haired horse girl couldn't help but think of everything she had overheard in the hot spring last night—both his conversation with them, and the sticky sounds of their skin touching later.
She squeezed her legs together, bit her lip, and didn't speak first.
Oguri Cap had come here specifically to ask Silent Suzuka a question, so she got straight to the point, "Miss Silent Suzuka, I have a question I want to ask you."
"I don't know! I went to bed very early last night!" Silent Suzuka waved her hands, preemptively denying everything.
"Huh?" Oguri Cap tilted her head. "What I want to ask has nothing to do with that."
"..." Silent Suzuka was suddenly at a loss for words.
She covered her face. "Then go ahead and ask, Oguri Cap."
"It's like this... what kind of race do you think is the pinnacle for a horse girl?" she asked her question.
"For me?" Silent Suzuka frowned. "Right now, it would definitely be the Derby, right? In fact, at Central Tracen Academy, the race that every horse girl wants to win the most before they've determined their own aptitude is the Derby."
This included Silent Suzuka herself. She had often dreamed of winning the Japan Derby.
"The Derby..." Oguri Cap repeated the word. She remembered one of the trainers who had tried to recruit her at Kasamatsu Tracen Academy had mentioned the "Tokai Derby."
But she knew that compared to the Hokkaido Yushun Championship she had won yesterday, the so-called "Tokai Derby" had long lost its value.
So she continued to ask, "Then in the country, the Derby with the highest status is the Japan Derby, right?"
"That's right," Silent Suzuka nodded. "The Japan Derby is the most important Derby in Japan."
"The Japan Derby?" Oguri Cap's eyes flickered. "If I win that one, would that count as reaching the highest stage with my trainer?"
She didn't reveal her thoughts to Silent Suzuka, but the chestnut-haired horse girl could see it.
"Should I remind her that a prerequisite for entering the Japan Derby is to be affiliated with Central, and that if she doesn't leave her trainer, she can't enter?"
Just as Silent Suzuka was hesitating, he appeared.
His appearance interrupted her hesitation and also gave her a chance to end her conversation with Oguri Cap.
"I have to go for my morning run too, bye-bye!" After his figure disappeared from sight, Silent Suzuka said hastily, and then fled the corridor.
"Bye-bye~" Oguri Cap blinked, looked at the clock, and decided to go for breakfast. It wasn't that she was being lazy and skipping her morning run, but because he had always told her not to start recovery training the day after a race, but to rest for a few days until he judged that her condition was fine.
Thanks to his arrangements, she had gone from an ordinary horse girl from the Hokkaido countryside to a hero who had made history for Kasamatsu Tracen Academy. Now, even if he asked her to eat less, she would definitely try her best to do it.
He had just left the inn and was on the public road, preparing to enjoy his last morning run here.
"Tomorrow we're going back to Kasamatsu," he said to himself while taking a deep breath. "I've been here for two months straight, almost as long as I've been with her and Oguri Cap at Kasamatsu."
If he were to rate this summer vacation, it would definitely be a perfect score—after all, the biggest goal of coming to Hokkaido had been successfully achieved yesterday.
As for the little episode at night, he wouldn't care about it for now.
"When we get back to Kasamatsu, everyone will have to come to the office to touch my trophy, right?" The young man couldn't help but smile with satisfaction at the thought.
Just as he was lost in thought, Silent Suzuka's voice came from behind him, "Zhou-kun, good even—good morning~"
"Hm?" he was startled and turned to reply, "Good morning, Suzuka-san."
After last night's events, Silent Suzuka still felt a little awkward looking at him.
But he seemed perfectly at ease. He hadn't done anything to them last night, hadn't given her a live broadcast of anything not suitable for minors. It was just Oguri Cap and Brand New Shine who had proactively given him a back massage, so innocent that even an extreme vegan would consider it meat-free.
"Shall we continue running together?" the young man proactively invited. "This is probably my last morning run."
Hearing the last part, Silent Suzuka, who was still hesitating, made up her mind and nodded. "Okay. I'll continue to lead."
"Please," he stepped aside and made an inviting gesture.
Passing him, she slowly accelerated and started to jog. He chuckled and easily followed.
As with every time before, their one-way destination was Monbetsu Racecourse.
After yesterday's Graded Race, Monbetsu Racecourse was eerily quiet today.
Although the surrounding shops were all open, the foot traffic was pitifully small.
Silent Suzuka and Zhou Tai'an, one after the other, stood in front of the main gate of Monbetsu Racecourse.
Unlike usual, she did not immediately turn around and start on the return journey.
She stood silently at the entrance, just like her name.
He didn't know what she was thinking, so he also remained silent.
After a long while, a morning breeze blew by. She held down her hair, turned her head, and asked him with a smile, "Let's meet at Central in a few years. I will become a horse girl that will make you turn your head."
Staring at the chestnut-haired horse girl before him, he was momentarily speechless.
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