The pre-race interview was over.
Barbatos and Seiun Sky continued running across the training field—one preparing for the Oka Sho, the other for the Satsuki Sho.
After nearly four months of intense training, they had almost completely adjusted to this level of exertion.
But Minamizaka, watching from the sidelines, couldn't sit still.
Seeing Barbatos train like this… it just felt unnatural.
It wasn't that Barbatos never trained before, but she never went about it so directly. Usually, she'd wear weights around the clock, treating everyday movement as training.
Now, though, she was sprinting while still carrying that extra load.
He couldn't help but worry—was this intensity safe?
Sure, Barbatos had recovered from her injury, but what about… that other issue of hers? Could it flare up again?
Or maybe… was Barbatos nearing her limit, planning to make the Oka Sho her final race? Did she enter the Spring Tenno Sho just to keep him, her trainer, from worrying?
Minamizaka's thoughts began to spiral.
He'd noticed the change in Barbatos over her months of rest.
Having kept up with her streams, he knew she hadn't gone live in a long time.
It wasn't that she never streamed, but the frequency was nothing like before the Winter Dream Cup.
So what had Barbatos been doing during her break?
What kind of emotional journey had she gone through?
As her trainer, Minamizaka had no idea—and didn't know how to ask.
When Barbatos and Seiun Sky finished another lap, he seized the chance to call them over. He wanted to say, "You've just recovered—don't push yourself too hard."
But the words stuck in his throat.
His Uma Musume were working hard. What right did he, their trainer, have to stop them?
Besides, while the training load was heavy, most ordinary Uma Musume could handle it. His worry stemmed entirely from Barbatos' history of injury.
"The Oka Sho is almost here… Should we hold a strategy meeting?"
Minamizaka's voice came out meek.
Normally, he'd joke about their team constantly holding strategy meetings—if they spent half that time actually training, wouldn't the undebuted ones like Twin Turbo have made their debut by now?
Who would've thought he'd be the one asking his Uma Musume to stop training for a meeting?
"A strategy meeting? Sure."
Barbatos agreed without hesitation.
Strategy meetings were a cherished tradition of Team Canopus—how could they ever abandon that?
Besides, since her return, her Canopus teammates had all shown some concern, especially about how she'd handle El Condor Pasa in the Oka Sho.
Before the Winter Dream Cup, this wouldn't have been an issue.
Back then, both Canopus and Rigil would have had full confidence in their entrants.
But now, on one side was El Condor Pasa, who dominated the Kawasaki Kinen, and on the other was Barbatos, freshly recovered. It was only natural to worry.
And Barbatos could read Minamizaka pretty well.
Though Minamizaka was an adult, an excellent trainer, and a computer whiz, Barbatos was sharper when it came to figuring people out.
With Seiun Sky, she might usually play the passive role, but that didn't mean she wasn't clever—just less overtly so than Seiun Sky.
She guessed Minamizaka was probably worried about her condition.
That's why he suggested a strategy meeting.
Otherwise, if they really needed one for the Oka Sho, they could've easily waited until after she and Seiun Sky finished training.
So, a strategy meeting it was—but first, she and Seiun Sky needed to shower after their run.
"Everyone's really worried," Seiun Sky remarked on their way back to the dorm to clean up.
They'd discussed this many times before. But even someone as clever as Seiun Sky hadn't found a way to explain how Barbatos could heal herself.
Telling her grandfather that her injuries healed because of the Three Goddesses after the Winter Dream Cup was one thing.
But telling others? Every injured Uma Musume would do anything to enter the Dream Cup and return to peak form.
Even if the Winter Dream Cup wasn't open to just anyone.
Barbatos' own participation had drawn criticism initially.
But where there's potential gain, people take risks—some would spend fortunes to enter, or the racing committee might try an experiment. If it didn't work, Barbatos would be the one blamed.
So even knowing others worried, she and Seiun Sky couldn't reveal that Barbatos was fine.
The only answer they could give was for Barbatos to win.
Back at the dorm, they showered quickly.
Barbatos and Seiun Sky returned to the Canopus team room, where the rest of their teammates had already gathered, ready to brainstorm how to beat El Condor Pasa.
On the large whiteboard, bold characters declared: [Oka Sho – Eagle Elimination Operation!]
Barbatos paused at the words "Eagle Elimination Operation," silent for two seconds.
Then she spoke up seriously, "We should probably erase 'Eagle Elimination.' Eagles are protected animals—eliminating them is illegal."
Beside her, Seiun Sky pressed her lips together, holding back a smile. She was used to Barbatos' quirks.
The others, however, were caught off guard.
"Really?!" Twin Turbo yelped, leaping up to frantically wipe the words from the board.
She wasn't so worried about the law—more about Barbatos getting locked up.
"Okay, that's better! Now, let's start the strategy meeting!"
"Actually, I've already thought about how to run the Oka Sho and handle El Condor Pasa. I just haven't had the chance to tell everyone yet."
Barbatos scratched the back of her head and walked up to the whiteboard amid everyone's gaze. Picking up a black marker, she wrote on the board:
[Give it your all!]
Four words filled the space. "I'm going all out from the very start of the race."
Twin Turbo and the others slowly formed question marks in their minds. "?"
Don't they give their all in every race? Since when was "giving your all" a strategy?
Was Barbatos planning a front-running tactic…?
--+--
Two days passed.
The grandstands of Hanshin Racecourse buzzed with energy—the day of the Oka Sho had arrived.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, 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.