Chapter 33. The Plan to Force a Fast Pace
The next day, on Monday of the Japanese Oaks race week, when Shuta An arrived at the Central Tracen Academy to clock in, he received insider information from his friend, Kitahara-san—
"The Central URA Association and various local URA Associations reached a consensus yesterday and decided to develop the dirt racing circuit starting next year."
"That fast?"
Shuta An raised an eyebrow, a little surprised. In his understanding, the working speed of Japan's URA Association could only be described as snail-like; generally speaking, it was very difficult for them to handle various problems at a speed that would make him feel "wow ~ so fast."
But it was clear that the Central URA Association had gone all out last night.
"It's all because Ann-san's declaration was too frightening. One newspaper even described it as an ultimatum yesterday."
Kitahara-san complained.
"Mainly because I always follow through on what I say." Shuta An shrugged. "and isn't this also a good thing for Kitahara-san?"
"Of course, it's a good thing." Kitahara-san also grinned. "This way, our team's large number of dirt Uma Musume won't have to worry about running on turf against their will in the future."
"No matter how I hear it, it's uncomfortable." Shuta An sighed. "Talent not being utilized on their suitable track, talent being buried due to insufficient races, and the URA Association only realizing what to do after I blasted them in front of reporters."
"There's no helping it. Rather, the fact that they reacted at all means I'm not disappointed."
Kitahara-san shrugged.
"This time, we really have to thank Ann-san."
"You really have a lot to thank me for."
Shuta An waved his hand.
"Anyway, let's not talk about this anymore; I'm going back to the club room to rest."
"The Japanese Derby isn't until next week, so you can indeed rest well this week."
Kitahara-san teased his friend.
This was true; there were still two weeks until the Japanese Derby.
This week, the young man planned to seriously arrange Rice Shower's training, casually handle the rest, and spend more time recuperating to prepare for the heavy workload next week.
Mejiro Dober, after securing her fifteenth G1 victory, did not leave Japan again to find Ardan, but instead remained at the Mejiro Family to rest.
Mejiro McQueen, who won the Spring Tenno Sho, officially announced at noon today that she would compete in the Takarazuka Kinen, set to face Tokai Teio at Hanshin Racecourse.
The list of Uma Musume participating in the Japanese Derby was basically finalized; unless injuries occurred, there would be no changes.
Yamanin Zephyr was added to the list of Uma Musume participating in the Yasuda Kinen. Last year's reigning champion would, as expected, still be the top favorite.
And for Shuta An, among these news items, the most noteworthy was what Trainer Kuronuma of Mihono Bourbon said in an interview yesterday—
"The Tokyo 2400-meter track is generally considered unsuitable for leading Uma Musume to perform, but Mihono Bourbon will prove that as long as she is strong enough, it's not a problem."
"Looks full of confidence."
Shuta An narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself,
"I have to bring out a fast pace for you. Even if Mihono Bourbon doesn't want to lead, I will make Rice Shower force her to set a fast pace. No one can stop my determination."
The young man spent last night in the Dream World studying the Japanese Derby that Mihono Bourbon won in the Dream World.
He felt that the Rice Shower in the real world was stronger than in the Dream World, while Mihono Bourbon's performance remained unchanged in both worlds.
"The first 1000 meters of that Japanese Derby in the Dream World was 61.2 seconds, which is a standard to slightly slow pace. Considering the track was rated slightly heavy at the time, it could only be considered a standard pace."
Shuta An leaned back in his office chair, narrowing his eyes and muttering to himself,
"As for me, I can try to make Rice Shower force Mihono Bourbon to bring the 1000-meter split time into the 59-second range. If the track is rated slightly heavy as in the Dream World, a 58-second range for the first 1000 meters would definitely be an ultra-fast pace. I don't believe Mihono Bourbon could last until the end."
As for Rice Shower, because Shuta An and Rice Shower had won the Prix du Cadran at Longchamp Racecourse in the Dream World, he was very confident in Rice Shower's stamina and heavy track adaptability.
"I believe Rice Shower can do it."
Thinking of the skills Rice had taken from him with that kiss steal, Shuta An's lips curled up.
"Maybe, if she can really win the Japanese Derby, I'll have to get some interest back from Rice."
The young man picked up the teacup full of water from his desk, took a sip,
"It's time to start working."
After all, today was Monday, and the training reports and post-race reports from yesterday's races, which the young man needed to write as Trainer, all had to be done personally.
"Training reports are fine, I can use templates, but post-race reports cannot be written formulaically."
Shuta An placed his hands on the keyboard and began to think about how he should write the post-race report.
Throughout the entire post-race report, what Shuta An needed to pay the most attention to was his understanding of the Tokyo Racecourse's 1600-meter turf track.
Through his exchange with Tojo Hana, the young man realized that his understanding of this Racecourse was likely different of the entire Central Tracen Academy. If he were to fully disclose his views in the post-race report, it would mean that everyone who chose to download the report would learn this point.
"But there's no need to keep it to myself."
The young man decided after a few seconds of thought, ultimately choosing to include his unique understanding in the report.
Not only that, he also pulled out a map of the Tokyo Racecourse to explain why he understood the Tokyo Racecourse's 1600-meter turf track in such a way.
By the time Shuta An finished writing all the reports he needed to write, it was already afternoon.
"I'll just clock out early, then go out for a good meal. I didn't even eat lunch because I was writing reports."
Shuta An got up from his computer desk, rubbing his lower back and muttering to himself.
"It just so happens that a new spicy restaurant seems to have opened near the Academy. I'll go there for a meal."
Of course, the young man didn't have high hopes for the so-called "spicy restaurant." To survive long-term in a foreign country, these dishes would have to undergo localization taste.
He returned to the office, swiped his card to clock out, then left the Central Tracen Academy alone and drove away.
—
However, when the young man stepped into the so-called spicy restaurant, the first thing that caught his eye almost made him shout out—
"So spicy, so spicy, so spicy!!"
Rice, with her back to Shuta An, fanned herself with her hand while shouting.
"Why is Rice Shower here?"
Shuta An's mind raced, then he had the waiter lead him to a blind spot where Rice Shower couldn't see him and sat down.
"If she saw me, it might affect her appetite."
This wasn't Shuta An underestimating himself, but a common cultural phenomenon in Japan.
Aside from Oguri Cap, who was carefree when it came to food, girls, including Suzuka and Dober, always tended to act like they had small appetites in front of the opposite sex.
Shuta himself didn't care about this, so gradually, Mejiro Dober and Silence Suzuka also stopped caring, but Rice Shower was different.
She didn't understand these things.
Although encountering Rice Shower was a bit unexpected, hearing the sweet complaints just now made Shuta An have a little more expectation for this restaurant.
"Oh, this spicy Karaage and Tebasaki are really good."
After the dishes were served, the young man was indeed not disappointed.
Shuta An ordered three dishes in total—he could eat them all anyway.
"This Mapo Tofu is excellent! Better than the spicy fish dish that looks like spicy curry and the chicken."
The young man's eyes lit up when he got to the last dish.
"Rice is quite good at choosing restaurants. I'll let her decide the restaurant for the celebration or consolation dinner after the Japanese Derby."
The young man thought after clearing his plates. He rested for a while before getting up to pay the bill.
"Rice left first."
Shuta An breathed a sigh of relief after glancing at where Rice Shower had been sitting and finding it empty.
It wasn't that he wanted to avoid Rice Shower; it was mainly that he hoped Rice Shower would avoid him.
With only half a month left until the Japanese Derby, eating such heavy and stomach-challenging lunch, Rice Shower would surely feel that being discovered by her Trainer would lead to a good lecture.
But Shuta An really had no such intention; there were still two weeks until the Japanese Derby, and as long as she wasn't injured, she could adjust.
Therefore, the young man could only hope that Rice Shower would avoid him to prevent trouble—
But when Shuta An walked to the roadside, he couldn't help but show an awkward expression. Rice Shower was standing by his car, head bowed, fiddling with the hem of her clothes.
"I forgot Rice has ridden in my car many times; she'd know I'm here just by seeing the car."
The young man muttered helplessly to himself.
"Trainer…"
Noticing Shuta An's arrival, Rice Shower greeted him proactively with her head bowed. "Good afternoon."
"Good afternoon, Rice~ Are you out shopping to relax?"
Shuta An decided to play dumb.
Rice Shower wrinkled her nose, smelling chili on the Trainer, then spoke.
"Actually, Trainer, you saw me in the restaurant just now, didn't you?"
"I did go to eat just now, but I didn't see Rice." Shuta An continued to be stubborn and retorted. "If I had seen Rice, wouldn't I have gone up to say hello?"
"…" Rice Shower found Shuta An's words very reasonable and fell silent.
Seeing that the Black Deer-haired Horse Girl was no longer speaking, the young man pressed his advantage.
"So Rice is waiting for me here? Do you want me to give you a ride somewhere?"
"It's nothing." Rice Shower shook her head repeatedly. "I just saw Trainer's car, so I thought Trainer might be around here and just waited for a bit."
"I see."
Shuta An showed an understanding expression, then continued to advise.
"There are still two weeks until the Japanese Derby, Rice. Adjust your mood, don't be too nervous, and get good rest so you can prepare well, understand?"
"Yes!"
Hearing Shuta An's reminder, Rice Shower's body immediately tensed up.
But Shuta An didn't say anything directly, smiling and waving his hand.
"Then I'm going home. Rice, be careful!"
—
By Wednesday, after Shuta An had set Rice Shower's cut training plan for the day, he stood by the track and began to watch Rice Shower's cut training.
"It looks like Rice Shower is in great shape. Eating spicy food a few days ago didn't affect her stomach. She's doing well."
The young man was very satisfied with this.
"Eating spicy food?" Tojo Hana heard Shuta An's mumbling and was a little puzzled. "What did you feed Rice Shower?"
"Don't spread rumors." Shuta An said with a solemn expression. "I didn't feed Rice anything; she went out and ate that new spicy restaurant cuisine herself."
"Of course, I know Shuta-kun isn't someone who feeds his Uma Musume random things."
Tojo Hana rolled her eyes.
"But it's quite surprising that Rice Shower went to eat spicy cuisine herself."
"Sweating it out after eating spicy food is quite refreshing."
Shuta An said indifferently.
"Anyway, it hasn't affected her stomach, so I don't think there's anything to say about it."
"What are her chances of winning the Japanese Derby? How does it compare to the Satsuki Sho?"
Tojo Hana changed the subject.
"Fifty percent chance of winning, quite a bit higher than the Satsuki Sho."
Shuta An met Tojo Hana's gaze.
"What do you think?"
"Our Rigil team isn't participating in the Classic Race this year." Tojo Hana pouted. "As for Matikanetannhauser, Minamisaka said he exhausted all his knowledge to help her adjust, so pay attention."
"Then Miss Tojo, tell Minamisaka to tell Tannhauser not to fall too far behind in the main race."
Shuta An's mouth curved into an arc.
"Otherwise, he and Miss Tannhauser will regret it when it's too late."
"It seems Ann-san has already conceived the Japanese Derby tactics?"
Tojo Hana guessed.
"Yes, I've already conceived them." the young man spread his hands. "But I can't reveal them to the public yet. You'll know when the official race comes."
"It's nothing more than marking Mihono Bourbon right."
Tojo Hana said.
Shuta An didn't expect Tojo Hana not to guess the general type of tactics, but he still had to say.
"Others mark tactics and mine mark tactics are not the same."
"Then let me see what's different about Ann-san and Rice Shower's mark tactics."
Tojo Hana also smiled.
After praising Rice Shower for her excellent performance in cut training today, Shuta An took her back to the Team Sadalsuud's activity room.
Rice Shower went to the shower room to take a bath, while the young man stayed in the office, preparing to read the news to pass the time.
Just as he opened his computer, he found that the manager of the Tokyo Racecourse had sent him an email.
"Inviting me to be a guest commentator in the commentary booth on Sunday?"
Shuta An raised an eyebrow after reading the email.
"I've done this kind of work before, but I didn't expect to be invited this time."
As for why he wasn't invited for the previous few races, the young man guessed it was because his team members were in major races, and when it wasn't a major race, his status wasn't high enough to be on the commentary team.
"But the Japanese Oaks." Shuta An lightly tapped the table. "I can go up and participate. Anyway, I won't be involved in the specific commentary; I'll only be responsible for explaining my views on the participating Uma Musume."
So, with little intervention from the young man, this year's Japanese Oaks would likely unfold similarly to how it did in the Dream World.
"It sounds interesting to pretend to be a prophet."
Shuta An found it more and more amusing the more he thought about it, so he simply wrote a reply, accepting the job offer.
"Although the remuneration is only 200,000 Japanese Yen, for just commenting on the Japanese Oaks, it's already very generous."
He was also very satisfied with the remuneration.