Without outside interference, time gradually began to flow a little faster.
Naturally, during this accelerated period, Mochizuki told her mom about her decision to skip a grade.
After careful consideration, Natural approved Mochizuki's request.
The reason Natural agreed so readily was simple—she now had confidence, and the source of that confidence was the restaurant's rapidly rising profits.
Given Natural's skills and the shop's proximity to Tracen Academy, steadily increasing earnings were entirely expected.
And as for Teio and Mochizuki?
Perhaps due to their guardians' growing friendship, Teio and Mochizuki themselves steadily grew closer.
Everything seemed to be getting better.
With this mood in the air, summer vacation finally arrived.
As planned earlier, the four of them headed out together to visit the old Tokai Family property for Teio's training.
During this period, Natural didn't even need to open the restaurant.
After all, most of the students at Tracen Academy weren't around at this time of year.
They either attended summer training camps to sharpen their skills or went home to visit family.
But it was still a while before the four of them would reach their destination.
So right now, the story turns instead to two other people—the ones who had just seen Natural's group off at the station.
"The old Tokai Family rehab and training base, huh…"
"Yeah…"
Mr. C.B. and Maruzensky, who had just watched the train carrying the four leave, stared quietly as the doors slid shut, concern reflecting in their eyes.
Both of them were worried about Tokai Natural.
Maruzensky was especially concerned, even more so than Mr. C.B.
As the person who'd investigated this matter the most thoroughly...
Although Maruzensky never heard directly from Natural where exactly she'd given birth, she could guess quite accurately from how the Tokai Family's assets had been divided up afterward.
"That place…"
Mr. C.B. looked up at Maruzensky, clearly wanting to say something.
But Maruzensky shook her head gently. "I know."
"Aren't you worried?"
"Shouldn't you ask yourself that question first?"
With a soft sigh, Maruzensky turned away. "Let's head back to Tracen Academy. There's still one more thing we need to handle~"
Returning to her usual, easygoing tone, Maruzensky glanced over her shoulder at Mr. C.B. "Once we settle that, there'll be nothing else to worry about."
The matter Maruzensky was referring to was, of course, Rudolf and the Climax Series.
After almost four months since the Climax Series had been implemented, things had changed significantly.
To be precise, everything changed the moment trainers discovered the minor problems caused by frequent racing could be solved by purchasing special items from the token shop after races.
The situation had shifted quietly, almost imperceptibly.
As if it had always been inevitable.
In a world where even the Three Goddesses took no responsibility, perhaps such developments weren't surprising at all.
Because of this, criticism directed at Rudolf had steadily increased.
She had publicly stated at the beginning that she personally ensured the series was problem-free before approving it.
Yet now, even though it was only the first year—a trial period—problems had undeniably surfaced for many Uma Musume.
Thus, it was entirely natural that Rudolf now found herself in this difficult position.
But…
Recalling Rudolf's words back then, Maruzensky's expression grew increasingly serious.
Because she clearly remembered what Rudolf had said at that time.
Looking at those words from today's perspective…
Perhaps Rudolf had already anticipated all this from the start.
If Rudolf truly had foreseen today's consequences back then...
Then Maruzensky couldn't help but wonder whether Rudolf's departure was really the best outcome.
Although Rudolf had certainly made mistakes—
There was no doubt she was still the best advocate the Uma Musume ever had.
Yet none of that mattered to Maruzensky's ultimate goal.
Just as Maruzensky didn't care much about what happened to most Uma Musume, what she truly cared about were those closest to her.
For example, Tokai Natural.
Thus, no matter how capable Rudolf was, from Maruzensky's perspective, she needed to leave.
Thinking this, Maruzensky turned toward Mr. C.B. "With Rudolf leaving, who's going to be the next Student Council president?"
"I think you could do it."
Attempting to dodge responsibility outright, Mr. C.B. responded irresponsibly.
"With winning the Triple Crown as a hard requirement, that absolutely rules me out." Maruzensky effortlessly flipped the responsibility back onto Mr. C.B.
Mr. C.B. immediately turned to Maruzensky. "No way. You have to alternate duties with me!"
Her words held zero logic.
Which was understandable.
After all, Mr. C.B. was notoriously poor at paperwork, not to mention she hadn't done office work for several years now.
Letting Mr. C.B. handle everything alone would undoubtedly lead to serious problems.
Seeing Mr. C.B.'s panic, Maruzensky didn't need further explanations. She knew exactly why Mr. C.B. reacted this way, and Maruzensky had no intention of rejecting the request either. With several promising Uma Musume due to enroll soon, creating a stable environment now was indeed necessary.
But…
"As for picking Mochizuki up, I'll—"
Before Maruzensky finished speaking, Mr. C.B. firmly grabbed her shoulder. "Proposals that are clearly impossible are better left for your dreams."
Mr. C.B.'s voice sounded gentle, but the strength of her grip told a different story.
But Maruzensky wouldn't surrender the pick-up duty so easily, calmly adding, "You'll have to handle Student Council duties now. You won't have enough free time for trivial things like that."
"You knew that from the start—that's why you tried pushing this onto me, right?"
Mr. C.B. glared at Maruzensky, then firmly declared, "Take my shifts seriously. During those times, I'll handle picking her up."
Her tone was decisive, allowing no further argument.
Yet Maruzensky didn't intend to argue anyway. After all, she had an inherent advantage: having a car meant it was far more convenient for Natural if Maruzensky did the pick-ups.
Precisely because of this, Maruzensky pretended to concede partially before bringing up another matter:
"After we're finished with Rudolf's issue, I need to visit Hokkaido."
"Huh?"
"A family matter. Apparently, a ranch up there has an Uma Musume with exceptional potential." Maruzensky paused briefly before continuing, "Considering the bloodline connection, I need to check on her myself. After all, I'm not Rudolf."
Mr. C.B. stared blankly for a second before nodding simply:
"Just remember to come back for work."
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T/N: UGHHH SIRIUS YOU SHOULDVE READ BETTER