Hayato was swamped right now. His social media had suddenly exploded with friend requests from uma musume.
Most of the messages read something like:
"I've been having trouble sleeping lately. Does the trainer have any advice?"
"I always lose speed right before the final sprint. How do I fix this?"
"Can I run on dirt tracks? I don't think I'm good at them, but my teacher keeps recommending it..."
"Can I call you onii-chan?"
"Call me Princess!"
When Uma Musume had troubles, Hayato didn't mind listening to their worries. If he knew the answer, he'd respond seriously.
At first, he thought it was because he'd gotten famous. Hayakawa Tazuna must have published his contact info as some kind of extra side gig.
If he could use this to win over some naive uma musume, that wouldn't be so bad.
Gradually, though, he realized something was off. His friend count quickly hit 500. He was chatting with a dozen uma musume simultaneously, with dozens more messages still waiting for replies.
A lot of these Uma Musume were pretty forward, too. They'd add him and immediately send flying kisses, hugs, flowers, asking if he got cold at night... Four or five had already started calling him "big brother"...
What was going on here?
There were still 30 pending friend requests...
"When did I ever turn on 'nearby users'?"
Oh wait, he actually had. When he first arrived, curiosity got the better of him, and he checked to see if there were any lonely young uma musume around. He'd admired quite a few photos and even saved some.
But that should've been a few months ago, right?
Hayato couldn't figure out why things had suddenly turned out like this. Way too many Uma Musume were adding him to vent. Some weren't even from Central, but from regional tracks.
"Trainer, are you there?"
"I haven't been able to study properly lately. I can't concentrate. I keep thinking about... You know."
Hayato: You should probably get a boyfriend.
"That's what I'm saying! If only I had one."
There it was. Whenever he saw messages like this, Hayato's heart couldn't help but race.
These uma musume were way too open, discussing such deep topics with a complete stranger. He didn't even know how to counsel them anymore.
"Can the trainer help me out?"
Hayato wiped his forehead. This was seriously giving him a headache.
Just as Hayato was struggling with how to respond, another request came in. Username: Supercar. Profile picture: a curly-haired girl in red with a seductive vibe.
An old ski request? Hayato didn't dare refuse.
Shortly after accepting, Maruzenski sent a video call.
In the video, Maruzenski sat at her computer looking like she'd just finished playing some game. "Need your big sister to take you for a ride?"
Now this was a real veteran as an experienced seducer. All the others Uma Musume from before were just kids.
Hayato immediately replied, "No, thanks."
"Oh! Became famous and now you're too proud? You dare ignore what your big sis says?" Maruzenski laughed as she flexed her smooth, jade-like arms, throwing a punch at the air as if hitting Hayato.
"Uhh... You must have black magic on the other side!"
Hayato played along, clutching his chest in mock pain. Maruzenski cracked up.
"Hey, I'm serious though. I already drove to the school gate, and I'm dressed to go out. If you don't come, I'm coming up to get you myself."
Did she have to be so forceful? Talk about aggressive.
Under Maruzenski's overwhelming pressure, Hayato ultimately gave in. He sent a smiling emoji and started preparing to head out.
The moment he stepped outside, an uma musume who seemed to just happen to be passing by called out, "Hayato-trainer, good morning!"
"Morning," Hayato responded with a friendly smile.
"Are you heading out? You're dressed so formally." The young Uma Musume was cute with a pleasant voice. Her face was constantly flushed.
"Yeah, meeting someone." Hayato hadn't noticed anything unusual yet.
"Oh! Um... Hayato-trainer, if you have time, I'd like to treat you to a meal sometime."
Huh? Hayato's expression froze. Excuse me, who are you exactly? Do we even know each other?
"Th-thank you for helping me solve my training problems, so... so I wanted to treat you to dinner." Her face turned even redder.
Ah, so from the social media chat...
"If you don't want to, that's fine." Seeing Hayato's prolonged silence, she fled the scene, face burning with embarrassment.
Around the corner, several uma musume pulled the young one aside. "So? How'd it go? Did he agree?"
"He didn't say anything."
"You're useless. Let me try."
"Wait, another uma musume is approaching. Let's watch first."
Hayato encountered a second uma musume. The words were slightly different but mostly the same.
Hayato started to panic. By the twelfth uma musume, Hayato broke into a run.
"Good morn... huh? Trainer, don't run!" The uma musume behind him gave chase for a bit before retreating when she spotted Hayakawa Tazuna.
At the school gate, Hayato saw Maruzenski in a tight red miniskirt, leaning against a red sports car. She'd been waiting for a while.
"Uhh, you're lifesaver, Maruzen!"
Seeing Hayato, she formed a gun with her right hand, closed one eye, and shot at Hayato's chest.
"BANG!"
"You're late, Hayato Trainer!"
Hayato didn't respond, just wanted to get in the car quickly. When he reached for the back door handle, Maruzenski said, "Hey, sit in front. You really gonna make a beautiful lady sit up front alone?"
Fair point. Hayato didn't argue. He opened the passenger door and finally felt a bit of relief once he was seated.
On his way over, he'd noticed quite a few uma musume glancing his way. Somewhere along this trainer path, things had definitely gone wrong.
Maruzenski also noticed the hostile looks. As if she'd expected this, she glared back at the restless uma musume with overwhelming presence.
"Thx..." Hayato urged as he buckled his seatbelt. Riding with Maruzenski without a seatbelt meant getting launched out of the car.
Maruzenski took her time. "You seem pretty tense, but don't worry. Big sis is here to rescue you."
"Ugh! I don't even know what happened. It's like I kicked a hornet's nest. I can't stay at Tracen anymore. Maruzen, just take me away from here. The farther the better." Hayato sighed deeply, his eyes pleading.
"Hehehe..." Maruzenski laughed as she started the car. "What's with 'Maruzen'? Call me Onee-san."
"Onee-san...."
"There we go!"
The sports car's performance was incredible. The startup was nearly silent, gliding smoothly over the road. But the moment she started, Maruzenski floored it. Hayato's head slammed hard against the headrest.
THUNK.
This was insane!
Was she treating regular driving like a great escape run!?
The red sports car vanished from Tracen's entrance in seconds, leaving many watching Uma Musume shaking their heads in disappointment.
"You probably don't know about the magazine yet, do you?" In the car, Maruzenski asked with a laugh.
Hayato gripped the seatbelt, face tense. This wasn't a highway! Was it really okay to drive like this?
"So it really was Otonashi Etsuko's doing?" Hayato had already guessed. Who else could pull something like this besides her?