Looking at Tamamo Cross, who stood with her hands on her hips and a face full of confidence, Starlight thought she was quite adorable.
She reached out to pat Tamamo's head and said with a smile:
"Hearing you say that, I'm unconsciously starting to look forward to Tama-chan's guidance~"
With her face turning slightly red, Tamamo Cross slapped Starlight's hand away.
"Don't pat my head! I'm still gonna grow taller!"
"Right, right, sorry~"
"Tama-chan, Oguri, shall we begin?"
Rotating her wrists and ankles, Oguri Cap nodded, then clenched her fists and held them to her chest.
"Let's go."
With a slight exertion of force from her feet, Oguri Cap lunged forward in a flash.
Whoosh.
A gust of strong wind brushed past Starlight's cheeks. Amidst her fluttering hair, her golden eyes gazed forward.
Oguri's figure had already shrunk to the size of a thumb in the distance.
"Amazing..."
"Don't just stand there dazing, keep up!"
Seeing Starlight still in a daze, Tamamo Cross reminded her before following suit.
"Is this what pure power looks like?"
Starlight silently adjusted her weighted bracelets to the first setting.
If even the warm-up was at this intensity, she feared she wouldn't be able to handle it.
Thinking this, Starlight kicked off and followed them.
In an instant, under the glow of the setting sun staining the sky red, three gray-maned Uma Musume sped across the training grounds.
Thump, thump, thump.
Heavy footsteps trampled the grass. Soil and stones flew as deep footprints appeared.
Following closely behind the two, Starlight could clearly feel the sense of power radiating from their feet.
'As expected of girls rated as "monsters", even during such a run, both of them are keeping their centers of gravity very low.'
'Their upper bodies are almost parallel to the ground.'
After her initial awe, Starlight struggled to keep pace while keeping her eyes fixed on their power-delivery methods.
The three of them ran like this for a long while until the sudden warm-up came to an end.
Slowly coming to a stop, Starlight supported herself with her hands on her knees, looking at the two in front of her who showed no intention of resting.
Although she really wanted to adjust her weights back to zero... the effectiveness would definitely be halved.
'Hold on, Starlight, you can do this!'
Straightening up, Starlight followed the two Uma Musume to officially begin the training content.
"Starlight-chan, you can't do it like that. Sink your body a bit lower, then try to use the balls of your feet as much as possible. The smaller the contact area, the better."
Tamamo Cross ran beside Starlight, correcting her mistakes while sharing her insights.
Oguri Cap, naturally, didn't do the same, she simply trained on her own ahead of them, though she slowed her pace down.
She was acting as a reference for Starlight.
"N-No, I can't... I'll fall over like this~"
Wiping the sweat from her face, Starlight's crouched posture gave out, and she tumbled to the ground.
"Aiyah, your center of gravity is wrong. Even though your body is leaning forward, your center of gravity should still be directly under your hips."
After reaching out to pull Starlight up, Tamamo Cross stepped to the side and patted her own backside, then pointed toward her heels.
With one Uma Musume acting as a silent reference and the other guiding her patiently, Starlight ended today's training feeling utterly exhausted.
Sitting on a bench and looking at the stars already twinkling in the sky, Starlight panted heavily while reflecting inwardly.
'As expected, every Uma Musume's training is different.'
'Oguri Cap and Tamamo Cross focus on power and stamina as their core, with speed as a supplement.'
'Meanwhile, I focus on speed, with power and stamina as supplements.'
'I guess it makes sense. They both run Medium and Long distances, while I run Mile and Short...'
Regardless, she had certainly benefited a lot this time. Starlight believed that as long as she persisted, she would surely have a qualitative leap.
"How do you feel, Starlight-chan...?"
Oguri Cap returned from the clubroom after changing her clothes and smiled at Starlight.
"Yeah, it's exhausting. Oguri's training feels very different to me."
"What about me? What about me?"
Suddenly, Tamamo Cross reached out from behind and rested her hands on Starlight's shoulders.
"You're amazing. If I didn't have Tama-chan's guidance on the side, it probably would have taken me a long time to learn just by watching Oguri."
Tamamo Cross wrinkled her nose and lifted her head proudly upon hearing Starlight's praise.
"See, I told ya~ Starlight-chan, you can just come to me. Asking her costs you a meal, but I'll help you for free!"
Originally, Oguri Cap didn't seem to mind, but she wasn't happy hearing that.
She furrowed her brows and looked at Tamamo Cross.
"Stealing someone's livelihood isn't very nice behavior, Tama-chan..."
"I'm not stealing your livelihood, 'cause I don't want it~"
"Starlight-chan, I really did exactly what you asked. About dinner..."
"Hahaha... Oguri, why are you so cute? Fine~ there's still some time before curfew, shall we go eat?"
"Mhm, let's go!"
Seeing Oguri Cap like this, Tamamo Cross sighed and facepalmed.
"Take it easy, don't make Starlight-chan spend too much..."
"Aren't you coming along, Tama-chan?"
"I'll pass on this one. After all, I usually only eat a little breakfast, I don't really have an appetite the rest of the time."
Tamamo Cross waved her hand and scratched her head, trying to decline.
"That won't do. With such a heavy training load every day, you should at least eat a bit more."
"Come on, let's go together."
Starlight reached out and took Tamamo Cross's hand, her tone carrying a mix of slight reproach and genuine concern.
Feeling the touch of the other girl's warm hand, Tamamo's face flushed red, and she lowered her head, her voice turning a bit shy.
"Then... then let's go together. But let's get this straight, Starlight-chan: I don't want to eat for free, so I'm paying for my share."
"Alright... since Tama-chan is so insistent, we'll do it your way."
Picking up her bag, Tamamo Cross nodded and stepped out in front of the two, beckoning them.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's move."
The scene shifted to the front counter of a restaurant.
The owner, dressed in a white chef's uniform, held a napkin and wiped his hands unhurriedly.
His eyelids twitched as he looked at the three gray-maned Uma Musume before him.
"Ah, haha... well, young Uma Musume ladies. This shop is closing in a moment, so please look elsewhere."
"Eh? Manager, isn't there a sign posted outside saying you close at midnight?" Starlight asked, somewhat confused.
"Well, about that, haha... your two friends behind you have been blacklisted by this establishment."
"To be honest, this is a small business, I really can't handle the likes of you girls..."
"Oguri Cap! This is all your fault— you've been using my name to go out and eat! Now look what happened, I've been blacklisted too!"
From behind, a furious Tamamo Cross shouted at the dazed Oguri Cap standing next to her.
"This... well, Manager, is it really not possible? I'll pay double the price!"
"Oh, young lady, please have mercy on me! My inventory simply can't handle it~"
Seeing the owner's pitiful state, Starlight couldn't say much more.
She had no choice but to lead the two of them to find another shop.
Half an hour later...
By the side of the road, Tamamo Cross was repeatedly pounding Oguri Cap's back with her small fists.
"Stop hitting me, Tama-chan. I couldn't help it."
"I was blacklisted by all the nearby restaurants a year ago, so I had no choice but to use your name..."
"What! You've been doing that for a whole year?!"
This revelation made Starlight nearly stumble.
She looked at Oguri Cap's pitiful expression and sighed.
"...How about we go to my dorm? We can buy some ingredients, and I'll cook for you. How does that sound?"
"Yes! Let's do that!"
Patting her empty stomach, Oguri Cap agreed without a second thought.
"Starlight-chan, you even know how to cook?!"