Darley and the others arrived at the training ground.
"Trainer Chiya has finally gained awareness as an uma musume," Darley said with a smile.
"Doesn't saying that feel strange even to you?"
"At first, I was quite surprised too. But when you think about it carefully, isn't it interesting? What kind of sparks will be created between a male with uma musume genes and ordinary uma musume?"
Darley wore the expression of someone enjoying the chaos from the sidelines.
"Guinea pig-kun, are you ready?"
"I'm ready."
Fujiwara Chiya rotated his wrists.
His body did not have Shirayuki's flexibility, but perhaps due to individual differences, Fujiwara Chiya felt that he surpassed Shirayuki in raw strength.
The heavy objects he could lift would take Shirayuki some effort.
That was a major advantage in physical clashes. The stronger one was, the better one's ability to withstand impact. It became easier to break out from the pack, and the stamina consumed during collisions also decreased.
Should I enter the next Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe too?
The moment that thought surfaced, Fujiwara Chiya strangled it.
There had never been a precedent in history for a man participating in the Arc. Why would France change the entire race's rules for his sake?
Even if he possessed the physique of an uma musume, biologically speaking, he was still classified as male.
Students gradually gathered around them. Quite a few were new arrivals at Tracen. They were curious about why this trainer was doing warm-up exercises.
That included the newest member of his team, Cesario. She watched Trainer's movements with a puzzled expression.
"Cesario-san hasn't heard about it yet, has she?"
Rice Shower walked over beside Cesario.
"Onii-sama is very strong."
"Strong? Trainer?"
Cesario did not understand what Rice Shower meant.
Very soon, she did.
Boom!
The soil beneath his feet was sent flying. Fujiwara Chiya's body shot forward like a cannonball in the blink of an eye. Seeing his movement, the new uma musume opened their mouths one after another, their eyes widening like circles. Around them, the trainers all showed expressions as if their teeth hurt.
"Chiya really is becoming less and less human…"
Katsumura Youta muttered.
If he joked around with Chiya in the future and accidentally went too far, wouldn't the other guy fold him in half from the middle?
He decided that from now on, he would classify Chiya as a same-sex uma musume and treat him carefully.
When he reached the turn, Fujiwara Chiya adjusted his steps and used his cornering technique, staying close to the rail.
"Beautiful."
The trainers could not help praising him.
They had never expected their colleague to be able to run with such excellent movement.
What in the world had happened to reality?
After one lap, Fujiwara Chiya lowered his body, then stomped hard against the ground again.
His running style was different from Shirayuki's. Shirayuki placed greater emphasis on using the flexibility of her body, while Fujiwara Chiya used his own strength. It was simpler, more forceful, and looked far more imposing.
"Oh?"
An interested voice came from behind the crowd.
Orfevre walked into the training ground, narrowed her eyes, and looked at Fujiwara Chiya on the track.
The Empress's Scepter… is racing?
As he entered the second turn, Fujiwara Chiya adjusted his breathing and tried lowering his body even further.
Grass, soil, movement, all of these affected an uma musume's speed.
On the European racecourse, Fujiwara Chiya had used his own body as a model to help Shirayuki correct her running posture, so he was already extremely skilled when it came to controlling his movements.
Moreover, the turf here was far lighter than Europe's.
Fujiwara Chiya ran without the slightest difficulty.
Reaching the final straight, he released every bit of stamina he had saved. At the right timing, at the right location, he sprinted with everything he had.
With a final three-furlong speed that could almost be called a flight, Fujiwara Chiya crossed the finish line. Amid the wind stirred up by his body, Agnes Tachyon pressed the stopwatch.
"The time… how was it…"
Fujiwara Chiya panted heavily, wiping the sweat from his forehead as he asked.
Agnes Tachyon took out a spray and sprayed it over the man's body. Soon, the enticing scent on him gradually began to fade.
"Fifty-nine point three seconds."
"Fifty-nine point three…"
Fujiwara Chiya repeated.
"I remember the time for a GⅠ mile race is…"
"Fifty-eight point five. Guinea pig-kun, you are zero point eight seconds slower than a GⅠ race. However—"
Agnes Tachyon looked at the students around them.
For a trainer, this was already an unbelievable result.
No, rather, this was something an ordinary human could never achieve in a lifetime.
Fujiwara Chiya's physical strength had already surpassed ninety percent of uma musume.
When he went to Europe, had he been training Shirayuki, or himself?
Agnes Tachyon felt that his growth curve was even higher than Shirayuki's. If Shirayuki had run just now, Tachyon felt she would at most be less than a second faster than Chiya.
One had to remember that half a year ago, he could only run near last place in VR!
Do you have full bloom too, guinea pig-kun?
Agnes Tachyon was now even more interested in Fujiwara Chiya. She wished she could keep him beside her twenty-four hours a day, providing research data.
Maybe I should simply raise him myself from now on.
Agnes Tachyon began to develop the thought of claiming him for herself.
Clap, clap, clap!
Darley applauded him.
"That was a wonderful run, Trainer. Your training in Europe was not wasted. You have been working hard to develop yourself."
"Thank you for the praise…"
"But there is still a considerable gap between you and number one in the world. I hope you will continue working hard."
"That's enough from you."
"I'm serious, Trainer. The running of uma musume brings hope to humans, but your running brings hope to uma musume. Look."
Darley pointed at the layers upon layers of uma musume around them.
Their eyes were sparkling as they looked at Fujiwara Chiya.
"You already have your own fans."
Are those fans?
Their gazes made Fujiwara Chiya instinctively think of one sentence.
Spring has come. Once again, it is the season when animals seek mates.
Fujiwara Chiya's alarm bells were ringing.
I came here to test my body, not to court mates.
Agnes Tachyon shook the spray and sprayed Fujiwara Chiya again. The medicine she had developed to cover his body scent was nearly unable to suppress it.
It had originally been designed for Shirayuki.
Who would have thought it would be used on Trainer instead?
"Interesting. Truly interesting."
A bright, powerful voice came from behind him.
Orfevre pushed through the crowd and walked up to Fujiwara Chiya.
"I thought you were so arrogant because you were the Empress's Scepter. I didn't expect you to possess such strength yourself. You've shown me quite the spectacle!"
Her blue-purple eyes stared directly at him.
"In that case, if I wish for you to acknowledge me, merely displaying my own strength will not be enough. I must personally defeat you."
"…Hah?"
"Trainer Chiya, I hereby challenge you. I will bring you an unquestionable defeat!"
Orfevre pointed at Fujiwara Chiya, lifted her head, and spoke proudly.
"And then, I will make the Empress's Scepter my subject!"