In order to desensitise Shirayuki's tail, Fujiwara Chiya needed to keep applying stimulation.
This was not an easy task.
At least, not for Shirayuki.
In the past, whenever Fujiwara Chiya touched her tail or stroked her ears, he had only done so lightly. If he used too much force, Shirayuki would start feeling strange.
But now, the time had come when change was unavoidable.
According to Yaeno Muteki, in the early stages of desensitisation, it was best to proceed gradually, increasing the strength little by little until she eventually reached the point where she could curl her tail around a barbell. That was what Yaeno Muteki had done. Now, her tail had been trained like a whip.
Unless the technique was especially skilled, touching her tail would no longer produce any special reaction.
Fujiwara Chiya had tried it himself.
No matter how he rubbed, Yaeno Muteki's breathing remained steady, her expression completely normal.
It was just that afterward, her strikes during training became strangely heavier.
Fujiwara Chiya had to train Shirayuki to that level too.
He brought Shirayuki to the west-side park at Tracen. There was no one around to disturb them. It was quiet, secluded, and a good place to train a tail.
Holding Shirayuki's tail, Fujiwara Chiya stroked it twice.
Mm.
Very soft and comfortable.
It felt a little like a silk scarf.
Shirayuki had always taken good care of her body, brushing her tail every day, so the texture was extremely nice.
In winter, Fujiwara Chiya could wrap Shirayuki's tail around his hands and use it like gloves to keep warm.
She already had a foundation.
Surely Shirayuki would get used to it quickly.
Fujiwara Chiya gripped her tail and gave it a firm pull.
"Yah!"
Shirayuki let out a weak, unsteady sound. A fierce sensation ran through her, and she collapsed against Fujiwara Chiya.
The man's hand trembled slightly.
This had already exceeded Shirayuki's tolerance limit.
In the past, he would never have dared to use this much force.
An uma musume's tail was full of nerves. It could clearly feel the sensation of fingers brushing over the skin beneath the hair. The intensity of the stimulation was several times stronger than foot massage or a full-body massage.
So it was better to touch an uma musume's feet than to casually pull an uma musume's tail.
Of course, different uma musume had different constitutions.
For example, Rice Shower probably was not as sensitive as Shirayuki.
However, she was very flexible.
In any case, in order to let Shirayuki get used to it as quickly as possible, Fujiwara Chiya had to endure it.
Imagine it.
Next year, she would be able to run with an even sharper acceleration posture.
Would that not bring them one step closer to victory?
Fujiwara Chiya encouraged himself and gripped Shirayuki's tail again, giving it another pull.
"Yi!"
That sensation, as if it could burn through the brain, swept over both of them at the same time.
Shirayuki closed her eyes in a daze. She opened her mouth and bit down on the man's shoulder, trying to use pain to offset the overwhelming sensation.
However, the pain of being bitten did not cancel anything out.
Instead, it gave Fujiwara Chiya a strange feeling.
Fujiwara Chiya rubbed the tail with more force. Shirayuki clung tightly to the man's shoulders, her fingers sinking into his skin as her body trembled.
L-lighter…
Shirayuki's instincts were sounding an alarm. Her head felt as if it were about to burn up.
But her reason told her that this was a process she had to overcome.
Yaeno Muteki had also gone through this.
If she wanted the reward, she had to pay the price.
A thin line of saliva slipped from the corner of Shirayuki's mouth and dampened the man's clothes. Tears blurred her eyes until she could not see anything clearly. She could only instinctively hold the man tightly, enduring the powerful sensation that seemed to melt her thoughts and whose end she could not predict.
I kind of want this to keep going…
That thought appeared in Shirayuki's mind.
From earlier, Chiya's movements had grown larger and larger. Yaeno Muteki had clearly said to proceed gradually, but he could not help increasing the strength. The pain in his shoulder, the warmth against his clothes, the touch and movement along the tail, all those sensations overlapped, creating a dizzying experience.
Shirayuki's hands slid from Fujiwara Chiya's shoulders to his chest, then wrapped around him tightly.
Their bodies pressed together, and they could clearly feel each other's heartbeat.
Gradually, the sound of their hearts began to overlap.
Thump, thump.
It echoed beside their ears.
The sensation passed between them.
As they held each other, Fujiwara Chiya slowly became unable to tell which body was which. He could sense Shirayuki, and he could also sense himself through Shirayuki's senses. Their perception kept looping, until it finally blended together perfectly.
He was Chiya.
He was also Shirayuki.
At that moment, Fujiwara Chiya felt that he had become complete.
Looking at the white-haired girl in his arms, Fujiwara Chiya released her tail.
There was no need to rub it anymore.
That entrancing feeling still continued to pass between them.
Fujiwara Chiya's hand moved from Shirayuki's waist to the back of her hand, gripping it tightly.
The feeling of touching.
The feeling of being touched.
Fujiwara Chiya knew them all.
And precisely because he knew them, the sensation layered together was more powerful than anything he had felt with anyone else.
"Trainer…"
A sudden voice interrupted that loop.
Fujiwara Chiya raised his head and found Seiun Sky standing in front of him.
She looked completely stunned.
"…What are you doing, Trainer?"
"I'm…"
Fujiwara Chiya coughed a few times.
He looked at Shirayuki in his arms and only then noticed that Shirayuki's cheeks had already turned cherry pink. Her azure eyes were hazy, and her breathing was faintly misty.
Wiping her own eyes, Shirayuki turned around.
"I'm training."
"Training?"
"Yes. Very difficult training."
Seiun Sky opened her mouth.
Who would believe that nonsense?!
Just now, Seiun Sky had seen Chiya and Shirayuki come over here. Originally, she had wanted to sneak over and startle them.
In the end, she was the one who got startled.
She had seen Chiya holding Shirayuki's tail, while Shirayuki turned around and embraced Fujiwara Chiya. Their bodies were pressed closely together, clearly looking like they were being affectionate.
When Trainer first came back, Seiun Sky had already vaguely felt something was wrong.
What did he mean by finding peace in Shirayuki?
How could someone find peace in themselves?
Now Seiun Sky understood.
Trainer had already become captivated by Shirayuki!
This was narcissism!
How could he do that?
Seiun Sky could not accept it.
She refused to believe that among so many people who had feelings for Trainer, he had somehow chosen Shirayuki.
Even if he maintained relationships with several people, that would still be fine.
But choosing Shirayuki meant an instant three-hundred-and-sixty-degree defence with no blind spots.
What were the rest of them supposed to do?
Pretending as if nothing had happened, Seiun Sky asked, "Oh? What kind of training is it?"
"Training to improve tail tolerance."
"That training sounds pretty simple. In that case, let me help."
"No need, Sky. I can do it myself."
"Trainer has more important things to do, right? You have so many uma musume to manage. How can you spend all your energy on Shirayuki alone? Leave this side to me."
As she spoke, Seiun Sky took Shirayuki's hand and forcefully separated the two of them.