"Trainer, how was your weekend?"
The day after the weekend, Fujiwara Chiya had barely stepped into the office when Darley greeted him with a bright, knowing smile.
"Not bad."
"Did anything interesting happen?"
"We went out like normal. What kind of 'interesting' are you talking about?"
"Normal, hmm… hehe."
Darley let out a soft, suspicious little laugh.
"Some things cannot be forced, and there is no need to force them. Once enough time passes, you will naturally come to accept them."
"What are you talking about?"
"Nothing at all. I simply hope you can enjoy that normality. Don't overthink it. Just face your feelings honestly."
Fujiwara Chiya frowned.
He really disliked this side of Darley. The part of her that clearly knew something, then deliberately acted as if she knew nothing. If she wanted to play the mysterious strategist that badly, he would simply increase her workload and let her strategize until the end of time.
As though she had sensed the danger, Darley coughed a few times, picked up her notebook, and very obediently started working.
Fujiwara Chiya did not tell Darley that something interesting had, in fact, happened.
No.
Not interesting.
Special.
Yesterday had been one of the rare days when Fujiwara Chiya had truly let himself relax.
He and Shirayuki had gone through every two-person attraction in the amusement park. When night fell, he took her to the autumn-themed restaurant, and the two of them stayed there until the park was almost closing.
Before returning to Tracen, Fujiwara Chiya and Shirayuki took another walk through Central Park.
They sat together on a bench.
Shirayuki leaned against his shoulder, quietly gazing up at the moon.
In that moment, Fujiwara Chiya felt as though time itself had stopped.
Moonlight spilled over Shirayuki's face. Her azure eyes blinked softly, clear and bright, like stars reflected on still water.
Fujiwara Chiya stared at her, dazed.
Cute.
Beautiful.
Delicate.
Every lovely word he could think of seemed as though it had been made for Shirayuki.
And it was then that Fujiwara Chiya suddenly wanted to kiss her.
It was a strange feeling.
Shirayuki was, without question, himself. Her movements, her breathing, every little gesture she made, all of it was controlled by Fujiwara Chiya.
And yet, what appeared before his eyes was so captivating that his heart skipped.
He was not praising himself.
That feeling came from the very bottom of his heart.
And on Shirayuki's side, when she looked at Chiya's face, her own heart began to beat faster for some reason.
She saw that face every day in the mirror.
Yet in that moment, Shirayuki thought he looked unbearably handsome.
There was no pretending.
No awkwardness.
No hesitation.
Fujiwara Chiya held Shirayuki's hand.
Then their lips touched.
Only briefly.
But it felt like lightning had struck them both.
Both bodies trembled at the same time.
Soft.
Sweet.
Like honey melting on the tongue.
Chiya, Shirayuki, he could no longer tell where one ended and the other began. They melted beneath each other's lips, and every cell in both bodies seemed to cry out in joy.
Breath mingled with breath.
Warmth passed between them.
Shirayuki leaned against Chiya's chest, while he gently stroked her back. At the same time, both bodies filled with a quiet, dizzying excitement.
A perfect match.
Shirayuki was part of him.
And he was part of Shirayuki.
Their movements slowly fell into the same rhythm.
Hands clasped together.
Skin against skin.
Lips against lips.
They tasted each other carefully, gently, with complete focus and not the slightest hesitation. It was the shared body that belonged to both him and her, and because of that, they understood each other more deeply than anyone else ever could.
Precisely because of that, the sweetness felt like it could melt their minds.
No words were needed.
No explanations were needed.
Two identical souls longed to become one.
Their breathing grew faster.
Then, after an unknown amount of time, a sharp ringtone tore through the little world that had shut everyone else out.
It was a call from Akikawa Yayoi.
She asked Fujiwara Chiya why he had not returned yet, since Tracen was about to close.
Only then did Fujiwara Chiya look at the time and finally come back to himself.
He wiped the corner of his mouth. His heartbeat thudded in perfect sync with Shirayuki's pulse.
Then the two of them stood up and hurried back.
That was where the outing ended.
If not for that call, Fujiwara Chiya had no idea what he and Shirayuki might have done.
Maybe, perhaps… it would have gone that far?
No.
Probably not.
Fujiwara Chiya was not sure.
"Oh, right, Trainer. I would like to take a few days off. Some friends want to meet with me."
"Hah? You're taking leave for a gathering?"
"Please, Trainer. It is something very important."
Darley pressed her palms together and pleaded with him.
"Impossible."
What kind of person threw work aside just to go play?
If she wanted to go, she should at least finish the next few days' work first.
Fujiwara Chiya was utterly impartial.
"Trainer, this is a small token of my sincerity."
As Darley spoke, she placed a signed photo on Fujiwara Chiya's desk.
He was just about to say something, but the moment he saw the person in the photo, his mouth snapped shut.
It was Shinzan's signed photo.
Because he had gone out with Shirayuki, Fujiwara Chiya had not been able to attend Shinzan's final signing event.
He had thought he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Fujiwara Chiya swallowed.
His fingers twitched.
Again.
And again.
He forcibly suppressed the urge to snatch the photo.
"Don't even try it. You're not bribing me. Work comes first. That point is not negotiable."
"Really? Three days would be enough."
"No."
"I see…"
Darley reached out toward the photo.
"In that case, it cannot be helped. I originally lined up before dawn to get this signed photo for you, Trainer. But if that is how it is, I suppose I will just keep it for myself…"
Slap!
Fujiwara Chiya's hand came down on the photo.
"…Three days. I'll give you three days of leave at most. Today, you're doing extra work. No leaving early."
"Deal!"
Darley smiled brightly.
Fujiwara Chiya silently placed the photo into his desk.
It's complete!
My Shinzan collection is finally complete!
As an uma musume enthusiast, was there anything happier than completing the full merchandise collection of one's idol?
Tonight, Fujiwara Chiya planned to have a small drink to celebrate.
Ring, ring.
His phone rang.
Fujiwara Chiya's heart skipped a beat.
He had already developed ringtone-induced PTSD.
It was a message from Nishizaki Ryuu.
After reading it, Fujiwara Chiya stood up and immediately headed to the other man's room.
…
"Yo, Chiya."
Nishizaki Ryuu greeted him casually.
Silence Suzuka was sitting on the sofa across from him. When Fujiwara Chiya entered, she gave him a small nod.
"Ryu-aniki, did you find a problem?"
"I discussed it with Suzuka, and we found quite a few areas that could still be improved."
Ever since Fujiwara Chiya had distributed the material he had learned in Europe, Nishizaki Ryuu and the others had been studying it day and night.
They thought things through while revising the plans. After every training session, Nishizaki Ryuu would call his uma musume over and ask about their condition in detail.
Now, after all this time, Nishizaki Ryuu could finally give Fujiwara Chiya a preliminary answer.
"It needs a main axis."
"A main axis?"
Nishizaki Ryuu nodded and began to explain.
"Chiya, the things you recorded are too numerous and too scattered. Of course, I'm not saying they're bad. It's the opposite. Every single item is useful. But have you thought about this? Uma musume don't have unlimited energy. Every uma musume has things she's good at and things she isn't. Your training plan is basically trying to turn them into Super Saiyans who are top class in every area."
"Is that unrealistic?"
"I wouldn't say impossible, but there are very few true all-rounder uma musume. I think we should take each uma musume's own characteristics and use them as the core training axis. Everything else should be reduced where possible. That would also lessen the burden on them."
"If it's about reducing burden, I also have massage techniques that improve recovery efficiency…"
"Chiya."
Nishizaki Ryuu coughed a few times.
"Not every uma musume will allow her trainer to touch her body."
"Hm?"
Fujiwara Chiya looked toward Silence Suzuka beside him.
Silence Suzuka shyly averted her gaze.
"Trainer Chiya is… too close to uma musume," she said softly.
She often saw Fujiwara Chiya rubbing an uma musume's feet, touching tails, and stroking hair.
Normal trainers did not do that.
Especially younger trainers. Uma musume usually kept a certain distance from them. If an older trainer touched their ears a little, that might not be a huge issue.
But tails and feet were completely different.
Those were among the most private parts of an uma musume.
"I thought uma musume and trainers were supposed to be as close as family… So they're not?"
"Chiya, you're way too used to living among uma musume, aren't you?"
Nishizaki Ryuu pressed a hand to his forehead.
"Right now, you're the only one who can blend in with this many uma musume. I'm not joking. The trainers in the past who dared to do that all…"
Nishizaki Ryuu coughed a few times and left the rest unsaid.
A faint trace of fear flickered in his eyes.
"In short, the biggest problem with this plan is that it's too complicated. We need to subtract from it. Now, let me tell you what I'm thinking…"