"Starting today, Orfevre will be our team's newest member. Everyone, please welcome her."
Rice Shower and the others clapped.
Their gazes, however, were… complicated.
Yesterday, Fujiwara Chiya had passed Orfevre on the track, and everyone had celebrated it. Today, Orfevre had somehow become their teammate.
Was this how trainers recruited people now?
First, beat them on the racetrack.
Then, claim them as yours.
"As our newest member, I hope everyone will look after her."
"Hmph. Look after me?" Orfevre crossed her arms, her tone as arrogant as ever. "You should be saying I have graciously blessed them with my presence."
Yesterday, after losing to Fujiwara Chiya, she had sunk into a pit of despair. But after her sister's persuasion, and after receiving Trainer's promise, Orfevre had regained her confidence.
The first person she needed to surpass now was Trainer.
The second was the Empress.
She would pour every ounce of herself into overtaking those two.
And besides, even if she had lost to Trainer, when it came to raw ability, she was still at the very top of this team. Aside from the Empress, she didn't consider Mejiro Dober, Rice Shower, or Meisho Doto worth worrying about at all.
Even if they had achieved impressive results, that didn't change a thing.
All of them existed to worship her.
"Orfevre, these girls are all your seniors," Fujiwara Chiya said from beside her, patiently teaching her manners. "Greet them properly. Remember to be polite."
Orfevre puffed out her cheeks.
After a long, painful silence, she finally squeezed out one sentence.
"Please take care of me."
Just you wait, Trainer.
The day I surpass you, I will repay today's humiliation a hundredfold!
Orfevre glared murderously in her heart.
But while she was grumbling to herself, she suddenly noticed a red-haired uma musume standing beside Fujiwara Chiya. When the other girl met Orfevre's gaze, she smiled and gave her a small wave.
Thump.
Her heart slammed hard against her ribs.
Orfevre snapped her face away.
She didn't know why, but the instant she saw that person, every arrogant thought in her mind was crushed to dust.
From that girl, she had felt something.
A certain imperial presence.
It was so overwhelming that she couldn't even summon the will to rebel.
Who… is she?
"Orfevre, this is your training plan." Fujiwara Chiya handed her a sheet. "If there's anything you don't understand, you can come to me or Shirayuki."
Orfevre glanced at the Empress standing among the group.
"Trainer teaching me is enough. I have not fallen so low that I need help from the Empress."
Even after being lectured by Fujiwara Chiya, Orfevre still couldn't stand Shirayuki.
As a racer who had stood on the world's greatest stage, how could the Empress make a mistake in a race?
That alone was bad enough.
But after returning, instead of acting heartbroken or devastated, the Empress spent every day exchanging warm looks with those uma musume. That was what Orfevre couldn't tolerate.
Even if she understood that regret couldn't change anything.
Even if she understood that the best way to face failure was to live harder and keep moving forward.
She still held a grudge against Shirayuki.
The one who would stand at the summit of the world next time would not be the Empress.
It would be her.
The golden tyrant.
"Oh, right, Orfevre. Your debut race is scheduled for next week. That's okay with you, right?"
"Fine by me. The sooner, the better. I can hardly wait to show the world what I can do in a race."
"Good. With your current ability, I think your debut will definitely be fine. I was actually planning to schedule it for this week at first."
"Oh?" Orfevre's eyes narrowed. "Then why not this week?"
"Because this week is the Japan Cup."
The moment she heard those words, Orfevre's pupils tightened.
The Japan Cup.
The greatest stage in all of Japan.
If she debuted during that period, her victory would be buried under the Japan Cup's spotlight.
That was why he had shifted the timing.
"Heh. I see…" Orfevre's lips curled upward. "Then I have time to appreciate the performance the Empress will present to me."
…
"Oho? If it isn't my beloved Empress! To think I would have the fortune of meeting you here. What incredible luck!"
Air Groove, who was about to head to the training grounds, ran into Pilsudski, who had apparently been lying in ambush by the entrance for quite a while.
Pilsudski was holding a massive rose.
Its petals were as red as jewels, clearly a high-quality bloom at a glance.
"Pilsudski, I told you already, I'm not the Empress anymore."
"My apologies. A slip of the tongue. It is not yet the time to call you Empress. I should address you as the beautiful Lady Air Groove instead."
Air Groove's face visibly collapsed.
"Ugh… fine. What are you here for?"
"I wanted to invite you for a walk. Also…" Pilsudski glanced left and right, searching for the current Empress, the one who always got in the way of her good fortune.
Every time she tried to get a little affectionate with Air Groove, that girl would always appear and ruin everything.
Thanks to her, Pilsudski could only secretly follow beside Air Groove now, take photos of her when no one was looking, and occasionally sniff the towel she used to wipe away sweat.
As expected of her beloved Lady Air Groove.
Even her towel smelled like roses.
"Shirayuki is training. Her training time starts earlier than mine."
"Perfect. Then let's go for a walk, just the two of us." Pilsudski winked at her.
Air Groove fell silent for a long moment, then sighed.
"Only around the nearby area."
Pilsudski's face lit up like she had just won the grand prize.
"Are you sure this is fine?" Air Groove asked once they were outside. "Using this time to come find me instead of training?"
"Searching for Lady Air Groove is also a form of training for me. These past few days, I have fully experienced the hardships of hiding underwater in a cold pool for an hour while breathing through only a single straw, hanging upside down from a tree by my tail, and climbing a wall with only two fingers. At this point, no obstacle can be called an obstacle anymore."
"What exactly have you been doing…?"
"For my beloved Lady Air Groove, I am willing to do anything."
Pilsudski thumped her chest and gazed at Air Groove with eyes dripping with affection.
She really is so different…
The more Pilsudski acted like this, the more Air Groove realized just how wonderful her Shirayuki was.
That child never tried to flatter her for no reason. Every day, she simply did what needed to be done, steadily and sincerely.
Whenever Air Groove watched Shirayuki guide the uma musume through training, she thought of her own mother.
The Shirayuki of now carried that same feeling.
A motherly grace that seemed to embrace the world.
Before she knew it, Air Groove had completely fallen for that small white figure.
Every time Shirayuki called her "Air Groove-senpai," Air Groove felt as though her heart was about to melt.
She would stroke Shirayuki's face, rub her ears, and stare at the girl's soft, pink cheeks.
Sometimes, the urge to kiss her would rise before she could stop it.
The current Air Groove had no room in her heart for anyone else.
Her attention was entirely fixed on Shirayuki.
Even if Shirayuki no longer needed her help.
Even if Shirayuki could handle anything perfectly on her own.
Air Groove still wanted to stay by her side.
"Empress-sama, do your best!"
The students' cheers rang out from the training grounds.
Air Groove turned her head.
When she saw that white figure, her body came to a halt.
"Lady Air Groove…"
Following Air Groove's gaze, Pilsudski saw Shirayuki in the middle of training.
She clenched her fists, her voice half envy and half fury.
"It seems I must teach the current Empress a lesson."
How dare she steal Lady Air Groove's heart.
Unforgivable.