At the shrine's worship hall, Chiya and Shirayuki slipped a thousand-yen bill into the offering box. Then they clapped their hands and gave the bell rope a shake.
Across the wide courtyard, the bell rang out with a clear, chiming jingle-jangle.
Today was not a festival.
But for Chiya, it was a precious day off.
After the Japan Cup ended, Fujiwara Chiya's phone had nearly exploded from the sheer number of calls. He had no idea where those people had gotten his number, but invitations came pouring in one after another, all asking him to appear on TV interviews. Some even skipped the phone call entirely and camped out at the gate.
You could see rows of reporters wearing armbands that read "PRESS" lined up along the entrance to Tracen, constantly making calls. Some held out radio microphones, ready to shove them toward anyone who passed by.
With that kind of formation, getting caught probably meant being interrogated for hours.
Fujiwara Chiya was so scared he did not dare step outside.
That was when Director Akikawa came to find him.
She handed Fujiwara Chiya a ticket to a hot spring inn and told him to go relax outside for a while. It would also let him dodge the reporters.
Right now, both Shirayuki and Chiya were huge names across Japan. Wherever they went, they could cause a commotion. And that commotion would likely last for quite some time. For the next year, Shirayuki would become the symbol of the strongest uma musume.
There would definitely be no shortage of trouble later, but at the very least, they needed to hide during the peak of the public's excitement. Otherwise, they would never get a peaceful day.
Fujiwara Chiya temporarily left his phone with Director Akikawa. In return, she gave him a spare phone with only her number saved inside.
"Come back whenever you've rested enough. Take Shirayuki and relax together," Director Akikawa had told him.
Then, as if adding it for formality, she said, "This is simply what I ought to do as Director."
Honestly, his big sister was way too cute.
Fujiwara Chiya almost wanted to pick her up and spin her around.
Accepting his sister's kindness, Fujiwara Chiya decided to take Shirayuki out for a proper trip. The last time he had gone to the amusement park with her, he had not been nearly satisfied. Now that Yayoi-neesan had given him such a long break, there was no way he would waste this chance.
Early in the morning, while the sky was still dim, the two of them left their rooms.
Since Mejiro Dober might worry if she could not find anyone, Shirayuki specially left her a note, saying that she was going out to relax for a while, that she would be staying outside at night, and that Chiya would be with her, so there was no need to worry.
Once everything was ready, the two slipped out through the back gate.
The moment they left Tracen, Chiya witnessed firsthand what it meant to be a popular character.
What it meant to be an idol.
"Empress-sama!"
"Could we bother you for a moment, Empress-sama?!"
"Miss Snow Dancer, could you say a few words?"
"Please shake my hand, Empress!"
They happened to run into a group of JKs on their way to school. The girls immediately rushed over with faces flushed from excitement. Their momentum was honestly no weaker than the reporters blocking the school gate.
At first, Shirayuki wanted to greet them properly.
But as more and more people gathered, she had no choice but to apologize and quickly drag Chiya away. If the reporters found out she had secretly slipped out, it would be all over.
Tokyo was no longer safe.
The moment Shirayuki showed her face, she would be recognized. The Japan Cup had only just ended, and right now, the audience's emotions were at their explosive peak. They did not care whether their enthusiasm caused trouble for their idol. As long as they saw her, they would swarm over like a wave.
To avoid drawing attention, Fujiwara Chiya deliberately went to a clothing store and bought Shirayuki a scarf, a hat, and sunglasses, wrapping her up from head to toe.
Even if she looked suspicious, no one would think this person was Snow Dancer. Her white hair and blue eyes were simply too obvious.
When they arrived at the main street in Shinjuku, the bustling city center was covered in posters of uma musume. No matter which one it was, Shirayuki was placed front and center. On an electronic screen nearly seventy meters tall, a portrait of Shirayuki wearing the Empress's crown was playing.
She looked holy.
And beautiful.
The thing was, after that footage had been filmed, Central had taken the crown back immediately.
They did not give it to her at all!
The same went for all these photos. Not a single one had been taken on the racetrack. They were all reshoots after the race ended, done with proper lighting and angles.
As expected of the idol industry.
Their character branding was top-tier.
Fujiwara Chiya had once wondered which god-tier photographer had managed to capture all those stirring pictures of Symboli Rudolf and the others.
Turns out, they were all staged afterward.
Somehow, that was a little disappointing.
Seeing the position he had once longed for filled with posters of Shirayuki, Fujiwara Chiya felt surprisingly calm.
He did not feel especially happy.
Or rather, he did not feel the excitement of seeing a dream come true.
Instead, he thought the Japan Cup was only this much.
It was also two thousand four hundred meters.
It also featured overseas uma musume.
The only difference between this race and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was that this one did not have Treve.
Just one person missing, and the difficulty was worlds apart.
He would not feel excited about winning on a stage where Treve was absent.
As the final mountain standing in front of her, Shirayuki would remain in place until she defeated Treve.
After the race ended, Treve had also sent Shirayuki a congratulatory message, celebrating her victory in the Japan Cup.
Meanwhile, Treve herself had claimed another GⅠ victory in France.
Just as Shirayuki had thought, Treve was also continuing to grow.
Even if Shirayuki could completely overwhelm those other overseas competitors now, that did not mean she could defeat Treve.
So she could not become arrogant over a single victory.
It was better to keep doing things steadily, just like before.
Aside from honor, this race had also brought Fujiwara Chiya a sizable amount in licensing fees.
Merchant collaborations, clothing, brands, restaurant tie-ins, plus the race prize money, all in all, it reached forty million yen.
This was the largest sum Fujiwara Chiya had ever earned in his life. To be honest, he almost wanted to use the money for retirement.
He still remembered how he had once been so poor he was practically eating dirt. If Tracen had not provided food and accommodation, he would not have survived at all.
Two years later, he had suddenly transformed into a small-time rich guy.
The difference was so huge that Fujiwara Chiya could hardly believe it.
He planned to send half of the money to his parents.
The other half would be kept for buying things for his uma musume in the future.
And also...
For making plans ahead.
If he was going to get married someday, there would be a lot of things he needed to buy.
At that thought, Fujiwara Chiya looked toward Shirayuki beside him.
Before he knew it, an image of Shirayuki in a wedding dress appeared in his mind.
She would definitely be...
So beautiful.
The wind stirred the shrine bell, making it ring with another clear jingle-jangle.
Fujiwara Chiya reached out and gently stroked Shirayuki's ears.
As an uma musume, she did not think this race had been particularly difficult.
But as her trainer, Fujiwara Chiya had to say one thing.
"I'm proud of you."
He hugged Shirayuki's soft body, silently thanking the girl who had stayed by his side and helped him create miracle after miracle.
Her slender white arms slowly wrapped around Fujiwara Chiya's waist.
Shirayuki closed her eyes and listened to the heartbeat in his chest.
A rhythm that matched her own.
No more words were needed.
Everything they wanted to say had already reached each other.