"Fumino, there's one class I absolutely, positively cannot attend."
"What?"
"Swimming class," Fujiwara Chiya said. "That class requires swimsuits. And if I wear a school swimsuit, you know exactly what's going to happen."
A certain area would make a very un-student-like statement.
"You don't want to see a grown man in a sukumizu, do you?"
"What if I said I did?"
"Then I'll die right here."
The two stared at each other for a moment.
Even though her childhood friend was a hopeless womanizer who got himself tangled up with every pretty uma musume within a fifty-meter radius, Nase Fumino just couldn't bring herself to hate him.
To fulfill the promise she had made with Fujiwara Chiya, Fumino had worked herself to the bone. Driven by that one goal, she had swallowed the loneliness of her father pushing her aside and leaving her to fend for herself, and became the youngest trainer in history.
Now, her father had entered a semi-retired life. Every day, he drank a little, wandered around with friends, played the role of an ordinary middle-aged uncle somewhere outside, and occasionally gave young fillies some training advice. He had plenty of free time now. He could finally spend time with her.
But the days that had already passed couldn't be brought back.
Fumino didn't have much she wanted to say to him.
Ask for praise? She was long past that age.
Gossip? What was there to gossip about with an old man?
Work? Talking about that would only annoy her.
Most of the time, the two of them just sat together, ate something, and chatted. And most of the topics they talked about were related to Chiya.
Fumino liked hearing about what Chiya had done over in Europe. Those stories were pretty much the only thing she and her father had in common now.
Still… lately, Fumino did feel like their relationship had gotten a little better than before.
According to her father, it was Chiya who had told him to come back. He told him not to pour every last bit of himself into training. Even for trainers, life wasn't only about training.
After learning that, Fumino's feelings for Fujiwara Chiya deepened just a little more.
Compared to those uma musume, her relationship with Chiya might have been much more distant. But even so, he had never once ignored her.
Fumino really liked that thoughtful side of him.
Watching her childhood friend plead for mercy again, begging to be excused from class, Fumino let out a sigh.
She wasn't a demon. Teasing him a little was one thing, but actually throwing Chiya into a pool full of uma musume while he wore a sukumizu? Even Fumino wasn't heartless enough for that.
Just as she was about to let him leave early, Akikawa Yayoi suddenly appeared.
"I shall handle this matter!"
"Yayoi Nee-san!?"
"Director?"
"Hmph-hmph. I already knew Chiya would be troubled by this, so for the upcoming swimming class, students may freely choose whatever swimwear they like! That way, nobody has to wear that tight-fitting sukumizu anymore!"
Fujiwara Chiya froze.
When it came to tormenting people, his older sister was still in a league of her own.
During swimming class, the students excitedly looked over each other's outfits. This was the first time they had ever been allowed to wear whatever swimwear they wanted to class, so everyone was in high spirits.
Kitasan Black came over to Fujiwara Chiya, beaming from ear to ear.
"Chiba! I didn't expect the Director to let us wear whatever we wanted!"
"Mm… yeah."
Fujiwara Chiya silently hugged his knees.
Kitasan Black was wearing a white swimsuit with black lace trim. The bright, lively design suited her so well that just standing there made her look like pure summer energy in uma musume form.
"Kita-chan, Chiba, so this is where you two went."
Satono Diamond walked over as well. She was wearing a green swimsuit with a ribbon at the chest, and the elegant design made her look every bit the refined young lady she was.
Standing in front of Fujiwara Chiya, Satono Diamond smiled.
"Why are you sitting on the ground, Chiba?"
As expected of girls in the springtime of youth. Every single one of them looked radiant.
But Fujiwara Chiya was not one of them.
Putting aside the fact that he had long since passed the age of youthful innocence, there was also the matter of his swimsuit.
He was wearing one of Shirayuki's outfits.
To dress Shirayuki up, Fujiwara Chiya had bought all sorts of swimsuits. Among them were several long skirt-style swimsuits that reached down to the thighs.
They did, at least, manage to hide the part of him that absolutely needed hiding.
But the moment Fujiwara Chiya put it on, he felt like his life had reached its ending credits.
Especially when Orfevre and the others saw him wearing Shirayuki's clothes.
The emotions in their eyes were complicated.
That hurt even more than being laughed at.
And then Treve delivered the finishing blow.
"No matter what form you take, you will always be my husband."
Fatal damage.
He had fallen.
Fujiwara Chiya never dreamed that the clothes he had originally bought for Shirayuki would one day end up on his own body.
The worst part was, when he looked at himself from Shirayuki's perspective, Fujiwara Chiya actually thought he looked pretty cute.
That complicated feeling made him start hating himself.
His tastes were drifting in a more and more bizarre direction.
I'm still human, damn it!
"What's wrong, Chiba? You don't look very excited."
"Are you feeling unwell?"
Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond looked worried. They stared at Fujiwara Chiya, who was crouched on the ground and tightly hugging his perfectly flat chest.
In that instant, both of them realized something.
"N-No worries, Chiba! The most important thing for a girl is to show off her energy!"
"That's right! And I heard that area can grow if you massage it regularly, so there's no need to feel anxious, Chiba!"
What are you two talking about?
"Have more confidence! In my eyes, you're already perfect, Chiba! At least I think you're really pretty. You don't lose to any other girl at all!"
"Kita-chan is right. Chiba is the uma musume we all admire most. You have both strength and beauty."
Did I violate the laws of heaven?
Why are you humiliating me like this?
Fujiwara Chiya was starting to lose it.
"What are you all doing here? Class is about to start."
An orange figure walked over. A pair of beautiful blue eyes looked at the group.
"Silence Suzuka-senpai."
Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond greeted her, then huddled close to Suzuka and whispered something.
"Chest?"
Hearing that, Silence Suzuka looked at Fujiwara Chiya's chest.
Then her eyes widened.
A flicker of relief and emotion passed through them.
She looked down at her own chest, wrapped in pale blue fabric, then gently placed a hand over it.
"Chiba-san."
Silence Suzuka walked up to Fujiwara Chiya and showed him a rare, confident smile.
"Did you know? To an uma musume, the most important things are friends and bonds. Those two things will make you stronger. Everything else is optional. So cast aside those unnecessary thoughts and become a strong uma musume together with your friends."
Suzuka…
What in the meow are you talking about?