The girl standing beside Kiryuin gave a small, polite bow. She was slightly taller than her trainer, and her appearance was striking—she was draped in pure white.
Her hair and tail were a snowy white, distinct from the typical "gray" coat. Her eyes were droopy and calm, giving her a bit of a spacey, relaxed air. Her long horse ears were adorned with a flower-shaped ornament.
Urara, predictably, immediately swarmed her.
"Happy Meek... so, Meeky-chan! You have to call me Urara, okay?"
"...Understood. Miss Urara."
Urara began literal laps around Happy Meek, her eyes sparkling. I noticed Meek's expression soften just a fraction.
"Alright. Happy Meek will be Urara's opponent," I announced. "We'll do two one-on-one heats at 1200 meters—one on turf and one on dirt. Ms. Kiryuin, are you sure you're okay with these conditions?"
I'd set the terms specifically to suit Urara. A short dirt sprint was her only chance. Kiryuin watched the girls' interaction with a smile and nodded.
"It is no problem at all. Meek can run on both turf and dirt. As for the distance, she can handle anything from a Sprint to a Long-distance run."
Wait, what? Both surfaces? And ANY distance? You've got to be kidding me.
Kiryuin said it so casually, but that level of versatility was unheard of. If she wasn't exaggerating, it meant either Kiryuin's training was god-tier, or Happy Meek was a freak of nature. Even the legendary Student Council President, Symboli Rudolf, didn't have that kind of range.
Classic Kiryuin prestige... I thought with a wry smile. Acting all sweet while dropping a blatant bluff. But if you're going to lie, at least make it believable.
"I suppose you're going to tell me she can use any strategy, too?" I joked.
"Oh, no, that would be impossible," Kiryuin replied earnestly. "Meek specializes in being a Leader or a Betweener."
"Haha, of course... wait."
I paused. She hadn't doubled down on the bluff. If she was admitting to specific tactical preferences, did that mean the "any distance, any surface" part was... actually true?
Well, we'll see it soon enough.
We spent thirty minutes warming up. Since this wasn't a formal event, there were no starting gates. They would simply line up and go on my signal. Urara had her usual "I'm having a blast" grin, while Happy Meek took a slight forward lean, her expression unreadable.
I raised my right hand.
"Ready, both of you? And... Go!"
The moment I shouted, they bolted. The iron shoes on their racing flats tore into the turf, kicking up clumps of grass and soil.
...Oh. No. We're going to get slaughtered.
Within the first three seconds, I knew it was over.
Urara hated turf, but even accounting for that, Happy Meek was terrifyingly fast. Her start was flawless, and she seemed to gain massive momentum with every single stride.
Meek had taken the "Leader" position, but she was pulling away so fast she might as well have been a "Runner." The 1200-meter track was a simple layout: a straight, a curve, and the final stretch. No hills. Meek took the inside line with practiced ease, carving through the corner like it was nothing.
I had fixed Urara's form over the last month. She was faster and stronger than she had been on day one. But she couldn't even sniff Meek's shadow. By the time they hit the final straight, the gap was over ten lengths.
Urara tried to kick into a final spurt, but the distance only widened. Happy Meek crossed the finish line first, with Urara following a full five seconds later.
In a real race, the scoreboard would have just flashed "DISTANCE"—the shorthand for a total blowout. There was a gap of nearly twenty lengths between them.
A total, humiliating defeat.
And yet, Happy Meek hadn't let up. She had run with everything she had until the very end. That was the result.
"Hah... hah... You're amazing, Meeky-chan! You went whoosh! So fast!"
"Miss Urara, you... er... never mind."
Despite being crushed, Urara was all smiles. She was literally jumping around Happy Meek, praising her rival's speed.
"..."
I watched them in silence. No bitterness, no frustration—just pure, unadulterated joy for her opponent's success.
"The next one is dirt... correct?"
Kiryuin spoke up tentatively, perhaps sensing my dark mood. I shook my head to clear the cobwebs and gave her a small, forced smile.
"Please. But man... Happy Meek is something else."
"D-Do you think so? That was... well, thank you."
Kiryuin looked genuinely pleased for a second, then checked herself.
"Urara, Meek, take a breather. We're hitting the dirt next. You okay to go?"
"Yup! Hey, hey, Trainer! Meeky-chan is super! She's really, really fast! Like zooom!"
"I saw... and how did it feel to run?"
"It was fun!"
Urara beamed at me. I didn't know what to say. I just looked up at the sky and sighed.
After the break, we moved to the dirt track. Same layout: straight, curve, final straight. For me, this was the real test.
"Ready? And... Go!"
The signal echoed, and both girls dug their toes into the sand, kicking up a golden cloud of dust. Again, Meek took the lead with Urara in pursuit.
She's still fast... Kiryuin wasn't lying.
Happy Meek was tearing across the dirt at almost the same speed she'd maintained on the turf. The footing was objectively worse, so her raw speed was lower, but she was still pulling away from Urara.
But Urara was also moving. On the dirt, she was actually faster than she'd been on the grass. Why a girl would be faster on a heavy, unstable surface than on smooth turf was beyond me, but there it was.
By the time they hit the curve, the gap was only five lengths. But while Meek carved a perfect, tight line, Urara's turn was sloppy, swinging wide toward the outside of the track. By the time they exited the corner, the gap had ballooned back to ten lengths.
But then, Urara's "true" power showed up. In the final stretch, she hammered her feet into the sand and unleashed a burst of acceleration, chasing down Meek with everything she had.
It was a real contest now. Much better than the turf disaster. But still...
Even on dirt, we can't reach her.
Urara managed to close the distance, but that was all. Happy Meek crossed the line about eight lengths ahead. In terms of time, it was about a 1.5-second difference. In the world of Horse Girls, 1.5 seconds is an eternity. Even on her best surface and at her best distance, Urara had been left twenty meters behind.
"Incredible! Meeky-chan, you're super fast on the sand, too!"
And once again, as she ate the dust of her rival, Urara showered Meek with praise. She looked utterly satisfied.
Some might call it "never losing her spirit." But for Urara, it was something else entirely.
Her speed, her form, her stamina... those are technical problems. I can fix those with training. I WILL fix those. But that... how do I fix THAT?
I had hoped a mock race against a peer would ignite a fire in her. I had hoped she'd feel the sting of losing and want to win. But how do you coach a girl who is genuinely happy to lose as long as she gets to run?
"Trainer, Trainer! Meeky-chan is amazing! She's so, so cool!"
She trotted over with that radiant smile. If she were saying this to hide her pain, I could work with that. But after a month of being with her every day, I knew she meant it from the bottom of her heart.
Do I scold her for losing? Do I get angry—even if I have to fake it—to show her that losing should hurt?
"I see... Urara, how was that race?"
I knelt down so I was at her eye level. Urara wiped the sweat from her brow, her smile outshining the sun.
"It was so much fun!"
"..."
I put my head in my hands and wondered, for the hundredth time, what I had gotten myself into.