Noble Scion stood there with a trace of pride, watching Offside Trap train on the field below. Even if the other girl was already a world-famous horse girl, Noble Scion felt no fear toward her at all. In this year's race schedule, she too was aiming for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, and in mid-month she would first be running in the Prix Lupin.
As one of the most highly anticipated horse girls of her generation, Noble Scion naturally believed she would win that race. Still, before taking on the Prix Lupin, she hadn't been able to resist her curiosity and had come to the training grounds to watch Offside Trap's training for herself.
Beside her stood a friend, tail swishing lazily, looking thoroughly unimpressed.
"What exactly is this trainer doing? Why is she just repeating such basic, ordinary drills over and over?"
Her friend's confusion was, in truth, Noble Scion's confusion as well. She simply hadn't said it aloud. Instead, she kept her gaze fixed on Offside Trap's running, hoping to uncover some deeper mystery hidden within it.
"Is there actually something worth paying attention to? Why can't I see anything special at all?"
Seeing how serious Noble Scion looked, her friend hurriedly asked, only for Noble Scion to respond with nothing more than a slow shake of her head.
She genuinely couldn't tell what was supposed to be so remarkable about Offside Trap's training. It looked almost like the most primitive kind of conditioning imaginable.
A flicker of disbelief stirred inside her. It was hard to imagine that a horse girl could rise to the top tier—even the very peak—of the Flash Series through training methods this plain. If that really was the case, then her physical gifts and natural talent would have to be terrifyingly monstrous.
Noble Scion drew in a breath, ready to turn and leave, when a voice suddenly rang out from behind them.
"You two. What exactly are you sneaking around here to watch?"
Master Painter's voice made both girls jolt. Even someone as composed as Noble Scion wasn't immune to being startled like that. She whipped around, annoyance already written across her face, and immediately complained.
"Senpai, could you not scare people like that in the future? You really could scare someone to death."
"Am I really that frightening?"
Master Painter scratched at her cheek, then broke into her usual open, sunny grin.
"But of course the answer is no. From now on, stay alert no matter what you're doing. You never know when I might suddenly appear."
At that, the two juniors could only glare at her in protest.
Master Painter, however, felt not the slightest pressure. Thinking these two little girls could intimidate her with a look alone was simply too naïve.
With a shrug, she started walking openly toward the field.
Unlike Noble Scion and the others, who still worried that watching someone else's training too closely might be inappropriate, Master Painter knew perfectly well there was nothing particularly secretive or profound about Offside Trap's regimen. Even if they watched from up close, neither Shinji nor Offside Trap would take offense.
Trailing after her, Noble Scion still couldn't suppress her curiosity. She wanted to dig into Shinji's training methods and see what made them special.
"Hm?"
Shinji had been in the middle of explaining to Offside Trap how the next full-course run could incorporate tempo changes to better simulate real racing and raise the difficulty. Then he noticed Master Painter and the two horse girls behind her, and tilted his head slightly.
"Good morning, Mr. Shinji," Master Painter said with a yawn. "After training ends today, would you be free to have lunch with my trainer?"
Shinji lifted a brow. So her trainer was finally back.
He had already guessed as much from her approach. With a smile, he nodded.
"No problem."
Noble Scion stared at him, startled. She hadn't expected this Japanese trainer to speak French so fluently—
Though admittedly, his accent did sound a bit mechanical.
"And these two are?"
"They're younger girls from the academy. I spotted them up there earlier, so I just brought them along."
At Master Painter's explanation, Shinji nodded and didn't think much of it.
But Master Painter seemed to catch what he was thinking. After a moment's consideration, she pointed toward Noble Scion.
"This girl's very talented. You could say she's one of our academy's rising stars. Bellin has very high hopes for her."
At once, both Shinji and Offside Trap turned to look at Noble Scion.
A moment earlier, Noble Scion had still been looking at Offside Trap with a faint edge of challenge in her eyes. But the instant both of them focused on her, a powerful pressure crashed over her.
That horse girl she hadn't really taken seriously until now was suddenly radiating an aura that made it clear—instantly—that she belonged to the absolute highest echelon.
Not merely first-rate.
The sheer sense of power rolling off her from the inside out made Noble Scion swallow hard.
"She'll be running in the Prix Lupin this month," Master Painter continued, "but more importantly, three weeks after that, she'll go straight into the Prix du Jockey Club. So? Interested in taking a look?"
"Prix Lupin?"
Shinji rubbed his chin, then shook his head.
"I'll pass. If her real target is the Prix du Jockey Club, then she probably won't be showing all her cards in the Lupin. Still, you should be careful. If you run into an opponent in especially sharp form, trying to conserve too much could backfire."
The first half was directed at Master Painter. The second was for Noble Scion.
The Classic-year horse girl stared at him in surprise. She hadn't expected this Japanese trainer to infer her whole setup and intentions in just a few sentences.
She gave a silent nod, all traces of underestimation gone.
At this point, she no longer believed Shinji trained Offside Trap that way because that was the only kind of training he knew. It was far more likely that this was simply the training method best suited to Offside Trap herself.
And once that thought clicked into place, Noble Scion's gaze drifted toward Offside Trap's legs.
To be able to keep up this kind of training day after day… this horse girl's physical constitution really was absurd.
"How was your outing? Did you enjoy it?"
Master Painter's question shifted the subject. More than anything, she cared whether Shinji and Offside Trap had enjoyed themselves yesterday. As one of France's most iconic landmarks, she had sincerely wanted the pair to have a good time.
"It was great. Shijiaji took good care of us too."
Master Painter merely gave him a look.
As if she didn't know exactly how capable Shijiaji was when it came to taking care of people. In that regard, the girl wasn't much different from her trainer.
"No need to thank us for dragging her out to play," Master Painter said dryly. "Watching her train every day gives me a headache."
At that, Shinji's lips curled slightly.
The bond between Master Painter and Shijiaji really was a close one, almost like sisters.
And because they were so close, Master Painter was always reacting like this.
Older sisters never approved of their younger sisters being too lively and overexcited, while younger sisters invariably found their older sisters stuffy and old-fashioned. With Master Painter and Shijiaji, that pattern played out almost perfectly.
"Then it's settled," Master Painter said. "I'll send you the address later for noon."
"No problem."
As he thought about finally meeting one of the world's top trainers, anticipation stirred in Shinji's chest. This would be his first real exchange with a truly elite trainer on the global stage.
He couldn't help wondering what exactly they would end up discussing over lunch.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter125)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter250)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 145
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 115
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 110
My Harem Is Indescribable 100
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
Still playing traditional Honk 80
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 80
Checking In in Demon Slayer 85
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 75
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 80
Why did they assign me to Uma 75
MYGO Beauties 70
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 70
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 80
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 57
The Uma Musume Who Became 55
I'm Definitely Not the King of 60
After Maxing Out Every Class 45
Naruto: I'm Konoha's Local Men 35
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 34
I, the Elden Sword Saint 27
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 24
No One Knows Pokémon Better 18
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 20
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin