"Hehe… Rice Shower is so cute…"
Tang Han's muttered words drifted out in a low voice.
Rice Shower's ears perked up at once, catching that tiny sound with perfect clarity.
"Big Brother?"
Her cheeks flushed pink as she looked at Tang Han in disbelief.
Had Big Brother… just said she was cute?
But if he really wanted to tell her she was cute, why hadn't he said it out loud?
So… maybe she had just imagined it…
Rice Shower still lacked confidence. She instinctively assumed she must have misheard.
"Rice Shower is so cute… Rice Shower is so cute…"
But when Tang Han repeated it several more times, Rice Shower finally became certain.
She had not heard wrong at all.
Big Brother really was saying she was cute.
"Thank you…"
She turned away shyly and covered her burning face.
It was not just her face. Rice Shower felt as though her entire body was heating up, as if a warmth called happiness were flowing from her heart through every inch of her.
So happy, so happy~
"Big Brother… could you pat my head…?"
The request slipped out before she could stop herself.
And the moment she said it, Rice Shower regretted it.
Because she knew Big Brother would never agree.
There had been a time before when Tang Han had been patting Urara's head, and Rice Shower had wanted him to pat hers too. But back then, he had stared at her and hesitated for a long, long time, as if wrestling with the hardest decision of his life.
In the end, he had still refused her. His reason had been:
Rice Shower was not his trainee, so he could not go around touching her.
That was when Rice Shower understood it clearly.
Big Brother was deliberately avoiding her.
What Big Brother wanted was to watch her happiness from afar, not to share that happiness with her.
Between Tang Han and Rice Shower, there was always an invisible wall…
So this time… he would refuse again too, wouldn't he?
"Hm?"
But to her surprise, Tang Han did not hesitate, did not make excuses, did not reject her.
Instead, he slowly walked over and placed a hand on top of her head.
"Rice Shower is so cute…"
Tang Han stroked her gently.
Even through the glove, Rice Shower could not feel the warmth of his palm itself, but she could still feel the tenderness behind it.
"Mmm…"
She closed her eyes in bliss, savoring this rare, precious happiness.
Big Brother… I like you so much…
One person's joy was another person's misery.
Rice Shower felt blissful, but Lucky, attached to Tang Han, was anything but happy.
"Boss! Boss!"
Lucky was practically sobbing.
She already felt that everything was over, because Tang Han had been completely charmed by Rice Shower!
And not just with an ordinary charm effect, either.
This was Charm Lv. 2.
So long as he was not struck by fear again, Tang Han would remain in this state for several hours, obeying Rice Shower in absolutely everything.
Whatever Rice Shower asked, he would do.
He had already become a complete fool with eyes for no one but her.
Lucky could practically see the future already: Tang Han, incapable of rational judgment, getting exploited by the other horse girls and stuffed into a basement somewhere to become a breeding stud.
And then she herself would fail to gather enough energy. Three months later, Misfortune would catch her and pin her down and stir-fry her alive.
Boss had made the wrong choice!
And yet, to Lucky's astonishment, with a cheerful ding, her warning system changed from yellow to green.
Lucky: ???
She smacked the warning device a couple of times, but it was clearly not broken.
Boss's choice… had actually been the correct one?!
"Huh?"
Lucky began trying to reason it out.
Could it be that if Boss had chosen not to watch Rice Shower acting cute just now, the future would actually have gone in an unlucky direction?
"Trainer Me too, me too"
Urara popped out from Tang Han's side and asked for head pats as well.
But Tang Han was blank-eyed at the moment. He neither agreed nor refused.
So Urara simply picked up his other hand herself and rubbed her head against it.
"Hehe~"
The warm scene filled the surrounding girls with happiness too.
Mejiro McQueen and the others watched Tang Han stroke Rice Shower's head so gently that Rice Shower's face was glowing with delight, and they could not help smiling like fond aunties.
"McQueen, this is all thanks to Teio-sama, you know~"
Tokai Teio proudly puffed out her chest.
Actually, everyone had already noticed how Rice Shower felt about Tang Han.
During training, she always stole glances at him now and then. She was subtle about it, but with how often it happened, the girls who trained with her were bound to notice once or twice.
Rice Shower wanted more affection from Tang Han, Trainer.
But Tang Han, Trainer, for some reason, always kept his distance from every horse girl.
That feeling of wanting and never reaching—even as onlookers, they found it agonizing.
But now, Rice Shower had finally gotten a little closer.
And the rest of them had finally gotten to taste a bit of that sweet romance too.
Naturally, the one most deserving of credit was Tokai Teio, who had taught Rice Shower how to act cute~
"You did well," Mejiro McQueen praised.
The sugar content of this scene was only a little, but it was already enough to satisfy her for the moment.
That said, it would not reduce the number of sweets she planned to eat today in real life.
"Of course I did~"
Tokai Teio was also delighted to be feasting on this sweetness.
But gradually, as she watched Tang Han gently stroking Rice Shower's head, a strange feeling stirred in her heart, and her eyes dimmed a little.
How odd…
Seeing Rice Shower so happy should have made her happy too.
So why did she feel a little uncomfortable instead…?
"Urara…"
King Halo stared unhappily at Tang Han, who was now also patting Urara.
She felt a touch jealous.
Still, Rice Shower looked so happy right now that King Halo could not bear to interrupt.
So today, she decided to let Tang Han off the hook.
"Big Brother…"
Rice Shower peeked up shyly.
Even through the hood, she could almost feel it—that the eyes hidden beneath were looking only at her.
Being the center of Big Brother's attention felt so blissful~
And Rice Shower realized something else too.
Big Brother seemed very easy to talk to right now, as if he would agree to anything she said.
Maybe… she could act a little more spoiled?
So she gathered up her courage and voiced the wish she had long kept in her heart.
"Big Brother… can I become your trainee?"
"Okay…"
Tang Han agreed at once, without the slightest hesitation.
"That's wonderful~"
Overjoyed, Rice Shower burst into tears.
"Rice, why are you crying?" Urara asked worriedly.
"It's not that, Urara… Rice Shower… Rice Shower is just… just so happy…"
Rice Shower wiped away her tears and smiled.
She was finally going to become Big Brother's trainee!
"Ooh~"
The sweet smile on her face charmed all the girls gathered there.
Another bite of sugar, acquired.
"…"
But once again, Tokai Teio felt that same strange sensation inside her.
"Rice, let's go register the trainee relationship right now~" Urara proposed.
"Good idea," the other girls immediately agreed.
"Mhm."
Rice Shower nodded.
She wanted to formalize the bond with Big Brother as soon as possible.
That way, she could act even more spoiled around him.
"Trainer, let's go."
Urara tugged on Tang Han's hand, only to find that he was still standing there like a wooden statue.
"Oh, right—Trainer is practicing ninjutsu…"
And so, with five horse girls surrounding and carrying Tang Han along, they headed for the student council room.
At this point, Lucky actually could have interfered and stopped Tang Han and Rice Shower from going to register the trainee relationship.
But she glanced at the warning system again.
Hm?
Still green.
Lucky lowered the hand she had been about to use to cast a spell and simply kept watching.
Tang Han had worked very hard to keep his distance from all horse girls and to avoid taking on more trainees, precisely because he did not want to get caught between a crowd of them and be torn to pieces.
Lucky had even promised him that if the day ever came when he could no longer resist Rice Shower's cuteness, she would step in and help him, not let him be led around by the nose by his fatal weakness as a self-proclaimed Big Brother.
She had promised. She had sworn it.
But…
The warning light was green.
And from a long-term perspective, if Tang Han gained one more trainee, that meant one more chance to win races.
And that meant more chances for Lucky to gather hope energy.
And that meant a better shot at defeating Misfortune later.
So, for the sake of future victory…
"I'm sorry, Boss! But I have no choice!"
Lucky resolutely chose to sell Tang Han out.
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 142)
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 (Chapter181)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter103)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter192)
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 173
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 166
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 110
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 190
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 165
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 156
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 81
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 102
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 66
Uma Musume: From Beginner 120
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 80
Uma Musume: I Want All 95
I Can Copy Unique Skills 84
Summoning an Evil God, but the 66
Supernatural Multiverse 83
My Harem Is Indescribable 75
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 81
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 75
Still playing traditional Honk 55
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 60
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 57
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 45
Transmigrated as Sukuna 55
Checking In in Demon Slayer 60
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 65
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 35
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 35
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 39
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 58
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 30
Why did they assign me to Uma 35
MYGO Beauties 42
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