Chapter 24: But Then Again—

Chapter 24: But Then Again—

After hearing Kitasan Black’s report about her recent conversation, Makoto sent a short message to Tokai Teio to schedule a meeting.

To be honest, he wasn’t thrilled about handling work on his day off. Normally, he tried to keep those boundaries strict. But judging from the brief response Teio sent back—just a simple “Got it. Come by Monday if you’re free.”—it didn’t seem like anything urgent.

So, come Monday at noon, he made his way to the student council office, thinking this would be a quick, routine visit.

He opened the door—

And immediately took a full step back.

Inside the room, Tokai Teio was seated behind her desk, wearing a pair of thin-rimmed glasses she clearly didn’t need. That much was normal.

What wasn’t normal was the person sitting next to her.

A brown-haired Umamusume with piercing red eyes that shimmered with an odd, shutter-like pattern. Her white trench coat was several sizes too big, the sleeves draping well past her fingertips like overgrown vines. She held a cup of steaming black tea between her hidden hands, sipping with an elegance that felt more calculated than natural.

Her presence was so surreal that for a moment, Makoto had to check the door plaque to make sure he hadn’t wandered into the wrong room.

Nope. This was definitely the student council office.

So why on earth was Agnes Tachyon here?

The moment she noticed him, her lips curled into a smirk. Her eyes glinted with unmistakable amusement.

“Ohoho~ It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Yasui-kun~?”

She hadn’t even finished her greeting when Makoto retreated out the door like someone who had just walked in on a medical experiment.

Inside, Tachyon turned to Teio with a teasing grin. “Am I really that scary?”

“Ahaha… well…” Teio let out a strained laugh, adjusting her purely aesthetic glasses as she cleared her throat.

“Trainer Yasui, please come in. Dr. Tachyon has a rather… interesting proposal, and I think you should hear it.”

Makoto had already stepped back into the room, albeit reluctantly. Even if he didn’t understand what Tachyon was doing here, walking out now would have been downright rude. And as suspicious as she was, he doubted she’d try anything strange in front of Tokai Teio.

…Right?

“Good afternoon, you two,” he greeted with cautious politeness.

Still wary, he turned his gaze to Teio. “So this meeting wasn’t arranged by you, President, but by Dr. Tachyon?”

“More or less.”

Before Teio could say another word, Tachyon leaned forward slightly, her expression lighting up like a cat that had found a particularly interesting toy.

“I happened to catch Kitasan Black’s debut race the other day. What a spectacular victory.”

“Congratulations~ Having your very first racer win her debut race is no small feat. As expected of you, Yasui-kun. You’re clearly not just any ordinary person.”

—“Happened to catch it”? Yeah right. You’ve definitely been watching us since the day of that check-up.

And “not just any ordinary person”? That’s the kind of thing someone says before they ask to borrow your DNA or stick a chip in your neck…

Makoto kept his thoughts to himself, but his internal alarm bells were definitely ringing.

It had been over a month since that medical checkup. He hadn’t heard a word from Tachyon since, and she’d given him a clean bill of health with no requests for a follow-up.

So if she’d been watching him and Kitasan Black this entire time, it raised more than a few red flags.

But realistically speaking, Makoto wasn’t anyone special. Sure, his body was well-trained, and his endurance was nothing to scoff at—for a human. But that hardly made him unique. Compared to Kitasan Black and her freakishly strong physique, he was downright average.

So why the interest?

Before he could dig deeper, Tachyon cut the suspense short.

“I’ve got another consultation in a bit, and I’m sure you’ve got training to return to. So let me keep this brief.”

She took another delicate sip of her tea and continued, her tone suddenly turning just a bit too smooth.

“I checked the public race registry earlier and saw that Kitasan Black’s been signed up for the classic race route.”

“Winning the Classic Triple Crown is no easy feat. I’m sure you’ve put together a solid training plan for her, haven’t you?”

“For example… pace running?”

Makoto tensed slightly. He hadn’t expected her to bring that up.

“I asked Teio earlier, and she said you haven’t submitted a pace partner application yet.”

“Well, as it happens, I have someone in mind. Would you like to hear the name?”

Tachyon’s voice was light, almost playful, but the undertone was anything but casual.

Makoto stayed quiet for a second.

That Tachyon had gone so far as to check their registration—and was now bringing up pace training—wasn’t particularly shocking. Race schedules were public information, after all.

And Tachyon herself wasn’t just anyone. Before retiring, she’d been a champion—winner of the Satsuki Sho. Four races, four wins. Going into the Satsuki Sho, she had nearly 60% of the popularity vote. That kind of dominance made her a legend. Her nickname in the racing world: the “Superluminal Princess.”

She wasn’t guessing about pace training. She was probably just drawing from her own experience.

And she wasn’t wrong, either. Makoto had put together a thorough training program for Kitasan Black, and one key component was pace running—training alongside another Umamusume to develop spatial awareness and race instincts.

The problem was… finding the right partner.

Veteran trainers had whole teams of racers to pull from, or at least the reputation to call in favors. Makoto had neither. He had to go through the school’s official application channels.

Which meant the partner he'd get was a roll of the dice. Sometimes they were solid. Other times, they were… not even close to Kitasan Black’s level.

But something was better than nothing. And with the debut race out of the way, it was time to move toward refining her race style. Pace training couldn’t be skipped.

Makoto had already written the application. It was sitting in his inbox—he just hadn’t hit “send” yet.

Still, he wasn’t one to deviate from his plans on a whim. And Tachyon’s sudden generosity set off all kinds of alarms.

He gave it some thought.

And then slowly shook his head.

“I appreciate the offer, Dr. Tachyon. But to be honest, I’ve already filled out the application, and I’m not the type to change plans last minute. Besides—”

“Daiwa Scarlet.”

“—But then again, it would be incredibly rude to refuse such a thoughtful offer from someone as busy as Dr. Tachyon. If you’re willing to help Kitasan Black’s growth, then I’d be honored to accept. Please pretend I never said anything earlier. Your kindness means a lot to me.”

The turnaround was so smooth it was almost impressive.

Tachyon’s lips curled into an amused smile as she raised a brow.

“Oh? So that means you’re accepting?”

She stood, stretching lazily before brushing off her coat.

“Well then, I’ll take my leave. Got another patient waiting. Good luck, Trainer Yasui~”

And just like that, she was gone.

Makoto stood there, blinking in silence. Only now did he notice that Tokai Teio had been watching him the whole time, trying very hard not to laugh.

“…President, what was that?”

He turned toward her, still trying to process the conversation.

Teio folded her hands and gave him a sheepish smile.

“To be honest? I’m just as surprised as you are.”

“Two nights ago, Tachyon suddenly called me out of nowhere. Said she wanted to recommend a pace partner for your team.”

“I asked her why, and all she said was that she found both you and Kitasan Black to be… fascinating.”

Makoto frowned. That word choice didn’t reassure him in the slightest.

“You’ve probably heard the rumors,” Teio said, shrugging. “About her experiments and eccentric behavior.”

“But I can promise you, as student council president, nothing she’s done has ever caused any real harm.”

“And when she mentioned the name of the Umamusume she was recommending, I knew it would be worth it.”

Teio’s expression turned serious.

“Because the one she suggested… is Daiwa Scarlet.”

“And I’m sure you know exactly how strong she is.”

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