The Trainer With Little Time Left Just Wants to Live [28]

“Hm? Aneki, you’re entrusting all of us to Kitano?”

In the end, after all the reporters had gathered enough material to dominate tomorrow’s Umamusume headlines and left in satisfaction, Nakayama Festa and Gold Ship finally emerged from the baths. Suzuka, who had gone to find them, followed silently behind, head lowered as she thought about something, sunk into silence.

Before long, the two Umamusume of the Gold Family learned the major news from Stay Gold and Kitano. Unlike Nakayama Festa, who turned serious after her initial surprise, Gold Ship froze for only a moment before quickly reacting, then cheered with unconcealed joy:

“So that means Kitano-chan is Golshi-chan’s Trainer now too, right? From now on, Golshi-chan can share Kitano-chan with Nakayama-nee, right?”

“Yay! Golshi-chan wins! I lost the race, but I won perfectly at life!”

Gold Ship made no attempt to hide her overflowing joy at the sudden news. After all, the purpose of her entering this race had been to provide a safety net. She had wanted to guarantee that either she or Nakayama would win the debut race. She had even risked tricking Kitano into pressing his thumbprint to achieve that goal, secretly completing the agreement-signing in the process.

But Gold Ship also knew that everything she had done carried risk. Kitano’s health was poor, but he was not stupid. The only reason none of Gold Ship’s actions had been suspected was because she was relying entirely on Kitano’s trust in her, and because Gold Ship herself was the kind of person no one would suspect no matter how absurd the things she did were. Anyone else would have been exposed long ago.

But everything Gold Ship had done had been necessary. If there had been a safer method under the circumstances, she never would have done it… But she still did not want to tell Kitano so many of her secrets, just as Kitano had never mentioned his own secrets to her.

Perhaps Gold Ship alone knew the reason behind all of this now… She did not want Kitano to die. Before some of the questions that had troubled her for so long were answered, she absolutely would not allow Kitano to die again.

And for Gold Ship, Stay Gold’s news now was undoubtedly tremendous good news. She could finally stay by Kitano’s side with a proper reason, watch over everything about him, and slowly learn everything she wanted to know from him.

Of course, more importantly, with her help, even if Nakayama-nee’s performance was unstable, there would be no need to worry at all. Because she too could shoulder Kitano’s expectations. If that were the case, perhaps…

In that instant, the smile on Gold Ship’s face, which had always used fooling around as a disguise, widened a little further. Yet in her eyes, narrowed by that smile, there flickered a depth no one had ever seen before, along with a stubbornness and complicated emotion toward Kitano that only she herself understood.

“Not just you, Golshi-chan.” Beside them, Stay Gold had also returned to her usual cold demeanor. This head of the family, who seemed impossible for anyone to make open her heart, gave no sign at all that she had been the one to make that astonishing decision earlier. She only said calmly:

“Nakayama, Orfevre-chan, even me, and the future descendants of our Gold Family as well—their only Trainer will forever be Trainer Kitano.”

“I watched today’s race too. Nakayama, Golshi-chan, your performances were excellent. Excellent enough to surprise even me. I can say for certain that if you hadn’t been under Kitano, you absolutely would not have been able to unleash that kind of power. That is why I made this decision.”

As she said that, Stay Gold looked once more at Kitano beside her. Her face gained a smile of perhaps a few pixels, and her tone softened considerably as she said:

“Kitano… Although I’ve said something like this before, we still can’t skip the proper process.”

“I still have to continue my overseas expedition. I only managed to slip back this time between other commitments, so I’ll still be asking you to look after these children.”

“I’m their Trainer. I’ll do everything I can.” Kitano had already accepted Stay Gold’s request in front of the reporters’ cameras, so naturally, he could not go back on his word in private. More importantly, Kitano had no intention of going back on it.

This kind of opening was excellent for Kitano. Unprecedentedly wonderful.

Kitano had mentioned before that this was already the second time Stay Gold had picked him up and brought him home. But compared with the first time, when he had served as Stay Gold’s Trainer in the Gold Family, Kitano had not initially felt that his treatment in this timeline was all that much better. After all, Nakayama Festa, like Stay Gold, had only one G1 victory in her life. As for other races, no matter the grade, she usually crashed and burned, and participation was what mattered.

In the timeline where Kitano had trained Stay Gold, he had considered himself unable to handle her properly. It was one of the typical “speedrun” cases he had experienced many times, and Kitano had been very worried that this timeline would repeat the same mistake.

But now, there was no need to worry about any of that. With Gold Ship, an Umamusume who had six G1 victories in the historical record, joining them, even if Nakayama Festa went wild as casually as she had in history, he would not have to worry about his lifespan.

More importantly, Kitano no longer needed to worry about finding his next trainee after Festa and Gold Ship’s careers ended. This way, he could avoid the awkward situation he had experienced in the timeline with Mr. C.B… That was what Kitano valued most. Stay Gold’s entrustment this time was practically equivalent to helping Kitano get through the first thirty years of life that he had failed to reach over countless timelines. There was no reason for Kitano not to be happy.

However, while Kitano accepted this wonderful, heaven-sent opening without any psychological burden, he did not notice that this agreement, which practically bound his life completely to the Gold Family, would make certain familiar people feel down.

“Congratulations, Trainer Kitano. Being entrusted with the future of an entire family’s Umamusume—such an achievement is something even many accomplished Trainers in Central might not be able to attain, wouldn’t you say?”

The moment Kitano’s mind had just recalled C.B., Mr. C.B. unexpectedly walked forward of her own accord. Her smile was still as dashing as it was in Kitano’s memories, the kind that made his heart stir and left him intoxicated.

And now, this Umamusume who had first taught Kitano what it meant for his heart to race had lost all memories of her past with him in this new world. Like a stranger, she was sincerely offering him her blessings. For a moment, even Kitano could not help feeling melancholy, but he still forced out a smile and answered:

“Thank you for your congratulations, C.B.-senpai. Although I don’t know whether I’m worthy of this kind of trust, I’ll definitely do everything I can.”

“That much, I believe, Trainer Kitano.” C.B.’s smile showed not the slightest flaw, and her tone was just as light and cheerful as she smiled softly at Kitano. “In the future, make sure you treat these children of the Gold Family well. You’re the only one who can draw out their potential, so don’t ever make them feel they trusted the wrong person.”

“Well then, I’ll head home first. I’m really looking forward to your future performances, Trainer Kitano. Goodbye~”

With that, Mr. C.B. waved to Kitano, then immediately trotted away without the slightest lingering attachment. She was still just as she was in Kitano’s memories, like the freest wind—kissing his cheek, yet taking nothing from him…

Thinking this, Kitano could not help revealing a self-mocking smile. He really did have a rare romantic minefield of a personality. He sincerely hoped that C.B. could truly let go of everything after his death, yet faintly wished that some trace of himself would remain in her heart… How was he any different from the scumbags in those weird fanfics who wanted the heroine to spend the rest of her life full of regret?

“Then we’ll be taking our leave as well.”

At that moment, Suzuka, who had been standing not far away with Special Week and had returned at some point, also chose to say goodbye together with her companions. However, the instant the still-confused girl turned around, Special Week and Nakayama Festa beside Kitano almost simultaneously turned their gazes toward Suzuka’s back.

“Although this is rather sudden, please tell me—Festa, you were willing to take such a huge risk to win the race. How exactly did you do it?”

Nakayama Festa still remembered that when she and Gold Ship had just walked out of the baths, they had found Silence Suzuka blocking the entrance while continuously circling to the left. When she saw them arrive, Suzuka, who had clearly been waiting for a long time, had immediately asked that question, unable to hold herself back any longer.

Facing that sudden question, Nakayama Festa was not frightened. After all, she had lived for so long in the Gold Family, a family where no one was normal, so her train of thought could be said to jump very quickly. She swiftly understood what Suzuka meant and said calmly:

“What’s wrong? Were you drawn in by how I looked on the track? If you’re asking why I dared to bet my own future, then I’ll tell you.”

“The only thought I had on the track at the time was that I couldn’t lose. I was running as that guy Kitano’s only hope, and that’s why I dared to stake everything.”

“As for you… if you don’t have the courage to gamble everything yet, why not try doing what I did and first find someone you absolutely can’t let down? When that time comes, you’ll definitely be able to run again.”

Naturally, Nakayama Festa knew of Silence Suzuka. This senior, who had dazzled everyone two years earlier, had completely said goodbye to her career after suffering a fracture in the Tenno Sho (Autumn). But judging from the fact that she had come to Festa and asked about racing, Festa felt that Suzuka probably still had not given up hope of returning to the track.

However, after Nakayama Festa finished saying those words and saw Suzuka sink into thought from beginning to end, she vaguely felt that something was not quite right. But she also had not seen Suzuka inexplicably act so close to Kitano like Oguri Cap or the others before, so she could not understand what Suzuka was thinking.

“I’m probably overthinking it… Honestly, am I getting oversensitive? It’s not like every Umamusume who shows up would be interested in that guy…”

Nakayama Festa shook her head helplessly. Yet at that moment, the scene of herself and Kitano embracing earlier once again surfaced in her mind. After a brief silence, she once again pulled her knit cap down to hide her expression.

But the uncontrollable smile tugging at the corner of her mouth showed exactly how she felt… This gambler’s heart truly was slowly being pried open…

Ah, when did it start raining? In a daze, Nakayama Festa felt rain slowly falling from the gloomy sky. Judging from the rhythm of the wind and rain, it seemed it would spread into a downpour before long.

Lightning began to flicker behind the dark, oppressive clouds. The wind began to howl, and heavy rain fell, like endless tears from the heavens, or like the mood of a young girl at that moment—the belated sorrow and collapse of a heart sinking to the bottom of a ravine…

…

Mr. C.B. trotted all the way out of the racecourse. Yet no one knew that the moment she ran out of everyone’s sight, that trot slowly quickened. Before long, it had become an all-out sprint, and she raced along the Umamusume-only road.

C.B. did not care about the rain soaking her body, nor did she care about the cold wind. Rather, this was the weather best suited for her to run.

C.B. liked running wildly beneath heavy rain, because that kind of abandon made her feel as though she had become a carefree gust of wind. It allowed her to forget all her troubles and sorrows.

But this rare, precious downpour… did not seem to be working quite as well. Heavy rain could wash the earth, but it could not wash a girl’s heart. Strong wind could blow away dust, but it could not scatter the grief and unwillingness rising in her chest.

And what pained C.B. most was that she did not even know the source of her sadness… When she heard the news that Kitano had been “employed for life” by the Gold Family, what exactly was the emotion that surged up from within her heart?

Mr. C.B. was not blind. She could see Stay Gold’s provocation toward Rudolf, and she could see why Rudolf had stormed off. In their eyes, Stay Gold’s determination to have Kitano was practically written all over her face.

Clearly, Stay Gold’s purpose in pulling Kitano into the Gold Family had not been pure from the start. That was obvious. And what made them even more certain of this was that Stay Gold had not only entrusted every current Umamusume of the Gold Family to Kitano, but had even entrusted the Gold Family’s future descendants to him.

The meaning formed by Stay Gold’s greedy goal toward Kitano and the words she had spoken was also extremely clear—Stay Gold had invited Kitano with the idea of having descendants with him!

And now, Kitano had already stepped into the demon’s den that was the Gold Family. He might even never come out again. This scene had already been recorded by countless reporters. Tomorrow, it would absolutely be reported across every major headline. Once everyone knew that Kitano had become the Gold Family’s exclusive Trainer, changing any of it would be far too difficult.

Had she… already completely missed her chance with the man from her dreams?

Before she knew it, Mr. C.B., who had been running forward with her head lowered, reached a Western-style house through muscle memory and stopped. In the garden of the house, a ginkgo tree with a broad, graceful canopy stood out especially clearly. This was the Tokyo home of Mr. C.B.’s parents.

Perhaps the subconscious of a wounded girl had led her to the only support she had now. Mr. C.B., exhausted from running through the heavy rain, fell once again into endless emptiness after her frenzy. Like a walking corpse, she opened the front door and stepped silently into her parents’ home.

CLICK.

“Who’s there—C.B.?! Why are you back? And why are you soaked from the rain?”

The front door had only just opened when an Umamusume mother who looked eighty percent like Mr. C.B. came over. When she saw that the person standing in the doorway was the daughter she was so proud of, a joyful smile appeared on her face almost immediately.

But very quickly, a mother’s intuition made her realize something was wrong with her daughter… C.B. running through the heavy rain was not strange. What was strange was that after doing all that, there was not a trace of joy on C.B.’s face. There was only a pale complexion, and… a cold expression as if she had lost her heart.

“C.B., are you… all right?”

“…I’m fine, Mom. Could you make me a cup of hot tea? I want to stay with you for a while.”

However, after returning home and feeling her mother’s concern, Mr. C.B. seemed to recover just a tiny bit of vitality. But only that tiny bit.

C.B. dragged her body silently toward the bathroom. During this process, C.B.’s mother tactfully did not ask anything more. Instead, she turned her gaze toward her husband, who had risen from the sofa nearby and had also sensed that something was wrong.

“…What happened to C.B.?”

“I don’t know, but judging from her expression, it doesn’t seem good.” C.B.’s mother looked worried as she guessed based on her intuition. “The way C.B. feels right now… it’s like the way I felt the day before I eloped with you, when I suggested we break up.”

“You mean… someone broke our C.B.’s heart?” C.B.’s father immediately understood what his wife meant, and his eyes instantly sharpened. Clearly, he had realized the seriousness of the problem.

“…Looks like we’ll have to make a trip back to Tracen Academy and meet this person who broke our daughter’s heart. Let’s see just who this person who broke our daughter’s heart is.”

This is a fan translation of 时日无多的训练员只想活下去 by 许氏子谦 Rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!