At Almond Eye’s question, Yasui Makoto found himself smiling. His hand rested on his notebook, fingers unconsciously rubbing along the edge as he thought for a moment.
“As for Lucky Lilac… she’s very polite, and very composed.”
As he spoke, he picked up his pen and circled the word “temperament” among the dense notes in his notebook.
“She’s also quite resilient.“
“In every kind of training we did today, her results… mm, were all dead last.“
“That couldn’t be helped. After all, the ones training with her were either your Kita-senpai or exceptional Umamusume like Gold Ship and Orfevre.“
“But each time, after silently confirming her result, she would ask what she was lacking or listen to the feedback, then quietly go off and practice.“
“That part is rather like you, Almond Eye. Neither of you likes to lose.”
As he said this, he could not help laughing.
“But when it comes to hating defeat, you’re still stronger, Almond Eye.“
“After all, not every Umamusume your age looks that relentless in every single training session, absolutely determined to settle things with her senpais.“
“Oh, right. I heard that when you were in elementary school, you once challenged the older students to shuttle runs?”
The moment Yasui Makoto finished speaking, Almond Eye’s dissatisfied little huff came through the phone.
“That was because those upperclassmen said, ‘All first-years wobble during shuttle runs’! I just wanted to prove to them that not every first-year is like that!”
Smiling as he listened to Almond Eye argue back, Yasui Makoto added inwardly,
And in the end, you proved it so hard you exhausted yourself and dozed off in class…
Mm… That part is a little like Kita-chan too. She’s spaced out in class plenty of times, and her homeroom teacher even came to speak to me about it on several occasions…
Remembering Kitasan Black’s embarrassing moments, Yasui Makoto chose not to expose his senpai’s shortcomings in front of her kouhai. Instead, he circled the words “competitive spirit” in his notebook.
Then, while listening to Almond Eye ramble on, he flipped his notebook to the section on Kitasan Black.
After training ended today, while he and Imanami Takatoshi were organizing Kitasan Black’s running data from an unfamiliar track, he had suddenly gained a new insight.
When he had first become a trainer, he had thought the same way everyone else did: that “suitable running styles” were calculated and inferred from data and experience.
Speed, stamina, stride cadence… all of those things came together, eventually forming the optimal answer like pieces of a puzzle.
Of course, his own judgments about an Umamusume’s running style were somewhat different, because he relied on memories from his previous life.
It was precisely because of those memories that, when he first signed the agreement with Kitasan Black, he had confidently pushed her to the very front and established various Front Runner tactics centered around taking the lead.
But thinking about it now, whether it was that confidence or those calculations and inferences, he had actually overlooked something very important.
Namely, “temperament”—or rather, the personalities of the Umamusume themselves.
He had come to that sudden realization because of something Imanami Takatoshi had said in passing.
“Golshi, that child… haha, she is a bit special.“
“But who can say a child like that can’t win races, or can’t win G1s?“
“They all long to stand on the brightest stage. That is their dream.
“And as trainers, aren’t we supposed to do everything we can to hel“p them reach that stage—and, ideally, claim the champion’s crown there?“
“Other children have their own ways of running. Naturally, special children have special ways of running too.“
“I suppose that’s this old man’s secret as a trainer? Haha, something like that.”
Thinking back on those words, Yasui Makoto heard Almond Eye’s rambling on the other end come to a stop. He smiled, then flipped his notebook to Almond Eye’s section.
“That’s good…” he suddenly said with a smile and a nod.
There was a pause on the other end of the phone. Clearly, Almond Eye did not understand why he had suddenly said that.
After a short while, Almond Eye’s hesitant voice sounded.
“…What’s good, Trainer?”
“I mean, it’s good that you and Kita-chan are like this.”
Yasui Makoto nodded and said thoughtfully, “I was originally planning to talk to you and Kita-chan about this during training tomorrow, but there’s no harm in telling you ahead of time.“
“Thanks to Imanami-senpai’s guidance, I’ve had some new thoughts about temperament.“
“In the past, I thought suitable running styles could be inferred through data and experience, but in truth, I overlooked your own feelings.“
“Take Kita-chan, for example. The reason she can run as a Front Runner is actually closely connected to that cheerful, optimistic personality of hers.”
The other end of the phone went quiet for a while. When Almond Eye’s voice came through again, it was full of thought.
“Kita-senpai… really is cheerful and warmhearted. How should I put it… She’s like a little sun. Just being beside her makes you feel warm.”
“That’s how I feel too.”
Yasui Makoto smiled and nodded. “Generally speaking, all of you still prefer running or playing together. On the trainer side, we call this a ‘group instinct.’“
“Running alone at the front in a race, or falling behind at the back, doesn’t really align with that natural tendency.“
“When you act alone, that faint sense of loneliness can actually make you uneasy.“
“From a racing perspective, without other Umamusume as reference points, your judgment of things like the race progression and pace can also become somewhat distorted.”
As he explained, Yasui Makoto was thinking about how to apply his experience guiding Kitasan Black to Almond Eye.
Kitasan Black had very good intuition. Once he pointed many things out, she understood them immediately.
Since the Arima Kinen, she had also been following him through more in-depth race preparation, and her understanding of training guidance had grown deeper and deeper.
Especially after he injured his left arm, she had helped handle many work-related matters. Sometimes, when she assisted with training, she looked every bit like a “little trainer.”
And that change—or perhaps that progress—was not only clear in races. The Arima Kinen was a good example.
It was also very clear in training.
For example, when she was guiding Lucky Lilac today, although she was not as experienced as Orfevre and the others, Kitasan Black’s demonstrations and explanations still looked quite proper.
After hearing what he said, Almond Eye on the other end seemed to have no reaction. He could not tell whether she was thinking it over or had not understood.
Yasui Makoto was not in a hurry. After all, Kitasan Black had not shown that kind of intuition right from the start either.
Only after training for a period of time and gaining the most basic professional understanding of training and races had she begun to grasp many things as soon as they were pointed out.
So he said patiently, “And your Kita-senpai happens to have a personality that can endure loneliness and solitude. At the very least, because of her cheerful and optimistic nature, she can ignore many negative emotions.“
“On top of that, her sense of rhythm is also exceptionally good, which is why running as a Front Runner became the best choice for her.“
“So, a running style isn’t a formula. It’s about turning everything that makes you who you are into the swift speed beneath your feet.”
After summarizing it that way, Yasui Makoto was just about to continue when Almond Eye’s excited voice suddenly came through the phone.
“I see. So that means…”
Almond Eye’s voice was full of enthusiasm. “Trainer, have you thought of how to use my temperament?”
T/N: almond eye is so cute i forgot to send pic of lucky lilac
This is a fan translation of 你这后勤马娘有问题啊 by 惰性大发 All 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!
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