Slacking Professionally at Tracen [74]

Fifteen minutes later, Kitahara Sota stood in front of the Chairwoman’s office.

He knocked, then entered.

Inside, apart from Chairwoman Akikawa and Hayakawa Tazuna as expected, there was one more familiar face.

Symboli Rudolf—Tracen’s Emperor, the Student Council President herself.

Normally, upon seeing her, Kitahara would’ve blinked twice, muttered something like, “Oh, sorry to interrupt,” and tried backing out quietly, or at the very least begun scheming how best to slack off.

But today was different.

He completely ignored Rudolf’s presence, directly approached the Chairwoman, and got straight to the point.

“Chairwoman, your message mentioned the Black Forest had ties to the Uma Musume hunters. What exactly did you mean by that?”

“Slow down!” Chairwoman Akikawa gestured toward an empty chair with her fan. “The situation is complicated. Have a seat first.”

After he sat, she began to recount the whole incident.

It started from when Hayakawa Tazuna returned and Tracen prepared to take action against the Black Forest.

After Tazuna returned and they had held that meeting, Chairwoman Akikawa discussed with her how to deal with the Black Forest issue.

Considering Tracen’s public identity as an educational institution, wielding too much authority might lead outsiders to uncomfortable conclusions. Despite the Black Forest’s persistent provocations, they initially intended only to discipline them lightly, never aiming to uproot them entirely.

Eliminating every dissenting organization might give others the wrong idea. Allowing some opposition instead served Tracen’s interests.

This was also why Tracen tolerated many radical Uma Musume rights groups opposing them—as long as these groups limited their grievances to talk, it actually benefited overall stability.

But the Black Forest, perhaps under growing pressure from repeated setbacks, didn’t back down even after Tazuna returned, continuously causing minor disturbances.

Had they remained small nuisances, Akikawa could’ve simply shrugged them off as harmless buzzing.

But alongside their provocations, the radicals within Black Forest, emboldened by Tracen’s previous restraint, openly mocked the academy as a “paper tiger,” good only for intimidating naive Uma Musume. Worse yet, they threatened Tracen outright, warning trainers and students to watch their backs outside campus…

Of course, everyone understood these were merely empty threats. Since that declaration, not a single trainer or student had been attacked—even near the Black Forest headquarters.

Except for Kitahara Sota himself, who had the misfortune of encountering some particularly reckless Uma Musume. Ironically, even that incident happened before the threats were issued.

Still, some words could never be taken lightly.

Student and trainer safety was Tracen’s red line.

Not only Tracen, even major Uma Musume families silently admired the Black Forest’s reckless courage, lighting three metaphorical incense sticks in mourning for their audacity.

Akikawa and Tazuna promptly scrapped their cautious strategy, replacing it with decisive action.

They contacted the government, branded the group as a public threat, implemented strict information control, blocked relevant streets, mobilized the academy’s security teams, and swiftly launched an armed raid on grounds of public safety.

Preparation took two days. The actual raid was over by the third. The next two days involved mopping up scattered members and securing the scene. In total, it took less than five days.

Almost all Black Forest members—radicals and moderates alike—were captured. Only the moderate leader and a few senior figures managed to flee in the chaos. Their whereabouts were currently unknown, though it seemed unlikely they’d dare cause trouble again soon.

Captured members were divided by species: humans were handed over to the police, while all the Uma Musume were taken directly to Tracen’s confinement facility.

Though called a “confinement facility,” it functioned more like a juvenile detention center or prison. As the organization wholly responsible for Uma Musume management, Tracen wasn’t just a school—it effectively served as an enforcement authority. Even Uma Musume offenders from outside were brought here for judgment and discipline.

Thus, when Kitahara was ambushed in the alley, Tokai Teio had summoned Student Council members directly. Even if they’d called the police, the police would’ve ultimately deferred to Tracen.

Once the Black Forest Uma Musume were detained, the academy began investigating their backgrounds while administering disciplinary action and reeducation.

The punishment wasn’t overly severe, however.

This wasn’t favoritism; according to Tracen’s assessment, despite their grand ambitions and bold threats, the Black Forest had never successfully executed even one harmful action.

The worst incidents involved Kitahara himself—and even those ended harmlessly. The first attacker ended up becoming a useful informant after Kitahara incapacitated her. She’d already apologized via video, and Kitahara had accepted. She’d likely remain detained until next month.

As for the others, ever since Eclipse’s intervention, they’d been lying traumatized in Tracen’s hospital beds, still far from recovery.

All minors, and with no actual harm done—even human courts couldn’t severely punish such cases.

But that wasn’t the only reason for leniency.

Tracen’s investigations revealed that every single Uma Musume in Black Forest had slipped through cracks created by errors from the URA and the National Census Bureau.

Their abandonment and eventual radicalization were partially due to the negligence of these organizations. At least 30% of responsibility belonged to Tracen and the government departments involved. The remaining blame mostly fell on those who had manipulated them.

“Trainer Kitahara, you’ve encountered many Uma Musume. You understand how naturally trusting they can be towards humans,” Hayakawa Tazuna explained gently.

“Especially during their maturation phase—due to rapid physical and emotional changes—they become highly susceptible. Anyone with malicious intent could easily manipulate them during this vulnerable period.”

“At first, I assumed Black Forest’s creation was an isolated accident stemming solely from administrative errors. However, my investigation uncovered odd traces at their base.”

“Following these clues, I realized someone had deliberately guided and manipulated them from behind.”

“They first traveled around the country, locating Uma Musume in their maturation who’d been overlooked by the census.”

“After finding them, they posed as benevolent figures, gaining their trust through kindness, staged incidents, or fabricated generosity.”

“Once trust was established, they subtly introduced ideas that running was oppressive, and that Tracen exploited Uma Musume.”

“Gradually, these influenced girls were introduced to more radical Uma Musume rights groups, cementing their views and forming the foundation of Black Forest.”

“Our oversight meant we never spotted it early enough to stop it. Finally, when I led the team out on a URA mission, they activated these hidden pieces, aiming them at Tracen.”

“Success was never their intention—they just needed to distract Tracen long enough to reduce our vigilance elsewhere.”

“And when that happened, they seized the opportunity to resume their true operations…”

Tazuna paused, her expression hardening.

“…The Uma Musume hunts.”

Silence filled the room.

Kitahara tapped his finger thoughtfully on the armrest, looking up at Tazuna.

“So, how will Tracen handle these Uma Musume from Black Forest?”

“As this entire mess stems partly from our negligence, Tracen will take full responsibility for any resulting damage,” Tazuna replied firmly. “After reeducation and assessment, they’ll either be placed in local Tracen branches or remain at the main academy.”

Kitahara had no objection.

As someone who’d spent years wandering and meeting countless Uma Musume, he understood better than anyone just how easily they could be manipulated—especially by humans.

It wasn’t because they were foolish. In fact, their intelligence matched humans closely. Yet, as Tazuna said, their trusting nature made them particularly vulnerable, especially during their unstable maturation period.

Their actions were rarely due to their own volition, but rather influenced by those around them. Thus, Tracen indeed bore significant responsibility.

Still, the fault didn’t lie entirely with Tracen.

URA supervised Uma Musume-related issues but refused to meddle in human affairs like population management, which they left to governmental bodies.

Errors in census data meant URA itself received faulty information, unaware of the surging Uma Musume population until investigations revealed the discrepancy. Recently, even URA, normally reluctant to interfere, had considered overseeing human census operations—this error had grown too massive.

After considering all this, Kitahara spoke again.

“So, did you identify those behind it all?”

Tazuna shook her head.

“No. They were cautious—never deeply involved and left no evidence behind after arranging things.”

“Then how did you uncover all this?”

“Traces vanish, memories don’t—especially for Uma Musume,” Tazuna narrowed her eyes.

“Perhaps those manipulators assumed their brief interactions would soon fade from the girls’ minds.”

“But what they overlooked was how deeply Uma Musume cherish even the smallest kindnesses, especially the more innocent—excuse me, simpler-minded ones—who treasure such memories vividly.”

Kitahara completed her thought naturally.

“And when they realize they were used, those treasured memories become their most painful ones.”

Tazuna nodded silently, eyes turning colder.

After another pause, Kitahara turned back to Chairwoman Akikawa.

“So, Chairwoman—why exactly did you summon me? Surely, it wasn’t just to inform me of all this?”

Meeting his gaze, Akikawa snapped her fan shut seriously.

“We have a serious problem! Though temporarily subdued, this hidden group will undoubtedly resume activity. Tracen needs expert assistance—your assistance, Trainer Kitahara.”

“Expert?” Kitahara blinked in surprise. “Chairwoman, you must be mistaken—I’m no expert—”

Akikawa cut him off with a swift wave of her fan.

“Objection! I’ve monitored your activities for years. According to URA records, over 90% of Uma Musume hunt survivors mentioned your name, and you appear in nearly 80% of documented cases—”

Kitahara smiled bitterly, shaking his head helplessly.

“No, Chairwoman. I wasn’t saying I never encountered them.”

“What I mean is—I’m truly no expert. I simply have exceptionally terrible luck.”

“I have no tracking skills, no special countermeasures. Wherever I go, I just keep bumping into them by pure misfortune.”

He sighed softly.

“It’s almost as if they’re chasing me.”

—

This is a fan translation of 人在特雷森，专职摆烂 by 多功能复读机 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!