Yasui Makoto was genuinely thrilled to have Vodka’s help.
But he didn’t let it cloud his judgment.
Vodka’s decision had indeed come unexpectedly, but his current training schedule already included someone whose running style matched hers quite well.
He only needed to make slight adjustments based on Vodka’s particular strengths—no need to overhaul everything from scratch.
He spent some time over the weekend fine-tuning the existing training plan, leaving enough time for proper rest.
On Sunday night, Yasui Makoto arranged the next day’s meeting with the three Uma Musume.
The location remained the school’s training grounds, but the meeting time was moved slightly earlier.
A three-way parallel run was considerably more complex than two, not to mention that Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka weren’t ordinary runners.
They weren’t just top-tier in terms of skill, but also possessed rich racing experience.
Their distinct running styles and unique techniques required careful preparation; failing to tailor the training accordingly would waste their goodwill.
So, while warming up before practice began, Yasui Makoto not only reviewed Vodka’s data again but also performed numerous calculations and predictive analyses.
When he felt the optimization was sufficient, he finally gave instructions.
“Daiwa-san, stick to your usual front-running style, just like last time.”
Holding a stopwatch in his right hand and clamping a tablet computer under his right arm, Yasui Makoto gestured with his left hand.
“Kita, same as before—follow behind Daiwa-senpai closely and keep your eyes on me for signals.”
“The moment I signal you, accelerate immediately.”
“As for Vodka-san… you’ll simulate a mid-pack position. Is that fine?”
“OK!”
Vodka nodded quickly, stretching her waist side-to-side, left arm horizontally across her chest held by the right arm. She grinned, adding:
“It’s just like old times… Oi, Daiwa, why didn’t you tell me about something this fun earlier?”
Doing her own stretches nearby, Daiwa Scarlet pouted.
“Who knew you’d come back from Europe? Besides, aren’t you already back at the academy?”
“That’s true,” Vodka agreed, interlacing her fingers and cracking her knuckles loudly.
“I’m ready to go, Daiwa should be fine too—shall we start?”
Instead of answering, Yasui glanced at Kitasan Black.
“Um…”
After hesitating slightly, Kitasan Black raised her hand cautiously.
“I just wanted to ask, Trainer… you mentioned ‘simulated mid-pack position’?”
At her question, Yasui and the two older Uma Musume exchanged pleased smiles.
“So you noticed, huh?” Yasui Makoto nodded approvingly. “You’re right—I specifically said ‘simulated mid-pack,’ not just mid-pack.”
“Actually, your Daiwa-senpai was also running in a ‘simulated front-runner’ position rather than a straightforward front-run.”
“Simulated…” Kitasan Black repeated thoughtfully, eyes brightening with realization. “Does that mean we’re imagining other opponents running alongside us?”
Everyone’s smiles widened with appreciation.
“You’ve got good intuition, Kita-chan! Maybe we can’t keep treating you like a clueless little kouhai forever!” Vodka laughed, reaching out to tousle Kitasan’s hair affectionately.
“To put it simply, ‘simulated front-running’ or ‘simulated mid-pack running’ are types of imaginary training.”
“Exactly as you said—we imagine other rivals running beside us. This kind of training is much more effective than ordinary parallel running, but also harder to master.”
“Usually, only experienced Uma Musume with solid race experience can manage it, and it probably takes a bit of innate talent too.”
“Fortunately, Daiwa and I are exactly those kinds of runners, so don’t worry too much—just run your best between us!”
“Oh, I see now…” Kitasan nodded, then suddenly looked embarrassed. “This training… it must be pretty exhausting, right? Imagining opponents in your mind like that…”
“All this time I thought Daiwa-senpai wasn’t doing anything complicated, I didn’t realize how much effort you were putting in… and now Vodka-senpai is also…”
“Ouch!”
Both Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka flicked Kitasan’s forehead lightly, then exchanged amused glances and laughed simultaneously.
“What nonsense are you talking about, Kita-chan?” Daiwa Scarlet smiled warmly, rubbing her nose with her index finger.
“Don’t forget, back when we were training or racing, you were always there helping us—bringing tea, handing out towels, even checking our horseshoes, or helping us wash our uniforms and shoes.”
“At first, we thought you were too young for all that, but you insisted. Eventually, we just got used to calling you whenever we needed something.”
Vodka mirrored Daiwa’s gesture, scratching her own nose in exactly the same way.
“That’s right. We still remember all those things clearly. And not just the two of us—Special-senpai, Suzuka-senpai, McQueen-senpai, even Teio-senpai… and Air Groove too.”
“You’ve helped everyone, Kita-chan, especially Teio-senpai.”
“That year when she hit rock bottom, none of us knew how to help her. If you hadn’t persistently encouraged her, I doubt she’d have returned to racing so quickly.”
“In short, after everything you’ve done for us, how could we possibly stand aside now that you’ve officially debuted?”
“That’s exactly how I feel too,” Daiwa Scarlet agreed, smiling as she bumped fists with Vodka without even looking.
“It’s not just us—I’m sure Teio-senpai and the others feel exactly the same.”
“So instead of standing here saying silly things…”
With a quick, energetic hop, Daiwa Scarlet leaped gracefully over the fence onto the training track alongside Vodka. She raised her thumb cheerfully.
“Kita-chan, are you ready yet?”
“Senpais…!”
Moved by their words, Kitasan Black’s excitement surged. Without another word, she also jumped onto the track.
“Of course, I’m ready!”
As Yasui Makoto watched the three girls, he quietly felt a surge of admiration.
He didn’t know much about Kitasan Black’s past with her senpais, but from what he’d just heard, the girl he’d been assigned was far more caring, thoughtful, and considerate than she outwardly appeared.
In truth, he’d gradually become accustomed to the black-haired girl quietly taking care of things for him behind the scenes.
Initially, it had just been carrying his bags.
Then, bringing drinks and snacks—eventually even preparing bento lunches.
Nowadays, she even helped clean up the trash and organize his scattered books and files whenever she visited his dorm room, always quietly, always cheerfully.
She did these things without expecting anything in return—happy simply to lend a hand to people she cared about, or indeed anyone who needed help.
Yasui couldn’t help but smile softly at the thought.
That kind of girl… it’s no wonder people instinctively want to return her warmth by doing something for her in turn.
With that thought in mind, he raised his hand.
“Turf, 1800 meters, parallel training—ready… three, two… one!”
—
This is a fan translation of 赛马娘：从被撞飞十米开始 by 百升飞上天 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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