...
In the meeting room, after watching the footage, Lucian also fell silent. Since the fault was confirmed, he would not quibble.
He walked up to Stellar Shine's Trainer. In front of all the Trainers who had participated in that race, the soles of his shoes seemed glued to the floor for half a circle as he bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle and apologized solemnly:
"I am truly sorry! I did not realize the situation at all at the time! I apologize!"
As fellow Trainers, they naturally understood how serious the consequences of veering could be.
During the dense high-speed sprint phase, veering could cause horse girls on the track to collide, triggering a chain-reaction accident... the consequences were unthinkable.
The judging panel, adopting a stance of settling the matter peacefully, took a photo of Lucian's apology to give the general audience an explanation.
Fortunately no accident had occurred. The other Trainer ultimately forgave Lucian.
"Forget it." He sighed and reached out to pat Lucian's shoulder. "Thank goodness the children are all safe."
But as a Trainer, Lucian held the position of "guardian." Even after receiving forgiveness, he still had to accept the judging panel's punishment.
...
When Lucian returned to the lounge once more, the heavy, stifling air that hit him made his breathing hitch.
After watching the footage, the horse girls had also understood there had been no misjudgment—veering was an undeniable fact.
The sound of the door opening startled the horse girls. More than a dozen pairs of eyes turned toward Lucian in unison.
"Why are all of you making those faces?" Lucian closed the door behind him, smiled, and loosened his tie. "It's a small matter. Since no major accident was caused, it's only a fine... but the placement unfortunately has to be canceled."
Mejiro McQueen's ears and tail drooped listlessly. Her voice was hoarse as she said, "Torena... I'm sorry."
"What is there to be sorry about? McQueen didn't do it on purpose. Though it did cause unnecessary trouble for others. After this, McQueen can come with me to visit that Trainer and horse girl again."
Lucian thought of the koi pond in front of the temple they had visited together the year before last. Those fluttering red tail fins looked just like the reddened corners of Mejiro McQueen's eyes right now.
"Mhm..."
"Alright, the matter is over, so let's move on. Don't dwell on the placement. The biggest victory this time is that no one got hurt. Understood?"
"Mhm." Mejiro McQueen nodded.
After comforting Mejiro McQueen, Lucian turned his gaze to the rest of the horse girls. "Everyone, don't look so down either. Cheer up a little."
"Of course, the victory celebration banquet is canceled." Lucian deliberately dragged out the end of his sentence. "We'll change it into a 'No One Got Hurt' celebration banquet instead!"
The sorrowful expressions on the horse girls' faces eased slightly, but no one spoke.
"Grilled meat or sushi? And drinks too. If you still don't say anything, I'll bring out 'Jue Juice'."
"No way!" ×N
Haru Urara: "How can you prepare that kind of thing for the dinner table!"
Dextrous Bailey: "Trainer, if you bring that stuff to the table, I'll wash it for you to see!"
Special Week: "Trainer-san is being a bit too much... If you really have to make it, please don't mix in radish."
Tokai Teio: "Please don't mix in honey either."
Seiun Sky: "Mixing in canned herring is allowed. Maybe negative plus negative equals positive?"
...
There were also some team members who had not yet tasted "Jue Juice" because they had missed the previous training camp and were now full of anticipation.
Matikane Tannhauser: "What does it actually taste like? Is it really that mysterious? I really want to try a sip!"
Meisho Doto: "You'll probably find out when the next training camp comes (ˊ˘ˋ*)~"
...
"What kind of talk is that? What kind of talk? It's clearly a specially made nutritious drink for all of you."
It seemed this tactic still worked best; it instantly loosened the horse girls' tongues.
Looking at the team members who were now endlessly complaining, the corners of Lucian's mouth also lifted into a smile.
Protecting their innocent expectations—he wanted to become a Trainer who would never ruin the mood.
...
They had thought the matter would end there, but after fermenting overnight, the veering incident made the headlines in racing circles.
Moreover, unscrupulous media and marketing accounts twisted black and white. They actually released the photo of Lucian supporting Mejiro McQueen after the race, with the captions:
#Lucian openly supports veering player after race#
#Dragon Country Trainer's moral character questioned#
#Should the Horse Girl Association severely punish violators#
...
The online sentiment was distorted. The comment sections became the center of the storm. All kinds of overwhelming abuse poured toward Lucian.
One comment that received one hundred thousand likes read: "This kind of Trainer should be permanently banned!" The lines were filled with unbearable emojis.
That night, Lucian felt nothing but speechlessness and helplessness. He immediately contacted the Horse Girl Association and reported the specific details of the incident.
He also used his family's resources to thoroughly investigate those media outlets and marketing accounts and pursue their legal responsibility.
Lu Fengzhou and Lucia were also very helpful. From across the ocean, they used thunderous methods to help Lucian quell the netizens' anger.
The Horse Girl Association's timely announcement also pulled Lucian out of the sea of abuse.
"Son, you need to be careful of those gamblers... Ordinary gamblers are not scary. The key ones are the powerful and influential gamblers, such as some betting companies. In addition, there are also some extreme nationalist discriminators." Lu Fengzhou had already made it very clear.
"Alright, I understand." Lucian nodded. He had not expected these dark hands to be pushing things behind the scenes, but upon careful thought it seemed reasonable.
Lucia's temper was still as fiery as ever. "Son, if you feel wronged over there, just come back home! Don't stay there anymore! Once the company's advanced equipment is successfully developed, we simply won't promote it in Japan! Or if we do, we'll charge them ten times the price!"
"Don't worry, Mom. Your son isn't that fragile~"
...
After hanging up the phone, Lucian lay on the bed with a bitter smile on his lips. "It really is crazy... No wonder they say online violence can destroy a person."
His mental resilience was quite good, and he had handled it calmly and properly, but he could not completely ignore all the vicious abuse.
If he had not possessed some power and influence, he would have inevitably suffered. However, this incident had served as a wake-up call for him.
At that moment, the phone beside his pillow suddenly lit up again.
It turned out to be messages of concern from the team members who had learned the news.
Haru Urara: "Trainer, don't look at those comments online! In Urara's heart, Trainer is the best!"
Nice Nature: "I look forward to Trainer's afternoon training every day. I hope Trainer is not affected."
Matikane Tannhauser: "Those people are so excessive! I curse them to have nosebleeds every day!"
Silence Suzuka: "Lucian-kun, do you want me and Spe-chan to climb over the wall right now to keep you company?"
Dextrous Bailey: "Trainer, I'm already looking into who they are. I'm going to deal with them!"
...
Besides the horse girls on the team, familiar other Trainers, as well as Grass Wonder, Taiki Shuttle, and others had also sent comforting messages.
Only Mejiro McQueen... had said nothing at all.
Moved, Lucian replied to these messages of concern. He did not pay it much mind.
The night wind lifted the curtains, carrying the sound of a nearby train into the room.
He suddenly felt that all the malice still surging in the dark had become insignificant in this moment.
...