I'll win?
Coming back to herself, Tamamo Cross thought it over.
She had entered the race carrying that belief—but the moment Takayama Gamu said, "You'll win," her heart began pounding far harder than it had any right to.
She looked at him, her eyes unconsciously fixing on his face. The sound of her own heartbeat thundered in her ears.
I'm… the strongest horse girl in that race?
Hesitant. Disbelieving. She repeated the words inside her head as if testing whether they could be true.
She had been acknowledged.
And the one acknowledging her was a Central trainer.
He'd used a pile of things she couldn't understand to reach that conclusion. Tamamo Cross couldn't tell whether he was just comforting her, or whether he truly believed it.
But the admiration in his voice wasn't fake.
Her tail swayed.
"If that horse girl hadn't fallen…" Takayama Gamu's fingers flew across the keyboard. One by one, small dots appeared on the 3D model of Kyoto Racecourse, each labeled with a gate number. "The race probably would've looked like this."
In this race, Tamamo Cross had been Gate 4—represented by a silver sphere marked "4."
After Gamu adjusted the start-time delay for the slow-breaking runners, all fifteen spheres began to move.
The silver sphere followed quietly in the middle of the pack, consistently holding around seventh or eighth.
The predicted order for the front-runners and pace-pressers matched the simulation perfectly. As for the mid-pack stalkers and closers, the exact ranks varied—but the similarity was still over fifty percent.
Tamamo Cross glanced at Takayama Gamu.
…What is this?
Used to that look, Gamu immediately started explaining.
"This is based on analysis of past training data. First, we classify each runner by her usual running style. Then we compare baseline attributes. After that, the computer can calculate the rough early-race flow."
Without noticing Tamamo Cross's Are you messing with me? expression, Takayama Gamu continued.
"Front-running and pressing positions are easier to predict. Stalking and deep-closing are much harder—too little data. The success rate is probably only about fifty percent. But based on stamina and burst power, it's not hard to estimate how far back they'll sit after the start."
"As long as you understand the principle…" He scratched his head. "It's actually pretty easy to grasp."
Gah!!
So strong! Is this what a trainer can do? That's terrifying!
Are you seriously not some super-scientist who walked out of a tokusatsu show?!
Tamamo Cross swallowed, forcing herself not to blurt out the snark. But the way she looked at him was basically screaming, Are you even human?!
Then, in the next moment, her gaze was pulled back to the simulated race on the screen.
The simulation had entered the middle phase. The silver sphere representing Tamamo Cross remained steady near the back, but the distance to the leading group was steadily shrinking.
"And then—right here. You sprint," Takayama Gamu said.
As if answering him, the white sphere began its surge at the preselected point.
One by one, the spheres in front were overtaken. In the end, the white sphere representing Tamamo Cross took first—and the right side of the screen displayed the final time.
1st: "2:03.9"
2nd: "2:04.3"
…
Then the race commentator's voice came over the loudspeaker into the rest room.
"Ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately there was an accident in today's race in which a horse girl fell. However, after diagnosis by a professional medical team, it has been confirmed that no horse girl has suffered overly serious injuries."
"Now we will re-announce the final results and each runner's finishing time."
"First place: Satomi Dawn (トサノアサカゼ). Time: 2:04.4."
"Pretty close to what I predicted," Takayama Gamu murmured.
Because Tamamo Cross had fallen and withdrawn, what had been second place in his prediction became first.
Compared to analyzing monsters, analyzing horse-girl races was much easier.
Takayama Gamu couldn't help recalling his days in XIG—back then, once a monster appeared, he had only minutes to analyze an unfamiliar body and predict behavior, while simultaneously drafting an operation plan.
Horse-girl races were different. Pre-race prep time was plentiful. And as a trainer, he could obtain training data from Tracen Academy for horse girls who hadn't yet signed with a trainer.
In other words—he lacked nothing.
"So relax," he said, giving her a gentle smile. "It's just one loss. Next time, you can win it back."
But inside Tamamo Cross, everything had already become a storm.
His prediction was real!
Not only could he predict who would win—he could even pin down the finishing time this precisely!
So if I really did what he said—sprinted there—I could win?
But…
Tamamo Cross stared at the screen, her eyes locking onto the straight where the sprint began.
Why start the sprint there?
If it were me, I'd start earlier… or later… but never there…
Why?
She couldn't make sense of it at all.
Giving up on that question, she turned to another.
"Um… Trainer Gamu," she asked after a moment of silence, "why did you collect so much race data on so many horse girls?"
She was just a slow, rural ash-gray horse girl. She'd even failed her debut race twice. So why would someone put so much effort into analyzing her data?
A trainer this skilled should be signing with truly gifted, genius-level horse girls, shouldn't he?
Why pay so much attention to ordinary horse girls like us?
She wanted the answer…
"Because I don't have a trainee yet," Takayama Gamu said, scratching his head awkwardly. "I'm looking for a horse girl who's willing to sign with me."
Then he tilted his head back, staring at the ceiling, arms folded across his chest, speaking in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.
"Other trainers in my cohort all told me to go after horse girls who successfully debuted in a single debut race. They're the ones with real potential—the true geniuses."
Tamamo Cross silently tightened her grip on the hem of her clothes.
They weren't wrong. Trainer Gamu was a genius. Maybe the best match for him really was to take a genius horse girl as his trainee.
"But I think it's just one debut race," Takayama Gamu said with a smile. "What does that matter?"
"And among the horse girls who didn't win their debut, there are definitely excellent kids too. I think you're amazing, Tamamo Cross."
Looking straight at her, he continued.
"If they don't want to discover that, then I'll try."
It sounded a little arrogant—but it really was what he believed, and he kept going.
"So I wanted to find a trainee in my own way."
"Though… I haven't signed with any horse girl yet."
"Um…!" Tamamo Cross's voice trembled.
She clutched her clothes so tightly her fingers turned white. Her small face flushed a lovely crimson, like evening clouds.
She could barely contain the excitement overflowing in her chest.
Even though she was just a country ash-gray horse girl. Even though she'd performed terribly. Even though he could choose far better, far more talented geniuses…
Something inside Tamamo Cross was struck—gratitude and impulse swelling into a roaring wave.
She wanted to be his trainee.
The thought grew wildly, like it had taken root in her heart.
With a small, fragile hope, she asked, "What do you think… about me?"
"Hm. From a data-analysis perspective, you're a horse girl with a strong late kick, better suited to turf. Your future potential is very high," Takayama Gamu answered.
"Then—can I be your first trainee?!" she burst out.
The girl gathered her courage, her cheeks flushing even deeper.
In Tracen Academy, when a horse girl initiated a contract request, it was called a "reverse nomination." Rumor said it was a rare move only made by horse girls who had romantic intentions toward a trainer.
Tamamo Cross scoffed at the rumor. Tracen Academy was a place to learn and grow together, not a matchmaking service. How could something like that be real?
…but what would Takayama Gamu think?
He wouldn't believe that rumor, right?
He would… accept me, right?
"Eh?!" Takayama Gamu blinked, clearly stunned.
Why are you signing with me already?
This isn't what the seniors said would happen. Wasn't I supposed to approach first, tactfully point out issues from the race, present an improved training plan, have her try it, prove my ability, and only then sign with a horse girl who recognized me?
Why are you going straight to a contract?!
"Of course you can. I'd be very happy to have an excellent horse girl like you, Tamamo Cross," Takayama Gamu said.
"But according to the process, you need to read my training plan first!"
"If you can accept it, then we'll sign."
Following his seniors' teachings, Takayama Gamu opened a PPT file on his desktop.
Determined that she could endure any hardship if it meant improvement, Tamamo Cross stared firmly at the first line on the slide—
…and then, in the next second, a crack appeared in that determined expression.
"What do you mean—gravity chamber training?"
-------
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