"U-um... is it really okay for me to sit here?"
Inside a yakiniku restaurant on the shopping street near Kasamatsu Training Center Academy, Belno Light sat stiffly beside the happily devouring Oguri Cap, looking thoroughly out of place.
Apparently, she hadn't expected to end up here at all.
"It's fine. You're Oguri's friend, and this is Oguri's celebration dinner, so of course you should be here celebrating with us too."
Sakuraba said it with an easy smile.
"Yeah. Besides, Oguri-san clearly wanted you here, right? Just look at how happily she's eating."
Kitahara was smiling too. Seated across from Belno Light, Oguri Cap had turned into a merciless eating machine. The speed at which the meat cooked on the grill couldn't keep up with the speed at which she was eating, and while waiting for more meat to cook, she kept stuffing herself with the yakiniku place's side dishes without pause.
Clearly, Oguri Cap's appetite was especially good today.
"But Oguri-san's appetite is always good every day..."
Belno Light could only laugh awkwardly, not feeling like that had anything to do with her.
"By the way, Belno Light-san, are you on a team right now?"
While tending the meat on the grill, Sakuraba tossed out the question as casually as if it meant nothing.
"Eh...?"
Apparently not expecting that question, Belno Light panicked a little.
"Ahaha, I still haven't joined a team..."
"Then again, for a plain, ordinary Umamusume like me, it's probably normal not to catch a Trainer's eye."
A faint trace of melancholy showed in the short-curled-haired girl's eyes.
The moment he heard that, Sakuraba's eyes lit up.
Plain and ordinary?
Wasn't that perfect?!
"So Belno Light-san doesn't have a team yet, huh? Then how about joining mine? You already know Oguri, so you can look out for each other, and I don't think Kitahara-san would mind taking on one more Umamusume."
Sakuraba extended the invitation.
Investing in one Umamusume was investing. Investing in two was still investing!
One of them had to lose money for him, right?!
"I don't mind."
Kitahara shrugged, showing he had no objections.
If the boss didn't mind, then of course he didn't either.
If anything, he'd rather Sakuraba pile more work on him. Otherwise, that 500,000-yen salary just felt too hot to hold.
"M-me?"
Belno Light looked stunned. She truly hadn't expected that the first time anyone invited her onto a team, it would happen in a yakiniku restaurant.
"What, you don't want to?"
Sakuraba asked with a smile.
"No! Please, let me join the team!"
Belno Light grabbed Sakuraba's hand excitedly, the small ponytail behind her head swishing furiously.
Seeing how readily Belno Light agreed, Sakuraba broke into a bright smile as well.
"All right then. Later, just go fill out a registration form with Kitahara-san~ Welcome to the team!"
"Mm!"
After Belno Light's place on the team was settled, the group happily went back to eating their yakiniku.
And during this celebration dinner, Sakuraba realized that the Tracen Pig-Raising Project he had come up with earlier might have been a little rash.
Belno Light's appetite was pretty normal. For an Umamusume, she ate a bit more than he and Kitahara did, but only by a little.
Oguri Cap, however, was a completely different story.
Her mouth practically never stopped moving. By the second half of the celebration dinner, Sakuraba's hand was getting sore just from grilling meat for her.
And apparently, the first time Sakuraba had treated Oguri Cap to a meal, she really had been holding back. This time, in an excellent mood, she ate nearly 100,000 yen's worth in a single sitting.
No, seriously, girl, you eat way too much, don't you?
At this point, the only thing left in Sakuraba's eyes was reverence for Oguri Cap's stomach.
And the most absurd part was that even after eating that much, Oguri Cap still looked like she hadn't quite had enough.
You're telling me you're still not full yet??
How was any normal person supposed to raise an Umamusume like this...?
Oguri Cap's family must have had it rough.
Still, Oguri Cap's appetite was actually wonderful news for Sakuraba.
The pressure from his loss quota had dropped quite a bit all at once.
When it came to his great star of losing money, Oguri Cap's stomach never disappointed.
Sakuraba glanced out the window. They had come to the restaurant in the evening, before the sun had fully set. By the time the celebration dinner ended, it was completely dark outside.
From dusk all the way into the night... I hereby dub you the Twilight Eating King!
A dimensional stomach that only reveals itself at twilight! No one can defeat her in this domain!
Heh, just kidding. She could probably eat you unconscious even outside of twilight.
Still, the one thing that worried Sakuraba was that even after eating so much, Oguri Cap's stomach still looked basically the same...
My pig-raising plan isn't going to run into problems, is it...?
No, no, no. How could there possibly be an Umamusume who ate this much and didn't get fat?!
Sakuraba, don't overthink it!
Once you've committed to a plan, you have to see it through. How can you start doubting yourself halfway through?!
That won't do!
Believe! You have to believe in the possibility that Oguri Cap will become a chubby little butterball through your efforts!
"Ah!"
Sakuraba let out a scream.
Oguri Cap had somehow grabbed him by the side of his waist without him noticing.
"O-Oguri, what are you doing?"
"...I feel like you were thinking something very rude."
"N-no, I wasn't."
Sakuraba looked a little guilty, but Oguri Cap didn't press the matter.
"Oh, right, Sakuraba-san."
At that moment, Kitahara suddenly spoke up.
"What is it?"
"Now that you've seen Oguri-san's ability today, I've decided she's fully ready to run in her debut race. I'd like to have her debut next month. What do you think?"
Debut, huh?
Mm... now that he thought about it, it really was about time for Oguri Cap to debut.
Still, with Oguri Cap's level of ability, there probably wouldn't be much trouble in a debut race. She'd most likely win...
A debut race came with prize money, sure, but the amount wasn't all that high. It was still within acceptable limits...
As long as Oguri Cap didn't run in any major graded races, everything was still under control.
"I don't mind. I'll go watch the debut race when the time comes too."
"Ohh!"
After getting Sakuraba's approval, Kitahara happily turned to the Umamusume girl beside him.
"Oguri-san, let's keep working hard all the way to your debut race!"
"Okay!"
You don't actually have to work hard, you know...?
Sakuraba muttered weakly to himself.
Although, well, it wasn't like winning at the level of a debut race would really matter. Still, according to the system, Umamusume winning races would affect the final loss amount... so the fewer races she won, the better.
Then again, even if he said that, they probably wouldn't listen.
Whatever, whatever.
It's only a debut race. I can afford to accept this little bit of profit.
As long as the kid's happy.
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T/N: yeah yeah just a debut race its fine its fineeeeeeeeeeeeeee