The scene shifted to the trainer dorms. Fujiwara Chiya let out a yawn and slowly sat up.
The students were on break after exams, and as a trainer, he could finally slack off for a while too.
Yesterday, Mejiro Dober had seduced him so aggressively that he had not slept well all night. After Shirayuki passed out, he had been the one to call the school nurse.
Once he found out her body was fine, he let out a sigh of relief, and after that he started playing games. Before he knew it, he had stayed up the entire night.
Looking at the beautiful weather outside, Fujiwara Chiya stretched lazily. As the movement pulled at his abdomen, his body sent him a distinct sense of emptiness.
The girls' dorm really was a den of danger. If he let his guard down for even a second, his body would get completely drained. Especially Mejiro Dober. Those long, soft, pale legs of hers had the destructive power of a nuclear bomb, enough to crash his mind on the spot.
Looks like I really need to keep my distance from now on. Otherwise I seriously won't survive.
Just as Fujiwara Chiya was reflecting on yesterday's events, he heard a very faint knock at the door.
"Onii-sama, are you awake?"
It was Rice Shower's voice. If he had not listened carefully, he might not have heard it at all.
Fujiwara Chiya hurriedly put on some clothes and got up to open the door.
"Onii-sama!"
Standing outside, Rice Shower's eyes lit up, and she immediately threw herself into the arms of the slightly disheveled man.
Like a cat, she rubbed herself against his stomach.
Freshly awakened Onii-sama had an especially strong scent about him, and Rice Shower found it completely irresistible.
"Rice… you came this early?"
"It's not early, Onii-sama," Rice Shower said with a smile. "It's already ten."
Last time, Fujiwara Chiya had something to do and could not spend time with her, so this week Rice Shower had made up her mind to come see him. By sheer bad luck, she had arrived while he was sleeping in.
So she had simply stood outside and waited for him to wake up.
Fujiwara Chiya's heart skipped a beat.
"When did Rice start waiting?"
"Eight o'clock."
She gave him the number with a completely cheerful expression, a number that felt absolutely merciless to Fujiwara Chiya.
It was already ten, which meant Rice Shower had been standing outside his door for over two hours, all for the sake of this worthless man who had stayed up all night playing games.
And judging from the tiny, almost inaudible knock just now, she clearly had not wanted to disturb his sleep. She had been afraid of waking him.
The thought filled Fujiwara Chiya with shame. He could barely bring himself to look at her face. All he felt was overwhelming guilt.
He led Rice Shower into the room, fumbled around on the table, then handed her a keyring.
"What key is this, Onii-sama?"
"It's the spare key to my room," Fujiwara Chiya said. "If I'm not here next time, or if I'm asleep and no one opens the door, you can just let yourself in."
"Onii-sama's room key…"
As if she were looking at a sacred relic, Rice Shower held the keys carefully in her palms.
"Can Rice really keep this?"
"Of course. I told you to treat this place like your own home, didn't I?" Fujiwara Chiya said as he patted her head. Aside from Shirayuki, the one in his team he trusted most was Rice Shower. She was just like a little sister to him: well-behaved, obedient, adorable. Even if she freely came and went from his room, there would be no problem at all.
"Rice will absolutely take good care of Onii-sama's key!"
With a smile even happier than if she had just received a birthday present, Rice Shower carefully slipped the key into her pocket.
Originally, Rice Shower had wanted to get Onii-sama out early so they could visit more places together, but now that it was already close to noon, that plan had fallen apart.
Still, it was fine. Just staying in the room with Onii-sama was already more than enough for her.
Picking up a comb, Rice Shower began tidying Fujiwara Chiya's messy hair. Then, seeing the pile of unwashed clothes on the bed, she immediately volunteered, "Rice will wash Onii-sama's clothes."
"That's okay, Rice. You can just sit and relax."
"Rice is happy whenever she can help Onii-sama, so please let Rice do it!"
"I-Is that so… then I'll leave it to you…"
Watching Rice Shower busily cleaning and organizing the room, Fujiwara Chiya found himself repeating what he had said countless times already. Having such a capable little sister really was the best.
Rice Shower rolled up her sleeves and climbed onto the bed to fold the blankets.
At this point, she did not even feel like a little sister anymore. She felt more like a wife.
"…"
What am I even thinking…
Fujiwara Chiya knocked on his own head, trying to beat those unrealistic thoughts out of it.
He was a trainer. He could not look at his Uma Musume that way. Some older trainers had warned him before that if he ever poured too much emotion into his relationship with a Uma Musume beyond training, the consequences would be extremely serious.
As for how serious, those older trainers had never said. They had only given him meaningful smiles.
After calming down for a few minutes, Fujiwara Chiya exhaled and decided to distract himself.
He pulled out his laptop, logged into Tracen's school website, and clicked into the faculty portal.
While Shirayuki was out having fun, he planned to look up the student records of a certain girl on her behalf, the "problem child" that Air Groove had mentioned, Sweep Tosho.
No need to even say it. She was obviously going to be another difficult one.
He searched her name and found the photo of a small chestnut-haired girl wearing a peculiar hat.
"Middle school…"
She was in the same year as Shirayuki.
That hat is way too weird. I feel like I'm looking at a Hogwarts student directory.
Did you enroll in the wrong school by mistake?
He clicked on her profile picture and checked her class information.
He remembered that Air Groove had also mentioned something like "race magic." Could it be that this little girl was actually interested in that sort of thing?
After what happened with Shinko Windy, Fujiwara Chiya decided he had better be more careful this time and prepare in advance.
Otherwise, he might end up getting toyed with again.
If she really was interested in magic, then he could use that as an opening.
Maybe if he showed off some kind of special power, he could catch her interest and make the later conversation easier. Kids that age loved that sort of thing.
Unfortunately, he knew absolutely nothing about magic or tricks. Last time, he had only gotten through it thanks to Bamboo Memory and the others. All he had done was say the words "Demon King's Castle," and they had handled the rest so convincingly it all came together on its own.
When it came to actual creative ability, Fujiwara Chiya really had none.
If that was the case, then he had no choice but to ask someone else for help.
As luck would have it, one of his own Uma Musume was perfect for the job.
In the Ritto dormitory, Agnes Tachyon was still asleep when the ringing of her phone dragged her awake. She picked it up, glanced at the caller ID, and rubbed her eyes.
"Guinea pig-kun…"
She answered the call in a dry voice.
"Tachyon… were you sleeping?"
"I'm awake. If I weren't, how would I be answering your call? What is it?" Agnes Tachyon slowly sat up.
"There's something I need your help with. Are you free right now?"
"More or less." Agnes Tachyon started getting dressed. "I'd be even more free if you prepared breakfast for me."
"Got it. I'll come to the lab in a bit."
The call ended.
"Rice."
"Yes, Onii-sama."
"Can you help me make breakfast?"
"Help Onii-sama? Of course, right away!"
Rice Shower hurried happily into the kitchen, tied on an apron with practiced hands, and looked up at him.
"Onii-sama can cook too?"
"I've learned before, but I'm a little rusty, so I might not do a very good job."
"That's alright, Onii-sama!" Rice Shower clenched her little fist in determination. "You can leave this kind of thing to Rice! Breakfast, lunch, or dinner, Rice can make all of them for Onii-sama."
"N-No, that's way too much trouble for you."
"It's not trouble at all!" Rice Shower raised her voice. "It's not trouble at all… Rice wants Onii-sama to eat the food Rice makes… Does Onii-sama hate that?"
Fujiwara Chiya swallowed.
Looking at Rice Shower, who was strangely fixated on this point, he answered carefully, "If it's not too much trouble for you."
"Hehe~"
A smile bloomed across Rice Shower's face, bright and beautiful like a rose in bloom.
Half an hour later, Fujiwara Chiya arrived at the lab.
"Here. Breakfast… well, I guess it's lunch now."
He handed the bento over to Agnes Tachyon, who had clearly been waiting for him. She took it, opened it, and began eating immediately, wolfing it down as if she had not had a proper meal in ages.
"Tastes good. Did you make this yourself, Trainer?"
"I made it together with Rice. She handled the ingredients, I mostly just did the chopping."
Agnes Tachyon raised an eyebrow.
"I thought cooking in this body would already be second nature to you, guinea pig-kun."
"You're thinking of Shirayuki. This body is still very clumsy when it comes to cooking."
"I see. So the difference between Shirayuki and the trainer is becoming more and more pronounced now. Things the other body can do naturally no longer come as easily to you."
"Something like that."
After finishing her lunch, Agnes Tachyon finally got to the point.
"So, guinea pig-kun, what exactly did you want from me?"
Fujiwara Chiya explained the situation.
"So, to summarize, you intend to deceive an innocent, naive Uma Musume by replacing magic with stage tricks and luring her in. Is that right?"
"Thank you for such a precise summary."
"That can be arranged, but my help is not free." Those dark red eyes fixed on the black-haired man. "Even you do not get much special treatment from me, Trainer. If you want my help, you'll have to pay a price."
At those words, Fujiwara Chiya swallowed hard. At that moment, Agnes Tachyon looked to him like a witch demanding compensation, lounging in her chair with one leg crossed over the other.
If not for the grain of rice stuck to her cheek, she probably would have looked even more intimidating.
"What kind of price?"
Was she going to ask for his hair, or his nails?
"Last night I kept experimenting until four in the morning. But that's not the point. Ever since the exam ended yesterday, I haven't eaten a thing. The breakfast you just brought me was my only meal in more than twenty hours."
In other words, she wanted him to provide her with food during her future experiments so she could recover her energy.
To put it simply, she wanted Fujiwara Chiya to cook for her.
"Considering taste, Shirayuki would be preferable, but you'll do when Shirayuki isn't available. What do you think? Can you accept that?"
Fujiwara Chiya weighed the time it would take to cook against the time he would waste going into this "problem child" situation unprepared. After a moment, he nodded.
"No problem," Fujiwara Chiya agreed. "Although your experiments really go too far into the night. Four in the morning is nearly daytime already. Can your body even handle that?"
"With enough food, yes. Without it, it gets difficult."
Agnes Tachyon was already used to staying up through the night. In the past, whenever an experiment reached a critical phase, she would often go entire nights without sleeping and then simply skip class the next day.
That sort of intense mental work caused her blood sugar to drop quickly, which was why she liked sweet things so much. When drinking tea, she would dump in a ridiculous number of sugar cubes.
Looking at the faint dark circles beneath her pale eyes, Fujiwara Chiya felt a little uneasy. If this kept up, would Agnes Tachyon eventually ruin her own health?
He was not exactly in a position to talk, considering how often he stayed up late himself. But as a trainer, it was his responsibility to care about the physical well-being of his Uma Musume.
He would have to bring it up with Agnes Tachyon sometime.
"Then let me demonstrate a little for you, guinea pig-kun." Noticing his gaze, Agnes Tachyon brushed the grain of rice from her cheek. "Back when I was testing whether fear could trigger hidden potential in Uma Musume, I made quite a few interesting things."
"What exactly were you doing…" Fujiwara Chiya muttered.
She pulled a silver metal canister with a long rubber hose attached to it off the shelf and tucked it inside her clothing, feeding the hose down through her sleeve.
"Watch closely, guinea pig-kun."
She smiled in a way that felt almost sinister, then raised her hand toward him.
Boom!
With a sudden explosive sound, a great burst of flame shot from Agnes Tachyon's palm. The fire was so dramatic that Fujiwara Chiya instinctively stumbled back half a step.
"How about that, guinea pig-kun?" Agnes Tachyon grinned. "You can even adjust the size."
As she spoke, the huge pillar of flame shrank down into a tiny flickering flame floating above her palm. A few seconds later, she clenched her fist and snuffed it out.
Fujiwara Chiya was so impressed he could barely speak.
If he had had something like this as a kid, the neighborhood boys would have worshipped him like a god.
Conjuring fire with your bare hands. There was no man alive who could resist that kind of ability. Even if it was fake, Fujiwara Chiya still thought it was unbelievably cool.
In his eyes, Agnes Tachyon instantly seemed ten feet taller.
But she was not finished yet.
After putting the fire gadget aside, she pulled a tiny packet out of a drawer, about the size of a thumbnail.
"This one's disposable, and I don't have many left, so I'll just show you how it works."
She closed her hand around it, then raised her palm and flicked her wrist.
A flurry of "snowflakes" drifted down from her hand.
Of course, they were not real snowflakes. Fujiwara Chiya picked one up and crushed it between his fingers. It broke apart easily, and it was slightly warm to the touch.
Originally, Agnes Tachyon had made these to help herself escape from disciplinary committee members. Crush one, and it would release a cloud of harmless powder that irritated the eyes just enough to give her time to run.
"I've got quite a few things like this, so I won't show you all of them," Agnes Tachyon said. "These are more than enough for stage tricks. But props alone aren't enough. What really matters in magic isn't technique. It's performance."
More than ninety percent of stage magic was done with tools. Using the props did not require much skill. The real skill lay in the magician's acting. Their calm composure while creating a "miracle," their effortless gestures, their ability to guide the audience's eyes and attention with perfect timing and speech.
Magic was, in the end, a magnificent lie.
It was all about fooling people completely.
"For a trainer, performance shouldn't be that difficult, right?" Agnes Tachyon handed the tools over to him. "You've already played the role of 'Fujiwara Shirayuki' brilliantly. Compared to that, being an ordinary magician should be easy."
"Are you complimenting me?"
"Of course. Feel honored, Trainer. I don't often praise people so directly."
"Then thank you very much, Lady Tachyon."
"Heh." The corners of her mouth lifted.
After leaving the lab, Fujiwara Chiya played around with the little gadget in his hand.
Agnes Tachyon was right. The props were the easy part. What really mattered was the performance. Only captivating words and gestures could truly pull an audience in.
The same would apply to Sweep Tosho. He needed to charm and mislead her through his words and behavior.
But…
Fujiwara Chiya turned the mechanism on his wrist, and the modified tube spat out a stream of flame. From the front, it really looked as if the fire was emerging from the center of his palm.
This is way too cool.
He had completely fallen in love with the thing.
Just as Fujiwara Chiya was happily shooting fire around, an abrupt smack landed on his head with a folding fan.
"Chiya."
Turning around, Fujiwara Chiya found himself face to face with a pretty young girl wearing a deeply unamused expression.
"Director… Akikawa? Why are you here…"
Wasn't today supposed to be a day off?
"There are urgent documents that need to be handled," Akikawa replied. "More importantly, Chiya, now that the school is empty, are you planning to burn Tracen down?"
"I was just… um… performing."
"Come with me to my office."
And just like that, before he could become a magician, Fujiwara Chiya was forced to spend half the day working as the director's secretary.