Chapter 50
After noticing Kitasan Black's suspicious behavior, the three people in the office exchanged glances, all of them clearly confused.
But Yasui Makoto's eyes quickly lit up.
"Vice-President McQueen, could you raise the drone's altitude a bit more…? Yes, right there."
The view on the screen instantly widened. All three of them immediately realized that the black-haired girl hiding in the bushes was staring straight at the training field.
On the field, besides students strolling around, some were taking advantage of the break between classes to train.
"I see…" Yasui Makoto murmured with a small laugh. "Looks like she's really concerned about the next race…"
He was pretty sure he had guessed correctly.
His horse girl was clearly trying to spy on someone.
Following her line of sight, among the horse girls training on the field was one of the opponents she would face in the Spring Stakes.
Yasui Makoto had already researched all those opponents, but according to his plan he wasn't supposed to analyze them with Kitasan Black yet.
He hadn't expected the black-haired girl to suddenly get motivated and start investigating on her own in secret.
Just as he was wondering whether he should remind his horse girl, his gaze shifted slightly and locked onto one particular figure on the field.
"Kita-chan's next race… the Spring Stakes? So that's why."
Tokai Teio also caught on and smiled in amusement.
"Her enthusiasm is definitely praiseworthy, but this sneaky way of doing it…"
Mejiro McQueen suddenly chuckled.
"Isn't this exactly like what you did back then, Teio? Before that Arima Kinen…"
"Stop! Stop right there!"
Tokai Teio crossed her arms in front of her at Arima Kinen speed, blocking Mejiro McQueen as she spoke in a slightly flustered panic.
"We agreed not to talk about that stuff anymore, didn't we?! If you keep going, I'll tell everyone about your recent wei—mmph mmph…!"
"Ahahaha, what lovely weather we're having today… By the way, Trainer Yasui, you didn't hear anything just now, right?"
Mejiro McQueen hurriedly changed the subject, looking at Yasui Makoto with a guilty expression.
Yasui Makoto, however, hadn't been paying any attention to the two horse girls teasing each other.
His eyes had stayed fixed on one particular horse girl on the screen the whole time.
Hearing Mejiro McQueen's question, he shook his head honestly.
"It's nothing. I'm just a little interested in this horse girl."
Both Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio leaned closer to the tablet out of curiosity and spoke at the same time:
"Meisho Doto?"
Tokai Teio asked curiously:
"Do you know her, Trainer Yasui? I don't think you've had any contact with her since you arrived at the academy, right?"
"I haven't."
Yasui Makoto shook his head, then smiled.
"A horse girl from a prestigious family like her doesn't need to seek out trainers. Plenty of trainers are already lining up to work with her every day.
"I'm neither famous nor experienced, so even if I approached her, she probably wouldn't pay me any attention.
"Besides, when I first came to Tokyo I already heard that she signed with another trainer quite early. It wouldn't have been appropriate for me to approach her after that.
"I'm only paying attention to her because she's strong.
"Especially her late kick — it's probably the highest level among her generation."
Tokai Teio nodded.
"I've noticed her late-kick numbers too.
"33.7, 33.7, 34.1, 33.7.
"If I remember correctly, those are her final three furlongs from the four races she's run since debut.
"A late kick at that level would already put her near the top of her generation, but what's even more impressive is how consistent she is.
"If she can reproduce that in future races, she'll definitely become a horse girl everyone talks about.
"However…"
She thought back for a moment.
"Kita-chan's next race is the Spring Stakes, and Meisho Doto doesn't have any races scheduled in March. You don't need to worry about her for now, right Trainer Yasui?"
Yasui Makoto nodded with a small smile.
"I'm not sure if you'd call it worry.
"It's just that she's entered in the Classic Triple Crown, so she'll be Kita-chan's opponent in the Satsuki Sho in April.
"Unfortunately, among the types of opponents Kita-chan struggles against, strong late-kick runners are right at the top. That's why I'm keeping an eye on her.
"Of course, I've looked into every possible opponent Kita-chan might face."
Both Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen suddenly understood. They exchanged glances and gave Yasui Makoto looks of admiration and relief.
"You really are something else, Trainer Yasui. Most people don't think that far ahead. Kita-chan must have it really easy during her daily training."
After praising him, Tokai Teio glanced at her friend and asked tentatively:
"Since you already understand Kita-chan's weakness, I assume you have a plan to deal with it?"
Yasui Makoto unconsciously glanced at the black-haired girl on the screen and said thoughtfully:
"I don't have a 100% guarantee, but I actually started thinking about this very early on.
"You two presidents have known Kita-chan for a long time and are both top-talented, highly experienced seniors. You can probably tell that she's a late-blooming horse girl, right?"
Tokai Teio nodded.
"Yes. I've asked quite a few doctors, and they all say Kita-chan's muscle ratio and density are much higher than average.
"Combined with her large frame, her physical condition is far healthier and her strength level much greater than others.
"However, that also means she needs more time to develop before she can fully control her body and power in races and execute all kinds of running techniques.
"And…"
She hesitated for a moment.
"Trainers noticed this issue a long time ago, but there haven't been many suitable solutions.
"The only method that might theoretically work is the 'Saka-michi Sanbon' hill training that Trainer Shimizu specializes in.
"I considered Trainer Shimizu before and even had a brief talk with him.
"But I was always worried that kind of training would be too harsh for Kita-chan, so once I found you, Trainer Yasui, I changed my mind."
On the surface Yasui Makoto remained calm, but inside he was secretly complaining.
He had looked into the "Saka-michi Sanbon" training method and agreed with Tokai Teio — it really was too harsh.
No, it was straight-up hellish.
The method required running three 1000-meter repeats on a slope with a 32-meter elevation change.
One floor is roughly three meters high, so 32 meters was like climbing ten stories. Running a total of 3000 meters on such a steep slope was brutally difficult.
What made it worse was that this wasn't a one-time session — every single training day required it, without exception.
It was no exaggeration to say that without an iron body, no one could endure it.
Even though analysis showed that Kitasan Black's physique could theoretically handle that hellish training, Yasui Makoto had never once considered using anything similar.
Especially since he had even more advanced and effective methods available.
"I started working on Kita-chan's strength issue from the very first day I began training her. It's just the kind of thing that doesn't show results overnight."
Avoiding any direct comment on another trainer's style, Yasui Makoto continued calmly:
"On top of that, she has already practiced the most basic front-running style with Daiwa Scarlet.
"With Vodka helping out next, the training to deal with strong late-kick opponents should be sufficient for the time being.
"After all, when it comes to pure late-kick ability, this one's final three furlongs in the Japan Derby were a mind-blowing 33 seconds — an absolutely explosive level."
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