[Quest Completed—Apologize to Tokai Teio]
Quest Grade: E
Reward: None
Recomndations:
Remove the Doctor's Outfit and let Tokai Teio see your true identity; this is a basic prerequisite for a sincere apology.
Add Tokai Teio as a friend and match your profile picture with hers—a photo of Symboli Rudolf.
Demonstrate your impending wealth of experience to Tokai Teio and invite her to beco your assigned Uma Musu.
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"Ah, yes, yes, definitely next ti."
Seeing that the system's suggestions were essentially the sa useless ideas as last ti, Mizuno Sora didn't bother arguing and chose to brush them off casually.
I might have agreed, but there's no way I'm actually doing any of that.
"Well, onto the next apology task." Mizuno glanced at the three Uma Musu chatting excitedly in the distance, then quietly turned and left the cafeteria.
He hadn't left imdiately after delivering the Honey Special Drink, instead hiding in a discreet corner to observe Tokai Teio and her friends.
Only after confirming that Oguri Cap hadn't given away any useful information did Mizuno leave, satisfied.
Although the apology mission had forced him into contact with Tokai Teio again, now that the task was complete, he absolutely, definitely, would not cross paths with her again.
Next, he was going to find Rice Shower! (Onii-sama mode: delighted.)
Rice Shower hadn't shown up at the cafeteria, but from Mizuno's knowledge as her Onii-sama, he was pretty sure he knew where to find her.
With hands in his pockets, Mizuno walked toward the training grounds.
Several hardworking Uma Musu were still training on Tracen Academy's practice field.
As night began to fall, the fading twilight made visibility increasingly poor, and running in such conditions was far more challenging than training in broad daylight.
Besides, this was the ti for dinner, a mont to replenish energy. After an afternoon's rigorous training, most Uma Musu had already exhausted themselves. Continuing to run on empty stomachs now severely tested their resolve.
"Oriii~"
A few unfamiliar Uma Musu quickly reached their limits and collapsed onto the grass, unable to run further.
Yet amidst these exhausted figures, one petite Uma Musu continued to persevere.
"Huff~ huff~" The small horse girl, wearing a black hat adorned with a blue rose, kept up her steady, rhythmic jogging, circling tirelessly around the grassy track.
This girl was none other than the adorable Rice Shower—beloved by all Onii-sama trainers.
Despite muscles screaming in agony, lungs burning, and sweat drenching her uniform, Rice Shower continued running without a thought of giving up.
She still had ten laps left before reaching her self-imposed goal. Until then, Rice Shower refused to stop.
On the sidelines of the training grounds, a new trainer with a flamboyant afro hairstyle stood with several peers, pointing and discussing the Uma Musu on the track.
"She's hopeless." The afro-haired boy shook his head dismissively. "Her running form, her innate talent—none of it asures up."
His na was Hiroshima Baoza.
Baoza, thanks to his boldness in rejecting invitations from senior trainers and his seemingly insightful comntary, had erged as an informal leader among the new trainers.
"You're right," echoed the other trainees around him.
But Kaneshiro Takeru, standing with them, frowned slightly in disagreent.
"Trainer Hiroshima, what about that Uma Musu?" Kaneshiro Takeru gestured toward Rice Shower, who continued to push herself. "She's been running nonstop. She seems incredibly determined."
Before Takeru's older brother disappeared, he'd taught him plenty about spotting Uma Musu talent, and he could clearly recognize Rice Shower's extraordinary willpower at a glance.
However, Baoza scoffed dismissively at Rice Shower's outstanding perseverance.
"She's too tiny and not particularly fast—definitely not championship material. What good is determination without raw talent?" Baoza confidently declared.
"Talent decides everything. A genius barely needs to put in effort to win championships, while a diocre runner could train endlessly and never catch sight of the genius's shadow."
"Indeed," echoed the other trainees once again.
Most looked down upon the small-statured Rice Shower. Even those who initially disagreed fell into step under Baoza's confident declarations.
"Let's go. We'll check tomorrow to see if any other Uma Musu are worth managing."
With a proud snort, Baoza led the trainees away.
Although Kaneshiro Takeru disagreed with him, he lacked the courage to speak up and reluctantly followed along.
Once the new trainers had left, the exhausted Uma Musu began to leave as well, leaving Rice Shower alone, still diligently running laps.
Several more minutes passed. Rice Shower had just two laps left to complete her goal.
But fatigue finally began to slow her down.
"No…I can't give up yet. I have to finish what I set out to do..."
Rice Shower stopped briefly, catching her breath.
"Hang in there, Rice Shower! Ganba-dei~ Oh!" she adorably cheered herself on with a little fist pump.
Motivated again, Rice Shower resud running.
"Gah!" Mizuno, who had just arrived at the training grounds, imdiately suffered a devastating blow from Rice Shower's cuteness.
He collapsed onto his knees as if he'd been shot, clutching his chest and struggling for air.
When he'd first seen Rice Shower's cute cheering "Oh~!" in her story, Mizuno had twisted with joy. Now, seeing it live, he nearly suffered cardiac arrest from sheer cuteness overload.
Mizuno felt imnsely relieved that he'd resisted his Onii-sama impulses back then, choosing not to make Rice Shower his Uma Musu. Otherwise, he surely would have lost all rationality, becoming an utterly obsessive doting brother, and inevitably being dragged off by an affection-maxed Rice Shower into the basent.
Taking a deep breath, Mizuno pulled a lucky charm embroidered with a blue rose from his bag. Handing it to Rice Shower would complete the apology mission—far easier than dealing with Tokai Teio.
Seeing Rice Shower still running, Mizuno decided to wait until she finished. Just like with Tokai Teio, he'd slip the charm quietly into her pocket and avoid excessive contact, preventing any accidental triggering of his brotherly instincts.
Two laps were quick for an Uma Musu. Soon, Rice Shower completed her final lap and stopped to catch her breath.
"Now's my chance!" Holding the lucky charm tightly, Mizuno quietly approached Rice Shower.
But as he got within about ten ters of her, he suddenly slipped, face-planting hard into the grass.
Thud!
"Eh?!" Rice Shower jumped at the sound, quickly turning toward the noise—but saw nothing.
A bit frightened, she hurriedly walked away.
"Ouch…" Mizuno sat up slowly, rubbing his bruised nose. He'd nearly flattened it with that fall.
"Oh no!" Seeing Rice Shower already leaving, Mizuno quickly chased after her.
But once again, within ten ters, Mizuno tripped—this ti over so inexplicably tangled grass roots—and fell flat again.
Thud!
"Ehh?!" Rice Shower glanced back once more, still seeing nothing, but now terrified sothing supernatural was chasing her.
Face pale with fear, she broke into a run.
"Wait—!"
As Mizuno tried to call out, a sudden gust of cold wind blew down his throat, choking off his voice.
"Cough, cough—!"
By the ti Mizuno finally cleared his throat and looked up, Rice Shower was long gone.
Realizing sothing strange was happening, Mizuno frowned suspiciously.
Why do such unlucky accidents keep happening whenever I try approaching Rice Shower? Three tis—it can't be a coincidence.
When Mizuno ntally asked the system, it promptly explained:
[It is the God of Misfortune surrounding Rice Shower, preventing you from giving her the lucky charm.]
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