Chapter 64: This Is My Serious Valentine!

Valentine’s Day. A sacred battlefield for maidens, and a day of resolve—!

With that day drawing closer by the hour, I sat there thinking.

“Ugh… what am I gonna do about the chocolates…?”

I hadn’t decided on anything. Can you blame me? I put real effort into making them last year, so now it feels like I’m out of ideas. If I make something similar again, it’ll just be predictable… so what am I supposed to do?

“Huh? Rue-chan, what’s wrong?”

“Ah, Comp. Done with training already?”

“Yeah. It’s not good to overdo it. The URA Finals have really short breaks between races, so I have to be extra careful.”

“Ahh, right. There’s only like a month between them. When you think about it that way, it’s pretty rough…”

I flipped through a magazine, trying to figure out what kind of chocolates to make. Maybe I should go with something high-quality and store-bought instead of homemade… Switching things up can be important, you know? But then—what store? Should I ask someone for recommendations again? And if I get something too cheap, it won’t be any different from the sweets we eat with coffee every day…

“Hmmm…”

“Oh, that’s a Valentine’s feature. So, Rue-chan, you’re going with store-bought this year?”

“I put effort into making them last time… Trying to top that is gonna be tough…”

“But you know, your Trainer’s probably gonna get tons of handmade chocolates from lots of girls this year.”

“…Huh?”

Wait—what?

“I mean, he’s the Trainer of a G1-winning Uma Musume, right? And not just that—he took a girl who placed dead last in her selection race and raised her into a G1 winner. How could someone like that not be popular? Plus, Rue-chan, your three-year term ends next year.”

“Nononononono…”

“It’s good to be confident, but you’d better make sure nobody steals your Trainer away, okay? Give it your all—there’s no downside.”

Ehhhh… things are really that serious…? Now that she mentioned it, a bunch of freshmen did swarm around him right after the entrance ceremony… That’s… kinda bad, isn’t it?

But I’m supposed to be gone in a year anyway, so clinging too much is… I don’t know…

Ughhhhhh…

“Sigh… Rue-chan, I really think you should start being honest with yourself.”

“Honest? I’m always straightforward with my Trainer.”

Bridge Comp gave me a look that practically screamed disbelief. Hey, what’s with that face? I am honest with him!

“Mmm… wow, this is a serious case… Hey, Rue-chan?”

“Yeah?”

“You’ve got a three-year contract, right? Do you have any plans for after that? Like, I dunno… wanting to stay with your Trainer?”

Well… if I could, I’d stay with him forever… but I never thought about what would happen after those three years.

Maybe I really do need to think about it soon. But if I return to my world, what gets left here? If I don’t remain in the records or in anyone’s memory—not even in the Trainer’s…? The thought made a shudder run down my spine.

I always assumed this was just a three-year stay. But realizing I might vanish from this world entirely… it terrified me.

At the very least… I want to remain in my Trainer’s memory.

“All right. I’m gonna blow my Trainer away with something special…”

“Oooh, suddenly fired up! That’s the Rue-chan I know!”

“First, I need to buy an outfit for Valentine’s.”

“Right, right, an outf—wait, an outfit?”

Brace yourself, Trainer… No matter what Valentine’s chocolates you get in the future, you’ll never be able to stop comparing them to the ones I give you now… I’ll curse you with that fate.

With that resolve, I headed into town toward the boutique I’d visited before.

“So, that’s why I need an outfit for Valentine’s.”

“I see… Then I’ll do everything I can to help you!”

“Great. Here’s the kind of outfit I’m looking for…”

“Hm, hmmhmm… In that case, it’ll need to be custom-made. With your body type, combining ready-made pieces would have too many limitations.”

“Then please do it.”

Good. First checkpoint cleared.

Now for the chocolates… That part I’d just have to brute-force my way through. From there, I went straight to the mall and stocked up on ingredients. Sparing no expense, I tossed every high-quality item I could find into the basket, paid, and returned to the academy.

“All right… time to get serious and start cooking.”

Unlike last year, I’d be making chocolates alone. Still, chocolate-making isn’t too hard once you get the hang of it. Control the temperature when melting, shape everything nicely… Sure, perfecting it is the hard part, but that’s all.

Using the temperature-adjustable kettle I’d bought for coffee, I heated water and carefully melted the chocolate. Then I dipped a spoon in and tasted it.

“Should it be a little sweeter? Based on the Trainer’s tastes, adding some milk might work… But if I’m serving it with coffee, maybe this level’s fine…”

While fretting over it, I kept making little adjustments. Adding sugar, adding more chocolate, adding milk… Sometimes I’d add some coffee beans for an accent or mix in cream, but it still wasn’t hitting that perfect flavor.

I was so absorbed that—

“Wha—!? Wait, that’s the closing chime! Oh crap! Not good, not good! Dammit, I need to at least clean this up before they lock the place!”

The time limit had arrived. I had to stop for today. The rest would have to wait… I’d have to squeeze in time somehow to finish it. With the Takamatsunomiya Kinen coming up soon, I didn’t have the luxury of focusing only on chocolates—this was getting rough.

From that day on, between training sessions, I devoted myself to crafting the ultimate chocolate.

“Ughhhh… I want it to have a smoother melt-in-your-mouth feel…”

Sometimes I agonized over the melting steps or the exact temperature.

“Hmm… If I serve this with coffee made from these beans, it might actually pair really well. Making the coffee black on purpose could work.”

I even adjusted the chocolate’s flavor while thinking about how it would go with the coffee.

“Yeah, this is solid! All right, next…”

At long last, I finally managed to get a flavor I was satisfied with.

“Now that I’ve gotten this far, the only thing left is the shape. Going with a star—my signature—would be the safe option, right?”

But after putting in so much effort, choosing something “safe” felt boring. It would feel like I was chickening out, and that didn’t sit right with me.

At times like this, you turn to the internet.

I typed “Valentine chocolate shapes” into my phone and scrolled through the results. Hmm… hearts really were the classic choice. I was pretty sure I’d bought a heart mold. After finding the mold and prepping the box, I got everything ready.

“Okay then—time for the final touch…!”

I poured the melted chocolate into the mold and let it cool slowly. Even the cooling required careful temperature control.

And what I would end up with… was chocolate worthy of being called “supreme.”

The day before Valentine’s, I finally completed the creation I’d been aiming for.

“Hmm-hmm-hmm♪”

“Oh? Rue-chan, you’re in a great mood. You dropped off some new outfits earlier—did you find something good?”

“Eh, not exactly. Fufufu… prepare yourself, Trainer…”

“Ah, yeah. I can already guess. Good luck.”

“Yeah, this year’s gonna be perfect…!”

On Valentine’s Day, Tracen Academy was buzzing with excitement.

Uma Musume wandered around nervously, searching for the person in their hearts—willing to bet everything on the tiniest sliver of hope, even if they knew it might never be returned.

As for me, I’d called the person I wanted to see into the Trainer’s Room.

I mean, yeah, if I waited he’d show up eventually, but where’s the fun in that?

I tidied my appearance, checked the chocolate one last time, and confirmed everything was ready.

While I steadied my breathing, the door to the Trainer’s Room opened with a soft sound.

“Phew… I got stopped by all sorts of girls. Tracen doesn’t have many men, so events like this get… intense. Some of them swarm you.”

The person who entered was exactly who I’d been waiting for—my Trainer.

“Ah, Lux. You said to come early today, so I did but… um, what’s with that folding screen?”

“Mm? A necessary item for the surprise.”

The partition set up between us hid everything below my neck.

Well then, well then, well then. Time to hit him with it!

“Trainer, you know what today is, right?”

“Valentine’s, obviously. Ah—did you prepare something too, Lux? That makes me really happy.”

“Hehehe—ta-daaa!”

I slid the partition aside, revealing my entire outfit.

A frilly ensemble in shades of brown—chocolate brown. I’d ordered it through the boutique and had it custom-made from scratch. Basically, it was my “Valentine’s outfit.”

It evoked a pâtissier or chef, with frills placed tastefully here and there as accents. I think it turned out really well…

“L-Lux…? Th-that’s…?”

“I had it made just for Valentine’s. Pretty fitting, right?”

“Well… yes, but… I never imagined you’d willingly wear something like that…”

“I went out of my way to have it made for today, you know? And you’re the only one who’s seen me wearing it.”

The Trainer instinctively recoiled a little.

That meant this part of the plan was a success. But it wasn’t over yet.

I thrust the heart-shaped box I’d been hiding behind my back toward him.

“Handmade again this year! So savor it.”

He blinked rapidly, frozen in shock. Was he really that surprised? That meant this was a complete success—no, a smashing success.

Yeah, all that effort was worth it!

“I’ve made coffee again this year too. I’ll brew it now, so just sit and wait.”

“Ah… yeah…”

I prepared the coffee like usual—though the beans I used today were top-tier. I hadn’t spared any expense, importing them personally. A supreme choice.

The refined aroma tickled my nose.

I poured the perfectly brewed coffee into a cup and placed it in front of the Trainer, who was still fidgeting nervously.

“Sorry for the wait. Huh, you haven’t opened it yet. Come on, hurry up and open it.”

“W-wait… let me get my feelings in order…”

“What do you mean, ‘get your feelings in order’? If you’re not opening it, I’ll just open it myself.”

“I’ll open it! Just… give me a moment…”

The Trainer took a deep breath, exhaled, and—with an expression like he was psyching himself up—opened the box in one swift motion.

Inside was the chocolate I made. A perfectly shaped heart, and honestly, I was proud of how good it looked.

“Uh… um, Lux, this is…”

“You’re getting chocolate from tons of girls anyway, right? I figured it’d be lame if the one from your own charge was anything less than the best. So I aimed for ‘supreme.’”

“Ah… yeah…”

The Trainer picked up the chocolate and took a bite.

He rolled it across his tongue, and as the rich brown piece melted—

“Haah…”

A soft, melting sigh slipped out of him.

Well, obviously. I know his tastes inside and out, and I used the best ingredients I could get my hands on. If he didn’t react like that, I’d be the one in trouble.

Ahh, I’m satisfied. Valentine’s is a total success this year.

“Sorry, Lux. It’s so good I couldn’t even speak.”

“Right? I made it just for you, Trainer. Take your time and savor it. Oh—if you drink it with the coffee, it tastes even better.”

“Then I’ll try a sip… wait—is this coffee made from insanely high-quality beans…?”

“Of course. They weren’t sold anywhere, so I had them imported.”

Watching him take a bite, then a sip, then melt a little more each time—yeah, that expression made everything worth it.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I made the whole thing just to see that look on his face.

“Ah…”

And after the very last bite, the Trainer let out a small, almost forlorn sound.

“You finished it pretty fast, Trainer.”

“S-Sorry, it was just too good…”

“Hearing that makes all the effort worth it, you know.”

For a while after finishing, he looked completely spaced out—like he’d wandered off into another world. But as expected of a central-division Trainer, he recovered quickly and returned to his usual reliable self.

“Thank you, Lux. It was truly delicious. You can definitely look forward to White Day.”

Not that I made it expecting anything back, but hey—if he’s planning on returning the favor, I’ll happily take it.

“Well, I’m gonna go get changed. I can’t train in this outfit.”

“I’ll be waiting at the grounds, so come by when you’re ready.”

And so, I returned to my room to change… only to immediately run into a troublesome situation.

“Welcome ba— …Rue-chan…? Eeeeeeh!? W-Wait, wait, WHAT is that!?”

“Eh? I had it made so I could give the Trainer his chocolate.”

“Eeeeeeeeeeh…?”

Bridge Comp had spotted me.

“So you gave him handmade chocolate? To the Trainer? Just the two of you?”

“Yeah…?”

“Rue-chan… your relationship with the Trainer is…”

“Eh? I’m his assigned Uma Musume. That’s all.”

The moment I said that, she shoved her face into a pillow and stopped moving entirely.

Uh… Miss Comp? Are you okay? I’m pretty sure she’s making noises girls aren’t supposed to make…

“Rue-chan… after training… we need to talk…”

“Eh?”

And so, after finishing training that day, I ended up receiving a very long lecture from Comp in my room. Yes, yes… I’ll be more careful about things like this… I mean, I don’t really get why I’m supposed to be careful, but even I’m not dumb enough to say that out loud in front of a furious Comp.

Well, my real goal succeeded, so… I guess I’ll endure the lecture.