Chapter 11: It's Delicious

Being born as an Uma Musume means that at least once in your life, you dream of becoming the “Strongest Uma Musume on Earth.”

…Well, okay—“Strongest on Earth” raises a lot of questions. What kind of Uma Musume is that supposed to be? What does “strongest” even mean? You could nitpick forever, but regardless, the idea of “the strongest Uma Musume” is something everyone admires. Mount Kitadake may be the second-highest mountain in Japan, but that doesn’t change the fact that everyone longs to stand at the very top.

It’s hard to say what exactly qualifies someone as “the strongest,” but one likely candidate for that standard is the Classic Triple Crown. The Satsuki Sho—2,000 meters, said to be won by the fastest Uma Musume. The Japan Derby—2,400 meters, said to be won by the luckiest Uma Musume. The Kikka Sho—3,000 meters, said to be won by the strongest Uma Musume. You can only compete in these races once in your entire life, only during your Classic-year season—and winning all three without dropping a single one… that is called the Classic Triple Crown. The Uma Musume are dazzled by its overwhelming brilliance.

All three are top-class domestic G1 races, and with distances fluctuating by nearly a thousand meters between them, winning every single one is extremely difficult. Which is precisely why any Uma Musume who manages it is spoken of as something close to a “legend.” For example, Saint Lite, said to be a being of myth. For example, Shinzan, the warrior who embodied legend itself. For example, the outrageous talent who shattered taboos, Mr. C.B. For example, the eternal emperor who brought the concept of “absolute victory” to racing—Symboli Rudolf.

…I wasn’t exactly a racing expert, but even I ended up memorizing this stuff. You hear it nonstop—in classes, in rumors, everywhere. These Triple Crown winners, the so-called Triple Crown horses, are all hailed as the mightiest of the mighty. Especially Symboli Rudolf—the newest legend—who’s said to make victory “inevitable.”

But naturally, that raises a question. Does that mean Uma Musume who didn’t take the Triple Crown, or who avoided those races altogether, can’t be called the strongest? Someone like Maruzensky—who went through her entire career without losing even once—is the perfect example. There must’ve been plenty of insanely strong girls who didn’t have the Triple Crown. What counts as “strongest”? What counts as “fast”? Those questions are surprisingly tricky.

…Or so I’m told. Almost all of this is secondhand—I just heard my history teacher getting really fired up about it yesterday.

"…Let’s see. The strongest, huh…"

A few minutes before bedtime that night, I was chatting with Happy Meek-senpai. Our topic of the moment was the strongest Uma Musume. Not because I’m some Classic-year girl aiming for an undefeated Triple Crown who’s suddenly decided to reflect on her place among the greats… no, it was just a random, time-killing conversation. I’m not that interested in being “the strongest.” I want to win—sure—but I’m not really the type who wants to flaunt that strength to everyone.

"...There really were so many strong Uma Musume in the past… It seems difficult. Hmm… hmmm…?"

"No, sorry. Since they can’t actually race each other directly, the premise of determining the strongest with perfect accuracy is impossible. You don’t need to think that hard about it."

…Though, to be fair, two Triple Crown winners do still run in the Dream Trophy League, so you can compare them a little. But the other two retired ages ago, so comparing their prime strength is impossible. And again—this is just idle chatter. We’re not trying to conduct a serious scientific analysis.

"Then… how about the strongest among the current roster? The strongest Uma Musume still active in the Twinkle Series."

"…Ohh, that I understand."

As usual, Meek-senpai lived life at a gentle, drifting pace. She clasped her hands together and puffed out her lips like a little nut—um, too cute to analyze properly, but she was probably trying to emphasize her point.

"…There were five incredibly strong girls in my generation. …Two of them are still around."

"I see. Then are those two the strongest?"

"…No. I think those two, plus Mejiro McQueen-san—and also me—are the strongest among the current active runners. V!"

Meek-senpai proudly flashed a double peace sign with an absurdly adorable smug face.

…Honestly, Meek-senpai is ridiculously strong. She’s a late bloomer who kept improving even after what should’ve been her peak in her fourth year. If we’re talking unusual traits, the most remarkable is her adaptability—turf, dirt, sprint, mile, middle, long distance—she can run well in basically anything. She’s currently at twelve wins out of twenty races. She doesn’t have flashy achievements like a Triple Crown or multiple consecutive major titles, but she’s won four G1 races, the very top tier in the country.

Happy Meek is unmistakably one of the strongest—one of the elite.

I learned all this after her Hopeful Stakes victory. She approached me wearing her smug little face and said, "…Will-chan, I have something to tell you." I assumed it was going to be another story about going to the aquarium with her Trainer—like the seventh time—but instead she dropped a bombshell confession. I had underestimated her as just a cute mob-senpai, and the shock literally knocked me over. Thankfully, Uma Musume bodies are sturdy.

…By the way, her insane adaptability and strength made me suspect she might be a reincarnator like me, but apparently that’s not the case. She’s just a naturally gifted Uma Musume who works hard every day to keep improving—an ordinary girl of this world. Hahaha… to someone like me, who got her strength by cheating fate, she’s honestly blinding.

…But anyway.

"Mejiro McQueen… senpai."

McQueen-chan really is in the top tier, huh…

I learned that Mejiro McQueen existed in this world last autumn, when I heard she had won the Kikka Sho. At the time, I was like, “Confirmed! McQueen-chan confirmed real!!” and totally celebrated. But thinking about it calmly, the fact that she ran in last year’s Kikka Sho means she’s a year ahead of me. Should I be glad we won’t meet head-to-head? Or sad we won’t have many chances to interact? Hard to say.

Also, if McQueen-chan is one year ahead, then Teio-chan—who was often with her—probably is too. There’s no hard proof they’re the same age, but I feel like there was a scene with them in the same classroom, so probably yes. If Teio-chan hadn’t gotten injured, could we have seen a Kikka Sho showdown between Teio-chan and McQueen-chan? I honestly don’t remember that part clearly anymore.

And like McQueen-chan, Teio-chan has also been confirmed to exist. I was once asked in an interview, “What do you think of Tokai Teio?” But that was after McQueen-chan won the Kikka Sho—after Teio-chan, who should have been McQueen’s contemporary, lost her final crown due to a fracture. So I answered, “Even if she couldn’t take the Triple Crown, I think she’s a wonderful Uma Musume.” …Thinking about it now, that was pretty arrogant for someone who hasn’t even taken a single crown. The media people were murmuring, too.

I mean, I was hyped because my favorite character from Season 2 of the anime had just been confirmed to exist…

Now then—Meek-senpai tilted her head. I should get the conversation back to McQueen-senpai.

"Mejiro McQueen-cha… I mean, senpai?"

"…Yes. …She’s a gray Uma Musume who’s kind of… floaty. Like a stingray."

"Are you close with her, Meek-senpai?"

"…No. We just talk a little before races. …We cheer each other on sometimes."

"I see. She must be really cool, then… McQueen-chan, I mean."

"…‘Chan’?"

When it comes to McQueen-chan, her dignity stands out above all else.

At first, I was focused on her rivalry with Teio-chan. But after she got scolded—no, obliterated—by that… that person, probably someone like the Mejiro family’s strict grandmother, she became iron-willed.

No matter what anyone said, she didn’t flinch. She simply focused on the race and overpowered Teio-chan. That figure—how could anyone call it anything but noble?

And then later, when Teio was tormented by the cruelty of fate, McQueen stayed by her side, supporting her until the end. When she sent her off with tears in her eyes, it was heartbreaking and beautiful.

When she finally returned to the turf, I cried thinking, “Ah… miracles don’t just happen—you make them happen…!”

Mejiro McQueen is the absolute definition of cool.

Surely right now she’s living as a flawless Uma Musume with zero worries and the strongest mental fortitude known to mankind.

…Ever since coming to Tracen, I’ve learned that Uma Musume deal with normal problems—skin troubles, staying up too late, gaining weight. Stuff like that.

But McQueen-chan? There’s no way she suffers from anything so mundane!

If anything, she probably says things like, "If I can’t maintain proper weight control, then I can’t call myself a proper Uma Musume," or "Before indulging in unnecessary hobbies, I must focus on the training before me." She must be the kind who’s ruthlessly disciplined…!

Even if she dropped a cake, she’d probably smile and say, "My, my, it seems the floor wanted a Mont Blanc as well." …Okay, no. That’s a little too unhinged. The only thing allowed to crave sweets is pants.

"…Ah—hmm, well… yes. Before a race, McQueen-san is… cool most of the time."

"I knew it. I’d love to talk to her at least once, if possible."

"…Mnn."

Meek-senpai made a strange face at that, but I was too busy getting lost in my fantasy of noble McQueen-chan to ask what it meant.

Three days after our “strongest” conversation, during a break in our joint training session—

With nothing to do, I decided on a whim to ask the same question to Nature-chan.

"Nature-chan, who do you think is the strongest Uma Musume?"

"Whoa, heavy question out of nowhere. Well, isn’t it you, Will-chan?"

"No, I mean strongest overall—while still active."

"…This natural confidence of yours… it’s sparkling today, huh?"

Apparently, she’d been joking, but my friend scratched her hair with an awkward look.

…Hmm. This is tough. I’ve been praised way too much recently, and I’ve gotten used to being called the strongest. So I completely missed Nature-chan’s one-liner.

This is bad. My already-low social skills are dropping even further.

Next time, I should respond with something like, “Hey now, who’re you calling the strongest—”
…No, that doesn’t fit Hishono Wilm’s character.

“How curious—who might the strongest be?”
…Yeah, trying to do comedy in polite speech is impossible.

And saying something like, "I am not the strongest," is just way too serious…

While I twisted myself into knots over my response, Nature-chan was thinking seriously too.

"Strongest among the active girls, huh… Well, if we’re talking about someone who can shine anywhere, then probably Happy Meek-senpai?"

"Oh, I actually share a room with Meek-senpai."

"What, seriously!? Ugh, I’m so jealous—you get to ask her anything!"

"Meek-senpai relies heavily on intuition, so she isn’t easy to learn from."

"Oh, really…? I guess the real monsters tend to be instinct types."

"It’s not that theorists can’t succeed, but if someone has talent so high that theory becomes unnecessary, I suppose they naturally become intuitive runners."

"Oho, was that a self-introduction? Must be nice to be gifted."

Nature-chan chuckled.

…Honestly, from an objective standpoint, I think Nature-chan is ridiculously talented too.

I’m still a student, so I attend class during the day. …Break times are awkward, so I survive them using the classic “bury your face in your desk” loner technique.

Based on the rumors I overhear, there are plenty of girls who haven’t even won a maiden race yet, or who haven’t “switched on” into their true form.

Actually, from what I hear, just winning a central maiden race at this point in the year already puts you above average.

Nature-chan may have missed her Make Debut, but she won her maiden race on the first try, consistently places top three in mock races—even against higher-class opponents—and recently won an open-class race by two lengths. She’s undeniably brimming with talent… objectively speaking.

Me? Well, I’m a reincarnation cheat case, so… if someone with cheat powers loses, that’s just embarrassing.

Huh? “Didn’t you lose your first mock race?”
Right! I sure did! Ahaha! …Haah.

Anyway, Nature-chan is the protagonist type who’s always looking upward. Telling her there are tons of girls below her means nothing.

So I took a sip of sports drink with a smug little “heh heh.”

"Ugh, that face is annoying. …Anyway, the strongest? Well, there’s also Special Week-senpai."

"Gweh!? Cough—hack!"

"What—what happened!?"

Let me say this upfront: I’m not stupid.

I knew there was always a chance that other anime characters existed in this world.

Even if this is a replaced-protagonist-type setting, there could still be characters who weren’t swapped out.

But… Special Week was one of the leading candidates for who I might have replaced. So in my mind, she’s a topic that must be handled with extreme caution.

So hearing her name suddenly pop up really startled me.

…It’s not because I’ve been too absorbed in training and my relationship with my Trainer lately and forgot to think about the world’s replacement rules. Absolutely not. No sir. Nope.

"No, I—ahem! Sorry, it went down the wrong pipe. I don’t actually know much about Special Week-senpai. If you’re willing, Nature-chan, could you tell me about her?"

"Here—handkerchief. I mean, sure… but honestly, I don’t know that much either. She hasn’t raced at all this past year."

"She hasn’t?"

"Yep. Rumor is she’s planning to transfer into the Dream Trophy League. Supposedly she’s using her time now to adjust for that, or she’s avoiding races to make room for younger runners, or something. And she doesn’t show up for interviews much anymore."

"The Dream Trophy League… I see…"

Life at Tracen has already passed the one-year mark, and I’ve taken plenty of classes by now. Obviously, I’m not ignorant about this stuff.

The Dream Trophy League is a collection of higher-grade races for Uma Musume who performed well in the Twinkle Series—a tier above, so to speak.

New students are told to focus on the Twinkle Series, so we don’t learn the details, but supposedly the Dream Trophy League is exactly what it sounds like: a dreamlike set of races. If I compare it to a game from my previous life, it feels kind of like Super Robot Wars.

Honestly, I don’t remember much, but toward the end of season one there was… something-something Dream, that sort of race. Now that I think about it, that must’ve been one of the Dream Trophy League races.

"Those over there are veterans in their third senior year. Pretty soon they’ll be so far above us that we won’t even be able to reach them anymore. …Well, I mean, you could reach them someday, Will-chan."

"Nature-chan, you could reach them too."

"No, no, nooo—that’s a distant fantasy for a plain old, talentless girl like me."

Even as she said that, there was a faint spark of fighting spirit in her eyes.

In other words, even while she tossed out self-deprecating lines as a safety buffer, she hadn’t given up on chasing that goal. She burned with the ambition and grit of someone who wanted to become an Uma Musume capable of rising that high someday.

Nature-chan’s forward-looking attitude is very much my taste. Mainly in the “I want to support this girl” kind of way.

"Anyway, back to the topic—Special Week-senpai is apparently ridiculously strong. She was part of that insane ‘Golden Generation’ packed with monsters, and if I remember right, her record was seventeen runs, ten wins, and four G1 victories. Except for a single seventh-place finish, she placed top three in all sixteen of her other races."

"You’re very knowledgeable."

"…Well, yeah. As a fellow closer, I thought maybe I could learn something from her, so I asked my Trainer to look up the details."

"And the results?"

"Nope, impossible. She’s just straight-up gifted."

"Gifted."

"Yeah, without a doubt. For your average Uma Musume, there’s no way to replicate something like that."

Gifted. A talent granted by the gods—something beyond human comprehension.

In my previous world, the term mostly referred to intelligence, but in this world full of Uma Musume, it can also refer to physical ability.

A gap you’re born with by coincidence—the kind that can never be overturned.

…In that sense, maybe my “anime reincarnation” is also a kind of giftedness.

Well, it’s kind of rude to compare normal talent with reincarnation perks, though.

"Also, let’s see… If we’re talking about escape-type Uma Musume like you, Will-chan, then—"

Just as Nature-chan was about to continue—

"Hishono Wilm."

A voice sent a shiver raking up my spine.

…It was my Trainer’s voice.

My Trainer—Trainer Horino—isn’t the type to get angry easily.

The only times he gets angry are when I overdo my self-training and cause an accident, or when I break rules or promises.

…So why is my Trainer glaring at me right now with such sharp eyes?

"Uh, W-Will-chan? Did you… do something?"

Nature-chan whispered nervously beside me.

Ohh, Nature-chan can finally sense the subtle shifts in Trainer’s emotions now.

Trainer usually wears a mask-like expression, but when his emotions get strong enough, they leak out around the edges of that mask.

Conversely, if nothing is leaking out, it’s a sign he isn’t genuinely upset. When he’s only pretending to be angry, you can tell by watching for this.

Once you figure that much out, you’re ready for the Horino Trainer Certification, Grade 3! Hooray!

By Grade 2, you start reading his emotions from things like the timing of his pauses and the intonation of his speech when he’s expressionless. I only recently managed to reach that level.

"...Well, I do have an idea of the things I might’ve done wrong, but there are too many to narrow it down."

"That’s a way bigger problem for your lifestyle in general! At this point, I’m starting to feel bad for Trainer Horino!"

While we whispered back and forth, Trainer marched straight toward us.

…Ahh, he’s mad. I can tell just from his footsteps—he’s pretty angry. It’s been a while since he got this upset.

No need to drag Nature-chan into this. I stepped forward with the resolve of someone walking toward the guillotine.

"Hishono Wilm. I have something I want to ask you."

No, seriously—this deliberate “maintaining a perfectly blank face” expression is terrifying.

It’s usually so easy to peel off that mask. When he keeps it stuck on this firmly, it’s genuinely scary.

"What is it?"

Trainer stopped in front of me and held out his phone.

…My Umatter account?

"Let’s start by confirming a few things. I told you to ‘start using Umatter for the sake of your fans,’ didn’t I?"

"Yes, you did. So I started it."

That was just the day before yesterday.

Umatter is the major social media platform in this world—basically the equivalent of the blue bird app from my previous life.

Uma Musume are athletes, but they also have an idol-like aspect.

So it’s normal for them to share updates and information on platforms like this.

"And I also told you to ‘make posts that your fans will enjoy,’ correct?"

"I definitely heard that too."

"...Then why are you using Umatter as a personal memo pad?"

"I didn’t intend to use it as a memo pad, though."

As I said that, Trainer turned his phone so I could see my post history.

…Yep. No hacks, no break-ins. These are definitely my posts.

"'Hishono Wilm here. Starting Umatter now.'
'6:00 – Woke up. After stretching, heading out for morning run.'
'13:00 – Starting indoor running. No fatigue, feeling good. Will ask Trainer for instructions at 15:00.'
'Accident occurred. Running machine broke and stopped. Contacted the office and resumed using another machine.'
'15:00 – Training paused. Resting to recover, then heading to Trainer’s room.'
'Uphill track until 18:00.'
'19:00 – Anaerobic training such as leg presses until the academy facilities close.'
'21:00 – Running with short rests in between.'
'0:00 – Checked fatigue. Cooling down with stretches. Good night.'"

"That's… rough…"

Next to me, Nature-chan murmured as she looked at the screen.

Eh? Is it really that bad…?

"Let me rephrase. Who told you to turn Umatter into a training logbook?"

"I thought fans would appreciate having my schedule publicly available?"

In my previous life, I went through a phase where I obsessively followed idols. Back then, knowing what my oshi was doing at any given hour was prime fuel for my imagination. I happily pieced together every scrap of information and squealed over it.

And since Uma Musume are both athletes and idols, I figured it made sense to publish some of my training schedule. So I posted the way I thought fans might like.

"...Well, to an extent, that’s true. But there are exceptions."

Trainer made a bitter face and scrolled to show the reactions to my posts. They weren’t replies—just people tweeting into the void on my timeline.

『Snake, I swear she might be a machine』
『Is this kid seriously training all day nonstop?』
『Any trainer who schedules this is insane. This is shady on so many levels』
『A faint trace of humanity visible in the “Good night.” Everything else? Not so much』
『She’s literally pitiful. Someone let her rest』
『A-aah… (flashbacks to all the Uma Musume who got hurt from overtraining…)』
『She’s gonna break before she even gets her Triple Crown. Is she obsessed, or is her trainer pushing her too hard?』

"...I get pretty much no replies on my posts, so I thought I just wasn’t popular."

"With the way your posts blew up, that’s impossible. People are backing away because all you ever post is training data."

That’s strange. This wasn’t how I imagined it would go.

In my previous life, whenever an idol tweeted something like “Heading to vocal practice!” or “Rehearsal time!”, hordes of fans—me included—would swarm happily.

So why are they backing away from mine? Is it because it’s all training? But I like training. What else am I supposed to write?

Is it cuteness? Am I lacking in cuteness?

Should I try posting something like, "I meant to lift a 100-kilo dumbbell today, but I accidentally picked up the treadmill instead! lol"?

…Yeah. Actually doing this is hard. What are you even supposed to post on SNS? Influencers really are incredible…

"How should I improve?"

"...Nice Nature, what do you think?"

"Eh, me? Uh… let’s see… If she wants to keep the stoic vibe, maybe cut the number of posts in half and add one or two everyday-life posts?"

"Alright, Hishono Wilm. From now on, Nice Nature will be teaching you how to use Umatter."

"Wait—did you just dump that on me!?"

Nature-chan looked dazed, but honestly, learning from a friend sounded fine to me.

Oh—beep beep beep. That’s my timer. Break’s over.

"Understood. Then I’ll get back to—"

"Hold it. We haven’t even started the main issue."

…Huh?

Trainer still looked angry.

But wasn’t he mad about my Umatter use…?

"Hishono Wilm. What we just looked at were yesterday’s posts, correct?"

"Yes."

"I do not recall giving you permission to continue self-training past 19:00 yesterday."

Ah.

"...Well—"

"It seems you were working on your own for nearly five hours, yes?"

"…………Um."

"And you even left campus at night to run outside. Without permission. In low-visibility conditions."

"…………I, uh—I got approval from the dorm head—"

"I’ve already confirmed you did not."

"……………I’m sorry."

There was no escape. And of course, my extremely competent trainer wouldn’t overlook something like this.

As I bowed deeply, Trainer let out a long sigh.

"Don’t lie about things that can be exposed immediately. If you’d apologized from the start, I would’ve considered something lighter. Your punishment is three days of no self-training."

"That’s… cruel…! Can’t you make it one day? Just one?"

While I whined, Nature-chan muttered in disbelief.

"...What exactly am I being forced to witness here?"

Yeah, I’m really sorry, Nature-chan. You probably just wanted to start your training already…

Aside:

A few days later, I tried changing the way I used Umatter, following Nature-chan’s advice.

I took breakfast photos that looked as appealing as possible and posted a little about my friendships.

Despite all this careful effort, the reaction was as follows:

The number of replies barely changed.

Tweets without mentions read like this:

『Looks like they installed a personality system』
『The Uma Musume inside must have changed』
『Desperately trying to put out fires lol』
『There’s no way our Snake would post anything besides training!』

…Strange. I really tried my best.

Time passed, and the new year began.

By the time the word “Yayoi Sho” started floating around my ears, a guest appeared at the trainer’s office where I was.

"Hey, hey, isn’t this great? Let’s do a mock race! You’re running in the Satsuki Sho too, right? Think of this as a trial run! Running a mock race with the great Tokai Teio herself doesn’t happen often, you know!"

Her name was Tokai Teio.

I had hoped I might meet her—just in case she existed.

And yet, she was my absolute favorite Uma Musume.

The one I had absolutely no desire to race against.