Chapter 53: Summer Vacation Arrives!

July. For ordinary students, this would be the "Just one final push before summer break!" period, with the rainy season still continuing - a gloomier time than one might imagine. This year is no exception, as early July still seems to be part of the rainy season.

At Tracen Academy, summer vacation begins in July. Simultaneously, it's tradition for many students to participate in summer training camps, throwing themselves into training in changed environments to prepare for the autumn Twinkle Series.

We're no exception and will be holding our own training camp. Moreover—we'll be having a joint camp with Special Week's trainer and McQueen's trainer—Trainer Okino and Trainer Amami.

The team "Spica" formed by Trainer Okino currently has six members: Special Week, Silence Suzuka, Gold Ship, Tokai Teio, Vodka, and Daiwa Scarlet. Since Trainer Amami is exclusively Mejiro McQueen's trainer, this camp will include eight horse girls counting me. Apparently they've invited some special guests too, and I can't contain my excitement already.

The camp location is one of Tracen Academy's private beaches—where Spica goes for expeditions every year, they say. A private beach... what a sweet-sounding privilege!

Soon after, I got a message from Spe-chan: "Let's go to the mall together during the upcoming break! We can prepare for the camp too!" to which I immediately agreed. Apparently all seven members participating in the joint camp are coming too. Ahh... going out with Suzuka-chan, McQueen-chan, Teio-chan and the others... it's like a dream...!

Heh... hehe... drool...

"You're gross, Apollo-chan..."

"Did you say something, Guriko?"

"...No, nothing."

"Good. snort"

"Gross."

And so, like that creepy Agnes at her worst, I spent sleepless nights until the day of our outing.

On the day of our outing, the gloomy rainy season atmosphere had completely cleared, replaced by bright summer weather. This being my second summer as a horse girl, I know it's an especially unpleasant season for us because our ears and tails get all sweaty. Plus the cicadas are noisy and mosquitoes are disgusting—I never liked it much to begin with.

Arriving at the meeting spot, I found this world's Team Spica plus McQueen-chan assembled there. Immediately, the peerless beauty—Gold Ship—came to greet me, with Mejiro McQueen beside her. The usual comedy duo.

"You're late, Apollo! Keep dawdling and we'll leave without you!"

"Eek! Sorry! But we're still 10 minutes early, right!?"

"Exactly!"

"That's completely unreasonable!"

"Now now, Gold Ship-san. Please stop bullying Apollo-san."

"I wasn't bullying her! Come on, let's go! The sun's gonna set at this rate!"

"My my... what a troublesome person."

As Gold Ship and Mejiro McQueen exchanged their familiar banter, I got swept up among the Spica members. Ahhh, Teio-chan is right in front of me! Suzuka-san is here too! Vodka-chan and Scarlet-chan too!! Ughh, they're too cute, I might die!

Anyway, Teio-chan is a senior I'm meeting for the first time. I mustn't forget to greet her properly. I took Teio-chan's small hand and bowed.

"Ni-nice to meet you, Tokai Teio-san! I'm Apollo Rainbow! My hobbies are weight training and reading! I abuse my body whenever possible! While utilizing the knowledge I've acquired so far, I hope to keep challenging myself with new things! Pleased to meet you!"

"Uh... what's with that energy? McQueen, is she fishing for a straight-man response?"

"I-I don't know..."

"Whoa. Didn't know there were such interesting horse girls outside Spica, Golshi-chan."

—Crap! The second half turned into my ingrained business-style self-introduction! Even when emailing Maruzen-chan I can't shake this corporate tone, maybe it's hopeless... ah whatever!

I reset with a "Here goes!" bow and covered everything up with a firm handshake. In the corner of my vision, Golshi-chan was smirking. Damn it, this is so embarrassing!

Teio-chan didn't seem bothered by the weirdly intense Apollo Rainbow, greeting me with a refreshing smile.

"Nice to meet you, Apollo-chan! Let's have fun today and at the camp!"

"Guh!"

Pierced by Tokai Teio's princely smile, I clutched my chest and crouched on the spot. There's something wrong with me today. No—the wrong ones are these people. Having my admired horse girls gathering and approaching me like this—what horse girl could stay calm? None, I'm sure. They must be trying to kill me by pushing me past my limits.

"Hey Spe-chan. This girl's your friend, right? Is she always like this?"

"S-sorry Teio-san. Apollo-chan always ends up like this around Suzuka-san and McQueen-san."

"Ehh~"

Pant pant, this is painful. Feeling the radiant aura of these sparkling horse girls makes it hard to breathe. With Spe-chan and others my age, I feel rivalry so it's different, but with juniors and seniors I end up like this. Can't be helped, right?

"Teio-san! Pant pant Teio-san! Can we take photos later!? Let's do purikura!!"

"Uh, sure... but you're pretty pushy, huh?"

"Apollo-chan, you're making Teio-san uncomfortable! Cut it out!"

"Ah, sorry!"

Though Spe-chan had to stop me, we managed to continue chatting relatively peacefully. Eight people intermingling in conversation. Amidst this, a chance to talk with the somewhat spaced-out Suzuka-chan arrived. Not one to miss such opportunities, I swiftly moved beside Silence Suzuka and successfully spoke to her, though my voice came out slightly high-pitched.

"Suzuka-san Suzuka-san! I saw the Takarazuka Kinen live! Congratulations!! You were so cool!!"

"Oh my... Apollo-san. giggle, thank you. Thanks for your cheering messages on UmaStar too. I really felt your support."

"No no! It all started when you cheered for me before the Derby!!"

The message I sent Silence Suzuka on UmaStar apparently became a minor internet topic. It was just an ordinary 30-line cheering message—was there something strange about it?

Regardless, her positive reception matters most. That my awkward writing could properly convey my feelings to my admired horse girl through the faceless internet is genuinely moving.

Looking around now—Teio-chan, McQueen-chan, Suzuka-chan, Golshi-chan (doing who knows what)... so many untouchable figures are here. This is Spica...? The atmosphere is more casual than I imagined, with friendly interactions between seniors and juniors despite the hierarchy. I really get to spend summer camp with these people. How wonderful.

Ah... teams feel so warm. Though if Tomio formed a team and paid attention to girls other than me, I might not tolerate it. Especially when they're all incredibly beautiful horse girls. It's beyond tolerance—I'd probably explode from jealousy. If he ever talks about forming a team, I'll firmly oppose it.

After conversing with Silence Suzuka, Vodka-chan and Daiwa Scarlet-chan positioned themselves on either side of me—they're my juniors by one year—whoa, seeing them up close is lethally cute!

"Apolo-senpai! Hey hey!"

"Hey Vodka, I was trying to talk to Apollo-senpai first."

"Hah? Scarlet can go somewhere else. I've got tons to ask about the Japan Derby!"

"What's that tone? You're the one who—"

"What was that!? You're the one who—"

"Hah!?"

"Oh, you wanna go!?"

Both of them were taller than my 155 cm, forcing me to look up. The 165 cm Vodka-chan and 163 cm Scarlet-chan were now locked in one of Spica’s signature arguments—over something completely trivial like who got to talk to me first. Watching them fondly, I decided to indulge myself by wedging between them.

Ahh... Vodka-chan and Scarlet-chan really are my juniors. Just the word "junior" makes them seem even cuter. Today, I got some money from the trainer for camp supplies, but now I just want to treat these two to parfaits or something. I hugged the quarreling pair and rubbed my cheeks against theirs aggressively.

"Aahhh, you two are so adorable!! Big sis wants to spoil you rotten!!"

"Apolo-senpai, what’s gotten into you!?"

"C’mon! Vodka-chan, Scarlet-chan! Stop fighting, okay? Make up already! Don’t fight over meee!"

"Apollo-chan’s seriously off her rocker today..."

"This girl’s nuts..."

Under Gold Ship’s bewildered stare, we boarded the bus. I wanted to sit next to Suzuka-chan, but Spe-chan had already claimed that spot. McQueen-chan and Teio-chan’s seats were also taken, so I gave up. Somehow, Golshi-chan took a liking to me and dragged me by the scruff of my neck to sit beside her. Since we were in the very back, I ended up with Golshi-chan on my left and Vodka-chan and Scarlet-chan on my right—who were already bickering again. Meanwhile, Gold Ship sat stiff as a board beside me.

Gold Ship—Tracen Academy’s infamous wildcard. She’s a fixture at G1 and major races where Spica members compete, often spotted selling yakisoba (?) in the stands, though the source of her supply remains a mystery.

Honestly, she’s hard to approach. Silent, she’s an untouchable beauty; speaking, she’s a chaotic force you’d rather avoid. Either way, interacting is tricky. But this outing and camp might be my chance to get to know Golshi-chan better. Mustering courage, I tapped her shoulder—just as she was trying to disassemble a Rubik’s Cube. Seizing the moment, I flashed her my phone.

"Golshi-chan. I’ve got footage of Chairman Rudolf and Oguri-chan figure skating. Wanna watch?"

"!? You mean that legendary clip—one of Tracen’s Seven Mysteries!? Show me!"

"Sure~. Got this from a very secret source, so keep it hush-hush, okay?"

"Deal."

Golshi-chan bit instantly. As we talked, she seemed to take an even bigger liking to me, sharing random trivia like "Today’s breakfast was mackerel miso stew"—and somehow, I successfully got her contact info.

Bonding like this, we soon arrived at the mall. Today’s mission: not swimsuits, but training gear, towels, and miscellaneous supplies. A shopping trip devoid of any frills—just the norm for us.

Well, we’re horse girls first, girls second. Despite our varied personalities, we’re all dead serious about running. Even Golshi-chan was mostly focused when picking out training gear. (Mostly.)

"Apollo. If I put these horseshoes on my head, d’ya think I’d look like a deer?"

"Deer Girl Pretty Bambi~?"

"You’re hilarious! C’mon, Apollo! Let’s become deer girls and return to the forest! Wait... what sound do deer even make?"

"I dunno..."

After grabbing training gear, towels, shampoo, lotion, and extension cords, we settled for lunch and desserts. Teio-chan ordered pasta followed by "hachimii"—and yep, she really drank straight honey... or so I (didn’t) think.

With meals done, I figured we’d just kill time before heading back—until Scarlet-chan suddenly hit me with this:

"Apolo-senpai, how far have you and Trainer Momozawa gone?"

"Pfft—! Cough cough! S-Scarlet-chan, what are you—!?"

"I mean, I’m curious about your relationship with the trainer~"

"Wha—"

"Ohhh, I’ve been wondering about that too..."

"Even Spe-chan!? N-no, it’s not like that... Tomio and I are just... trainer and horse girl, normal... or maybe I just lack the courage to... ahaha..."

"We can’t heeeear you~!"

"I must admit, I’m curious as well. You’re quite attached to Sub—ahem—Trainer Momozawa, Apollo-san."

"Mind sharing those juicy details with me too?"

Scarlet-chan, Spe-chan, Teio-chan, McQueen-chan, and Golshi-chan—(Vodka-chan had turned bright red and looked away, while Suzuka-chan spaced out)—barraged me with questions. They brought up everything—how people had spotted me and the trainer acting suspiciously close on campus, how we’d been caught (?) flirting during a live broadcast—until I had nowhere left to hide.

I finally hung my head and fell silent. The answer was silence. If I spoke carelessly, too much might spill out—my feelings for the trainer might overflow. I had no choice but to bite back the embarrassment and stay quiet.

...Stay quiet—that should’ve been my only option.

But my ears and tail betrayed me, broadcasting everything loud and clear.

I wanted to die from embarrassment.

This was too much.

But come on, what else was I supposed to do? Maybe I’m just easy, but when someone works that hard just for you, how could you not fall for them? As Teio-chan fiddled with my burning ears, I kept my face down—this time for an entirely different reason.

"Heheh~. Even if you stay quiet, your ears are screaming~ Poke poke~"

"Even our senpai’s a maiden at heart~"

"Your devotion is... making me blush now."

"You guys are mean... You don’t have to tease me this much. It’s not like I’ve ever liked a guy like this before. I’ve been agonizing over what to do..."

"So, little lady, you’ve got it that bad for the trainer, huh?"

When Gold Ship teased me, I reluctantly nodded. She burst out laughing and dropped this bombshell:

"Fohohoho! Then Gold-sama has the perfect plan! Use this summer camp to close the distance—dramatically! Presenting: 'Thump-Thump!? A Sizzling Summer Love Confession Operation (With Accidental Exposure!)' ...Well!?"

"A love confession operation—perfect! If you're serious, I’ll help, Senpai!"

It was an absurd, ridiculous suggestion...

But if it could bridge this frustrating gap between us during camp—

I couldn’t dismiss it as just a joke.

Tearfully lifting my face, I glanced around. Would they really help me take things further with the trainer? Was this half-teasing, half-serious? Or just a prank to mess with me?

But even though they were horse girls who poured their youth into racing—they were still teenage girls, smack in the middle of puberty. And when it came to romance gossip, they were all in. Every single one of them sparkled with pure, unfiltered excitement.

"...Really?"

I asked with upturned eyes—and the Spica crew nodded back, grinning. (Vodka and Silence Suzuka still weren’t joining in, but whatever.)

Once the Love Confession Operation (With Accidental Exposure!) was greenlit, they moved fast. Spe-chan and Teio-chan flanked me, already marching off.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

The answer caught me off guard.

"The camp’s at a private beach, right~? Then we gotta buy you a swimsuit!"

"Huh?!"

"No 'huh?!' about it, Apollo-chan! Momozawa seems super dense—you’ve gotta take charge! So we’re getting you... the right swimsuit!"

"One that’ll knock his socks off!"

"Eeeek~!!"

Even though the camp was at a private beach, we rarely wore non-school-issued swimsuits. We were there to train, not play—and even if we had some downtime, nobody packed a swimsuit just for that. It’d just take up space, and we’d probably spend our off-day doing summer homework anyway.

But...

The trainer was more popular than I’d realized.

If I missed this chance—it’d be bad.

Maybe being a horse girl meant going all-in—both in racing and in love.

And so, dragged along by everyone...

I ended up buying a certain swimsuit.

.

.

.

Before I knew it, summer camp had arrived—and we were headed to the private beach.