Having trained real horses, why are we now training racehorse girls after time-traveling?

"Even the Chrysanthemum Festival will be affected, and so will Onii-chan. He's really depressed right now. If this continues, Onii-chan won't even be able to keep up with his daily work..."

"So please, trainer Jinlang and trainer Wada, help Onii-chan! Only Onii-chan can help Master out of this predicament."

"...I and senior Jinlang will help, don't worry, you clever one."

Upon hearing this, Wada nodded seriously and said to Maki on the other end of the phone, "We will find a way to handle this matter. Maki, please take care of the master craftsman."

"Yes, I will, thank you."

Soon, Makoto's call with the two was interrupted. Wada, who had just put down his phone, was discussing the Silent Suzuka matter with Imanami, but at that moment, something even more troublesome happened.

"I never expected something like this to happen... Lung hemorrhage. It seems that even the Golden Master's illness was caused by us, and it happened much earlier than expected."

"And it happened before the Chrysanthemum Appreciation Festival... No wonder Ikezoe and the Gold Master had a fight. It must have been a situation where one of them really wanted to train, but the other was stubbornly preventing him from doing so, right?"

“I don’t think so, Wada-kun.” Upon hearing this, Jinlang shook his head. As an old man, he relied on his experience and did not think that such a thing would happen to the Gold Master and Ikezoe.

If this had happened to Wada Kazuyo Opera, I wouldn't find it so strange. But the duo of Ikezoe and the Golden Master are not people who can be explained by common sense. The reason for their argument might be this, but if it has really come to this point, it is definitely not this small conflict, but something else entirely.

At least... it's a more important issue than the competition. However, Jinlang didn't know the real reason, because as Maki-rei said, this was something that Ikezoe had to handle himself; they couldn't offer much help.

At this moment, Wada seemed to have thought of something—the Three Goddesses. Wada frowned slightly and began to ponder. Faced with this situation, should he recommend that Ikezoe go to the statue of the Three Goddesses and pray, to see if the Three Goddesses could guide him on what to do?

Thinking this through, Wada made up his mind and left the scene immediately, saying to Jinlang:

"Senior Jinlang, I'm going to find Ikezoe-kun! Please wait for my good news!"

"Wada-kun?" Jinlang watched as Wada hurriedly headed towards the team room. Although he felt that Wada was hiding something from him, Jinlang still chose to trust Wada's judgment.

After all, there is only one month left until the Takarazuka Memorial, which means there is only one month left before the Wada Koyo Opera goes on its expedition to Paris, France.

A month later, no matter what happened within the team, Wada was powerless to help even if he wanted to. Therefore, he wanted to handle everything to the best of his ability before leaving, so that he could go to the Arc de Triomphe with the opera without any worries.

Now, Wada has no choice but to reveal his last trump card to Ikezoe; this is the last move he can make to help Ikezoe.

……

"Ikezoe-kun, come with me, come with me!"

"What... Wada, I'm not in the mood for drinks right now. I'll just transfer the money to you and go drink by yourself. Consider it my treat."

Chi Tian looked as if he had suffered a tremendous blow. He had always been full of energy and maintained an optimistic attitude, whether facing the tyranny of the Gold Master or the troublesome changes in the Eastern Merchants. This was the first time he had shown such a confused and listless expression.

Therefore, the moment Wada found Ikezoe, he was determined to bring him to find the Three Goddesses.

This was the first time he had ever seen Ikezoe so bewildered. He had to bring him to the statue of the Three Goddesses and have him pray sincerely, so that perhaps the Three Goddesses could give him some advice.

“Ikezoe-kun, although what I’m about to say is a bit strange, you have to believe me.”

Wada pulled Ikezoe to the Three Goddess Statues and then said to the listless Ikezoe, "If you pray sincerely in front of the Three Goddess Statues at Treson Academy, you may receive a response from the Three Goddesses. Do you remember the state of man and horse that I was in at the Arima Memorial with the Good Opera? That was actually a 'miracle' created by the Three Goddesses."

"Ikezoe-kun, why don't you give it a try? Turn your troubles into sincere prayers. Perhaps the three goddesses can respond to your voice and give you some help."

"...Wada, were you drunk this morning?" Ikezoe finally reacted to Wada's words, but still looked at him with suspicion and said, "You're not joking with me, are you?"

"Of course not, you'll see once you try, Ikezoe-kun." Wada encouraged Ikezoe, saying, "Believe me, this is the world of Uma Musume Pretty Derby, there are so many phenomena we can't explain. The fact that the Three Goddesses really exist can't be too hard to believe, right?"

"...Since you've put it that way..."

Wada's words gave a glimmer of hope to the currently dejected Ikezoe. He looked at the three goddess statues, slowly closed his eyes, and silently prayed:

"The Three Goddesses—if you truly exist, please give me some guidance so that my relationship with Orpheus can be improved."

"I didn't understand her before, and I may still not understand her now, but I want to try my best to understand her. At the very least, I want to know what kind of feelings she has for me."

"—Of course you know about the trainers from another world that connects to this place."

At this very moment, a voice actually responded to Ikezoe in his mind. However, if Wada could also hear it, he would find that this voice was different from the one he had heard before. Clearly, it was another of the Three Goddesses.

"You are……"

“I am one of the three goddesses, you may call me 'Dali',” the female voice replied.

“I hear your worries and confusion. Perhaps I can offer you some guidance, young trainer.”

Chapter 314: Do you truly love every child who has gone through this?

“I am one of the three goddesses, you can call me ‘Dali’.”

"I heard your devout prayers, your confusion and troubles. Perhaps I can offer you some guidance?"

When the voice of one of the three goddesses truly rang in Chi Tian's mind, Chi Tian immediately opened his eyes. However, at this moment, he found that there was no one else around him, and his surroundings had completely changed.

Ikezoe was surrounded by... a pasture? That was the only way Ikezoe could describe it. There was an endless grassland around it, and you could even see a small pasture enclosed by a wooden fence, which was about the size of the kind that was prepared specifically for a racehorse that had made a name for itself.

Seeing this scene, Ikezo couldn't help but think of the Great Shock ranch he had visited before. Great Shock had already passed away, but his ranch had been preserved. At first glance, this place was about the same size as Great Shock's ranch, and its level of luxury was also comparable.

It's a pity that Wada can't empathize with Ikezoe right now, otherwise he would definitely wonder why he sees a scene of light as bright as the universe in the midst of darkness, while Ikezoe's scene is so beautiful.

"Where is this? Are you one of the Three Goddesses?" Chi Tian stared at the horse girl in front of him, who was much taller than him, wearing a white dress that did not reveal the upper half of her face, and asked in confusion.

"—This is your mental world, a trainer from another world." The three goddesses named "Dali" smiled slightly as she answered Ikezoe's question. She seemed much more interested in Ikezoe than the three goddesses who had previously interacted with Wada, patiently answering each of Ikezoe's questions.

"The mental world, to some extent, is the depiction of your inner self. Just like that trainer named Ryuji Wada, his mental world was shrouded in darkness, but it burst forth with the light of hope. If one day he can find that ray of light in his heart and break through the confusion of this darkness, he will achieve a true qualitative leap."

"And you, Kenichi Ikezoe, a trainer from another world, your mental world is more concrete and vast than that of Trainer Wada, and it has even depicted your wishes in your heart."

"My wish?" Chi Tian was also confused upon hearing this. Looking around at everything, he couldn't help but ask in bewilderment, "The wish that is reaching out from my heart... is it to have my own ranch? I don't even know myself."

“That’s not the case.” Dali smiled and said, “The ranch is just a manifestation of your true desire, which you are still searching for.”

“Look at that ranch, and you’ll see, Trainer Ikezoe, your heart is empty except for a framework.”

"..."

Chi Tian's gaze followed Dali's finger to the ranch next to him—indeed, just as Dali had said, the ranch was decorated very luxuriously and looked like a very suitable place for horse racing to retire, but there was not a single racehorse in this very nicely decorated ranch.

What does this mean? Chi Tian seemed to have the answer in his heart.

"You mean... there's no one who has truly entered my heart?"

“You guessed right, Trainer Ikezoe.” Dali seemed to have no airs of being one of the Three Goddesses, and slowly knelt down on the grass. Seeing this, Ikezoe hesitated for a moment before slowly sitting down and saying to Dali:

"No... I love every racehorse I've ever ridden, Orpheus, Zhenjiling, Dongshang, they all..."

"—But do you really love each and every one of them as much as that trainer Wada, etching their love into your very bones?" Dali interrupted Ikezoe with a smile, saying to Ikezoe, "There's still some resistance in your heart, isn't there?"

“I know your story and have witnessed your memories, Trainer Ikezoe. You don’t need to be bothered by this. It would be impossible for you to tell the story willingly without any fear or hesitation, given what you’ve been through.”

"As expected..." After a moment of silence, Chi Tian smiled bitterly and lowered his head, saying, "I really can't do it..."

“I am not like that lucky guy from Wada. He was able to encounter horse racing, which guided him for a lifetime, right out of the gate. From the first time he rode as a novice, he was able to love this industry and love horse racing... But I am not like him.”

"Was this also your arrangement, Three Goddesses? Was my lifelong encounter with those temperamental racehorses also your arrangement?"

“That’s not the case. It was actually your choice, wasn’t it?” Dali gently shook his head and said.

"You've gone further than trainer Wada because you weren't haunted by a single obsession, but in a way, that's also your shortcoming. You've never truly found a racehorse girl who truly understands you, and deep down, you still haven't achieved true unity and cooperation with them."

"When we created the racehorses of your world and the racehorse girls of this world, we gave them the greatest similarities. Besides their physique and speed, we also preserved their 'purity' to the greatest extent."

"They are always wholeheartedly and sincerely devoted to their trainers. Trainer Ikezoe, have you responded to their feelings and their complete devotion in the same way?"

As Dali spoke, she looked at Chi Tian, ​​who was now silent, and did not say anything further. She knew very well that Chi Tian still had a very long way to go before she could break free from the rigid mindset that had been ingrained for so many years.

This is not something that can be changed by any "miracle." The three goddesses can indeed create "miracles," but whether they can truly grasp those miracles depends entirely on their own awareness.

"Let's end our conversation here today, Trainer Ikezoe. You can come to me again if you wish."

"When you've figured all this out, when you've truly understood the genuine feelings between you and the racehorse girls, then come back to me."

Slowly, as the sound of "Dali" faded, Chi Tian felt a gentle repulsive force pushing his "soul" out of the world. He regained the feeling of his body and slowly opened his eyes.

"How long have I been here?"

"Not long, only two hours." Meanwhile, in another area, Wada sat on a bench, waiting for Chi Tian to wake up. Judging from Chi Tian's condition, he knew Chi Tian must have summoned the Three Goddesses. Overjoyed, Wada even bought a drink and smiled at Chi Tian:

"Ikezoe-kun, you should have figured it out by now, right? How about we celebrate? I bought you your favorite drink."

"..." However, to Wada's surprise, Ikezoe's expression didn't immediately brighten as he expected; instead, his brows furrowed even more deeply than before. Ikezoe silently picked up the drink Wada had bought for him, and after a long while, slowly put it down, saying softly:

"No... I... I'm not in the mood."

"...Don't worry about me, Wada. I just want to stay here for a while. I need to think about some things. I'll come out on my own once I've figured things out."

After saying that, Chi Tian silently walked in another direction with his hands in his pockets—he was going to buy some wine and cigarettes. He needed some time to carefully examine his heart regarding what the three goddesses had just told him. Deep down, he wondered if he truly loved those children he had once ridden, who had now become the same racehorse girls who both troubled and delighted him.

This is a problem... He feels he needs to think about it for a long time, and until he figures it out, he decides he won't see anyone. He must figure it out completely by himself.

However, watching Chi Tian's departing figure, Wada also looked at him with a rather worried gaze. He had not expected that the three goddesses would not only fail to help Chi Tian resolve his confusion, but would instead make him look even worse.

Could it be that the three goddesses treat each person differently? Is Ikezoe really the kind of person that both the horse racer and the horse racer girl dislike? At this moment, Wada was at a loss for what to do.

"Sigh... I'm leaving with the opera soon, why did it have to be now..."

Chapter 315: The Dejected Ikezoe

As time slowly passed, Treson Academy gradually transitioned from being bathed in sunlight to experiencing nightfall. At this moment, Jin Lang, facing the Dongshang Biange who had come to see him, frowned slightly and said:

"Ikezoe-kun has been locked in his room and hasn't come out for most of the day?"

"Yeah, Kenichi's acting really weird! No matter how I call him, he just answers 'It's nothing'! He doesn't give this witch any face at all!"

Dong Shang's current state of change is both angry and anxious. He's angry because he just found a trainer who can make his magic stronger, and so many things have happened in such a short time. Although it's easy for him not to train her, it shouldn't be at the expense of his trainer becoming decadent.

Of course, Chi Tian was also anxious. Although they hadn't known each other for long, Dong Shang was quite satisfied with Chi Tian's behavior. She was tolerant of her willfulness and would accept any request she made. Apart from the fact that she would only give her red bean paste, fruit, and jelly desserts like her father, Dong Shang was quite satisfied with Chi Tian. Ah, except that she didn't like her face a little, but she got used to it over time.

Seeing Chi Tian suddenly become so taciturn and withdrawn, she had always thought Chi Tian was the energetic and dynamic person she was dealing with. Losing someone who played with her and tolerated her whims made her feel very lonely. So, she took the initiative to find Jin Lang, hoping that this senior in the team could help Chi Tian at this time.

Faced with the words of Dongshang's reform, Ijinami, who had been busy all day preparing for the next game for the Golden Ship and doing mid-range training for Megumi McQueen's Autumn Emperor's Sho, frowned. During the day, Wada had already told him that Ikezoe's condition seemed to be very bad.

At the time, Jinlang didn't pay attention, thinking everyone needs time to be alone, so he indulged Chitian's behavior. But now, night has fallen, and Chitian still hasn't figured it out... Jinlang suddenly felt that things couldn't continue like this.

“I feel so sorry for him…” Megumi McQueen, standing next to Ichinō, said to Ichinō, “Trainer, I think we should go and help Trainer Ikezoe.”

“I was also confused at that time. This is the time when trainer Ikezoe needs everyone’s encouragement. Trainer, we should help him.”

"Yes, Tuona! Trainer Ikezoe and Master are the best partners! This can't go on!"

The East Sea Emperor also disliked this feeling of estrangement between them. After staying in Jinlang's team for a long time, he would unconsciously regard himself as the backbone of the team. Because Jinlang himself was also the backbone of the team, and as Jinlang's racehorse girl, he gradually picked up this temperament and always wanted to do something for the team.

Upon hearing this, Golden Ship nodded and said, "Leave the job of kicking down doors to me! There's no door that Lord Golden Ship can't kick down! What do you think, sir?"

“…Indeed, we can’t let Ikezoe-kun continue to be so dejected.”