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

"——Raging Waves?"

Behind the renowned general Nu Tao, He Tian, ​​who had sensed something was amiss after Nu Tao lost in second place and immediately followed him out of the arena, stepped forward to interrupt Nu Tao's emotions.

He was a little worried that this insecure racehorse girl might do something rash. After all, he had seen the hollowed-out tree hole in front of her before, and it was quite deep...

"Trainer..."

Nu Tao noticed He Tian's voice immediately. When he turned around subconsciously, he realized how disheveled he looked and quickly turned back to cover his face with his hands.

"Please, please don't look at me now, I beg you..."

"I don't want the trainer to see me looking so pathetic... so please... don't look at me like that now..."

The almost pleading tone came from Nu Tao's mouth, but the more she said it, the more He Tian felt that he couldn't leave. This child needed his guidance now. If he let her think wildly on her own, she might fall completely into the trap of self-pity.

To be honest, this was the first time Wada had encountered a situation where he had to comfort the racehorse after the race... After all, Wada used to ride good geisha horses, and even if they lost, good geisha horses wouldn't cause any trouble. Good-tempered racehorses were just that easy to manage.

Now that they've arrived in this world, it's not just the trainers who are frustrated after losing the race; the racehorse girls are reacting even more intensely. At this point, Wada has no time for self-reflection; the priority is to quickly calm down Raging Waves' emotions.

He Tian slowly walked to Nu Tao's side, silently pulling her shoulders so that she could face him directly.

At this moment, Nu Tao slowly lowered her hands, her red and swollen eyes looking up at He Tian with a dazed and confused expression. The next moment, she felt a warm hand touch her head.

"—This competition was my shortcoming, Raging Waves. I was too focused on the Emperor of the East Sea, and forgot about the threat of Megure McQueen."

Wada is really not good at comforting people, let alone comforting racehorse girls. However, he is extremely good at self-criticism and taking all the blame on himself. He did this a lot back in the day.

Who told him to be so incompetent back then? So he's gotten used to self-criticism. Right now, he's slightly modified one of his old self-criticism drafts to comfort Nutao.

"Nu Tao, my shortcomings caused your performance to falter. This time it was my fault, but I hope you can trust me again. I will definitely lead you to victory next time."

"—No, that's not it!"

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Nu Tao's eyes widened slightly, and he quickly shook his head, saying:

"Trainer, trainer is the best! You planned everything for me before the friendly match! The trainer didn't just tell me to keep an eye on Emperor, but also told me to pay attention to Megure McQueen. Megure McQueen is my biggest threat, that's what the trainer said!"

"I was on the field, and I was sticking to McQueen—but the Emperor's charge made me panic. It had nothing to do with the trainer!"

"It's my fault... I was too cowardly. I'm so timid, so useless. I... I'm a hopeless racehorse girl..."

As he spoke, tears welled up in Nu Tao's eyes again, making him look extremely pitiful. He Tian was at a loss for words. Accustomed to self-reflection, this was the first time he had encountered someone who took all the blame upon himself while he was reflecting on his own actions.

It can only be said that, due to his past experiences, Hotan appeared humble on the surface, but was inwardly insecure. However, the renowned general Nutao shared almost identical personality traits with Hotan, and was even more insecure than Hotan…

What should we do then? Perhaps Hotan should kneel before Nutao Tu here and let her give him all the blame this time?

However, the two remained deadlocked for a long time, neither taking the initiative to speak. After an unknown period of time, He Tian finally heard Nu Tao, head bowed, say in a muffled voice:

"Trainer... As expected... I'm still not qualified to be your designated racehorse girl..."

“I… am so useless… Trainer Wada, you should have better, stronger racehorse girls than me. Wasting your time on a hopeless racehorse like me…”

As he spoke, Nu Tao's hand trembled slightly as he took out a neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket, slowly unfolded it, and handed it to He Tian. It was the responsibility agreement they had signed in the student council.

"...Raging Waves?"

"I... I don't have the courage to break the contract, so please, trainer, do it..."

Nu Tao also deeply resented her own weakness, even wanting He Tian to take on the role of "the bad guy who broke the contract," but she truly lacked the courage to tear up the agreement.

If she were to tear up the agreement herself, she would be so heartbroken that she would want to hurt herself. Every day after the agreement, Nu Tao felt more fulfilled and joyful than ever before, and even though he was usually unlucky and reckless, nothing unfortunate happened to him.

This was the happiest time of her life, yet she let down the person she least wanted to let down.

"I was very happy during the time I spent with the trainer."

"I am so happy that you value me so much, even though I am a useless racehorse girl. I will never forget the time I spent with you."

Nu Tao bowed almost 90 degrees and presented the agreement to Hotan with both hands. Her tears still fell uncontrollably. The agreement in her hands seemed to be a sweet poison to her, so deadly yet unwilling to be given up.

However, when He Tian looked at the agreement that Nu Tao had presented to him, it was as if a culpable employee had voluntarily handed over his resignation. In addition to feeling a little sorry for Nu Tao, He Tian also felt a little...amused?

“…Nu Tao, you really are just like me in the past.”

"……well?"

Wada's seemingly nonsensical remark caused Nu Tao to pause slightly. Instead of helping Nu Tao up, Wada knelt down to a point where Nu Tao could see him even when bending over, maintaining eye contact, and softly chuckled:

"You remind me of my past self. Now I seem to understand a little better how ridiculous and pathetic I was in other people's eyes back then."

"Besides, I'm not as good-looking as you, Nutao. I was really a mess back then, and I didn't even have any advantages in terms of appearance."

"Trainer..."

However, Wada's teasing remark made Nutao's cheeks blush slightly. She didn't think she was that pretty... After all, almost all of the Uma Musume members were quite good-looking, at least the least attractive.

Nu Tao felt she had no advantages, and was even too overweight to run... Since elementary school, many girls had made fun of her developing breasts, which made her lack confidence in her appearance...

"However, I want to tell you that growth is a process. There are very few people who are born geniuses. Most people, like us, stumble and fall, and fail repeatedly. But I have always felt that failing repeatedly is an essential part of the journey."

He gently wiped away the tears around Nu Tao's eyes and smiled faintly:

“Nu Tao, I wasn’t always this good… although I’m not good now either.”

"I'm just a stumbling, mediocre, and useless trainer. I missed the promise I should never have missed, and I'm sorry to the person I should never have let down... because of my own mediocrity and incompetence."

"So this time, I have high hopes for you, Nutao. You not only represent yourself running on the field, but I also entrust you with all my fighting spirit, my struggle and my unwillingness to give up."

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Good Opera: Oh no, we've been robbed!

"Trainer...you don't need to comfort me like that..."

However, after a long while, Nu Tao's reaction was once again unexpected. It seemed that Nu Tao was also moved by He Tian's "sincere words," and a long-lost smile appeared on his face. Wiping away his tears, he said:

"The trainer is so young, he looks like he just graduated from university. He is not only one of the best trainers in the Central Training Corps, but also ranked third in the written test. If someone like you is not considered outstanding, then there are probably not many outstanding people in the whole world."

"..."

Well, Wada had forgotten that his face had become much younger after he time-traveled. When he was a newcomer, he was probably around this age, and that was his true level—not the current situation where he had the face of a college student but was a seasoned veteran who had already defeated almost two dozen GIs.

Honestly, if that were the case, it would be great. Wada wouldn't be so ashamed to face people at the opera house, having to be extremely humble and bowing when he receives honors—he wouldn't dare to be arrogant! He knows his own level; it's all thanks to good operas that he's been promoted. If he offends those seniors at the opera house, he'll be in deep trouble no matter where he goes.

However, as it turned out, even with his humility, Wada couldn't withstand people's malice. The two encirclements he faced back then taught him that in this world, one must rely on their own abilities to succeed.

Dignity is not something you beg for, but something you fight for. It's a pity that Hotan only understood this after he lost a great opera.

...Perhaps this is what Good Opera has always wanted to tell him? Wada suddenly understood why Good Opera bit him the last time they met.

I am truly a hopeless case.

"But, trainer, are you really willing to continue teaching me? I'm such a disappointing racehorse girl..." Nutao understood what Wada meant, and the initial gloom in her heart slowly dissipated, but she still said with great insecurity:

"I lost a race that I could have won because of my cowardice... Are you really still willing to continue teaching me? Such a useless racehorse girl."

"—Raging Waves, don't forget our goal. Our real opponent isn't McQueen, but fine opera."

Seeing that the angry waves seemed to have calmed down, Wada breathed a sigh of relief and said reassuringly:

"Mejiro McQueen is a formidable opponent, that's true, but Good Opera is an even stronger enemy in some ways than Mejiro McQueen. Moreover, I've already seen the entry list for the next Daily Cup. It's safe to say that apart from Good Opera and you, all the other Uma Musume contestants are just supporting characters."

"In other words, in the Daily Cup a month from now, it will only be a competition between you and Good Opera, without someone like the East Sea Emperor interfering with you today. Under these circumstances, do you think your chances of winning will increase?"

"I……"

Nu Tao opened her mouth, wanting to tell Wada that she was confident. But when she thought of her opponent being a better opera singer than Megure McQueen, and that even if she had the advantage, she could only win by half a horse's length at most... Nu Tao immediately deflated.

"We still have a lot to practice, Nutao, don't be discouraged."

Even though Nutao didn't answer, Hetian could tell that she understood she still had a long way to go before winning. Hetian gently stroked Nutao's head and said softly:

"This match was just practice for us. It would be great if we could win, but it wouldn't be a loss if we didn't. I originally planned to use this victory to give you confidence and make you more courageous, but now it seems that even without the victory, you know where the problem lies."

“There are many lessons to be learned from today’s race, Nutao. Today’s race teaches you how to run a race, but in the next month, I will teach you how to win races.”

"How do you win... isn't it just about finishing in first place?" Nu Tao was a little confused. She had never thought about how to win a race. Isn't a race about the horses' strength, performance, and luck? What other factors are there?

In fact, Ryutō's idea is the same misconception that most of the new generation of female racehorses have, even those like Golden Master and Mejiro McQueen—and that is the role of a trainer.

A racehorse girl has her own strengths and weaknesses. Simply relying on her physical strength to compete, even if she wins, is nothing more than brute force. Most racehorse girls cannot train their bodies to the maximum level before debuting. Instead, they should cultivate their strengths within an effective range.

How to win a race is a major challenge for trainers – how to maximize the strengths and advantages of racehorses while avoiding their weaknesses, in order to win a race.

"Okay, let's go back, alright?"

"Hmm..." Nu Tao's doubts were resolved, and his worries and gloom vanished at that moment, a smile reappearing on his face.

But just as Hetian was about to take Nutao back, Nutao suddenly took a step forward and carefully grabbed Hetian's sleeve.

"Um... trainer... I have a request..."

"Can I... hug you?"

As soon as Nu Tao uttered these words, she received a subtle glance from He Tian. Nu Tao's pretty face flushed crimson, like boiling water, and she nervously rubbed her fingers together, cautiously saying:

"I... I'm very timid and easily frightened, so I want to work on building my courage so that next time I won't be scared by my classmate, the Emperor, like I was today..."

"And, moreover, I also want to thank you for guiding me and encouraging me so much, but I can't give you anything in return, so, a hug... a hug should still be okay, right?"

As he spoke, Nu Tao began to ramble incoherently, while He Tian remained silent, which increased Nu Tao's psychological pressure. Even the single hair sticking up on his head was swaying wildly like a bamboo dragonfly, causing Nu Tao's ponytail to swing back and forth incessantly.

"Well, maybe we should just forget about it!"

"...I don't mind."

However, Wada's silence seemed to be broken just as Nutao was about to give up. Wada glanced around to make sure no one was nearby, then hesitantly opened his arms and gently said to Nutao:

"However, let's not let others see us. After all, we are trainer and racehorse girl, or more accurately, teacher and student. If someone takes a picture of us, I'll be embarrassed."

"Yes, yes." Nu Tao nodded belatedly. Obviously, what He Tian didn't know was that at Treson Academy, there were actually many cases of trainers marrying racehorse girls. In this almost closed environment, a mentor who wholeheartedly supports him and a racehorse girl who is just beginning to experience love can spend three years together, and anything is possible.

Therefore, it is not uncommon for trainers to have ambiguous relationships with their assigned racehorse girls at Tresen Academy. If it weren't for the fact that both trainers and racehorse girls retired and got married after their journeys ended, resulting in a shortage of teaching staff at Tresen Academy, the academy would not have strictly prohibited trainers from dating their racehorse girls.

Of course, that wasn't all Wada was worried about. His main concern was Nutao's physique...it was just too formidable. Wada wasn't the type of man who remained completely unmoved; he was worried that if Nutao hugged him, he might somehow bend over...

Calm down, Hotan. You're an excellent trainer. Take it easy. Think of this kid as your student and your mentor, and there's no problem... But it seems like there's an even bigger problem.

"Then, then, I want a hug."

Having received permission, Nu Tao cautiously spread his arms. As expected, the enormous "human heart" gave He Tian an extremely strong impact. He felt a soft and delicate body fall into his arms, as if he were hugging a cotton candy.

This scene made TM Opera King, who had been following Hetian and hiding in the shadows, unwilling to show his face or reveal his name, somewhat restless.

"This is really... both sweet and heartbreaking."

At this moment, Hao Geju, who had secretly followed because he was worried about Hetian and Nutao's condition, was so overwhelmed by what he saw that he didn't even have the energy to act like a teenager anymore.