Umamusume's days are numbered

Platinum had initially thought she wouldn't be able to figure out which way the midday shadow was pointing, but the shadow of the three goddess statues pointed straight out of the school gate.

Just outside the school gates is a bustling commercial street.

Bai Jin took a deep breath and stepped out of the school gate.

This was the first time she had left the school gates since entering Treson Academy. This time, she didn't tell anyone and planned to go alone.

After all... the security here is pretty good, so it's not like there can be kidnappings or robberies happening on the street, right?

With a hesitant heart, Platinum walked step by step down the shopping street.

How long would it take to find it...? It only says to follow the direction of the shadow, but it doesn't say how long. If I can't find it, am I supposed to walk all the way around the world and come back?

However, such concerns did not materialize.

Bai Jin walked through several blocks, somewhat disoriented. She looked around, but an advertising sign caught her attention.

It was a live band poster, pasted on a billboard, featuring several smiling girls. In Tokyo, there are many such live houses, scattered across the map, providing fertile ground for various rock and folk bands to thrive.

Platinum didn't suddenly want to see a band perform, nor was it because the girl on the poster was pretty. Judging from the time on the poster, the show had already ended. And the girl, who occupied almost half of the poster, was pointing to one side, and perhaps coincidentally, bright red lettering was printed above her arm.

【GO AHEAD】

Is it an illusion, or a coincidence?

Platinum frowned and stood there pondering for a while. Normally, Platinum wouldn't even glance at the poster... but because of yesterday's experience, she was a little paranoid today.

And it happened precisely when I was lost and disoriented...

For some reason, Bai Jin recalled the fortune teller from yesterday. Those cold fingers guided her to follow. She felt like a puppet on a string in the hands of the Weaver Girl.

Platinum shivered and followed the direction indicated by the poster.

Whether Platinum was simply being overly sensitive or something was genuinely guiding her, she noticed many more things:

On the pedestrian bridge suspended in the air, an IKEA advertisement hangs, with the words "WELCOME" printed in white artistic lettering.

As I reached the street corner, unsure of which way to go, a moving company truck sped past me. The truck bed had "FOLLOW ME" printed on it, and before I could even follow it immediately, I noticed "Go fast!!!" printed on the back of the truck bed.

After following the truck for a street, it stopped again—the truck turned right, but the lane marked for horse girls on the road didn't have a right-turn arrow, only a few traces of a straight-ahead arrow and a right-turn arrow. And looking up, there was a height restriction sign hanging overhead, with the word "STOP" printed in black on the orange metal sign.

The further Platinum went, the more overwhelming terror enveloped her. It was as if she had unknowingly become a character controlled by someone else in a game. Platinum remembered a cruel game she played as a child—picking an ant out of its colony and then repeatedly blocking its path back with her palm. The ant would crawl on her hand, but it was all in vain, because she knew it would never succeed unless she let go.

Platinum is now like that ant. She is being manipulated at will, crawling on someone else's palm, guided to where that person wants her to go. She will never leave until that person is satisfied.

Although she was surrounded by people, Platinum felt as if she were in a different world from them.

Just when Platinum's nerves were getting more and more tense and she was about to give up, she finally saw the finish line.

The elegant cross-shaped streetlights stand on either side of the shop entrance. This is a coffee shop, and located in such a bustling downtown area with such exquisite decor, it looks like the kind of place to take photos.

It's the kind of place where you can always see people posting pictures online.

【Red Strings】

This is the name of the coffee shop.

Bai Jin took a deep breath and pushed open the door. Sitting behind the counter was a foreigner with jet-black hair and emerald-green eyes, like a Persian cat—a handsome man with exotic charm.

Platinum walked up to the handsome man and suddenly held up three fingers!

The handsome man in front of the counter glanced at the platinum, then at the three fingers, shrugged, pointed to the side, and said in fluent Japanese, "Table number three is over there."

It still has a Hokkaido accent.

Platinum shrank back and slunk off to table number three. It seemed this wasn't the anchor he was looking for.

He flipped through the menu, which he couldn't understand a single word of, randomly pointed to a cup of coffee, and holding the coffee, Platinum let out a slow sigh.

Since we've come this far... let's wait here.

They waited for an entire afternoon.

An entire afternoon, a cup of coffee, and a whole table. Even if someone with a thick skin couldn't handle that, let alone someone with a thin one.

Platinum was simply restless. Every time the boss's gaze swept over, Platinum wished he could crawl under the table.

I waited patiently all afternoon, but nothing happened. No guests sat next to me, no one suddenly handed me an invitation, and no one even struck up a conversation—the environment here was quite nice, though.

It seems this was just a prank.

Thinking this, Platinum felt somewhat disappointed, but also somewhat relieved.

"Let's just go like this"—just as she was thinking this and stood up to go back to her dorm for a good night's sleep, the shop door opened.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, the visitor walked towards Platinum with a clear purpose.

Platinum's heart was pounding.

No way...

it turns out···

The newcomer sat down directly opposite Platinum, smoothed her hair, and opened the menu in front of her.

"Same as always, a cup of black tea—and one for the little one across from me too." The visitor frowned as he looked at the coffee in Platinum's cup. "To cultivate her taste."

After saying this, the visitor tapped her slender fingers, comfortably crossed her legs, and then looked up at Bai Jin, speaking to herself:

"So, would you mind sharing a table?"

Platinum took a deep breath and sat down opposite the guest.

"Of course I don't mind, Alice."

Episode 53: Is coffee fully sweetened or half-sweetened?

Eliseko, the extremely famous phantom racehorse.

Just like her name suggests, she swiftly navigated the field, charging towards the competition like a mountain climber, achieving four consecutive victories in four matches, and ultimately reaching the G1 event, the Satsuki Sho, where she won the championship.

Just when everyone thought a new legend was rising and another undefeated triple crown horse girl was about to emerge, Airi Soko, true to her name, abruptly retired from the race. Her entire professional career consisted of only four races.

Amidst the lamentations, only sporadic news emerged that Airi Soko was suffering from illness. Perhaps this was the reason for her withdrawal from the competition.

However, after retiring from the competition, Alice didn't disappear completely. She found another track. It's said that there's now a dedicated laboratory for her at Treson Academy, and the drugs she developed have already gone into production.

And this is Alice, sitting right across from Platinum. She's sitting with her legs crossed, watching Platinum with great interest, her crimson eyes scrutinizing the menu in her hand.

To be honest, Alice's fashion sense is really bad. She's wearing a beige wool sweater on top and jeans on the bottom—a completely mismatched combination. But even a burlap sack looks good on a pretty person, and Alice still looks quite elegant.

Platinum took a deep breath: "Of course I don't mind, Alice."

Alice shrugged noncommittally: "Please sit down, Platinum."

"You know me?" Platinum's heart pounded.

If Eliseko really came for me, does she also know information about the anchor point, the riddle, and the fortune teller?

Could I get this information out of her?

"Ah...it would be quite difficult not to know you." Thinking of her roommate, Alice didn't elaborate.

While waiting for the black tea to arrive, Alice gently picked up a sugar cube with tweezers and held it up to her eyes, her gaze unreadable, as if she were looking at the sugar cube in front of her or the platinum on the other side.

"So, what do you want from me?"

"You're quite well-informed to have found out which coffee shop I frequent."

White King Kong was about to say something when Alice raised her hand to interrupt him.

"Don't rush to refute me. I arrived three hours ago."

"But then I saw a guy I'd never met before sitting in my usual spot... What a headache."

"Partly because I didn't want to share a table, and partly because I was worried they weren't coming to see me, I sat by the window in the Starbucks across the street for a while... Damn, Starbucks coffee is really awful."

"As a result, I sat in Starbucks for three hours, while you stayed in Red String Cafe for three hours... You really have quite the perseverance."

With a flick of her wrist, Alice's tweezers held a sugar cube that fell straight into the cup Platinum had been using, making a crisp sound.

“I was thinking, since you’ve already found out I was coming here and have been waiting for so long, it doesn’t seem like you’re going to give up so easily—in that case, let’s meet.”

Platinum swallowed back what she was about to say, feeling a chill run down her spine.

The fortune teller's guidance did indeed lead me to meet Alice. However, it wasn't what I had imagined.

Alice was completely unaware of this. She couldn't provide herself with any useful information.

So—how should I put it?

She said she was told by a fortune teller to come here to find you, and that you could help her cure her illness.

Wait... treating illness?

As mentioned before, Alice, as a horse racing girl, is known as the Phantom Horse Racing Girl.

Another interpretation of this title is: although it's a pity, the possibility of dominating the arena only exists in other timelines.

Airi Soko only ran four races, including only one G1 race. As a horse racing girl, many others have achieved more glory than her.

But—she has another identity.

A mad scientist from the Uma Musume Pretty Derby world... at least that's how Platinum interprets it.

Even when Alice was still serving in the academy, she spent all her time tinkering with strange and unusual potions. Every time she came up with a new potion, it would cause a bloodbath at the academy.

That being said, none of the people who took Elizabeth's medicine ended up experiencing any serious side effects.

On the contrary, some of them, after being improved, actually partnered with pharmaceutical companies to start sales.

And what extent can Elisako's medicine achieve? It can make the person who drinks it race against a racehorse, and it can also make people glow, and so on.

It's suddenly turned into a Doraemon movie set, it's so dreamy.

And soul dissolution syndrome, as an incurable disease... isn't it only Doraemon who can cure it?

With that thought in mind, Platinum's gaze toward Alice immediately became intense.

The fortune teller hadn't lied to him. She had indeed shown him the right path!

This is much more reliable than hoping for a system to unlock a level 2 shop!

Help me, Hayate A-Meng!

Alice immediately noticed Platinum's longing gaze and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Let me make this clear first, Aili Digital is indeed my roommate, but we are not related by blood, we just happen to have the same surname. I can't persuade Aili Digital to change my mind."

"Besides, Aili Digital is my roommate, while you and I are meeting for the first time. It's obvious which one is more important. I will definitely side with Aili Digital."

"So you want to get those photos back, or you want Aili Digital to stop spreading those nonsense, sorry, I can't do that."

Platinum was stunned: "What AILI Digital? What photos?"

Alice was also stunned: "Huh? You didn't know?"

The two looked at each other.

“…Oops.” Alice stuck out her tongue and tapped her head. “Just pretend I didn’t say anything.”

Sorry, Aili Digital.

In short, after silently apologizing to Ali Digital, Ali Suko threw her last bit of guilt to the winds.

"No...explain yourself...never mind, now is not the time to talk about this." Bai Jingang wanted to ask more questions, but then realized that it was not important to him at the moment.

"Alice...do you...have medicine there?" Platinum swallowed nervously.

Damn, that sounds weird coming from somewhere. It's like we've suddenly switched to a different movie set!

"Oh, so that's what it was about."

Unexpectedly, Alice seemed to have heard something uninteresting, and suddenly lost interest, leaning back in her chair.

"I thought it was something else... Yes, of course it is. So, is it for your own trainer?"

"I can't believe it. You've only been here a week and you're already making your move." Alice clicked her tongue in admiration. "You're a force to be reckoned with, a force to be reckoned with. But let me tell you, be sure to take proper precautions, protect yourself and protect your trainer."

"...What did you say? Why are you giving the trainer drugs?" Platinum looked completely bewildered.

"...If you don't give it to the trainers, are you going to feed it to yourself?" Alice looked bewildered.