Umamusume's days are numbered

Only the senior from Manhattan Coffee has ever been able to stop Allyanoko's various misdeeds. She can be said to be Allyanoko's nemesis.

No one knew what had gotten into Alice, causing her to appear like this. However, Yamato Akaki believed that the Alice he knew wasn't faking it; it was just that something was off about her today.

As for Platinum... the victim is of course innocent, not to mention it's just a lamb that's only been here for a week.

At times like these, Manhattan Coffee is the perfect way to correct such adults!

However, faced with such words, Alice just stared blankly at Yamato Akari.

"Then tell them. And while you're at it, also ask them how the last batch of experimental samples fared."

"If possible, have her bring some compressed biscuits over as well. The lab is running out of food."

Yamato Akaki felt as if he were facing a mudfish, and for a moment he was speechless.

"Alright." Seeing that she had finally calmed Yamato Akaki down, Alice stretched her shoulders and put on her yellowish white lab coat. "We should get started now."

As she said this, Alice made no attempt to hide her greedy gaze, her scarlet eyes scanning Platinum's body back and forth.

...How beautiful! What kind of Creator could have created such a body?

I almost wanted to dissect it inch by inch, to see the structure of every muscle, every adhesion of fascia, the pulsation of every blood vessel...

It's so beautiful that you'd want to make it into a specimen and keep it by your bedside to admire it every moment.

Platinum couldn't help but gasp, feeling as if he had become Alice's guinea pig.

...Damn, did she refer to herself as the new guinea pig back then?

Now they've fallen into the tiger's den.

As for Alice's gaze, it had a different meaning in Yamato Akaki's eyes.

"Alright, let's begin." Platinum resigned herself to her fate. She had risked everything to persuade Alice, and although she was a little scared, she couldn't back down now. "What should I do?"

Alice looked at Platinum: "Take it off."

"...No, what?"

"Take it off."

"...Could we not take them off?" Bai Jin looked hesitant. This was the first time she had ever taken her clothes off in front of others since transmigrating.

"Are you kidding me?" Alice retorted. For a thorough medical diagnosis, clothes, being in the way, were obviously out of the question.

Although a full physical examination at the hospital would be more effective, Alice agreed to keep Platinum's secret, and she was also eager to get firsthand information.

Unable to persuade Alice, Platinum could only sigh, "Alright."

Yamato Akaki listened to the conversation between the two and felt as if her soul had transcended. She stared blankly as Alice pushed Platinum into the inner room.

"Oh, right." Alice turned to look at Yamato Akaki, "Want to come over, Akaki?"

"This is a rare opportunity."

...What kind of invitation is this? Is Alice trying to take advantage of me?

Yamato Akaki felt a chill run down his spine and rushed outside, locking the door behind him.

Alice scratched her head, ignoring her. There were more important things to do now.

As for what happened next, Yamato Akamai led Rudolf into the laboratory as a symbolic counter-terrorism operation to subdue the bewildered Alice, that's another story.

Episode 60 The Cause of the Disease

"You're not deliberately getting revenge on me, are you?" Platinum's arm trembled slightly.

“I admit my acupuncture technique is a bit poor, but I haven’t had any systematic training. I feel I deserve a reward for having the courage to give you acupuncture.” Alice nodded seriously, watching the blood slowly being poured into the vacuum tube.

"You..." Bai Jin almost cursed, "You haven't learned how to do this and you still tried to stab me? No wonder you stuck three needles in there!"

"I succeeded on my third try! My hands are pretty steady, maybe I'd be good at being a doctor." Alice was smug.

Holding the cotton swab, watching Alice remove the needle, Platinum couldn't help but remind her, "Be careful, this disease is contagious."

"Didn't you say that taking the medicine in the first stage would prevent infection?" Alice looked at the dark red blood in the vacuum tube and nodded in satisfaction. "It's too late for you to tell me now. If you were going to get infected, you would have already."

Hearing Alice's words, Platinum couldn't help but droop her ears in frustration: "Now I feel like I was really out of my mind to agree to Rudolf's symbol."

"If you feel guilty, just think of yourself as a minor who has no right to exercise power. Rudolph symbolizes that she tricked and abducted you, and she will bear all the consequences. Doesn't that make you feel better?"

"That's how you comfort me?"

"Alright, we've basically completed all the necessary examinations..." Alice pulled up a chair and placed it opposite the sofa, straddling it with her arms draped over the back of the chair.

"My place is small, so I can only do a rough check of some basic things. I'll talk to my friend later and ask him to go to the University of Tokyo this weekend for a full check-up at the medical school there."

"Don't worry, I'll make arrangements in advance, and I'll go with you. Your information won't leak out at all."

"Also, give me a few of your pills. I'll contact the research institute to do some characterization."

"This is really interesting. When did the Americans develop this kind of drug...? I had no idea..."

Alice smiled sinisterly, her eyes narrowed.

"Now, let's get back to the main point. Although it's just a preliminary examination, I can give you a basic hypothesis."

"First of all, you need to calm down, because everything I'm about to say may shatter your common sense."

Alice stretched out her long white coat sleeves, letting them hang to the ground, and rested her head on the back of the chair.

"Go ahead and tell me, what haven't I seen?" Platinum curled her lip.

“If you ask me, the cause of your illness isn’t in your body.” Alice extended a sleeve and pointed to Platinum’s head. “It’s here.”

"...My ears?"

“S—O—U—L—” Alice enunciated each word carefully, “soul, your soul, do you understand?”

"Your body is very healthy, very healthy, as healthy as freshly baked pork, the kind that has just been stamped with a quality inspection certificate."

“I really can’t think of any other cause. Your description of the symptoms at each stage of the soul dissolution syndrome further confirms my point of view.”

The first stage involves coughing up blood, occasional fainting, and vomiting, but these are all complications.

In the second stage, the five senses become disordered, making it impossible to receive various information normally. The senses are normal, but they cannot be used.

The third stage is when one becomes a complete vegetable, lying in bed, with even their brain no longer under their control.

Up to this point, the dangers of the soul dissolution syndrome have been fully manifested. However—all the symptoms are primarily characterized by disturbing and confusing perceptions, without any direct physical effects.

Do you see? All the symptoms seem to be caused by the erosion and damage of something more fundamental.

Dig deeper and deeper, what exactly is hidden inside?

Alice Soko offered a hypothesis.

The soul. It is not the body that is infected, but the soul that is corrupted.

At this point, Alice paused deliberately, giving Platinum some time to process her thoughts. Platinum, however, looked at her calmly.

"Your body is very healthy, very healthy, it's almost like..."

Platinum reached out to stop Alice: "I heard you clearly, you don't need to repeat yourself."

"Aren't you a little surprised? After all, my first assumption already stepped into the realm of metaphysics."

"The existence of the horse girl and the three goddesses is already quite mystical, isn't it?"

Not to mention the ghost lingering around Manhattan Cafe, Fukuro Okabe's fortune telling, and the younger sister that Orihime keeps dreaming about...

In short, don't speak, just feel with your heart.

Before arriving at Alice's place, Platinum was prepared for Alice to say something surprising. After all, she had undergone medical checkups, and the results were all normal. To be honest, she came to Alice's place initially because of her belief in metaphysics.

“Uh, um.” Alice stared blankly at Platinum. “Then I’ll continue.”

"That's why I asked you for those pills—if the illness is truly caused by damage to the soul, then the mystery surrounding its transmission method can be solved... This disease isn't transmitted through droplets or bodily fluids, but through a more fundamental way..."

“But a deeper question arises.” A hint of doubt appeared on Alice’s face. “That is, those suppressive drugs you have. How… exactly do they suppress damage to the soul?”

"This doesn't make sense... No, this is actually a good thing."

"This means that at least we don't have to search for clues like headless flies anymore. Maybe we can discover some secrets from the medicine you're taking."

Alice didn't ask where Platinum got the disease, nor how many people had it, nor where the mature inhibitor came from.

Even if you ask Platinum, she won't tell you. She'll tell you herself when you can't hide it anymore.

This is precisely why Platinum chose to tell Elisako about the illness instead of Rudolf Symbol—if it were Rudolf Symbol, he would have kept asking questions.

As for Alice, she doesn't really care what Platinum is like. She fully respects Platinum's own wishes; if you want to die, that's fine with you, but Alice would suggest that Platinum run to his death.

Alice was interested in Platinum's alluring body... or more accurately, her legs. Alice was interested in what limits Platinum could reach. If Alice really couldn't cure Platinum, she might still trick him into completing the first three-year phase.

Although it was somewhat despicable, it was a legitimate transaction. Platinum, likewise, paid no heed to Alice's advances; the two of them were simply whipping each other to run faster.

Episode 61 The Gift of a Divine Steed

As expected, Alice quickly changed the subject.

"In short, we have to wait for more test results before we can make any decisions. All my hypotheses are just hypotheses, and we cannot act rashly until we have strong evidence."

"Now, I have something more important to tell you."

Alice stood up, patted her white coat, pulled over a whiteboard, and lifted the cap off a marker.

As Alice continued talking to herself, Shirogane broke out in a cold sweat.

Do I have a choice?

Moreover, Platinum really wanted to hear Alice's theory.

You should know that Alice is someone who can explore and develop her legs to their fullest potential.

The Yayoi Prize I'm about to face is a prelude to the Satsuki Prize. Although it's a Game 2 match, it's no less intense than Game 1. If I want to win, I'll have to work hard from multiple angles.

Based on her previous experience running alongside the East Sea Emperor... she's alright on the straights, but she'll definitely be left far behind on the curves. The East Sea Emperor is the pinnacle of their generation, and the fact that Platinum can go toe-to-toe with the pinnacle of her generation already speaks volumes about her strength... but what she wants is first place.

If the Emperor of the East Sea also participates in the Yayoi Sho, will I have to reopen it?

Alice pulled over the whiteboard with satisfaction, turned around and asked Platinum, "Do you know who is currently recognized as the strongest female racehorse in the world?"

Platinum stroked her chin and thought for a moment: "Solar eclipse?"

“…Well, what you said isn’t wrong.” Alice was taken aback. “But setting aside ancient relics like the Eclipse, which are hundreds of years old, the world’s most recognized racehorse girl right now is that secretariat.”

The Secretariat, the queen of American horse racing, stands at the pinnacle of all horse racing with undeniable and dazzling achievements. Compared to her, Rudolph Symbol is merely a beginner.

A true legend in horse racing. Reigning supreme in the American horse racing world with an unbreakable record, it looms over everyone's hearts like a never-ending storm.

It is said that the veterinarian who delivered the newborn foal was so amazed by the foal in its swaddling clothes that he said, "She is the most perfect foal I have ever delivered, and she will definitely change the history of the entire American horse racing industry in the future."

The trainer at the Secretariat was also captivated by her perfect physique when he first saw her. Later, in a book written by her trainer, the Secretariat was described as "the pinnacle of racehorse girl evolution from ancient times to the present, a truly perfect body."

This is one of the greatest female racehorses in history, truly praised by everyone.

"As for those unclear and ambiguous rumors, there are even more." Alice spoke slowly, her eyes filled with intense light, as if she were both longing and obsessed.

"It is said that the secretariat's bones are harder than steel and can lift a car weighing a ton."

"It is said that the Secretariat has an exceptionally large lung capacity. The maximum underwater breath-holding time for a trained human is 24 minutes and 3 seconds, but the Secretariat can hold their breath for more than 30 minutes."

"It is said that the Secretariat's stamina is inexhaustible. She once swam across the English Channel from England to France."

"There are even rumors that the Secretariat has two hearts, and that people around her can hear the sound of blood rushing through her body when she runs at high speed."

Ah this.

Oh, this.

Platinum was truly stunned. She hadn't been this surprised when Alice said the cause of the illness lay in the soul.

"No... are you sure this is Uma Musume? This looks like Captain America."

This isn't even on the same timeline, family. Listening to the description, I thought the Secretariat had come from a fighting manga.

Alice shrugged: "I already said it's just a rumor."

"But recently, the secretariat's detailed physical information was declassified, so I used my connections and spent a fortune to buy it back from the American Equestrian Association."