Umamusume's days are numbered

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After changing his clothes and walking out of the racetrack gate, Bai Jin saw Li Yuelongmen, leaning on a cane, limping towards him.

"Waaaaah... Platinum, you did a great job, Platinum!"

"Give Golden Spear Sixty a good beating! Seeing her get thrashed makes me happier than winning the championship..."

Carp leaps over the dragon gate and throws itself headfirst into Platinum's arms, wiping its tears and snot all over Platinum's newly changed clothes.

"Uh···"

Bai Jin really wanted to step back and push away the carp leaping over the dragon gate, but she was holding on tightly, and she was a patient who had just been taken away by an ambulance, so she could only awkwardly wave her hands in the air.

"You brat, I'm still following behind you." Golden Spear Sixty sighed, his brows furrowed. Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate buried her head in Platinum's arms, not forgetting to free one hand to give Golden Spear Sixty the middle finger behind her. It seems the way these sisters get along isn't going to change anytime soon.

"How's your injury?" Platinum could only ask awkwardly.

"It's just a common fracture, not a big problem. It will heal completely after a period of rest." Carp Leaps Over the Dragon Gate released Platinum, took two steps back with his crutches, and wiggled his left leg, which was in a cast. "It's a pity I couldn't see your winner's stage in person... but I made it to the celebration banquet."

"It's good that you're alright." Hai Du patted Koi Leaping Over the Dragon Gate gently on the shoulder, offering no further comfort. Injuries and fractures are commonplace for racehorse girls; few can retire with a perfectly healthy body. These are things one must become familiar with; it's part of a racehorse girl's career.

For example... that one over there, even after retiring, is still accumulating injuries. Hai Du glanced at the con artist. The con artist stood a few meters away, neither interrupting their conversation nor leaving the group, just standing there at a distance. She stood on tiptoe, occasionally twisting her ankle.

Haidu City knew that it must be a sign that the swindler was injured.

“Ah Li, since you’re injured, don’t go to Japan yet. Wait until you’ve recovered in Hong Kong before going back. Anyway, you haven’t even debuted yet…” Jin Qiang Liuyi grabbed Zhao Ye Yu Shi Zi, who was passing by, and said to Li Yue Long Men.

Halfway through her speech, Jinqiang Liushi's voice grew softer and softer. Finally, at the end, she reluctantly murmured, opening her mouth to squeeze out a few words: "...Okay?"

The tone is no longer one of command, but rather one of negotiation.

Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate, who had been frowning, was momentarily speechless upon hearing Golden Spear Sixty's words. She turned her head away from Golden Spear Sixty and remained silent for a long time before gently nodding: "...Hmm."

It seems that the way these sisters get along hasn't changed, even if only slightly.

Only the Jade Lion, its body stiff as a stick, was left speechless, both amused and exasperated.

What does it have to do with me if you two sisters are flirting?

Let me go!

The girls from the Shaanxi provincial team whispered among themselves as they looked at the Jade Lion.

"As expected, it has to be Sister Yuzi, she's incredibly popular with women."

"Easily beat the British horse in the Mongolian Derby, and easily beat the Hong Kong horse in the Special Race. Our Shaanxi horse is just amazing."

"What would happen if I took a picture and sent it to Joey? I feel like something really exciting would happen."

Seeing the Jade Lion of the Night crookedly being held in the arms of Golden Spear Sixty, Platinum bowed to her in her heart, thinking, "Thank you for diverting my attention." She bent down, wanting to sneak away from Golden Spear Sixty's sight, but Golden Spear Sixty grabbed her with his other hand and pulled her over. Now Platinum was also in Golden Spear Sixty's arms.

"Why are you running? There's a victory celebration banquet coming up later."

Hiding behind the crowd, the little girl with long emerald green hair glanced at Golden Spear Sixty, then at Platinum and Jade Lion, let out a sigh, and shrank back into the crowd.

Jianghe Risheng originally wanted to apologize to Zhaoye Yushizi for the elbow strike during the match, but he couldn't find an opportunity. Now he's surrounded by Baijin and Jinqiang Liushi.

Jinqiang Liushi was a terrifying person. Even when Jianghe Risheng was at the end of the line at the end of the competition, you could still feel the air vibrating from her.

Platinum is even more terrifying! Jiang He Risheng still trembles when he thinks about it. His eyes and footwork on the field were like he wanted to devour people.

Jiang He Risheng didn't want to be eaten; she wanted to go back to Ireland.

Let's sneak away...

The emerald green-clad girl turned around, intending to leave quietly without saying goodbye, but when she turned her head, she saw the plump, youthful memory standing in front of her.

The name "Youthful Memories" doesn't fit her at all; she's anything but youthful, yet it certainly evokes memories that linger. Compared to someone like Jiang He Risheng, who seems to never fully mature, she looks more like a European or American—developing maturely at a young age.

"Hey everyone!" the youthful memories called out, "We've found Jianghe Risheng! Everyone's here!"

Episode 123 A Bowl of Borscht

Platinum fiddled with the spoon in front of her, unsure of where to start eating.

The original plan was to hold a victory celebration banquet. Platinum thought that Golden Gun Sixty would lead everyone to the villa and have a dinner party like before—but she took the group directly to the Queen Hotel.

"Classic Russian food, guaranteed to satisfy your appetite," Jinqiang Liushi said enthusiastically to Baijin, and even Liyuelongmen nodded repeatedly.

Platinum now understood what they were thinking. There were practically no local racehorse girls present; those like Jiang He Ri Sheng and Qing Se Yi Hui had flown in from Ireland and Australia. Platinum's passport listed her as Polish, and while Hai Du Shi was practically a Hong Konger, she had spent far more time in Europe than in Hong Kong.

Based on the population distribution of the local area, it is indeed not suitable to set up a table of Chinese dishes.

Jinqiang Liushi probably also wanted to cater to him – since he's Polish, he should be very familiar with Russian cuisine.

But she compounded her mistakes. Forget Russian food, she'd never even tried platinum-style Western food before. When given cutlery, she insisted on having two forks instead of using them as chopsticks.

Big crisis!

Looking at the borscht in front of him, Bai Jin hesitated, but when he saw the gleaming gold price on the menu, he fell silent.

As long as you have money, that's all that matters.

One spoonful in, and all you taste is the flavor of well-cooked beef and tomato. The flavor is so strong that Platinum's tongue can't taste anything else.

There were also a few snails on the plate, I don't know what they're called. There was also a pasta dish and a steak, basically just whatever I ordered.

The borscht was alright; I could use the spoon myself. But when I saw the pasta, I really couldn't resist trying to twirl it with chopsticks, and the steak was something I couldn't even imagine eating without chopsticks.

send!

Platinum looked around furtively, trying to find others who had experienced the same thing.

Jianghe Risheng, this pure Irish girl, looks so well-maintained with her delicate skin, she must come from a good family. She eats lightly and elegantly, in accordance with etiquette. Qingse Huiyi, although she has a rather fiery temper when running, actually behaves quite well at the table.

Not to mention the others, even Alice and Alice Digital seemed quite adept at using cutlery, showing no signs of hesitation.

Thinking about it, it makes sense. Both Alisako and Alisako were top-tier racehorse girls when they were active, and Alisako had even gone on many overseas expeditions, so they were very familiar with this situation.

Only Platinum, with its foreign-looking face, actually has a native-born red heart.

The snails glowed a faint green light, and Platinum dared not touch them. As for the steak, the only way to eat it was probably to follow Oguri Hat's example and eat the whole plate, but there was no other way. So, with tears in her eyes, she could only drink the borscht spoonful by spoonful and eat some pasta.

Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate noticed that Bai Jin had a poor appetite and assumed that the food was not what she remembered as Russian cuisine. So she gently comforted her, secretly reaching her left hand to Bai Jin's side of the table and patting her knee: "It's normal if you don't like it. The Russian food here came from Shanghai, and the flavors have changed countless times over."

"No... I just..." Platinum said with a bitter face, thinking to herself that she couldn't very well say that she was actually hesitating about whether or not to ask for a pair of chopsticks, could she?

Looking at Bai Jin's profile, Li Yuelongmen lowered his head slightly, turning his gaze to the bowl in front of him. But the hand that had been touching Bai Jin's knee unconsciously moved upwards, finally quietly grasping Bai Jin's fingers.

Platinum glanced at Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate in surprise. But she found that Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate was turning its head away, trying not to look at her, but its ears were already bright red.

After thinking it over, Bai Jin still didn't break free. The allure in her heart was one thing, but mainly, if her hand wasn't at the Dragon Leap, she'd have to hold the fork on the table; so she decided to leave her hand there.

"Platinum, I..." Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate stammered.

At the dining table, their fingers touched. Although it was a celebratory dinner together, this small gesture was known only to the two of them; it was a secret shared between them.

Platinum's heart raced, and she involuntarily began to let her mind wander.

The fingers of a carp leaping over the dragon gate are longer and more slender than mine, with distinct knuckles, and feel like the finest porcelain. It is said that people who have practiced piano all have fingers like this.

Bai Jin didn't know if the Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate could play the piano, but she felt that these hands were made for the piano.

"Platinum, don't forget, you are..." she reminded herself in her heart.

"Platinum, I don't want to be a racehorse girl anymore."

Bai Jin suddenly looked up. This time she was genuinely surprised.

"Carp leaping over the dragon gate..."

Why, suddenly, do you not want to be a horse racer anymore?

Could it be because of this fracture?

Or is it because he never ran the Golden Gun Sixty?

For a moment, Platinum was even a little flustered. The little carp leaping over the dragon gate always followed behind her, like a little tail, sometimes driving her crazy. But when this little tail suddenly said it was saying goodbye and didn't want to follow her anymore, she actually felt a little...reluctant.

"What happened? Is it a fracture? Is the fracture serious?" Platinum asked Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate in a low voice, her voice trembling slightly. "If you need help... I might have a way."

The shop in my own system, which seems useless, actually has a surprisingly wide variety of items, ranging from suppressants to tanks. Although carrots are relatively hard to obtain and quite expensive, I should be able to buy a medicine to promote bone healing for the carp leaping over the dragon gate.

At worst, I can just run a couple more races myself, or even sign up for more races and then just stroll around once I'm on the field, only to be greedy for those small rewards for completing the race.

As long as you don't give up, there are always more solutions than problems.

“That’s not it.” Carp Leaps Over the Dragon Gate shook its head. “I just realized… I’m not suited to be a racehorse girl.”

"I don't have that kind of talent. Maybe I can make up for it with hard work, but I'll never reach your level."

Carp Leaps Over the Dragon Gate and looks at the others at the table. Golden Gun Sixty, Swindler, Hai Du City, including Ali Digital and Ali Suko, were all top-tier racehorse girls in the past.

Youthful Memories, Rising Rivers, and Jade Lion Shining at Night are all emerging talents with great potential and a bright future.

Platinum members who stand out from the crowd are the cream of the crop.

The gap between myself and them is simply too vast. Perhaps some gaps can be bridged through hard work, but a gap that is too enormous can only be looked up to from afar.

Perhaps through hard work I can get past the debut match, win the OP tournament, and then strive for higher goals. A big reward for G3? A big reward for G2? Can I still advance further?

Winning G2 might already be enough for him. But his sister is a Golden Gunner of 60.

As the younger sister of Jinqiang Liushi, she cannot allow herself to stop here when she leaps over the dragon gate.

Episode 124 A Superb Voyage

As the younger sister of Jinqiang Liushi, she cannot allow herself to stop here when she leaps over the dragon gate.

"This competition is also an opportunity for me to understand myself better."

"I've realized that I really am a guy who has no talent in this area."

As she spoke, Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate secretly raised her head and looked at Golden Spear Sixty: "I've been with that guy for so long, and my long-cherished wish to run together on the track has finally come true for her."

"Ultimately, the reason I wanted to become a racehorse girl in the first place was because of a conflict with my family, so I ran away to Japan out of spite."

At this point, there's really no point in persisting. After all, even for Ma Niang, being on the track isn't essential.

That's not a stage for everyone.

...I see. Platinum secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Leaving the competition is fine, as long as it's not due to injury.

In the pursuit of dreams, those dreams can change. For someone who bravely changes their direction in pursuit of their dreams, like a carp leaping over the dragon gate, there's nothing more to say but to offer blessings.

"Well... I wish you all the best in finding something you love and are good at in the future," Platinum said dryly.

However, the thought of parting ways still makes me a little reluctant.

Since she no longer wants to be a racehorse girl, there's naturally no reason for Koi to return to Japan. In fact, even if she still wanted to be a racehorse girl, Koi, as the younger sister of Koi, would certainly receive better treatment in Hong Kong.

So, when I return to Japan and Li Yue stays in Hong Kong, we'll be worlds apart, and I won't have to worry about the soul dissolution phenomenon anymore, and I won't have to deliberately reject her, right?

"Just...keep in touch. Um...don't forget me, us. It's Fuji Koji and..." The words were on the tip of her tongue, but Shirogane just couldn't say them. She could only hum softly and in a crooked voice, as quiet as a mosquito's buzz.

"I'm not leaving. I'll go to Japan after my leg heals." Li Yuelongmen smiled serenely, but her grip on Bai Jin's hand tightened, and the tenderness in her eyes seemed to overflow.

"Didn't you say you weren't going to be a horse racer anymore?"

“I’m not going to be a racehorse girl anymore, but I didn’t say I was leaving the horse racing industry.” Koi Leaps Over the Dragon Gate brushed a strand of hair from her forehead, still holding Platinum’s hand tightly with one hand. “Besides, there are still things about Treson Academy that I’m very reluctant to leave.”

"At Treson College, I have many friends, many classmates, Fuji Koji, and... you."

"I'm going to become a support horse girl. Since I can't be there to shine on the track, let me be the one who can observe you all from the closest distance."

"I see." Bai Jin breathed a sigh of relief, then her face flushed red again. She had only mustered the courage to say those words because she thought she was no longer going back after leaping over the dragon gate... and it turned out she wasn't even ready to leave?

Wouldn't it seem incredibly cheesy to say that myself? I'd definitely be laughed at until graduation!

The expected teasing did not occur. The carp leaping over the dragon gate also withdrew its hand.

—Then, in the next moment, Carp Leaps Over the Dragon Gate turned Platinum's palm around, and the two palms touched.

Bai Jin didn't look at the carp leaping over the dragon gate again, nor did the carp say anything more. The two remained silent.

Jiang He Risheng, sitting opposite, seemed a bit off. The emerald green-clad girl looked right at Baijin and left at the carp leaping over the dragon gate, wanting to say something, but her youthful memories tugged at her sleeve.

"Have you ever heard of a Japanese proverb?" A bittersweet memory whispered in Jiang He Risheng's ear.