"That covers the facilities at Tressen Academy," Tazuna says. "Feel free to use your trainer's room as you like—it's your castle, Trainer Hikigaya."
"Got it," I say.
As expected, this place is massive. Tressen Academy lives up to the hype.
"By the way, have you decided on lunch?" Tazuna asks.
"Nope, nothing planned," I reply. "Didn't have time to make a bento today."
"You cook, Trainer Hikigaya?" Tazuna says, eyes sparkling. "A man who can cook is pretty charming!"
"Uh, thanks," I mumble. "Anyway, I'll eat at the cafeteria today. But, uh, is the portion size okay? If it's scaled for Uma Musume, I'm not sure I can handle it."
"No worries," Tazuna assures me. "Uma Musume vary. Some eat a ton, others less. Some even calculate their nutrition for optimal balance."
Makes sense. Good body, good food—I've heard that before. Maybe I'll step up my cooking game. Nothing crazy like spices, but still.
"Let's head to the cafeteria!" Tazuna says.
The cafeteria's packed—it's lunchtime, so tons of Uma Musume are here. Being a guy, I'm drawing some stares. Next time, I'm eating in the trainer's room. Can't focus on food with all these eyes on me.
"What'll you have, Trainer Hikigaya?" Tazuna asks.
"No clue, so I'll go with whatever you're getting," I say. "I'll check the menu properly next time."
"Got it," she says.
…Crap, I should've gone with her to order. Leaving it to Tazuna? What am I doing?
"Um…" a voice pipes up.
"Hm? What's up?" I ask.
"Are you… a trainer?" the girl asks.
"Yeah, just started," I say.
"So you're watching the mock race today to pick an Uma Musume to scout, right?!" she says, eyes wide.
"Pretty much," I nod.
"Then please watch my run!" she pleads.
Whoa, what's with this girl? Straight-up pitching herself? I was gonna watch anyway, but still.
"Alright, I'll watch," I say. "But whether I scout you is up to me."
"Yes! Thank you!" she beams.
Tazuna giggles. "Fufu, reverse-scouted, huh?"
"Nah, it's not like that," I say.
"Fufufu," she laughs again.
While I was talking to the Uma Musume, Tazuna finished ordering. Damn, I missed how it works. Should've gone with her.
I'm eating, scribbling notes. "This isn't quite right," I mutter. "Woodchip or dirt might be better after this. Turf's not cutting it for closing speed. Gotta test it. And then…"
"You're really dedicated, Trainer Hikigaya," Tazuna says, watching me.
"Am I?" I ask.
"Yes! It's rare these days to see someone handwrite menus instead of using a tablet or PC."
"It's a habit from the person who got me into this," I say. "They hated typing. Everything—menus, plans—was handwritten. I'm not that extreme, but I like it. You can jot down more than just the essentials, unlike digital."
"Is that person your mentor?" Tazuna asks.
"Not exactly. More like my mentor's mentor. It's a long story."
"Sorry, can I take a look at your menu?" a new voice asks from behind.
I turn. It's an Uma Musume with long, wavy white hair, red-rimmed glasses, and sharp golden eyes—pure intellect.
"Sure, go ahead," I say.
"Thanks," she says, scanning it.
"What's up, Hayahide?" another voice chimes in.
"Another of your theory menus?" a third adds.
"No," the first says. "I'm just looking at this trainer's menu."
"Hmm, doesn't look like a big-deal trainer," the second says.
Rude… but fair. I don't exactly scream "elite" with my style.
"This is a new theory," the first says.
"Huh?" I say.
"It's a menu that suggests possibilities I haven't considered," she says. "Mind if I copy it into my notebook?"
"Go for it," I say. "It's not that special, though."
The Uma Musume called Hayahide ignores me, pulling out her notebook and copying my menu verbatim. Like, straight-up?
"There," she says. "Thank you. I think this could lead to a solid theory."
"No problem," I say. "I'm Hachiman Hikigaya, new trainer. And you are?"
"My apologies for not introducing myself," she says. "I'm Biwa Hayahide. Call me Hayahide—it's shorter. Nice to meet you."
"I'm Winning Ticket!" the second says. "Call me Tickezo!"
"…Narita Taishin," the third mutters. "I'm not here to be friendly, but call me Taishin."
Whoa, all at once—Biwa Hayahide, Winning Ticket, Narita Taishin. Gotta remember those names.
"You can talk however you want," Hayahide says. "I don't care about formalities."
"Cool, I'll keep it casual," I say.
"We'll grab our food now. Excuse us," Hayahide says.
"Bye-bye, Trainer!" Tickezo chirps.
"…Later," Taishin mumbles.
Three different vibes, but they seem tight. Syncs, maybe?
"That was amazing, Trainer Hikigaya!" Tazuna exclaims. "Meeting the BNW trio on your second day? And getting Biwa Hayahide, the strongest of them, to take a liking to you?"
Liking me? I have no clue who these Uma Musume are.
"Hey, did you hear? There's a new trainer who started yesterday!"
"What? That's not a big deal. Trainers show up all the time this season. So what?"
"But this one's different! Word is, Biwa Hayahide was so impressed she copied their training menu into her notebook!"
"No way! That Biwa Hayahide?!"
"Yup, and I overheard something too—pretty sure it's the same trainer!"
"Spill! What'd you hear?!"
"So, yesterday, I saw the President and Air Groove walking together, and I caught this convo!"
Flashback
"There's the President and Vice President! So cool…"
Rudolf: "Don't you think we got a pretty interesting trainer this year, Air Groove?"
Air Groove: "Hmph, maybe a little. But whether they can shine in training is another matter."
Rudolf: "Is it? This is just a hunch, but I bet they'd catch every quirk and gesture we make. If they scouted me, even with a simple pitch, I might say yes… or maybe I'd be the one begging to join them."
Air Groove: "What?! You, President?!"
Rudolf: "I thought you'd feel their charm too. Guess we'll see, huh?"
Air Groove: "…"
"No way, the President said that?"
End Flashback
"That's what they said! The President might even accept if that trainer scouted them!"
"No way! That means they're a seriously big-deal trainer!"
Hachiman Hikigaya's name wasn't out there yet, but the rumor of a rookie trainer who arrived yesterday had already spread like wildfire among the Uma Musume.
They called him "a hotshot trainer Symboli Rudolf wants to reverse-scout."
They said "he makes menus so precise Biwa Hayahide copied them verbatim."
That alone was more than enough to spark a buzz. And the man himself?
I'm hunched over books, scribbling away. Menu-making, to be exact. Not just training manuals—some are, some aren't.
Understanding Distance Aptitude for Uma Musume
Racecourse-Specific Running Styles and Key Points
Turf vs. Dirt: Footwork Differences
I'm piecing together menus while flipping through three books. A PC would be faster, but I'm stuck on handwriting—it's a habit. No digital for me.
"Alright, Hanshin's done," I mutter. "Just the local tracks and…中山 for Central. Nakayama it is."
The door rattles open.
"Hey, Hikigaya-kun!" Aoi Kiryuin says. "So this is our room now, huh?"
"Kiryuin? You're in here too?" I ask.
"Yup! Looking forward to it!" she says.
"Cool, same," I reply.
"What're you writing?" she asks.
"Just menus," I say.
"But these books are on racecourses and distance aptitude, not training," she says. "You're making menus from that?"
"Yup," I say. "You've seen the Tressen Academy track—it's flat as a board. No hills, no slopes. So, I figure we need to train them to run like there's elevation, even on a flat course. Sure, there are probably off-campus spots for that, but I'm new and have no clue where they are. I'll figure that out later. Point is, it's about course-specific running styles."
"Never thought of that…" Aoi says. "Now that you mention it, the track is super flat."
"That's why I'm making menus for each racecourse," I say. "Tokyo, Kyoto, Hanshin, Chukyo, Niigata, Fukushima, Hakodate, Sapporo, Kokura—done. Nakayama's next, then local tracks."
"That's… insane," Aoi says. "And you're making menus from that?"
"Half right," I say. "Next is tailoring training to distance aptitude. Start with basic stamina, gauge their range, then dive into serious coaching."
Aoi's eyes light up, and I can tell she's hyping herself up internally. Gotta step up my game!
"If my scribbling's annoying, let me know," I say. "I'll write somewhere else."
"No, it's fine!" Aoi says. "Oh, by the way, Hikigaya-kun."
"Hm?"
"You're getting a lot of attention from the Uma Musume," she says. "They're saying you're a hotshot trainer the President and Hayahide are eyeing."
"Who's spreading that nonsense?" I groan. "I don't need that kind of spotlight."
"But I get why," Aoi says. "If Hayahide saw these racecourse-specific menus, she'd probably copy them too."
"Doubt it," I say. "But fine, I'll bring them as bait. No idea if I'll even see her."
"Fufu, bait?" Aoi giggles.
We keep chatting, each doing our own thing.
The mock race is closing in fast.
Whoa, Rudolf saying that? Hachiman's really making waves, huh?