The next morning, at dawn.
"!"
Mizuno's mind snapped back online. He jolted upright in bed.
Where... He looked around at the familiar yet strange, shabby little room, and gradually recalled—he was still in the apartment he'd rented outside the academy.
Waking up not in an Uma Musume's basement was a good thing, but given the current situation, Mizuno was left thoroughly confused.
"?"
He stared at the morning sunlight spilling in through the window, utterly baffled.
Wait, wasn't it just night a second ago? How did he space out for a moment and suddenly it's morning?
Just then, a familiar voice mumbled beside him.
"Nguh... Onii-sama, Rice Shower wants more..."
"Huh? Rice Shower?" Mizuno turned warily—only to find Rice Shower lying in the same bed with him.
She was still clinging to his arm, her belly pressed against his hand, face lit up in a blissful smile. Even in sleep, she kept murmuring his name as if she were dreaming something sweet.
Watching her sleep so happily, Mizuno couldn't help but feel... uneasy.
"Ahem..."
A tickle in his throat made Mizuno cough a few times. He felt strangely parched, as if all the moisture in his body had been sucked away.
"Weird..."
He frowned.
Logically, seeing Rice Shower so happy should make him happy too—so why did he feel nothing but... fear?
Not knowing anything about what happened last night, Mizuno could only turn to Fortune to figure out what had gone on during his memory gap.
So Mizuno closed his eyes and called to Fortune, hidden in his mental space:
"Fortune, did anything happen last night?"
"Uh... no..." Fortune replied.
"You're lying."
Mizuno caught the lie instantly, squinting as he pressed:
"I'm not old enough for dementia yet. There's no way I'd just forget everything after a single night's sleep...
"If anything, I'm proud of my memory—so something terrifying must have happened last night to force me to forget."
"Did someone knock me out while I wasn't looking? Or use some kind of hypnosis app?" Mizuno muttered, running through the likeliest possibilities to force Fortune to spill the secret. But Fortune just shook her head and grinned, saying, "I can't tell you. Even if I did, you wouldn't believe me."
"Try me."
"Rice Shower kissed you all night long."
"Haha, good one," Mizuno chuckled, a confident smirk on his face.
"There's no way Rice Shower would ever do something like that."
"Guh..." Fortune's mouth twitched as she grumbled,
"I really can't talk to you, you brainless doting Onii-sama..."
"Do you know how excited she was last night? That look on her face... even Tokai Teio couldn't match her devotion to you!"
"If I hadn't stepped in and talked her down, you'd have both been naked in bed right now!"
Mizuno fell silent at Fortune's words, mulling things over before looking up again to ask:
"So who knocked me out last night?"
"Damn it!" Fortune was so infuriated by his doting that she just blurted out:
"Actually, last night Maruzensky broke in, hypnotized you with her phone, then Uma Pyoied you!"
Mizuno visibly froze, slowly tilting his head up to stare at the ceiling, looking a little lost, before forcing a wry smile.
"I see..."
"See my ass!" Fortune's face went bright red with rage—she wanted nothing more than to slug Mizuno.
He'd rather believe in a hypnosis app than accept that Rice Shower had kissed him?
"So when Maruzensky Uma Pyoi'd me, did she hypnotize Rice Shower too?" Mizuno asked, suddenly anxious.
"It's got nothing to do with Maruzensky! And there's no such thing as a hypnosis app!" Fortune snapped.
"You just spent all day training, then let your guard down with Rice Shower and passed out from sheer exhaustion. That's why you can't remember last night!"
"Is... is that so?" Mizuno was still suspicious.
"Now you only have two options..." Fortune held up two fingers, "Either believe Rice Shower kissed you, or believe you just got too tired."
Mizuno pondered.
"Was I really that tired yesterday? I guess I need to pay more attention to my training hours."
"Whatever..." Fortune massaged her temples, sighing in defeat.
A brainless Onii-sama deserves to get Uma Pyoi'd by his little sister! Can't help him at all!
"Oh, right—about Maruzensky..." Mizuno looked out the sunny window. "Is she still spying on me out there?"
"Nope." Fortune shook her head. "After Rice Shower came over last night, Maruzensky went home and hasn't left since."
"I see..." Mizuno propped his chin, deep in thought.
Maybe it's that when two social-anxiety Uma Musume sense each other, they end up repelling each other, so Maruzensky stopped tailing him?
Or maybe, knowing Rice Shower as a kouhai, Maruzensky didn't want to embarrass herself in front of her, so she didn't dare show up nearby?
All things considered, maybe having Rice Shower live with him would be the best way to avoid Maruzensky's stalking.
Fortune saw right through his thought process and suggested:
"I actually support you living with Rice Shower. It'd protect you from all the other Uma Musume's attacks—though you might end up in a state of saliva shortage..."
"No, thanks." Mizuno ignored the weird part of Fortune's suggestion, shaking his head.
"It's really not appropriate for a man and a young lady to live together. Besides, Rice Shower has classes, and this place is pretty far from school. She should go back to the dormitory."
"Suit yourself." Fortune shrugged, totally indifferent.
Anyway, after her little intervention, Rice Shower wouldn't be Uma Pyoing this guy any time soon. As for getting kissed by his cute little sister—if he didn't want to believe it, she wasn't going to bother.
Good advice can't save a hopeless fool—Mizuno was the textbook example!
"Onii-sama, good morning~"
As Mizuno and Fortune wrapped up their discussion, Rice Shower slowly woke up, rubbing her sleepy eyes and greeting Mizuno.
"Oh, good morning." Mizuno replied gently, then checked the time.
"It's getting late. Go wash up, and I'll walk you back to the academy."
"Mhm." Rice Shower nodded obediently, offering no objections.
After all, she'd clung to Onii-sama for so long last night—it was only right to let him rest a bit...
Besides, partings are only temporary. She'd have plenty more chances to grow closer with Onii-sama in the future~
"If Rice Shower gets lonely again, can she ask Onii-sama for another reward?" She blinked up at him hopefully.
"Of course, anytime." Mizuno, oblivious to her true meaning, happily agreed.
As long as his adorable little sister asked, he'd do his best to give her any reward she wanted—that was the Onii-sama's mission.
Come to think of it, didn't Rice Shower say something last night about wanting a reward...
Did I give her one?
---
T/N: MIzuno. I'm GONNA FUCKING STAB YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Umamusume: The Socially Anxious Umamusume Doesn't Want to Snuggle!