...
The night before leaving, Lucian and Silence Suzuka whispered to each other under the covers again.
"Why do you have to go to their place? Why can't you just stay here forever..."
Silence Suzuka was entirely pillowed on Lucian's body, barely moving except for the slight rise and fall of her breathing.
"I've already stayed here almost half a month. You still won't let me go? Besides, we'll see each other again in a few days." Lucian casually stroked Silence Suzuka's smooth orange hair. "Moreover, going to their place is just a visit, like a home visit? Then I'll head back to Tracen Academy. I haven't even sorted my things yet."
"I want to go with Lucian-kun."
"Be good. New Year is just these few days. Spend more time with Auntie." Lucian said softly.
"Mm... Alright." Silence Suzuka propped herself up on Lucian's chest and slowly sat up. "I'll go pack your clothes for you."
"I've already packed them."
"So fast." Silence Suzuka could only peck Lucian's lips a few times. "Then I'll see you off to the station tomorrow."
"No need to go to the station. I called a special car."
"I'm seeing you off anyway."
"Alright~"
...
The next day, after bidding farewell to Silence Suzuka, Lucian got in the car alone.
He didn't plan to go to places too far away, so he was just visiting some horse girls whose homes happened to be along the return route.
When signing up for the team, Lucian had collected the team members' home address information, so he hadn't told them in advance before coming.
"First is Rice Shower's home..." Lucian confirmed the house number once more and rang the doorbell.
Soon, a black-haired horse girl opened the door.
Lucian suspected she hadn't even looked through the peephole. She wasn't afraid of any danger at all.
"Hello, who are you looking for?" The black-haired horse girl looked at Lucian puzzledly, feeling a bit familiar but drawing a blank, unable to remember.
"Hello, I'm Rice Shower's Trainer. I happened to pass by and came to visit."
"Oh, you're Mr. Lucian, right." The black-haired horse girl showed a look of sudden realization. "I thought you looked familiar. Hello, I'm Rice Shower's mom. Come on in."
"Hello, Auntie." Lucian politely entered the door.
Rice Shower's mom looked very young, and her personality seemed quite different from Rice Shower's.
As for her father? Lucian still didn't know the name of the Odo-san he hadn't seen that day.
" Rice, come out quick. Trainer Lucian is here to see you."
"Oniisama?" Rice Shower, wearing a white dress, came out from her room. Upon seeing Lucian, her face lit up with surprise. "How come you're here?"
"I just happened to pass by for a visit. Happy New Year to you all."
"Trainer, Happy New Year to you too." Rice Shower proactively brought over a fruit platter. "Oniisama, where did you come from? How did you happen to pass by?"
"Uh... Traveling, and I decided to drop by to see you all."
"Traveling, huh. Sounds nice." Rice Shower seemed to be in a very good mood. After sitting on the sofa, her two feet unconsciously swung back and forth.
Lucian nodded. "Yeah, tiring but happy."
Rice Mama brought Lucian a cup of tea. "Please enjoy."
"Thank you." Lucian took a sip; the taste was very good.
"Mr. Lucian, I heard you taught Rice how to cook. These past few days at home, she's been coming to the kitchen to help me out."
"Oh~ So that means before, Rice Shower never helped Auntie when she came home?" Lucian smiled slightly and looked at Rice Shower.
Rice Shower's face reddened a bit. "I didn't know how before, but I did help Okasan with housework."
Rice Mama showed no mercy and immediately corrected her. "Only doing her own room."
"Okasan..." Rice Shower lowered her head embarrassedly, fiddling with her little fingers.
Lucian couldn't help but chuckle. He noticed that parents all seemed to like telling the black history of the horse girls from when they were little.
After getting familiar, Rice Shower's Rice Mama started telling stories too.
Rice Shower's skin was much thinner than Silence Suzuka's. She really couldn't listen anymore and casually found an excuse to escape back to her room, drawing hehehe laughter from Lucian and Rice Mama behind her.
After the laughter, Rice Mama's gaze toward that door suddenly became much gentler.
"Mr. Lucian, I might be different from other parents. I never thought about making Rice have to run first. I just want her to be happy..." Rice Mama pondered for a moment. "How to put it, this child is very strong when she's strong, but she also has an extremely fragile side. She has her own pursuits. I hope you can pay more attention to her."
This mother lowered her head slightly and even used honorifics toward Lucian.
Was it fate or something? Rice Mama didn't want Rice Shower to be bullied.
"Don't worry, Auntie. As her Trainer, I always take their own wishes as the goal, never imposing pressure or burdens on them."
"Then I'm relieved."
Lucian finished his tea. "Auntie, I'll head out first then. No need to call Rice Shower. We'll see each other again after the New Year."
Rice Mama nodded. "Alright."
After seeing Lucian off, Rice Mama knocked on Rice Shower's door and entered. She saw a bulge under the covers. " Rice, why are you hiding under the blanket? Trainer Lucian has already left."
"Oniisama already left?" Rice Shower lifted the blanket, jumped off the bed, and ran to the window, just in time to see Lucian's back as he got in the car and left. "Okasan, didn't you ask the Trainer to stay for dinner?"
She had subconsciously thought Lucian would stay for a meal, but he left just like that, leaving her feeling a bit regretful.
"Ah, oh, I forgot about that. But Rice, remember, why did you hide just now?"
"It's not because Okasan wanted to talk about things from when I was little..."
"Haha." Rice Mama smiled. "Actually, I did say it, but Trainer Lucian declined. He asked me to pass a message to Rice, saying see you after the New Year."
"Then we'll see each other after the New Year." Lucian had made a special trip to come over, and Rice Shower was very happy about that.
"Rice, can you tell Mom again what kind of person Trainer Lucian is?"
Rice Mama sat on the edge of the bed, and Rice Shower left the window, coming over too.
"Oniisama is a very amazing, very wonderful person..."
Rice Shower talked about daily life in the team, as well as some things from training camp and races, her little mouth going nonstop.
It was only now that Rice Mama realized her wish for Rice Shower to be happy seemed to have already come true.
...
On the other side, after getting in the car, Lucian looked at the map again.
There were two more horse girls along the route next: Dextrous Bailey and Tokai Teio.
"Next stop, Little Bailey's place first. This location... why does it feel a bit..."
"Mr. Lucian, are you sure you want to go there?" The driver looked at the address and confirmed with Lucian.
"Go ahead. Should be fine."
...