...
As New Year approached, Lucia started the big cleaning a few days early, and the horse girls spontaneously joined in.
"Clang——"
Lucian, who was wiping the tables and chairs, heard a noise from upstairs and exchanged glances with Special Week.
"Trainer-san, what happened?"
"Spe-chan, keep wiping the tables here. I'll go upstairs to check."
"Oh oh, Trainer-san, go quickly."
...
Just as he went upstairs, Lucian saw Meishou Doto propping herself up from behind, sitting on the ground.
It looked like she had knocked over the bucket and fallen to the ground; her skirt and top were all wet.
Lucian went forward and pulled her up, "Doto, be careful."
"Sorry, Trainer. Good thing this wasn't during work, or Trainer would deduct my salary. （╯︿╰）"
"Haha, you know that?" Lucian laughed, "No injuries, right?"
"It's fine, just a bit painful."
"As long as it's nothing serious." Lucian looked at the water spilled all over the floor, "I'll mop this side. You go give Dango a bath."
"Eh, can I? Leaving such a big mess for Trainer..." Though Meishou Doto said that, her eyes were already glancing toward Dango licking its fur in the hallway.
"Go on, your expression has already betrayed you."
"Thanks, Trainer~"
Lucian looked at Meishou Doto's back and smilingly cursed "little klutz."
At that moment, a figure suddenly appeared from the side room, "Trainer, so gentle~"
Lucian turned his head at the voice; Seiun Sky was tying a headscarf, wearing an apron, and holding a mop.
"Sky, so you were cleaning the storage room."
"Drew the short straw; willing to bet means accepting the loss, so I had to clean here." Seiun Sky stretched lazily.
Seeing no one around, Lucian leaned the mop against the wall, walked into the storage room, looked around, and sighed with emotion: "Nostalgic, all things I used before."
"Things you've used? Trainer, I'm in the storage room too, including me?" Seiun Sky tilted her head.
Lucian helplessly raised the corner of his mouth, "Including including."
"Hehe~" The mop fell to the ground without warning; Seiun Sky put her hands behind her back, cornered Lucian against the wall, and pointed at her cherry little mouth, "Kiss, kiss kiss."
Lucian leaned toward her lips.
She had long shed her greenness and become mature; Lucian could entrust everything to Seiun Sky and confidently close his eyes.
Of course, limited to kissing.
Compared to a certain horse girl who always seemed to want to bite through his lip skin, kissing Seiun Sky was truly enjoyable.
But there were merits too—Special Week's wild vigor always ignited Lucian's passion.
...
"Smack——smack——" The kissing sounds were like occasional chirps of insects in a quiet summer night, or like water droplets falling into a pool.
The serene time seemed to pass quite long, but human stamina is limited and needs to pause for breath.
"Trainer~" After kissing until tired, Seiun Sky would always lean on Lucian's chest, making that murmuring sound like a child just waking up.
"Here."
"Please continue accompanying me next year... and every year after."
"Of course, I'll accompany you until graduation."
Upon hearing that, Seiun Sky wrapped her arms around Lucian's neck, "Don't think you can shake me off after graduation, Trainer."
"I wouldn't. Or do you want to extend your studies?"
"I think so in my heart, but my body won't allow it anymore." Seiun Sky saw it clearly, "And watching myself get surpassed by the new generation horse girls feels awful. Better to retire after my peak~"
"Good idea. Then after retirement? What do you plan to do?"
"Haven't thought about it properly yet..."
Lucian feigned disappointment, "So Sky's future doesn't consider me? I thought you'd want to be my wife."
"Wi-Wife!?" Seiun Sky's cheeks instantly flushed red through, burying her head and whispering: "Of c-course I've thought about it... but it's still so far away now."
"Then how many little horse girls do you plan to have later?"
"Li-Little horse girls..." Seiun Sky's head instantly overheated and overloaded; her little mouth trembled, but she couldn't say anything.
Seeing Seiun Sky still like this fragile cannon, Lucian suddenly worried if the plan he had with Silence Suzuka would impact her too much.
But these things couldn't be hidden forever; they had to be confessed clearly eventually.
Seeing Seiun Sky completely fall into silence, Lucian stopped teasing her, "Wake up, haven't finished cleaning; can't space out now."
"I'm not spacing out." Seiun Sky pouted, the blush on her face not yet faded.
She pointed at the piano covered with cloth nearby, "Trainer, do you still play piano?"
"Parents enrolled me in classes before; practiced for a while, but haven't played much later."
"Grandmaster pianist?"
"Nowhere near as amazing as you say; just know a little." Lucian lifted the piano cover, sat on the still somewhat damp chair, "I'll play a piece for you, but don't laugh if it's not good."
"Even funnier than Trainer cross-dressing and saying chuuni lines?"
"Angry now, not playing~"
"Eh eh eh~ Play, Trainer, play." Seiun Sky grabbed Lucian's hand, coquettishly pleading softly, "Play for me to hear."
"Hmph hmph, want me to play and not being honest?" Lucian put on airs.
Seiun Sky blinked, "Already very honest, Trainer... At worst, after you finish playing, my clothes for Trainer to wear."
Lucian lightly pinched Seiun Sky's cheek, "Still saying still saying, making you say."
Looking at her forcibly pouted little mouth, Lucian seemed to savor it and couldn't resist pecking it.
Seiun Sky broke free from Lucian's clutches, clapped her hands, and watched Lucian expectantly from the side, "Play quick, Trainer."
Lucian tested his hands; too long since using, the piano's tuning was a bit off, but still barely listenable, "Just a short piece."
His fingers danced on the black and white keys, a string of crisp, healing yet somewhat melancholic melody filling the quiet room.
The music overflowed the room, drifting over the windowsill.
Inside the house, the horse girls cleaning outside all heard it.
Tokai Teio followed the piano sound; her intuition told her this piece was being played by Lucian.
...