Although Kitahara Sota's request sounded a bit strange, Sunday Silence didn't show the slightest intent of refusal; rather, she even appeared somewhat eager.
Of course, Sunday Silence understood perfectly that the kind of "touching" Kitahara Sota mentioned probably wasn't the same "touching" she had in mind.
But even if it really was that kind of touching, she wouldn't resist at all.
Because normally, never mind him taking the initiative to touch her...
Even if she herself openly requested him to do it, she'd usually be rejected under all sorts of excuses.
Ultimately, she'd still have to cling to him on her own, practically begging, only to have him reluctantly give her a perfunctory rub with a look of disdain, immediately telling her to go away afterward so she wouldn't disturb his work.
And what followed went exactly as she had anticipated. Even though Kitahara Sota's words were ambiguous, his actual actions were perfectly proper, naturally avoiding all sensitive areas with precision. Even when she deliberately shifted her body, attempting to cause some "accidental" contact, he easily avoided it.
This blockhead…
Looking at the man in front of her, whose expression was as focused as if researching some profound scientific problem, without the slightest hint of ulterior motive in his eyes, Sunday Silence twitched her eyebrows in irritation.
Though she knew he was probably just checking something necessary for her eventual appearance before others...
His demeanor still left her feeling a bit annoyed. She waited silently until he finished inspecting and withdrew his hands.
Then, taking advantage of the moment he paused to think, Sunday Silence launched a surprise attack. Nibbling playfully at him, she grabbed his hand, forcefully pulling it toward her chest.
"…Just what are you trying to do now?"
It wasn't the bathroom today, nor was anyone else nearby, so Kitahara Sota effortlessly freed himself from her grip, giving her a helpless look.
"I already said I was investigating how you can appear before others, right? Don't mess around."
"It doesn't matter."
She reached up, gently cradling his face, golden eyes filled entirely with seriousness.
"It doesn't matter if others never see me, as long as you and Cafe do."
"…Are you serious?"
"I'm serious."
With that, she raised her head again, launching another assault on Kitahara Sota.
This time, her arms weren't shaken off.
But before long, the positions between them reversed completely. Eventually, Sunday Silence ended up pleading for mercy, finally collapsing weakly into his arms.
After resting and catching her breath for quite a while, feeling those careful hands once again wandering over her body—clearly back to purely investigative mode—she slowly raised her head, shooting him a faintly resentful look.
"Can't you at least give a slightly more normal reaction?"
"My reaction wasn't normal enough?"
Without waiting for her reply, Kitahara Sota finished checking her condition, confirming certain suspicions. Then he simply carried Sunday Silence to the side, pulled out his notebook, and began jotting down something incomprehensible to anyone else.
As he scribbled, Eclipse, having watched curiously from nearby for some time, noticed he still had some space left in his embrace, immediately squeezing herself in as well. She and Sunday Silence ended up nesting comfortably together—one on his left and one on his right.
Eclipse couldn't physically touch Sunday Silence.
Strangely enough, though she couldn't contact her directly, Eclipse's body was surrounded by a subtle, earth-like membrane. Because of this, although intangible to each other, Sunday Silence still couldn't simply pass through Eclipse's body like she did with other people, leading directly to the current odd situation.
After completing his notes and calculations, Kitahara Sota closed his notebook, endured some further "harassment" from the two fluffy creatures curled up in his arms, and then finally returned to the training grounds, turning his thoughts to his next step of research.
He had already roughly grasped the necessary data and method, but surely the situation wasn't quite that simple.
Otherwise, [Domain]-activated Uma Musume wouldn't be this rare, and there wouldn't be such a lack of relevant online information. He definitely needed someone to conduct concrete experiments with.
Regarding experimental conditions, according to the information he currently possessed, it was best if the subject had a strong foundation, plenty of emotional buildup, and ideally more years since debut…
Just as he was deep in thought, a certain pink-haired pervert—having just finished recording the training conditions and preparing to report them—suddenly appeared before him.
Before she could even speak, Kitahara Sota immediately placed both hands firmly upon her shoulders, staring at her with utmost seriousness:
"I choose you, Digital."
Agnes Digital: "…?"
...
Kitahara Sota hadn't randomly chosen Agnes Digital at all.
Strength foundation, emotional accumulation, years since debut…
No matter which of these factors, Agnes Digital perfectly matched his requirements—far exceeding them, in fact.
In terms of years since debut, she was one of only two second-year Uma Musume in his team, the other being Komata Hajime's Nishino.
Emotional accumulation? No need to even mention it; even without stepping onto the racecourse, she could easily faint from excitement at any given moment.
As for strength, she had already won multiple G1 races. There wasn't even a question.
Thinking back carefully, during Digital's previous G1 race open to second- and third-year Uma Musume, he'd actually sensed something strange from certain other participants.
But due to the distance and his unfamiliarity with [Domains] at the time—plus the fact that Digital eventually won—he hadn't paid much attention to it.
Reflecting on it now, it seemed highly likely those strange sensations had indeed come from Uma Musume activating their [Domains]—possibly more than one.
Yet their [Domains] had seemingly provided only limited enhancements, and activated too early due to competition pressures, ultimately causing them to falter in the later stages, eventually being overtaken by Agnes Digital.
Strong enough, plenty of emotional buildup, extensive racing experience…
She easily met—no, surpassed—all the known requirements.
The only missing piece might be the key needed to trigger her [Domain], precisely the thing he was trying to discover.
Thus, Kitahara Sota explained the situation to Agnes Digital, asking if she would cooperate with his research.
Being able to help her senpai—and benefit herself—Digital naturally had no reason to refuse.
Not to mention, two weeks had already passed since the start of the semester. She had just completed improving her racing style and was eager to receive more direct guidance from him before her late-October G1 event.
Even if Kitahara hadn't come looking for her, she would've proactively approached him anyway.
After agreeing, Agnes Digital finished her routine training, then accompanied Kitahara Sota to his dorm, expertly lying down on the treatment bed.
Because she had frequently experienced his treatments under the guise of learning, Digital was now, aside from Eclipse and Nice Nature, the Uma Musume who had received Kitahara's care most frequently.
Just as promised, despite her recent confession, Kitahara Sota hadn't distanced himself or excluded her.
Their interaction remained completely unchanged: guidance when needed, treatment as usual, without deliberately keeping distance or intentionally drawing closer due to the confession.
However, today, rather than offering instruction or treatment, he merely gave her a thorough physical checkup. Once completed, he pulled out his notebook again, furrowing his brow as he wrote.
Strange…
After writing a while, Kitahara Sota stared at the data he'd recorded, falling into deep thought.
He had previously treated Symboli Rudolf, and thanks to her frequently sneaking over for relaxation afterward, he already possessed extensive physical data on her.
Moreover, after Tachyon activated her [Domain], he'd also briefly checked her physical condition out of concern.
Additionally, he'd visually assessed Air Groove and Narita Brian during their occasional training sessions at the grounds, gathering rough data.
By his calculations, Digital's pure physical prowess was extraordinarily high—second only to Rudolf—even among those who had already activated [Domains]. No matter how he looked at it, she clearly qualified.
Could it be insufficient stimulus?
He tapped his finger thoughtfully.
Although Digital certainly had plenty of emotional build-up, that accumulation mainly occurred off the racetrack.
When it came to actual competitions, far from accumulating emotions, she hardly even desired victory…
After thinking it over thoroughly, this was the only explanation Kitahara could find.
"Senpai, is something wrong?"
Agnes Digital noticed his unusual expression.
After a moment's hesitation, Kitahara explained his suspicion frankly.
But surprisingly, after hearing his explanation, Agnes Digital firmly shook her head, refuting him with rare seriousness.
"Senpai, I know my usual behavior might seem somewhat abnormal, and I've often said I don't particularly care about winning—though it's true."
"But Senpai, no matter how abnormal I am normally or how little I care about winning or honors, once I step onto the racetrack, I'm still a racehorse girl."
"Perhaps when victory is assured, as a winner I might slow down slightly, to console those girls less fortunate than myself."
"But otherwise, slowing down, not taking a race seriously when victory isn't certain—that wouldn't only be irresponsible toward myself, but a huge insult to my competitors."
"They stand beside me on that racetrack because they consider me their equal."
"I might not strongly crave victory, but I'll still give everything to pursue it—out of respect for their recognition."
"Therefore, despite my casual attitude off-track, on the racetrack, during competitions, I do have competitive spirit and emotions caused by ranking changes."
Digital spoke with utmost sincerity and seriousness.
Kitahara remained silent for a moment, then finally responded:
"Then why did you previously keep asking the organizers to let you carry a cheering board during races?"
Hearing this, Digital stiffened, eyes shifting guiltily.
"Um… That…since I'm just an ordinary Uma Musume, I thought if I struggled hopelessly to finish last, I might as well take the chance to support the girls I admire… And cheering…that doesn't count as unserious, right?"
Her voice gradually trailed off, growing softer.
Yet right after she fell silent, a warm hand gently rubbed her head.
"Alright, I was just teasing you. I know now—you're a good girl who respects both races and rivals. Sorry for underestimating you earlier, Digital."
Hearing this, Agnes Digital froze momentarily before hurriedly protesting:
"No, no, it's not Senpai's fault! My behavior was indeed too casual…"
Listening to Digital, Kitahara suddenly realized something, his expression growing serious, hand stopping abruptly.
He looked into her eyes gravely:
"Digital, answer honestly. Deep down, do you really believe an ordinary Uma Musume like yourself can't awaken a [Domain]?"