"Trainer, you said you'd play with me for two days, but did you mean with them too?" Tokai Teio asked, her empty eyes wide. She turned to her teammates, who at this moment felt more like love rivals or prowling cats.
"I thought it was a rare opportunity, so I might as well reward all of you. You all train so hard every day, so let's all go out together. I'll buy you whatever you want."
"Oh my... in that case, Sky has something she really wants," Sky said, looking at Luo Cheng. "I just don't know how much money Sky will have to spend to get it."
"Is that something you have to buy with money?"
"If not, Sky will try to just take it," she said, giggling as she pressed herself against him, her gaze lingering on a certain spot.
"Hey! Stay away from Trainer! I'm the one who gets the biggest reward this time!" Tokai Teio hugged Luo Cheng's arm tightly and puffed out her cheeks.
"Trainer, can we really buy anything we want?" Dober asked, looking at the dazzling array of items on the counter.
"It's best if it's something you can use every day. That coffee cup looks great. You'd use it when you drink coffee, right, Dober?"
Luo Cheng focused on everyday items. To get the most value out of these special-attribute items, they had to be used frequently. Since the game was mixed with real-world elements, the items' attribute boosts wouldn't be completely random. For example, buying a TV wouldn't boost a horse girl's speed by 20%, because a horse girl couldn't run while carrying a TV. So, he had to buy related items.
To increase training, he'd buy clothes. To increase stamina, he'd buy food and cutlery. As for intelligence, Luo Cheng figured a TV, a computer, or books would work. His goal was to experiment and understand the game's mechanics on his own terms.
"Even if guinea pig-kun says we can buy something, I can't find anything I particularly want," Agnes Tachyon said, wandering in front of a counter. She rarely went to a general supermarket, and even when she did, she'd head straight for the tea section. "How about this? Guinea pig-kun, you choose for me. I want to see what you'd buy me."
"Then I'll ask you to do the same for me, too, Trainer~" Sky raised her hand.
"You're asking me, a straight guy, to pick things for you? Are you sure you'll use them? My taste is awful."
"Don't worry," Agnes Tachyon said, her lips curving into a playful smirk. "I'll use it every day, just like I use guinea pig-kun."
"This is so weird! We should be celebrating my victory today! Why are we suddenly here shopping?" Tokai Teio grumbled. She had just won a race in the morning, and now in the afternoon, her Trainer was dragging them all to a mall. No matter how she looked at it, her Trainer should be taking her back to his room to cuddle and play with her! Or at the very least, rub her a little to let out all the pressure she was holding inside and have some fun.
Why were there so many irrelevant people here? Even if they were going to the mall, it should be just me, Tokai Teio-sama, and him!
"Is there anything you want, Teio?" Luo Cheng asked, feeling the pressure building up beside him.
"I want to buy this, and take it back to discipline it properly," she said, pointing at Luo Cheng.
"Trainer," Dober tugged on Luo Cheng's sleeve. "That..."
Following her gaze, Luo Cheng saw a charm hanging on the counter. The crystalline pieces glowed under the lights, looking like stars in the night sky. Luo Cheng took it down. "Just this?"
"Mhm."
What kind of special effect would a charm have? Luo Cheng was curious. He had the clerk pack it up. After Dober had chosen something, the others no longer hesitated. But perhaps wanting to spare Luo Cheng's wallet, they all chose small trinkets.
"Don't you want more?"
Hearing Luo Cheng's words, the horse girls hesitated. "Trainer, you must be frugal with your spending."
"A wife's first duty is to learn how to manage finances."
"A student's expenses are limited, but there will be many more things to spend money on in the future. The Trainer needs to save up."
These people... why are they suddenly acting like my wives? It's not even a given that I have a future.
Just as Luo Cheng was about to explain that his money was useless, his phone rang. He opened the message, and it was from the Chairman.
[CONGRATULATIONS!]
The message started with that very iconic word.
[Tokai Teio has won a brilliant victory. Reporters would like to interview Trainer Luo Cheng and Teio. When are you available?]
Luo Cheng hesitated for a moment and replied, [Anytime.]
[In that case, let the reporters come tomorrow. Do your best, Trainer Luo Cheng!]
Luo Cheng put away his phone, and a notification suddenly popped up in front of him.
[Event: Wakagoma Stakes Race Concluded. Event: Tokai Teio's Interview Has Begun.]
Huh? The story events are connected. Can they be triggered in a chain?
"Trainer?" Everyone noticed Luo Cheng's strange expression and couldn't help but ask.
"It's nothing. There's an interview for Teio tomorrow."
"Oh? An interview for me! Hee hee~ Those people must be captivated by my magnificent form! They know how awesome I am, unlike you, Trainer! You don't have that 'My Teio-sama is invincible' attitude at all!"
"Actually, I admire Teio very much."
"I never noticed!"
"My admiration is very subtle."
"Well, you should make it more obvious and see me, Teio, as the only one!"
Luo Cheng patted her head. Tokai Teio instinctively squinted her eyes and happily wagged her tail.
Sometimes she was a mischievous kid, and sometimes her "attack power" was astonishing. After all this time, Luo Cheng was finally beginning to understand Teio. After walking around the mall, Luo Cheng went to a pharmacy and bought some things. Finally, carrying several bags, the group returned to Tracen.
Medicine, books, food, accessories... Luo Cheng sorted the things he had bought, then pulled out his notebook to record them. He wanted to figure out what he could bring back to the game world and what kind of special effects they would have. He was determined to understand the game's mechanics in his own way. By the time he looked up, the moon was already high in the sky.
After the Wakagoma Stakes, the next race would be the Satsuki Sho, the most important race for Tokai Teio, followed closely by the Japanese Derby. Both races were close together, and including the month before the event was triggered, it would be a total of over two months. He needed to wait two months to enter the next plot.
Two months, over sixty days... The thought alone made Luo Cheng feel tired. This wasn't like a game where you just clicked and half a month passed. Here, Luo Cheng had to live through every single day. Maybe he'd get old before he ever cleared the game.
Old?
Thinking of this, Luo Cheng rummaged through his desk, pulled out a mirror, and looked at his face. Right... why didn't I notice? It had been over half a year, and his hair hadn't grown at all. Does this mean I won't get old? But Teio and the others haven't changed either. What's going on...?
Luo Cheng pinched his face. Suddenly, a dark shadow blocked the light. He looked up to see the person who had entered the room. Long black hair draped behind her, her golden eyes glinted, and a smile appeared on her pale, translucent face.
"...Dober?"