"Teio, train with Dober."
"Yes."
"Teio, train with Tachyon."
"Yes."
"Teio, train with Sky."
"...Yes."
For a while, I tried all sorts of methods, but I still couldn't trigger a support card event. Based on my previous guess, a support card event should have a chance of being triggered as long as Tokai Teio trains with another horse girl. However, I might have just had bad luck, as I failed to trigger one for several days in a row. I also noticed that when Teio trained with another horse girl, they would stay together until the training session was over, rather than it being a small project.
Once the training instruction was completed, even if I told the two of them to separate, they would continue to train together. There was no way for me to use a bug to end the session and restart without an event being triggered. I had to wait until they both stopped and came to me to say, "Trainer, we're finished." Unless I rushed onto the track and forcibly stopped them, but even that would only work for a moment; they would resume training as soon as I let go.
Today was no different. I sighed as I watched Tokai Teio training with Sky. The event trigger failed again. What was the problem? Was it the time, the location? Or was I just plain unlucky?
After a fruitless attempt, I lay on the grass, staring blankly at the sky.
"Trainer, we're finished." Tokai Teio and Sky walked over. I looked at the time.
"Take a break, Teio. I'll help you relax."
"Okay!"
Tokai Teio sat beside me, her cheeks flushed. She took off her shoes, and I placed her feet on my lap. As my fingers touched her warm, damp socks, I was met with a strong scent of sweat, mixed with a citrusy, soapy fragrance. I was now used to this smell. What was once a little off-putting had now become something I liked. After all, Tokai Teio's feet were very flexible, and they felt comfortable whether she was stomping or being massaged. After being "played with" by her for so long, I had developed a fondness for feet.
As I kneaded her foot, Tokai Teio's face turned red, and she let out a faint sigh. Sky watched eagerly from the side, her blue eyes fixed on me without blinking.
"I'll give you a massage later, Sky."
"Yes." She sat next to me and leaned on my shoulder.
I looked up and saw Tokai Teio's energy slowly rising with my massage. Teio's speed had now reached 600, and her stamina and power were at 400. Her guts and intelligence were a bit lower, at just over 300. Speaking of intelligence, I just remembered that I had forgotten to buy books. I had mistaken the books in VR for real-world books and mixed up the two worlds. I had been trying to improve Tokai Teio's intelligence in VR this whole time, but the effect was not very noticeable. Teio would fall asleep halfway through reading a book, which in game terms meant she was failing the training, even though she had high energy. In the real world, the game's theories were subtly different.
I had forgotten such a crucial part.
But it was fine. Tokai Teio's three main stats were all excellent. Intelligence was an extra stat, and I could train it later. As for guts, no one cares about that.
The tips of her socks had been worn black from running, and the front of her soles had turned slightly yellow from the friction between her sweat and the insoles. I stroked her foot, and the strangely warm and damp feeling gave me a peculiar sensation. I looked at Tokai Teio next to me; her small face had an expression that looked like it was about to melt. Her sky-blue eyes were misty, and her cute little ears twitched with my every touch.
I couldn't help but pinch the arch of her foot.
"Kya!" Tokai Teio instinctively let out a little cry and fell onto the grass, her thigh muscles twitching rapidly. She held up her arm to cover her face.
This little girl seemed to be getting cuter and cuter. And maybe it was just my imagination, but I felt Tokai Teio's feet were becoming more and more sensitive. Was it a change from the training? I felt the arches of Teio's feet were softer and felt better to the touch.
As I twisted Tokai Teio's foot, I looked at her stats. It was then that I suddenly noticed something. In the bottom-right corner of the stat screen, there were three new dots. They blended in with the environment, so I couldn't see them clearly, but if I looked closely, I could barely make out the difference in color.
What was this? Was this here before? I reached out and tapped the three dots. A new UI appeared in front of me.
[Event Replay]
There was only one option on the screen.
No, this was definitely not here before. I had explored every function of the system before and had never seen this option. It must have appeared after I went through the events. This was another new system.
But why didn't I get a notification that the system had been unlocked? Was I sleeping when it unlocked? After all, there had been times when I woke up and found myself in the middle of a story event. The VR world was the best example. The UI would pop up in front of my virtual self, but in the real world, my body would be unconscious. This meant that the UI notification would pop up even if I was asleep, instead of waiting for me to wake up.
I clicked on [Event Replay], and a list of options appeared.
[Event: Debut Race]
[Event: Wakakoma Stakes]
[Special Mission Event: Fishing]
[Special Mission Event: Arcade Showdown]
[Support Card Event: Solo in the Rain, My Unique Invitation in the Rain]
All the events I had experienced so far were listed, including the random and support card events.
Was this for me to watch videos? I narrowed my eyes, looking at Tokai Teio lying on the ground, Sky leaning on me, and Dober and Tachyon training. The current time was two in the afternoon.
After making a mental note of everything, I clicked on the very first text.
[Event: Debut Race]
The moment I clicked, I felt an intense wave of dizziness, as if I were in a helicopter spinning with its body. All the colors in front of me flashed and moved rapidly, finally merging into a single black color.
"Trainer... Trainer! Wake up, you lazy bum!"
I groggily opened my eyes. The colors in front of me rearranged, and I soon saw a horse girl with puffed-up cheeks, pushing my shoulder—Tokai Teio.
Seeing that I was awake, Tokai Teio said, "Lazy Trainer, sleeping in the middle of the day." Then she laughed. "I can't help but want to tease you when I see you asleep. Did you stay up late again to change the training plan, Trainer?"
"Teio..." I mumbled. "Am I dreaming?"
"Dreaming? You're already awake, Trainer."