The first destination of the "European trip" was Surrey, England — located southwest of London, adjacent to the Thames.
The flight had taken off at 10 p.m. the previous night. There isn't an airport inside Surrey itself, but in the northernmost part near Staines sits one of the United Kingdom's largest and most important international airports: Heathrow.
From Tokyo Narita Airport to Heathrow is a ten-hour flight. Japan is roughly ten hours ahead of the UK, which meant it was 6 a.m. Tokyo time the next morning and 10 p.m. in Britain.
During the ten hours on the plane, only the one who'd been excited to fly — the one known as the Sirius Symboli — had enthusiastically tried to pilot through the night and then gone to sleep. Another pilot was at the controls now.
Most of the trainers and Uma Musume had slept through the time change, and now in the cabin everyone was chatting animatedly about arriving in Surrey.
To be precise: it was mostly the trainers and Uma Musume who'd never been to the UK, or even left the country, asking questions of Tarō, who had studied in Britain, and Kitahara, who — for some reason — knew a lot about foreign places.
"If it's Surrey, you could say it's one of the wealthiest counties in Britain."
Yuzuhara was the first to speak, and he had a slightly nostalgic look as he said:
"I happened to come here once last year, when I went with my mentor to take part in a treatment for Tony Bianca."
Tony Bianca was the best Uma Musume of this generation in Italy; after being named Italy's Representative Uma Musume of the Year last year she toured across Europe.
On her trip to Britain, their plane encountered an unexpected storm and she suffered some psychological effects. Many teams and experts from Europe went to assist, including Yuzuhara's mentor.
"Surrey isn't very industrialized compared to the rest of Britain. It has large areas of vegetation, lakes, and rivers — very livable."
Yuzuhara continued:
"It also has a long history and many well-known sites — for example, Hampton Court Palace, which belongs to the British royal family, is located here."
"The comfortable environment plus the historical and status significance means lots of wealthy people from Britain and around the world gather here — many not only live here but also have businesses based here."
"It's rather late right now, you won't see much. If it were daytime you'd be able to see, through the windows, endless fields and all kinds of classical villas or manors."
He pointed at the cabin windows as he spoke; they were pitch-black outside, with only a few distant lights visible.
A group of Uma Musume peered curiously at the windows — the inquisitive ones like Gold Ship and Opera O had already jostled for the windows and pressed their faces to the glass to look out.
Yuzuhara smiled at the sight.
"I told you, you won't see anything now. If you want to tour, wait until daytime. Tonight you should try and recover from the jet lag."
Gold Ship and Opera O kept craning at the window, not giving up. Dream Journey — who was very particular about her bed — looked a little troubled.
"Yuzuhara-uncle, do you think the beds at Yesen Academy will be uncomfortable?"
She twisted in her seat and tugged at her ear, as if worrying that if the beds were strange she wouldn't be able to sleep.
The "Yesen" Dream Journey mentioned was the place they were headed: the British campus of the Tracen Union Academy in Europe is located in Yesen, Surrey.
"It should be fine. The Yesen Tracen Academy won't have poor conditions."
Kitahara answered Dream Voyage after thinking a moment and offered reassurance:
"Unlike the Tracen Academy in Japan — where the best conditions naturally go to the Central Academy — in Europe there are many academies with equivalent educational conditions."
"The Tracen campuses in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and so on are not inferior to Japan's Central Academy."
"Generally speaking, these European countries had organized, large-scale modern Uma Musume competitions very early — you can trace it back to the 18th century."
"Accordingly, each country's Tracen Academy tends to be established in places with long histories."
"Yesen Academy is one of them. It has one of the world's earliest modern racetracks, and the academy was founded among the earliest group."
"With that in mind, Yesen Academy is experienced at welcoming Uma Musume from all over the world and should have considered adaptability issues."
"If I remember right, Yuzuhara, you came here last time with your mentor, and Sirius Symboli competed in the Royal Diamond Stakes in Britain some years ago — she probably trained here."
[There is no race named Royal Diamond Stakes. TF]
Sirius Symboli was still sleeping on the other side of the cabin; Kitahara turned to Yuzuhara and asked:
"The facilities should be fine, right?"
"They'll certainly be fine."
Yuzuhara nodded. "As I said earlier, Surrey is where the well-to-do and the aristocratic tend to live, and as one of the world's most famous tracks and academies, Yesen Racecourse and Yesen Academy often receive distinguished guests."
"For example, at the yearly Epsom Derby, even Queen Elizabeth II would come to watch at Yesen Racecourse."
"The Queen would sometimes rest at Hampton Court Palace and sometimes visit Yesen Academy."
"A place capable of receiving the Queen couldn't possibly be lacking in conditions."
What was meant to reassure Dream Journey actually shifted everyone's attention when "the Epsom Derby" was mentioned — all the Uma Musume became interested in the races.
"Ah, the Epsom Derby — I wonder if, compared to the British Derby Uma Musume, I could win."
That came from Oguri Cap, who had just won the Japanese Derby and was excitedly looking out the window, then turning to Kitahara with a hopeful expression.
[Sorry Oguri Cap but I think Frankel will solo all of you]
Not only she — the other Uma Musume' ears perked and they turned to listen with curiosity.
"Well… to be honest, I can't really judge."
Kitahara considered the group's gazes for a moment, then replied frankly:
"The Japanese Derby's influence in the world is different from each of the European countries' Derbies."
"In Europe they don't measure an Uma Musume's quality by a single country's race."
"These things are entirely different from the Japanese situation."
"For example, it's common here for an Uma Musume to win her own country's Derby yet not show anything in subsequent races, or to fail to win her national Derby but go on to win a series of the world's top European races."
"Of course, it's also possible to win both the home Derby and perform splendidly in world competitions."
"Let me give a simple example."
He thought for a moment and continued.
"Take Brigadier Gerard and Mill Reef — their careers illustrate what I'm talking about."
"Brigadier Gerard's record was 18 starts, 17 wins and 1 second. The year she matured she was four-for-four, including a G1 Central Park Stakes, and she was on average more than two lengths ahead of second place."
"In theory, an Uma Musume like that would have great prospects at the Epsom Derby, but her trainer believed she lacked long-distance adaptability. So after winning the 2000 Guineas, they chose mile races for her next four starts."
"In the meantime Mill Reef won successive titles: the Derby, the Eclipse Stakes, the Queen's Stakes, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe — and interestingly, she also averaged about two lengths ahead of second place."
"Mill Reef's record was no worse than Gerard's: 14 starts, 12 wins, 2 seconds."
"So, with those two's levels, is there really much difference at Epsom Derby?"
Kitahara shrugged and went on:
"And even though Brigadier Gerard and Mill Reef faced off in the 2000 Guineas, the latter lost by three lengths."
"If you go by Gerard's trainer, Gerard might be more suited to mile races, so who's stronger isn't so easily decided."
"Also, both of them had WUR ratings that exceeded the cap — 141 points — and Gerard was unanimously chosen as Europe's Representative Uma Musume in the year she was voted, just like Dancing Brave"
[I'm pretty sure there is no cap. So Idk what they are talking about. But IRL Gerard got 144 third highest behind Frankel and Sea-Bird]
"Their fans have argued fiercely for years and still there's no definitive answer."
"So, whether in Britain or across Europe, the race situations are far more complicated than in Japan. Oguri Cap, when you asked simply whether you're strong, I honestly can't give a definitive answer."
[Lot of waffling for the answer to be a resounding No.]
That explanation left most of the Uma Musume deep in thought — Oguri Cap included.
She wasn't great at learning theory, but in races and practical matters she could understand things quickly.
"I see… it looks like we can't use Japanese experience to judge racing here."
She scratched her head and thought out loud.
"Yeah, Kitahara's right. Your summary was good, Oguri Cap."
Symboli Rudolf spoke up then, her tone carrying a didactic edge.
"To put it bluntly, it's because the entire Japanese Uma Musume scene is behind the world."
"If you compare individually with Britain, France, or Italy — single countries — some of us could stand and compete."
"Like you, Oguri Cap, in terms of inherent ability you might not necessarily lose."
She looked at Oguri Cap and affirmed that, then changed the topic.
"But world-class competitions aren't viewed that way."
"On one hand, once you step onto these tracks you're not facing a single country's Uma Musume but the world's absolute top talents."
"Then your teammates could become those opponents; or, if your teammate lacks sufficient strength, they won't be able to accompany you into races together."
"On the other hand, when I said earlier that Oguri Cap was strong, that was on paper — speed, stamina, strength."
"But those attributes will certainly be discounted once placed onto the international stage."
She glanced out the window as she spoke.
"For example, the Epsom Derby — many aspects of that race are things we've never seen."
"Japanese race distances are split into base-multiples and non-base distances — the former are multiples of 400 meters, the latter are not — but either way, the total distance is always an integer."
"The Epsom Derby's distance, though, is very odd at 2,423 meters. That sounds strange to us, but to Europeans it's the standard '1 mile 4 furlongs 10 yards.'"
"Besides the distance, the course itself is different."
"Epsom Racecourse isn't the familiar 'oval' shape we often see; it's the uncommon 'U' shape."
"The finish line is very close to the stands, but the start is about 500 meters away on the opposite side."
"After the start it's not a straight run — there's a slight curve before a straight."
"Then there's a long turn with a radius close to 300 meters."
"After the big turn there's a straight stretch of roughly 1,000 meters. I don't think any of you have raced on a track like that, have you?"
Symboli Rudolfs's explanation about the Racecourse left most of the Uma Musume bewildered, except for the trainers who already knew something about it.
Seeing this, she smiled and shook her head.
"See? Just the race distance alone leaves you puzzled. If you actually go run, it'll probably take time just to learn how to start."
"Apart from the distances there's also track surface, weather, and such."
"Japan has a typical temperate oceanic monsoon climate — hot and rainy summers, cold and dry winters, and distinct four seasons."
"That climate causes the track conditions to vary a lot through spring, summer, autumn, and winter."
"For example, spring and summer tracks generally feel comfortable, but the turf is relatively soft and, when it rains, it can turn into heavy going."
"In contrast, in autumn and winter the turf dries and hardens — take the year-end Arima Kinen: though it's called a turf race, it visually resembles more of a muddy field; the grass stems and the hard ground make kinetic feedback more pronounced while running."
"Major European tracks, on the other hand, have more of a maritime climate and lack monsoons, so most of the time their tracks are much softer."
"When it rains, they can turn into 'sloppy' going."
"Actually, not many of you have much exposure to that kind of sloppy track; if you had to compare…"
she paused, then looked toward Oguri Cap and Inari One.
"It's somewhat like racing on muddy tracks after heavy rain. There are differences of course, but needing great strength to pull out of the mud is the same."
[there is no cut, don;t be confused. the Author wrote it like that]
Among the entourage for this European trip were, naturally, the Eisei team's members.
Besides them, Symboli Rudolf and Sirius Symboli were assigned — one to handle negotiations with the European academy leaders, the other to act as guide and pilot.
The rest were Uma Musume familiar to the team — especially Opera O, and five of the Gold Family's Uma Musume of various ages.
Beyond them were Just A Way and Deep Impact.
The former had come along with the Gold Family's Uma Musume; the latter was a hesitant invitation by Dream Journey, with Symboli Rudolf and Kitahara having discussed it with her parents and arranged for her to come along.
As Dream Journey had mentioned, this little-named Uma Musume called Deep Impact was delicate and introverted; she shrank into a corner on the plane as if trying to hide herself, only uttering a surprised "ah" when spoken to and otherwise staying quiet.
Among all these Uma Musume, the only ones with muddy-track experience were, as Symboli Rudolf had just mentioned, Oguri Cap and Inari One.
"Hm… even if I don't understand climate and such very well…"
Hearing Symboli Rudolf, Oguri Cap thought for a moment and said, "But if it comes to strength, I don't lack that."
"So, if I raced in Europe, I'd actually have an advantage?"
Inari One grew excited too.
"Yeah, yeah! If it's strength we're talking about, Oguri Cap and I aren't afraid of any opponent!"
She flexed an arm and pressed her other hand against her bulging biceps confidently. "I usually arm-wrestle with Tamamo and the others and they've never beaten me once!"
Tamamo Cross had been listening with interest to Rudolf's lecture, but when Inari One suddenly compared herself to Tamamo, Tamamo was a little upset.
"Hey! You idiot — don't compare having big muscles with being simple-minded and drag me into it!"
"Huh?! What do you mean 'big muscles, simple mind'?! Want to test that again?!"
"What are we going to test — who wants to—"
"Ha—ah… yeah, it sounds interesting. Can I join?"
The two Uma Musume's routine squabble was interrupted by a yawn from the other side of the cabin.
Sirius Symboli must have been woken up by the noise, but she didn't seem upset. Rubbing her still-drowsy eyes, she smiled and walked over.
"Oh? It's you two little ones again — what are you fighting about now? Another match like before?"
She'd hit Tamamo and Inari's sore spot without noticing; tilting her head and spreading her hands, she joked:
"I don't understand you two — why do you always want to fight when you meet…"
Before she could finish the sentence, Tamamo flew at her, yelling.
"Damn it, you said we were short again! I'll take you on!"
Waving her fists, Tamamo charged at Sirius Symboli with fierce momentum. Sirius merely yawned again and reached out casually.
"Come on, I was only joking — don't be so mad."
Using her height to advantage, she pinned Tamamo's head at arm's length, keeping her about a meter away while Tamamo flailed her fists at the air, protesting.
"You've been told a thousand times that doing that doesn't help — you're useless, useless, la."
"Damn it… Inari, why are you just standing there? Come help me beat her! Hey… when did you get here…?"
"Don't worry about when I arrived — beat her!"
"All right! Beat her!"
Somehow Inari One, face full of anger, charged over and then…
Together, Tamamo and Inari were each held by one hand by Sirius Emblem and kept a meter apart as they punched the air.
"Ola ola ola ola ola!" x2.
"Ha—ah… useless, useless la — you two, don't waste your energy."
Sirius Symboli held the two small ones and, with a trace of helplessness, said:
"Alright, alright! I admit it, I apologize, okay? I was wrong, is that fine!?"
Scenes like this were nothing new by now. Sirius Symbol was always the outspoken type, and ever since she started working with the EiseiTeam, she had repeatedly slipped her tongue by calling Tamamo Cross and Inari One "shorties."
So, whether it was now, back at the academy, or during training sessions, Kitahara and the others had seen this kind of scene countless times before.
Seeing it happen again, most of them could only give helpless smiles, while the likes of Nakayama Festa, Gold Ship, and Opera O—those who loved lively chaos—were already stirring up the commotion gleefully.
"Little Tama—no, Master Tama! Master Inari! If you're fighting someone taller, you don't gotta hit that high!"
Nakayama Festa said it like a seasoned veteran, casually taking out a few dice. "Wanna try long-range attacks? They're lead-weighted."
"Hey, masters, go for her midsection!"
Gold Ship was standing nearby, miming punches and kicks enthusiastically.
"Hah—hahaha! What a splendidly passionate battle! Such a scene deserves to be sung about!"
Saying that, Opera O suddenly became very serious, as if thinking of which opera aria would suit the moment.
"...Sigh, you people really are…"
Kitahara had only just managed a half-sigh of resignation when Symboli Rudolf cleared her throat twice and spoke in a calm but firm tone.
"Alright, Sirius, that's enough fooling around."
She pointed toward the cockpit. "You're awake at just the right time. It's your turn to handle the landing."
"Oh! Right! That's why I set an alarm in the first place!"
Whether she was truly exasperated or secretly enjoying the chaos, Sirius's expression was unreadable. But once she heard Rudolf's words, she suddenly looked as if she'd remembered something important.
Then, with practiced precision, she twisted her wrists, redirecting her strength. Tamamo Cross and Inari One, who had been throwing air punches, suddenly stumbled over each other, bumping clumsily face-first.
"Ah! Ouch!"
"Ow ow ow! You—you terrible woman...!"
"Didn't I say 'muda muda' already?"
Taking the chance, Sirius zipped toward the cockpit, childishly turning halfway to make a face at them.
"Know why you can't beat me?"
"Because I'm from the Symboli family, kid."
"You were just bragging about strength earlier, right? Don't underestimate a veteran who's raced in Europe! If we're just comparing raw power, you're still a few leagues behind me!"
With that, she slid inside the cockpit, locked the door from within with a click.
"Get back here—ah!" "You coward—ow!"
Tamamo Cross and Inari One clearly hadn't expected that move. They ended up slamming right into the closing door—face-to-face yet again.
After that noisy scene, everyone in the cabin felt much livelier. Even after disembarking, the horse girls remained animated and excited.
Their conversations varied.
Tamamo Cross and Inari One were still muttering about how to team up and "teach Sirius a lesson," trying to rope in Oguri Cap, Super Creek, and Ardan.
Special Week and Opera O were chatting about which opera house they might visit later.
That idea, of course, came from Opera O. Having grown up with her mother in rural Hokkaido, Special Week hadn't known what an opera house was until she came to Tokyo—and now, influenced by Opera O, she seemed genuinely interested.
The Gold family's group, meanwhile, was all over the place with their chatter.Gold Journey was scolding Nakayama Festa and Gold Ship for their earlier mischief.
Dream Journey and Just A Way flanked a nervous Deep Impact, teasing,
"I wonder if the beds there are comfy."
"Think they've got any gray horse girl here?"
The trainers were having their own discussions, naturally focused on training-related matters—terrain, climate, and how the girls adapted to the new environment. Those were all things worth noting.
Rudolf and Sirius, both veterans of the Symbol family, also joined the talk. Rudolf even started discussing race details with Kitahara.
"For now," she said thoughtfully, "Oguri and the others have some idea about how track, opponents, and conditions vary from race to race... but it's still not enough."
"I don't want to pressure them," she sighed, "but having personally experienced international competitions, I can say we're still far from the world's top level."
"I imagine Sirius feels that even more strongly."
"...Hey, Rudolf," Sirius replied helplessly, "isn't there a saying—'Don't call out your own sister'?"
Since she'd been mentioned, Sirius sighed and continued, "Publicly or privately, you don't like bringing up your American retirement match, right?"
"Well, I don't like talking about my races in Europe either."
She spread her hands, listing off results with a wry smile:
"King's Diamond Stakes—8th."
"Baden Grand Prix—4th."
"Then 6th."
"Prix Royal-Oak in France—3rd."
"And Prix Foy before the Arc—okay, that was 2nd."
"But the Arc itself? Absolute disaster. 14th. Out of 15! That's just pathetic."
Though she wore a resigned expression, her blunt nature kept her from sugarcoating her European record.
"And let me tell you," she added, "that Arc was crazy. I ran it with Dancing Brave, and we both started near the back."
"It was just like this year's Japanese Derby—an all-out stamina war right from the start."
"Me, Dancing Brave, and Bering stayed near the tail while the top 11 horses bunched up tight ahead of us. No room to overtake, and we had to keep up the pace, which burned a ton of stamina."
"By halfway, I was already running on fumes. I thought the others beside me were too."
"But then, out of nowhere, Bering just surged ahead like a rocket. I was completely stunned!"
"What shocked me even more was Dancing Brave—she not only caught up, she overtook everyone, even Bering who started earlier!"
"That kind of opponent's terrifying, okay? Even if I get scolded by the clan leader after that, what could I possibly do?"
The "Bering" Sirius mentioned was a top French Derby horse—certainly not weak—and she was racing on home turf, too.
But both she and that French champion were utterly crushed by Dancing Brave's overwhelming performance in the Arc, proving just how dominant Dancing Brave was.
"I'm not criticizing you," Rudolf sighed softly. "It's just... sigh."
Turning from Sirius, she looked to Kitahara.
"What I meant was—whenever we, or Speed Symboli before us, went abroad for races, our prep was always the same. We'd only start adjusting right before the competition."
"But you're different, Kitahara. You're trying this a year in advance, planning to spend half a year—or even a full year—training overseas. That's never been done before."
"In theory, that kind of preparation should yield remarkable results."
"However..." she glanced back at Sirius, "you know as well as I do what happened with us. The issue isn't just short prep time—it's the gap in raw ability between us and the world's elite."
"Take that Arc Sirius mentioned—honestly, even if it had been me, or any of Japan's best horse girls from recent years, none of us could've won."
"A horse girl like Dancing Brave... she's too strong. So strong that her opponents have no hope."
"And the next generation after her isn't any weaker, so…"
She looked at Kitahara with concern.
"How will you get Oguri and the others to truly take this seriously?"
Kitahara, who had been listening quietly, smiled and shook his head.
"I think you're worrying too much, Rudolf."
"...Too much?"
"Mm. Look." He pointed toward Oguri and her group.
Their plane had just landed at Heathrow Airport. Since this was a special charter arranged jointly by Tracen Academies in Japan and the UK, they didn't go through the normal exit. Instead, they were escorted through a private passageway to a separate lounge.
It was much more convenient, given the group's makeup—Japan's most talented racehorses, including the freshly crowned Derby champion Oguri Cap, and legends like Rudolf herself.
Customs had been prearranged, with staff waiting to inspect their luggage.
While this was happening, Oguri and the others had carried their lively airplane chatter into the lounge—until something on a nearby TV caught their attention.
"...This race…"
Hearing the commentary and the foreign language, Rudolf frowned thoughtfully. "Italian? An Italian race?"
As the student council president of Central Tracen Academy, she was used to interacting with foreign people and horse girls, and had learned several languages since childhood—Italian among them.
Kitahara, too, had picked up bits of many languages back when he was a corporate club director, so he could understand some Italian.
He'd already noticed the broadcast and recognized the race."Premio Presidente della Repubblica—in Japanese terms, the San Marino President Cup."
He explained to Rudolf, eyes narrowing."It's a G1, turf, 2400 meters."
"The other runners don't matter. What matters is—one of them is Tony Bianca."
"The Italian queen herself?"
Her eyes sharpened immediately.
As she spoke, the commentator's voice came through the speakers, tinged with admiration and a hint of regret.
"Truly a display of strength worthy of her name—Tony Bianca proves again she's Italy's finest horse girl.
Though compared to her last victory by ten lengths, this time she wins by just four—perhaps she's conserving energy for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe."
Another guest analyst chimed in:
"Indeed. Before last year's Arc, Tony Bianca overworked herself. Incredibly, she raced just eight days after her first start that year—a G3—and then five days later entered this very G1.
She won all three, but running 2000 and 2400 meters back-to-back took a huge toll.
By the time of the Arc, she wasn't at her peak."
"This year, her team's clearly learned from that. No overloading. She's pacing herself.
I'd say this year's Arc might surprise the entire world."
On the screen, a tall, statuesque horse girl with a cool expression walked toward the winner's podium.
She had the distinctive features of an Italian beauty—large eyes with downward-tilted corners that gave her a wistful air, paired with soft, full lips that added an alluring charm.
Her racing outfit matched that elegance—a hybrid between an evening gown and a duelist's attire.
A classic European tricorn hat with a long feather plume, a short tailored jacket over a cinched waist, one-sided cape draping gracefully behind her.
Every trim and accent was clean, refined.
Her long, straight trousers and high boots emphasized her height—already over 170 cm—making her seem even taller.
Watching and listening, Loudoro murmured,"Tony Bianca's goal... must be this year's Arc, right?"
"Yeah, no doubt," Kitahara nodded.
"According to that commentary, she ran last year's Arc while exhausted—and Yuzuhara also said she'd missed part of her training due to mental strain."
"Even so, she still placed second, only two lengths behind. That's terrifyingly strong."
"With that kind of power, I can't imagine her skipping this year's Arc."
Knowing the real-world history, Kitahara suspected Tony Bianca would indeed win this year's Arc.
But instead of saying that aloud, he shifted the topic.
"I didn't want you to watch her, Rudolf. I wanted you to watch them."
"...Them?"
Following his gesture, Loudoro turned—and instantly understood.
Oguri and the others didn't speak English well, let alone Italian.Rudolf remembered trying to teach Oguri a single English phrase before the Satsuki Sho, and again during Derby prep—and she still couldn't pronounce it.
Some others, like Tamamo Cross, Super Creek, Araan, and Opera O, knew some English—but none understood Italian.
Even so, they had been utterly focused since the race began—eyes glued to the screen, breath held as Toni Bianca took the trophy.
"You're right, Kitahara," Loudoro said softly, smiling.
"I was worrying too much."
"They weren't careless or indifferent—they just hadn't seen what the international top level looks like. Now that they have, they're burning with fighting spirit."
"We'd already planned to take them to see the European circuits up close, but… it seems we might not even need to wait."
Her smile turned thoughtful. "They already look nervous—and maybe inspired."
Kitahara nodded. Indeed, while their posture was upright and energetic, the way their ears tilted back slightly showed tension. They were already intimidated—and motivated—by what they saw.
"Well," he said lightly, "we'll see if they still need comforting later."
"Actually," he added with a grin, "maybe sooner than that—they'll be meeting the Epsom Academy delegation soon."
According to their earlier arrangements, the person coming to greet them at the airport wasn't the student council president, Dancing Brave.
As Kitahara had heard, Dancing Brave's health hadn't yet fully recovered, so she wasn't active and mostly stayed at the academy or convalescence center.
Still, Epsom Academy was giving them full respect—their greeter was none other than the academy's chairwoman herself.
Lyphard—a legendary horse girl with 12 starts, 6 wins, and 1 second place. Like Akikawa Yayoi back home, she was known not only for her own record but for her distinguished lineage.
[Lyphard's Sire was Northern Dancer]
In another world, Dancing Brave herself would be Lyphard's descendant.
Of course, that wasn't the case here—but when Kitahara finally saw her, the resemblance in her chestnut hair and gradient eyes made her look uncannily like a "mother and daughter" pair nonetheless.
(End of Chapter)