After saying goodbye to Trainer Oki, Dream Weaver left the track and began wandering aimlessly around Tracen Academy.
Thanks to Dancing Brave's interference, the plans she had carefully laid out now had to be changed.
But without a trainer's support, could she really complete the main quest with her own half-baked training skills?
Dream Weaver bit her lip unconsciously. The pressure that had once felt manageable now weighed heavily on her after Dancing Brave's move.
Still, what was done was done. Getting angry wouldn't help—she had to find a way to finish the main quest under these new constraints.
And to do that, she first needed to take stock of exactly what resources she still had.
With that thought, Dream Weaver murmured under her breath:
"System."
As soon as she willed it, a translucent blue screen materialized before her eyes.
--+--
[Uma Musume Training System — Status]
Character: Dream Weaver
Speed: C+ [Veteran]
Stamina: C [Veteran]
Power: D [Rookie]
Guts: C+ [Veteran]
Wit: D [Rookie]
Track: Turf A, Dirt C
Zone: Not Unlocked
Skills: Concentration (Blue), Tokyo Swift (Purple)
--+--
Uma Musume enter a period of rapid growth known as their "Maturation." Besides natural talent, what fuels this growth is training and experience. Having trained for nearly a decade, Dream Weaver's years of accumulated experience had finally translated into real ability once her breakout phase began.
"It's so much better than back in the real world when I hadn't trained at all," Dream Weaver muttered to herself as she scanned the stats.
In a way, Dream Weaver was an early bloomer—her Maturation had started unusually early. It was precisely because of this growth during summer break in the real world that she'd been able to enroll at Tracen Academy.
She had assumed all Uma Musume were like that, but after comparing herself to others, she realized how unusual she was.
Someone as gifted as Tokai Teio only had D-tier stats across the board at her debut race—clearly, she had just entered her Maturation. And the reason Dream Weaver had been able to outpace Narita Top Road and Admire Vega by such a wide margin was that their Maturation had only just begun.
"An early bloomer, huh… I just hope I don't burn out too soon. At least not until after I finish the main quest…"
The abnormality made her a little uneasy.
But she didn't dwell on it for long. Dream Weaver patted her cheeks and reminded herself she didn't have time to worry. Soon, she turned her attention back to the mission.
"With stats like these, winning a G3 race shouldn't be a problem."
"It'd be even better if I could pick one held at Tokyo Racecourse."
Frowning slightly, she ran the numbers in her head.
She couldn't help but sigh. Picking suitable races was usually the trainer's job. Without one, Dream Weaver had to rely on herself.
Regardless, she set her first goal: win a G3 race and complete Stage Mission One.
With that settled, she began thinking about the missions ahead. She remembered receiving an item after finishing the initial quest earlier. She hadn't checked it out at the time, but now she needed to make use of every resource she had.
Whispering "Inventory" under her breath, Dream Weaver focused on the item that looked like a first-aid kit.
--+--
[Medical Repair Kit]
[Durability: 1/1]
[Description: Injuries are every Uma Musume's nightmare. Using this kit will temporarily ease the pain, but rest is essential afterward—or things might take a turn for the worse.
Note: "Not like this, please no!" — A certain fractured Uma Musume]
--+--
"It has durability? I guess not all items are created equal," Dream Weaver thought to herself.
Previous items like the Potential Activation Potion and Stage Pass had been one-time use, but this was her first time seeing an item with a durability meter.
After examining the Medical Repair Kit, she opened the Shop interface. Although she needed to save up 100,000 SP to exchange for the Hope Gem, hoarding points forever wasn't a strategy.
It'd be better to spend some SP on items that could boost her strength now, so she could tackle harder missions later. That was the only way to create a positive cycle—otherwise, she'd eventually hit a wall.
It was funny, in a way—this was actually the first time she'd seriously browsed the Shop's items.
When she'd been searching for the Hope Gem before, she'd skimmed past everything else. And after entering the scenario quest, she'd poured all her energy into training her base stats without even glancing at the Shop.
After browsing for several minutes, she finally closed the window.
"I see… Most of the exchangeable items are training aids or recovery tools."
"Special items like the Hope Gem aren't just expensive—each one has specific unlock conditions."
She then scrolled through the list of items she could actually afford and picked a few that seemed most useful.
--+--
[Resilient Vine Knee Pads]
[Durability: 100/100]
[Price: 1000 SP]
[Description: Knee pads soaked in a special medicinal solution. Slightly reduces joint strain. Durability decreases after each training session.
Note: "I used to be an Uma Musume like you, 'til I took an arrow to the knee." — A certain dorm matron at Tracen Academy]
--+--
[Morning Dew Breathing Strips]
[Durability: 100/100]
[Price: 1000 SP]
[Description: Light green nasal strips that dilate blood vessels in the nasal mucosa. Helps improve breathing rhythm and may slightly increase stamina training efficiency.
Note: "Is this… the legendary breathing technique?" — A certain Uma Musume striking a weird pose]
--+--
[Rock Salt Weight Bags]
[Durability: 50/50]
[Price: 1500 SP]
[Description: Special porous design releases minerals through sweat during training. Significantly improves power training effectiveness, but increases fatigue.
Note: "So salty." — A certain overly curious Uma Musume]
--+--
These items had much higher durability than the Medical Repair Kit. If each use reduced durability by one, the knee pads and breathing strips could be used 100 times, and the weight bags 50 times.
Although the weight bags had fewer uses, their description promised "significant" improvement compared to the "slight" or "moderate" effects of the others.
All three items totaled 3500 SP. Dream Weaver kept another 1000 SP in reserve for emergency medical supplies.
Once she confirmed everything, she whispered softly:
"Exchange."
[Exchange complete.]
A cold, mechanical voice rang in her ears as the SP total at the bottom of the shop screen decreased accordingly.
Dream Weaver let out a long breath.
These were all the chips she had left to play.
And with them, she was going to win the championship in her main quest!
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.