Dream Weaver didn't know if Mejiro Ardan realized she was being used as a bargaining chip by the Mejiro family to influence her.
After their months of growing closer, she really didn't want to think of the other girl in such an ugly light, so she swallowed the anger rising in her throat and forced her voice to remain calm.
"Since you're here, then where is Mejiro Ramonu?"
Mejiro Ardan was taken aback by the question; she clearly hadn't expected Dream Weaver to bring her up.
But wanting to keep things friendly between them, Ardan shared what she knew, her voice soft and tinged with concern.
"Sister Ramonu is working hard to quell the rumors. She's been staying up late every day, and I've noticed her looking so tired lately…"
Before Ardan could finish, Dream Weaver cut her off with a cold laugh.
"Quell the rumors? This is only the beginning. I'll use my victory in the Autumn Tennō Shō to leave a wound on the Mejiro family that will never heal."
"And her? Let her keep wearing herself out running around!"
Unlike Ardan, Dream Weaver was convinced that Mejiro Ramonu, as a candidate for family head, was fully aware of everything. In her eyes, Ramonu was also covertly guiding Ardan, shaping her into a chain to bind Dream Weaver to the Mejiro family.
So, if Dream Weaver had to name the people she disliked most in the Mejiro family, the first would undoubtedly be Mejiro Asama, and the second would be Mejiro Ramonu.
That's why her tone turned so harsh when speaking of Ramonu, directing all her present fury at her. Hearing this, Ardan couldn't help but want to defend her.
"That's not true, Dreams! Sister Ramonu has always liked you too…"
Ardan's voice rose slightly, edged with urgency.
"Then why didn't she come herself? Why send you as a peacemaker?!"
"A peacemaker? What are you talking about, Dreams? I decided to come here on my own!"
Hearing the confusion in Ardan's reply, Dream Weaver merely let out a dismissive 'hmph'.
"Maybe so."
"But I won't let the Mejiro family deceive me a second time!"
Seeing how completely Dream Weaver had shut herself off, Ardan's voice began to tremble.
"But we're still connected by blood… Surely there's something we can talk about, some way to reconcile…"
"Family?"
At Ardan's words, Dream Weaver turned her head, her expression blank, and fixed Ardan with a gaze as deep and dark as the night sky.
"My Family is dead."
"Then what about me… Can't I become your family, Dreams?!"
Faced with Ardan's desperate, heartfelt cry, Dream Weaver only narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Family? Does the Mejiro family truly see me as family, or just as a tool to secure the Spring and Autumn Tennō Shō crowns?"
"For the sake of this so-called 'Tenno Sho' glory, they already drove my mother to a dead end, didn't they? And now they want to use me as the price for the Mejiro family's prosperity?!"
"I don't understand, Dreams! I don't understand any of what you're saying! I don't care about the 'Tenno Sho,' and I've never seen you as a tool!"
"I… I only see you as…"
"…Then you should leave. This is a matter between the Northern family and the Mejiro family, between me and Mejiro Asama. There's no need for Mejiro Ardan to be caught in this whirlpool of resentment."
Suddenly, Ardan rushed forward and grabbed Dream Weaver's wrist. Her fingers were cold, but their grip was firm and unyielding.
Tears were now streaming continuously down her face, falling to the ground with soft patters. Her voice was choked with sobs as she cried out,
"But Mejiro Ardan is also Northern Dreams' older sister! How could she stand by and watch her younger sister be consumed by the past, staying all alone in a place like this?"
"…"
Watching the steady fall of her tears, Dream Weaver felt a sharp, twisting pain in her heart, as if a dagger had been thrust into it. She was silent for a long moment before finally speaking, her voice weary.
"Go back to your Mejiro family. Mejiro Ardan should be the young lady of the Mejiro household."
"She shouldn't be involved with an Uma Musume whose surname is Northern."
Ardan, her strength sapped by crying, hung her head. She stared at Dream Weaver's wrist held in her hand, feeling the warmth emanating from her skin, and whispered to herself, "Is a name really that important?"
To the Dream Weaver of before, she hadn't particularly hated the Mejiro family. It wasn't just because of her grandmother's final wish, but also because she knew that Mejiro Asama couldn't represent the entire family.
But the press conference a few days ago had changed everything. Speaking as the head of the Mejiro family, Asama had proclaimed Dream Weaver's lineage, effectively tying her to the Mejiro ship.
From then on, no matter what honors she achieved, a share of the glory would inevitably go to the Mejiro family, because in the public's eyes, Northern Dreams was already a Mejiro Uma Musume.
But Dream Weaver could not accept this. She had promised her grandmother that she would make the Northern family's glory resonate throughout the racing world once more. She didn't want the Northern name to fade into obscurity in the end.
This couldn't be the outcome—the result of all the efforts her mother, her grandmother, and so many ancestors she'd never known had poured out until now.
So Dream Weaver had to use the most forceful language possible in front of the press and the racing world to declare war on the Mejiro family, to sever those ties.
She did it to make one thing clear to everyone: Northern Dreams was, and always would be, the Uma Musume of the Northern family. Her honors would belong solely to the Northern family.
"At least… to the me of now… it's very important."
Dream Weaver's voice was quiet, but it carried an unshakable resolve.
Ardan sensed that iron will in her words and knew she could never change it. Slowly, she released her tight grip on Dream Weaver's wrist.
"I understand… I'll go back…"
Although this was the answer Dream Weaver had wanted to hear, hearing Ardan say it still left a pang of sorrow in her heart.
She turned her back without a word and silently began tidying up the training area.
Just when Dream Weaver thought Ardan was about to leave, a stubborn voice suddenly came from behind her.
"But I'll still come again tomorrow! And the day after, and every day after that! If you hate the name Mejiro so much, then I'll just come here as Ardan, and only Ardan!"
Dream Weaver's hands stilled for a moment. For a split second, she wanted to respond, but she didn't know what to say. She could only remain silent, her back still turned.
Ardan stared at her retreating figure, pressing her lips together firmly. Her face was already a mess from crying, yet she still managed to lift the corners of her mouth into a faint smile.
"One last thing…"
"Congratulations on winning the Spring Tennō Shō… Your big sister is proud of you."
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! 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.