The appearance of the silver-haired woman instantly made the atmosphere strange.
She looked directly at Hayakawa-san and smiled, "I never thought I'd run into Hayakawa-san here~"
Hayakawa returned the smile, saying, "I wondered who it was… It turns out to be the Chairwoman of the public school."
Their attitudes… are nothing like what old acquaintances should have when meeting… Kazuo thought to himself, but then the woman suddenly turned her gaze to him, staring at Kazuo with interest and saying:
"This is… is he your boyfriend? Why did you choose someone younger than you, Hayakawa?"
Although Hayakawa still had a full smile on her face, a terrifying pressure emanated from her.
She narrowed her eyes and explained with a smile, "This is my junior. I brought him to watch the race today. So, can irrelevant people please leave?"
This was the first time Kazuo had seen Hayakawa like this. In his impression, she only got angry at students who violated rules. So who was this person in front of him, who could anger her and remain so composed?
The woman merely curled her lips, shook her head, and said, "How can you say that? I'm here today as a team leader, you know? Hayakawa-san, you haven't forgotten my identity, have you?"
"What identity? A freeloader?"
Unexpectedly, the usually gentle Hayakawa-san was now quite sharp when confronting someone.
This kind of attack was harmless to the woman. She smiled indifferently and said, "I'm just moving forward on the shoulders of my predecessors; I haven't reached the point of freeloading. But, it's still important to introduce myself. My name is Chloris Charlotte Sayous. I am the heiress of the Sayous Group, and also the Chairwoman of the public school you mentioned."
Upon hearing this title, Kazuo felt a tingling sensation on his scalp. This girl, who looked only a few years older than himself, was already a Chairwoman of an academy. And the brand she mentioned, if he remembered correctly, was a Fortune 500 company specializing in sports equipment and various other fields internationally… For someone of that caliber to appear before him… Kazuo was momentarily stunned before he realized he was being impolite and quickly replied, "I, I am Asama Kazutomi, and like Hayakawa-san, I am currently a trainee Trainer at Tracen Academy."
Chloris was taken aback, then burst out laughing, "Trainee? I don't recall Tracen Academy having trainee Trainers? This is truly interesting…"
This made Kazuo a bit awkward, as this position seemed to have indeed been created just for him.
Chloris didn't intend to focus her attention on Kazuo. Her reason for approaching them was solely for Hayakawa-san.
With her arms crossed, she said, "Hayakawa-san, although I have invited you before, I would still like to sincerely extend an invitation to you once again. I hope you can come to my academy to be the Secretary-General. You can name any salary or benefits you want; I believe I can offer a higher bid than Chairwoman Akikawa."
This was no longer poaching; it was openly stealing someone.
Hayakawa-san replied without a second thought, "That's impossible. I refused you on this matter before, and I will continue to do so. I will only serve Chairwoman Akikawa. This is my mission. Even if Chairwoman Akikawa doesn't pay me, I will stay by her side. I hope you understand this point."
"Some relationships cannot be bought with money."
"Oh-ho…"
She twirled a strand of hair, and replied, still not giving up, "However, I also hope you understand that the doors of our academy are always open to you, and we will always welcome you."
Although she was directly rejected by Hayakawa-san, being a dignified young lady, she didn't show too much emotion.
Looking very mature and composed, she glanced at her wristwatch and said, "I need to go check on our academy's competitors for today's race. If all goes well, our competitor should take the victory in this race."
Hayakawa-san also retorted without showing weakness, "That's hard to say. The competitor from your school will be facing someone today whose strength is comparable to Symboli Rudolf's from our academy, you know?"
Upon hearing this, Kazuo quickly looked up at the display board, searching for the list of competitors, and indeed, a line of text was prominently displayed there.
[Most Popular Competitor No. 8 Maruzensky]
"Eh, Maruzensky… isn't that her?"
Kazuo immediately remembered the Uma Musume who had run neck and neck with Symboli Rudolf in the academy's mock race that day. Her fiery sprint was deeply etched in his memory.
What she didn't expect was that she was actually present at today's Mile G1 race, and... she was even the most popular contender.
This meant that, from an expectation standpoint, she was highly likely to win the championship in this race.
Chloris showed not the slightest hint of fear; instead, she smiled and replied, "But if I'm not mistaken, Maruzensky is also a student who transferred to Japan from abroad, right? If you ask me, I'd rather she join our Academy. From a development perspective, we are confident we can elevate her to the world stage, you know?"
Maruzensky... Kazuo immediately recalled what Toujou Hana and Symboli Rudolf had mentioned when discussing her earlier—
"If she could compete, the outcome would still be uncertain..."
Now, with Chloris's explanation, Kazuo immediately understood.
So, that's what it meant?
Although JRA had been making adjustments and revisions in recent years, it had always been very strict in relaxing race rules. For example, classic race series were not open to foreign competitors, but this G1 race, being a sponsored event, had more of an invitational nature despite its G1 status, so even foreign horses could participate.
Therefore, Maruzensky could be seen here... While he was thinking, Chloris waved her hand and said, "Anyway, I'll see you at the Racecourse later. Let me get a good look at the foreign competitor Tresen Academy has cultivated, shall I?"
Then she added another sentence:
"By the way, I remember Maruzensky's Trainer is Toujou Hana, isn't she? Why haven't I seen her today?"
Perhaps to spite her, Ms. Hayakawa pointed to Asama-kun beside her with a firm tone:
"Ahua couldn't make it because she had something to do, but isn't her student standing right here?"
However, Ms. Hayakawa didn't expect that her words would directly cause Asama-kun a lot of trouble.
Chloris had already turned to leave, but upon hearing this, her eyes lit up as she spun around, staring intently at Asama-kun, her interest undisguised.
She took a step forward, directly hooked her finger under his chin, and scrutinized Asama-kun with a provocative gaze: "Oh? I wasn't really interested in rookie newcomers, but since he's Ahua's student... Interesting, truly too interesting. Asama Kazutomi, right? I'll remember you."
"Eh!???"
Kazuo, who was suddenly dragged into this, could only let out a helpless cry of surprise.
.
[By the way]
The two people who had been hiding and watching all this.
Daijin clearly felt it when the silver-haired woman was teasing Kazuo.
Beside her, Xiao Hai Wan, who still had a smiling face, burst forth with an astonishing Kiai (Fighting Spirit) at that moment, which made her shiver... It was the first time she had seen Xiao Hai Wan angry... PS:
By January 1977, Maruzensky had achieved 5 consecutive victories, after which she entered recuperation due to a fracture. After her comeback in May, she won another race and then requested to participate in the Japanese Derby. Jockey Kiyokazu Nakanowatari said: "It doesn't matter if the starting gate is on the outermost side, and I don't need the prize money; I just want to test the strength of this horse." However, she still did not get a chance to compete, which caused widespread discussion at the time. Maruzensky reluctantly participated in the Japanese Shortwave Prize, which was later called the "Regrettable Derby."
The Fuchu Racecourse arc is actually about her story. Let's continue to see the details.
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