With the [Miyako Stakes] drawing nearer, all the competing Uma Musume were immersed in intense training.
To be honest, this race wasn't getting much attention. As a GIII event, it naturally lacked the prestige of a GI race, and being held on dirt further reduced its appeal.
So, in the lead-up to the race, there was barely any coverage in the Uma Musume Daily.
That's not to say the race had nothing going for it, though.
After the rule changes, many Uma Musume from regional tracks had chosen this event as their debut race in the central circuit. Rumor had it at least half the participants came from local academies in the countryside.
That drew a fair number of spectators, but it also turned plenty of others away.
To them, the idea that "local" couldn't measure up to "central" was already deeply ingrained.
The reason Oguri Cap became so famous was precisely because she shattered those traditional beliefs. Hailing from a local background, she dominated the central circuit, won major graded stakes, and left a brilliant record behind.
But how many Oguri Caps can you find among all the Uma Musume out there? Maybe one every few years—or even decades.
So, the vast majority of local Uma Musume still couldn't match up to the central ones. Even if they made it into a race, most were just there to make up the numbers.
Oguri Cap alone wasn't enough to overturn everyone's perceptions.
So, while some were optimistic about the buzz around this race, others were skeptical. Overall, it hadn't caused much of a stir.
Yet beneath that seemingly calm surface, a small few were quietly at work.
"Should we leave it up? But more and more people are seeing it. And didn't the 'ghost' say she wasn't the one who wrote it? Leaving it up might mislead the audience…"
Because of the website's anonymous tip, Fujii Senosuke was in touch with Manhattan Cafe.
As the site's founder, he'd naturally seen that unverified message. He'd urgently contacted 'Miss Serenity' and learned it had nothing to do with them. Just as he was about to take it down, they stopped him.
"It's fine. Don't delete it, and don't restrict it. Let it stay up."
"But if we do that…" Fujii Senosuke hesitated.
Wouldn't that hurt the site's credibility? The whole point was to gather supporters of the Black Ghost, and now it was filled with unverified rumors.
Soon, people would abandon the site. The fledgling fan community that had just started to form would scatter just like that.
What he'd hoped for was a healthy, positive space for discussion—something only supporters needed to know about.
"May I ask the reason?"
"The reason…" Manhattan Cafe thought for a moment, recalling what her 'friend' had explained.
There might be someone else out there with their own plans regarding her.
And that someone wasn't from the central circuit.
Maybe not even from Tracen Academy.
Hearing this, Fujii Senosuke narrowed his eyes.
As a reporter, he quickly grasped what she meant.
"A third party."
Not the ghost, not central—a third party had sent the message.
That's what she was implying, right?
"Could it just be some random viewer messing around?"
After all, he hadn't placed any restrictions on the forum. Anyone could post.
"We can't rule that out. That's exactly why we're leaving it up—to see what happens."
If someone really was planning something for the [Miyako Stakes], this would confirm the message's authenticity. Leaving it up also let the other side know that the site could indeed serve as a channel for passing along information.
Even if nothing came of it, they could always delete it later once they confirmed the info was false.
After weighing the pros and cons, they decided to keep the message up for everyone to see.
Listening to her reasoning, Fujii Senosuke didn't press further.
He nodded and said, "I understand. In that case, I'll keep a closer eye on their movements too."
If there really was another faction besides the central circuit, things were about to get complicated.
The [Miyako Stakes]… He'd thought it would be an uneventful race, a chance to take a day off.
Looks like he'd be busy again.
Still, compared to the mandatory overtime at his company, he was starting to enjoy this.
--+--
"President Rudolf, here's the list of local students participating."
In the student council room, Air Groove placed the compiled documents in front of Symboli Rudolf, who nodded and took them.
"Thanks, Air Groove."
"Mmm…"
"Is something wrong?"
"No, it's nothing."
Air Groove shook her head.
She had originally wanted to suggest Rudolf take a break—she'd been working nonstop for three hours.
But next to Rudolf, that woman, Chiekawa, had been at it for nearly five hours.
She was there before Rudolf left for class, still there when she returned, and hadn't budged since.
A supervisor sent from the central office to monitor Symboli Rudolf's conduct.
When Air Groove first heard the news, she was stunned, wondering if she'd misheard.
But when the woman settled into the student council room as if it were her own office, Air Groove realized the central office wasn't joking.
How did it come to this?
Even though Tracen was a training institution operated by the URA, they'd never made such a heavy-handed move before.
At a look from Rudolf, Air Groove didn't raise any objections and simply carried on with her work as usual.
But the two of them spoke far less than they used to. Apart from the soft tap tap tap of pen on paper, the room was silent.
Normally, Rudolf would crack a joke or two to lighten the mood, but now she just focused on her tasks, leaving at the scheduled time for training.
Don't say anything, don't ask anything.
That was the message Rudolf seemed to be sending, wordlessly.
Just as Air Groove was sinking back into her work, the student council door knocked, and Narita Brian entered.
"President Rudolf, do you have a moment?"
Completely ignoring the room's atmosphere, Narita Brian spoke up.
"Brian, what is it?"
"A few students would like to request a club room."
"A club room? What for?"
"Probably for storage. With the event coming up, they're making a lot of props, and I guess their current space isn't enough."
"I see. Let me check if there are any available…"
"Ah, also, besides the club room, they have some other questions—things like reimbursement for expenses, all that troublesome stuff."
"Is that so… Then I'll go over and explain it to them again."
"Yeah, thanks."
With that, Narita Brian left the room. Rudolf stood up, glancing briefly at the supervisor. Seeing she wasn't following, Rudolf walked out as well.
Once outside, Narita Brian led Rudolf to an empty classroom.
"So, what's the reason you had to sneak me out like this?" Rudolf asked.
During events, even when space ran short, it was the area leaders who coordinated and rearranged things. There was no need for the student council president to get involved.
So Rudolf knew right away—Narita Brian just needed an excuse to get her out.
She didn't want the supervisor to hear their conversation.
"Then I'll get straight to the point, President Rudolf."
Narita Brian pulled out a stack of yellowish, aged paper from her pocket, covered in old-fashioned English handwriting.
"This is…"
Symboli Rudolf frowned.
"I found it by accident while helping the principal clean her room."
"Did you tell her?"
"Not yet…"
"Brian, this is…"
"I know. I'll return it soon, but before that, I wanted you to see it."
Narita Brian pointed to one line.
"I'm not too familiar with this script, but I can make it out."
That girl doesn't want anyone to know her name.
But I still wrote it down.
Hope future generations will remember.
Sunday Silence.
Will surpass me and become the first in the world-
The page was incomplete, clearly torn.
She hadn't found the other half in the room.
It had fallen out from between the pages of a book she was organizing on the principal's shelf.
There wasn't much to say about the fragmented content.
But one part had caught her attention.
Sunday Silence.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 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.