The accommodation was a beautiful wooden house, apparently built by an Uma Musume construction team.
Not all Uma Musume are suited for racing, and those not good at running work like normal people. And because their basic physical fitness as Uma Musume is already there, they work with higher efficiency.
However, most Uma Musume still try to run, and only after realizing they are not suited for it do they do other things. No matter what, their innate love for running cannot be ignored.
Of course, none of that is important. What's important is the internal structure of this wooden house.
One room, one living room. The room is a single room for the Trainer who came along, and the living room is for the Uma Musume at the training camp. It's so spacious that even with everyone here sleeping on the floor, there would still be a lot of empty space.
To be honest, Zero herself didn't know how to comment on the internal structure of this house; it felt simple and crude?
Especially since there was an additional kitchen. She had just opened the large refrigerator to check, and it contained a large amount of ingredients and instant food. Moreover, according to Rudolph, there was also a basement downstairs, equipped with a full set of emergency equipment, where they could take shelter in case of an incident.
Trainer Okino and Zero each held a key to the basement. Although it felt a bit like preparing for a rainy day, it was good to keep them on hand just in case.
What Zero wanted to complain about most was the insufficient amount of stored food.
You see, the "entire team" came for the training camp, so… the two gray-haired assistants and Oguri Cap also came along.
Adding the three from the Mejiro Family, the food in the refrigerator looked like a lot, but it might not even be enough for two meals.
Fortunately, it wasn't far from her home. She could just pretend to bring some from her house and exchange for some food. After returning, she would have to properly address this issue.
However, those were matters to consider later. This training camp was mainly for them to train well and relax a bit, so Zero personally funded the purchase and placement of a large number of game consoles, discs, and other items, as well as various books.
So now, led by Teio, who, like her roommate Heavy Gun, loves to play, everyone was gathered together, having a great time playing home game consoles.
But it would be dinner time soon… and it looked like… Zero had finally accepted her fate of becoming the cook once again.
They have the budget but don't hire a chef, and I still have to cook myself. Oh no, Symboli Rudolph! I'll remember this grudge!
After making another note about a certain emperor in her mental notebook, Zero expertly began to prepare the meal.
"Need help?"
"Of course. With so many people, I might not have enough time. Please help me out." The person who came was Trainer Okino. He was also very good at cooking, but he was usually too lazy to do it, as Zero's cooking skills were superior to his. However, with the current number of people being a bit large, having someone to assist would be more convenient.
Zero, naturally, didn't stand on ceremony and also pulled in Gold Ship, who was making a lot of noise, to help cook.
Just as how many skills Zero had was a mystery, what Gold Ship could do was also a mystery.
Anyway, she could cook, and she didn't mind just helping out. Zero just had to keep an eye on this mischievous Uma Musume to make sure she didn't suddenly try to make some strange dish.
Finally, the three of them prepared a sumptuous dinner together. Zero, after eating a simple meal, left under the guise of "going for a walk" to rest her tired mind.
She couldn't help it; she had been constantly watching Gold Ship to see if she would cause trouble. Yet, Gold Ship was very well-behaved from beginning to end, with no incidents like pretending to hand over salt but giving sugar.
The result was that the other two were fine, but she herself had wasted a lot of mental energy.
Running all the way to her most familiar spot, Zero sighed in relief as she looked at the night scenery.
Two adjacent cliffs.
She used to like coming here during training, especially in the evening. After learning about the prototype's memories some time ago, she realized that this place and the cliff it flew over before its death were not just similar, but exactly the same.
Was this a gift from the goddesses?
[No, no, we were just lazy and directly copied and pasted the terrain.]
…As expected of you all.
[Thank you for the compliment.]
Have some sense of responsibility as goddesses!? By the way, won't that world get some kind of exposé or something!?
[No, because that terrain was also copied and pasted from another parallel world.]
…Are all your world consciousnesses a bit sick?
[Just like the Uma Musume fans, you know.]
…Zero didn't know how to respond.
Because she was also an Uma Musume fan!
Selectively ignoring the playful goddesses, she turned her gaze towards the cliff.
On this cliff was a tree, planted by the old couple as a memento on the day they adopted her. Later, she even moved a flat stone here, with a small fire pit underneath. After lighting a fire, it could heat the stone above, making it warm and cozy to sit on.
By the way, everyone, when you're out, don't casually sit on cold places that don't easily warm up, okay?
Of course, there wasn't such a great need now. Although it was night, it was already summer, so the nights were still a bit warm. Fortunately, the mountain breeze was very cool.
Sitting on the familiar rock, looking at the mountain wilderness under the moonlight, she felt relaxed.
And at that moment, a voice came from behind her.
"Emmmm… Zero? I'm not disturbing you, am I?"
"No, not at all? Is something wrong?"
The person who came was Mejiro Dober.
"You'd been out for a long time, so I came to check on you."
"Hee hee~ Then how did you know I was here?"
"I… I…" She instantly paused.
"www, alright, so is there something you wanted to talk about?" Zero moved over a little and patted the spot, signaling for Dober to sit there.
Dober didn't think too much of it and sat down.
After she sat down, Zero waited for her to speak, but Dober looked like she didn't know what to say.
"What? Do you think if you take me out here, you won't have any rivals?" I joked.
"Wh-…How could I! I'm not that kind of person!" It seemed I had hit a nerve; her ears even flattened back slightly.
"Well, I was just joking. If I made you uncomfortable, I apologize," Zero quickly apologized. After all, to a serious person, her earlier comment might indeed have sounded like a personal attack.
"No…it's me who's too sensitive…I'm sorry…" She instantly became downcast.
"So, can you tell me now?"
"Mm…"
Dober looked at the mountain forest under the night sky and slowly began to speak.
"I…I don't know what to do anymore…" She let out a soft sigh.
"What you said just now…might not be wrong. When my emotions were unstable, I myself had such dark thoughts that even I found disgusting."
"So…I'm sorry…It was my own incompetence, yet I blamed you for it…I was so ugly like that…"
When she was in a slump, even Mejiro Dober, who had received excellent family education, had dark thoughts like, "Wouldn't it be better if she wasn't here?" and then woke up with a start.
She considered herself to have the pride and honor of a prestigious family, so she utterly despised her dark self from the previous moment, and at the same time felt guilty towards the innocent Zero.
Zero was, without a doubt, the most formidable Uma Musume she had ever seen. On the track, she was truly an Absolute Ruler, just as she was named, respecting every opponent while also defeating them without hesitation. Coupled with her undefeated winning streak and her gentle demeanor, she had accumulated many foreign fans even before going abroad.
What? Legal lolis are the best? Arrest them, arrest them.
And precisely because of this, Mejiro Dober utterly loathed herself for blaming her own incompetence on someone as bright as Zero. She felt that she was unworthy to run on the same track as Zero, yet at this moment, she basely yearned for Zero's attention and guidance.
Ah…I hate this side of myself…
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