Maruzensky's house wasn't exactly huge.
But fitting two people in comfortably was no issue at all.
Only after the other Uma had properly settled her child did Maruzensky ask her first question:
"What's your name?"
She didn't directly inquire why the other party had accepted her offer, since, for both of them, that wasn't particularly important. That's why Maruzensky chose to start with this question instead.
"...Natural."
She omitted the surname "Tokai," because Tokai Natural still remembered clearly she'd already been expelled from the Tokai family.
After receiving this answer, Maruzensky glanced at Tokai Natural. "I don't really care why you came to Tokyo, but…do you have anywhere to return to?"
A firm shake of her head.
Not even a hint of hesitation. After all, this was just the reality.
Seeing Tokai Natural's response, Maruzensky frowned slightly.
Normally, there was no such thing as an Uma with absolutely nowhere to return to.
After all, Uma usually treated humans kindly, and even orphaned Uma could generally return temporarily to their previous orphanages. An Uma's labor was still pretty useful, after all.
But exceptions always existed.
Just as there were Uma who were adopted by powerful families, there were also Uma abandoned by their families.
Only such Uma had absolutely nowhere to go.
And if that was the case…
Thinking of this, Maruzensky glanced toward the baby in the other Uma's arms.
The child was an infant, probably not even one year old yet—and in the past two years, among the Uma community, there was only one event that could be considered significant news.
At that thought, Maruzensky's expression shifted subtly.
She remembered how that incident had ultimately been handled…
"Um…"
A soft voice interrupted Maruzensky's thoughts.
Only now did Maruzensky realize the other Uma had an uncertain look on her face.
As a guest whom Maruzensky had invited into her home, Tokai Natural clearly had no intention of overstepping her boundaries. She was still patiently waiting for Maruzensky's next instructions.
Looking at Tokai Natural and her child, Maruzensky paused for a few seconds before speaking again: "There's a guest room upstairs, the first door on your left. You can rest there. All the basic necessities are inside, so feel free to use whatever you need."
"Thank you."
Hearing no other requests, Tokai Natural gave her quiet thanks and slowly climbed the stairs.
On the second floor, Tokai Natural found herself in a short corridor.
On the left side was a single door—the guest room Maruzensky had mentioned. As for the two doors on the right, Tokai Natural didn't plan to explore further.
Following Maruzensky's instructions, Tokai Natural gently opened the only door on the left.
Inside was a plainly furnished room, containing only essential items without extra decorations.
Entering the room, Tokai Natural closed the door behind her.
As for locking it?
Tokai Natural wouldn't do something that meaningless. With the physical prowess of elite Uma like Maruzensky, they could probably break through walls if they wanted. Unless this door was specially designed to protect a trainer from being stolen by another Uma, locking it wouldn't achieve anything.
Just after closing the door, Tokai Natural heard hurried footsteps downstairs.
It seemed Maruzensky's steps were rather urgent.
But hearing those footsteps, Tokai Natural didn't bother guessing what Maruzensky might be thinking. Given her physical condition, no matter what Maruzensky planned, it would be impossible for her to resist. She'd be subdued easily, without any chance to fight back—thinking too much about it was pointless.
Rather, cooperating when something did happen might be the better choice.
And cooperating was also better for her fragile body.
Considering her current condition, Tokai Natural doubted she could even attempt any particularly strenuous actions.
Thus, Tokai Natural glanced quietly at the child in her arms, softly reaching out to stroke her little head.
Unlike most babies, this daughter who left the family alongside Tokai Natural was extremely obedient, never making a fuss. This trait greatly eased Tokai Natural's worries about caring for her child.
At least it wasn't exhausting.
After finishing feeding her baby, Tokai Natural was finally able to rest properly—even if just for a short while.
Because even the most obedient baby would cry if she got hungry.
Thus, by the time Tokai Natural woke the next morning, faint dark circles marked her eyes.
These were a result of accumulated exhaustion over the past several days, something she couldn't do much about for now.
Carrying her baby downstairs, Tokai Natural entered the empty living room.
Glancing around briefly, Tokai Natural noticed a note stuck to the refrigerator.
She walked forward, gently peeling the note off the fridge and reading Maruzensky's instructions.
First was the issue of staying here.
Hmm…so, basically, I can stay here temporarily…
Then there was the matter of food.
Only some instant meals in the fridge…
Lastly was the issue Tokai Natural cared least about—her own responsibilities.
…Eh? All I have to do is daily cleaning?
Looking at these surprisingly simple instructions, Tokai Natural's face showed clear confusion.
She honestly couldn't guess what Maruzensky wanted from her.
But there was no doubt Maruzensky definitely wanted something in return—otherwise she wouldn't have gone to all this trouble.
Facing this conclusion, Tokai Natural simply frowned slightly, then opened the refrigerator door.
Tokai Natural knew this situation was suspicious; she wasn't stupid.
But in truth, she had no choice.
First was her body. Although she hadn't yet reached the point of needing hospitalization again, her frail constitution still plagued her.
Second, because of the Tokai family's methods, she wasn't even sure if her identity had already been listed as deceased. If that was the case, everything in her future would become impossibly difficult.
Lastly, her daughter wouldn't survive the way Tokai Natural herself could. Even if Tokai Natural could barely push through with her fragile body, her daughter could not.
Because of these three reasons—
Tokai Natural chose to deliberately ignore whatever ulterior motives Maruzensky might have.
...
Recalling the information she had uncovered earlier, Maruzensky rubbed her temples.
She'd expected the other Uma's situation to be complicated, but she hadn't expected it to be this complicated.
So complicated that she wasn't even sure how to handle it.
Fortunately, her years of student council work had taught her clearly: regardless of how this matter was ultimately resolved, Tokai Natural first needed a new identity.
Otherwise, if her identity were ever exposed, it would be massive trouble for both her and Symboli Rudolf.
If the situation involved only Tokai Natural, it might be manageable.
But Symboli Rudolf was the current president of Tracen's student council—the Emperor among Uma.
And as a friend of Symboli Rudolf, Maruzensky felt obligated to help her avoid this trouble.
Because, judging by Rudolf's typical behavior, Maruzensky strongly suspected that the Emperor hadn't even realized this situation existed yet.
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T/N: hehehe i guhess all 'stallions' have heh heheheheheheh