...
"Urara, is something wrong?"
While everyone was clapping and cheering, Rice Shower noticed Urara sitting quietly in her seat, her expression as calm as a still lake.
"Urara?"
"Ah, what is it, Rice-chan?" Urara blinked, as if snapping out of a daze, and turned to Rice Shower.
"What were you thinking about just now? I called you, but you didn't respond."
Urara shook her head. "It's nothing, I just thought Trainer sang really well."
"I see."
Urara couldn't hide her thoughts—even Rice Shower could tell something was off. But Rice Shower couldn't guess what it was.
"Really, it's nothing. Let's keep watching the show. It'll be our turn to go on stage soon."
"Mm."
...
As the singing continued, Tokai Teio and Lucian gradually found their rhythm, becoming more relaxed in their performance.
Tokai Teio's voice had a piercing, impactful quality, like a heavy object falling from high altitude, cutting sharply through the air.
Lucian's voice, on the other hand, was like a soft cotton cushion, steadily catching Tokai Teio's voice before wrapping it up snugly.
When the performance ended, the two exchanged a glance, then bowed in unison to the audience. "Thank you!"
They exited the stage amid applause.
"Trainer~ You were still nervous when you went on stage, weren't you? Not only did you forget to introduce yourself, but your voice was trembling at the start." Tokai Teio covered her mouth and giggled.
Lucian scratched his nose. "I don't have much experience. It's different on stage compared to offstage."
Seeing that Lucian didn't argue much, Tokai Teio, unusually, offered some comfort. "But the result was still great. I really enjoyed collaborating with you, Trainer."
"Then let's do it again next time if we get the chance?"
"Oh? Trainer wants to sing with me again?"
"Nope."
"I knew it... Huh!? Nope? Trainer, how could you?!"
...
The event lasted over an hour, giving every horse girl a chance to perform.
Seiun Sky couldn't move freely in her qipao, so she just went on stage to sing a song.
The duo of Rice Shower and Urara, both adorable, earned plenty of applause, though Urara didn't seem very happy.
Special Week and Dextrous Bailey also chose to sing. They had clearly prepared for a while, as every part of their performance was polished.
Silence Suzuka's act was a dance. When she spun, her skirt flared out like an opening, twirling umbrella.
Just as Grass Wonder had described her as a "magnolia," every movement of Silence Suzuka exuded grace and elegance.
Lucian clapped cheerfully, but when Silence Suzuka occasionally glanced his way, he inexplicably felt a chill run down his spine.
Earlier, her gaze had been scorching, but now it was freezing...
Lucian wasn't yet caught between fire and ice—but he was already feeling the heat and the cold.
...
As the event entered its final phase, Toujou Hana began tallying the scores.
Points were only counted once, so even though Tokai Teio performed twice, only her highest score was taken.
"Now, let me announce the team rankings. The last-place team has to drink that awful juice as punishment, right?"
"Uh... Hana-san, that's a nutritious vegetable juice," Lucian corrected weakly.
"Never mind that. The last-place team has to drink it, right?"
"Yeah." Lucian wondered why Toujou Hana kept asking when she already knew the answer.
"Alright, then here are the rankings."
"First place, Symboli Rudolf's team. Second place, Maruzensky's team. Third place, Narita Brian's team."
Hearing this, Lucian gave a sympathetic look to Taiki Shuttle and the others nearby. "Shuttle-chan, it's fine. Drinking more is good for you."
The poor girl looked completely numb, as if she didn't even care about being last.
Just as Lucian was sighing to himself, Toujou Hana's voice rang out again.
"And in last place... Lucian's team."
"Huh?" Lucian, caught off guard, pointed at himself. "Wait, Hana-san—"
What the hell? Were they ganging up on him now?
"Lucian-kun, since you participated, you were naturally scored. But since you didn't join any team, you formed your own." Toujou Hana stated matter-of-factly.
"Hana-san, when did you get bribed?"
"Now, now, Lucian-kun, that's not fair. How can you call judging 'bribery'? We're just following the audience's feedback." Nishizaki Ryo joined in, kicking Lucian while he was down.
Narita Brian's team erupted in cheers.
No wonder Toujou Hana had been so calm earlier—she'd been waiting for this moment.
Then, Taiki Shuttle walked over. "Trainer Lucian, it's fine, it's fine. Drinking more is good for you."
"Or... does Trainer Lucian not want to drink?" Gold Ship cracked her knuckles, her demeanor suddenly shifting into something straight out of JoJo.
Beside her, Narita Brian also rolled up her sleeves, eager to join in.
With just these two, Lucian's limbs would be immobilized. If Narita Brian's entire team got involved, it'd be "Trainer Divided into Seven."
"Lucian-kun, just so you can't say we're unfair, let me announce the full scores." Toujou Hana looked at the whiteboard in her hands and read aloud, "First place, 98 points exactly. Second place, 97.78. Third place, 97.66. And your... team? Starts with a zero."
"Hana-san, earlier when you were scoring, you told me I could trust everyone to be objective..."
"I wasn't wrong. Maybe their scoring standards for you were different. For them, one point might be the highest rating."
As soon as Toujou Hana finished, the horse girls below chimed in.
"That's right. My highest score is one point."
"I gave 0.5, so Trainer Lucian got my highest score."
"I gave zero. Be glad I didn't go negative."
...
None of them were even pretending anymore.
"Trainer Lucian, are you going to drink or not?" Gold Ship was already closing in.
Despite being physically larger, Lucian couldn't muster any will to resist.
Even Urara had betrayed him—who else could he turn to?
"I surrender. I'll drink."
The moment he said it, Gold Ship handed him a paper cup filled with the drink—and it wasn't the usual shot-sized cup.
"Wait, this is—"
"Lucian-kun, drink up. Weren't you pretty good with alcohol before?" Nishizaki Ryo egged him on, enjoying the spectacle.
"Heh heh heh."
"Since you said 'drink, drink, drink,' then drink up."
Pinching his nose, Lucian forced himself to down the vile liquid. "Tastes like sewage water left to ferment for days, then poured straight into my stomach."
"Trainer Lucian can still make metaphors? Maybe he needs a refill," Grass Wonder suggested.
...