Nature's race had concluded.
But unlike the other Uma Musume, despite securing the final victory, Nature didn't seem particularly happy after the race ended.
Agnes Digital…
Repeating this name in her mind, Nature's expression gradually turned complicated.
Since she'd already confessed, Nature managed to coax a fair bit of information about Agnes Digital from Kitahara during their later conversation.
Although she didn't learn everything, she now at least knew that Digital had confessed first, and had even requested—and received—a kiss from Kitahara.
If it had been any other Uma Musume secretly achieving this kind of progress behind everyone's backs, Nature would've immediately treated her as a major rival—perhaps even sharing information with others to jointly deal with her.
But Agnes Digital…
Although Nature sincerely wanted to see Digital as her greatest rival, clearly understanding just how far ahead she had sprinted—
Not only was Digital far ahead of everyone else, but worse yet, she was a second-year racer. Compared to them, who had debuted only one year ago—or some even debuting next year—Digital had an entire extra year to get Kitahara's answer, launching even more aggressive moves in the meantime. It wasn't an exaggeration to say she'd bolted far ahead in the "Kitahara Cup."
But the real problem was—she was Agnes Digital.
Recalling her usual mannerisms and behaviors, Nature simply couldn't imagine her truly liking Kitahara, much less sprinting ahead in their race for him.
Even after Kitahara personally told her, Nature still doubted the authenticity of his words—not that she believed Kitahara would lie, but simply because Nature found it easier to imagine Digital using the excuse of liking Kitahara to get closer to Eclipse. That would certainly fit Digital's usual perverted persona better.
But even that wasn't the most crucial issue.
Most importantly, towards the end of their talk, Kitahara had also told her about Digital's bizarre views on romance, including her eagerness for him to build a harem.
Yet unlike the typical person—who would have immediately jumped for joy at having a girl actively encouraging him to form a harem—Kitahara wore a face filled with worry instead.
"What era are we living in now? Monogamy's literally written into the law already, okay…?"
"And even if there's no legal marriage involved, simply living together poses countless issues."
"A single person's time and energy are limited. Even under normal circumstances, properly responding to and spending enough time with a single partner isn't easy."
"With multiple partners, setting aside questions of equal love or matching status, even basic allocation of time and energy becomes a huge problem…"
"And that's considering only the two sides involved."
"Once you factor in additional people—are you distributing affection fairly? How do you handle everyday friction? Deal with various scenarios? Even down to…how to handle 'that kind of stuff'…?"
"All these are issues you need to think about."
"Maybe to ordinary people, having a harem sounds wonderful at first glance. But if you think about it carefully, it's just a collection of problems and headaches…"
After listening to Kitahara's long and exasperated rant, Nature silently swallowed back the words she'd almost blurted out: Actually, I'd also be fine with you having a harem…
As previously mentioned, although Nature didn't wholeheartedly support Kitahara building a harem, she was at least not opposed to sharing him with a select few others.
She'd even formed an alliance with Sunday Silence earlier, and had mentally prepared herself to someday live together with Silence and Manhattan Café.
Had it been a case where Nature could've monopolized Kitahara entirely, she absolutely wouldn't have tolerated adding Agnes Digital into the equation.
But now—given their little alliance had already expanded to this size, plus Digital explicitly stating she'd accept a harem—perhaps adding one more wasn't totally unacceptable.
At least that had been Nature's initial thought right after hearing Kitahara mention Digital's attitude toward his harem.
However, as Kitahara's rant went on, Nature suddenly realized something critical:
Even though she and her teammates might not mind sharing Kitahara amongst themselves, they'd never actually considered Kitahara's own stance on the matter.
After all, common sense suggested that if a group of pretty girls actively offered themselves for a harem, no normal guy would resist—in fact, he'd probably explode with joy. Therefore, none of them had ever seriously considered Kitahara's own opinion.
But Kitahara Sota…
Could he really be counted as a normal person?
After hearing Kitahara's distressed complaints, Nature realized clearly:
If they wanted Kitahara to accept living together with multiple partners, the biggest obstacle wouldn't be the possessiveness of any particular girl—but rather Kitahara himself.
This…is going to be troublesome…
Realizing this new problem, Nature lost the mood to fuss about other things for now.
After continuing their conversation briefly about Agnes Digital and a few details from the race, they returned to the Academy.
After getting back, Kitahara planned to resume his usual loafing-around mode—but after receiving several sudden text messages, he quickly excused himself from Nature and left.
Once Kitahara had departed, Nature hesitated for a moment in the empty room. Eventually, she stood up, opened the door, and decided to head toward Agnes Digital's place to have a proper talk.
On her way there, Nature had imagined countless scenarios that might unfold during their upcoming conversation, mentally preparing herself for each possibility.
However, as soon as she actually met Digital face-to-face, Nature quickly realized reality didn't match any of her imagined scenarios at all.
Before they could even start talking—merely upon seeing Digital's expression—Nature immediately sensed something odd about her today.
Gone was the usual fervent enthusiasm and even borderline-perverted excitement. Instead, Digital now looked troubled, preoccupied by some problem, lost in deep thought.
Did something happen to her?
Nature wondered silently but didn't dwell too deeply. She directly explained her reason for visiting, calmly revealing what Kitahara had told her, and bluntly asked Digital if it was all true.
"Yes, I really did do those things."
Digital readily admitted her actions without hesitation, then added clearly:
"I also genuinely support Kitahara-senpai forming a harem. If you don't mind, Nature-san, I'd even be willing to support you in winning Kitahara-senpai's heart, and I'd be fine even if I'm not included in the end."
This…
Hearing Digital's straightforward reply, even Nature's eyelid twitched slightly. She felt Digital's attitude was just a bit too self-effacing, gradually understanding Kitahara's previous concerns about her mental state.
Although, technically speaking, Digital was actually a year older than her.
"No need," Nature shook her head, then paused before continuing clearly,
"I didn't come here to compete with you. Actually, quite the opposite. I can accept sharing him with others—including you, Digital…"
"Really?" Agnes Digital's eyes instantly sparkled with excitement.
"...Yeah, really."
Nature let out a helpless sigh.
"Of course, if possible, I'd like to monopolize him myself. But you know how things are right now. Whether it's Eclipse-san's presence, Kitahara-san's own personality, or the feelings the Uma Musume and even humans inside and outside our team have for him…"
"Forget about one person monopolizing him—even two or three of us probably couldn't handle the fallout. Forcibly trying to claim him would definitely lead to a mess, maybe even disastrous consequences…"
"And it's not just me, either. Right now, there are a few others with me who also don't mind sharing him and are willing to coexist peacefully."
Agnes Digital's eyes grew brighter and brighter as she listened.
"Then—"
"Don't celebrate too soon."
Nature interrupted quietly, sighing again.
"At first, when I heard that you supported him having a harem, I was actually relieved. After all, it meant our team gained another ally, increasing our chances of a happy ending."
"But after hearing Kitahara-san's own thoughts, I discovered another serious problem—which is also why I came looking for you today."
She then described in detail how Kitahara had reacted to the idea of having multiple partners, emphasizing how clearly he'd shown resistance even when considering two or three.
Agnes Digital froze for a moment, quickly realizing the seriousness of the situation, her brows furrowing slightly.
"If that's the case, things just got even more complicated..."
"'More' complicated?"
Nature raised an eyebrow. "Was there already something else complicated going on?"
"…Yes."
Agnes Digital nodded softly. After hesitating for a moment, she spoke again in a quiet voice:
"Actually, Nature-san, this morning while you were at your race, I met a white-colored version of Eclipse-san. She shared some information about Kitahara-senpai with me, especially…"
"About his True Awakening."
...
Meanwhile, elsewhere—Kitahara Sota had no idea Nature and Agnes Digital had already met, let alone that they were currently discussing topics highly unfavorable to him.
Because right now, he was busy being troubled by something else entirely.
"A marriage interview…"
Looking at the messages from the senior Uma Musume on his phone, Kitahara felt his temples throbbing.
Unlike her previously relaxed tone, this time, that senior Uma Musume had directly set a firm deadline for his blind date, scheduled explicitly during the New Year's holiday period.
That holiday was one of the few times that even the workaholics at Tracen Academy actually respected, making it impossible for him to dodge with a work-related excuse.
Even worse, almost immediately after the senior's message, the elderly Uma Musume from the clothing store sent him a strikingly similar text—
She also told him that her younger relative would be free during the New Year holiday, had set up a meeting between them, and left him zero room for refusal.
This is getting troublesome…
Looking at the two messages in his hand, Kitahara sighed again, resignation deepening in his expression.
Just as he was staring helplessly at the screen, a gentle feminine voice spoke softly from behind him:
"Trainer Kitahara, are you troubled by something?"
"Yeah, a bit—"
Kitahara responded reflexively, before suddenly pausing. He turned around to see who was speaking.
"Diamond? What brings you here?"
Indeed, the person who'd spoken just now was none other than the young lady of the Satono family, Satono Diamond.
But unlike the Diamond he'd first met half a year ago, the Diamond standing in front of Kitahara now seemed as if she'd matured by several years.
Back when they'd first met half a year prior, Diamond had been tiny—barely reaching 140 centimeters, with a flat figure as straight as a popsicle stick, and an utterly childish face.
Yet after just six months had passed, her looks, figure, and temperament had transformed completely.
Not only was she no longer tiny, but with that gentle and graceful demeanor, if someone said she was a university student, Kitahara would believe it without a second thought.
But all of that still wasn't the most important thing.
What truly mattered was that during this past half-year, it wasn't only her outward appearance that had progressed rapidly—her relationship with Kitahara had quietly undergone significant changes as well.
Unlike the other Uma Musume—who'd placed Diamond outside the competition for the "Kitahara Cup" because she wasn't yet enrolled at Tracen—what they didn't know was precisely because Diamond wasn't at Tracen yet, she could freely move unnoticed along a path uniquely her own.
Their first meeting, friendly conversations, becoming acquaintances…
Using Kitasan Black's training as a convenient excuse to visit him at the clothing store; occasionally leveraging her family's influence to enter Tracen; once familiar enough, casually gifting small, thoughtful items—
Unlike the others, Diamond never rushed to push their relationship forward nor made any aggressive moves. Instead, she'd quietly approached him as a friend, gradually and patiently closing the distance between them over the last six months—without attracting anyone's attention.
But being unnoticed didn't mean she'd made no progress.
On the contrary, through this gentle yet persistent approach, Diamond had completely dismantled Kitahara's initial defenses. Their relationship had now grown beyond friends, though perhaps not yet reaching a truly close confidant status.
Moreover, through various subtle arrangements, Diamond had successfully convinced Kitahara to privately guide both her and Kitasan's training.
Although Kitahara still kept repeating that once they officially enrolled at Tracen, they'd have another trainer assigned to them—
Even Kitasan Black could clearly see the truth: Kitahara Sota had long since become their trainer in all but official name, and he had even received acknowledgment and support from their respective families.
Even if the originally intended trainer had been real—under these circumstances, they'd still end up nothing more than a symbolic figurehead.
And Diamond's reason for appearing here today was precisely about this issue.
"Well, Kitasan and I will soon undergo our True Awakening. If everything goes smoothly, we'll transfer to Tracen after the New Year's holiday, so I wanted to come by a bit more often and get familiar with things first."
"Haven't you already visited plenty of times before?" Kitahara asked, somewhat puzzled.
Diamond gently shook her head, smiling.
"The school environment is constantly changing, with more and more transfer students every day. It's always good to familiarize myself ahead of time."
"…Fair enough," Kitahara nodded, seeing no reason to doubt her explanation.
After chatting a bit longer about recent events and training plans, Diamond's face suddenly showed clear signs of hesitation and unease.
"What's wrong?" Kitahara asked softly.
Diamond hesitated for a moment longer before finally speaking, her voice gentle but uncertain.
"Um, Kitahara-san, you remember, right? The trainer my family had originally arranged for Kitasan and me, who was supposed to officially join Tracen alongside us after enrollment?"
"Yeah, I remember." Kitahara nodded, sensing something else.
"Is there an issue with that trainer?"
Diamond shook her head slightly.
"No issue with the trainer himself. But just yesterday, my family informed me that the trainer had encountered an accident and likely won't be able to come for several months…"
She paused briefly before adding,
"Apparently, he suffered a fracture."
Fracture...?
Hearing this word, Kitahara's expression slowly turned complicated.
Maybe in other places, the word "fracture" wouldn't mean much to him.
But at Tracen Academy, while the term usually meant severe leg injuries for Uma Musume, for trainers, a "fracture" often hinted at something completely different.
Especially considering Diamond had previously mentioned that the trainer her family invited was already married and had even retired from the trainer business. He'd only reluctantly agreed to return after Diamond and Kitasan's families had offered him a huge sum, but it seemed his wife hadn't been happy at all about that decision.
In this context, hearing "fracture"—it was almost impossible for Kitahara not to interpret it in an unusual way.
In fact, this probably wouldn't even be a one-time fracture.
Every time the trainer tried to come back, that suspicious "fracture" would probably appear again…
"Then can't your family just find another trainer?" Kitahara suggested.
Diamond shook her head helplessly.
"There's no time left. You know how drastically the number of Uma Musume has increased recently. Practically every qualified trainer has already been taken by Tracen schools everywhere. Freelance trainers are practically extinct, much less qualified ones."
Kitahara nodded, understanding her reasoning.
"Well, you and Kitasan don't need to worry too much. You're both extremely talented Uma Musume. As long as you perform well during the debut races, plenty of trainers will fight over you. Then you can choose whoever you want."
"The selection races… I understand," Diamond nodded thoughtfully, then seemed to remember something else. "By the way, I heard that even Uma Musume who didn't participate in selection races can directly join a team as team members…"
"There is such a rule." Kitahara nodded, looking at her curiously.
"What, have you found a team you like?"
"It's not about me," Diamond said softly, blinking innocently. "But as you know, Kitasan's a huge fan of Teio-san."
Kitahara froze, realization dawning.
"You mean…"
"Yes."
Diamond smiled gently, nodding once more.
"If you don't mind—after enrolling, could Kitasan and I directly join your team as official team members?"
---
T/N: Diamond: All according to keikaku