Powerful tools often come with risks.
After eating the spicy sticks, the horse girls' training efficiency did improve, but at the same time, their mood would continuously drop during training. Even if Luo Cheng managed to raise it, it would just fall again. This wasn't a negative side effect of the spicy sticks, but simply because they were too spicy.
Currently, it seems the biggest use for this item is as a stimulant for the horse girls, temporarily boosting their attributes. Eating a spicy stick before a race could turn a neck-and-neck competition into a landslide victory. However, Luo Cheng wasn't sure if the cheat items from the game world would work in the real world. He couldn't see statuses. If someone had a broken bone in the real world and he healed them by wrapping a bandage around it a few dozen times, wouldn't he become a world-renowned doctor? Luo Cheng would have to investigate this when he had a chance.
He once again massaged the heads and feet of the horse girls to boost their moods, and then went to check on the others.
First, he visited Super Creek. She was training with trainer Fumino Nase. Luo Cheng checked her status.
[Mood: Good Condition], [Status: Normal].
This was good. He had to keep a close eye on these horse girls who would endure pain without saying anything until their injuries became severe. He didn't want their legs to be ruined again. It was a problem that could be solved with a little medicine, but would end up requiring a whole bottle, which was both painful and wasteful—not worth it.
Of course, Luo Cheng could only check on a few of his own horse girls. With over two thousand students at Tracen Academy, he couldn't possibly check every single one. It would take him from dawn to dusk. So, Luo Cheng prioritized taking care of the people around him.
From a distance, Luo Cheng's eyes met Super Creek's. A hint of a smile seemed to appear in her gentle sky-blue eyes. Luo Cheng raised an eyebrow.
Suddenly, he wanted to be fed by Creek again.
Unfortunately, Super Creek already had a trainer. Otherwise, Luo Cheng would have really wanted to poach her. But having her with Fumino was fine too; they could both use her.
Speaking of which, where was Fumino?
Luo Cheng looked left and right, and finally found the slender figure on the training field's observation deck. She looked fine.
Luo Cheng actually talked to Fumino no less than he did to Teio and the others. As fellow trainers, they would often meet in VR and exchange training methods. Occasionally, they would also gossip about random news, but since Luo Cheng was mostly confined to Tracen Academy, it was usually Fumino who did the talking.
Perhaps it was the first time she had met a man who listened to idle chatter with such fascination, but Fumino became uncharacteristically chatty.
Although Luo Cheng hadn't hugged Fumino many times—a total of ten at most—her affection level had now reached 72. She was the first person whose affection he had managed to raise so high without relying on physical contact.
Not long ago, Fumino had invited Luo Cheng to go out with her, but unfortunately, he couldn't leave whenever he wanted. Not unless he had his own support card story.
Looking up at Fumino Nase, Luo Cheng waved, but she didn't respond. Even with an affection level of 70, the 'player' still couldn't interact with other trainers.
Luo Cheng sighed.
After checking on Fumino Nase's team and confirming that they were all healthy, Luo Cheng went to the south side of the training field, where instructor-led training was taking place.
Luo Cheng found Mejiro Dober there. She was sitting on the ground, doing a seated forward bend. There was no one else around her. Every time he saw this scene, Luo Cheng couldn't help but feel that Dober was terrible at making friends. After so long, she still didn't have anyone who was willing to train with her.
Luo Cheng sat down on the ground and helped her by pushing on her shoulders.
[Mood: Poor Condition], [Status: Normal].
Her mood was terrible. Luo Cheng wanted to help her feel better, but with his current appearance, it might be difficult.
However, Luo Cheng still raised his hand and stroked her head. Mejiro Dober's clean-cut ears twitched twice. Then, Luo Cheng saw Dober's mood change from [Poor Condition] to [Normal].
Hmm?
Mejiro Dober was still reacting to his current appearance.
Luo Cheng, not quite sure, stroked Mejiro Dober's head again, pinched her cheek, and even moved to the front to take off her shoes and rub her soft feet. But Mejiro Dober just blushed, kept her head down, and her mood remained at [Normal] without changing.
Did it go up on its own?
A horse girl's mood would change due to their environment and events. It didn't necessarily require him, the 'player,' to influence it.
After helping Mejiro Dober put her shoes back on, Luo Cheng stood up. "I'm leaving, Dober. I'm going back to training. See you later."
Luo Cheng turned to leave, but his sleeve was tugged. Turning his head, Luo Cheng saw that Mejiro Dober had grabbed him. She was still in the seated forward bend position, with her head down. Soon, Mejiro Dober let go and continued to stretch her body by herself.
Luo Cheng looked around, then sat back down. He helped Mejiro Dober finish that part of the training, dusted off his pants, and left. Before he left, Luo Cheng took another look at Mejiro Dober's mood.
[Good Condition].
After a day of training, Luo Cheng returned to his office. Looking at the calendar marked with a bunch of X's, he was one month away from Tokai Teio's first major chapter and the first leg of the Classic Triple Crown, the Satsuki Sho.
With Teio's current strength, Luo Cheng felt she could already challenge races in the mid-to-late game. Compared to other horse girls of the same period, Teio's attributes were a complete landslide victory, nearly double theirs.
If he were Teio, he probably would have entered a power fantasy mode, defeating anyone who stood in his way and dominating the racetrack.
Unfortunately, he couldn't.
Just as Luo Cheng was finishing up his records, a knock came from the door. This feeling, both strange and familiar, made Luo Cheng's heart skip a beat.
It had been a long time since anyone had knocked. The horse girls would just walk right in. Currently, there was only one situation where someone would knock on the door.
Luo Cheng swallowed and said, "Come in."
The door opened, and a cool, sharp-looking girl entered the room. Seeing her, Luo Cheng's pupils constricted.
"Dober?"
"Trainer, would you be willing to attend the Mejiro family's birthday party with me?" Mejiro Dober asked.
Luo Cheng was stunned for a moment, then spoke with a slight hesitation: "I would."
[Random Event Triggered: The Mejiro Family's Birthday Party.]
Suddenly, Luo Cheng saw that the attribute interface on Mejiro Dober had disappeared. Her originally cold face became lively, and she was blushing, leaning forward, her two fingers anxiously intertwined.
"Is that so? Then it's this weekend. I'll come get you then, Trainer. Remember to keep your schedule free." After saying that, Mejiro Dober bowed to Luo Cheng. "Oh, and Trainer..." Just before she left, Mejiro Dober turned her head.
"Thank you for your help with the training..."