Golden hair, blue eyes, a strange accent, and a badge on her chest that looked like a red-and-white striped flag with a blue background and white stars.
A Uma Musume—and an American one at that.
She trotted up to Manhattan Cafe, waving enthusiastically. Close behind her was Fujimasa March, whom Cafe had seen a few times before.
"H-Hello." Manhattan Cafe nodded, a little puzzled, as she looked at this overly familiar girl. "And you are...?"
"Obey Your Master!"
The girl flashed a 'V' sign with her fingers and introduced herself.
"She's a tourist who just arrived from America—Obey Your Master. She wanted to visit during the league matches and happened to see you, so she rushed right over," Fujimasa March explained from the side.
"I see... I'm Manhattan Cafe."
"I know! Manhattan Cafe, and this here must be... Silence Suzuka."
She even named the still-confused Silence Suzuka standing nearby.
"Huh? You know me?"
"Of course! Everyone knows the famous 'Dimensional Fugitive.' By the way, you even have fans over in the States."
"Ah..."
Silence Suzuka blinked in surprise.
She hadn't expected her reputation to reach overseas, but...
She observed the golden-haired girl quietly.
Something about her felt... off.
Unnatural, perhaps?
Unlike Suzuka herself, who sought harmony and peace, this girl felt like the opposite pole of a magnet—giving off a strong sense of repulsion.
What was it about her...?
"If you ever have time, you should come visit the States! We'd definitely give you a warm welcome!"
Suzuka wasn't great with overly energetic people. Facing Obey Your Master for the first time, she nodded almost on instinct.
"And as for you, Manhattan Cafe," Obey Your Master turned to the dark-haired girl beside her.
"How lucky to run into you while just strolling around! Actually, before being a tourist, I have another role."
She wore a faint, knowing smile.
"Churchill Park Tracen Academy—what you'd usually call American Tracen. Our student council president asked me to come and engage in some... beautiful exchange with you."
At those words, Manhattan Cafe's heart skipped a beat.
Churchill Park Tracen...
Wasn't that the address Air Shakur traced back to the website intrusion?
This girl was from that academy!
No sooner had they uncovered the lead than she showed up in person—it was hard not to connect the two events.
Unsure whether their investigation had been exposed, Cafe kept her composure, feigning ignorance.
"Exchange? What kind of exchange?"
"What else would it be between two academies? The league matches, exchange students, that sort of thing!"
Obey Your Master explained excitedly.
"Exchange students?"
Fujimasa March, who had only been treating her as a regular tourist to show around, sounded completely lost.
"That's right, my dear March!" Obey Your Master wagged her finger. "Exchange students—between American Tracen and Japanese Tracen. Sending students to each other's academies to learn and promote exchange. Doesn't that sound absolutely wonderful?"
"Lately, the JRA has gone through a lot of changes—much more open and free than before. And it's not just the JRA; Tracen has been evolving too. Since we can hold inter-academy leagues now, why not friendly exchanges with Tracen branches in other countries? That's what our president thinks."
She revealed information that someone who'd just arrived in Japan shouldn't reasonably know.
The situation with 'Friend' and the JRA had been developing for months, rule changes had been in place for a while, and Tracen's league preparations started last month.
If Obey Your Master wasn't lying about just arriving, she must have been closely following Japanese Uma Musume news all along.
Otherwise, she couldn't have grasped so many details in such a short time.
Manhattan Cafe studied her ever-present, faintly smirking face.
"Understood. I'll take you to meet President Symboli Rudolf. You can discuss the details with her."
"Hahaha, no rush. The president already said I should spend some time experiencing the academy and getting familiar with Tracen's environment. And I have to say, the facilities here are pretty impressive—everything you'd need, and more..."
She took a deep breath, a satisfied look on her face.
"The grass smells wonderful too. Makes you want to just lie down on it."
Weird girl...
Silence Suzuka, Manhattan Cafe, and Fujimasa March all thought the same thing simultaneously.
"Well, take your time looking around. If you need anything, you can find me at the student counseling office."
"OK, it's a deal! Let's go, March!"
With a wave, Obey Your Master dashed off, Fujimasa March hurrying after her.
"Hey! Wait for me—!"
Their voices faded into the distance, and peace returned to the air.
American Tracen Academy, huh?
Manhattan Cafe gazed in the direction Obey Your Master had left.
"Something tells me things are about to get complicated..."
Silence Suzuka gave a wry smile, speaking to Cafe, who now had to handle this sudden, cross-border academy matter.
"It's fine."
Something at this level was beyond her pay grade anyway. It would probably require input from Rudolf, the chairwoman, maybe even the JRA—a collective decision from those at the top.
Her job was just to bring the girl to Rudolf.
"Sorry for the disturbance, Suzuka."
"Not at all, it's nothing like that. If anything, I'm just surprised to see someone from another academy," Silence Suzuka replied.
"Besides, I've always been kind of interested in America. I've even thought before about maybe studying abroad there someday..."
"Oh? So you've thought about that?"
"Mhm, but I haven't mentioned it to anyone yet, so let's keep it our little secret for now, okay?"
She raised a finger to her lips, whispering softly.
--+--
Brr... Brr...
With the ringing of the telephone, a click sounded from the receiver.
"Obey Your Master, what is it?" The voice on the other end got straight to the point.
"I'm inside. I'll be meeting Symboli Rudolf soon."
"Good." The reply was brief, and the voice already sounded distant.
"Hey, wait! I didn't call just to hear a 'good' and that's it!" Sensing the other party was about to hang up, Obey Your Master yelled to stop them.
"Was that not all?"
"Of course not! Definitely not!" She ruffled her hair in frustration.
"What I wanted to ask was—are you sure it's okay to leave this to me? It's exchange students we're talking about! Is it really fine for me to decide so casually?"
"It's fine."
"You trust me that much?"
"If you mess it up, you'll be punished when you return."
"So it's a threat after all!?"
"Just make sure the matter is settled. I'll discuss the specifics with Symboli Rudolf directly."
"So I'm just the messenger now?"
"Remember to do your job."
"Yeah, yeah..."
Listening to the dial tone on the other end, Obey Your Master sighed.
You really know how to work people hard, President Secretariat.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.