"Oh yea, Dream Journey," Ren began, reaching for a cookie. "Is it only you and Orfèvre traveling together?"
Before he could take a bite, Seabiscuit leaned forward and snatched it straight from his fingers, munching away without a trace of guilt.
Ren gave her a look that clearly said, 'Why?'
Seabiscuit avoided his gaze, pretending the tablecloth was suddenly fascinating.
"Not really," Dream Journey replied smoothly. "There are others as well."
Ren tilted his head. "Hmm? So that means they're staying in this hotel too?"
"No," Dream Journey said, adjusting her glasses with a composed smile. "They're in another hotel."
"I see… another hotel," Ren nodded absently—then paused, realization dawning. "Wait. That means you should be in that other hotel, not this one. So when you said we live in the same hotel yesterday, that was completely false."
Dream Journey's lips curved into an amused smile. "It wasn't false. I moved into this hotel temporarily since yesterday."
Ren sighed, rubbing his temple helplessly. "Good grief. Your other companions are probably worried sick that you disappeared for the night."
"They'll understand," Dream Journey replied without a hint of concern. She then turned to Orfèvre, who was quietly sipping orange juice. "Right?"
"Yes," Orfèvre answered simply before returning to her drink.
"By the way, Trainer Ren," Dream Journey asked, her tone as calm as ever, "what are you and Seabiscuit planning to do today?"
Ren leaned back, thinking. "Hmm… we don't really have any fixed plans yet."
"In that case," Dream Journey said, smiling warmly, "if you're not busy, would you and Seabiscuit like to join us today?"
Seabiscuit's tail instantly flared, her expression darkening like a cat seeing another cat trespassing on her territory.
Ren crossed his arms thoughtfully, then glanced at her. "What do you think, Biscuit?"
Her expression shifted in an instant—composure restored, smile polite, tone calm. "I don't know. It's up to you." But inside, she screamed, 'Please say no, please say no!'
"I see," Ren said with a nod before turning back to Dream Journey. "Then please take care of us for today."
Seabiscuit froze, looking at him with eyes full of quiet betrayal.
"Wonderful," Dream Journey said, her smile soft and knowing. "I'll contact the others, then."
Beside her, Orfèvre glanced at Ren, deciding to make polite conversation. "Trainer Ren, may I ask you something?"
"Sure," Ren replied, grateful for the change of topic.
"How long have you been a trainer?"
Ren blinked. "Hmm, how long has it been?" He turned toward Seabiscuit for confirmation, but she was looking at him intently—ears perked, tail twitching impatiently.
"About six months, I think," he finally said.
"I see. So you're still new," Orfèvre murmured thoughtfully. "Thank you for answering." She nodded politely and went back to her meal.
Ren leaned back in his chair, trying to relax—but then it hit him.
Wait... the "others" she mentioned... could it be those horse girls?
The horse girl that look like deadbeat-dad —Stay Gold.
The gambling addict—Nakayama Festa.
The Bossu —Fenomeno.
And the unpredictable chaos gremlin herself—Gold Ship.
It couldn't be them… right?
He chuckled nervously to himself. "I'm probably overthinking it."
Unfortunately for Ren, it real.
-------------------divide----------------
A few moments later, Ren found himself standing face to face with the entire Gold family.
He had read about them before — one of Japan's most prestigious horse racing lineages. But seeing them gathered before him like this, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. Something about their aura wasn't that of noble athletes… it was more like facing a mafia family.
And then there was Nakayama Festa.
Why was she glaring at him like he had just stolen her wallet? She stood there, biting down on her lollipop with dangerous intensity.
"Hey, look at that! I won the bet!" Gold Ship announced triumphantly, jabbing her thumb toward Nakayama Festa, who already looked seconds away from exploding.
"My reward, please?" Gold Ship added smugly, rocking on her heels like a cat that had caught the canary.
"There." Nakayama Festa snapped, shoving a dice set into her sister's hand.
"Woah, thanks!" Gold Ship grinned, admiring her prize — until her gaze suddenly shifted to Ren."Hey~ are you—blegh!"
Before she could finish her sentence, Dream Journey appeared out of nowhere and delivered a clean karate chop to Gold Ship's head.
"It hurts!" Gold Ship yelped, collapsing dramatically to the floor and rolling around like she'd been mortally wounded.
Dream Journey, unbothered, adjusted her glasses and stepped neatly in front of Ren."Trainer Ren," she said with a serene smile, gesturing toward the group behind her, "allow me to introduce my sisters."
If he ignored the one still writhing on the ground, it might have been a perfectly graceful introduction.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Stay Gold," said the eldest, offering her hand in a calm, almost dignified manner.
Ren shook it politely. "Ren. A pleasure to meet you."
Stay Gold nodded once before stepping aside, allowing the next to approach.
"GREETING! I AM FENOMENO!"
Ren blinked, momentarily stunned by the sheer volume. "Uh—hello? I'm Ren."For some reason, he found himself saluting back out of reflex.
Fenomeno gave a satisfied nod and stepped back.
"Yo. Call me Nakayama," Festa said curtly, barely glancing at him.
"Nice to—"
But before Ren could finish, she had already turned away, arms crossed, muttering something under her breath.
Ren sighed inwardly. Did I offend her in a past life or something?
The sound of rolling on the floor had stopped.
He looked down only to find Gold Ship crouched between his legs, staring up at him with a mischievous grin.
"Nice to meet you! I'm Gold Ship! I'm from Mars!" she declared proudly. "Don't mind Festa; she's just sulking because she lost a bet with me!"
"How… how did you even get there?" Ren muttered, stepping aside in disbelief.
Gold Ship stood, dusted herself off, and leaned in conspiratorially."Hey, hey, tell me—did you seduce my sister? Because honestly, I didn't think anyone could pull that off! But look at you, standing here like it's nothing!"
Ren didn't even get a chance to respond.
A tap landed on Gold Ship's shoulder.She froze.
"You should learn to act like a proper noble, Gold Ship," Orfevre said coolly, her tone sharp as steel.
"Wait, wait—"
But Orfevre had already seized her by the collar, dragging her away as Gold Ship flailed helplessly."Help meeee!" she cried toward Ren.
Ren calmly turned his gaze elsewhere, pretending not to see.
At least Stay Gold seemed normal… right?
He glanced at Dream Journey, who still wore that serene, knowing smile — the kind that somehow made him more nervous than reassured.
Ren sighed softly.
He really didn't want to know what fate awaited Gold Ship after this.
Now that he thought about it—where was Seabiscuit?
Ren glanced around the room but didn't see her anywhere. Before he could call out, he felt a faint tug at the back of his jacket.
"...Nee, Trainer," a voice murmured from behind him. "Are you having fun?"
He turned—and nearly froze.
Seabiscuit stood there, eyes dull and hollow, her expression utterly void of life. It was the kind of look that made his blood run cold.
"I… eh… not?" Ren replied weakly.
She gave a slow nod, saying nothing more. Then, without another word, she turned toward the group of horse girls chatting across the room and began walking toward them.
To introduce herself? Ren wondered. Or… something else?
He sighed and rubbed his temples. "...Please don't cause trouble," he muttered under his breath.
A minute later, Gold Ship returned—apparently alive and unharmed from Orfevre's "discipline session." She approached Seabiscuit with a surprisingly calm demeanor.
"Nice to meet you!" Gold Ship said, smiling normally. Too normally.
Ren blinked in confusion. Wait. Did she just… behave like a normal person?
He wasn't sure what Dream Journey or Orfevre had done to her in that brief absence, but whatever it was—he prayed for her sanity.
Just as he was silently offering that prayer, he felt it—a chill running down his spine.
Ren slowly turned his head.
Gold Ship was staring at him.
Her smile hadn't changed, but something in her eyes screamed trouble.
Huh? Why is she looking at me like that?
Wait. No. It couldn't be.
Don't tell me… she's planning something to him?!
Ren quickly looked away, pretending to study the floor as he made an awkward attempt to walk out of her line of sight. But even as he moved, he could still feel her gaze locked on him—like a predator watching its prey.
He swallowed hard.
I think… I regret my choices before... can I change?
(A/n: a bit short 1.4k word)