After both the [Japanese Derby] and [Japanese Oaks] ended with victory for Team Kitahara, much of the tension had loosened. After all, the next G1 race we'd face was Oguri's [Kikuka Sho], which was months away. Meanwhile, the [Queen Elizabeth II Cup] was in November.
Suffice to say, we had a lot of time.
Thankfully, Tracen Central had a number of activities for us to do during the upcoming summer months.
"Summer camp, huh…?" I whispered, idly reading through the flyer I'd been handed.
Musaka hummed. "It's a yearly thing the director pays for." He said, tilting his hat down to shield his eyes from the sunlight. "Most students usually opt to join in. Those with the money usually had their own islands to use, but we ain't the Mejiros." He grinned. "Damn Beast burns through our coffer faster than I can blink."
I chuckled, watching fondly as Oguri raced around the track. "That's Oguri alright." I grinned playfully. "Just be glad that Central usually provides for our lunch and dinner."
"We'd be in the damn grave if that wasn't the case."
I snickered before I turned back to the flyer in my hands. The flyer promoted the special beach Tracen Central had rented out for the summer, urging all students to join in for a summer roadtrip. Aside from the recreational value, training on sand also provides a unique opportunity for many.
Actually, I was questioning whether we'd actually go on a summer camp—mostly because the manga didn't really go over it. But I suppose with Akikawa Yayoi helming Tracen Central, I shouldn't have been too surprised. The woman was more than willing to drain her own pockets dry if it meant helping an uma.
I smiled slightly.
I eagerly waited for the day she'd propose the beginning of the [Twinkle Series].
"I'm down." I eventually said, handing the flyer back to Musaka. "I mean, there ain't no reason to refuse." I raised an eyebrow at him. "Unless you have some super secret plan you're not telling us?"
He waved his hand. "Nah, this is the best as if." He sighed. "Would've taken you abroad, but I doubt that'd be the best idea."
I paused, staring at him for a moment. Going abroad, was it? Honestly, that would've been pretty nice. I'd only been exposed to Japanese umamusume racing, and I was curious to see how everything was in other countries. I'd seen a snippet of it from the [Japan Cup] Arc in the manga, but other than that, I was clueless.
Then again, it was probably for the best that we didn't go. We still had the Classic races to focus on, after all.
"Star!" Oguri called out to me just as she passed the finish line, completely unwinded despite having already run a few laps. "Race?"
My lips twitched. "Still resting." I said, though I stood up and began walking down the steps. "Though I wouldn't mind running for a bit."
"Jus' remember not to strain yourself!" Musaka called out as I entered the track. I flashed him a thumbs up as I stepped onto the turf, stretching my arms as I walked towards Oguri.
Her ears drooped slightly when she remembered that I was still technically on my mandatory rest, but she perked up again when she realized I didn't reject her. "Run?"
"Sure." I said, before I smiled wryly. "Though I think we should at least wait for Belno to come."
She blinked, and then turned towards where I was looking. And there, having just entered the final straight, was Belno. She'd also been running with Oguri, but since her speed was slower compared to Oguri's monstrous acceleration, she'd fallen far behind and only recently caught up. Despite that, her expression was utterly calm, her eyes filled with cold determination as she finally reached the finish line.
"Yo, Belno." I said with a small wave.
Belno blinked, realizing I was standing on the track with them. "Eh? Aren't you still resting, Star-san?"
I smiled playfully. "A little run won't hurt, right?" She looked at me without a shred of confidence, and I raised my arms in guilt. "I won't rush off. Promise."
"You've said that every time, Star-san."
"I really promise."
"You say that a lot too."
"Really really promise." I extended my pinky to her. "Pinky promise even-" But before I could even finish speaking, Oguri had reached over and wrapped her pinky around mine. I blinked as I turned to her, and Oguri blinked as she stared back.
Belno's lips twitched before she sighed. "I get it, Star-san." She narrowed her eyes. "But I'm watching you."
"Right~" I drawled out, giving Oguri a heatpat as I walked over to the starting line. "On the count of 3?"
Oguri and Belno nodded as they both walked over to the starting line. I gave my shoulders a quick roll as I leaned forward, knees bent as I prepared to run. "3, 2, 1…" Belno counted down, before she shouted, "Go!"
All three of us took off into a light jog. Though it was a 'jog' by umamusume standards—to normal humans it'd look as if we'd taken off into a full-on run.
This time, I focused extra hard not to let my mind wander, lest I begin accelerating into the Great Escape I was used to. A surprisingly easy task this time, considering Belno watched me non-stop from the moment we began our jog. It was actually beginning to feel slightly uncomfortable, but I pretended that everything was fine. Such was the power of Belno's {Sharp Gaze}, I guess.
As we entered the second straight, I decided to talk with them about the upcoming Summer Camp. "Not sure what beach it'll be, but since this is Central, it's probably going to be top-tier." I said as I maintained my speed. "The camp sounds like a pretty good idea to me, but what'd you two think?"
"The sea…" Oguri muttered, before her eyes lit up. "Will there be seafood?"
I snorted. Of course. "Probably. We'll be by the beach, after all." I said. "And even if they don't provide it, we can just go looking for a restaurant."
"Ooh! I wanna go!"
Belno giggled at Oguri's easy enthusiasm, before she then smiled. "I think it'll be a good idea too. I've never gone to a beach before!"
I blinked at her. "You haven't?"
Belno blinked back. "Eh? You've gone, Star-san?"
I paused, realizing that I couldn't give an answer that'd make sense. After all, I'd never actually gone to a beach as Blossom Star—Kasamatsu was just too far from the beach and my family didn't have the money to splurge like that.
"Nah, but my grandparents used to live near one." Was the excuse I came up with. "They used to tell me stories about what they'd do during summer."
I then spent the next few minutes telling them about a few stories I had from my trips to the beach in my previous life, though I dressed it as if they were stories my grandparents told me when I was young. I wasn't sure if the beaches in Japan would match the ones I'd explained in my stories, but they should be close enough.
At some point, Kitahara joined Musaka in watching us jog around the track, though it didn't take long before the two men fell into their usual petty arguments again. I only snickered slightly as I caught them arguing just as we crossed the finish line, before shooting off as we began another lap.
We spent the rest of the day like this—doing some light training on the track, all while Musaka and Kitahara occasionally chimed in whenever they had advice.
The same could be said for the next day. And the day after that.
Without the worry of an approaching race pressing down on us, we spent the next few days in relative tranquility. Of course, this was Tracen Central. Some shenanigans were bound to happen here and there. But overall things were fairly calm as the deadline to our summer camp slowly approached.
And before we knew it, the day of our summer camp finally arrived.
But before we could actually partake in the summer camp, we had to get there first.
"Have you packed everything?" I asked, standing just outside Oguri and Belno's room, my suitcase already packed with all the essentials I'd need for the next several weeks.
"J-Just a minute!" Belno called out as she frantically began another check through her luggage, wanting to make sure that she hadn't missed anything. I sighed as I watched her begin to inspect her luggage for the fifth time.
I then turned to Oguri. "And you?"
Oguri flashed me a thumbs up as she lifted her duffle bag. "I'm ready!"
"You sure?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. "That bag doesn't look heavy."
She tilted her head. "Should it be?"
Alarm bells rang in the back of my head, and I sighed. "Give the bag over. Let me check what you packed." Oguri obediently handed the bag over, and I frowned as I felt how light the bag was. Silently bracing myself, I pulled the zipper open to see what was inside, and my spirits fell.
As I expected, Oguri had packed basically nothing. A single one-piece swimsuit, a single pair of sports jerseys, a few horseshoes, and…that's it.
My eyes twitched. Considering this was Oguri, this probably wouldn't even last a day, much less several weeks!
I turned to her, but whatever words I had prepared fell when I saw the excited look Oguri had, clearly waiting for me to praise her. I instead sighed, before smiling slightly as I patted her head. "This ain't enough, Oguri." I said. "Come on, I'll help you pack a few more things."
"Mm!" Oguri nodded, and soon we began packing more things for Oguri to bring to our summer camp.
I didn't notice the way Oguri's tail kept unconsciously wrapping around my leg.