"And then everything explodes when Tamamo finally unlocks her Domain and just zooms across the track!" Xīng sighed happily. "I mean, it was a little weird seeing just how shounen everything looks, but Kuzumi-sensei just makes everything look so cool!" She giggled.
I smiled wryly as Xīng continued to fawn over the art of the manga my story was being illustrated in. And to be fair, just from the few chapters I've read from the manga, the drawing was immaculate. I mean, I didn't really know how I looked whenever I activated my {Starlit Crown}, but seeing me garbed in a literal crown of flames was an experience to behold.
"So this is what it looks like…" I whispered, my expression a mixture of awe and slight discomfort. "What a strange experience. I could barely remember these moments myself."
Xīng hummed as she crossed her arms. "Well, the manga's only covering your Classic year, so it's not surprising that you can't remember it too well." She tilted her head slightly. "You're a Senior now, right?"
I nodded. "It is late September, where I come from." I hummed softly as I returned Xīng's phone back to her. "Still, to think I could've forgotten so much." I smiled wryly. "Memories are fickle things, indeed."
"Hue~" Xīng's smile turned droopy as she seemed to melt into her bed. "Ms. Blossom, your voice is just pure ASMR, you know?" She sighed in bliss. "You already sound amazing in-game, but it just doesn't compare~"
"...it…was not my intention." I said slowly, coughing as I tried to stop myself from putting so much gravitas in my tone. "Apologies if I made you uncomfortable."
"Ehe~"
That was another thing entirely. In my surprise over my story somehow being captured word by word, I'd forgotten that umamusume's main body was the Gacha game, and my eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when I saw myself in the game. It didn't quite look right—a fault of the generic model they'd used for my body, but seeing my face depicted in the game's artstyle was a strange experience.
It wasn't just me, either. Belno Light, Fujimasa March, Obey Your Master—they were all characters in the game, having recently been added after the manga began being published. Strangely, their horse counterparts had the same names; the names Twin Bee, March Tosho, and Pay the Butler had never come to be in this world.
I sighed.
"Ms. Blossom?"
I remained silent for a moment, unsure if what I wanted to ask would be appropriate or not. "You need not answer this if you feel uncomfortable." I eventually said, unconsciously glancing at the IV drip connected to her arm.
Xīng seemed to catch my gaze, and her smile became a little soft. "Ask away, Ms. Blossom."
"You are…sick?" I asked. She nodded, still smiling. "Is it curable?"
At that, Xīng went silent, her gaze distant. "Well, this time it's pneumonia." She smiled thinly. "Thankfully I caught it early, so the damage wasn't too bad. I'll be out of here in a couple weeks." She stuck out her tongue. "Gonna be stuck on meds for a few months, but at least I ain't stuck at the hospice."
I narrowed my eyes. That word she used-,
"This time?"
Xīng's smile grew. "Ehe, caught that, did'cha?" Her enthusiasm didn't last long however, and her frame deflated with defeat as she sunk back into her pillow. "It's immunodeficiency. I can't go two steps out of the house without a mask, or else I'll be dead by the end of the week."
"...I see." I looked down, silently clenching my fists. I wasn't unfamiliar with the term; in fact, one could say I was too familiar with it.
After all, it was the same condition that eventually led to my first death.
Though obviously Xīng's condition wasn't as bad as mine. Back then, I had to be monitored at all times to ensure my body wouldn't just give up on itself. Every day was agony, made even painful at the knowledge that the only thing waiting for me was death. It was only ████'s presence that made the last months of my life slightly more bearable.
Xīng smiled softly. "Don't feel too bad, Ms. Blossom. I'm more than used to it. Besides!" She grinned as she held up her bicep. "My immune system might be weaker than a baby's, but that doesn't mean I've let it stop me. I can bench-press a guy if I want!"
I blinked, and then narrowed my eyes as I scrutinized her arm. I hadn't really noticed it, but despite being in the hospital, Xīng's body was surprisingly muscular. Her muscles weren't bulging or anything—she had the sleek build of a swimmer, or perhaps a sprinter. It was clear that she'd spent much time exercising, even with her debilitating condition.
I returned a smile of my own. "That is good. To keep fighting even with such a disability—that is not something anyone could do."
"Ehehe~" Xīng puffed her chest out with pride, before she grinned. "But, you know, you were the one who inspired me to do this in the first place, Ms. Blossom!"
I blinked. "Oh?"
She nodded enthusiastically. "I mean, you were the one who kept training even when you didn't know how!" Her eyes sparkled. "Back when you were still in Kasamatsu, you basically trained yourself the entire way! Even though you didn't have Oguri's instincts or Belno's smarts, you pushed on regardless!"
I stared for a moment. The way she said it—it confirmed that the Umamusume System seemed to be one of the things that weren't shown. I mean, I'd already read the first few chapters of the manga, but I wondered if it was just something that'd been cut from the Light Novel.
"But, more than anything," Her smile softened, her look fond. "You didn't stop fighting. Even back before you met Oguri, when you came so close to-" Her hands trembled, before she took a deep breath. "You didn't give up. You refused to give up." She grinned. "You were my, and many people's inspiration!"
…
"No. It wasn't something so grand." I said humbly, before I smiled. "But I am overjoyed to know that my tale has served to inspire others, even in another world."
Yeah, at the end of the day, that was all that mattered. So what if my story was somehow being exposed in another world? If this strange life of mine could serve to inspire others, then let it be exposed. If my story could save even a single person, then this life would have been worth it.
[...reconnected! Connection to User -Blossom Star- has been reestablished!]
I blinked as the System's notification suddenly blared all across my vision, and I only had a moment to brace myself before an overwhelming feeling of strength surged within me. I was thankfully able to keep my expression neutral through it all, but even I was left slightly breathless by the time it ended.
"Ms. Blossom?" Xīng asked, her brows furrowed in worry.
"It's nothing." I said as I glanced at the panel with a hundred questions floating in the back of my mind.
And strangely, my usually quiet System responded to my inquiries for the first time.
[Transport to Parallel Worldline was performed Intentionally, as authorized by the Progenitor]
[However, anomalous conditions caused an abrupt shift in displacement. Forceful movement towards target of interest was initiated]
[Connection temporarily severed, but has been reestablished. Return to Original Worldline ready to commence to protect the Hero]
…Fascinating. So my appearance in this world wasn't a mistake. It's just that my sudden appearance in Xīng's room was an unplanned move. Still, who was this Progenitor my System had–?
Suddenly, I heard the door behind me slide open, and I saw Xīng's eyes widen with panic. "Eh? You're here already, ████?"
A chill crept up my spine as the name Xīng mentioned turned to static in my ears, and as I turned around to see who it was that'd entered the hospital room, I came face-to-face with someone I'd held dearly in my first life.
My heart thumped against my chest, and my throat felt dry as my lips parted. "You're–"
[Source of anomalous condition detected! Initiating emergency return!]
But before I could even utter her name, my world went white as I abruptly vanished into the ether.
.
.
.
The next thing I knew, I was back in the abandoned track I'd bought in Gunma. The cloudy sky hung above me, allowing only faint streaks of sunlight to pass through the sea of clouds.
My breathing was heavy as I stared at the sky, my face damp with sweat as I felt my heart thumping against my chest.
"System?" I whispered to the winds, trying to see if I could get it to respond like it did just moments ago. "System?"
Nothing responded. My System returned to its usual, passive silence.
I stared, and then laid a hand over my eyes as I continued to slowly breathe. "What the fuck was that?" I whispered, still shaken by those final moments I had in that parallel worldline.
I had a feeling I wouldn't be getting any answers for a long while.