A set of quick yet feather-light footsteps broke the morning quiet of the Mejiro estate.
As McQueen's figure swept down the broad spiral staircase, an older maid polishing the banister paused, raising her head with a puzzled look. In her view stood a purple-haired young lady she had never seen—and yet who felt strangely familiar.
…A guest? So early in the morning—?
Wait. No, that can't be right!
Doubt flashed through the maid's mind. She was just about to step forward to ask when the girl breezed right past her.
"Good morning! I've got something urgent—I'm heading out!"
That voice—clear, pleasant, and tinged with a sense of familiarity—left the maid frozen in place. She stared dumbly after the elegant silhouette striding straight for the entrance, pushing open the heavy door and bathing herself in the morning light.
Several long seconds later, realization struck; her pupils shrank.
That height… that face… and that unmistakable cascade of violet hair…
"C-could it be… McQueen-ojōsama?!"
When offering her morning greeting to her mother, McQueen scarcely needed to explain a thing. The stately lady of the house simply looked at her daughter—grown in a single night—with knowing, gentle eyes, and nodded with quiet satisfaction.
In mere moments, several maids arrived bearing a pristine Central Tracen — Middle Division uniform.
Back in her room, McQueen changed and stood before the mirror to fuss over every last detail of her appearance. Only after confirming that nothing was less than flawless did she finally, happily depart the estate, taking a car toward the academy.
Seated in the back, McQueen's pale fingers tapped lightly at her chin, amethyst eyes bright with thought.
"At this hour, Fujimasa-senpai and the others should have just finished morning practice… If I go straight to the training grounds, I probably won't catch Trainer-san there…"
A moment later, she made up her mind.
She would go directly to Kuroha-san's private trainer's room.
At the main gate of Central Tracen Academy.
The purple-haired beauty stepped from the car and looked inward. Morning sun spilled across every corner of campus as students flowed to and fro. Today, though, she was not the same as yesterday.
McQueen cut through the crowd with a clear destination, heading straight for Kuroha's private trainer's room. Soon, she stood before a door marked with the placard "Chasing Light."
"Haa…"
She let out a slow breath, the gentle softness of her chest rising and falling. She calmed the heart that pounded with excitement and anticipation, lifted her fair hand, and knocked.
Knock, knock.
"Trainer, are you in?"
A few seconds later, Kuroha's voice came from within: "Come in."
Inside, Kuroha was scanning several documents, occasionally jotting down a note. The knock—and a voice both familiar and new—made him pause a beat before telling the visitor to enter.
The instant his gaze met the poised figure at the door, his hand stilled completely.
Familiar—and entirely different—McQueen.
Understanding dawned in his eyes almost at once.
"McQueen?"
"Yes, Trainer-san," the girl answered with a soft smile.
"Not bad."
Kuroha stood and stepped closer. His eyes moved from the face that had shed all traces of childishness to become clear and lovely, down over a refined waist and long legs, then back up to her eyes.
Hmm… height up by a little over forty centimeters? Around one-sixty now?
He did the math in his head, involuntarily nodding as he thought. After all, the little loli he'd been looking after for nearly a year had transformed overnight—of course it felt a bit surreal.
"T-Trainer-san…?"
Under his gaze, McQueen felt a little unnatural. When she was still a child, standing up straight barely brought her to Kuroha's thigh. When she imitated Teio to beg for snacks, stretching out her hands meant he could lift her with ease and hoist her over his head. Back then, the world was something to look up at from a very, very low angle.
But now…
She lifted her lids and found that her line of sight landed squarely on his solid chest. Through the thin fabric of his shirt, she could almost sense the heat and strength of the body beneath.
This entirely new perspective—so different from before, with a subtle, pressuring weight to it—stirred a nameless feeling she had never experienced.
Her lively violet eyes slid aside, avoiding direct contact with his.
Kuroha didn't mind. Activating Body and Breath Perception, he thoroughly confirmed McQueen's condition—then immediately took her to the academic office to process everything.
Her student record was transferred to the Middle Division.
Her Uma status was updated to Active.
From this moment on—
McQueen—the first of a new wave since Tamamo Cross and Oguri Cap—opened the first year of her True Blooming!
Afternoon, at the Mejiro training grounds.
A tiny horse girl with a crescent fringe circled a purple-haired Uma over and over. Tokai Teio paced round and round, muttering under her breath.
"What is it, Teio?"
Post–True Blooming, McQueen's gentle elegance had only grown steadier. At the question, Teio finally stopped her circling. She planted herself in front of McQueen, tilted up her cute, still-a-little-chubby face—
—and, before McQueen could react, jabbed a small finger lightning-fast at the tummy under McQueen's neatly buttoned blouse.
"Wah!"
"T-Teio! D-don't poke me there!"
McQueen jolted as if shocked, clutching her stomach. Even with the calmer mind she now possessed, her friend's sudden ambush flushed her cheeks and made her step back on instinct.
Teio stared at her own fingertip for a beat, then lifted her head, speaking with unprecedented seriousness:
"Ne, McQueen."
"Now that you've True Bloomed… does that mean you can enter races right away?"
"Will you debut before me?"
Before McQueen could answer, Teio felt herself scooped up from behind—her view lurched upward.
"That's right, Teio—McQueen has True Bloomed. But racing still has to wait a bit," Kuroha said with a smile, giving the little loli a gentle bounce in his arms.
Teio's legs swung twice. "Then, Trainer-san, when can I True Bloom?"
"For you… probably next year?" Kuroha answered after a small hesitation.
In truth, perhaps thanks to all the foundational athletic training, McQueen had True Bloomed several months earlier than he'd first projected. If Teio followed the same curve, then this time next year might be her moment. Even if slower, it likely wouldn't be later than September.
Of course, when it came to the Three Goddesses' Blessing, Kuroha wouldn't dare speak in absolutes. Those three were very real—and very much alive. A difference of a few months sooner or later… might just depend on their mood.
(End of Chapter)
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