After bowing to the roaring crowd, Silent Suzuka exited the stage and made her way toward the dressing room. Just outside, she spotted Peach Waves sitting on a bench, legs crossed, sipping from a water bottle.
Without even changing out of her racing gear, Suzuka jogged over.
"Peach-chan, there you are. That was fast."
Peach Waves looked up and smiled.
"Suzuka-chan! You were amazing out there."
Suzuka, still catching her breath, waved it off.
"Forget that for now. Who was that Uma Musume with you earlier?"
Peach Waves blinked, then sighed inwardly.
As expected… Suzuka and Special Week. They're already curious about each other.
"Oh, her? Just a new friend I met today. She's a transfer student at Tracen."
"I see…"
Suzuka's voice trailed off. Peach Waves leaned forward with a grin.
"You were really beautiful out there today, Suzuka-chan."
Suzuka's cheeks flushed faintly, but she smiled.
"Thanks, Peach-chan."
"Alright, go shine on that winner's stage. I've got to get back to the food truck before Miss Tazuna finds a reason to scold me again. Bye-bye!"
"Bye, Peach-chan."
As Peach Waves walked off, Suzuka watched her go for a moment, then turned and headed into the dressing room.
Meanwhile, in a cramped holding room, Okino sat hunched over a payphone, frantically dialing.
"Damn it! Peach Waves, how could you betray your trainer like this?!"
Clunk.
"Hello? Is this Toujou Hana?"
In her office, Toujou Hana balanced the phone between her shoulder and ear, pen flying across a report.
"Tsk… what is it now?"
"Hehehe… could you bring my trainer ID to the station and bail me out?"
She paused, then raised an eyebrow.
"So you've finally shown your true colors."
"No, no! It's a misunderstanding! I was just checking a horse girl's legs and got mistaken for a creep!"
"Not unfair, honestly. Maybe a few days in there will help you reflect."
"Come on, Hana! Think of the horse girls on my team! Without me, how will they train? How will they achieve their dreams?!"
Toujou Hana didn't even blink before replying.
"You've got four girls. One's racing, two are freelancing with other teams, and the last one's probably grilling meat. What exactly are you contributing?"
Okino fell silent.
"I… I will pay for all my drinks this month…"
There was a pause.
"Where's your ID?"
"Third drawer."
Back at the staff dormitory, Peach Waves returned to find her food truck parked in the courtyard. Standing in front of it was Tazuna, arms crossed, expression calm—but ominous.
Next to her stood three reed-haired Uma Musume, heads bowed in shame.
"Oh no… Maruzensky's here too? I'm not ready for this…"
Peach Waves turned to flee—but a firm hand clamped down on her shoulder.
"Miss Peach. You're back."
"Wha—! Miss Tazuna?!"
"Good afternoon, Miss Peach. Please, have a seat."
Tazuna's grip was ironclad. Peach Waves had no choice but to follow her into the courtyard.
"Now then. Whose idea was it to drive the food truck through the main entrance of the academy?"
The emphasis on "main entrance" made all four girls flinch.
"Ahaha… I didn't say to use the main gate…" Peach Waves offered weakly.
"And you didn't say not to," Gold Ship muttered.
Tazuna's smile didn't waver.
"Since you organized the food truck, Miss Peach, you're responsible. Do you understand the main issue here?"
"Ohhh…"
"As a warning, all four of you will clean the indoor pool tomorrow afternoon. And Miss Peach—you'll transcribe the student code of conduct three times."
"Got it!" ×4
Satisfied, Tazuna's actual smile returned.
"Very good. Enjoy your weekend."
How can we enjoy anything now…?
After Tazuna left, Peach Waves turned to the others.
"Alright, let's divvy up the earnings. Gold Ship, how much did we make?"
Later she found Special Week again when going back to her dorm
"Peach-chan, where's your dorm again?"
"At the academy. Let's go."
"Oof—"
With Special Week in tow, Peach Waves led her around the back gate of the academy, handing her a plush doll.
"This is the Emperor's doll. You like her, right?"
"Eh? You got this for me?"
"Not really. I just happened to pass the arcade and tried the claw machine. Got lucky."
"You're amazing, Peach-chan…"
They entered the dormitory.
"Have you eaten?"
"Not yet. I stayed to watch Suzuka's winner's stage."
"Then I'll make dinner."
Inside her room, Peach Waves handed Special Week a seat.
"Make yourself at home. I'll prep the ingredients."
"Where should I put the doll?"
"Next to my bed's fine."
As Special Week approached the bed, a soft, sweet scent filled her nose.
What is that smell? Her sheets… they smell so good…
She blushed, shaking her head.
No, no! Don't think weird things!
She quickly placed the doll and retreated to the spare bed.
Soon, the scent of food drifted from the kitchen.
"So good…"
She peeked in to find Peach Waves, apron on, plating a steaming dish of glistening minced meat eggplant.
"Special Week, since you're here, help me set the table."
"O-okay!"
Peach Waves glanced at the mountain of rice on Special Week's plate.
"Didn't you eat over 80 skewers earlier?"
"Ahaha… but your cooking is just too good!"
"There's a fresh bedding set in the cabinet. You can use the spare bed if you're staying over."
"Thank you, Peach-chan. You're so kind."
"Swallow before you talk."
That night, both girls fell asleep quickly—Peach Waves curled up with her giant Rudolf plush, Special Week snoring softly with a bubble at her nose.
But in the middle of the night…
Sniff sniff.
Special Week stirred, her nose twitching.
"Mmm… radish… smells so good…"
Still half-asleep, she rolled out of bed and stumbled toward the source of the scent—Peach Waves' bed.
Peach Waves stirred, eyelashes fluttering. She peeked out from under her blanket.
"Spec… Special Week? Is that you?"
A dark silhouette loomed beside her bed.
Startled, Peach Waves scooted back.
"What are you doing standing there in the middle of the night?!"
But before she could get a full answer, Special Week collapsed forward—landing right on top of her.
She wrapped her arms around Peach Waves like a pillow and murmured:
"Mmm… delicious radish…"