Rudolf's eyes burned like twin volcanoes ready to erupt. Her presence alone made the air tense as she stared down Hishi Amazon.
"Ahaha… President, please calm down! I'll take full responsibility—I swear!"
Rudolf raised an eyebrow and waved her hand.
"So, remember what you said before?"
"Eh? What did I say? I don't recall…"
"Air Groove."
"Yes, President."
Air Groove stepped forward, pulled a recorder from her pocket, and pressed play.
"I work seriously, okay? If there's even one mistake—I'll run a hundred laps around the training ground!"
Hishi Amazon froze. Her confident voice echoed from the device like a ghost of her own bravado.
"Go change. One hundred laps. Outer track. Air Groove, supervise."
"Yes!"
As the two left, Rudolf sighed.
"Honestly… never a moment's peace."
Elsewhere, Urara eyed Special Week suspiciously.
"Spec, are you sure you're okay? You ate so many rice bowls at lunch…"
"No problem! I've still got a three-point belly!"
"I'm joining today's test too. I feel lucky—I might get selected."
Special Week looked at her in awe.
Urara seems so strong…
A staff member arrived with a clipboard.
"Please write your names here if you're taking the test."
Special Week scribbled hers down, then glanced at Team Rigil posing nearby.
"Suzuka-san isn't here… and neither is Peach-chan."
"Focus, Special Week. It's starting."
Suddenly, a dark-skinned Uma Musume sprinted in, panting.
"Hah… I made it… I think…"
"Don't stop, Amazon! Forty more laps!"
"Wha—?!"
Hishi Amazon, who had just slowed down, was immediately intercepted by Air Groove.
Toujou Hana coughed and stepped forward.
"Eyes front, everyone. Testing begins now."
The crowd of onlookers quickly refocused.
Back at the pool, the four punished Uma Musume stood in the lounge, admiring their freshly cleaned work.
"Finally done… I'm exhausted."
Peach Waves twisted her sore arm and popped an energy candy.
"Peach-chan… are you going to kidnap someone later?"
Gold Ship's sudden whisper made Peach Waves flinch.
She glanced at her phone—Okino had messaged her.
"Kidnap? What are you talking about?"
Tamamo Cross leaned in, alarmed.
"I knew it! The rumors about Team Spica are true!"
"Relax! It's our team's special welcome ceremony. I planned it with Scarlet and the others."
"So you're the one who put that weird sign at the school gate last month…"
Peach Waves sighed.
"Anyway, do you want to come? I heard the transfer student stayed in your dorm last night."
Gold Ship nodded.
"I saw Special Week knocking on the dorm door, so I invited her to stay over."
"Wait—Peach-chan goes to the arcade?"
Tamamo and Oguri looked surprised.
"I didn't before. But now that I'm less busy, I can finally relax."
At the door, Heavy Artillery tugged the Tokai Teio toward the pool.
"Didn't Miss Tazuna say the pool's closed today?"
"Yeah, and breaking rules means punishment from the president."
Heavy Artillery grinned.
"But aren't you curious why it's closed? Just a peek!"
"I… guess…"
They crept to the window and peeked inside.
"See? Told you someone would be curious. Let's go in!"
Inside, Gold Ship asked:
"So, what did you play at the arcade?"
Peach Waves waved her hand.
"Just the claw machine. I got lucky and snagged a giant Rudolf doll."
"WHAT?! The president's oversized doll?!"
Tokai Teio burst in, eyes sparkling.
"Peach-chan! Is it the half-body-sized one? The one I've tried to win hundreds of times?!"
"Uh… how did you guys get in here?"
Oguri Cap blinked at Heavy Artillery.
"We wanted to see why the pool's closed."
"That's it. Let's go, Oguri."
Tamamo called her over.
But Tokai Teio clung to Peach Waves' hand.
"Peach-chan, if you give me that doll—I'll do anything!"
Peach Waves sighed.
"Fine, fine. I'll give it to you."
"Yay! You're the best!"
Heavy Artillery eyed Gold Ship, who was now wearing sunglasses and a mask.
"Why are you here?"
"We're cleaning the pool. Punishment duty."
She waved and walked off with a sack over her shoulder.
"Um… what's she doing?"
Heavy Artillery asked.
"Oh, she's going to tie up a new recruit."
"WHAT?! Tie up a horse girl?!"
"It's our team's traditional welcome. Passive kidnapping method."
"Team Spica… is evil."
"By the way, Peach-chan, you look amazing in that swimsuit. Can I get a closer look?"
Heavy Artillery leaned in, sniffing.
"Hey, hey—it's just a supermarket buy."
Peach Waves stood proudly, hands on hips.