As Tachyon's discovery spread, word got around quickly. Countless Uma Musume were left in a daze. The diary had only been around for two days, yet it had already caused a massive storm.
Inside the Student Council Office:
Symboli Rudolf took a deep breath, finding the truth bizarre yet fascinating. Air Groove questioned the reality of it, but ultimately felt it was true.
While reading the diary, Rudolf felt a pang of regret for her initial reaction to Trainer Mizuki. From what she's read so far, Mizuki was suddenly dragged into this world without being informed beforehand. She had no choice but to bluff and try to become a Trainer with her limited knowledge.
If the choice was up to her at the time, Rudolf would've thrown Mizuki out of the school the moment she started talking. Thankfully, Spica's lack of personnel caused the Chairwoman to decide to give her a chance.
She'll have to find an opportunity to apologize later. Perhaps she'll stop by Spica's training area and offer to give them some pointers...?
Elsewhere, in the Ritto Dorms: Narita Brian's pupils constricted. She had a twig in her mouth as she spoke:
"So there are Training Rewards in the log? The Narita Brian of the other world... what would she be like? It would be cool if she had a strip of tape on her nose too. It's hard not to care..."
She suddenly thought of her sister, Biwa Hayahide. A random thought popped into her head:
'If there really is another world, is my sister's head just as big over there?'
Brian coughed, feeling she was being a bit mean, and dropped the thought.
Meanwhile, Biwa Hayahide sneezed. She felt strange— was someone bad-mouthing her?
'Hmph, what a head-ache... wait, let's rephrase that!'
In the Middle School section of the Ritto Dorms: Special Week and Silence Suzuka were also full of wonder.
"Suzuka-san, I didn't think a parallel world really existed! The Suzuka-san of the other world must be just as beautiful and elegant. I wonder what I'm like over there? Ehehe."
Silence Suzuka began walking in a counter-clockwise circle— a subconscious habit of hers. "I don't know... but it does feel like our hearts are connected."
She looked out the window at the sky. If the other Silence Suzuka really existed... what was her fate? She hoped that version was able to keep running happily forever.
"Why can't I feel it?" Special Week closed her eyes, trying to sense a connection, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't pick up any signals. She eventually gave up with a helpless expression.
Elsewhere, Rice Shower was also happy. She thought that the Rice Shower of the parallel world was surely much stronger and more popular than her useless self.
In another world, if she ran, would crowds of people cheer for her?
Rice Shower decided that she would work just as hard as her counterpart. If she could earn rewards, she would share them with her other self. However, she worried about her poor luck— she usually only pulled tissues from the lottery. She hoped this time the reward would be something truly helpful.
"Hehe... Rice Shower has to do her best too. First, I'll fantasize about my debut race..."
"Ahem. Now, the contestant Rice Shower enters the gate... a cheer erupts from the stands..."
"She really is just like the meaning of her name, an Uma Musume who brings happiness to everyone..."
Lost in her daydreams, Rice Shower began her training. It was rigorous and exhausting, but she was incredibly happy.
However, unlike Rice Shower, Admire Vega was currently overcome with shock and excitement. By confirming the existence of parallel worlds, a glimmer of hope sparked in her heart— the hope that her sister might still be alive somewhere.
Admire Vega thought that even if it were a parallel world, if she ran with her life on the line, perhaps she could bring change to that other world and help her sister.
"That's great... I might still have a chance to atone..."
A slight fantasy of her sister being alive made her entire body tremble uncontrollably. She was now desperate for the diary to appear again to see if she had any "Training Objectives." If this were real, she would do anything.
While Admire Vega was in a state of solemn shock, Agnes Digital was on an entirely different level of hype. She was completely losing her mind with joy.
"Eh? Tachyon-san means... there are way, way more Uma Musume out there?"
"Awa-wa-wa! This is... THE BEST!!!!!!"
Agnes Digital was arguably the biggest winner here. The thought of the world's population of Uma Musume increasing meant her happiness was multiplied expontentially. This was simply too much for her little simp heart to handle.
With a thud, Digital peaked from the over-excitement and fainted from pure bliss.
Gold Ship was also thrilled.
'I knew there were parallel worlds! Little Gold Ship's alien exploration is definitely useful!'
And Gold Ship really wanted to know: Did the Gold Ship in the other world find aliens yet?!
Soon, amidst the lingering shock of the various Uma Musume, the afternoon training session arrived. Everyone's motivation was at an all-time high.
As Mizuki stepped out, she saw two familiar figures: Special Week and Silence Suzuka. Their races were approaching, but since it was only January, the atmosphere wasn't too tense yet. Between training sessions, they were exploring the surroundings.
"Suzuka-san, thank you for treating me to so many crepes. Every flavor was amazing!" Special Week's stomach was bulging. City food was truly irresistible.
"It's no problem. After all, Spe-chan, you gave me over ten boxes of carrots," Silence Suzuka replied with a smile.
"Oh! Isn't that Trainer Mizuki over there? Hey! Trainer Mizuki~~~" Special Week waved her hand. She had so many things she wanted to ask her about the diary.
"Trainer Mizuki, hello." Silence Suzuka greeted her politely. She was the quiet and sweet type, but she looked a bit constrained now.
"Special Week-san and... Left-Handed Suzuka?" Mizuki greeted them back. It was a stroke of luck; she had originally planned to ask both of them to join Spica.
Silence Suzuka froze for a moment. Was there a hidden meaning behind 'Left-Handed'? However, she figured she was overthinking it— it was probably just an odd form of greeting.
Someone who suddenly appears out of a tree stump wouldn't exactly be normal, would they?
"Where are you headed, Trainer? To Spica's training room?" Special Week asked. She realized she wanted to bring up the log, but the words simply wouldn't come out. After a few tries, she understood: she couldn't mention the diary in front of Mizuki.
"No, I'm headed to the gym for the afternoon. Do you two want to come along?" Mizuki invited them. She wanted them in Spica, but she needed to gauge their interest first.
She remembered a saying from King Halo in her story episodes: "As a Trainer, you can cycle through different racers until one of them gives you the results to call yourself 'first-rate'. But it's different for us, the actual racers. We only have one chance to prove ourselves on the track."
Therefore, she was very cautious about choosing her runners.
However, Mizuki didn't know that Special Week and Silence Suzuka were already curious about Spica. McQueen had told them about Spica's philosophy, and after seeing the log, they realized those ideals aligned perfectly with their own. Suzuka just wanted to run, and Special Week wanted to become the best Uma Musume in Japan.
Spica's tendency to respect the individual will of the runner was exactly what they were looking for.
"Okay! I just finished eating, so I need to get some training in too." Special Week nodded, full of energy. Her previously bloated stomach had already returned to normal— her digestion speed was incredible.
Truly worthy of being the second-best glutton at Tracen.