WiseTL

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [243]

“Challenge me?!”

El Condor Pasa’s ears shot up, eyes widening in disbelief.

She didn’t mishear, right? This strange, black-clad figure actually wanted to challenge her?!

It was the first time in days anyone had dared to issue her a challenge. Most trainers bolted the moment they saw her—like they’d just run into some prehistoric beast. The few arrogant ones who’d stayed behind were all flattened in humiliating defeat.

But this mysterious...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [242]

When El Condor Pasa was little, she wasn’t the fearless fighter she is now. She was timid, tearful, often mocked as a coward—a nuisance everyone avoided.

Her father, the world’s strongest luchador, was admired and relied upon by all. But his daughter turned out weak and weepy—a crushing disappointment.

Trapped in her own self-doubt, El Condor Pasa stopped meeting people’s eyes. Even a passing glance made her flinch and want to curl up in some dark corner, wishing her fat...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [241]

“Um… Master Jin…”

“Hm? What did you just call me?” Master Jin arched a brow, his eyes suggesting Mizuno should switch to a different form of address.

“…” Mizuno got the hint. He gritted his teeth and forced out the shame-inducing title.
“Fa… father-in-law…”

“Ehh~”

That one “father-in-law” landed for Master Jin like a referee’s final bell—pure satisfaction, like celestial music to his ears.

Maybe it was parental instinct, b...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [240]

“Hah?!”

Mizuno froze, completely dumbfounded. For a moment, he genuinely wondered if he was still floating face-down in the pond after Hayakawa-san’s punch, hallucinating this bizarre conversation as his brain shut down.

He’d only met Master Jin twice. The man didn’t even know his real face—and now he wanted Mizuno to call him father-in-law?

Mizuno pinched his cheek. It hurt.
Nope—definitely real.

“What’s wrong? Is it so good you think you...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [239]

Afternoon—in front of the factory.

Master Jin stood lazily in the doorway, a half-empty whiskey bottle in his left hand and a glass in his right, savoring the quiet mountain air.

Few could understand the pain of a man married to an Uma Musume. After twenty-plus years of marriage, his body was past its prime—but fate had decided that this was exactly when his wife, Starry Sky, entered her own “peak season.”

Now, every single night she demanded “contribution...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [238]

After waking up in Hayakawa-san’s tent, Mizuno didn’t waste a single minute lying around.

He first returned to the waterfall and thanked Hayakawa-san—still meditating there—for saving him the night before. Then, after expressing his gratitude, he headed deeper into the forest to find a quiet, sheltered spot where he could pitch his own tent and set up a personal campsite.

With somewhere safe to rest, Mizuno immediately threw himself back into training, climbing the norther...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [237]

Ring-ring-ring—

As the sun sank and twilight spread through the forest, Mizuno’s alarm finally went off, marking the end of his two-hour waterfall meditation.

The warm light of dusk painted the forest gold, and the spray glimmered on Mizuno’s bruised, battered body like tiny shards of amber.

It was late. Nightfall in the forest meant danger, and training had to end for the day. But Mizuno was spent—completely drained. He couldn’t even lift a finger to turn...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [236]

The physical conditioning plan Master Jin gave Mizuno had four parts.

———

Part One.

Head north into the forest, climb a mountain over a thousand meters tall, scale it from the cliff side, and then roll straight down the gentler slope—using nothing but your body.

At dawn, when the sky was just turning pale, Mizuno reached the mountaintop. Following the plan, he found a slope with about a forty-degree incline, tucked himself into a tight ball, and threw ...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [235]

“Hm?”

The swimsuit-clad Uma Musume’s startled reaction caught Mizuno off guard.

That half-uttered name—she’d almost called out his surname.

“Do you… know me?” he asked, puzzled.

“N-no, I don’t!” she blurted, shaking her head far too quickly. But the way her eyes darted aside and how she nervously tucked her wet hair behind her ear gave her away instantly.

“…” Mizuno rubbed his chin, studying her face more closely, trying to pl...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [234]

“I’ll keep that in mind!” Mizuno nodded earnestly, taking Master Jin’s warning to heart.

Rest assured—even if it killed him, he would never pull an Uma Musume’s tail.

“Master Jin, do I really have to train for a whole year? Isn’t that way too long?” Mizuno asked, scratching his head anxiously.

If he spent a whole year training before challenging El Condor Pasa, who knew how many trainers she’d have tossed around by then? By the time he returned, ...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [233]

The foreign man—no, Master Jin now—led Mizuno into the ramshackle factory.

Inside was a surprise: clean and tidy, almost eerily empty. Overhead lights flickered; cardboard boxes were stacked in corners like an abandoned warehouse. Supposedly a gun shooting experience center, yet Mizuno didn’t see a single gun, not even a toy that blinked.

“Master Jin, did your gun center shut down?” Mizuno asked.

“Mm.” Master Jin nodded. “Ever since some guy calling himself G...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [232]

“Go on, scram!” The dreadlocked dojo master waved Mizuno off impatiently, urging him to leave.

“…I see…” Mizuno lowered his head, rubbing his chin in thought.

He’d already visited every wrestling dojo in the city, and every answer had been the same—no such technique existed. None that could ever let a human defeat an Uma Musume.

No leads here. And the odds of finding anything in the rest of Japan weren’t looking any better.

Maybe America? Wrestling wa...

Uma Musume Pretty Derby: To The Basement [231]

“Too damn strong…”

Mizuno lay sprawled on the ground, watching from a distance as medics carefully lifted Hiroshima Baoza onto a stretcher and into an ambulance. His heart still trembled with leftover fear.

Good thing El Condor Pasa had only thrown him, instead of slamming him waist-first into the ground like Baoza. Otherwise, he’d probably be just like him now—spine shattered, never walking again.

He’d gotten off easy this time. After borrowing a bit of...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [70]

When the two sisters returned home, only Nakano Yotsuba and Nakano Itsuki were in the living room. Nakano Miku was holed up in the bedroom, as usual.

“Huh? How come you two came back together?” Nakano Yotsuba asked first, hopping up curiously, her bright eyes carefully inspecting the pair.

Nakano Itsuki, currently stuffing her mouth with Shirase’s homemade cookies, vaguely mumbled while chewing, “I remember Nino said she was going out with Shirase-kun, and Ichika said she ...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [69]

Nakano Nino wasn't intentionally targeting Nakano Ichika—her questioning came purely from concern for her family. She just wanted to clear things up.

Earlier at the dessert shop, she'd already intended to chat with Ichika and dig a little deeper. If Shirase hadn't held her hand and disrupted her thoughts, she would’ve confronted her sister much sooner.

But now, having seen Ichika step out of a luxury car at nine o'clock at night, if Nino pretended not to notice, she wouldn’t...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [68]

Shirase paid no heed to Nino’s excuses, stepping forward to gently push her by the shoulders. “I’ll help you across.”

“Hey, I already told you—I’m not climbing over—”

Nino’s cheeks flushed as she struggled lightly. Her resistance was pitifully weak, clearly giving off a vibe of half-hearted reluctance.

In the end, Shirase still managed to lift her up to sit atop the barrier.

As she felt the warmth of Shirase’s large hands firmly gripping her waist...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [67]

The sky had fully darkened, and the streets officially entered the "golden hours" beloved by riajuu couples.

As Shirase and Nakano Nino passed through the lively street, they spotted a couple beneath a tree near the park, sweetly embracing and deeply absorbed in their own little world.

At first, Nino just glanced and looked away, but her peripheral vision soon caught that same couple under the tree, transitioning smoothly from hugging to passionately kissing…

The dim light...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [66]

At this moment, Nakano Nino quietly murmured, “Those jealous girls in class are always saying, ‘Yukinoshita-san will probably be stuck as flat as a board her whole life.’ They say it so much that almost every girl remembers it—including me.”

Then, Nino’s expression twisted in disgust. “We’re all still just high schoolers. Who can be sure someone won’t develop later? Honestly, some people’s envy is just revolting.”

While speaking, she unconsciously folded her ...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [65]

Everything went just as Shirase had expected—walking down the street with Nakano Nino drew plenty of glances.

There were, of course, girls sneaking looks at him too, but compared to the radiant, carefully dressed beauty beside him, the number of gazes he attracted naturally didn’t even come close.

While they were walking, Shirase received an email from the captain—good news, for once. Three new students had just submitted their applications to join the Soccer Club.

And...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [64]

“Shirase, Nee-san knows you occasionally like to say weird things, but today is your first date with Nino—you absolutely cannot mess it up...”

“When dealing with girls, you must always be attentive, especially with someone as pretty as Nino. It’s very rare that she'd agree to a date with you…”

“Oh, right! Do you have enough money? Boys must never go out on a date without money. Imagine how embarrassing it’d be if she saw something she liked, but you couldn’t pa...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [63]

On the way home, Shirase assumed Nakano Nino would probably be tsundere-ishly waiting at home for his call, thanks to Nakano Yotsuba’s report.

But then he spotted her figure through the window of a women’s clothing shop he was passing by.

Inside, Nino wasn't alone. There were three other bright, youthful girls—two he’d seen before from their school, while the third, a ponytailed girl, was unfamiliar.

Seeing that the girls were already paying at the counter, Shirase s...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [62]

Before soccer practice even finished, Shirase and the others saw Hayama Hayato say something to Miura Yumiko, and then that blonde girl reluctantly pulled Ebina Hina away.

“What did you two talk about?”

When Hayama Hayato returned, Shirase paused the [Fixed Hosting] and asked casually.

“Nothing much. I just suddenly remembered what the captain said earlier,” Hayama smiled naturally. “Yumiko clearly isn’t interested in our training. She probably w...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [61]

“Why’d you come all the way over here?” Shirase paused [Fixed Hosting] and walked toward her proactively.

“I came to see you, of course~” Nakano Yotsuba’s face still brimmed with boundless energy, her bright eyes curiously scanning her surroundings. “So this is how you guys normally train? How nice... I wish I could also join a national competition with my friends.”

Shirase thoughtfully suggested, “Then why don’t you disguise yourself as a boy ...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [60]

In fact, Isshiki Iroha’s guess had been spot‑on.

When Hayama Hayato arrived, he greeted everyone politely—but then went straight over to chat with Shirase.

Watching this, Miura Yumiko, who had come to training with Hayama, looked visibly deflated.

Her feelings were basically public knowledge by now, yet Hayama still treated her no differently from anyone else.

The only thing the blonde girl could be thankful for was that she’d dragged Ebina Hina along today. Ot...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [59]

Early next morning, Shirase went out for his routine morning jog as usual.

Tonight, he had a date with Nakano Nino, so naturally, club practice couldn’t run until dark like last time.

He activated [Fixed Hosting] and jogged leisurely, completely oblivious to the young man with long, tanned legs, wearing a sleeveless marathon jersey, quietly trailing behind him.

Only when the young man caught up and ran alongside him on the dimly lit streets did Shirase gla...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [58]

Kojima Kana’s current speech was dangerous.

At least, from Shirase’s point of view, it was dangerously close to a situation like “Ma'am, your outfit is dangerous.”

Yet Kana herself, oblivious, continued talking and felt more and more like a knowledgeable elder. She confidently puffed out her chest and declared, “So basically, if there’s anything you don’t understand, just come ask me. Like I’ve always told you, as your big sister, I'll answer any questions you have...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [57]

[Congratulations, host, on winning the warm sweater knitted by Kojima Kana. The system will retrieve your prize immediately.]

Once again controlled by the system, Shirase opened the bedroom door and walked straight to the living room.

Kana casually looked over from the sofa. "I ate all the cookies you made the other day. Can you make more—eh? Why are you heading to my room?"

Under Kana’s astonished gaze, Shirase strode directly i...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [56]

At this point, continuing the meal was naturally impossible. After Shirase put down his chopsticks, Yukinoshita Haruno and Hiratsuka Shizuka both suggested taking the injured Yukino to the hospital first.

For a girl, an injured nail was not a trivial matter. If not handled properly, who knew if it might leave an unsightly scar or cause permanent deformation?

As the group exited the restaurant, Shirase's [Free Hosting] mode was nearly over.

Before getting int...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [55]

Watching Shirase stride so decisively toward the restaurant door, looking ready to fight to the end, the four men and three women were all left stunned.

Even the long-haired man’s girlfriend, who’d been standing aside glaring a moment ago, now looked completely dazed.

They weren’t his age. All of them had already stepped into society—some even had families of their own.

And once you’ve entered the working world, once you have a home to go back to, you lose that you...

Who Can Resist Nakano Nino? [54]

“Yukino, are you alright?”

Hiratsuka Shizuka naturally noticed Yukinoshita Yukino’s pained expression. When she saw Yukino's toes bleeding continuously, she immediately pulled tissues from her purse and stood up, rushing over.

The system, still busy eating, had no choice but to move aside.

The drunk couple were still giggling foolishly, their minds dulled by alcohol, completely oblivious to what had just happened here.

Seeing they intended to leave just like that...