WiseTL

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [69]

Not long after Agnes Tachyon’s Winner's Concert ended, Kitahara Sato and the others returned to the waiting room.

Since the stage was close by, Tachyon had arrived slightly ahead of them, and by the time they came in, she seemed completely back to normal—as though nothing unusual had ever happened.

She greeted them cheerfully, cracked jokes, and even tried secretly adding something suspicious into Kitahara’s water bottle.

Seeing her back to her usual antics, Kitahara b...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [68]

As previously mentioned, Agnes Tachyon always acted like she was experienced and mature, someone who could effortlessly navigate through emotional matters. She often teased and joked around with Kitahara Sota, appearing like a confident woman who'd been through countless battles in matters of the heart.

However, all her supposed expertise was entirely theoretical.

Despite being immersed in the chaotic environment of Tracen Academy—especially given her role as a shady potion-sell...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [67]

Despite setting a pile of ominous flags before the race, drawing tons of hostility, and being unable to exert her full strength due to health issues, Agnes Tachyon still easily claimed victory in the Basic Race, leaving the second-place Uma Musume four full lengths behind.

As for the race itself, there wasn’t much to describe.

A fast start to seize the lead, tactical blocking mid-race by disrupting her opponents’ pacing through calculated positional shifts, baiting them into p...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [66]

Thanks to Agnes Digital’s assistance, Agnes Tachyon’s leg care went smoothly.

Yet strangely enough, despite openly getting to touch Tachyon’s legs up close and even receiving surprisingly cooperative behavior from her, Digital’s mood didn't soar—in fact, it seemed to worsen.

Kitahara had even mentally prepared himself for Digital to faint halfway through, nose bleeding while muttering something like "This is heavenly!", requiring him to step in. Instead, Digital unusuall...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [65]

Not long after Kitahara Sota’s clothing situation was resolved, their vehicle arrived at the venue for the Basic Race.

They disembarked, entered the venue, picked up the temporary activity room keys from the organizers, and went straight there.

Since this was the team’s first official race—and three of his members were racing at once—Kitahara had brought the whole team along. Besides adding to the excitement, it also allowed Special Week and the others to become familiar w...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [64]

After sending off Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond, Kitahara Sota resumed his usual training routine.

Slacking off, lazing about, fiddling with his phone.

Eating, sleeping, browsing forums.

And when he got truly bored, he'd occasionally find something to do.

For instance, checking up on Tokai Teio’s progress, collecting data, or refining some earlier inspirations.

Or observing Grass Wonder’s situation, giving a few subtle assists to ensure she didn’t fixate...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [63]

After parting ways at the elderly Uma Musume’s clothing shop last Saturday, Kitahara Sota had thought he wouldn’t have any further interactions with these two heavyweights.

It made sense. Both were young, not even in their growth spurts yet, nor were they students of Tracen Academy. Logically, the only time they'd meet again would be at Elder Uma Musume’s store.

Although he went to Elder Uma Musume’s shop every Saturday, most of his time there involved serious discussions ...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [62]

Faced with Grass Wonder’s sudden request, Kitahara Sota didn’t show the slightest surprise. Rather, he felt an almost nostalgic sense of Ah, you’re finally here.

The reason was simple.

Though Grass Wonder had nominally joined his team, she was, in reality, just a bodyguard sent by the Student Council, concerned about the threat from Black Forest.

But now, Hayakawa Tazuna had returned, and Tracen Academy’s security team was fully operational again.

Afte...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [61]

After browsing the trainers' group chat, eating dinner, and spending the evening leisurely scrolling online, Kitahara Sota's Saturday passed without incident.

Sunday likewise remained calm. Not only were there no unexpected disturbances, but apart from Eclipse, not a single Uma Musume came looking for him—a truly rare and peaceful weekend.

Thus, after enjoying this precious, trouble-free holiday, the fourth week of training began.

His morning routine stayed unchanged: wake...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [60]

The moment Kitahara noticed Special Week standing quietly by his side, he immediately guessed the source of his earlier unease. He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

Grass Wonder-san, Grass Wonder-san… How did you manage to drop the ball again?

And fine, dropping the ball was one thing, but please don’t redirect your resentment toward innocent bystanders…

Hm?

Initially, Kitahara had fully expected Grass Wonder to be staring daggers at him by now...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [59]

Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond—both were names Kitahara Sota considered heavyweights.

But unlike the latter, Kitasan Black wasn’t labeled "heavyweight" due to being particularly strange or dangerous.

Quite the opposite: Kitasan’s safety level could be placed alongside Special Week or Oguri Cap. If he had to describe her in one phrase, it would be something like “heart of gold.”

Bright, optimistic, and incredibly kind-hearted.

No matter the place or circumst...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [58]

Saturday morning.

After his usual brief morning routine, Kitahara threw on some casual clothes and left the dorm without waiting for Eclipse.

Thanks to Hayakawa Tazuna and the security team's return, campus safety had improved dramatically. Patrols were everywhere, and Black Forest had suffered heavily in recent operations. Since Tuesday, they hadn’t made a single move against Tracen, eliminating the need for Eclipse to shadow him constantly.

Kitahara arrived at their meet...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [57]

After seeing off the Chairwoman and Hayakawa Tazuna, discussion immediately resumed in the conference room.

The trainers’ faces showed a wide range of reactions. Some looked utterly hopeless, already picturing the consequences awaiting them after breaking the news to their tantou.

A few trainers had even pulled out their phones to contact the campus clinic, preemptively booking hospital beds for fractured pelvises—just in case they were all snapped up later.

Others appea...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [56]

Meanwhile, Kitahara Sota, completely oblivious to the fact that he'd handed out the wrong key, had arrived at the conference room.

He was relatively early, so the room wasn't crowded yet, and the Chairwoman hadn't shown up either.

After randomly choosing a seat, he began chatting with a few trainers already present, speculating about the reason the Chairwoman had called them here. They quickly reached a unanimous conclusion—Tracen Academy was probably about to make its move agai...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [55]

“Oguri Cap, is something the matter?”

Faced with Kitahara Sato’s question, Oguri Cap blinked in confusion.

Because she herself didn’t know why she’d approached him.

Due to her nature, Oguri Cap wasn’t good at expressing herself, rarely spoke within the team, and most of her words were related to food anyway. She was an exceptionally pure foodie.

She seldom worried about anything except eating. Her greatest concern was getting blacklisted by almost every all...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [54]

Time continued its steady march forward.

After finishing lunch, Kitahara Sota found Agnes Digital and Agnes Tachyon to discuss his idea.

Agnes Digital immediately agreed, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement.

Agnes Tachyon was about to do the same, but just as she opened her mouth, she raised an eyebrow slightly.

“I don’t mind helping out as an assistant trainer, but... I have conditions.”

“No drug-testing,” Kitahara promptly interjected.

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [53]

Kitahara Sota straightforwardly refused Agnes Digital’s request to become his disciple.

It wasn't because he thought she was dangerous or wanted to avoid trouble; he simply believed he couldn’t teach her effectively.

Even veteran trainers struggled to keep up whenever he explained his methods. If he ever got serious, it might even drive them insane. Agnes Digital, an Uma Musume who hadn’t received any formal trainer education, would definitely struggle even more. Instead of ...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [52]

Some time later…

In a café not far from the training grounds, two figures sat facing each other, an awkward silence lingering between them.

After returning each other's phones, Kitahara Sota and Agnes Digital had hastily found excuses to slip away from the training ground. Thankfully, since one of them was Agnes Digital, no one found their sudden departure suspicious.

Nearly an hour had passed since they'd left. Even the coffee on their table had grown cold, yet neither k...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [51]

Agnes Digital was furious.

Since her main account was a moderator for several sections of Tracen Academy’s forum, it was far too recognizable, so she usually browsed anonymously with alt accounts, frequently changing names to avoid detection.

Her latest alias was originally going to be "Kitahara x Eclipse Forever," but after careful consideration, she thought that was inappropriate. After all, Kitahara had mentioned he didn't mind people knowing about his relationship with Eclip...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [50]

The sun set, then rose again.

The vacation was over, a new day had begun, and it was time for work.

Kitahara Sota went through his usual morning routine: washing up, dressing, stopping by the Tracen cafeteria for breakfast, and finally heading toward the training grounds.

Nice, peaceful, and lazy—today looked like another perfect day for slacking off.

But the moment he stepped onto the training ground, an unsettling feeling crept up, causing his eyelids to twitch inv...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [49]

Happy times always flew by swiftly, and soon it was afternoon.

After handling Mitsuo Taishi’s situation, Silence Suzuka returned to Kitahara Sota's dormitory, a touch of worry lingering in her eyes.

Though she'd entrusted Special Week to him in the morning, she honestly had little confidence in Kitahara’s ability to care for her—if anything, she was deeply skeptical.

Two reasons shaped her doubt.

The first was Special Week herself. Despite her usual friendly deme...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [48]

If Special Week had been replaced by someone else—say, Tokai Teio or Agnes Tachyon—and they'd acted and spoken this way to him, Kitahara Sota would probably already be plotting his escape.

But Special Week was different.

For one thing, she was just an airheaded dummy. For another, there was their shared past.

Unlike with Oguri Cap, Kitahara had first met Special Week in the countryside, even earlier than he'd met Oguri, right when his reputation had just started spreadin...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [47]

It didn't take long for Kitahara Sota to realize why Silence Suzuka had rushed off in such a hurry.

Mitsuo Taishi was Silence Suzuka’s trainer.

The same Mitsuo Taishi who had previously chatted with Kitahara in the trainers' group chat.

True to his name—meaning "ambitious hero"—Taishi was an optimistic and passionate fellow, a bit rough around the edges, and known for his easy-going attitude.

He wasn’t particularly gifted as a trainer, but he was steady, hardwo...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [46]

After finishing his strange conversation with the elderly Uma Musume, Kitahara Sota was unceremoniously kicked out of the clothing store, head still spinning with confusion.

However, before he'd left, the elderly lady had suddenly given him an additional task—to help Tokai Teio pick out two outfits and take them back with him.

But why, though?

He and Tokai Teio were just ordinary friends—and mainly just casual acquaintances bound by mutual benefit, at that.

If he w...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [45]

After that minor incident, Kitahara Sota’s group faced no further trouble and soon arrived safely at the clothing shop. Along the way, they even stopped to pick up a few gifts suited for an elderly Uma Musume.

In truth, Kitahara had intended to buy her a gift last time.

But knowing the stubborn old mare’s personality, she'd rather he give her money directly—though of course, she'd never actually accept it. Thus, he had to settle for the next best option: buying thoughtful gi...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [44]

In the end, though Agnes Tachyon was pinned firmly by the other two girls, the pale-blue truth serum didn't get poured down her throat.

There was no need—everyone knew perfectly well she'd intended it for Kitahara anyway.

Besides the truth serum, once Eclipse and Tokai Teio finished restraining Tachyon, they conducted a thorough search and extracted a total of four vials from her pockets—and there might even be more hidden elsewhere.

Truth serum, ultra-concentrated stami...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [43]

For some reason, Kitahara Sota felt the mood was somewhat different from usual as their group walked toward the clothing shop.

Eclipse’s quietness was normal, of course, but Agnes Tachyon hadn't spoken a word this entire trip either. Even the usually lively Tokai Teio remained oddly silent, her steps lacking their usual bounce.

If one looked carefully, they’d notice Teio and Tachyon kept their gazes locked on each other the whole way.

Tachyon smiled innocently, her expre...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [42]

After dropping Agnes Digital off at the infirmary, Kitahara Sota glanced at the time and immediately announced the group dismissed.

Usually, even after his dismissal, he’d be the only one to leave. The Uma Musume would stay behind to chat or head out somewhere together.

But today, perhaps overwhelmed by all the information they'd just absorbed, each of them quietly departed after brief farewells, scattering back to their rooms—except for Eclipse, who properly accompanied Kitah...

Slacking Professionally at Tracen [41]

"My story with Eclipse?"

As soon as Kitahara Sota uttered those words, not just Agnes Digital but every Uma Musume in the room stopped what they were doing, ears perked high in anticipation.

Seeing their reaction, Kitahara gave a helpless, wry smile.

"Is there really anything interesting about that? Besides, hasn't Eclipse already told you?"

Indeed, Eclipse had previously shared bits about their relationship in the Uma Musume-only LINE chat. Whenever asked, she'd openl...

Emiya Shirou Doesn't Want to Work Overtime [160]

While Emiya Shirou was busy rescuing the homunculi on the battlefield, the Servants of the Black and Red Factions clashed violently in a brutal confrontation.

The entire battlefield had been split into four distinct regions.

The most expansive and violent struggle unfolded right in the center.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Explosions continuously erupted at the heart of the battlefield.

Countless black iron stakes surged from the ground, radiating shock...