After several days of friendship training, Urara was already a far cry from her former self.

Firstly, she'd gained much better control over her body. Her legs no longer felt stiff when running; instead, she now moved with agility, significantly reducing unnecessary strain.

Secondly, thanks to a balanced diet and regular nourishment from the S-grade honey drinks, her physical stamina had notably improved, allowing her to handle higher-intensity running with increased speed.

Mizuno had carefully observed her progress, discovering that Urara was improving nearly twice—or perhaps even 1.9 times—faster than he'd initially expected!

It was finally time to test Urara's true strength.

However, racing against powerful Uma Musume like Tokai Teio wouldn't yield meaningful results; the gap between them and Urara was still far too large. Mizuno needed opponents closer to her current ability.

Ding!

Mizuno's phone vibrated, alerting him to a message in the [Tracen 114th Class Trainer Chat Group].

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Hey, everyone.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: You all know who I am, so I won't waste time with introductions. Just call me Baoza-san.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: As trainers, we all aim for our Uma Musume to win first place. Sometimes, we need an actual race to test if our training methods are effective.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Tomorrow's Saturday—a rest day—and everyone should be free, so I propose holding a friendly match. Who wants in?

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Of course, since it's just a friendly match, I'll make sure to go easy on everyone.

Talk about perfect timing. Just as Mizuno was looking for suitable opponents, someone had conveniently suggested a friendly match.

Though he clearly knew Hiroshima Baoza was just trying to show off among his peers, Mizuno wasn't concerned with petty pride. All he cared about was finding enough participants to compete against Urara.

[Tracen 114th Class Trainer Chat Group]

[Kiryuin Aoi]: That's a good idea. Count me in.

[Kaneshiro Takeru]: I'll join too.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Anyone else?

[Rookie Trainer A]: I'll pass; I don't even have a trainee yet.

[Rookie Trainer B]: My Uma Musume isn't in great condition today, so I'll sit this one out.

(More refusals followed.)

...

Only three trainers, huh? Well, that's good enough.

"Urara, are you free tomorrow morning?" Mizuno asked, setting down his phone and turning toward Urara, who was resting beside him after finishing her training.

At Mizuno's casual question, Rice Shower and King Halo, sitting nearby, perked up their ears, subtly listening in.

"Is something happening, Mizuno-san? Urara's always free~!" Urara replied happily.

"Nothing major," Mizuno waved dismissively. "There's a friendly race tomorrow, and I'd like you to participate so we can see how much you've improved."

After hearing it was only an invitation for Urara to join a friendly race, Rice Shower and King Halo relaxed and returned to enjoying their daily honey drinks.

"A race? Urara loves racing the most~!" Urara sprang up eagerly, eyes sparkling with excitement. "Urara will definitely come first this time!"

"Alright, it's settled then," Mizuno confirmed, looking back at his phone.

[Tracen 114th Class Trainer Chat Group]

[Mizuno Sora]: I'll participate as well.

[Hayakawa Tazuna]: Do you need a referee? I'd be happy to help.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Great! Thanks, Hayakawa-san.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: Including me, that makes four trainers in total. Good enough.

[Hiroshima Baoza]: I'll see you all at the training ground tomorrow at 8 AM sharp.

...

Mizuno arrived an hour early, sitting alone on the grassy slope, absorbed in his book.

Indeed, he was rereading [From Getting Started as a Trainer! (Basement Ending)].

About forty minutes before the appointed time, a cute girl with short black hair dressed neatly in a trainer's uniform arrived alongside her white-haired Uma Musume.

Kiryuin Aoi, one of today's participants. Her Uma Musume was Happy Meek, who had placed first in the previous selection trials.

Not noticing Mizuno, she began warming up with Happy Meek, carefully going over mental preparations and race-day details.

Twenty minutes before the start, Kaneshiro Takeru arrived with his trainee, Hinagiku. He exchanged a few polite greetings with Kiryuin Aoi before quickly moving on to warm-up exercises.

Ten minutes before the start, King Halo pushed a sleepy-eyed Urara onto the field. Spotting Mizuno, they quickly approached his position.

"Sorry, Mizuno-san… Urara's a little sleepy…" Urara mumbled, her head swaying drowsily.

"If I hadn't woken her up, Urara-chan would still be back in bed," King Halo sighed like a tired mother.

"I'm sorry…"

"It's fine. Let's warm up; you'll feel more awake afterward," Mizuno reassured her gently, setting aside his book and guiding Urara through warm-ups.

Only then did Kiryuin Aoi and Kaneshiro Takeru notice Mizuno, greeting him politely, to which he courteously responded.

Five minutes before the start, Hayakawa Tazuna arrived, bringing along a starter pistol, water, towels, and an adorable life-sized cardboard cutout of Hishi Amazon to mark the finish line.

"Good morning, everyone~!" Tazuna greeted everyone cheerfully, though Mizuno couldn't shake a vague unease.

Everyone had arrived punctually except Hiroshima Baoza—the very person who had organized this event.

Only ten minutes after the scheduled start time did Hiroshima Baoza finally rush in, accompanied by his trainee, Konankai.

"Sorry, sorry! My driver was absolutely hopeless today, which made me late. My deepest apologies," Hiroshima Baoza laughed awkwardly.

"Hehe." Everyone merely smiled politely, staying silent.

Blaming the driver? What a joke.

With this simple excuse, everyone clearly saw Hiroshima Baoza's true colors.

However, Baoza himself seemed blissfully unaware of it.

"Well then, let's begin today's friendly match!" Hiroshima Baoza scanned everyone present, silently assigning roles to each of them.

Obviously, he himself was the protagonist—there was no doubt about it.

Kiryuin Aoi-san? She's cute and from a prestigious training family. Clearly, she's destined to be my fierce rival, competing fiercely until our rivalry blossoms into love, ultimately joining my future harem!

The lovely Hayakawa Tazuna-san? Volunteering to be referee the moment I proposed the race obviously means she has a crush on me—another future harem member!

Kaneshiro Takeru? He's just my lackey, a background character forever trailing behind me, shouting praises.

And that gloomy guy in the black coat with zero presence? Definitely just an extra—an insignificant nobody here purely to highlight my charisma and power.

"Hahaha! Today, I'll show you all just how strong Hiroshima Baoza and his magnificent Uma Musume truly are!" Hiroshima Baoza declared arrogantly.