After leaving the Student Council office, Trainer Mizuno headed straight for the school gate to wait for the next campus bus.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, not reading as usual, just staring blankly toward the distant shopping street.

He watched as senior Trainers were carried off into love hotels by their own Uma Musume. And with each sight, Mizuno's mood sank further.

Because he could already see his future—just like those seniors, he too would be dragged away by his assigned Uma Musume. Only his fate would be worse: he'd be pulled into the Monarch's Basement by none other than the most terrifying figure in the strange texts—Tokai Teio...

Mizuno lowered his head and let out a long sigh.

[Mizuno]: Fortune, do I even have a future left...?

[Fortune]: Mizuno-dono, don't think like that.

[Fortune]: When one door closes, another opens.

[Fortune]: Becoming Teio's Trainer isn't necessarily a bad thing. With her joining, won't you collect Hope Energy much faster?

[Mizuno]: That's easy to say...

[Mizuno]: But before I can even collect Hope Energy, I'm already drowning in despair...

[Mizuno]: We're talking about Tokai Teio. The most terrifying existence in the strange texts. Once you become her Trainer, no matter what you do, you're headed straight for the Monarch's Basement ending...

[Mizuno]: I've never once seen a text where Teio's Trainer didn't get jumped. Which means my future is already sealed...

[Fortune]: Wrong, Mizuno-dono.

[Mizuno]: What do you mean?

[Fortune]: Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. In normal cases, yes, becoming Teio's Trainer carries a 99.9999% chance of getting locked in the basement. But with my help, your chances of avoiding it are much higher.

[Mizuno]: Oh? How high?

[Fortune]: One percent.

[Mizuno]: ...Huh.

That one percent felt no different than 0.0001%.

Still—though the chance of avoiding the basement was slim, at least it wasn't zero. That alone made him feel slightly better.

Because what he feared most wasn't the darkness ahead—it was the thought that no matter what he did, there could be no light at all.

As long as hope existed, no matter how faint, no matter how brutal the road, Mizuno would charge forward, throwing everything he had into reaching it.

After all, his specialty was struggling to survive in despair. To not fight back would betray his own trait: "I don't play unless my HP is in the red."

Beep-beep.

The campus bus finally arrived.

Mizuno stood, climbed aboard, and dropped into a seat, waiting for others to board.

He'd planned to read while waiting. But then, a small-framed boy radiating "yasashii energy" slid into the seat beside him, catching his attention.

"Trainer Kaneshiro?" Mizuno blinked in surprise.

This gentle-looking boy was none other than Kaneshiro Takeru, a Trainer who had entered Tracen the same year as him.

Ever since that group-sharing meeting, when Kaneshiro had said he was going to watch a romance movie with Daisy, Mizuno hadn't seen him. He'd assumed Daisy had already locked him away in her basement. But here he was again, alive.

And though Kaneshiro looked a bit worn out, there was still a sparkle in his eyes. He hadn't been jumped. Not yet.

"Trainer Mizuno?" Kaneshiro was equally startled.

Hadn't this seat been empty? How had Mizuno suddenly appeared?

But memory confirmed it—Mizuno had been there the whole time. He just hadn't noticed.

"Sorry, I've been too exhausted lately. Didn't realize you were here." Kaneshiro bowed apologetically.

"It's fine." Mizuno waved it off.

The two sat together in awkward silence.

They weren't exactly close. And until the Friendship Race, Kaneshiro hadn't even known Mizuno existed. With nothing to talk about, silence filled the space.

At last, Mizuno broke it.

"Right... Trainer Kaneshiro, how are things with Daisy?" He asked curiously.

He still wondered what had happened after they'd gone to watch that romance movie—why Kaneshiro had disappeared for days.

"With Daisy?" Kaneshiro thought for a moment, then smiled from the heart. "We're getting along great. Like siblings."

Mizuno: "..."

Siblings... why did that sound so familiar...

"And after the sharing session—where did you go? Why didn't I see either of you around campus?" Mizuno pressed.

"Oh, Daisy and I went out."

"Out?"

"Yes." Kaneshiro nodded.

"After the movie, Daisy got caught in the rain and started coming down with a cold. Since hot springs are good for that, and I knew a cheap inn in the countryside, I took her there to recover."

"But as if the heavens were messing with us, a mild earthquake hit. The mountain road was destroyed, buses couldn't reach us. We had to wait for repairs. So we stayed."

"And because so many others were stranded, the inn only had one room left. No choice—we had to share it."

"And while we were in the baths... for certain reasons, I accidentally walked into the women's side. Almost got called a pervert."

At this point, Kaneshiro scratched his head, embarrassed.

Mizuno: "..."

"But luckily Daisy helped hide me. Otherwise, I'd have been dragged off to jail, haha." Kaneshiro chuckled.

"Hide you where?" Mizuno asked.

"In the changing-room locker." Kaneshiro laughed. "It was cramped—two people squeezed in together. We even had to hold each other tightly. Haha."

"Two people... squeezed together..." Mizuno's voice trembled.

"The other was Daisy, right?"

"Yes." Kaneshiro nodded.

"And your... clothing situation was..."

Kaneshiro's face reddened. He looked away awkwardly.

"Uh... just towels... so I guess half-naked..."

"!" Mizuno sucked in a sharp breath. His expression grew solemn.

He pulled out a wad of cash and placed it into Kaneshiro's hand.

"Trainer Mizuno, what's this for?" Kaneshiro asked in confusion.

"Nothing. Just... I'd like to treat you to something nice."

"But this is too much, Trainer Mizuno. I can't accept it!" Kaneshiro pushed it back.

"Take it. I've got money to spare. Call it a gift—your responsibility moved me." Mizuno stuffed the money into his pocket and patted his shoulder.

"And remember to train your body more. As a Trainer, heavy 'work' awaits you. With how thin you are, how will you endure?"

Kaneshiro hesitated, then stood and bowed deeply.

"Alright. Thank you, Trainer Mizuno."

"Mm."

For some reason, Mizuno suddenly felt his spirits lift.

Someone was going down faster than him. He wouldn't say who.