Chapter 1919

NO. 539: The competitive urge still leaked out

This is not a common opportunity.

Of course, what is being said is not just the smiling expression of a good citizen like some kind of hot-water-bucket-waist robot, but also her current mood.

Because Ailisuzhi came to understand.

The direction she understood was not just one place, but everything.

When she understood that the Qianming representative acknowledged her, and understood what she should do, she also realized how strong she was, and then, in hindsight, thought of the Guinea Pig's high expectations of her, and then thought about how meaningless her previous frustration was.

Then that satisfied and cheerful smile would naturally shift onto her face, along with her running talent.

She probably also has a talent for facial expressions.

Aomo thought.

Just like he himself also has a talent for dignity. Once he remains silent, his tall build and sharp gaze are easily seen as a threat, enough to make the normally on-good-terms horse-eared girls fall silent like cicadas.

Special Zhou, Double Turbo, Yamoza Cross, Xiao Lin Li Qi, etc. —although their ages and grades differ, their reactions are often the same; one must pull out the usual smile they habitually keep to seem somewhat natural.

To be honest, that is also a business-like fake smile, often earning a few sharp remarks from Suzi and Aizhi.

Fortunately, such opportunities are also not frequent; over the past year his smile statistics have been quite impressive, and at some point he could be evaluated as 'actually someone who likes to smile in private,' so when he shows no expression among the aforementioned people, it is usually when he encounters some unfavorable information.

By contrast, Ailisuzhi is the opposite.

She usually doesn't laugh much, often when alone, doing experiments while letting out some eerie laughter; but after getting to know Aomo and being surrounded by the activity room crowd, her smile is no longer rare, though her laughter has instead improved.

Besides occasionally, the restrained movements grew ever closer to Karmira; it could almost be said that, under the influence of Trainer Lindun, she had undergone a 'rebirth', her whole person stepping into a healthy upward turning point, whether from a psychological or a physical sense—Aomo occasionally even doubles as a nutritionist; last year he even once corrected Suzi's schedule.

By contrast, the improvement in Suzi's mental state brought about by her increasingly lively social relations.

On the contrary, only the parties involved and long-term observers like Chazuo could notice it.

Aomo Lindun also believes he is wholeheartedly improving the quality of life of his horse girls, striving to align with the horse-girl demeanor expected by Chairman Thus we output: Thus we output: QiuChuan; this too can be seen as his expression of respect for that philosophy, but perhaps, in the realm of spirit, there also exists an overcorrection of 'eutrophication'.

The little girl's originally steady-and-improving state suddenly veered toward the direction troubling the trainer; the demon person, who previously also stood on the same side as the horse girls in opposing the saying 'horse girls are becoming more like trainers', actually wavered a bit upon seeing this scene.

After all, he is not the type to disregard facts; he recalls that the other party hasn't shown any face-acting these past few months, whereas he himself has repeatedly, by sneaking into spy activities in disguise, let himself loose, and when giving his all in monster form, he has even less restrained himself.

Although normally he himself couldn't see it either, and when fighting in a monster suit there's no mirror, but he does have those fanatical fans of his, who might not even be human, and they won't miss a chance to analyze every frame of his battlefield posture down to each second.

Even a monster's demeanor can be given an analysis of the emotions behind it; if it's just pure over-interpretation, that's fine, but occasionally they'll mix in some genuine stuff and have Xiao Qi, Bai Ren, and Chazuo turn it around to show him……He tries not to think about how those few later on got hold of the screenshots and links, but the self-awareness of being watched by a big bunch of people is unavoidable.

And this is worth prompting the trainer to have a brainwave, deciding to apply the experience to the horse girls:

You guys really must manage your expressions well!

Who knows how many people might freeze-frame your performance on the Saichang to make emojis out of it!

Whether you go for aloof, fierce, or eerie routes doesn't matter, but you must not deviate too much!

After all, that's still the saying: horse girls are not ordinary sports stars but sports idols. They not only have singing and dancing segments, but also hold touring performances and various commercial advertising activities, so image management is very important; thus Trainer Aomo also needs to pay attention to whether the horse girls have any talent for face-acting, this trivial little matter.

As for why he, at this critical juncture, would pile on so many thoughts about 'face-acting', it's naturally because his ultra-high-speed thinking is running on full throttle at the same time——the follow-up to this showdown is no longer worth frame-by-frame scrutiny.

The rhythm resistance of long-distance races, the roughness of uphill tracks, and most importantly: even if the Qianming representative has done similar self-imposed realm restrictions, by promising not to run in a way that hurts the feet, they have constrained running force and stride frequency, further limited the number of skills, thereby indirectly letting strength, speed, and intellect approach Suzi's level—but what about will/grit and stamina/physique?

It was originally an extraordinary physique, and back then even more so it was the byword for the indomitable spirit of repeated defeats and battles; after self-imposing limits on speed and strength, wouldn't it actually leave stamina with more room to spare? And there's no saying of being unable to hold up.

By contrast, how long can Ailisuzhi's this burst of acceleration last?

Does she really have the endurance to keep her steps continuously accelerating in a long-distance race?

Or does she rely on that strong will, called 'grit' in Jidong culture, to maximally reduce physical exhaustion and force herself to last to the end?

Aomo Lindun doesn't care about such questions.

He only needs to confirm that Ailisuzhi at this moment has already walked out of that gloom and self-loathing, and may even have combined with the few days each month that bring a woman's cloudy mood; then the core purpose of this parallel run is considered fulfilled.

But those two parties obviously wouldn't think that way.

Even the half-demon princess beside him, who should likewise have seen the purpose of this match, seems to have been stirred by his earlier few words into a competitive spirit, and now bluntly voices concern over the outcome: 'It seems Miss Suzi has come out, Aomo, will she win like this?'

In her view, the current situation seems to prove Aomo's earlier ambiguous words, with victory imminent and presenting a turnaround she hadn't anticipated, but the actual result……

It is only at the moment she speaks that the most crucial final stage arrives.

Indeed, there are no other players to make use of; one can only deploy an open plot, using that classic exclusive force red skill to slightly restrain, while vigorously displaying Ailisuzhi's final kick, and will also greet the Qianming representative's final kick, hailed as 'seamless, as if the earth springs up to aid her final kick', with a roar.

The distance reopened.

From an original gap of less than one horse length, it gradually became again a gap of two horse lengths. From afar the view, due to direction, is not particularly obvious, but the picture and distance numbers given by the training field system's camera positions make it especially intuitive.

But at the same time, that number is also fluctuating.

First second……

Approaching two horse lengths.

Second second……

Approaching one and a half horse lengths.

Third second……

Returning to approach two horse lengths.

It can be said to be a fierce contest where every inch is fought for, making it hard to imagine that a classic-year horse girl could have such mettle to go head-to-head with a former Triple Crown champion.

But in Aomo's eyes, this only makes him more astonished at the manifestation of the latter's strength.

The final burst, the showdown of the final kicks, placed in the segment where past senior horse girls accompany juniors in a parallel run—even if this kind of thing usually lacks early vigor, they still can't help but gallop full throttle in this segment.

This is both the inertia of veteran runners and the impulse that horse girls feel when they can run selflessly, unable to hold back.

Running is a joyful thing; to run freely and, on a safe track, freely display one's limits is a pleasure that can harvest happiness physiologically—but even at such a moment, can she still restrain that desire, keeping her final kick in line with roughly the tier of a classic-year horse girl?

It's practically ultimate point control, making him can't help but marvel at the inner mind of the horse girl called the Qianming representative.

How deeply must one remember that student-era pace memory to have such a speed peak matching the recording of that year's Kikuka Sho participation?

What lies behind the unforgettable longing—nostalgia or depression—and does such a restrained, utterly unfree step also foreshadow another kind of hidden danger?

When he thinks this way, the passage of time doesn't feel as drawn out as before.

"Result… still Miss Qianming, Aomo."

"……"

In the blink of an eye, watching the brown-haired horse girl who had already crossed the finish line, she laughed helplessly and embarrassedly at the panting dark-brown-haired horse girl, saying something, and when her gaze turned this way, she waved her hand.

He, however, silently let out a sigh of relief.

Fortunately.

She still couldn't hold it in the end.