Chapter 92

Tellesen's southwest district, here there is a gym, a football field, and a row of rest rooms and changing rooms.

There is also a honey specialty drink shop, sandwiched between the gym and the football field.

Although there remained in his mouth an undiluted bitterness, it did not hinder Aomo from sitting on a roadside bench, his hands clasped around the drink he held.

Gazing at the cover printed with a horseshoe-colored painting, he assumed an utterly solemn and serious demeanor, and took a sip through the straw.

【To be frank, I've been using Yeguoyuedu to read and chase updates lately, switching sources, multiple read-aloud voices,. yeguoyuedu works on both Android and iOS.】

"No good, it's still too sweet after all."

He sighed, commenting on this honey specialty drink he had expressly asked for to be "light and thin".

After being reminded by an enthusiastic colleague in the group and receiving information that seemed to prove he was overthinking, he felt like drinking something sweet.

He also indeed saw that storefront.

Perhaps because of the class schedule, the shop's entrance was unexpectedly deserted; it was a rare opportunity, so he simply went to buy a cup,

Honey specialty drink, referred to as 8003 by the East Flame people, the reason, as per the message log, being that it's an adoption of the katakana prototype.

It is also considered a well-known drink that took off alongside the horse girl competitions, expanding toward interstellar reach.

From the name alone one can tell this thing is high sugar and high calorie; even ordinary women who could tolerate its taste would generally steer clear.

But horse girls are different.

Racing is inherently a high-intensity sports competition; their energy consumption can be seen from the fact that most of them have astonishing food intake.

And drinks like this honey specialty drink, high in sugar and calories, actually make it stand out among beverages, becoming the sole designated drink beloved by countless horse girls.

There are even dozens of "licorice" flavors launched especially for horse girls—frankly, ordinary people can't tell the difference, just like the so-called "soul" flavor, which is prepared for beings with special taste.

But these two are clearly not to be conflated; Aomo's reaction right now is the most direct proof.

He also wondered whether, after his bloodline awakens, his taste might change as well; if he could also come to accept this honey specialty drink, its high caloric content would not be a bad thing for him.

But the result can only be said to be overthinking.

Even the most diluted sweetness is hard to accept; perhaps his palate has been too deeply influenced by black coffee... Aomo thought this, raised his head again to look at the horse girls on the distant football field, and took another sip via the straw.

His brows also involuntarily furrowed.

"If you're not used to drinking it, why force yourself?"

Suddenly, an inquiry from beside caused Aomo to look up in surprise, and then he looked toward the field again.

"I bought it, so I can't let it go to waste." He spoke in a calm tone.

"Eh? What an East Flame-like remark," the voice, utterly unfeigned, expressed surprise and curiosity, "You clearly look rather Western."

To that, Aomo merely stayed silent and took another sip of that drink.

The accumulating cloying sweetness and the effort to suppress his thoughts gave him a sense of being "interrogated," and his mind wondered all the more how the other could appear here.

"Do you want me to disclose my origin? Miss Qianming, the representative."

The visitor was Qianming's representative.

The Jidong district's first local Triple Crown horse girl, also a hall-of-fame horse girl, who, like Ludaofu Xiangzheng, had already retired but then took another position at the academy.

She lowered her head to speak to Aomo, her brown hair falling naturally, her smile carrying an innate carefree ease.

That face, printed on the commemorative medal, vividly appeared suddenly at his side; the impact on Aomo ought to have been greater than that of the previous high-angle overview.

But he suppressed that impact, and even the cloying sensation in his mouth became an additional weight to hold it down.

Thus Aomo responded with the earnestness that such people are least adept at handling.

As expected, he saw the embarrassment of such people, and the panic that varied with the seriousness of the situation.

The latter did not take up much weight; Aomo saw her merely give an embarrassed smile and say:

"Not really, I just happened to see an unfamiliar face, and..."

Qianming's representative pointed to her own arc-shaped bangs, intending to remind Aomo herself: "It might be a bit offensive, but a strand of yours here reminds me of a friend."

"That's easy to understand, after all, we're in this academy."

Aomo replied without hesitation.

"My foster father also said that, but it's not what I want; I'm just too lazy to dye it black."

"In other words," the girl asked in surprise, her eyes sparkling with the liveliness of interest, "It's actually natural as well?"

"…"

Aomo fell silent upon hearing that; this silence came suddenly, causing the other to stare for a moment, then she pressed her palms together and said: "Sorry sorry, I didn't mean that."

Her response was not slow; realizing that, in effect, it was still like inquiring about one's background, especially since Aomo himself had indeed opened up a topic.

"It's nothing," Aomo, feeling he hadn't steadied his mind, wouldn't blame her; he even reflected on his earlier 'mistake,' and then said calmly, "Then, Miss Qianming, the representative, what business do you have?"

"No need for honorifics; you're not a Jidong person, are you?"

"But you should be a pure Jidong person."

"Ah, I don't mind, by the way, may I sit down?" "Sure."

Aomo's hand began to squeeze the plastic cup, he remained silent, gazing at the distant field.

By the way, he agonized over how, even though he had been clearly closer to Ailisuzhi before and hadn't noticed, now he could distinctly smell the shampoo scent wafting over.

It seemed to be yuzu-scented.

"Who are you paying attention to? That kid with the yellow-black ear cover?"

That scent had drawn nearer, perhaps from a sideways glance.

Aomo once again doubted whether horse girls were all off in their sense of distance.

Now he knows that Mei Pu Bo Pang is an all-in gamble mustering courage; then what about this Qianming representative beside him?

Aomo locked his gaze firmly, not letting it drift to one side, even if turning his head a bit might yield an answer.

"Do you want to know her name?" she asked, still pressing on.

"Xiao Lin Li Qi." He spoke calmly, having set down the straw.

Among horse girls exceptionally gifted in source energy feng shui, though online some people feel that her ability is more like pure yin-yang arts than feng shui.

Wow~

Aomo heard a faint clap, yet also sensed the breath slightly drifting away, which somewhat eased his mind.

And that person continued speaking:

"You've done such a good job with intelligence work—could it be that you're targeting that kid? She's only in second year of junior high, and the selection exam is still over a year away."

"... No, just as a source energy practitioner," Aomo said, while the hand still pressing the plastic cup extended an index finger, whose tip suddenly flicked out a candle‑like flame, "I merely paid her a little attention, with no thought of any contract."

Having said that, the index finger returned to the group pressing the plastic cup, making its shape even more distorted.

Aomo even felt he was getting a little used to the honey special drink.

"How about the other ball‑juggling kid? That sharp‑tongued child—you must know her, right?"

"After all, she's a star on Umastagram, young yet well versed in how to operate and showcase her advantages in appearance and voice."

Umastagram, abbreviated Umasta, which had appeared in Suzi's words before, is a social media app mainly for sharing photos, functionally no different from Twitter, except its primary users are horse girls, trainers, and horse‑girl fans.

"Huh? That review is harsh—clearly she's as sweet as the honey special drink."

"Only horse girls can handle the honey special drink; I'll go for black coffee."

"Coffee and such—isn't that just as boring as Rudolf?"

Qianming silently watched the youth's hand, which held a disposable plastic cup now completely twisted out of shape.

The drink called honey special drink had clearly been drained by the youth; now his brows and eyes, still as a statue, showed no trace of his earlier agitation.

"If you come over to chat with boring people, you'd better be prepared."

"But I think you're an interesting person, haha—don't sigh! Actually I'm also looking for a place to rest."

"Besides, I've always liked this bench, especially in autumn when the leaves drift down onto it."

"..." Aomo tilted his head to look at the lush branches overhead, easily imagining that scene—"Is that a sense of mono no aware?"

"Not quite that deep—I just really like that kind of breeze."

From her speech and demeanor, Qianming is indeed not a pure Jidong person; she's as free as a Farulian, and her words made Aomo imagine a hypothetical wind‑mill city.

Looking again at the distant field where horse girls faced off in a ball‑gap under the teacher's instructions, Aomo stayed silent and didn't continue the conversation; Qianming beside him also fell silent, both appearing intently focused on the far‑off field.

Then Aomo suddenly interjected: "What about rainy days?"

"Rainy days... heh, not bad either—upon reflection, I have about as many things to do on rainy days as when it's windy!"

"When there's too much, it's hard to keep track," Aomo said softly, "even if you've embedded a crystal core, you still need to recall it from time to time."

"Haha, are you here to sell crystal cores? I honestly don't mind."

The horse girl's carefree, relaxed voice came through calmly.

"Even if I can't recall past events, the time I've forgotten might still be held by someone."

"..."

"Mmm, isn't that line cool? Ah! It's already this late—I have to go check the pool area, bye~!"

A sudden gust of wind beside him made Aomo reflexively turn his head, seeing the figure rise, wave at him, then depart—though his farewell hadn't left his lips, he saw the person suddenly turn their head again.

"Right!"

A green gaze fell upon him, and also upon the twisted plastic cup in his hand, bringing a hint of a pleased smile to his face.

"You've already managed to drink the honey special drink, huh? But you don't have to push yourself like that—let's chat again next time!"

Having said that, she turned back and jogged away.

She came suddenly, then ran off suddenly—but it was just a light jog.

It seems even a horse girl as free as she still has to mind the campus rule against reckless running.

Come to think of it, she never even asked my name, saying we'd talk again next time... Could it be that she was aiming for me from the start?

What reason?

Aomo was still puzzling over it when he suddenly heard hurried footsteps, and saw the person turn back and come running toward him.

"Uh... I still haven't asked your name, you know!"

"...... Aomo, Aomo Lindun."

"You're Trainer Lindun! Great—you can just call me Qianming from now on!"

"......"

"No, I have to run this time!"

She came in a flurry and left in an even greater flurry, leaving Aomo watching her silhouette dash away, his thoughts frozen in place.

Reason... seems there isn't really any reason......

She really was just a spontaneous whim to talk with me, and even after chatting she almost forgot to ask my name.

But then suddenly gaining the harvest of calling her by name, she really doesn't seem like a Jidong person—heck, not even Jidong; this off‑the‑cuff idea even feels a bit alien.

Forget it—describing her as an alien isn't quite fitting either; let's drop that notion.

Aomo thought to himself, and due to the sensation in his hand he lowered his gaze once more to look at the plastic cup in his grip.

Being able to drink it all down was indeed unexpected; but if one could drink it... Aomo pressed his chest, trying to suppress the nausea, when suddenly he heard a beeping from his pocket.

This activated his terminal, and on the light screen appeared Morrison's chibi face:

"You ask what Yuger Company does?" Morrison obviously because of Aomo's earlier message, "Could this be related to trainer work?"

"Maybe? When you have time, help me look into the connection—no rush to answer."

"Sure! I've recently been picking up a few tricks from some frail‑flesh, mechanized‑ascension hacker buddies—as long as it's not data from an Ultimate‑level Digital Monster guarding the gate, we can give it a try."

Morrison readily agreed, talking as if he were hot stuff, but Aomo clearly remembered that an Adult‑level Digital Monster beneath the Ultimate tier still corresponds to something pretty weak in reality.

... Let's just treat the online world as having different rules; also we can't be too harsh on an electronic vampire.

After scanning the surroundings on the light screen—mainly glancing at the distant sports field—he then asked:

By the way, how did the interview go? How do you feel after your first day at Tresen?

Overall, it went smoothly.

? Having known each other for over ten years, Morrison could instantly hear the complexity hidden in the words "adopted son".

"Overall?" He tried to confirm once more.

"Well, overall." Aomo replied.

It went quite smoothly, just a bit busy.

Now I still feel a bit too salty and nauseous.