Umamusume's days are numbered

Platinum had something more important to ask Linda than the stars: "Didn't you say we should close the doors and windows at night? How come we can look at the stars outdoors now?"

Linda cheerfully pulled a small, exquisite object from her bosom and said with a smile, "Because I'm here tonight."

“You girls are easily harassed here, but it’s a different story when I’m here.”

Platinum took a closer look and exclaimed, "Wow! Sharp-edged facets, a heavy, bright silver texture, and a grip that's ergonomically designed for hand use..." Platinum didn't recognize guns, but that didn't mean she couldn't identify them.

"Ah this."

Platinum immediately fell silent. Sure enough, there aren't many ordinary people who dare to be friends with con artists. This Linda looks all smiles on the surface, but now it's clear she's the kind of ruthless character who would suddenly pull out a gun and shove the barrel into the mouth of the person at the next table.

Smiling tiger!

"No, it's fake, it's an air gun, just for scaring people." Linda quickly explained when she noticed that Platinum was looking at her strangely. "Don't underestimate a drunkard, he's sure to scare people."

Well, don't tell Platinum that you actually have a gun license.

Actually, not only Linda had it, but the con artists did too, since both of them wore it on their final outfits.

Linda's words dispelled Platinum's sleepiness, and she prepared to sit down and experience the foreign stars. With her excellent qualities and the idea that "since we're already here," she even borrowed the camera that the astronomer always wore around his neck, wanting to take some photos to show her companions in Canopus.

The astronomer tossed his Leica Q2 to the woman of exceptional talent to play with as she pleased, and leisurely returned to his room.

The four had already assigned rooms in advance—Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate and Platinum would stay on the second floor, Excellent Quality would be in the guest room on the first floor, and the Astronomer would take the study with the workbench on the first floor. She closed the door, drew the curtains, and, making sure no one was peeping or eavesdropping, prepared to do something sneaky—

She took out her phone and started making a call.

"Hey, big foreign lady, big foreign lady, please reply if you receive this."

An annoyed voice came from the other end of the phone: "What are you doing with just the two of us? I'm at the hotel, have you settled in yet?"

"Actually, you just want to call me 'big foreign horse' a few times when you're bored, right?"

The astronomer ignored the questioning from the other end and continued, "Well, we're settled now, but we haven't decided on tomorrow's plans yet."

The strange light on the other end of the phone sighed sadly, its long, wavy hair cascading down to the mattress—this beautiful hair was no easy feat to maintain, and it was the strange light's most prized feature. But in the astronomer's mouth, it took a different turn.

I must have owed her something in my past life. That's what I sometimes think helplessly, that strange light shines through.

Let's rewind to a few days before departing from Tokyo. Strange Light is enjoying its Tokyo trip.

Unlike the astronomer who wakes up every day to watch a movie, then finds an izakaya to drink and take a couple of photos, Strange Light is a person who lives a very refined life. She meticulously planned her trip to Tokyo, ensuring that every day was fruitful.

That evening, Strange Light had just finished visiting Tokyo Skytree, then wandered around the entire Minato Ward, and even visited several bookstores, where he bought a Japanese original copy of Natsume Soseki's "I Am a Cat".

In the hotel bathroom, strange lights shone as water splashed around her, while Saint-Saëns' music played from the speakers beside her. This pleased her... or rather, the absence of an astronomer always pleased her.

If the astronomer were there, the two of them would argue about the music playing on the stereo again. She would definitely change it without hesitation to something as awful and incomprehensible as The Clash or Sex Pistols.

Strange Light never minded arguing with others, but she did mind arguing with astronomers. Debating with an astronomer... was like fighting with someone wielding a mop covered in poop; whether you won or lost, you felt like you'd lost something important.

But she still couldn't shake off the astronomer, alas.

This journey, which has been going on for almost a year, began on a wonderfully uneventful morning. At that time, the strange light had just retired, and she was not in a hurry to go to university. She had plenty of free time to think about what to do—when the astronomer suddenly appeared in front of her.

She knocked on her own door, her voice so loud it could be heard across the Indian Ocean.

"Hey, big foreign woman, I know you're here. Come out now, there's no time!"

A strange light opened the door in bewilderment, only to be grabbed by the wrist and pulled away by an astronomer. The two stumbled into the hotel elevator, stumbled out of the hotel, stumbled into an exorbitantly priced taxi, and stumbled onto the airplane.

"Phew—finally made it." The astronomer breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

The strange light sat blankly in her seat until the plane took off, at which point she snapped out of it and asked, "Where are we going?"

The astronomer shrugged: "Who knows—I mean, the plane will land in Rome. But where our destination is, who knows?"

The strange light stared in disbelief at the innocent-looking astronomers, unable to believe that the two of them would be spending their afternoon in Rome in just a few hours. And all their luggage consisted of the astronomer's personal camera.

Damn it, I haven't checked out of my hotel room yet. That was the only thought in Strange Light's mind at that moment.

Episode 282 You're a real beast!

In the blink of an eye, this journey, which seemed to have no beginning or end, has been going on for almost a year. And surprisingly, Strange Light finds the journey actually quite enjoyable—

As long as astronomers stop pursuing goals they feel compelled to achieve immediately.

The thought had barely flashed through her mind when she heard the door open.

"A certain drunkard who always hangs out at izakayas has returned," Strange Light thought to himself.

"Big foreign horse, big foreign horse, are you back?"

The astronomer's cheeks were flushed red from the alcohol, but her steps were steady and her eyes were clear, showing no signs of drunkenness.

"Strange light, hey, what song are you playing?"

The astronomer switched the music on the stereo to a Bob Dylan folk song, humming along as he comfortably crossed his legs on the sofa.

This guy... veins bulged on his forehead, which glowed with an eerie light. He sighed helplessly, draped a bath towel over himself, and walked out of the bathroom barefoot, his arches taut and his long legs captivating.

"what's up?"

Then, just like a year ago when the astronomer suddenly knocked on his door and dragged him onto the plane, the astronomer solemnly addressed the vast uprising.

"I might be in love."

"···"

The strange light emanating from his head suddenly went blank. He didn't even notice the towel slipping silently off his body.

The astronomer quickly covered his eyes: "Don't look! Don't look! What are you doing, tempting an innocent teenager like me?"

No, the strange light was a source of both emotion and confusion. Love? Who? An astronomer? Would she be the type to seriously tell everyone she's in love?

Judging from the strange light, she should be thankful that the astronomer was a woman. If she were a man, countless girls would have suffered along the way.

An astronomer like this, seriously saying he's in love? My initial thought about the strange light wasn't even curiosity, but rather amusement.

No, no, no, this is really funny! You can imagine a teenager experiencing his first crush confessing to his father that he's in love, but you can't imagine Leonardo DiCaprio shouting to the world at the Oscars that he's in love, can you?

The slight displeasure in Qi Yiguang's heart vanished instantly. She grabbed a bath towel and draped it over herself, then leaned close to the astronomer with a mischievous grin: "Tell me, who did you run into?"

Who is this capable person who can subdue this troublesome demon king?

That was an incredible feat, comparable to Moses parting the sea! The strange light was eager to get to know him.

"Be careful, be careful!" The astronomer shielded his chest from the strange light. "Don't try to tempt me. I have strong willpower. You have no chance."

"Don't interrupt." The strange light, full of gossip, impatiently nudged the astronomer's shoulder. "Do you have any photos? Let me see who captured the astronomer's heart?"

"Yes, I have. Not only do I have, but you've even seen it." The astronomer muttered as he pulled out his phone.

What? Someone she knew! The strange light in her eyes was even more overjoyed. She looked expectantly at her phone screen—

A white-clad girl, looking awkwardly at the camera, trembling as she forced a smile with a peace sign. Her shoulders were hunched inwards, giving her a youthful and somewhat immature appearance; she probably hadn't even passed puberty yet. The color was very rare, unlike the white of a wild goose feather; the girl's white was a snow-white, a pure white from head to toe, making her look like a fragile piece of glass—even the self-assured Strange Light had to admit that the girl before him was undeniably beautiful.

However, the style that astronomers originally preferred... well, it's easy to get shot.

That said, I don't recognize this girl, but she does look familiar... Where have I seen her before...?

"Her name is Platinum."

Oh, platinum, that's it, that strange light... This is definitely someone I know—

Wait, who?

The strange light on his face didn't know what expression to make.

Bai Jin, of course I know this girl. She might not know me, but I definitely know her.

The strange light and the astronomers were laughing together at the photo, mocking yet another naive girl who had fallen into the clutches of Lian Hongxian in Haidu City.

Yes, she does look good, and I heard her running performance is also good... Although it's a bit too youthful in its aesthetic, it doesn't matter, girls will continue to grow up, after all.

The real point is, is—

Isn't Bai Jin the child that Haidu City found for Haidu Star to be a child bride?

They had been looking for a match for them for a long time and kept trying to bring them together, as if they wanted to see them walk down the aisle.

The astronomer... is the younger sister of Haidu City and the older sister of Haidu Star.

The strange light emanating from her body, which had just finished showering, caused her to break out in a cold sweat again. The last time she felt this way was when the astronomer pulled her onto the plane.

Platinum is the child bride of the Star of the Sea, but the astronomer now wants to establish a relationship with Platinum that goes beyond friendship.

Wait, my head is a bit of a mess, I can't quite make sense of the relationships.

Haidu City, your family relationships are really chaotic and complicated.

Astronomers... Astronomers! Is this really okay?

"Why are you sweating so much? Have you caught a cold?" The astronomer looked at the strange light with a puzzled expression.

"How dare you say that!"

A strange light stood up, stomping her feet on the hotel carpet. The bath towel draped over her body fluttered behind her like a cloak, exclaiming, "Astronomer! You're a beast! You're stealing a girl from your sister!"

"Are you even human? How can you face your sister like this?!"

The astronomer explained with a serious expression, "That's not how it works."

There's an old saying that goes, "Love is ruthless in war."

"Haidu Star said Platinum is her girlfriend, so Platinum is her? They've never even met in real life, she's not even as good as me."

"If simply declaring it would work, then the territory on the moon would already be divided up. We need to analyze each situation individually."

The strange light wouldn't listen to a word the astronomer said. She completely lost her temper, pointing at the astronomer's nose and jumping up and down: "What else do you have to explain? You're a lolicon, and you even stole your sister's friend? What do you expect your sister to think?"

Episode 283: Giving You a Choice

Although astronomers often refer to the strange light as "the ocean horse," the strange light insists that this is a slander against it by astronomers.

Whether on the field, in front of the media, or in her daily life, she always maintains a refined and courteous image. She admits that she has sometimes become somewhat sexy, even to the point where agencies have invited her to become a supermodel. However, she believes that a person's character is more important than their appearance; their inner qualities are even more crucial. Therefore, she is not a sizzling, sexy supermodel, but a humble and elegant gentleman.

Qi Yiguang loves literature, and buying original language versions of her favorite authors' works is a must when visiting any country. She also loves music, enjoying opera and symphonies like a true classical Russian. She also engages in sports such as golf to maintain her physical health.

What I mean is, the fact that someone would curse so vehemently at such a strange light is enough to show that the astronomer is indeed a bit of a jerk.

"Astronomer, you are simply... How could you say such a thing!"

"You stole your sister's childhood bride, it's simply... simply... simply outrageous!"

"Outrageous! Trash! Scoundrel! Death penalty!"

The strange light raised its fist and rained down punches on the astronomer. Watching a supermodel-like girl unleash her light, airy fists on him might be popular with some groups, but the astronomer immediately jumped up.

She dared not take the fist that shone with strange light. This seemingly weak fist had once been able to smash a sandbag, and it could easily pierce her chest.

"Do you think I want to?" the astronomer yelled, dodging punches. "Do you think I'm such a frivolous and perverse guy that I like to steal my own sister's things?"

A frivolous and perverse guy in Hong Kong, who had a penchant for stealing his sister's things, sneezed, lifted his round-framed glasses in confusion, wondering what had happened.

"No, that's not true. My standards are very high, okay? Otherwise, I would have made my move on you long ago."

The astronomer jumped to the other side of the bed.

I'm so sorry I don't meet your standards!

The strange light then chased after it, and the astronomer saw that it had run around the bed to his side, so he ran around the bed to the other side, and the two of them began to circle around the bed.

"Platinum is just different! I could feel her difference the moment I saw her. I could tell from the photos, so it wasn't just because of her face. The instant I saw her, I knew it had to be her!"

The astronomer gestured for the strange light to calm down: "My God, do you know how I felt when I first saw her? It was like having a thousand Jimi Hendrixes playing guitar in my head at the same time!"

“I felt like my heart was about to erupt like a volcano. I couldn’t help but take a picture of her, and I barely managed to control myself… Looking back now, I was practically drooling. It’s incredible, you know? From childhood to adulthood, I’ve probably only ever had my heart beat so strongly and intensely when I was born.”

The strange light stopped her movements. She admitted she was surprised by the astronomer's words. Of the five sentences the astronomer uttered, four were false, and the remaining one was only partially true. But this time, the astronomer's expression was so serious, so different from the astronomer the strange light had always known.

"You like Gabriel García Márquez's books, don't you?" The astronomer asked breathlessly. As a racehorse girl, she wasn't afraid of running and jumping, but if you were being chased by an enraged racehorse girl who could punch you through, you'd be out of breath after the crisis was over.

"What was it like when Colonel Aureliano met Remedios? At that time, Remedios was just a nine-year-old child."

"He fell madly in love with that girl and eventually got his wish. I am that Aureliano now."

The astronomer didn't lie a word. Her heart really skipped a beat—like it was platinum.

Platinum didn't realize that the connection between the anchors was bidirectional. The moment she saw Alice, Alice also felt a desire to connect with her, and this desire also made Alice curious, which is why Alice ultimately chose to sit opposite Platinum.