I'm in Teresin, dedicated to playing badly

"I'd say he's somewhat famous."

Shinji Kitahara paused.

"One is a solar eclipse, and the other is the Emperor of the East Sea."

Alice: "...That Emperor of the East Sea?"

"No, why do you all need to confirm this?"

Shinji Kitahara looked puzzled: "Is there another Emperor of the East Blue in this school?"

Alice was silent for a moment, then laughed again.

"That makes sense, after all, it's impossible for me to be the only one who noticed what you were hiding."

Seeing her say that, Kitahara Shinji breathed a sigh of relief and spoke up.

"Alright, you know I'm responsible now. Let's pretend we never talked about that before. You keep it a secret for me, and in exchange, I'll help you out whenever I have the time and ability. How about that?"

"That won't work."

Alice blinked and smiled as she spoke.

"Treson has never set a limit on the number of horse girls he can serve as."

"But......"

"Alright, no buts, you don't need to say anything more, I won't tell anyone about your affairs."

Alice interrupted him and then spoke.

"I didn't mean to threaten you with this; it's just your imagination. Since you really don't want to, I won't force you, but..."

She waved the orange potion in her hand and spoke with a smile.

"You should need this, right? Or rather, you need my name."

"As long as you tell others that I made this medicine for you, you can drink it without any worries. I can also cooperate with you in this regard, or even more strange things can be attributed to me, okay?"

"What are your requirements?" Shinji Kitahara wasn't foolish enough to think she would help him for free.

Alice thought for a moment.

"Do me a few small favors when you need them, like helping me try out newly developed drugs or finding some experimental materials. I can also help you in return. Just let me know what kind of drugs you need, and I can give them to you directly if I have them—of course, not for free."

Shinji Kitahara was somewhat tempted.

As dangerous as Alice is, her abilities are proportional to the level of danger she poses.

Especially her pile of random medicines. After the school banned their sale, who knows what might be in her inventory now? Although most of them are definitely items that could backfire, there are bound to be some that he can use to increase his chances of survival.

Moreover, he has already revealed part of his secret to her, and she has clearly become interested in him. If he were to refuse her rashly, it might only worsen the situation. So, he might as well agree to her first and then figure out how to take the next step.

After much deliberation, Shinji Kitahara finally nodded with some difficulty.

"can."

Hearing his answer, Alice laughed and reached out her hand to him.

"Well then, it's a pleasure to work with you, Mr. Guinea Pig."

"...It's a pleasure to work with you."

......

Alice left.

She had many things to do and had already achieved her goal, so she didn't linger. After that, she chatted with Shinji Kitahara for a few more minutes before leaving.

After she left, the other patients pulled back the curtain and cast sympathetic glances at her.

That's terrible. He's been targeted by that woman. He's really in for a world of hurt now.

Shinji Kitahara was also filled with despair, but after a while, he suddenly saw things in a new light.

Forget it, it's already like this, what's the use of despairing anymore?

So he started lying there again, and no matter what others thought or said, he didn't move at all, as if he were rotting on the bed.

A while later, when it was time for dinner, a flurry of footsteps sounded outside the infirmary. The horse girls who had finished their training or studies came to the infirmary to visit their injured trainers—and then they all drew the curtains.

Before long, only two people remained in the entire medical room without Ma Niang's company.

One is Yosuke Higashimori, and the other is Shinji Kitahara.

"How about we go out to eat?"

Listening to the various sounds coming from behind the curtains around him, Shinji Kitahara's face grew increasingly dark.

Although there weren't any particularly offensive sounds, could you please be more considerate of how other people around you feel?

Yosuke Higashimori looked a little embarrassed, nodded, and then prepared to get out of bed.

But just then, footsteps sounded outside the infirmary, and then two horse girls appeared in front of the infirmary.

One of them was a brown-haired horse girl whom Shinji Kitahara had never seen before and had no recollection of. As soon as she entered the room, her gaze was locked on Yosuke Higashimori.

The latter's expression changed drastically in an instant. Before he could even speak, the horse woman pressed him back onto the bed and pulled up the curtain.

The other one was a small chestnut hat carrying a food box, which winked at him.

"I've brought the food."

Chapter Twenty-Two: Which bastard said that?

Actually, the four horse girls under Kitahara Shinji's name had initially agreed to come and deliver food together, but soon after, Eclipse and Tokai Emperor both said they had things to do and couldn't come.

Special Week was originally planned to come with Oguri Hat, but because he failed too many courses last semester and his grades on the opening quiz this semester were not ideal, he was called back by his academic teacher for tutoring, so he couldn't come.

So, only Oguri Hat was left alone.

Sitting down in the chair next to Shinji Kitahara's hospital bed, Shinji Kitahara looked at the food boxes she was carrying, which were stacked almost as high as half an adult's arm, and his eyelids twitched.

To confirm his suspicions, he tentatively spoke up.

"Hey, Little Chestnut Hat, have you eaten?"

"Ate."

She nodded.

It wasn't that she didn't want to eat with Shinji Kitahara, but given her appetite, it would probably be difficult to transport her food over here.

That is to say...

Shinji Kitahara pointed to the food box, which was about half a person's arm tall, and said in a trembling voice, "These are all for me?"

"Ah."

Little Chestnut Hat nodded, then opened the food box, revealing the sumptuous meal inside, and said earnestly.

"Eat more after you get injured, and you'll recover faster."

"But isn't this too much?"

Shinji Kitahara looked utterly devastated: "I'm human, Oguri-hat."

Oguri blinked, then finally understood what Kitahara Shinji meant, but her expression remained calm. She glanced at the portion in the food box and then answered.

"Then give me the leftovers, I can still eat them."

"...Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

"What's wrong with it?" Little Hat asked, somewhat puzzled, her eyes clear.

Shinji Kitahara remained silent for a moment.

Although he felt it was somewhat inappropriate, having grown accustomed to hardship, his appreciation for food had become instinctive. In addition, Oguri Hat didn't seem to have any particular feelings about it, so after thinking about it, he agreed.

"alright."

Shinji Kitahara sighed and was about to pick up his chopsticks when another small, fair hand reached for them first, picked up a piece of meat, and held it to his lips.

"Ah~"

Oguri Hat made a gesture as if coaxing a child, her gray pupils quietly watching Kitahara Shinji, her expression unusually calm.

"......What are you doing?"

Shinji Kitahara was stunned.

“Feeding you,” she replied calmly.

Shinji Kitahara shook his unharmed right hand: "My hand is fine."

But Oguri Hat insisted, "But you're a patient."

"Patients can eat by themselves, okay?"

"But I've heard people say that patients need to be taken care of, they just need to lie down and do their job, and leave the rest to others."

"Which bastard said that?"

Little Chestnut Hat didn't answer, she just looked at him quietly.

Shinji Kitahara stared at her for a while, and after calming down, a vague memory suddenly flashed through his mind.

It seems that, perhaps, maybe, a few years ago, he said something like this to a girl who was lying in a hospital bed with a cold and fever.

"You still remember that?"

Looking back, he looked embarrassed.

"I thought you were too young back then and wouldn't remember very clearly. I was just glad you could recognize me. I didn't expect you to remember even things from back then."

"I remember it all very clearly."

She nodded: "It was Trainer Kitahara who saved me back then, and of course I will always remember that."

Shinji Kitahara shook his head with a wry smile.

"Don't say that. It's hardly a rescue; at most, I just helped you with some small things and saved you from taking some detours..."

The story of him and the chestnut hat is actually not complicated, and it's even a little funny.

Oguri Hat was born with an exceptionally large appetite. Although it was initially seen as a sign of good health, her family began to suspect something was wrong as her appetite continued to increase over the next few years.

So, in order to find out what was wrong with her abnormal appetite, her family took her to a maternal hospital for a checkup. The diagnosis was bulimia, and her family was advised to find a way to control her diet.

After a period of treatment, Oguri Hat's 'illness' was indeed cured, because she had adapted to the feeling of hunger, and her appetite, behavior, and race results were no different from those of ordinary local horse girls.

It was around that time that Shinji Kitahara met her.

At that time, he didn't actually go to her on his own initiative. Instead, someone in that place, Treson, invited him to help solve some problems related to his role as a horse girl. After his reputation spread, many people came to visit him, which made him stay there a little longer.

It was during that time that he encountered Oguri Hat in the cafeteria. Looking at the large characters "Insufficient Food" on Oguri Hat's head, he turned to the trainer who had invited him and asked in confusion.

"Why are you abusing female racehorses? Aren't you afraid the racehorse protection association will come after you?"

"...Abuse the horse girl? How could that be!"

The trainers were shocked. They were actually abusing the female horse? They were lucky if they weren't being abused by the female horse.

Then, things became quite simple.

Shinji Kitahara approached Oguri Hat and learned about her situation through both the system and conversation. He discovered that although she appeared normal like the other Uma Musume girls, she sometimes experienced dizziness.

Especially after training or a competition, the dizziness is unusually strong, and even the steps may feel unsteady.

For this reason, she was not highly regarded in this area and was considered a horse girl with poor physique and not good at running.

It's just because he's hungry!

After that, he stayed there for a while longer, helping the locals solve various problems, helping Oguri Hat take care of her health, and also taking charge of her training for a period of time.

There's not much to say about the time spent caring for and training her. Basically, Shinji Kitahara designed the menu for her, starting with light and easily digestible foods to soothe her stomach, supplemented by training of corresponding levels, and accompanying psychological counseling.

I don't strive for improvement; I just want to get back to normal.

—But that's the 'normal' level based on him.

Incidentally, during the treatment, out of boredom, Shinji Kitahara also tailored a low-profile running technique specifically for her based on her physical characteristics, allowing her to better utilize her strengths.

Oguri Hat did not disappoint Kitahara Shinji's efforts. After a period of recovery, Oguri Hat's grades skyrocketed, making her the strongest in her grade and even among students several grades above her.

Keep in mind that at that time, she hadn't even started to "go mainstream" yet, and her body wasn't developing very well because of her controlled diet.