The way Uma Musume looks at me is so scary!

"Highly regarded, hardworking, and with a good personality—"

Inside the contestant's room, Xiu Xingmeng counted Cheng Tianlu's strengths on her fingers, and finally clapped her hands as if she had just realized something.

"Aren't you the protagonist?! And the most authentic shonen JOOP type!"

Originally feeling a little shy because of Xiu Xingmeng's praise, Cheng Tianlu walked over and pinched Xiu Xingmeng's cheek, saying fiercely.

"What is the number one player saying here?!"

“You’ve already made it into the top three.”

Xiu Xingmeng rubbed her cheeks and continued.

"The ranking in the debut battle isn't that important, as long as we make it into the top three and debut successfully, that's fine."

"Besides, the main character always loses a match at the beginning, right? This is called building suspense before building suspense."

Narita knew she was trying to comfort herself, but she still couldn't help feeling a little discouraged, feeling that she had let down her trainer and friends.

However, she wouldn't vent these negative emotions on her new friend, Naritaji said, changing the subject.

"So, have you chosen the song for the victory dance on stage later?"

Xiu Xingmeng tilted her head somewhat blankly and asked.

"What song selection?"

"The winner can choose the song to perform on the victory stage later. You haven't forgotten, have you?!"

Narita looked at Hidehoshi in shock. As a once-in-a-lifetime debut battle, the song for the first time on the victory stage is almost the thing that every horse girl thinks about the most before the race, besides training.

Xiu Xingmeng clearly has such talent, so why didn't she choose a song?

Seeing Cheng Tianlu's expression, Xiu Xingmeng suddenly felt a sense of unease, and she carefully chose her words.

"First, let's clarify what the Victory Stage means."

Upon hearing this, Narita was even more shocked. Who would have thought that this horse girl, who won the championship in her debut race with an absolute advantage, didn't even know what the Victory Stage was?

She's Treson's student, not some country bumpkin. Don't she have any classmates who participated in the debut battle?!

"Ah Meng... could it be that you..."

Narita frowned, mentally preparing a bunch of reasons for Xiuxing's dream.

"Actually, he's the illegitimate son of a prestigious family! He's been raised in the countryside and attending school all this time, only recently moving back to Tokyo! I know! This time, I'll teach those guys who look down on me a lesson, right!"

Soon, taking into account Xiu Xingmeng's status as a descendant of a prestigious family, Cheng Tianlu devised a flawless answer based on the topics his classmates had been discussing recently.

Faced with this answer, Xiu Xingmeng could only sigh and lean on her arm.

"If I had this kind of script, maybe I wouldn't have had to receive such support from my sister in public."

Upon hearing this, Narita fell silent, having completely forgotten the character of the Holy King's Aura.

Treson's Must-See List: The Holy King's Halo's Mini-Combo - She simply couldn't imagine that the Holy King's Halo, as the protagonist, would be involved in this kind of script.

Suddenly, as if he had thought of something, Narita's gaze turned to pity, and he held Xiuxingmeng's shoulders and said to her.

"Thanks a lot."

My older sister is such a fool. It must be so hard for her younger sister, Xiu Xingmeng.

Xiu Xingmeng couldn't understand why Cheng Tianlu would suddenly say that. She also grasped Cheng Tianlu's shoulder and said in a sincere tone.

"Instead of that, could you first explain what the winner's stage is?"

Looking into Xiu Xingmeng's wise eyes, Cheng Tianlu immediately understood. Perhaps, the sisters were actually both fools.

A minute later, Narita succinctly explained what the winner's stage meant.

After hearing all this, Xiu Xingmeng was already sweating profusely.

Oh no, I completely forgot about this thing.

Looking back, it seems I skipped the winner's stage during my real debut battle, and after training for several years in scripted missions, I completely forgot about its existence.

Do you expect someone who knows absolutely nothing about dancing to perform on stage?

I was already embarrassed by the cheers and support from the Holy King's halo, and now I have to do it in front of all the audience—

Xiu Xingmeng shuddered at the thought, picked up her backpack, and reached out to Narita.

"Aru, let's run away!"

"Don't use that tone that sounds like you're eloping!"

Narita took a picture of Xiuxingmeng's hand and then continued.

"I remember the school has courses like this, so there's no need to be so nervous, right?"

Hearing this, Xiu Xingmeng smiled slightly and said to Cheng Tianlu.

"I skipped them all!"

"why?!"

Narita was shocked again; Xiu Xingmeng didn't seem like the kind of bad kid who would skip class.

"Off to training!"

Xiu Xingmeng puffed out her chest without any burden and said to Naritaji. "Yes, the task has always required winning the competition, but it has never required dancing."

Seeing her like this, Narita opened his mouth as if to make a comment, but a question in his mind was suddenly answered.

So that's why she's so powerful. Narita thought to himself, looking at Xiuxingmeng with a complicated expression.

After a moment of silence, Narita asked carefully, choosing his tone.

"Ah Meng, when did you start training?"

"Six years old? What's wrong?"

"From age six... until now?"

"Is there a problem? It's okay. I'm managing the training intensity well and won't leave myself with too many injuries."

Thinking that Narita was worried about his Xiuxing Dream, he smiled and raised his arm to make a strong appearance.

Looking at Xiu Xingmeng, Cheng Tianlu felt a mix of emotions.

According to Xiu Xingmeng, she even arranged her own training plan. Judging from her appearance, she probably skipped more than just one dance class.

Narita suddenly pursed her lips. She had also started training from a young age, but it was impossible for her to start at six. Moreover, she had a trainer with her, and even if she had thoughts of giving up, the coach would help her get through it.

But Xiuxingmeng is different. A six-year-old primary school student endures the hardships of training, not only overcoming both physical and mental challenges, but also arranging his own training plan.

Judging from her current abilities, she must have executed the plan perfectly.

This dedication has sustained Xiuxing Dream for ten years.

A scene suddenly flashed into Narita's mind: while other children were playing freely with their friends, young Xiuxingmeng was running alone on the playground.

Doesn't she get tired? Doesn't she want to slack off? Doesn't she... feel lonely?

Chapter Nineteen: On the Stage (4k)

What exactly did Xiuxingmeng give up for today's championship...?

Not knowing about the Victory Stage, not being able to dance—these are probably just the tip of the iceberg. Narita pursed his lips, looking at the bewildered Xiuxingmeng with a complicated expression.

With her like this, let alone choosing songs, does she even have any songs she likes?

In Xiu Xingmeng's life so far, what else is left besides the race?

For some reason, Narita suddenly felt a little uncomfortable and subconsciously grabbed Xiuxingmeng's hand.

"There's still some time before the opening of the Victory Stage."

"So...so..."

As Cheng Tianlu looked at Xiu Xingmeng's somewhat bewildered face, his grip on her hand tightened.

"Let's practice together! Let everyone know, let everyone see! Ah Meng's figure!"

"Oh oh."

Seeing Cheng Tianlu's teary eyes, Xiu Xingmeng subconsciously responded twice.

After Xiu Xingmeng nodded, Cheng Tianlu pulled her out of the contestants' room and ran towards the dance studio.

Uma Musume was born to run, but what if life consisted of nothing but running?

Isn't that pitiful?!

Cheng Tianlu gritted his teeth and made a silent resolution in his heart that he must help Xiu Xingmeng take the stage in perfect form.

Soon, Cheng Tianlu pulled Xiu Xingmeng through the door of the dance studio.

Orihime, who was already waiting inside, opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Naritaji.

"Orihime! Do you have any song recommendations?"

"what?"

Before she could ask any more questions, Cheng Tianlu had already taken out his phone, swiped a few times on it, and handed it to Xiu Xingmeng.

"These are a few songs I recommend, Ameng, listen to them and take a look!"

Xiu Xingmeng obediently took the phone and listened.

Narita immediately ran to Orihime's side.

Looking at Naritaji's drastically changed personality, Aiko Orihime frowned, completely baffled as to what had happened.

The first place winner is Xiu Xingmeng, so she should be the one to choose the song.

Seemingly noticing her confusion, Narita pulled her to a corner and whispered an explanation to Orihime, who admired him.

A few minutes later, Orihime, who had learned everything from Naritaji, sighed softly.

Unconsciously, she suddenly remembered what she had witnessed on the field that day.

Ai Mu Zhi Ji felt a little envious of the Holy King's halo, who could cheer for her sister from the audience. She turned her head and looked at Xiu Xing Meng listening to music in the corner, thinking to herself.

Hoshino? If it's my little sister—

She shook her head, temporarily suppressing her overflowing emotions, and walked straight to Xiu Xingmeng, saying to her.

"Be prepared."

"what?"

Xiu Xingmeng looked up blankly, only to see that Ai Mu Zhi Ji had already taken off her coat, revealing her training clothes underneath. She flexed her wrists, her eyes sharp as if she were about to enter a competition.

"There's only one hour left before the performance."

"let us start!"

Narita had changed her clothes sometime earlier. She clapped her hands, and her warm smile returned to her face, though her eyes remained firm.

In the following practice sessions, Narita was in charge of teaching the basic movements. Her explanations were meticulous, breaking down every turn and every hand raise into the most basic movements.

Ai Mu Zhi Ji was responsible for correcting the details; her sharp eye allowed her to immediately point out any inconsistencies in Xiu Xing Meng's movements.

"Relax your shoulders a little more."

"This turn needs to be smoother."

"Eyes, pay attention to your eyes! This isn't on the racetrack, so be more gentle."

Xiu Xingmeng, who had never done this before, was a little embarrassed at first, but all her years of training had paid off. With her control over her body, her dance steps quickly became smooth.

Time flies when you're fully engaged in something.

The adoring Orihime, who had been watching the clock intently, nodded silently as she looked at the drenched-in-sweat Xiuxingmeng.

She walked to a corner of the dance studio, picked out a towel and a bottle of mineral water, and tossed them to Xiu Xingmeng.

"Time's almost up, this level is good enough."

As Xiuxing Mengma was pondering her actions, her ears twitched slightly, and she subconsciously reached out her right hand to catch what Ai Mu Zhi Ji threw to her.

After wiping her flushed cheeks with a towel, she drank most of the bottle of mineral water in one go.

After catching her breath for a while, Xiu Xingmeng finally had time to ask the question that had been buried in her heart.

Why are you helping me like this?