"..."

Faced with Mizuno's accusation, the system once again pretended to be dead.

"I knew it," Mizuno muttered, finally putting all the pieces together.

This was a trap—a deliberate trap set by the system to trick me.

As always, although the system never outright lied, everything it did was aimed at luring Mizuno into exposing his S-ranked attraction to Uma Musume in front of others. This time was no different.

But since its previous schemes had all failed, the system had devised a new tactic.

It had given him a short, rapidly diminishing time limit to create panic. Once panic set in, rational thought became impossible, turning him into an obedient puppet who would unquestioningly follow instructions.

Just moments ago, Mizuno had nearly fallen for it—almost tricked into removing the Doctor's Outfit in full view of the entire training ground.

Yet Mizuno possessed a unique trait:

The less time he had, the calmer he became.

Back in school exams, even when only five minutes remained with hundreds of words left to write, Mizuno never panicked like other students scribbling nonsense. Instead, he methodically wrote each word, completing his essay precisely as time ran out.

He'd always understood that panicking was pointless. Only calmness prevented mistakes.

Thus, Mizuno suppressed his anxiety, ignored the risk of failure, and focused solely on finding a solution.

Was there a safe, effective way to complete this absurd task?

Yes, there was.

Reaching calmly into his backpack, Mizuno swiftly took out honey and other ingredients. On the spot, he expertly blended two cups of S-Rank Honey Special Drink, handing them casually to Urara and King Halo.

"Honey Special Drink—here you go."

"A-ah... Arigatou..." Urara and King Halo stared at him, stunned, as they accepted the drinks.

Where had those ingredients come from? A fourth-dimensional pocket?

And he had mixed them so quickly—like he'd done it a thousand times before.

"How is it? Taste good?"

King Halo stared uncertainly at the shimmering beverage, swallowing nervously.

It looked delicious, but Mizuno's casual mixing style made her doubt whether it really tasted as good as it appeared.

Gulp!

In contrast, Urara trusted Mizuno completely and didn't hesitate before taking a sip.

"Mmm~~~!" Urara's eyes sparkled brightly.

What is this?! It's amazing!

Urara immediately decided that Mizuno's Honey Special Drink was one of the three tastiest things in the world.

For reference, the other two were carrots and ice cream.

"Is it really that good?" King Halo asked skeptically.

Yet seeing Urara's blissful expression, she couldn't resist trying it herself.

The moment the drink touched her tongue, her eyes widened in shock.

"How can something this delicious exist?!" King Halo stared at Mizuno with newfound admiration, all her pride instantly overshadowed by his incredible skill in making such a divine beverage.

"Ahem… Even if you aren't a first-rate trainer, you're undeniably a first-rate master at making Honey Special Drinks."

[Side Quest Completed—Discipline the Bratty Girl.]

Quest Grade: E

Reward: Doctor's Outfit extended by three days.

Recommendations:

Remove the Doctor's Outfit, revealing your true appearance to King Halo.

Lead King Halo somewhere secluded and use your S-ranked attractiveness to Uma Musume to charm her completely.

See? Simple and effective. No need to remove the Doctor's Outfit.

The system's plan had spectacularly backfired, not only failing to sabotage Mizuno but instead granting him three extra days. Delightful.

[Damn it, failed again?!]

...

Previously, the annoying system had only tried to sabotage him through tricky tasks. Now it had resorted to psychological manipulation as well. Clearly, he'd need to be even more cautious around it in the future.

"Trainer-san, this drink is so delicious! Urara wants to learn how to make it too!" Urara exclaimed excitedly.

Mizuno paused thoughtfully.

Mixing it for her was one thing, but teaching her… probably not. Mizuno himself had extraordinary learning capabilities, yet he still needed exactly 993 attempts to master this recipe. With Urara's clumsy nature, she might never succeed.

"No need to learn. I'll make it whenever you want some—" Mizuno suddenly hesitated, eyeing Urara's stomach cautiously.

"Of course, you shouldn't drink too much—just enough."

An Uma Musume's stomach was a mystery. Eating too much didn't rupture it but inflated it like a balloon instead.

If Urara drank too much, causing her belly to swell like a pregnant woman…

FBI: Open the door!

"Yay~!" Urara gulped down the drink enthusiastically.

"Ne, Trainer-san, can I have another cup?"

"Training first. Once you finish training, I'll make you another."

"Okay~!" Urara nodded cheerfully. "Trainer-san, are we practicing long jumps again?"

"No, we'll practice running now," Mizuno replied. "Urara, try running like this…" Mizuno demonstrated an optimized running posture based on her current condition.

"Got it! Urara, launching~!" Urara eagerly dashed onto the track, immediately beginning her run.

"Now, as for you..." Mizuno turned toward King Halo.

King Halo stared at him expectantly, her cup empty, eyes practically screaming, Me next! Me next!

"You want another cup too?" Mizuno asked calmly.

"Don't be ridiculous! Like I'd ever crave your Honey Special Drink..." King Halo looked away sharply, stealing glances at him from the corner of her eye.

"But… if you insist on offering another, I suppose I could accept."

"…"

Still pretending? Could you at least wipe the drool from your mouth first?

"In that case, could you run alongside Urara as payment? After training, I'll make as many drinks as you want."

Having King Halo train alongside Urara could significantly enhance Urara's training effectiveness—something like friendship bonuses.

"Really?!" King Halo briefly let her excitement slip before hastily regaining composure, turning her head away haughtily.

"Ahem. Since you've begged me so earnestly, it would be unbecoming of the great King to ignore a commoner's request. It's absolutely not because I want more Honey Special Drink," she said while discreetly wiping drool from her lips.

Mizuno: "…"

"Then I'll join Urara-chan right away. Remember your promise~!"

With that, King Halo eagerly dashed off, quickly catching up to Urara, running side by side.