The Champion's Mark
After the androids quickly separated the carriage from the mares, they began the washing process. While receiving an IV in my arm and a massage to loosen my muscles, the jockey had gone out to the track, likely for the awards ceremony. My legs trembled uncontrollably now, making it difficult to stand, so I sat on the floor receiving the massage when my master's voice reached me.
"How did it go? Did you win?"
"Yes, I won!"
"Congratulations. As expected, Elisha never disappoints me."
"Hehe, thank you."
Hearing my master's praise made me feel like I could float away. As my thighs were kneaded, sharp pains shot through them, and I was worrying about it when my master spoke again.
"There's something strange in the IV drip going into your arm."
"What? What is it?"
"Well, the fatigue recovery and muscle cell repair components are normal, but there are also nanorobots and narcotics mixed in."
"I don't feel any drug effects, though."
"That's because I'm blocking them. But why give drugs to mares who are already addicted to pleasure substances?"
"Hmm, maybe because the pleasure substances stop being produced after the race, so they're giving it to reduce the pain?"
Indeed, once the race ended and my body calmed down, the production of pleasure substances ceased, leaving my torn leg muscles in excruciating pain. Even as an angel whose pain was dulled, it hurt this much. Ordinary mares would surely struggle without the drugs.
"Ah, is that it? Then should I stop blocking the drugs for you too?"
"Yes, it actually hurts a lot right now."
"I didn't think of it because I had cut off the sensations. There, it's released."
"Hnn, thank you, Master."
Once the blocked drugs spread through my body, my mind grew hazy and the pain quickly faded. Lying on the floor, savoring the pleasant floating sensation, I looked around to see other mares also dazed from the drugs as they received massages. I wasn't climaxing due to the pleasure restrictions, but the other mares were being caressed between their legs along with the leg and waist massages, continuously climaxing and squirting fluids.
Ah, so that's why they ban climaxes—to save it for this moment. The continuous waves of pleasure given as a reward after the intense race were like a drug that boosted the mares' motivation.
After some time, the drugs and massage restored a bit of strength to my trembling muscles, allowing me to walk back to the stable. Lying on the bedding to rest, I felt my muscle cells being reinforced by the nanorobots, creating an itchy sensation. What was strange about training as a mare was that while the volume of my leg muscles didn't change much, they became more refined and firm. Thanks to that, my figure remained similar to before, but my strength had increased significantly.
Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep. When I woke, my master was moving my body. She was talking with the trainer.
"The winning mare gets free time that week. You can use the wide training ground alone during the hours you'd normally be in the stable. Of course, without supervision."
"Can I use it starting tomorrow?"
"Yes, just tell an android and they'll take you there."
The trainer said that, then asked curiously, "But aren't you a free mare? Then you should be able to leave this place whenever you want. Why do you stay inside?"
"What? Free mares can just leave?"
"All the mares who live here and race are slave mares. Usually, free mares come when they feel like it, run, and then leave."
"That's..."
So that's what free mares were? Then there was no need to go out in the biosuit?
'If I'd known about free mares earlier, I could've just left.'
'Oh, you're awake. You're right. If you'd gone out to milk, the race would've gone even better.'
'Thank you for thinking of me, Master.'
'Since Elisha likes it so much, I should accommodate you.'
Now she was even considering my activities as a mare. If I wanted to race as a mare occasionally, I'd need to maintain the human-horse arena. I wondered if there was a way. I'd have to think about it.
"Well, I didn't say anything because I thought you were just a mare who really enjoys training and likes the races... But since you're an excellent mare who even won, you can come and run whenever you want."
"Can I leave now? I need to go milk."
"Ah, you were a dairy cow, right? Got it, I'll call an android for you. And before that, you need to receive the trophy awarded to the winning mare."
The trainer took out a tiny mare-shaped piercing set with a red gem from her pocket. Ah, that was the same piercing the champion mares like Jerry wore. She held it up to my eyes with her fingers and said, "You get one each time you win. It's the mark of a champion mare. Bring your right ear over here."
"Yes."
My master offered her right ear, and the trainer skillfully pierced the earlobe with a thin needle and secured the piercing. She had done it many times, so the pain was surprisingly minimal. After checking that it was properly fixed, she said, "Ordinary people will just think it's a woman standing, but anyone who knows about human-horses will recognize it as the mark of a champion mare."
She patted my shoulder, called an android to inform it that a free mare wanted to leave, said she'd see me next time, and left the stable.
The android that approached my master put a ball gag in place, took the reins, and led me away.
'They're not releasing me right here? Elisha, move.'
'Yes, Master.'
After receiving control, I followed the android's lead and arrived at the same machine where I had first been authenticated as a mare. Oh, so this machine also handled releases. When told to enter the machine, I stepped inside. The door closed again, and a mechanical voice sounded.
"Authenticated mare confirmed. Proceeding with equipment removal per external input."
Mechanical arms emerged once more, removing the ball gag, corset, arm restraints, and high-heeled boots. Taking off the high-heeled boots I'd worn for nearly eight days felt strange—the sensation of my feet touching the floor and the absence of heels was oddly unfamiliar.
Mmm, I should ask Master to let me wear high heels from now on.
Even after being freed, my arms naturally stayed behind my back. I caught myself and stretched them out. Ugh, my shoulders are so stiff. Loosening them will take some work. As I rolled my shoulders, my master spoke.
'Elisha, now's the time. Connect the cable to that computer.'
'Oh, right, that was the plan.'
Come to think of it, the external storage device was still attached, and no one had paid it any attention. Why? I pulled out the cable and connected it to the port while saying, "The external storage device was exposed the whole time I was living as a mare, but no one noticed?"
'It looks like a band, maybe? It's strange that no one paid attention to it.'
Of course, it was thin and white, so it didn't stand out much, but anyone looking could still see something was there. Hmm, did they just think it was fashion?
'As expected, it's connected to the internal intranet. Hacking now.'
'If it takes too long, an android might come in to check.'
'It won't take long.'
I held the cable in my hand, ready to unplug it immediately. Fortunately, the hacking finished faster than expected, and I was able to download the data and disconnect. But how do I get out of here?
"Procedure complete."
The mechanical voice sounded belatedly, and the door opened. The android looked over my naked body, told me to follow, and moved somewhere. Upon reaching what looked like a storage room, the android told me to find my clothes and put them on, then closed the door and left. Looking around, I saw various clothes hanging on racks.
Hmm, I should wear clothes until the android guides me to the entrance, right? I picked out the simplest outfit I could find, put it on, and stepped out the door. The android told me to follow and led the way. Guiding me along the path I'd seen when entering, the android bowed its head at the entrance and turned back.
Phew, has it been almost nine days since I came out?
'Whew, an unexpected situation kept us trapped for quite a while. I hope nothing happened on the surface.'
'You're right. People who know us must be worried.'
'I'll have to sell out Isabel when explaining.'
The guards at the entrance glanced at my master, scanned the ear tag, and looked away. Passing the guards, my master headed to where we'd hidden our clothes. There were too many androids around now to put on the biosuit.
'I got the list of people who sponsored and watched the human-horse races.'
'Master, couldn't you leave the human-horse arena behind when you create the nation?'
'Leave it behind? You know that mares become brainwashed by nanorobots.'
'You were brainwashed as a dairy cow too, Master. But being a dairy cow feels good, doesn't it? The mares are satisfied with their current state as well.'
'Hmm. Even if brainwashed, they're happy...'
I could feel my master's conflict. After learning that I had been brainwashed as a mare, my master had realized she herself had been brainwashed as a dairy cow, but after much thought, she had decided to accept being a dairy cow. I had felt it too—an indescribable emotion and sensation where, even knowing you'd been brainwashed, if you were happy and enjoying it, it somehow felt okay.
'Alright, I'll try to keep it in Eden. With some adjustments, it could become a surprisingly wholesome sport. First, instead of the ball gag...'
My master envisioned a much more sanitized version of the human-horse races compared to the current obscene and cruel method. Hmm, the very idea of racing human-horses feels off, but I understood my master's intention to make it a race only for sponsors, held underground. My master arrived at the hidden clothes, changed, and headed toward the dairy factory while saying, "I gathered information up to the human-horse arena and confirmed it—the buildings and androids in the underground city don't exchange information with each other. That means other androids or humans in different locations don't know about the human-horse races either."
'That means we can move a bit more boldly.'
'Exactly. Still, the basics remain stealth with the biosuit.'
'Yes, Master.'
Upon arriving at the dairy factory, my master was already breathing excitedly, anticipating the pleasure of milking, and was led by an android to the milking station. Naturally stripping naked, my master was strapped to a restraint like the other dairy cows, waiting her turn.
'Haa, this moment of waiting for milking makes my chest tremble.'
'Dairy cows have it easy. They just eat well and produce milk, and pleasure is given...'
'Only the high-grade dairy cows enjoy the pleasure. Regular dairy cows, unlike mares, receive almost no brainwashing and are simply confined and treated as livestock. For them, it's not something to enjoy—it's their only lifeline to forget this hell.'
'If we create a new Eden, can they be freed too?'
'It's unfortunate, but the current regular dairy cows are too late. Their minds are already too broken. Even treatment would take a long time, and the chances of recovery are low.'
My master said this while looking sadly at the drooping regular dairy cows. The vacant gazes of those mares were directed at the milking cows who were moaning and writhing in pleasure. They truly didn't look happy at all.
Gradually, the line shortened, and when my master's turn came, she entrusted her body to the milking machine. Milking soon began, and I could see my master struggling in pleasure. Climaxing continuously and savoring the pleasure, my master looked truly happy. The container filled with my master's milk was taken away separately by the androids. High-grade dairy cow milk seemed to be handled differently. Unlike the regular dairy cows being dragged out by collars, my master, supported by an android, sat on the floor enjoying the afterglow of continuous climaxes.
'Hnnn. It feels so good I think I'm becoming an idiot.'
'Hehe, pleasure really is good, isn't it?'
'Yeah, I'm going to enjoy it a bit more, so Elisha, go to the surface.'
'Yes, Master.'
Instead of my master, I put on clothes and headed to the elevator. By now, I had memorized the route enough to find it easily. Mindful of my arms that kept trying to go behind my back, I walked in the mare's posture. Hmm, without high heels, it feels awkward after all. Walking like that, I arrived at the elevator and was scanned by the guards.
"High-grade dairy cow, free mare, Elisha. Confirmed. What is your business?"
"I want to go to the surface."
Passing the guards, I took the elevator and emerged into the glass garden. The sunlight I hadn't seen in a long time was dazzling. My body, accustomed to the always-cool underground city, felt slightly warm from the heat. Leaving the glass garden and heading to the train, I spoke to my master.
'Master, did you contact Isabel?'
'Whew, I just sent a message. Oh, she's calling right away. Just a moment.'
While my master talked with Isabel, I took the train to Isabel's lab in the hospital basement. Without high heels, I had no choice but to walk on my tiptoes in the mare standing posture, drawing even more stares from passersby. The conversation seemed to drag on, continuing even as I arrived at the lab.
When I reached the lab, Isabel greeted me with a gaunt, haggard appearance. Wow, she must have been through a lot of mental stress.
"Your body is fine, right? No injuries?"
"Yes, I'm perfectly okay."
"Do you know how worried I was when you suddenly went out of contact? Come sit down first."
"Yes."
'I'll take over now.'
'Yes, Master.'
My master took back control of the body and sat facing Isabel, explaining what had happened. My master cleverly downplayed the dangers of the human-horse arena, describing it as just a slightly unusual racing venue, and transmitted manipulated information about both the sponsor list and the guest list.
"So, you participated directly as a mare and even raced to get information? That's why it took so long. But even after all that, the information you got isn't much. Even though it's an underground city, not everything is dangerous, is that it...?"
"Yes, there are also non-dangerous things like just milking as a high-grade dairy cow."
"Hmm, but it was still too reckless. Don't do this again. What if it had been really dangerous?"
"I'll be careful from now on."
After my master's explanation, Isabel seemed somewhat relieved, and color returned to her previously pale face. Still, she insisted on doing a detailed examination, so I underwent another thorough checkup.
'Are the nanorobots okay?'
'The problem is they'll be detected in blood tests rather than scans.'
'Hmm.'
This worry ended when the test results came back without detection. The blood test machine couldn't detect the nanorobots. Even the detailed scan didn't show the nanorobots.
"You said you raced as a mare, and your muscle development is incredible. Was the muscle modification effect this good...?"
"I think it's because my recovery ability is good."
"Aside from slightly elevated hormone levels, you're the picture of health. Looking at your physique alone, you've gotten stronger."
Isabel spoke as if her worries had lessened while looking at the test results. Looking at my body displayed on the screen, the slime milk inside my breasts had grown larger, fusing beyond the mammary glands into the breast tissue itself. Tyriel in my intestines had filled and fused tightly with both the small and large intestines, and a small secondary brain had formed inside my brain.
"The unusual thing is this new small brain that formed inside your brain. Do you know what happened?"
"It's a secondary brain created by Abaddon to assist the host."
"Hmm, since we know nothing about Abaddon's ecology, I don't know how to judge this. Does it seem dangerous to you, what Abaddon did?"
"No, it just seems like it's trying to do something for me. The secondary brain seems the same."
"Still, it's suspicious. I should investigate more..."
As expected, Isabel was doubtful about the newly created brain. My master, who had been talking for a while to convince Isabel, said inwardly, 'To reduce variables, I was going to bring down Eden, but it won't work. Let's make Isabel a host too.'
'It's getting harder and harder to hide things.'
'To make Isabel a symbiote, we'll need a very exceptional child. I'll create more eggs, so make one well.'
'Yes, Master.'
It had been a while since Stella that I was combining a child. I'd be busy for some time.
'Unlike Stella, the child that will make Isabel a host must be a separate Abaddon with no connection to us. That way, we can avoid Isabel's suspicion.'
'The child that symbiotes with Isabel should only be educated to help her to a certain extent, right?'
'Exactly. We need to thoroughly teach the advantages of being a symbiote and turn it into a future ally.'
After barely managing to ease Isabel's suspicions, my master left the lab and returned to the shelter.