Chapter 1: The System After Twenty-Six Years
In late March, Hokkaido, the occasional cold wind still made people feel a hint of chill.
Exhaling a puff of white mist, Watanabe couldn't help but pull his neck back into the warmth of his down jacket.
Watanabe was thin, and his face was dark from years of labor.
Soon, he poked his head out again, frequently looking towards the intersection.
A silver Isuzu D-MAX pickup, still somewhat discernible as such, drove from the end of his vision, leaving two long tracks on the muddy ground.
The impatience on his face suddenly vanished, replaced by an excitement mixed with inexplicable emotions.
He jogged to meet it, and before the pickup had fully stopped, he shouted loudly.
"Kitano-sensei!"
The car door opened, and a young man, noticeably younger than him, stepped out.
His skin was a lighter wheat color than Watanabe's, and his eyes were bright under thick, shiny black eyebrows like pencils.
"Let's go take a look at the situation."
The young man, referred to as Kitano-sensei, greeted him simply and took a seemingly heavy bag from the car.
"His stomach has been swollen for days. At first, I thought it was just ordinary bloat, but it quickly swelled up again after administering medicine..."
Watanabe, leading the way, began to chatter, his eyebrows almost furrowed into a knot.
"Is the feeding amount normal?"
Kitano nodded, as if agreeing with the man's words, or perhaps thinking about something, and only spoke after a while.
"It increased a little after the weather warmed up, but it should still be within the normal range..."
Watanabe's tone became somewhat uncertain.
"Let's take a look first."
Kitano said.
Watanabe nodded in relief.
Soon, they arrived at the stable.
Ignoring the pervasive smell in the air, Kitano easily spotted the abnormality in the herd.
As Watanabe said, one cow's belly was noticeably distended, and when they arrived, it was still struggling to look back at its abdomen, breathing heavily.
"It's definitely bloat."
Kitano took out gloves from his bag, put them on, and went around to the cow's left rear, patting the triangular area.
A crisp sound came from the cow's belly.
The cow mooed in a somewhat frightened manner.
"Should we puncture it?"
Watanabe-sensei asked nervously.
"No rush, let's check the feed trough first."
Kitano shook his head.
Moreover, when treating animal bloat, puncturing to release gas is, in most cases, a lower priority than oral gas release.
Taking off his gloves, Kitano, not minding the dirt, walked to the other side of the stable, squatted down directly, and reached into the feed trough to feel around.
"The proportion of concentrates is too high. How about trying to feed more green fodder?"
Clapping his hands, he stood up and said.
As ruminants, the first stomach of a cow—the rumen, as it's commonly called—can easily swell due to the fermentation of its contents during rumination, producing a large amount of gas. If effective measures are not taken, the cow can even die from a ruptured rumen.
Rumen bloat is often caused by eating too much concentrate or various compound feeds.
Perhaps it could even be considered a disease of affluence.
"So, it's a feed problem?"
Mimicking Kitano, Watanabe scooped up a handful of feed and asked cautiously.
"Possibly, but feed isn't the main reason."
If there was a problem with the feed, more than one cow should have been affected.
Kitano was rummaging through his bag.
Soon after, he pulled out a stethoscope and pressed it against the cow's abdomen, while his other hand repeatedly rubbed a higher position, occasionally stopping to gently tap certain spots.
"It must have eaten something."
After a while, Kitano put away the stethoscope.
"What exactly it is, we'll only know after it's removed."
Watanabe's tense expression relaxed slightly, and he quickly pressed, "What should we do then?"
"I'm afraid surgery is necessary; otherwise, dragging it on could be dangerous."
Kitano patted the cow's head again, trying to soothe its somewhat anxious mood.
"Then, let's operate—"
Watanabe quickly nodded, then let out a long breath.
The two of them together led the cow to the concrete ground outside the stable.
While Kitano looked down to prepare the anesthetic, Watanabe found a relatively clean plastic mat and spread it under the cow's feet.
If there's any benefit to being a veterinarian, it's probably just this.
Most of the time, they are even less picky about their working environment than military doctors.
The veterinary anesthetic quickly took effect, and Kitano picked up the electric clippers and quickly shaved the hair from the surgical area.
Layers of winter fur fell, piling messily at his feet.
After simply disinfecting the skin surface with povidone-iodine, Kitano laid a sterile drape over the cow's abdomen.
With all preparations complete, he put on latex gloves.
The sharp scalpel accurately descended to the left flank.
Watanabe couldn't help but frown.
Both of their foreheads glistened with fine sweat.
Beneath layers of cowhide was the deformed and swollen rumen.
After cutting open the rumen, a strong, pungent odor assailed their noses.
The Racehorse Tycoon System has been activated. Do you want to start the game?
A mechanical voice, devoid of emotion, suddenly sounded in his ear.
Kitano's fluid movements suddenly paused.
"What's wrong, Kitano-sensei?"
Watanabe asked, covering his nose.
"No, nothing."
Pouring out the accumulated contents from the stomach, Kitano responded as if nothing had happened.
Compared to the inexplicable noise, the surgery at hand was more important.
Forcibly banishing the distracting thoughts, Kitano quickly re-immersed himself in the surgery.
The foreign object's stubbornness was somewhat unexpected; he simply put down the long forceps and started to dig it out with his hand.
A wet, soft, cloth-like object, whose original appearance was difficult to discern, was pulled from the cow's stomach, with pungent liquid continuously dripping from its bottom.
The numbers "169" were faintly written on the cloth-like object.
"This is... he ate the feed bag?"
Watanabe's eyes immediately widened, then he covered his face.
"It's better not to place feed bags too close to the feed trough."
Kitano could only say this.
In many cases, livestock diseases are related to the owner's non-standard farming practices.
At least, that's what he's observed from the actual cases he's encountered so far.
Throwing the cloth-like object aside, he picked up the needle and thread for suturing.
Suturing on cowhide was more strenuous than imagined, and by the time the surgery was completely finished, it was already past one in the afternoon.
After instructing on the antibiotic dosage, Kitano began to pack up his things.
"You've worked hard!"
Watanabe's hunched figure shrank into a black dot behind the car; only after a long while did he slowly straighten his back.
On the way back to the clinic, Kitano casually turned on the car stereo.
What came out was an old-fashioned enka song.
The previous car owner was also the former chief physician of the clinic.
Two years ago, after graduating from Hokkaido University's School of Veterinary Medicine, Kitano joined the veterinary clinic where his predecessor worked.
In Japan, being a veterinarian is not a particularly sought-after job.
Perhaps that's why his predecessor so readily transferred the clinic and retired early last year.
Back at the clinic, after parking the car, Kitano was not in a hurry to leave.
"Phew—"
Leaning back heavily against the seat, he vigorously rubbed his temples.
The Racehorse Tycoon System has been activated. Do you want to start the game?
The voice that suddenly appeared during the surgery reappeared.
The frequency was once per minute, precisely on time.
He couldn't help but let out a scoff.
Kitano's reason for becoming a veterinarian was simple.
For most irrational choices, the simple words "poverty" are sufficient reason.
The Kitano family was indeed a remarkable presence in certain industries.
But that was a long time ago.
When Kitano was thirteen, his father chose to become a wanderer due to debt problems.
Then, in the winter of the following year, his mother also passed away.
Through part-time jobs and scholarships, he finally completed his high school education.
A deviation value of 73 qualified Kitano to enroll in any national university, but under the temptation of low-interest loans from JA (Japan Agricultural Cooperatives) and special support from Hokkaido University's School of Veterinary Medicine, he quickly made his choice.
Six years of undergraduate study, a national veterinarian exam covering over 20 subjects, obtaining a veterinary practice license, and putting in efforts no less than his medical school peers—
He finally became a junior veterinarian with an annual income of no more than five million yen.
The consultation fee was thirteen thousand yen per hour, and agricultural support services applied through JA would receive a discount on top of that.
For students from prestigious schools, it was a veritable "3K" (kitsui, kitanai, kiken - tough, dirty, dangerous) profession.
But it was enough.
To open a pet hospital in the city center ten years later, then leisurely sit in the office and let his juniors work for him—this was the goal Kitano set for the next stage of his life.
For this, he was accumulating planning funds every day.
He had been eating bean sprouts and expiring bentos for so many years, yet the system appeared at this moment.
He subconsciously clenched his fist.
However, after a brief period of internal struggle, Kitano still made his choice.
This was not a difficult matter.
Start the game.
He silently recited in his mind.
The next moment, a nearly transparent, glass-like panel suddenly appeared in front of his vision.
Abilities
Assets
Shop
Tasks
Four prominent words were arranged in order.
It was a very concise design.
He tried to close the panel with his mind, and it quickly succeeded.
Kitano breathed a sigh of relief.
Although it didn't completely block his vision, if something was always floating in front of him, it would indeed be troublesome.
He rubbed his temples again with enough force to feel pain, then pushed open the car door.
Anyway, he had to finish the work at hand first.
Surgical equipment used was disinfected and processed, and consultation records were filled out and archived.
Then, Kitano sat down to slowly study the system.
Although he tried his best to maintain a normal demeanor, his heart rate had unconsciously sped up significantly.
He attributed this to human instinct.
First up was Abilities.
It was also a very concise panel.
Kitano Yuki
Xiangma Eye: C
Bloodline Knowledge: E-
Training: D+
Health Management: B+
Inspiration: E-
Preferred Training Direction: None
Title: None
Available Titles: 2
C is the passing line for a professional.
Aside from Health Management, the attributes were quite dismal.
But for Kitano, who came from a veterinary background, such an evaluation was already a pleasant surprise.
After all, he didn't have much knowledge related to horse racing.
When he focused his attention on each attribute, related explanations for each attribute would pop up.
Xiangma Eye is the ability to discern the strength and condition of a horse's body. The higher the value, the more accurate the information obtained.
Kitano didn't feel he had any Xiangma Eye ability.
Bloodline Knowledge refers to the degree of understanding of thoroughbred pedigrees, which can provide some reference during breeding.
At least for now, it was knowledge he wouldn't use.
Training relates to the effectiveness of foal training. Both the foal's temperament and its basic training before debut are affected by this attribute.
Like Bloodline Knowledge, it was a skill outside Kitano's scope of knowledge.
Health Management is the comprehensive ability to control a racehorse's weight, injuries, and fatigue status.
This, at least, could be considered his main job.
Inspiration involves intuition related to racehorses. High Inspiration can often lead to a flash of insight, discovering a horse's potential.
He could basically say goodbye to a future of relying on intuition for Xiangma Eye.
Preferred Training Direction is cultivation experience for specific types of racehorses.
It was also an ability he wouldn't use for now.
Moving his gaze to the last line of the panel, Kitano opened Titles.
Available Titles: 2
Racehorse Novice
Slightly increases the probability of meeting industry professionals, and slightly reduces the probability of being invited to auctions and the popularity of owned racehorses in races.
Would anyone really equip a title that seemed to have mostly negative effects?
With this question, he turned his attention to the second title.
Racehorse Aristocrat: Mejiro
Slightly increases the probability of meeting industry professionals, and slightly increases the popularity of owned racehorses with the "Mejiro" prefix when racing in overseas events and the Tenno Sho.
Kitano didn't have much real sense of what a so-called racehorse aristocrat was.
His family did still retain some horse racing-related items.
But that was all.
However, at least it was a title without negative effects.
He chose to equip it.
Kitano then clicked on Assets.
Owned Horses: 0
Owned Ranches: None
Owned Clubs: None
Total Assets: -3.02 million yen
The data was utterly unbearable.
Especially the asset column.
Recalling the outstanding student loans and clinic transfer fees, his heart couldn't help but twitch.
Next was Shop.
detector: 20 Green Omamori
Consultant Support: 50 Green Omamori / 1 Use
Note: Each Green Omamori can be exchanged for 50,000 yen in cash, Copper Omamori for 200,000 yen, Silver Omamori for 1,000,000 yen, Gold Omamori for 10,000,000 yen, and Rainbow Omamori for 100,000,000 yen. Lower-tier Omamori can be exchanged for higher-tier Omamori on the fourth week of January each year.
Aside from the description, only a few lines were visible; the rest was obscured by a large block of mosaic.
Quietly converting the prices to Japanese yen, Kitano couldn't help but click his tongue.
Finally, he clicked on Tasks.
Daily Tasks
One
Watch a horse race in person: 0 / 1
Reward: Green Omamori × 3
Two
Browse horse racing-related news: 0 / 30 minutes
Reward: Green Omamori × 1
Three
Perform ability training: 73 / 30 minutes (Completed)
Reward: Green Omamori × 1
Even for Kitano now, these tasks were not particularly difficult.
Moreover, if the five Green Omamori rewarded by tasks could be consistently obtained, it would be equivalent to 90 million yen in annual income.
It seemed much more promising than being a veterinarian.
Furthermore, it seemed that house calls were also counted as ability training.
This was good news.
After claiming the rewarded Green Omamori, Kitano tried to exchange it for cash.
It didn't appear out of thin air in his hand.
He was a little disappointed.
What an inconvenient setting.
Then came the regular tasks section.
Register as a JRA (Japan Racing Association) Horse Owner (Individual Horse Owner / Joint Horse Owner / Corporate Horse Owner): Not Completed
Reward: Green Omamori × 1
Just the first item already stumped him.
It was like a hero dying after stepping on a trap in the Novice Village .
And the reward was too meager.
However—
Kitano found that he actually had quite a few already completed tasks.
Meet an industry professional: 32 / 1 (Completed)
Reward: Green Omamori × 5
Meet five industry professionals: 32 / 5 (Completed)
Reward: Green Omamori × 20
Meet ten industry professionals: 32 / 10 (Completed)
Reward: Copper Omamori × 5
Meet fifty industry professionals: 32 / 50
Reward: Copper Omamori × 20
This should count as a benefit of being a veterinarian... for now.