Kyoto Racecourse was every bit as chaotic as she remembered.
And what exactly was that memory?
The frenzy she had seen here before, back at the Kikuka Sho.
Gotham Song's impression of the Kikuka Sho was still a vivid one, even if she hadn't been the star of that race.
Back then, the Umamusume everyone had been watching most closely in the Kikuka Sho had really been Tokai Teio, after all. At the time, Teio was still being called her destined rival...
Ah, speaking of which, that was one more reason she couldn't officially retire yet—she still had to wait for Tokai Teio to catch up and try for revenge.
Though that was something for much later.
Right now, Kyoto Racecourse was welcoming yet another Umamusume who had come to conquer it.
The Gentildonna-versus-Almond Eye race was obviously drawing immense attention. Tickets for the entire Kyoto Racecourse had genuinely become the kind of thing you could barely get your hands on. If Gotham Song hadn't counted as related personnel and been able to enter directly, then unless she called in her big sister's connections, there was no way she'd have been able to witness this race in person.
Of course, that was nothing but a good thing. Just thinking about the children she cared about also being cared about by so many other people made for a wonderful feeling, didn't it?
So, Almond Eye... what are you going to do?
How were you going to answer Gentildonna's open challenge?
Gotham Song didn't know. She hadn't been able to read the answer from Almond Eye's face yesterday, either.
As Almond Eye's trainer in practice, and Gentildonna's trainer in every real sense of the word, Gotham Song had of course come personally to accompany the two Umamusume for the Shuka Sho.
And then, last night, something happened that really could only be described as a memory she'd rather not revisit.
Gotham Song had never imagined it would turn into that.
Turn into... the race actually beginning the night before.
Everything had gone smoothly at first. After bringing Gentildonna and Almond Eye to Kyoto Racecourse and doing some acclimation training to get used to the environment, the three of them had returned to the hotel.
And then...
Then that woman Gentildonna grabbed Gotham Song by the hand right in front of Almond Eye and stopped her trainer-sama from trying to sneak away.
Going back to her own room and trampling all over Gentildonna's pride as the logistics Umamusume—something like that was strictly forbidden, you know?
Maybe the two of them had been too obvious. Or rather, Almond Eye was an Umamusume with proper common sense, and not a stupid one, either...!
She instantly understood what was going on, and then—
Then Gentildonna pulled Gotham Song back into the room, and Almond Eye, speaking with perfect righteousness, declared that this was to "protect trainer-sama...!" and squeezed in after them.
Mm. So what kind of horrifying events could possibly happen after that?
Gotham Song could only conclude that it might well have been one of the greatest and most vile incidents in Umamusume history... If she said it was, then it was!
Gentildonna and Almond Eye turned the big bed in the room into a racecourse, with Gotham Song herself as the trophy as they wrestled back and forth over her across the bed.
So the winner of the Shuka Sho was actually decided over two separate matches?
Gotham Song could only lie there uselessly, transformed into a motionless "golden trophy."
The problem was, some golden trophies could at least swing around and hit people at will... but her?
What was she supposed to do!!
It'd already be a blessing if nobody did anything to her!!!
Gotham Song could only sigh in helpless silence. Thankfully, Almond Eye and Gentildonna didn't seem to keep it up for too long. After all, the Shuka Sho was the next day. If they fooled around too late the night before and affected their performance, that really wouldn't have been good, would it?
So in the end, Almond Eye and Gentildonna put a temporary stop to the conflict in a manner that could only be called perfectly balanced.
One of them hugged one of Gotham Song's arms, the other took the other side, and just like that the two Umamusume settled into sleeping positions.
Leaving Gotham Song stuck in the middle, awkwardly uncomfortable, staring up at the ceiling in silence in a pitch-dark room.
Skipping ahead a bit, she really didn't stay up late often—but not staying up late often didn't mean she couldn't fall into total insomnia when thrown into a state of utter confusion...!
How had things even ended up like this?
Gotham Song was absolutely, utterly certain that the world she lived in was not some bizarre, horrifying derivative-setting nightmare.
After all, the hospitals around Central Tracen specialized in surgery, not orthopedics. And among all those trainers at Central Tracen, to this day there still hadn't been more than three mysterious disappearances.
And of those three, two had even been immoral trainers Symboli Rudolf had quietly driven out of Central herself...!
You could say this world ought to be completely normal. There shouldn't be any bizarre basement-warrior gods lurking around in it.
If there were, then back in her Hakuhi Ryuka days, she should already have seen a glimpse of the world's true face.
After all, the place she had known best and lived in all this time was Mejiro Estate, the very place that was usually the most common—and most terrifying—fixture in those weird worldbuilding setups.
So no matter how you looked at it, this world should be normal.
Then who, exactly, was the one who had made this perfectly normal world abnormal?
Could it be... me?
Gotham Song sank into deep self-doubt. At moments like this, reason was frantically reminding her, Yes, yes, it's you!
Her intuition seemed a little doubtful, but what intuition was doubting right now was...
You idiot, don't tell me you're only just realizing this now? Wow. Truly unforgivable.
Gotham Song fell silent, and for the first time ever found herself doubting Miss Intuition's judgment.
I'm starting to doubt your doubts about me, okay?!
When had Gotham Song ever done anything that awful... It made it sound like she was the sort of Umamusume who deliberately turned the people around her into weirdos. If that were true, then maybe the treatment she was getting right now really would be no more than what she deserved. Even sleeping badly could be taken as part of the punishment...
But heaven was her witness—Gotham Song truly felt she had never done anything like that. She had only ever treated everyone around her the same way she always did, and before she knew it things had somehow become like this.
How should she put it...
No matter what, this is the one thing I refuse to admit!
From last night until now, Gotham Song had been deeply troubled by that realization, and had gotten no effective answer out of it at all.
Rarely for her, even the quality of her rest had been poor. But so as not to make her two children worry, she had held herself together until after leaving the hotel before finally stopping the act and letting that drowsy, bleary-eyed look show on her face. Heaven help her—before leaving the hotel, she hadn't even dared yawn!
She hadn't even kept up her usual habit of watching her children walk out of the hotel and go greet the crowd's cheers...!
All that could be said was that Gotham Song really had been tired half to death. Now that she finally had the chance to lean against the railing and let the wind blow over her, she gave a long yawn, then turned her eyes toward the track before her.
It seemed the area around Kyoto Racecourse had gotten rain over the last two days. Not enough to count as a downpour, but even though today's Shuka Sho was officially on good going, there was still a lingering trace of dampness to it.
Even from a distance, the 2,000-meter course looked darker in color than usual, carrying the faintest hint of earthy scent.
Gotham Song actually liked conditions like this quite a bit. For an Umamusume like her, with plenty of racing experience over in Europe, the track state in front of her wasn't merely good—it was fantastic...! As long as mud didn't straight-up cake over her feet, that counted as a success.
Though in Japan, that kind of attitude seemed fairly rare. Would it affect Gentildonna and Almond Eye?
Probably not. Or rather, conditions like this might even work in Gentildonna's favor.
Turning that over in her mind, Gotham Song looked toward the dark players' tunnel in the distance, waiting for a familiar Umamusume to appear from within it and walk onto the presentation stage to announce her arrival to the whole world.
So then, who would appear first?
After the other Umamusume—ones Gotham Song didn't know all that well and only knew through gathered information—had all shown off their bearing and confidence, the first one to enter her field of view was...
Of course, Verxina!
As always, she was the third most popular runner in any race featuring Gentildonna and Almond Eye. But this time she didn't look disappointed or downcast at all. She strode out of the tunnel with her head held high.
An Umamusume would never give up her pursuit of victory. Seeing Verxina like that, Gotham Song could only assume that this repeatedly defeated but unbroken Umamusume had found some way to overcome Almond Eye and Gentildonna.
Sure enough, as she passed in front of the stands, in that instant when their hands touched, Verxina winked at Gotham Song.
Just sit back and look forward to it. In this race, I'm going to put on an invincible performance that'll shock everyone.
Gotham Song nodded in response, as though returning that confidence with expectations of her own.
So what exactly was going to happen next?
Watching Verxina's retreating back, Gotham Song found herself extremely curious about what, exactly, was going to unfold in the Shuka Sho.
"Verxina has stepped up onto the presentation stage now—what a confident, powerful figure she cuts!"
"That's right. Verxina is an exceptionally strong Umamusume in her own right. A great deal of her past defeats may well have come down to bad luck, so could this Shuka Sho be the stage where Verxina finally shines? What do you think?"
"Emotionally speaking, of course I want to see a brave dream-chaser like Verxina make her wish come true and prove her strength to everyone with a glorious, satisfying victory—but emotionally speaking, Gentildonna's conquest of the Triple Tiara is also what the people are hoping for."
"I can't decide, I really can't decide what attitude I'm supposed to take into this race. Or rather, I kind of want to support both sides? Sorry, but I really can't pick just one!"
The commentator dragged out the end of the line, drawing a burst of laughter from the stands.
Gotham Song felt pretty much the same way. She really didn't know who she ought to be supporting—
If the others were just names in her notes, that would have been one thing. But right now, these were all Umamusume she actually knew, so who was she supposed to root for?
She really couldn't pick just one!
Letting out a helpless sigh, Gotham Song watched Verxina slowly step down from the presentation stage, sinking into the same helpless mood.
Forget it. I'll support all of them. As for the result... well, as long as it turns into a truly exhilarating race, it can't be all that bad, right?
Verxina had already stepped off the stage, and the entire grandstand suddenly fell quiet, as if waiting for something.
"So then, who will be the next Umamusume to appear? Who will be the second favorite in this race?"
"She is the unyielding runner of the Oka Sho and the Japanese Oaks, a mighty Umamusume the whole world knows has what it takes to dominate other races as well, a runner who pursues victory by challenging again and again the one opponent—the one Umamusume—who has ever brought her defeat. So then, what is the name of this powerful Umamusume?"
Again the announcer stretched out her tone, but this time it wasn't for show. Clearly, it was simply a way of leading the crowd toward the answer everyone was waiting to give.
And what was the entire racecourse like now?
"Almond Eye! Almond Eye! Almond Eye!!!"
"Almond Eye!!!!"
The whole venue erupted into a frenzy, a roaring response like crashing mountains and breaking seas.
The spectators didn't care what the commentators' intentions were. They only knew that this was the moment to shout that name aloud—the name that had brought them here, the name that was one of the reasons they wanted to watch this race.
A name that itself stood for exhilaration and overwhelming strength.
And amid those landslide-like cries, the figure everyone was waiting for finally emerged from the darkness of the tunnel.
Almond Eye's Racing Outfit was fairly daring too, but what stood out more right now was the contrast between all that white fabric, the skin it left exposed, and the pitch-black darkness of the tunnel around her.
Miss Almond Eye walked out from the darkness into the sunlight, as if she were stepping free of old shadows and openly receiving the cheers and stares of everyone present.
"Don't lose to Gentildonna!"
"Shatter her Triple Tiara completely!"
Gotham Song could even hear people around her shouting things like that at the top of their lungs.
Even though Almond Eye herself was facing the ultimate question posed by Gentildonna's open challenge... these people still had that much faith in the Umamusume they loved?
The cheers of the crowd became strength for an Umamusume—Gotham Song knew that deeply. So even though she still understood that Gentildonna's odds of winning were higher, she couldn't help feeling a different sort of anticipation welling up now.
How are you going to break Gentildonna's nearly unsolvable scheme, Almond Eye?
Let me get a proper look here, on this very track, at your strength and your beauty. Let me see... your resolve!!
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T/N: ITS WEIRD SINCE AUTHOR POSTED THE SAME CHAPTER TWICE!!!!!!!!!!!! ONLY ONE CHAPTER LEFTTTTTTTTTTTTT