All seven entrants stepped into the gates and readied for the break.
At last, it was time—the clash with these opponents.
Stardust Illusion had been looking forward to this for a week already. It was the direct reason she agreed to let Hushan Feihong spend the favor owed by Symboli Rudolf on this very matter.
[You don't want to test yourself against Central's strongest—and even the French team?]
Back then, seeing Stardust Illusion refusing to cooperate no matter what, Hushan Feihong had grasped her belligerent heart with perfect accuracy and talked her into it with that one line.
Aside from Oguri Cap, who only trained alongside her, these five were the strongest rivals she had encountered so far.
Just standing with them, the pressure she felt exceeded even that of Tokai Teio in her debut race.
Although a few of them might not yet be in absolutely peak condition, these formidable opponents whipped up a gale inside Stardust Illusion called the "will to win."
She wanted to run. She wanted to beat them. She wanted to take first.
The key to victory lay in… that!
————————————
The key to victory lay in… the final three "waves"!
Inside the gates at this instant, the five Uma Musume other than Team Draco thought the same without prior consultation—this too was the consensus among sprinters.
But… would things really go as they wished?
[All right, all runners set—this race is about to begin!]
[Conditions: 1400 m short distance, counter-clockwise, good turf. Let's see who seizes the initiative and earns the right to train with the French team…]
Beeeep—!
With the blast of the horn, the gates flew open. The race began.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud…
Seven sets of hooves overlapped in rhythm, iron shoes pounding the turf without pause.
Two front-runners, three pressers, two closers.
The turf was in excellent shape, with pleasant temperature, sunshine, and a breeze too light to affect the run—no one could fault today's conditions.
Among the entrants, Taiki Shuttle had the richest racing experience. Not only did she own far more racecraft than the rest, she knew mile and short-distance courses like the back of her hand.
Though spectators at public meets were fond of calling her the absolute monarch of mile races, few knew that short distances were likewise a field of expertise for Taiki Shuttle.
Relying on her powerful physique, she often trailed at a measured gap in the early going, riding the airstream behind leaders to reduce burden—then, from middle to late, she would erupt and mow the field down with her last-three "waves," taking the race in one surge.
"Too bad it isn't my favorite—rain on heavy going… but it's fine. I'll stick to the plan."
Having completed her launch cleanly, Taiki Shuttle adjusted her lane toward the rail, choosing which front-runner to shadow.
Team Draco's two Uma Musume had indeed seized the lead as Tōjō Hana predicted.
With Miho Bourbon in front and Stardust Illusion glued behind, the pair ran heads down in identical form—no one could match their starting speed for the front.
But that comes at an extra stamina cost, little sister.
Taiki Shuttle smiled inwardly at the pair of pig-headed rookies charging out front.
Many Uma Musume try to front-run when they debut; because that style suffers the least interference, it feels "safer" for the inexperienced.
But that's a major misconception. Contests among Uma Musume are far more than a battle of positioning sense.
Pacing of stamina, choosing where to accelerate, when to unleash your finishing speed, how to handle bends… all of it demands real-time judgments. When you're in press, set, or close positions, you can reference others in view to derive a not-too-wrong answer. But as a front-runner, you must decide everything yourself—and one wrong choice turns that illusory "lead" into poison that strangles any hope of victory and devours a rookie's confidence in a gulp.
With that in mind, Taiki Shuttle glanced at the others.
Closers Hishi Amazon and Gold Ship weren't too dangerous—this was only 1400 m, a distance brutally unfriendly to closers; no doubt Trainer Feihong chose it on purpose.
Among the other pressers, Narita Brian and Mejiro McQueen were both long-distance specialists.
They would likely lean on prolonged acceleration to make up for short-distance burst.
McQueen looked steady enough, nothing to criticize—but Narita Brian seemed off.
This "Shadowed Monster" had sparred with Taiki Shuttle countless times in team training; she knew this rookie who debuted this year was truly strong—one who could duel her even-up. On longer courses, if Taiki Shuttle was the least bit careless, Narita Brian won outright. Even the senior Maruzensky had praised her potential repeatedly.
But today Narita Brian's running was full of flaws—she had lost composure right from the opening. What happened?
————————————
Damn it, my condition is awful…
Narita Brian gritted her teeth, tucking in behind Mejiro McQueen, running fifth, and silently cursed her luck.
Last night she fell for Mejiro Zenno's setup—dragged off to a horror Uma Musume flick by Zenno and Taiki Shuttle.
Most people thought of her as a cool, taciturn, outstanding Uma Musume—but the truth was, her courage was comically small.
As a child, she'd cry at her own shadow, a fear that left scars. Even now, if she glimpsed a shadow when utterly focused on running, she might lose all form. There was a stretch when she had to wear a shadow-blocking eye mask to keep it from wrecking her state.
After the movie she tossed and turned all night. Whenever she shut her eyes, she saw that mysterious "Sega Uma Musume" with a chainsaw chasing the trainer.
One sleepless night and a heart still full of fear left Narita Brian struggling even to hold proper form.
Even after she adjusted and gave chase, she could not reel in the three ahead.
Her stamina was nearly spent—it was hard to imagine finishing.
As a current runner, Narita Brian judged her condition precisely. But there was no one else to blame: she had underestimated those two.
Miho Bourbon and Stardust Illusion.
From the start she had restricted her vigilance to Taiki Shuttle and Mejiro McQueen—she was dead wrong. Those two "mere" front-runners had hurled a full-on all-out escape at the field and shattered everyone's rhythm.
The race had been dragged into chaos from the very first stride, and Narita Brian had slid deepest of all.
The price of her arrogance was so steep she even birthed an unworthy thought:
It's only because they used all-out escape. This doesn't count as losing—I just didn't expect it…
The instant the thought surfaced, she shook her head violently to banish it.
But fatigue wouldn't change. She truly was at the limit—and yet, that did not mean she had lost the ability to fight.
She had not done nothing. The small gap to the front pressers—Mejiro McQueen and Taiki Shuttle—proved she had not fallen behind.
And this… was the perfect moment to show the grit of an Uma Musume.
Once she hit the next straight—once she hit the next straight—she would hurl out everything, severing the others' hope of winning in one stroke.
When she reached that point, she could still hold it. The winner would be me—the starving wolf—
Narita Brian, the "Shadowed Monster"!!!
—Bang!
"What?!"
A savage stomp jolted Brian's mind clean. Her body went taut with a chill of dread.
Time slowed to a crawl. She scanned every rival, seeking the source of that heart-clutching shock.
They were entering the late stages; all seven were scrambled by the all-out escape. But in this moment, Brian seemed to see a muzzle flash in the corner of her eye—
That was…
Taiki Shuttle, running third, choosing that very instant to fire her finishing burst!
In a heartbeat, the chaos on course was blasted away. Taiki Shuttle's posture became a bullet fired from a gun's chamber, locked square on the two leaders, streaking straight for their backs.
Those powerful, resolute strides, that unshaking form like a rock, and the light, easy smile at her lips—
Unbelievable!
Brian could barely believe what she saw—Taiki Shuttle, a teammate who'd trained side by side with her, could still run a bend this perfectly right now?!
Choosing to launch here—did she still have stamina left?!
It was a shot aimed at victory.
Though the barrel pointed at Stardust Illusion's back, both Narita Brian and Mejiro McQueen felt the phantom impact in their chests.
They groaned in unison, their forms wobbling; they could no longer maintain the knife-edge state. They fell away.
And Taiki Shuttle had already ranged up!
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