A week before the Kikuka Sho, Admire Vega and Narita Top Road had privately talked to each other about the Kikuka Sho...
"Top Road, I'm withdrawing from the competition for first place in the Kikuka Sho."
"Huh?! Vega, are you withdrawing? Wh-why? Have your legs worsened?"
When Narita Top Road heard Admire Vega's words, her heart stopped and she instinctively looked at Admire Vega's legs, her eyes filled with unconcealed heartache and worry.
Admire Vega's condition was constantly worsening.
Not only did Admire Vega's Trainer know this, but Narita Top Road, as Admire Vega's friend, also knew.
Admire Vega had always been fighting a disease that plagued her. Her body was not good; her legs were deformed at birth, and she was considered an Uma Musume unsuitable for racing.
But despite it all, she overcame all her deficiencies and stood on the GI stage.
However, she now suddenly announced that she was withdrawing from the Kikuka Sho.
Narita Top Road's first guess, of course, was that her old illness had flared up again, forcing her to withdraw from the Kikuka Sho.
However, Admire Vega's following words caused a huge change in Narita Top Road's thoughts.
"No, Top Road, you've got it wrong. I'm not planning to withdraw from the race, I'm simply no longer aiming for first place anymore."
Admire Vega shook her head silently and said calmly to Narita Top Road:
"Like you said, my legs are indeed getting worse, and the Kikuka Sho's 3000-meters is incredibly challenging for me to run."
"Plus, I have to go up against the likes of Mejiro McQueen and T.M. Opera O..."
"I know very well... even if I'm very unwilling, that even if I ran until my legs broke, I might not be able to beat them."
"So, I've decided to give up competing for first place in the Kikuka Sho, but I will fight alongside you all."
"Top Road, do you remember what Trainer Nase said to us when she came to see us before?"
"Vega, you mean..."
The moment Admire Vega brought up Fumino Nase, Narita Top Road already got a decent idea of Admire Vega's plan, and Admire Vega also smiled and nodded, revealing her true feelings for the first time:
"I will open the path to victory for you all... This is the least I can do..."
...
...
"...Opening a path to victory—that's the least I can do for you all."
"So, charge out! T.M. Opera O, Narita Top Road!"
"The door to victory in this race, I've now opened it for you!"
Admire Vega used her Aura to firmly suppress the two Shadai Uma Musume.
She then hounded them right behind their backs, slowly moving sideways towards the outer edge of the track, forcing the two Uma Musume to also retreat towards the outside, thereby making the gap for T.M. Opera O and Narita Top Road to break through wider and wider.
Of course, Admire Vega's actions were undoubtedly a foul, but that didn't matter anymore, did it? She, no longer pursuing victory, paid no attention to it.
She just wanted to correct these injustices for her friends and pave the road to victory for them in the short period of time she could still race!
"I may be destined to die out like a shooting star, but I will leave my mark in the world!"
"GO!"
"USE MY STRENGTH—AND RUN!!!"
Under Admire Vega's final roar, she forcibly increased the output of her Aura again, pushing the two Shadai Uma Musume away even more.
At that moment, the gap finally became wide enough for T.M. Opera O and Narita Top Road to break through the encirclement.
"Vega..."
Both Narita Top Road and T.M. Opera O were touched by Admire Vega's sacrifice, but the two Uma Musumes had neither the time to dwell on it, nor to thank Admire Vega.
The opportunity to break through the encirclement was right before them. Now, it was time for them to make sure Admire Vega's sacrifice was not in vain.
"—Then, let's have a showdown, T.M. Opera O!"
"This time, I've become way stronger compared to the me in the Japanese Derby!"
"This is my all-out, full power as an Uma Musume!"
As Narita Top Road's words fell, all the Uma Musume and the three Trainers saw her Aura emerge, and after gathering all her strength, she issued her challenge to T.M. Opera O.
"Hoh! Is she here?!"
T.M. Opera O's peripheral vision also caught Narita Top Road's charging figure.
Encountering such a strong opponent, T.M. Opera O's excitement was naturally ignited.
"Well, come and challenge the Overlord as much as you want!"
"But you, as one of the Three Musketeers, even with the strength of your other compatriot, cannot defeat me!"
As Narita Top Road accelerated towards her, T.M. Opera O also returned the favor with her own acceleration.
T.M. Opera O closed her eyes, and after a moment, a phantom even clearer than Narita Top Road's also condensed on T.M. Opera O's body.
Not only that, but T.M. Opera O's body also began to emit a strange fluctuation of gold and pink—this was the 'Zone' of an Uma Musume.
"Unfortunate! It seems Admire Vega failed to overtake T.M. Opera O!"
"But! T.M. Opera O and Narita Top Road are now accelerating simultaneously! Both Uma Musume have started to advance with all their might! Who will be the final victor in this struggle?!"
"She managed to awaken her Zone in such a short time? It seems T.M. Opera O's growth rate during this period has been truly terrifying."
In the stands, Uma Musume who had reached a certain level, such as Symboli Rudolf, Air Groove, and Narita Brian, were all surprised by T.M. Opera O.
T.M. Opera O's mastery of Aura was unquestionable; she was a top-tier user of it in Japan.
However, because they had all witnessed Meisho Doto's Aura, which had a higher compatibility than T.M. Opera O's, they did not find it particularly shocking.
But a Zone is different. If 'Aura' is something an Uma Musume can attain once they reach a certain level and a little bit of luck, then achieving a 'Zone' was based solely on luck, requiring the right situation, talent, and stimulus to gain.
"Is this T.M. Opera O's Zone? It's quite interesting, but it ain't as good as ours yet."
On another side of the stands, stood Tamamo Cross with Oguri Cap, admiring the race.
Regarding T.M. Opera O's unveiling of her Zone, Tamamo Cross secretly nodded, then looked at Oguri Cap on the other side and asked:
"Oi, Oguri, how long do ya think it'll take for T.M. Opera O to catch up to you at this rate? Da' ya plan to challenge her in this year's Arima Kinen?"
"...Still a bit short."
Oguri Cap, though stuffing her mouth full with takoyaki, still spoke very solemnly:
"She just needs to be a little stronger, then she'll have the strength to compete with me. For now, it's not enough."
"Right? 'Er Zone seems to be missing something, but I can't make heads or tails of what it is."
Tamamo Cross scratched her head.
Although T.M. Opera O was very strong now, her Zone is still lacking compared to Tamamo Cross's Zone, which she still couldn't fully control, let alone compared to Oguri Cap.
Oguri Cap's mastery over her Zone could be said to be near perfect, an existence that even Symboli Rudolf would have to acknowledge. It was not easy to gain Oguri Cap's approval.
Though T.M. Opera O possessed a Zone, it lacked a very important aspect—it didn't have enough goals.
It was as if she didn't have a compass; although she can run very fast, she didn't know where or why she should run.
This Zone, deprived of this important aspect, was only really useful for intimidating Uma Musume weaker than her, and didn't have any special abilities.
But even so, among those in her generation, no other Uma Musume could even use a Zone at this stage.
Undoubtedly, T.M. Opera O could already be said to be the strongest existence of her era, possessing unrivaled speed, power, guts, wit as well as wielding both Aura and a Zone.
But, it was still a bit short, just a tiny bit short.
And it was that most tiny bit that left all the Uma Musume at a loss, completely dumbfounded by what that tiny bit such a talented and strong T.M. Opera O was missing.
What goals was she missing? A reason for victory? That shouldn't be hard to find, right? All Uma Musume naturally desire victory, plus she has a Trainer she loved. Either answer could've sufficed.
At this time, no other Uma Musume knew why T.M. Opera O was in such a state of confusion.
But soon, the voice of Akasaka Misato from the commentary booth once again drew everyone's attention back.
"Narita Top Road and T.M. Opera O are neck and neck! Both sides are unwilling to back down!"
"Wait—IT'S MEJIRO MCQUEEN! Mejiro McQueen has broken out!"
"She has broken out of the Pace Chaser pack from the outside, and is now charging towards the front with unstoppable momentum!"
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Tamamo Cross's accent is always fun to write
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.