Before this mock race, Dream Weaver and Sugar Lights had handled all the groundwork.
They had specifically applied for track access during this window and even brought in professional Tracen Academy staff to set the stage.
As the two of them chatted, the staff finished the final preparations. One of them jogged over to Dream Weaver and Sugar Lights.
"Everything is ready. The race can start whenever you're set."
"Then let's not waste any time," Dream Weaver said, her eyes locking onto Sugar Lights, who gave a firm nod of agreement.
"Let's make it quick. I'd hate to hog the track and waste the other students' training time."
Outside the training grounds, an ocean of Uma Musume had already gathered. They huddled together in a dense throng, a constant buzz of chatter rising as they discussed the upcoming match.
A legendary world-class Uma Musume against a high-tech robot—the mere headline was enough to set hearts racing. There was just so much to talk about.
Among the crowd, Hishi Miracle strained her neck, trying to see over the heads in front of her. But she had no height advantage to speak of; no matter how high she stood on her tiptoes, she could only catch a fleeting glimpse of a familiar shock of red through the gaps between horse ears.
"How are there so many people... it's practically a formal race!"
She grumbled under her breath, trying to nudge past the girl next to her, but she was quickly pinned by the sheer weight of the crowd pressing in from all sides.
Hishi Miracle suddenly found herself longing for that late-night mock race after the Satsuki Sho. Even though she'd been scared half to death by her Trainer's Zone, at least she'd been able to see her clearly.
Now, she was drowning in a sea of bodies, where even a single glance felt like a luxury she couldn't afford.
She hated being swallowed by a crowd. The heat and the lack of space were bad enough, but being surrounded like this made her feel like she was just... ordinary.
There was nothing wrong with being ordinary, really.
Hishi Miracle had always been a plain, unremarkable Uma Musume. She'd lived that way for over a decade; she should have been used to it by now.
But for some reason, as she stood there trapped, unable to even see her Trainer's silhouette, a sudden surge of bitterness welled up in her chest.
She didn't want to be here.
She didn't want to melt into the nameless mass.
If she stayed like this... wouldn't she be exactly the same as she'd always been?
Her Trainer was the one who had plucked her from the crowd. She was the one who had made Hishi Miracle more than just another face in the pack, showing her sights she had never even dreamed of.
That night—the night after the Oka Sho—was the most breathtaking moment of her life.
Now, she wanted to stand by Dream Weaver's side with her head held high, just like she had that night.
Because just yesterday, in the VIP lounge of the Tokyo Racecourse during the Japanese Oaks, her Trainer had stood her ground against Sea the Stars—all for her sake.
In that moment, Hishi Miracle had desperately wanted to rush forward and say something to defend the woman who was protecting her. But she had hesitated. She'd pulled her foot back before she could take that first step.
She simply couldn't find a single reason why she had the right to interfere in a conversation between those two.
Dream Weaver was a world-class legend of the past.
Sea the Stars was a world-class star of the present.
And who was Hishi Miracle?
Just a plain girl who hadn't even won a graded race.
What right did someone like her have to stand tall?
How could she possibly find the words to refute Sea the Stars for her Trainer's sake?
In a way, Hishi Miracle actually agreed with what Sea the Stars had said.
On that night after the Satsuki Sho, she had witnessed the sharp edge of the Divine Blade with her own eyes. She realized that even now, her Trainer possessed a power that paled in comparison to no one.
If her Trainer wanted to, she could still be out there, chasing a life on the turf.
And yet, she had staked her entire future as an Uma Musume on a bet—a bet on a girl as plain as Hishi Miracle.
Sea the Stars was right.
She was wasting her Trainer's time.
Hishi Miracle clenched her fists tight, her ears drooping dejectedly against her hair.
If only she hadn't been so lazy at the start. If only she had trained hard from the very day they met, instead of making excuses to skip her debut because of some silly, stubborn obsession...
If she had, she would have the strength to stand tall now.
She wouldn't have been a coward hiding behind her Trainer's back yesterday; she could have stood in front of her and declared with total confidence that her Trainer's choice wasn't a mistake!
But now... at least for now, she couldn't say those words.
She was still trapped in the crowd, still just one of many.
Liberty Island could call Dream Weaver "Master," but Hishi Miracle felt she hadn't earned that privilege yet.
The only thing she could do now was strain upward on her tiptoes, trying to stand just a little taller, trying to be just a bit more visible so that when the mock race ended, her Trainer might see her waiting there.
Of course, Dream Weaver wasn't thinking about anything outside the track right now. She stood inside the starting gate, staring at the turf ahead, which was sliced into geometric segments by the shadows of the bars.
Usually, Dream Weaver could feel something from her opponents—be it fear or anticipation.
The racetrack was a battlefield; when the hearts of Uma Musume became entangled by the heat of the race, she could always sense it.
But this time was different. She was facing a man-made miracle forged from metal. From that white frame reflecting the sun's glare, she felt absolutely nothing.
The sensation was unsettling. She was a creature of the storm, used to the roaring gale of emotions that defines a race.
Faced with this near-void—a world where it felt like she was the only one existing—she felt adrift.
She viewed the track as a battlefield where every victory was earned by cutting down an opponent.
But what kind of battlefield had only one soldier? Even if the Divine Blade were drawn, what was left for it to sever?
Dream Weaver took a deep breath, closing her eyes as if reaching an understanding.
She stopped thinking. She stopped agonizing over this solitary war. She simply waited in the silence for the moment the gates would fly open.
Ten seconds, maybe a minute—she wasn't counting, so she couldn't be sure how much time had passed.
But in the heartbeat before the release, an instinct carved into her very soul forced her eyes open.
Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
Her heart became a furnace; her blood surged through her limbs like liquid fuel. In an instant, she had completed her pre-start ignition.
The very second she finished her internal warm-up, the black lines partitioning the grass vanished with a sharp crack.
BANG!
And with that sound came the thunder of two figures tearing the turf to shreds.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.