Chapter 101. Japan Cup Eve Part 3
As they were about to enter the final straight, L. Dittman finally realized the problem.
His already pale complexion became even uglier.
"Why is this horse, which is already losing speed with more than 500 meters remaining, even running a 2400-meter race?!"
Inwardly cursing Hashiru Shogun, L. Dittman had no choice but to guide Lets Elope several more paths toward the outside.
At the same moment, before fully entering the straight, Shuta An increased the intensity of his push-riding. Tokai Teio immediately accelerated forward, smoothly filling the space Hashiru Shogun had just vacated.
Ahead of them now were only User Friendly and Dr. Devious.
The two jockeys had intentionally left a slight gap between their horses rather than bunching tightly together, mainly to ensure enough room to use their whips freely later.
And that tiny opening instantly became an opportunity in Shuta An's eyes.
"But it's still too early."
The young man remained perfectly calm, showing no intention of immediately launching Tokai Teio into his full sprint.
He still remembered the "bet" he had made with Higashi Ikuo before the race.
"In that case, I'll continue letting Teio conserve energy here while adjusting his stride."
Shuta An made his decision silently.
Meanwhile, L. Dittman aboard Naturalism noticed that Shuta An had no intention whatsoever of accelerating immediately upon entering the straight.
He inwardly scoffed at LetsElope's jockey.
"So why were you in such a hurry? This final straight is over 500 meters long. Very few horses can sustain a full-power sprint from beginning to end."
"He clearly never intended to go that early, yet you accelerated on the bend anyway."
However, while ridiculing Lets Elope's premature move, L. Dittman also realized that the early acceleration had conveniently opened an enormous lane for him.
"As long as I follow the route Lets Elope created earlier, Naturalism can also pull cleanly out of the pack."
Without hesitation, L. Dittman urged Naturalism forward along the exact path Lets Elope had opened.
Neither Yamanin Global nor Ikuno Dictus could resist his momentum.
Naturalism quickly overtook both horses.
Now, Tokai Teio was only a single horse length ahead of him.
At the same time, L. Dittman could clearly feel that Naturalism's condition was exceptionally good today.
"Since she feels this strong—then let's go all at once!"
At this moment, the leading Legacy World was still roughly 400 meters away from the finish line.
When Naturalism overtook LetsElope and rapidly closed the distance toward Tokai Teio, Shuta An naturally noticed it as well. After all, the sound of L. Dittman cracking three sharp whips cut clearly through the thunder of hooves.
"Since Naturalism has begun accelerating, then it's time for me to move too."
The calculation flashed instantly through Shuta An's mind.
"It's exactly 400 meters from the finish. If Teio begins sprinting now, he can maintain maximum speed all the way to the line."
"Then we start here."
The instant that thought settled, Shuta An snapped a right-handed whip across Tokai Teio's side, directly signaling him to accelerate, while simultaneously driving hard with both arms.
Tokai Teio instantly understood.
Relying on his terrifying explosiveness, he surged forward with only a few powerful strides and effortlessly squeezed herself between User Friendly and Dr. Devious.
Duffield and McCarron were both shocked.
Neither of them had imagined that someone would actually attempt to force through that gap.
In their eyes, while there was indeed a slight opening between User Friendly and Dr. Devious, any horse attempting to force entry there carried an enormous risk of collision. This was the Japan Cup. Both jockeys had already tacitly compressed the gap down to what they believed was the absolute limit.
Yet no one had expected that the steadily-riding Shuta An would suddenly force Tokai Teio violently into that opening—and then explode out from it without the slightest hesitation.
"Damn it! He actually pulled through from there?!"
Lets Elope's Trainer, J. Cummings, nearly screamed from the grandstand.
"He's insane!"
Nearby, Naturalism's Trainer, Freedman, clutched his head.
"This way, Naturalism just lost nearly ten meters of ground! L. Dittman, hurry and whip him!"
—
Matsumoto Shoichi naturally could not hear the overseas Trainers shouting from afar.
However, he could clearly see Shuta An and Tokai Teio effortlessly "slipping" free from the pack before immediately raising their speed another level.
His eyes instantly lit up.
"Incredible! if they pull away from here, Legacy World absolutely won't be able to resist them!"
"Go! Charge! Finish them!"
The Horse Owner was already beside himself with excitement.
This was the Japan Cup. Not only glory, but an enormous purse was hanging before them. There was no way he could remain calm.
"It feels like Teio still hasn't fully unleashed himself yet."
Higashi Ikuo unconsciously murmured from the perspective of a spectator.
"If not for that sudden burst of final speed—it almost feels like Teio could continue widening the gap forever."
With 200 meters left to the finish line, Tokai Teio completely "captured" Legacy World.
Yet neither horse nor rider showed any sign of slowing.
Shuta An continuously cracked the whip three times with his left hand, forcibly maintaining Tokai Teio's accelerating state.
"Teio—Show these overseas opponents exactly what Japanese racing is!"
The young man roared inwardly, twisting every ounce of strength in his body into his arms as he continued pushing relentlessly.
Meanwhile, only a horse length behind them, L. Dittman finally began unleashing his famous windmill whip aboard Naturalism.
His left arm spun violently in circles as the whip cracked repeatedly through the air.
Each strike produced a sharp explosive sound.
Even Shuta An could hear it clearly.
"That windmill whip really is impressive!"
Despite muttering that, the young man never once stopped pushing Tokai Teio forward.
Even after more than ten consecutive windmill strikes, the gap between Naturalism and Tokai Teio not only failed to shrink—
It actually continued growing wider and wider.
L. Dittman frowned.
At that moment, he understood.
Victory had already been decided.
Yet even so, he refused to give up.
"If I can't defeat Tokai Teio;then at least I must defeat everyone else!"
Thus, he swung the windmill whip once more.
But by now, Shuta An's attention had already completely left him behind.
The rhythm of the push-riding gradually drew the young man into an extraordinarily focused state.
Then—
in a certain instant—it felt as though the entire world suddenly fell silent.
All noise disappeared.
Every roar from the grandstand, every pounding hoofbeat, every shout from the commentator seemed to vanish completely.
Shuta An could hear only Tokai Teio's breathing.
Tokai Teio's heartbeat.
It was as though the entire world contained only the two of them.
Every time Tokai Teio took a stride, Shuta An's own heartbeat synchronized with Teio's.
"What is this?"
He could not understand it.
Yet he had no time to think deeply.
Instead, he instinctively followed this state, synchronizing every movement of his push-riding perfectly with Tokai Teio's strides.
And the efficiency of his riding rose dramatically.
"Tokai Teio is still accelerating!"
The live commentator's voice became nearly hysterical.
"He has completely left all opponents behind! There's absolutely no sign of her slowing down!"
"How Marvelous!!!"
Even Matsumoto Shoichi unconsciously frowned.
"How do Shuta-kun and Tokai Teio suddenly look as though they've become a single entity? Their movements are perfectly synchronized."
At Chukyo Racecourse, Tahara Seiki—who was not participating in today's Japan Cup—suddenly shot to his feet inside the jockey waiting room the moment the television camera focused on Shuta An.
"That's it!"
His eyes shone brightly as he clenched his fists.
"That's exactly what I wanted to see! Complete unity between horse and rider!"
"I never imagined Shuta-kun could achieve this only a few years after debuting! He truly deserves his reputation as a monstrous genius!"
Unable to suppress his excitement, Tahara Seiki paced back and forth inside the waiting room.
"If I had known I'd witness something like this today, I should've found any possible mount for the Japan Cup just to watch him from nearby!"
"What a waste!"
—
With 100 meters remaining before the finish line, Shuta An and Tokai Teio—still immersed within that mysterious synchronized state—had already opened a four-length lead over second-place Naturalism.
"Here they come! Here they come! Here they come!"
The live commentator was nearly screaming.
"Tokai Teio has completely abandoned all opponents behind him! No one can catch him anymore!"
"This is another undefeated Triple Crown after Symboli Rudolf!"
"The races his father could win, His Son can conquer even more magnificently!"
Just before crossing the finish line, Shuta An abruptly broke free from that intensely focused state.
Almost casually, he flung away his whip.
Then he squeezed Tokai Teio's sides lightly with his legs, straightened his upper body, turned toward the grandstand—and violently punched the air.
"Two minutes and twenty-four seconds flat!"
"The winner is Tokai Teio!"
"It's Tokai Teio!"
"The undefeated Triple Crown remains undefeated in the Japan Cup!"
"After conquering the world stage, Tokai Teio returns home and continues his domination!"
"Six G1 victories achieved magnificently!"
"Arima Kinen contenders, witness this clearly!"
"This is the Tokai Teio you will challenge!"
"The undefeated Triple Crown Winner! The horse who defeated the Epsom Derby champion, the New Zealand Queen, and the Australian Triple Crown winner! A Tokai Teio whom nobody could defeat!"
However, within the grandstand, the people involved noticed something even more astonishing.
"Tokai Teio's final time—"
Matsumoto Shoichi exchanged glances with the others nearby.
"Two minutes and twenty-four seconds on a heavy track is barely slower than previous years on good going," Trainer Asami Kuniichi said slowly.
"With this race alone, Tokai Teio already deserves consideration among Japan's greatest historical horses. Even Symboli Rudolf at his peak probably couldn't match him on heavy turf."
"But Teio still has another full year ahead of him."
Matsumoto Shoichi smiled faintly.
"Next year...he'll probably fly all around the world."
"That's wonderful."
Asami Kuniichi also smiled.
"Japan finally has a horse like this. We absolutely must let the entire world witness him."
Naturally, he also had another reason for feeling pleased.
If Tokai Teio spent next season campaigning internationally, then domestic turf G1 races would suddenly become far less terrifying.
After Tokai Teio gradually slowed down, Shuta An guided him toward the grandstand.
Raising both arms toward the audience, the young man once again reproduced his celebration after the Kikuka Sho. He clapped lightly toward the crowd before guiding Tokai Teio down into the underground tunnel.
"Too strong."
After Naturalism gradually caught up, L. Dittman spoke first toward Shuta An.
"Can Tokai Teio come to Australia next year? A horse this extraordinary deserves to be witnessed live by Australian racing fans."
"He definitely will." Shuta An answered without hesitation. "I intend to suggest to the Trainer that Tokai Teio participate in next year's Queen Elizabeth Stakes."
"That would be excellent."
L. Dittman nodded sincerely.
"I look forward to Tokai Teio's performance there."
"He'll definitely shock Australian racing fans badly enough that their jaws drop wide enough to fit a coconut," Shuta An replied with a grin.
—
Waking up the next day, the young man opened his eyes to find Silence Suzuka still nestled quietly in his arms, sleeping soundly.
Glancing at the clock and seeing that it was still early, Shuta An decided to open the attribute viewer for a quick look.
"You defeated all opponents in the Japan Cup. Reward obtained — Zone: Effect unknown."
"Effect unknown?"
Shuta An frowned slightly, but then his expression shifted as a thought surfaced in his mind.
"Zone…meaning an area, a state, or even a domain. Could it be related to that strange sensation I entered during the final stage of the race?"
The young man was momentarily stunned.
"If my guess is correct then this really is something incredible."
Shuta An carefully recalled the sensation from yesterday.
"That state felt somewhat similar to entering a Zone…but not exactly the same." He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "Maybe it can be taught to the Uma Musume I train?"
The reason he judged "Zone" to be different from a true "Zone" of Umamusumes was because, when he entered that state yesterday, his physical condition had not been approaching its limit at all. Strictly speaking, it did not meet the conditions required for entering a conventional Zone.
"Still, maybe Suzuka can try it first?"
Shuta An lowered his gaze toward the carrot-haired Uma Musume resting against him, staring quietly at her twitching ears as he fell into thought.
—
Near noon, Shuta An drove Silence Suzuka to Haneda Airport.
Soon, the Uma Musume would depart from there for Hong Kong to prepare for the final race of her Twinkle Series career.
Before getting out of the car, Silence Suzuka turned her head slightly and asked softly, "Ann…is there anything else you want to do?"
The distance between them was so close that Shuta An could clearly see his own reflection within her pupils.
Once they stepped outside, the bustling crowd would surround them again, and Silence Suzuka, still somewhat shy by nature, would avoid intimate displays in public.
So the young man leaned forward.
Their lips met gently.
There was no exaggerated collision, no passionate sound, only the quiet attraction of two people naturally drawing closer together, like opposite poles of a magnet.
Silence Suzuka slowly closed her eyes. She looked as though she had fallen asleep, yet she still quietly responded to every advance from her lover.
When they finally separated, Shuta An gazed once more at the faint blush spreading across the Uma Musume's cheeks and whispered softly:
"I'll be in Hong Kong next week."
"Mm~ I know," Silence Suzuka replied as she wrapped her arms around him once more. "It's only one week. I can wait."
Watching the Uma Musume disappear gradually into the crowd, Shuta An silently thought to himself:
"I already took the opportunity to explain and demonstrate the concept of Zone to Suzuka. I wonder when she'll be able to trigger that state herself."
Truthfully, even Shuta An himself did not fully understand how to reproduce the Zone state.
He couldn't possibly force Tokai Teio to run another Tokyo 2400-meter race in the Dream World today just for experimentation. That would already border on abusing the horses, and even local Horse Owners and Trainers would consider such behavior excessive exploitation.
Because of that, Shuta An could only temporarily keep the matter to himself.
"If Suzuka successfully enters that Zone, she'll definitely tell me."
Turning around, he left the airport behind.
"I still need to go to work today. I only took a half-day leave."
With Shuta An's current position, Symboli Rudolf would undoubtedly approve even a full day of leave without hesitation. However, there was something important the young man wanted to investigate at the academy, so he had only applied for half a day.
—
After returning to Central Tracen Academy, Shuta An first clocked in and cancelled his leave, but he did not remain in his office afterward.
Because he had previously accepted the Mejiro Family's invitation to provide training guidance for their Uma Musume, he already possessed the Line contact information of several members of the younger Mejiro generation.
Now, when he wanted to contact Mejiro McQueen, he no longer needed to trouble Tokai Teio as an intermediary.
He had already arranged to meet Mejiro McQueen at a café outside the academy while returning earlier. Naturally, he was now heading there to keep the appointment.
"I hope I didn't make Miss McQueen wait too long," Shuta An thought as he walked. "It would be better if I arrived first. That way I could still think carefully about how to approach the conversation."
No matter how he considered it, Mejiro McQueen's sudden claim of injury during the physical examination in order to withdraw from the Arima Kinen felt far too strange.
Shuta An instinctively sensed that something was wrong.
After arriving at the café, he sat down at the reserved table.
Once he finished ordering, he hesitated briefly before adding:
"Please make the caramel macchiato extra sweet."
This was naturally for Mejiro McQueen.
Although he was not entirely certain about her tastes, Shuta An judged through common sense that she would probably prefer sweeter flavors, so he gave the instruction specifically.
"Certainly," the waiter replied with a slight bow before turning to leave.
"After Mejiro McQueen withdrew from the Arima Kinen, the Mejiro Family still has Mejiro Ryan and Mejiro Bright participating. For certain factions within the family, McQueen's withdrawal might even be considered beneficial."
At the beginning of the year, the Mejiro Family's hopes had originally been pinned on Mejiro Ryan. Yet with the year nearing its end and Ryan still lacking a G1 title, the withdrawal of a major competitor like Mejiro McQueen naturally increased the possibility of another family member achieving honors.
Even with Special Week and Grass Wonder still present, the pressure had lessened considerably.
It was likely that the older members of the family who supported Mejiro Ryan were secretly pleased by Mejiro McQueen's actions.
However, those who consistently supported Mejiro McQueen would undoubtedly feel dissatisfied.
Although Mejiro Dober had already achieved seven G1 victories, they were all limited to Triple Tiara races, causing their perceived value to be somewhat lower.
If Mejiro McQueen had managed to win the Arima Kinen immediately after her Kikuka Sho victory this year, then even from a conservative perspective, she would already stand on equal footing with Mejiro Dober.
And if she later captured the Spring Tenno Sho as well, then after Mejiro Ramonu gradually stepped away from authority, Mejiro McQueen might truly possess the qualifications to compete with Mejiro Dober for influence within the family.
Now, however, with her voluntary withdrawal, all such possibilities had turned into nothing more than empty dreams.
And it was highly likely that Mejiro McQueen would soon face tremendous pressure from within the family because of it.
Even understanding all this, however, Shuta An had no real position from which he could help her ease that burden.
Even if he was Mejiro Dober's Trainer, he remained an outsider to the Mejiro Family.
Of course—
This outsider was currently planning to deliver the Mejiro Family a devastating blow.
"But before all that, the important thing is getting Miss McQueen to honestly tell me why she deliberately faked an injury to withdraw."
Shuta An lowered his gaze toward his phone as he thought quietly to himself.
By the time both cups of coffee and the dessert had been served, the young man finally set his phone aside and nodded politely toward the waiter.
He took a sip of the iced Americano before him. The bitterness and acidity instantly sharpened his mind considerably.
Just then, he heard the café door open.
Raising his head, he saw Mejiro McQueen, still wearing her Tracen Academy uniform, walking slowly toward his table.
Shuta An extended his hand lightly.
"I took the liberty of ordering a caramel macchiato for Miss Mejiro McQueen. I hope it suits your taste."
"Thank you," Mejiro McQueen replied with a small bow before sitting down across from him.
Then, without any unnecessary hesitation, she immediately asked:
"Shuta Trainer, what exactly did you want to discuss by inviting me here?"
Seeing how direct her attitude was, Shuta An immediately abandoned his original plan of probing indirectly.
He lifted his iced Americano slightly and looked directly into the eyes of the Mejiro Family's young lady seated opposite him.
"What I want to know is this, Miss Mejiro McQueen. Why did you fake your injury?"
The moment the question left his mouth, Mejiro McQueen's body visibly trembled.
Clearly, she had never expected Shuta An to expose the matter so directly.
"I didn't fake an injury," she instinctively denied at first. "Rather, Shuta Trainer's assumption itself is rather malicious, isn't it? Accusing an Uma Musume outside your own team of such behavior—if that spread publicly, wouldn't it damage your own reputation?"
"Heh…"
Shuta An merely chuckled softly and shook his head.
"This matter is known only to heaven, earth, you, and me. Please tell me the truth, Miss Mejiro McQueen."
"I won't tell Nishizaki-san."
Mejiro McQueen lowered her gaze.
"I did intend to withdraw from the Arima Kinen."
"Why?" Shuta An immediately pressed further. "Was someone instructing you? Or—"
"It has nothing to do with anyone else," Mejiro McQueen interrupted quietly. "It was entirely my own decision."
She paused briefly before continuing:
"I only asked Ramonu-nee for assistance in carrying it out."
"Miss Ramonu was involved?" The young man's expression immediately changed with surprise. "She actually allowed you to withdraw?"
"I saw how Mr. Shuta wanted to help Dober-chan, and Miss Ramonu was helping as well but I couldn't do anything."
Mejiro McQueen lowered her head slightly.
"The current Mejiro Family is already stagnant. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the family is now sustained entirely by the Uma Musume still active in the Twinkle Series and Dream Trophy Series."
"The prouder I once felt about the Mejiro Family—the more heartbroken I feel about it now."
Her tone gradually became firmer.
"But I can't change anything. I can't help at all. Even after winning the Kikuka Sho, nothing changed. I'm still only a junior. In the eyes of the elders, I'm merely another source of income."
Then she raised her head and looked directly at Shuta An.
"Later, I realized I had to do something. The family's income depends on our races and merchandise sales. So all I needed to do was find a reason to refuse participation in the Arima Kinen."
"Although…" she added quietly, "an excuse like this can only be used once."
Shuta An said with a shake of his head. "But what you're doing harms your own interests more than anyone else's,"
"I hope Miss Mejiro McQueen won't repeat something like this in the future. This kind of action ultimately damages you far more than the target of your resentment."
"So this will only happen once." Mejiro McQueen's gaze drifted slightly away. "Let me be selfish just this once."
"After that—I'll quietly continue being the family's puppet."
Then she changed the subject herself.
"But no matter what, I will never harm the younger members of the family."
"Whether it's Dober-chan, Ryan, Bright, or Palmer…"
"No matter what the elders demand of me, I absolutely won't do anything that would hurt them."
Meanwhile, outside the café window, neither Shuta An nor Mejiro McQueen noticed a black-haired Uma Musume briefly slowing her steps as she glanced inside.
"What is Trainer talking about with McQueen…?"
Mejiro Dober frowned slightly as she looked through the glass.
"They even look…close."
A strange discomfort rose within her chest, but she forcefully suppressed the urge to walk inside and ask questions.
"Forget it. Even if he's on a date with another Uma Musume, it has nothing to do with me."
Yet the more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she became. Unable to endure the feeling any longer, Mejiro Dober hurriedly turned away and left.
(In the first place, Mejiro McQueen in real life did not run in the 1990 Arima Kinen after winning the Kikuka Sho, so the story's interpretation aligns naturally with her historical campaign.)
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