Chapter 62. Rice's Debut
As a member of Team Sadalsuud, Rice Shower was undoubtedly the most eye-catching presence at the entire Racecourse.
While waiting in the underground passage, the other Uma Musume participating in the same race found themselves repeatedly glancing toward her back. Although many of them wanted to strike up a conversation, they worried that Rice Shower might be the unapproachable type. In the end, they could only watch from a distance, not daring to get close.
For Rice Shower, however, this was actually a good thing.
Although she had convinced herself several days ago in the lounge that she could face her Twinkle Series debut with a calm mindset, the moment she truly stood at the exit of the underground passage and caught the scent of the turf drifting through the air, she realized her heartbeat was growing faster and faster.
"I'm still nervous after all..."
She couldn't help thinking that.
Knowing that Trainer and all of her seniors were watching from the stands only made her feel even more nervous.
"I wonder if Rice Shower is getting nervous again right now."
After washing her hands, Tokai Teio spoke with a hint of concern.
"No matter how much mental preparation you do beforehand, once you actually step onto the Racecourse, all of it disappears. That's when the real feeling hits. That caution, that hesitation, that fear that a single mistake will ruin everything."
"It should be fine."
Shuta An remained optimistic.
"It's only a 1000-meter race. Even if her mind goes blank, she can just rely on instinct. Break cleanly from the gate, charge forward with all her strength, and that's enough. With Rice Shower's natural physical ability, winning this race shouldn't be difficult."
As he spoke, the young man glanced toward a colleague not far away who had removed his trench coat and was currently standing bare-chested.
Shuta An only knew one thing about him.
Everyone called him Kuronuma.
Well, there was one other thing.
He was the Trainer of Mihono Bourbon in this world.
"He's the same type as Trainer Toyama, someone who believes in Spartan-style training."
The young man muttered quietly to himself, inevitably thinking of Toyama Tameo from the Dream World.
"I heard from someone close to him that Trainer Toyama passed away the day before the Derby this year."
Back in the Dream World, Shuta An had still instructed his agent to send a funeral wreath.
Originally, he had worried that expressing condolences as the person who had personally shattered Toyama Tameo's Triple Crown dream might produce the opposite effect.
Yet unexpectedly, Hideyuki Mori—the beloved disciple who inherited Toyama Tameo's stable and legacy—had later expressed goodwill toward him.
"I really don't understand."
Shuta An glanced at Trainer Kuronuma.
"If there's a chance later, I should recommend that he get a full medical examination."
—
Meanwhile, Rice Shower maintained a calm expression as she stepped into the paddock.
Then she noticed something.
The calves of nearly all the other competitors were trembling.
In that instant, the tension filling her heart suddenly seemed to disappear.
"It's not just me who's nervous."
Rice Shower raised her head slightly.
"Everyone is nervous. In that case, we're all the same."
Compared to herself, everyone else was probably under even more pressure.
With that thought, a smiling Rice Shower stepped onto the presentation stage and waved toward the stands.
Shuta An had deliberately chosen a position where Rice Shower could easily spot him.
And Rice Shower did not disappoint his expectations.
The moment she steadied herself on the presentation stage and began waving toward the audience, she immediately found her Trainer among the crowd.
Her arm instantly began waving more energetically in his direction.
The smile on her face also grew even brighter.
"NUMBER 8, RICE SHOWER, FROM TEAM SADALSUUD. SHE IS THE MOST POPULAR UMA MUSUME IN TODAY'S RACE, YET ALSO THE ONE ABOUT WHOM THE LEAST INFORMATION IS KNOWN. JUST WHAT TALENT DID SHUTA TRAINER DISCOVER IN HER? AND WILL SHE DISPLAY THAT TALENT TODAY?"
—
"It's really fine now."
Shuta An glanced toward Tokai Teio.
"Rice Shower's mental state on the presentation stage is very relaxed. I don't think the situation you're worried about will happen."
"That would be the best outcome."
Tokai Teio smiled.
"I probably won't get the chance to compete against Dober-senpai in the Twinkle Series. So I hope Rice Shower grows quickly. It would be even better if she wins the Triple Crown too. Then, when she becomes an upperclassman, I'll finally have a worthy opponent."
"Don't tell Rice Shower that." Shuta An immediately reminded her. "Otherwise, you'll just make her feel even more pressure."
"Trainer, you know I'm not the type to pressure my teammates."
Tokai Teio puffed out her cheeks.
"When we play games together, I'm always very gentle with Trainer, right?"
Shuta An chose not to comment.
Several shirts hanging in his wardrobe would likely disagree with that statement.
—
After stepping down from the presentation stage, Rice Shower headed toward the starting gates located on the latter half of the backstretch.
She intended to complete her warm-up exercises there.
"Everyone's chatting..."
After glancing around and realizing she was the only one preparing to warm up, Rice Shower's cheeks flushed slightly.
For most Japanese people—and Uma Musume as well—it wasn't easy to do something unconventional while everyone else was watching.
However, she quickly adjusted her mindset.
"Forget it. I won't worry about them."
She closed her eyes and lightly patted her puffed cheeks.
"My future goals are different from theirs. I'll live up to Trainer's expectations and shine on the G1 stage."
Focusing her attention completely, Rice Shower began her pre-race warm-up.
"She's warming up when the race is about to start..."
Several Uma Musume whispered among themselves.
Although they had only met today, Rice Shower had already become their common point of focus, allowing them to quickly grow familiar with one another.
A few of them also noticed her actions and decided to imitate her.
"If a Team Sadalsuud Uma Musume is doing it, there must be a reason."
—
Although all ten competitors were making their Twinkle Series debuts, no problems occurred during gate loading.
Everyone entered the starting gates obediently.
"Come to think of it, Rice Shower mastered entering and exiting the gates in only a single day."
Shuta An muttered to himself.
"In a 1000-meter race, there's absolutely no room for gate trouble. Rice Shower's gate technique is pretty smooth."
Tokai Teio nodded.
"She specifically went to Suzuka-senpai for advice."
Shuta An naturally understood why Rice Shower had not sought guidance from either Tokai Teio or Mejiro Dober.
The former relied almost entirely on talent.
The latter had never placed much emphasis on gate practice.
Only Silence Suzuka was truly suited to teaching gate technique.
"Let's watch."
The young man's gaze shifted toward the giant screen.
"The race is about to begin."
The very next second, a sharp click echoed in Rice Shower's ears.
"RICE SHOWER HAS A QUICK START! SHE INSTANTLY OPENS UP A ONE-HORSE-LENGTH ADVANTAGE OVER DAIICHI RIYUMON AND SENOE ORION ON EITHER SIDE! RICE SHOWER IS MOVING TOWARD THE INSIDE LANE! WHAT A DECISIVE CHOICE OF POSITIONING!"
In just twenty meters from the start, Rice Shower, who had broken from an outside gate, had already seized control of the race among the participating Uma Musume.
And Aeneas Brave, breaking from the outermost gate, lived up to her name. The moment she noticed Rice Shower's aggressive move forward, she immediately increased her stride frequency, desperately fighting to reach Rice Shower's right-front position. Then, without leaving any room whatsoever, she cut sharply toward the inside lane, forcing Rice Shower to suddenly check her speed to avoid a collision.
"Is that move even acceptable?" Tokai Teio frowned deeply. "It really is a debut race—she's completely unaware of how dangerous that was."
Shuta An's expression darkened.
"Regardless of the result, I'm filing a complaint with the URA Association. That maneuver clearly obstructed Rice Shower."
"It was dangerous,"
Mejiro Dober agreed with a pout.
"If you want to cut toward the inside lane, you should at least establish a one-horse-length advantage over the runner inside before moving across, just like Rice Shower did after the start. Cutting in without securing enough space is no different from intentionally causing a collision."
—
Although Aeneas Brave's reckless move disrupted Rice Shower's acceleration rhythm for a moment, she quickly regained her pace just before entering the bend. Following one horse-length behind Aeneas Brave, Rice Shower moved into second place as they entered the turn.
At this point, Daiichi Riyumon, running in third, had already fallen two horse-lengths behind Rice Shower.
"This looks like a complete talent gap."
Even though Rice Shower had not yet reached the front of the field, Shuta An had already reached his conclusion.
"In a race category she isn't even suited for, and without fully accelerating, she still moved comfortably into second place. Once she enters the final straight, she should secure the victory without any problems."
The race had not even reached its halfway point, yet the young man had already made his professional judgment.
On the opposite side of the grandstand, Trainer Kuronuma narrowed his eyes as he watched Rice Shower's figure.
"Having Daiichi Riyumon test Rice Shower's ability was worthwhile after all. If she can create a two-horse-length gap at this stage and maintain that advantage to the finish, then next year she will definitely become Mihono Bourbon's greatest rival."
Although Mihono Bourbon had yet to officially debut in the Twinkle Series, Kuronuma firmly believed that the meticulous Uma Musume under his guidance would create a storm no less impressive than Tokai Teio's.
"I believe Mihono Bourbon's ability is no less than Tokai Teio's. Just as Symboli Rudolf once stood opposite Mr. CB, Mihono Bourbon will also deliver a painful defeat to Tokai Teio on the stage of the future."
The reason Kuronuma held this belief was not blind confidence in Mihono Bourbon's talent.
Rather, he believed he had discovered one of Tokai Teio's weaknesses.
This undefeated two-time Triple Crown Uma Musume appeared to dislike races that developed at a rapid pace. And Mihono Bourbon just so happened to be a front-running Uma Musume capable of setting exactly that kind of pace.
If the two met on the same stage, Kuronuma was confident he could devise a strategy that would make Tokai Teio suffer.
The moment she entered the final straight, Rice Shower heard thunderous cheers erupting from the grandstand.
"When I was watching from the sidelines, I always felt the cheers during ordinary races were nowhere near as loud as those during major races. But standing on the Racecourse myself—the feeling is completely different."
As the thought crossed her mind, she gradually closed the gap to the leading Aeneas Brave.
"You cut me off once after the start. Can you still stop me now?"
Rice Shower gave a soft snort as her stride frequency increased once more.
At this point, Aeneas Brave had no means of responding.
She could only watch as Rice Shower closed from behind, drew level with her, and then, before she could react, smoothly surged past and claimed the front of the field.
"RICE SHOWER TAKES THE LEAD! THERE ARE STILL MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED METERS REMAINING! THE UMA MUSUME BEHIND SHOULD BE LAUNCHING THEIR MOVES NOW!" the commentator shouted excitedly.
"Launching their moves?" Shuta An narrowed his eyes. "Or have they already run out of moves?"
With two hundred meters remaining, Rice Shower finally entered a full sprint.
Despite racing prominently throughout the first half of the contest, none of her more conservative rivals could challenge her for even a single moment.
The gap continued to widen.
Further and further.
As the distance between Rice Shower and the rest of the field grew, the excitement of both the spectators and the commentator rose to a fever pitch.
"RICE SHOWER! THREE HORSE-LENGTHS! FOUR HORSE-LENGTHS! HER LEG STRENGTH SHOWS ABSOLUTELY NO SIGNS OF FADING! DESPITE THIS BEING HER DEBUT RACE, SHE IS DISPLAYING ASTONISHING ABILITY AND SAID THERE ARE NO WEAK UMA MUSUME IN TEAM SADALSUUD!"
"RICE SHOWER CROSSES THE FINISH LINE! 0:58.1! A FIVE-HORSE-LENGTH VICTORY! AN UNQUESTIONABLE AND OVERWHELMING TRIUMPH! SHOCKING DEBUT COMPARABLE TOKAI TEIO'S! IT SEEMS TEAM SADALSUUD WILL CONTRIBUTE ANOTHER PROTAGONIST TO NEXT YEAR'S CLASSIC STAGE!"
When the petite black deer-haired Horse Girl crossed the finish line first, amid the thunderous applause of the spectators, the voice she heard most clearly was the commentator's.
"I'll follow in Teio-senpai's footsteps and become the protagonist of the next generation... right?"
Realizing that her debut performance had just elevated her into the spotlight of the future, Rice Shower felt a trace of unease.
"I'm not as amazing as Teio-senpai."
Then she turned her head and noticed that her usual rivals were only now reaching the finish line.
For a moment, she had no idea what she should do.
"If I go over and talk about the weather right now—they'll think I'm showing off and start hating me, won't they?"
With that thought, Rice Shower bit her lip and decided to head toward the grandstand to greet her fans.
As the black deer-haired Horse Girl passed by her rivals, she overheard a few muttered voices.
"No wonder she never bothers interacting with us. Rice Shower really exists on a completely different level."
"It's only a debut race! Who does she think she is, looking down on everyone?! I'll definitely beat her next time!"
Rice Shower's footsteps immediately became flustered.
She hurried toward the grandstand in small, quick steps, looking almost as though she were fleeing.
"Did her rivals say something?"
Shuta naturally noticed the change in Rice Shower's expression and silently made a note of it.