"2400 meters will test most of them," said a horse girl in a red racing suit with chestnut-red hair, smiling in a box on the stands as she turned to her friend.
Nothing was overdone, but every gesture had a sultry air. Even casually brushing her hair showed big-sister confidence and charm.
Maruzensky—an old senior from Team Rigil.
Once a legend: eight starts, eight wins, never beaten; 61 lengths total over second place; dubbed the "Supercar."
People who saw her run said it was performance art: perfect form at every bend, victory and shine gathered into her hands.
After retiring, she poured her passion into racing cars; you could spot her on tracks around the world.
But when she heard about this exchange race, she garaged her car and rushed back.
Three Rigil actives were her juniors; how could she not witness their showdown with France?
"Noblesse asked for this distance. There's a benefit to acclimating early—Japan's Derby and France's Arc are both this trip," said Symboli Rudolf, the Emperor, with a nod.
"The heavy going will make it harder. Maybe the French girls adapt better; their tracks go heavy or even bottomless more often," Maruzensky stirred her coffee and casually analyzed. "Mejiro McQueen, Gold Ship, Hishi Amazon, Narita Brian—those four will be more at ease. Closer styles profit in this distance, and McQueen and Brian truly excel at long trips. What about the French?"
"Air Groove showed me their list. The French selection trends bigger frames—High Intelligence and Laurel Crown are clearly power-stamina types," Rudolf shared.
They'd been collecting intel—each runner's style and potential. Each had G1-level upside.
Especially the blonde giantess High Intelligence.
She hadn't even run a G1 yet but was fancied for France's Triple Crown and the Arc this year.
"I hear France has favored that trend—win with physique," Maruzensky slid a glance at Rudolf still sitting steady as a rock. "But really no worries? Those French girls won't be easy, and that Noblesse… hard to deal with even without the Domain."
"This is an opportunity," Rudolf tilted her head.
To her, not crisis but chance.
With French runners present, Noblesse wouldn't go all-out.
She'd even catalyze things—exert pressure without crushing them.
A near-long distance, heavy going, strong enemies, and the tyrant's pressure…
Under that load, only true fighters break through to a higher realm—the "Domain."
"Noblesse, the tyrant… I'd love to run her in the Three Goddesses Cup," Maruzensky murmured into her coffee—mild tone, mad resolve.
Rudolf glanced at her friend. Maruzensky's battling heart had never died; that's why she raced cars.
"Afraid there won't be a chance. Even for the Cup, Noblesse would go home to run," Rudolf said, then asked, "Oguri Cap will join this Cup. Got teammates?"
"I'll grab some Rigil juniors," Maruzensky waved. "Oguri Cap… a 'god among runners'—did she really break past the Domain's peak?"
"It's the only way I can explain it—the Arima Kinen last year," Rudolf nodded. "Watching the tape, I realized: from the start, her only opponent was herself. She beat that self and broke into a new realm."
"Limit-breaking Domain… back to today." Maruzensky drained her cup and looked toward the track. "Any kid you favor?"
"Not favor—concern. Stardust Illusion has trained barely two months. Can she endure this endurance grinder?"
To Rudolf, Stardust Illusion had monstrous potential and training effect.
But time is a chasm—she might be stopped at 2000m+.
And given the many anti-stamina factors, she was likely the weakest stamina in the field.
Add the intensity she'd shown for victory, and Rudolf worried whether she'd last. "Most of all… she may already be brushing the edge of the Domain."
"Already?" Maruzensky blinked, then frowned. "The kid who beat McQueen the other day? Touching the Domain this early… not good."
The Domain—ZONE.
The ultimate power awakened only when a horse girl pours her whole being into the run at the pinnacle—essentially total bodily overdraft.
Even runners two or three years in had ended their careers by opening it rashly.
"Want to stop her?"
Maruzensky turned serious and sought confirmation.
"…"
Rudolf didn't answer at once. She lowered her head slightly, recalling the figure prostrated before her—Toyama Scarlet and her first horse girl, Ines Fujin.
They'd won her support with their bond—but at what cost…
In the Derby, Ines unleashed an unprecedented Domain, burning herself to runaway victory—and nearly burned out her career.
Was it worth it? Should she have refused Toyama back then?
She'd asked herself that.
The Emperor shook her head helplessly and looked to the track. "How could we stop her? If a horse girl herself wants to run, no one has the right."
Stardust Illusion.
Will you molt into a butterfly—or burn yourself out?
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