The crowd outside Nakayama Racecourse was packed shoulder to shoulder, making it anything but easy for Teruizumi Shinji and Offside Trap to get inside. With the level of popularity the horse girl now enjoyed, the moment she showed her face to the fans, a commotion was inevitable.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Shinji looked back at the fervent mass of people outside with lingering apprehension. So many of them were holding up Offside Trap signs, cheering and shouting for her as if they had already seen her running, even though they had not yet stepped into the course proper.
What a completely different scene this was.
And because of that, that afternoon back then only seemed more ironic by comparison.
The corner of Shinji's mouth lifted, and he teased Offside Trap lightly.
"Nakayama and the Arima Kinen sure have improved. They're actually worthy of inviting you to race here now."
Offside Trap could not help but laugh softly. Maybe there was even a trace of shyness in it, because she lightly slapped his shoulder and put on a mock-annoyed expression.
Off to the side, King Halo's eyes were red with envy.
How badly she wanted just one word of approval from her trainer.
During this whole stretch of training, she had never once received praise. She was almost sinking into self-doubt. Even though she could feel herself improving, even though she had thrown all of her effort and concentration into this, all she wanted was for her trainer to smile, pat her on the head like he did with Offside Trap, and tell her she had done well.
But no matter how hard she worked, he would always pick out a pile of mistakes.
Gritting her teeth, King Halo's desire to prove herself only grew stronger.
It was a strange feeling. If she had to choose whose approval mattered most, she now felt that Teruizumi Shinji's recognition ranked even above that of Air Groove—no, above that of her own mother.
A pulse of negative emotion flickered through her.
That conflicted, inwardly resolute look on King Halo's face did not escape Shinji. A faint smile appeared in his eyes. Her personality really was adorable in its own way. She made no effort to hide how much she wanted his praise, and with only the slightest tilt of his attention, he could feel her heart being pulled his way.
When the day came that his approval mattered far more to her than her mother's ever could, Shinji thought, then he would finally be able to rest easy.
Narita Brian, meanwhile, remained quiet the entire way.
This race—one she had once won herself—was now one she had absolutely no chance of winning. The regret and nostalgia in her eyes did not escape Shinji, but he said nothing.
Walking down the passageway and out toward the turf, they could already see many of their rivals standing on the course, checking the condition of the grass. Shinji led Offside Trap toward the inside portion of the track, and the eyes that had originally been fixed on the turf began to gather, one after another, on her instead.
"You two head over there first… to the stands, maybe?"
Shinji said this to King Halo and Narita Brian, but both girls rejected him at the same time. They wanted to stay by his side and not miss a single detail of the way he coached.
Shinji was pleased by that.
If one of them had actually listened and gone to the stands, he would have scolded her on the spot.
You'd really go just because I told you to?
"Good."
Two more jolts of negative emotion flared at once.
From Shinji's approving tone, both girls sensed the danger they had just avoided. They realized he had dug a pit for them and been waiting to see if they would jump in, and both turned to glare at him.
But those looks were about as threatening as a feather brushing his skin.
"Little Over."
"I'm here."
"When the gate opens, keep your concentration on the start. Understood?"
"Understood."
The slow start in the Kyoto Daishoten had been a machine issue. The problem in the Japan Cup, however, had mainly been Offside Trap herself. She knew that, so her answer came especially seriously.
Shinji only cared about results. No matter how resolute she sounded now, it did not guarantee that nothing would go wrong later. He was waiting to see her answer on the track.
He stamped lightly at the turf beneath his feet, testing the rebound. There was a slight spring to it, and that was enough for him to know there was nothing wrong with the going. It was the kind of course Japanese horse girls were used to.
"After the break, be careful of the others. You're very strong now, and you're coming into this off three straight graded wins. That makes you the obvious target—everyone's going to watch you."
As he said it, Shinji noticed the wary looks directed at Offside Trap and knew he was right.
"You've got an inside draw, so if you can't get clear in front, move outside as early as you can."
Offside Trap nodded earnestly.
"No matter what, the most important thing for you is maintaining your own state and rhythm. The short Nakayama stretch won't limit you. As long as your position is good enough, even if they deliberately box you in, you can force your way out."
As Shinji spoke, he glanced instinctively at King Halo and Narita Brian. Their expressions differed, and Shinji took a breath.
"Halo, Brian—you two need to listen carefully too. Especially you, Halo. When other horse girls press you too hard, you still have the habit of unconsciously slowing down. You've fixed part of it, but if it turns into actual contact, you must keep your head straight and understand that it's normal. Don't stop moving because of it."
"You've got plenty of strength. That kind of bumping shouldn't be what slows you down. Honestly, I want you to train for body contact and fighting your way out of a pack. Forcing open the runners ahead of you should be one of your strengths. Don't give it up."
The two trainees nodded hard, especially King Halo. Her personality flaws were not something that could be fixed overnight. Now that she had finally found real determination, what Shinji needed to do was thoroughly straighten out her temperament.
As for Narita Brian, Shinji wanted to use this rest period forced by her lingering leg instability to properly adjust her mental state, so that her spirit and sharpness would remain at their best. Only then would her reactions and running ability return to their proper peak. In the end, spirit shaped performance.
The time allotted for checking the course was not long.
Soon after, Shinji was already leading Offside Trap toward the underground passage.
Quite a few horse girls on the turf turned to look.
The scene felt strangely familiar.
It was almost exactly like before the Autumn Tenno Sho, when Silence Suzuka had also inspected the course only briefly before heading straight for the underground tunnel.
This was confidence.
Shinji was sure he had already pointed out every part of the course she needed to note, and he trusted Offside Trap absolutely.
The arrogance he had once sensed in others had finally appeared in himself.
So many things in this world were like that. The dragon slayer would eventually become the dragon.
Shinji licked his slightly dry lips.
System, put all of Little Over's remaining points into stamina. Then buy Single-Minded Focus (Gold): "Improves starting skill and reduces the time lost from a poor break," and Crowd Idol (Gold): "Makes it easier to secure a good lane in the early stages."
Offside Trap — Current Status
Condition: Excellent
Stats:
Speed: 1362 + 58 (1940)
Stamina: 1004 + 61 (1852)
Power: 1037 + 28 (2030)
Guts: 1107 + 36 (2264)
Wisdom: 673 + 11 (2026)
Running Style Aptitude:
Front Runner: E
Leader: A
Betweener: B
Closer: D
Distance Aptitude:
1800m–2400m
Surface Aptitude:
Turf: A
Dirt: D
Skills:
Wings of Defiance That Long for the Deep Sky (Unique) Lv. 4
Fully Fueled (Gold)
Counterclockwise Lv. 1 (Green)
Lightning Step (Yellow)
Straightaway Specialist (Yellow)
Calm Under Pressure (Blue)
Race Planner (Gold/Blue)
Single-Minded Focus (Gold) — Improves starting skill and reduces the time lost from a poor break
Crowd Idol (Gold) — Makes it easier to secure a good lane in the early stages
Domain:
Not Awakened
Special Status:
None
Equipped Items:
Spring-Loaded Horseshoes
Light Sound Hollow Ring (currently boosting Stamina)
Join here to read ahead.
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TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
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I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter175)
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Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
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Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 150
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 100
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 170
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 145
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 125
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 69
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 90
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 66
Uma Musume: From Beginner 100
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 70
Uma Musume: I Want All 90
I Can Copy Unique Skills 65
Summoning an Evil God, but the 52
Supernatural Multiverse 65
My Harem Is Indescribable 55
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 55
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 66
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 55
Still playing traditional Honk 35
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 35
What Should I Do After Switchi 24
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 35
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 27
Transmigrated as Sukuna 27
Checking In in Demon Slayer 32
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