In the cafeteria, Leo Durban ate her lunch with her head bowed, surrounded by several other Umamusume. They treated Kousei's performance in the Spring Tenno Sho as a joke, laughing amongst themselves. At the center of the group, Leo Durban remained silent, looking completely out of place.
After that epic Spring Tenno Sho concluded, Kashimoto Riko's latest directive was both unexpected and, in hindsight, inevitable.
However, just as Kashimoto Riko moved to take control of Kousei, the racetrack erupted in chaos. An unknown disturbance plunged the venue into turmoil.
By the time Kashimoto Riko regained her composure, Kousei had vanished.
Several days later, Kashimoto Riko received a package. Inside was Kousei's Personal Racing Outfit. Kousei's official registration had been erased, and everything she had fought for was reduced to a blank page.
Perhaps in a few years, no one would remember that an Umamusume named Kousei had once raced at Central.
"Haha! Hey, Leo, why are you so quiet?"
Leo Durban's silence finally caught the attention of the other Umamusume. She slowly lowered her spoon. "Are you... laughing at Kousei?"
"Huh? Because, Leo, don't you think it's hilarious? Not only did she lose, but she also..." The tactless Umamusume didn't seem to notice Leo Durban's darkening mood.
"Let me ask you this," Leo Durban interrupted, her voice sharp. "If it were you, could you have beaten Mejiro McQueen?"
The words died in their throats, leaving an awkward silence.
Could they have beaten Mejiro? The answer was a resounding no. Mejiro McQueen had achieved an unprecedented feat, shattering records to dominate the Spring Tenno Sho—a victory even the legendary Emperor couldn't match.
Leo Durban stood up, looming over them. "Let me rephrase. Do you even have the guts to challenge the Strongest in History?"
The answer, again, was no.
Leo Durban seemed about to say more but abruptly stopped herself. "Not worth my time."
She slammed her utensils down and stormed away from the table.
"Well now, Hero, why so angry?"
The furious Leo Durban froze, a flicker of confusion in her eyes. The voice was incredibly familiar, yet she couldn't place it. She scanned the area but couldn't find its source.
"Come to the back of the cafeteria. I'll be waiting."
Leo Durban's eyes narrowed. "Fine. Let me see who you really are."
Following the voice's instructions, Leo Durban went to the back of the cafeteria. There, a figure with long, glossy black hair stood waiting, making no attempt to hide.
"So you've come, Hero."
No wonder the voice had sounded familiar. Its owner was none other than Black Bullet.
"So you're back already," Leo Durban said, unsurprised. "Hiding in the shadows isn't very fitting for the Derby King."
As members of the same generation, they shared an unspoken connection, even if they weren't close.
"Heh, I'm a sniper, after all," Black Bullet replied with a casual smile. "Waiting for the right moment to strike—that's my creed."
"So? You've been gone for ages. What do you want with me?" Leo Durban cut straight to the point.
"Well, for starters... take a look at this!"
Black Bullet's expression sharpened. Every hair on Leo Durban's body stood on end, her ears twitching in high alert. Her gaze locked onto Black Bullet, and understanding dawned in her mind.
Such a violent reaction... It's the Forbidden Gate.
"No wonder," Leo Durban murmured. "So it's already open!"
Behind her, the Forbidden Gate yawned wide.
Their auras clashed, sharp and confrontational.
"So, what is it?" Leo Durban demanded. "Spit it out while I still find you remotely interesting."
"Don't be so quick to dismiss me. I promise you won't be bored," Black Bullet said with a sly grin. "How about it? Interested in starting a rebellion with me?"
A rebellion?
"Against whom?" Leo Durban asked, a flicker of anticipation in her eyes.
"The Student Council, of course."
I knew it!
Leo Durban could no longer suppress a wide, predatory grin. "Interesting. I'm in."
This one's different from the others, was the only thought in Leo Durban's mind.
"Well, I knew you wouldn't refuse," Black Bullet said, as if she'd expected it all along.
"Is it just the two of us?"
"No. Right now, there are three."
"Who? Are they strong?"
"Trust me," Black Bullet said with a meaningful smile, "you know better than anyone just how strong this one is."
She took a step aside, revealing a cloaked figure behind her. The figure raised a hand and pulled back the hood obscuring their face. Leo Durban froze, utterly stunned.
"It's been a while, Leo."
"Tokai Teio!"
-
In a dimly lit conference room...
Kashimoto Riko faced several virtual projections. Rudolf, the Student Council President, sat beside her.
"You're saying she disappeared?" a voice from one of the projections demanded.
"Effectively, yes," Kashimoto Riko replied, her expression unmoved by the accusatory tone.
"How could she have disappeared? Central's lockdown is airtight. Even if she did vanish, someone must have helped her—someone very close to the core."
The virtual voice was pointedly suggestive. Rudolf, propping her chin on one hand, offered a faint, mocking smile. "Does the Central Committee intend to suspect me?"
"Of course not, Your Majesty the Emperor. You are our symbol, tirelessly dedicated to the Academy, a deterrent to all troublemakers. Your contributions are immeasurable. We would suspect anyone before we suspected Symbol Rudolf."
Rudolf's smile remained fixed. "Then you must be suspecting the Acting Chairman."
Kashimoto Riko's gaze met the virtual projection.
"Acting Chairman Kashimoto was our unanimous choice, the one everyone wanted."
Rudolf sneered inwardly, her face a mask of composure. "So, who exactly is the Committee suspecting?"
"Neither of you, naturally. But others are a different matter. For instance... Mr. CB."
-
On the rooftop...
Narita Brian chewed on a twig, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon as the cold wind whipped past.
"Aren't you going to say goodbye?" Biwa Hayahide asked, standing behind Narita Brian and gazing in the same direction.
"No need," Brian replied. "We'll see her again someday."
"Is that so? I hope you're right."
-
In front of a café...
"Have you already decided to leave?" Etsuko Otonashi asked, feeling a pang of nostalgia as she looked at the transformed man before her.
"Amazing," she continued. "In just one year, you passed all the tests and became a Central Reporter, ranking first in your class."
Standing before her was her former intern, the man who had reclaimed his dream.
"Yes," he said. "Thank you for everything, Etsuko-senpai. Now, I'm going to her side to help her."
Etsuko smiled faintly, a touch of loneliness in her expression.
"Goodbye, Etsuko-senpai."
"Goodbye, Aoi."
Sunlight bathed his face as he beamed. The man's name was Kawauchi Aoi.
-
Inside the storage room...
Kousei's Personal Racing Outfit lay quietly within its display case, emitting a faint glow in the dim room. Central had revoked its usage rights for the Central Racetrack, but ownership still belonged to Kousei. Although Central had no authority to decide the outfit's fate, with Kousei long gone, it was effectively ownerless.
A Little Horse Girl wearing goggles gazed at the Personal Racing Outfit. The dim light and the goggles obscured her expression.
She reached up and slowly lifted her goggles, revealing eyes filled with fury.
"The Classic Triple Crown! The races Kousei-senpai couldn't win—I'll win them for her! I'll make everyone understand who Kousei-senpai truly was! I will not lose! I will never let the world forget her!"
Her eyes burned with determination. It seemed the Personal Racing Outfit had found its new master.
The old wooden door creaked open, and a Little Horse Girl with a badge earring on her left ear poked her head in.
"It's time to go."
"I know, Almond Eye."
-
On the street...
Mejiro McQueen ran frantically. In all the time since Kousei had vanished, there had been no word. But just moments ago, an unmarked package had arrived at the Mejiro Estate. What McQueen found inside sent a shock through her.
The package contained her own plush doll. Though McQueen dolls were sold everywhere, she recognized the faint marks on it instantly—it was the very one Kousei had won for her at the claw machine.
"Kousei!"
McQueen had never felt so distraught. Driven by a powerful intuition, she sprinted without stopping. Finally, in front of the airport, she saw the figure she had been longing for.
"Kousei..."
"You're here, McQueen."
Kousei turned around. Her star-like eyes still hadn't regained their clarity. She smiled faintly, looking exceptionally beautiful.
McQueen opened her mouth to speak, but Kousei cut her off. They stood facing each other, separated by a short distance.
-
From the shadows, T spoke to his wife. "Aren't you going to see our daughter one last time?"
His wife shook her head and chuckled softly. "It's alright. Adults know the right path because they have more experience and knowledge than children.
"But children aren't completely lost, either.
"Even without adult guidance, they have their own compasses. My Kousei... my one-of-a-kind treasure in this world."
She turned to her husband. "Mom has already found her precious treasure. You should go find your own place to belong, too."
T scratched his head and smiled sheepishly.
"Kousei, Dad's abilities are limited. This is as far as I can help you. But Dad knows that even when no one is watching, Kousei is always pushing herself to the limit.
"Whether it's a blessing or a curse...
"Kousei, you just need to become the person you want to be.
"Some people see an Umamusume from a local region rise through the ranks at Central like a Cinderella story, and they go wild for that dramatic success.
"Others see an Umamusume from an elite family display unwavering resolve and spirit for her family's honor, projecting their own aspirations and ideals onto her, filling them with high expectations.
"But—"
-
"Kousei, Dad's abilities are limited. This is as far as I can help you. But Dad knows that even when no one is watching, Kousei is always pushing herself to the limit.
"Whether it's a blessing or a curse...
"Kousei, you just need to become the person you want to be.
"Some people see an Umamusume from a local region rise through the ranks at Central like a Cinderella story, and they go wild for that dramatic success.
"Others see an Umamusume from an elite family display unwavering resolve and spirit for her family's honor, projecting their own aspirations and ideals onto her, filling them with high expectations.
"But—"
"These eyes... McQueen gave them to me."
Her gray-white eyes were proof that she had burned everything to chase her rival in the Spring Tenno Sho. Her once-unbreakable body was now battered and broken from that race.
A pang of heartache struck McQueen. She instinctively stepped forward, reaching out to touch Kousei.
A weight pressed down on her shoulder, forcing her back. McQueen turned in surprise to find Tokai Teio behind her.
"Teio!"
"Look closer, McQueen," Teio's voice was strained.
Confused, McQueen turned back to Kousei.
Everything had changed.
Above them loomed the weight of sovereignty. The fox's smile whispered into their ears.
From behind Kousei, Caesar Rose and Twilight Cloud stepped forward, flanking her.
"No, no~ Senpai is our comrade~" Caesar Rose cooed.
"Get lost," Twilight Cloud snarled. "Stay away from our comrade."
McQueen was too stunned to speak. "Why?! What are Caesar Rose and Twilight Cloud doing here?!"
Once, two different figures had stood by Kousei's side. Now, their silhouettes overlapped with these new ones, yet the person at the center remained unchanged.
"I am the villain.
"I pursue, I desire, I hope these legs were not made for destruction. I hope they exist to break open the endless darkness, to touch the unknown, to run for love.
"No matter how they criticize me, no matter how they mock me. I will always keep running. I will never yield a single step, never bow my head in submission.
"It is with this resolve that I stand here today.
"Even if they laugh at me! Even if they don't understand! Even if my path is wrong! But someone smiled for me, so I believe it can't be a mistake.
"One day, I will make them acknowledge it! That I, too, can carry hope!
"I will be the one! To bring down Central! To bring down all of you!"
But still!
Some people saw a different story: an ordinary Umamusume finding her way to the center of the stage, step by step.
Does having no innate talent mean you can't carry a dream? Does failure mean you must give up? Does seeing the gap mean you shouldn't even try to challenge it?
That's wrong!
The protagonist of your own destiny... should be you!
"Goodbye, McQueen. The next time we meet, we will be enemies."
Kousei turned away resolutely, without a trace of hesitation. McQueen's heart clenched painfully. A thousand words welled up in her chest, but none could escape.
She couldn't speak. McQueen couldn't say a word.
As she turned, the glint of tears in her eyes choked back everything she wanted to say.
"Kousei!!"
Kousei turned back, instinctively reaching out. Something traced an arc through the air and landed securely in her palm.
Though her vision was blurred, Kousei knew what it was.
Lying in her hand was the Mejiro family crest.
Write a page of recklessness, our chapter, with you by my side.
"Don't keep me—or the world—waiting too long."
The most passionate confession of youth—can you hear my reply?
Her fingers tightened, clutching the crest firmly in her palm.
The spring breeze, unfeeling, stirs a young girl's heart.
End of Volume One.