"These two little ones—they're quite capable."
On the track, Tamamo Cross and Special Week were surprised that Muteki and Gold Ship could keep up with them for so long without falling behind. Their initial intention of simply being training partners for the juniors was subtly shifting.
After all, Muteki hadn't even fully matured, and Gold Ship was only slightly better off, still a rookie. But Tamamo and Special Week were seasoned veterans. Though not at their peak, their strength, honed by years of accumulated training and experience, should have been far superior to these two newcomers.
Yet, they were astonished to find that their years of endurance training hadn't created a significant gap between them and the two juniors.
No, it wasn't just a small gap. Do these two still have energy left? Especially little Muteki, she looks completely at ease!
At this point, even the G1 Spring Tenno Sho winners were feeling the weight in their legs. If two juniors with little long-term training could keep up...
"Well now—this is interesting." A grin spread across Tamamo Cross's face. She and Special Week exchanged a look. As fellow racers, even without much prior interaction, a single glance was enough to read the fighting spirit in each other's eyes and understand their mutual thoughts.
The nature of the training session had quietly changed. It was no longer just practice; it was a test of the juniors' true strength.
"It would be pretty embarrassing for us seniors to lose to our juniors," Tamamo muttered.
Special Week huffed, "Hmph—I'll concede defeat in stamina. At Gold Ship's and little Muteki's age, I never had this kind of endurance."
"—But stamina alone isn't enough. A race is always a test of overall ability!" they both thought, a new energy surging through them.
The shift in their aura was palpable. Behind them, Gold Ship and Muteki, still silently competing, felt the change and fixed their gazes ahead, their expressions turning serious.
The veterans didn't burst forward immediately, giving the two juniors a moment to react. It was a clear sign they wanted a fair fight. They were 400 meters from the finish line.
"A 400-meter burst... how troublesome. My stamina is running low..." Gold Ship felt a headache coming on. Her situation was worse than it appeared. Though she was one of the first to start training and had her own unique methods, she was still no match for the veterans' endurance. She had been gritting her teeth the entire time, pushing herself just to compete with the Muteki beside her.
To her surprise, Muteki's stamina was far greater than she anticipated. Just a little kid who hasn't even matured... a pipsqueak who came out of nowhere with an aura so similar to my own. Why is she better than me in stamina, the one thing I'm most proud of?!
I will not acknowledge her. Never!
"In that case, let's go all out!" Gold Ship focused on the final 400 meters, forcing her muscles to tense once more. When this "alien horse" was truly serious, the power she could unleash was something all racers had to respect.
BOOM!
"Here she comes!" From the stands, a captivated Symboli Rudolf and Tokai Teio watched Gold Ship make the first move. The "unsinkable battleship," though not a late-stage specialist, began to accelerate visibly. Rudolf turned to Teio beside her. "Teio, do you know why I brought you to watch this training session?"
"Huh? Wasn't it because you heard Mr. Trainer brought a newcomer from the Mejiro family and dragged me along?" Teio replied, looking at Rudolf with genuine surprise. After a long pause, Rudolf took a deep breath, suppressing her embarrassment.
"...That's not it. I brought you here so you could familiarize yourself with the strength and characteristics of some of your noteworthy peers."
"You won your debut race last month, Teio, taking your first step. But you must be careful. Gold Ship, Nakayama Festa, and that Muteki—they are all threats to your path to the Undefeated Triple Crown."
"—President, are you worrying too much? I won't lose to them," Teio retorted, a rare frown on her face. Rudolf's concern had unintentionally struck a nerve. The usually adoring Tokai Teio looked at the sprinting Gold Ship and Muteki, her expression one of discontent, as if she felt slighted. "Nakayama-san and Gold Ship are one thing. I've seen Nakayama's race; she's dangerous, and her explosive power makes her a formidable opponent in mile and mid-distance races, but I don't think I'll lose."
"As for Gold Ship... ugh, I hate to admit it, but long-distance races will be tricky... She and McQueen are my main rivals in that area. I'll definitely keep an eye on them!"
"But, Muteki..." Teio's face soured at the mention of her name, an inexplicable irritation welling up inside her. Seeing Muteki's face, so strangely similar to the Kitano she had seen a few times, only intensified her annoyance.
This feeling... Teio couldn't explain it. But if Tamamo, who had siblings, were there, she might have understood. It was the jealousy of a first child whose parents bring home a new baby, the feeling of being replaced, the intense sense of loss and resentment.
Driven by this, the usually friendly but secretly proud Tokai Teio couldn't even maintain a veneer of politeness. She said dismissively, "She hasn't even fully matured. It's questionable if she can even race in the same year as me. Sure, her stamina is good, but races aren't won on stamina alone."
"Ultimately, if she can't adapt to the Japanese environment, her strength is useless. Remember that French horse who raced against Spe-chan? She beat El Condor Pasa at the Arc de Triomphe but lost to Spe-chan in the Japan Cup because she wasn't familiar with the environment."
"So what if her stamina is strong? Can she win in Japan? Can she run 4000 meters? 5000? Japan doesn't even have races like that for her to run!"
Teio's assessment was harsh but not without reason. A horse girl's strength is ultimately measured by her record. If her performance doesn't match her ability, she can't expect high praise.
And just as she predicted, as the final 400-meter sprint began, Muteki, who had excelled in the stamina test, began to fall behind the other three. This was clearly related to her incomplete maturation; her finishing kick lacked the necessary explosive power.
In the end, Tamamo Cross was the first to cross the finish line, followed closely by Special Week. Gold Ship managed to finish just ahead of Muteki, as she had wished.
But she felt no joy in it, knowing she had won only because she was more mature. Otherwise, the outcome of that sprint would have been anyone's guess.
"Hah... hah..." The sprint had taxed even the highly durable Muteki. Though she recovered her breath quickly, the memory of finishing last made the determined girl bite her lip in frustration.
"Dammit—I can't put any power into it!"
"That's to be expected. You haven't adapted to the Japanese tracks yet," Kitano's voice cut in. With Mr. C.B.'s help, his wheelchair was brought over to Muteki. He looked at his determined daughter and offered his professional advice as a trainer. "Your foundation is excellent. Did you receive formal training in China? But now that you're in Japan, you must adapt to the environment here."
"Most races in China are either mile and short-distance, or ultra-long-distance events of several kilometers. You can handle those extremes, on both turf and dirt, I'm sure."
"But in Japan, mid-distance races are the most popular, and our long-distance races rarely exceed 4000 meters."
Kitano directly pointed out Muteki's problem. Her stamina was her greatest asset, but her biggest issue was "pacing" and an inability to adapt her energy distribution.
For Muteki, most Japanese race distances were a blind spot. In Japan, she was only comfortable with the rhythm of 1200-1600 meter races. As for the grueling ultra-long distances she excelled at... unfortunately, Japan didn't have such races. No matter how good she was, she'd have no chance to use that skill.
Kitano believed her stamina was sufficient for most Japanese races, but her rhythm had to be retrained from scratch. It would be a slow, painstaking process, a long-term project requiring constant correction.
But for his own daughter, no amount of trouble was too much. Kitano was more eager than anyone to see her succeed, more eager than anyone to pass on all his knowledge and experience to her.
"Mr. Trainer is right, Muteki," Ardan added gently, seeing the girl was about to argue. "When it comes to training and racing, you have to trust his judgment. You know he would never harm you, right?"
"...Oh."
Blocked at every turn, Muteki could only nod sullenly, muttering under her breath as she lowered her head, "How can they be so in sync when they have no connection... honestly."
"—But her feeling of being powerless doesn't seem to be just about adapting to the environment," Mr. C.B. chimed in, stepping forward to analyze the situation. Having experienced the same feeling herself, she had her own theory. "Logically, if she's adapted to the rhythm of mile races as you say, Mr. Trainer, her explosive power shouldn't be weak. But during that sprint, her acceleration was very sluggish..."
"It was as if something was holding her back, restricting her. Even without being fully matured, the instinct to exert one's maximum power shouldn't be so hindered. But her push-off was clearly hesitant."
Mr. C.B.'s sharp observation pointed out another problem with Muteki. At the mention of this, Nakayama Festa's eyes, previously downcast, lit up. It seemed a familiar topic had come up. "My big sis Journey once told me that we Gold family horse girls have to resolve our inner conflicts to unleash our full power. Could Muteki's situation be because she has an unresolved 'heart-knot' that's limiting her performance?"
At Nakayama Festa's words, Kitano and Ardan both had a flash of insight and immediately turned to look at Muteki, whose expression had subtly changed.
But the little horse girl, who seemed to have come from nowhere yet knew so much, didn't even have the courage to look up at Kitano and Ardan before her. She remained silent, because she knew... what Nakayama Festa had said was exactly the problem she was facing.
She had a "heart-knot" that she couldn't resolve, one that perhaps... never could be.
-------
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