With a thunderclap of "START!", like a boulder crashing into a still lake, the stands and the track alike erupted into towering waves in an instant.
On the course, sixteen lithe figures shot out of the gates like arrows loosed from the string, racing forward with explosive speed.
The dust kicked up by their swift steps flew through the sunlight, blending with the cries from the stands into a feverish, surging sea.
The commentator seemed to be hit head-on by that tide of excitement, his voice trembling slightly as well:
"WHAT A BEAUTIFUL START!"
"FIRST UP… THE NUMBER-ONE FAVORITE, GOLD SHIP! ANOTHER ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT BREAK FROM THE GATE!"
"SHE ISN'T CONTESTING THE LEAD—SHE'S DECISIVELY CHOSEN A BACK-RUNNING POSITION INSTEAD!"
"SKILLFULLY AVOIDING THE CLASH UP FRONT, SHE CONTINUES CUTTING INWARD FROM THE REAR!"
"A VERY FAMILIAR STRATEGY FROM HER, AND IT LOOKS LIKE WE CAN ALL LOOK FORWARD TO ANOTHER ASTONISHING, POWERFUL LATE CHARGE FROM GOLD SHIP!"
By the usual conventions of live commentary and analysis, the most popular Umamusume was always introduced first.
And Gold Ship's fame truly lived up to its name. The moment her name came over the broadcast, the entire grandstand erupted like a volcano, roaring as though celebrating a winning finish in advance.
Then the commentator's words turned sharply, his voice rising several degrees:
"WATCH THE FRONT!"
"FIVE RUNNERS ARE GOING STRIDE FOR STRIDE!"
"FROM THE RAIL OUTWARD, IT'S LOVELY DAY, GOLD ACTOR, SOUNDS OF EARTH, KITASAN BLACK, AND LIA FAIL!"
"THE FIRST CLASH… HAS A RESULT!"
"GOLD ACTOR HAS EDGED AHEAD BY HALF A LENGTH, WITH KITASAN BLACK RIGHT BEHIND!"
"ANOTHER HALF-LENGTH BACK, SOUNDS OF EARTH AND LIA FAIL ARE RUNNING SIDE BY SIDE!"
"LOVELY DAY SITS IN FIFTH BY THE NARROWEST OF MARGINS!"
"AND AT THE SAME TIME!"
"MARIALITE IS GRADUALLY CLOSING IN ON THE LEADING GROUP!"
"THE RACE HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN…"
The more the commentator spoke, the more excited he became, his voice echoing over the racecourse with endless fervor:
"AND IT'S ALREADY BECOME THIS FIERCE, DEADLOCKED TUG-OF-WAR!"
The Arima Kinen started on the chute that cut in from the outside of the backstretch. From the stands, the field looked like an enormous, oddly shaped drop of water.
Its front was thick and heavy, packed tight with runners, while the tail trailed lighter behind.
Top-heavy and bottom-light, that "droplet" hurtled desperately toward the first turn.
And at the very front of that droplet—its largest, heaviest part—there was obvious violent turbulence, a frantic eruption of motion.
Every movement there, every burst of acceleration, seemed to proclaim to the world their thirst for victory and their resolve to seize it.
Yet in sharp contrast to the fever sweeping the rest of the racecourse, the front-row section of the stands facing the finish line was unnaturally calm, as though someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over it.
"To think it'd be… this intense."
Shock was written all over Tokai Teio's face. Her eyes were locked on the track, though her tone remained fairly steady.
"Even for a race like the Arima Kinen, an opening this fierce… that's way too rare."
Even Deep Impact could not keep up her usual impassive look. Emotion flickered in her eyes as she nodded in agreement.
"I've run in it before… and I've never seen an opening this extreme. Orfevre, and Gentildonna…?"
She looked to the side.
"I've never seen one like this."
"Races this fierce, in my experience… usually only get like this in the second half."
After answering Deep Impact's question in unison, Orfevre and Gentildonna both froze for a beat, then involuntarily looked at one another.
A moment later, Orfevre let out a cold snort, while Gentildonna lifted the corners of her mouth in a faint, unreadable smile. Then both of them looked away and turned their attention back to the blazing race unfolding before them.
...
On the track.
Running in first with all her strength, Gold Actor could feel her heart pounding wildly in her chest, along with a faint but persistent sense of suffocation.
That suffocating feeling came from the heavy footfalls striking the ground behind her, a sound like an invisible hand clamped tightly around her heart.
This was not her first race, nor was it her first time taking the lead.
On the contrary, she had already run in more than ten races, and in quite a few of them, she had won by going to the front.
And yet never before had leading the field felt this nerve-racking.
No… that wasn't right.
It wasn't taking the lead that made her heart pound.
It was Kitasan Black, right behind her.
So this kouhai really is the real deal!
Gold Actor marveled inwardly.
Before this, she and her trainer had already confirmed that Kitasan Black possessed astonishing power and stamina, while her speed had not yet fully reached its peak.
In past races, her opponent had likely followed her trainer's instructions to the letter, relying as much as possible on her strengths to cover for—or make up for—her weaker points.
And during the buildup to the Arima Kinen, she had only become more certain of that.
She knew Kitasan Black and her trainer had come together to watch her training, but she had not paid it much mind.
Studying and analyzing your rivals before a race in order to devise a targeted running plan was basic common sense.
She and her trainer did the same when investigating their opponents, Kitasan Black included.
If there was anything unusual about it, it was only that this junior always came with her trainer, instead of leaving that work mostly to the trainer the way Gold Actor did.
Doing pre-race scouting side by side with your trainer made it look almost as though the girl intended to become a trainer herself someday.
Setting aside that oddity, though, once they had confirmed Kitasan Black's condition, she and her trainer quickly settled on what seemed like an ideal way to respond.
If she ended up in a one-on-one situation with Kitasan Black—especially in the opening stages—then she would go hard on the lead.
Like now.
Against an Umamusume whose speed was not quite enough, that kind of approach could, to a certain extent, throw off the opponent's rhythm, drain her stamina, and possibly even conceal one's other tactical intentions.
But now that she was truly out here on the track, directly facing Kitasan Black one on one, she realized it was not that simple.
Kitasan Black was sticking to her too closely, as if she had practiced this kind of pressure-marking countless times. Gold Actor could not shake her off at all.
If this kept up, forget pressing the pace hard—if she kept forcing it like this, the one who would suffer for it would probably be herself.
This is too unwise. Rather than wasting stamina this early…
At the instant before entering the first turn, Gold Actor's mind reached its conclusion at lightning speed.
Better to save it for the final spurt at the finish. That's the only way I'll have a real chance!
It wasn't only Gold Actor. Sounds of Earth and Lia Fail, running close behind Kitasan Black, could also keenly feel the ferocity of that black figure ahead of them.
Kitasan Black was like a heavily armored war machine that had roared to life in an instant, carrying an unstoppable force.
Or like a savage beast bursting suddenly from the deep mountains, swift and vicious in equal measure.
At this moment, in her peak condition, the pressure she exerted was as heavy as a mountain.
Yet though both of them were under that same pressure, what they felt could not have been more different.
If she hadn't been running at full speed, Sounds of Earth would have wanted to snatch up a violin and play with all her heart.
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T/N: oohohohoho