The Mejiro house's total domination of the Tenno Sho's podium made waves, with articles flooding the news, each with its own spin. Unsurprisingly—or perhaps inevitably—the spotlight fell on Rampage, McQueen, and Ryan's sweep, their reverent salute to Their Majesties stealing headlines. It was understandable, but still…
"Yeesh, predictable as ever," Rampage muttered, flipping through a paper.
"I'm not too bothered," Lady Saber said over the phone.
"I am, in a different way. What's with these articles? Absolute garbage."
Some pieces were so bad they warranted her complaints. Sure, the Mejiro sweep was headline-worthy, but too many fixated solely on it. "Complete domination!" "No rivals!" Some seemed to only watch the race's final moments, leaving Rampage exasperated.
"Your two favorite outlets did a decent job, though," Lady Saber noted.
"Yeah, but that's it," Rampage grumbled. "The rest don't get it. It's just pathetic."
"'The Knight of Dust Watches the Reverent Salute'"
"'Ground-Hugging Form: The Dirt Horse Girl's Assault'"
Her favorite two publications dubbed it the Mejiro Golden Era but didn't skimp on Lady Saber or the other horse girls. They covered the salute while digging into the race's full story, earning Rampage's approval.
"Still, that run of yours—your body holdin' up?" Rampage asked. "That faceplant at the end was spectacular."
"Ugh, embarrassing…" Lady Saber's voice turned sheepish. "My win-suit's built for it, so no issues."
Her ground-hugging form, leaning so far forward it was practically a dive, doubled her stride and speed—but it was a high-risk move. The chance of wiping out was huge, and stopping post-finish almost guaranteed a tumble. Hence her win-suit's front-facing armor, which Rampage dubbed "Kämpfer."
"You modded your win-suit just for that?" Rampage said. "You can only pull that off in G1s, right?"
"Dirt's softer, so it's fine there. On turf, yeah, G1s only."
"You're gonna hurt yourself one day," Rampage warned.
Minami had told her after the race that Lady's kamikaze style, distinct from Rampage's big escape, was not to be imitated. Forward-leaning forms were common for horse girls, but pushing it to such extremes was easy to learn yet injury-prone. Lady, a dirt specialist, had mastered the balance, but Rampage couldn't risk it, and Minami wouldn't sign off.
"So, what's your next race?" Lady asked.
"Elizabeth Queen Cup, then Champions Cup."
"Another one-week gap? I'd get it if you were a dirt runner, but turf? That rotation's brutal."
"Same as last year, so I'm good," Rampage said breezily.
Any trainer would want to protect a star horse girl's legs after such a run, but Minami had greenlit it—reluctantly, but still.
"Then I'm hitting the Miyako or Musashino Stakes," Lady said. "Fufu, next time, the Knight of Dust will challenge you properly."
"Bring it on," Rampage replied. "Win those."
"Dumb question."
With that, Lady hung up. The thought of facing her again in the Champions Cup lit a fire under Rampage. Time to buckle down—her excitement was already surging.
"Young Lady Rampage, it's time," a staff member called.
"Got it," Rampage said, wincing. "Still not used to that 'Young Lady' stuff."
"My apologies."
"Nah, I get it."
Her blood was pumping, but she couldn't channel it yet. The Elizabeth Queen Cup was next, and she needed to hit the recovery center to shed fatigue and damage. Her excitement would have to wait… but that was easier said than done.
"Here we go," she murmured.
Ikuno was registered for the Elizabeth Queen Cup, but that wasn't all. Turbo, inspired by Rampage's run last year, had signed up too. With three Canopus runners—Rampage, Ikuno, and Turbo—some horse girls had already withdrawn. They'd faced off in practice countless times, but this was their first race clash. The thought of going head-to-head with Turbo's "Dokkan Turbo" gave Rampage a slight headache.
"Ugh… feints and escapes are a dumb move here," she muttered.
The biggest headache? Facing her two nemeses, Ikuno and Turbo, at once. In practice, they were tough enough, but in a real race? A nightmare. One of her strategies was completely shut down, forcing a straight-up fight. Turbo's explosive burst meant Rampage could lose—plain and simple—she thought while getting a massage.
"Guess I just crush 'em head-on," she concluded. "Only way."
As teammates, they knew each other's tricks inside out. It all came down to raw ability. Canopus prioritized raw stamina, and that would decide the outcome.
"Not a bad deal," Rampage said, a grin creeping in.
A team showdown was intriguing. She'd always wanted to face Turbo's full-throttle run in a real race. The Elizabeth Queen Cup was starting to feel exciting, though she noted Flora wasn't on the roster. As Flora had mentioned, she was likely prepping for the Japan Cup.
Rampage skimmed Minami's list of foreign horse girls coming to Japan. The Japan Cup's biggest name was Sorcery Chevalier, runner-up in this year's Arc de Triomphe. Other strong contenders abounded, but Gold Fezarn was the loudest, boasting to the press.
"'Mejiro Rampage isn't running. Scared of me? Fine—she can't lose if she doesn't race!'" Rampage read aloud, chuckling. "Talk about bold."
As expected, many foreign horse girls had come for her, only to be disappointed by her absence. But they forgot something: when Rampage won the Japan Cup, rivals underestimated her, and she swept them away.
"Confidence is great, but that weirdo's tough," Rampage said. "Underestimate Flora, and she'll trip you up."
Oddly, the foreign horse girls didn't see Flora as a threat. Maybe because Rampage knew her strength up close, like her bond with Lady Saber. The thought of Flora sharing that kind of connection was… complicated. Regardless, Rampage had to focus on prepping for the Elizabeth Queen Cup.
"Their Majesties Enjoy the Winning Live…" Rampage read, smirking. "What a power phrase. Though, my hand was shaking when I signed their program…"
Next time, we'll dive deeper into this.
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