While the Arc was underway, lights burned bright at Tracen Academy.
Naturally, countless students and trainers were glued to their televisions to support Rampage. There wasn't a single soul who hadn't imagined the Hinomaru flag rising over that stage, over the Arc de Triomphe, someday. The thought that it might actually happen tonight made it impossible to suppress their excitement.
As if responding to those hopes, Rampage had made a perfect start, sprinting beneath a sky rent by lightning.
With every step, mud splashed up with the rainwater. It was the worst kind of heavy track condition. The rain was gradually intensifying, and the wind had begun to howl; a full-scale storm was assaulting France.
Yet, she did not stop running.
I won't let a little thing like this stop the race. That determination seemed shared by everyone, for no one slowed their legs.
『Leading the pack is Mejiro Rampage, and right behind her is El Gutts! The two who vied for supremacy at the Japan Cup! For El Gutts, this Arc is the place to clear the grudge of that defeat. And for Mejiro Rampage, it is the ultimate stage to prove she is the strongest! Upon whom will the Goddess smile!!?』
After that race, El Gutts had recalled the events as clearly as if they had happened yesterday. While all the overseas Horse Girls had been wary only of Oguri Cap, Rampage had flown out like an arrow piercing through the pack, running all the way to the goal... And today was the day to pay back that debt.
『 The leader, Mejiro Rampage, is setting an incredible pace!! She is about 4 lengths ahead of El Gutts, but she has opened up a 10-length gap from the rest of the pack!! Even here at Longchamp, this Horse Girl does not change her tactics!! A Great Escape! She is betting everything on a Great Escape!!』
Mejiro Rampage's "Great Escape."
It was a style already known not just in Europe, but throughout the world. Still, there were many who were shocked that she would stick to it even on the stage of Longchamp. To escape from start to finish? She had proven many times that she could do it, but did she really intend to win with that strategy here?
Right now, Rampage was heading toward Longchamp's most defining feature—the 10-meter incline. Everyone knew she was strong on slope courses... but she was about to challenge a hill twice as significant as Nakayama's.
Yet her speed did not drop at all. Everyone realized with certainty: she intends to charge right into it just like that.
"It's reckless! She can't possibly climb it at that speed!!"
"Even if she climbs it at that pace, there's the downhill right after...!!"
A maximum gradient of 2.4 percent, followed by a descent that drops 10 meters over 600 meters. To tackle that at such a stupid pace...
Thinking this, some Horse Girls held back to preserve their pace for a final burst of speed or to wait and see. But shadows swiftly passed those who hesitated.
『From the rear, Nacht Vorhang is moving up! Followed by Alternative Seven! No, Deep Charge and Otter Journey are going too! Is it that they are increasing their pace, or is the rest of the pack slowing down? No, they are definitely speeding up! Naturally, the only thing they are aiming for is the goal of the Arc!!』
One by one, the key players moved up. They shared a single thought: Rampage can really climb that hill.
Strangely, they felt a premonition in their chests. They judged that the best move was to match that pace and ascend with her.
And finally, Rampage set foot on the hill.
『Finally, Mejiro Rampage enters the hill in the lead!! On the stage of Longchamp, can Rampage conquer this 10-meter elevation difference while maintaining this high pace!!?』
Is this really a racecourse hill? she thought for a split second.
Some described the steep slope at Nakayama as a "wall," but while this one was gentler, it continued for a long distance. It wasn't a steep incline, but a long one that wore you down. Yet, as if to say "So what?", Rampage ran as if tearing through the rain.
From behind, Nacht, Charge, Otter, and Alt were closing the distance. And closing in as if tracing her very footprints was El Gutts. There was no sign of her falling behind; she maintained that 4-length gap perfectly.
"All set to cut past me, huh?"
"Yes... Yes, exactly!!"
They crested the hill and were about to enter the steep descent. The rain grew heavier, and the ground softer. Rampage, continuing to run at breakneck speed, must have looked abnormal to trainers around the world. The conditions were far from suitable for a Horse Girl to run at top speed, so why was she this fast? Why didn't her posture break even slightly?
El Gutts was the defending champion, so it was somewhat understandable, but Rampage defied comprehension.
"For a Champion, you sure play cheap."
"Forcing the dirty work onto your opponent... that is a tactic!"
"Fair enough!!"
Rampage ran, scattering mud. In moments, they would descend. The pack was closing in from behind, likely on the hopeful observation that even Rampage would have to slow down somewhat for the descent. El Gutts felt that temptation too, but before she could think it, her legs moved.
Tracing the trajectory of Rampage's footprints without a millimeter of deviation.
"...A divine technique."
Horse Girl races are fundamentally high-speed; fast runners have a cruising speed exceeding 80 km/h. Rampage was the same, but due to her height, she had a long stride. The intervals between her footprints were larger than those of other Horse Girls, yet El Gutts was tracing that path magnificently.
"Just how much training, to what extent did she have to push herself to reach that level? In this Europe where Ran-chan wasn't present... it's practically unrehearsed..."
What emanated from El Gutts was a honing of skill so intense it could be called an obsession, an absolute desire. Thinking that her current form was built upon a singular wish for victory left Sue-chan with nothing but astonishment. Surely, she had studied every single one of Rampage's races.
She was truly worthy of praise—worthy, but...
The one who kept moving forward was Rampage.
"Go, Ran-chan—to the summit."
『Now, they will soon enter the downhill! Alternative Seven is in 3rd, followed by Otter Journey, Nacht Vorhang, and Deep Charge. They have entered the descent—』
Lightning flashed. Perhaps it was a divine revelation.
Rampage, too, had felt this is the place. Maybe God whispered for her to do it. Or in this case, maybe it was the Three Goddesses... but honestly, she didn't care anymore.
This hill, and the "False Straight" that followed—these were the defining features of Longchamp.
The standard theory is to endure here. It is normal to hold back and bet everything on the final straight. But she had already decided: It's here.
If it's me, I can do it.
Believing that, Rampage sprinted.
"Alright... LET'S GO!!!"
『M-Mejiro Rampage accelerates here!! Is she trying to accelerate using the downhill slope!!? In this torrential rain, is she trying to prove she is the strongest?! The center of the storm is, as expected, Mejiro Rampage!!!!』
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