A Permanent Skill...?
No, that was a true Permanent Domain!!
A strange, brilliant light flickered within the Golden Maiden Knight's orange eyes.
How could she possibly be unfamiliar with the term Perpetual?
If anything, every Arknights player would be filled with passion and love for it!
It meant that the earlier it was deployed and made permanent, the greater the rewards would be. Any player who enjoyed following pre-made strategies would absolutely adore it.
Not only could this perpetual domain remain active indefinitely, it also provided a significant boost to both power and speed with utter simplicity?
One must understand, most Uma Musume's unique skills, or even their Domain-activated abilities, usually only offer minor enhancements. Only a very few, exceptional Uma Musume, wielding their finest trump cards, might briefly achieve a moderate level of enhancement.
But this was practically a double 'A-rank' boost to both power and speed! As a mere passive effect of the domain, it was already astonishingly powerful, and yet it was only a secondary effect compared to the main event of Nearl's second domain—its Perpetuity!
This was just… an utterly unreasonable stat monster!
As Nearl's presence continuously climbed, surpassing that of every other Uma Musume on the field, in the very next moment—!
[(Pegasus Not of This World): Activatable when the racecourse conditions are 'Yielding', 'Heavy', or 'Muddy'. Restores stamina based on severity of track conditions…]
[(O Sun, Nod in Approval): When the track is under sunlight, slightly increases acceleration, explosive power, and provides…]
(Dawnbreak): Moderately negates suppression effects from opponents' Domains. Moderately increases power. Slightly increases speed and explosive power…]
The perpetual domain skill of the Flaming Edge ignited in an instant!
Among its effects were skills to overcome environmental challenges, alongside potent enhancement abilities. This perpetual Domain and its associated skills were overwhelmingly focused on achieving ultimate strength!
From the Golden Knight, Nearl, radiated an unprecedented brilliance—an extreme aura that instantly enveloped the vast racecourse.
Under the dazzling, sun-like radiance of this glorious Domain, it effortlessly suppressed every other Uma Musume on the field! Even the revered contemporary powerhouse, Holy Bull, who was considered capable of challenging Secretariat, found herself suppressed!
In the next moment, the supremely bright, glorious light emanating from Nearl engulfed the entire expansive racecourse.
The instant the perpetual domain 'Flaming Edge' was activated, her golden figure transformed, becoming as swift and fierce as a hurled lance!
Her body exploded forward, displaying tremendous, shocking power. Holy Bull, who had only just begun to accelerate, was instantly left decisively behind by Nearl. The gap between them was already insurmountable!
Nearl's steps, already swift and pushing towards a massive lead, showed not a hint of fatigue or slackening even on this demanding heavy track. In the next moment, she achieved a visibly noticeable acceleration!
It was as if the horrible conditions of the heavy track and her previous intense Great Escaping pace were nowhere near her limits, far from the all-out, burning effort of her full power!
Accelerating!! Accelerating!!
And beyond that, she was still accelerating!!
Effortlessly, she surged forward, eating up the ground towards the third turn.
And then, the Golden Maiden's graceful yet resolute, perfect body…
Nineteen lengths!
Twenty lengths!
Her strides grew even more powerful. As her feet dug deep, sinking into the muddy ground of the heavy track, her stride frequency and speed showed a qualitative improvement compared to before.
'This is it—!'
'Pick up the pace, end this race!'
Nearl's freely flying strides grew faster and faster, her body leaning forward as she advanced. From the perspective of the stunned audience watching…
—It was less like running, less like Great Escaping, and more like a knight initiating a charge!!
The Golden Radiant Maiden named Margaret Nearl charged down the track with a spirit capable of overcoming any obstacle, with a momentum that surpassed countless people's understanding!
Everyone around, from the ordinary folks in the spectator stands to even the aura-wielding Uma Musume, collectively fell into a stunned daze!
Holy Bull, along with the other front-runners and pace-setting Uma Musume, stared wide-eyed, their breathing growing slightly hurried as a sense of crisis abruptly arose.
In this two-thousand-meter race, factoring in the heavy track, the stamina consumed by front-running past the halfway point should theoretically be comparable to what Nearl expended during the final stretch of the Hopeful Stakes. For a freshman-year Uma Musume, this was an immense trial.
Yet now, Nearl could unleash an acceleration? A front-runner capable of a second acceleration?!
Those behind could keenly feel that even with their own auras activated, they were instantly suppressed!
In that instant, some of the pace-setting Uma Musume couldn't help but let out cries of confusion, even despair.
"S-so terrifying, that little Pegasus… I've finished the Triple Crown and still don't have a Domain, I'm just fast… How does she already command one in just her third career race?"
"I can't accept this! How can an Uma Musume acquire a Domain so quickly?"
"It's no use… she's opened up a huge lead, and she has a Domain! My late kick isn't strong on heavy tracks. If I don't accelerate now, I'll never close the gap in the final stretch."
"I can't lose to a young newcomer like Nearl… Even if I lose, it should be by something like Daiwa Scarlet's five lengths. I have to accelerate now!"
All five of the other Uma Musume, their minds pushed to the limit, more than one or two gritted their teeth and committed fully to acceleration.
And Holy Bull, she completely unleashed her full power. An exceptionally powerful aura erupted from her entire body, suppressing the other four Uma Musume around her, and then solidified into a true domain.
[Domain: Open]!
[(Hunter): Slightly increases speed, slightly recovers stamina, slightly accelerates stamina drain…]
[(A Monarch's Composure): Slightly increases power…]
Once her domain was active, Holy Bull's speed visibly increased.
Even though nearly all the other Uma Musume had chosen to accelerate early simultaneously, their rate of acceleration and final speed were clearly inferior to Holy Bull's.
However, as the favorite to win, the first-choice pick Holy Bull found no joy in easily activating her Domain and surpassing her other classic-year rivals.
Because when Holy Bull, with her swift steps, pulled away from the several Uma Musume around her, gritting her teeth and running with all her might, burning everything she had, she made a near-unbelievable discovery…
She seemed completely incapable of closing the gap with that golden figure at the very front!
Twenty-two lengths!
Twenty-three lengths!
At the forefront of the entire field, the figure of the maiden knight Nearl, charging ahead, was actually pulling further away!
That was unmistakably… a activated late kick! And one unleashed under the Great Escape style, which was considered impossible for a late kick! Not to mention on a [Heavy] track!
Achieving all that, surpassing common sense, The Radiant Knight wantonly widened that astonishing gap!
Behind her, the other four classic-year senior Uma Musume's expressions turned utterly hopeless.
At the start… more than one had wanted to teach the "arrogant" Nearl a lesson.
After the race began and they realized something was wrong, that changed to at least losing by only five lengths, like Daiwa Scarlet.
But now, it seemed even that was an impossible hope?!
And Holy Bull, stronger than them all, now stared with vacant eyes, deeply shocked.
Watching Nearl already speeding past more than half of the third turn, charging towards the final stretch, Holy Bull's mind involuntarily replayed her own pre-race thoughts.
Namely—the substitute!
'This… was I really thinking of such a monster as a substitute for Secretariat?'
'Now, clearly, *I* have become the substitute for Secretariat in Nearl's eyes!!'
Nearl was Secretariat's substitute?
No, it seemed she herself was about to become the Secretariat substitute in Nearl's eyes!
That kind of thing… I don't want that!!
Hey, can we talk this out?!
Since her debut, Holy Bull, even now burning with everything she had, couldn't even begin to close the gap with the Great Escaping Golden Pegasus, The Radiant Knight…
Right now, she couldn't even maintain the current gap!
Holy Bull, and the other classic-year Uma Musume behind her, couldn't help but feel a nearly suffocating despair. They could only watch from afar, looking up at the Maiden Knight Nearl as she continued her extremely high-speed run.
And listen to the fierce flapping sound of the white robe of Nearl's imposing racing outfit!
--+--
[As expected of The Radiant Knight, the world's first to have the Dual-Surface GOAT, the Silver Pegasus Platinum, come watch her race!!]
[Despite the huge disadvantage of being a freshman-year Uma Musume, on this heavy track, she still chose to Great Escape, and as always, obtained such a dreamlike leading advantage!]
[Nearl, she's passed the fourth turn, entering the final stretch all alone!]
[She, who displayed that destructive, dominating running style to win her first G1 in the Hopeful Stakes as a freshman, is now advancing towards her second G1 victory!]
[Can even the seniors of the classic year not hope to match her pace?]
As Nearl's feet touched down in the final stretch, everything from the commentator's voice to the entire audience erupted into boiling excitement.
If Nearl had only won an ordinary freshman-year G1, the so-called "baby cup" Hopeful Stakes, then even winning two similar races wouldn't be enough to shock all of America.
The American Uma Musume scene is among the most developed in the world, with multiple, even dozens, of top-tier G1s. So G1-winning Uma Musume are rare but not unheard of, especially those who win the lower-tier freshman-year GIs.
But… a freshman-year Uma Musume challenging the Travers Stakes, traditionally the domain of classic-year Uma Musume? This was utterly unprecedented, a race destined for the history books!
The spectators, hoping to witness an extraordinary, record-breaking race, were now hyped to the extreme. The roaring noise was far more intense than during the finish of any previous year's race!
Countless spectators exclaimed that coming to this year's Travers Stakes was absolutely worth it!
"I originally thought we'd just see the senior Holy Bull properly teach the rookie Nearl a lesson, but I never expected…"
"Nearl!! Nearl!! Nearl!!"
"Without a doubt, this is a super monster qualified to face Secretariat head-on in the future!"
"Run all the way to the end! Truly worthy of being the genius Platinum called The Radiant Knight!"
"You can't even see another Uma Musume on the big screen. Is this the charm of a Great Escape? A ten-year Nearl fan is utterly shocked!"
On the big screen, the broadcast showed only that single, dazzling, Golden Maiden.
Amid the surprised and joyous voices of the crowd, the leading, front-running Golden Maiden had already reached the final stretch and was unknowingly approaching the last half!
The finish line drew closer and closer. Yet on Nearl's serious face, there was no sign of being near her limit.
That knight-like charging posture was still maintained by Nearl, and she continued to accelerate!
Front-running was universally recognized as the most demanding style for an Uma Musume, one that should drain everything, burn every last ounce of strength—an extreme running method. Yet for this Radiant Knight, it seemed not like an act of expending everything for an advantage.
The fact was exactly so!
On the Maiden Knight Nearl's exquisite and serious face, fighting spirit flickered.
As a knight of the Nearl family, she would never relax or underestimate her opponents in a competitive race until it was over!
Then… continue to gallop.
Twenty-five lengths!
Twenty-six lengths!
Under the disbelieving gaze of Holy Bull, who had just entered the final stretch not long ago, she could only watch, filled with immense frustration, as that Golden Maiden raced into the distance.
And advanced towards the finish line.
That Radiant Knight, swift as a meteor and deeply shocking, still shone brilliantly under the scorching sun!!
[Twenty-seven lengths! Twenty-eight lengths!]
[That dominance overcame the heavy track, like a charging knight tearing through all defenses on a battlefield—an unheard-of strength!]
[The finish line is within reach! The second place… is nowhere to be seen! Even zooming in on the screen, she's nowhere to be found!]
[The Nearl Family from obscure Poland will become famous throughout America for raising Margaret Nearl!]
[Let us celebrate—]
[The first ever, a Peerless Pegasus who, as a freshman, defeated classic-year powerhouses… is born!!]
Under the shining sun, beneath skies seemingly torn open by a lance-like weapon allowing sunlight to pour down, this supremely radiant knight raised her head proudly and crossed the finish line with dignity!
Before this, no freshman-year champion had ever won the Travers Stakes.
And what Nearl achieved… was a super lead of thirty lengths! And this after multiple tough races, with just over a month since her debut—an unprecedented victory for a freshman-year Uma Musume!
This unbelievable scene, this battle destined for the history books, concluded here!
The vast racecourse erupted into earth-shattering cheers. Tens of thousands of spectators continuously voiced their amazement and congratulations.
Amid the roaring cheers, Holy Bull at this moment… was still on her way to the finish line.
This renowned powerhouse stared at the Golden Maiden standing proudly at the finish line under the shining sun!
As she approached the finish line, even having opened up a significant lead over third place, Holy Bull felt no joy in her heart, only… an indescribable shock.
'Gulp...'
'I really have become Nearl's Secretariat substitute!!!'
'Sorry for not being able to give Nearl a satisfying race.'
But crucially, that wasn't all.
'In the future, whenever anyone mentions Nearl's great achievements, they will absolutely, without fail, bring up this victory of hers: a freshman defeating classic-year Uma Musume.'
'In other words—'
'I will be forever engraved on the pillar of shame, far more humiliated than that Japanese Uma Musume Daiwa Scarlet who lost by five lengths!'
Miss Holy Bull, upon crossing the finish line in second place the next second, couldn't help but let out a final whimper.
Wah...
It's over!!!
But suddenly, her mind flashed to a recording she had seen before, recalling the [Pegasus Hall of Fame] displayed by Platinum during the Dubai World Cup.
"Huff… huff… The silver lining in this cloud, I suppose, is that Nearl doesn't have the [Pegasus Hall of Fame], right?"
"The Silver Pegasus and the Golden Pegasus also have a difference in special effects! Thankfully, Nearl's effects aren't as exaggerated as Platinum's!"
--+--
The sounds from the spectator stands had now completely turned into a roaring tsunami.
"The Strongest!! The Strongest!! The Strongest!"
"Gwaa, Nearl, we revere you!!"
"Sigh… Although I'm an Easy Goer fan and think she can win at least two of the Triple Crown, it doesn't look easy now. But she can still win one, right?"
"Pegasus! Pegasus! How fortunate, we get to watch a Pegasus on turf, and another on dirt!"
"Seeing such powerful beings fight up close is worth the price of admission even if I die!"
"This means next year's Triple Crown races will be fascinating. With Nearl, Sunday Silence, and Easy Goer! It might be even more exciting than this year's Secretariat vs. Sham battle, right?"
And within that wave of sound, in the front rows…
A certain dark, petite yet fiercely imposing girl like a wild beast had completely frozen in place.
The girl named Sunday Silence felt the pressure completely, she was almost sweating buckets.
S-so strong!
To challenge the Triple Crown, she wouldn't only have to face the monster Easy Goer, but also this Pegasus, this Radiant Knight?
"Next year's Triple Crown is going to be huge trouble."
But Sunday Silence wouldn't give up easily.
She had made a promise with that gentle black-haired doctor, Dr. Lin! She would win races and earn Dr. Lin's recognition!
So the American Triple Crown was a must-win!
Even if one of her major obstacles and powerful rivals was Dr. Lin's niece, Margaret Nearl, Sunday Silence had no intention of backing down.
"Carrying my promise with Dr. Lin, I absolutely cannot lose!"
--+--
On the other side, a tall, imposing red-haired girl curled her lips into an excited smile.
The power displayed by Nearl satisfied Secretariat completely.
If this was the caliber of opponent… the potential to reach historic levels, even surpass them and step into the legendary hall of the supreme, was absolutely significant.
If she could defeat such a peak, then this achievement would be more than just rivaling Man o' War and Eclipse.
Even those two GOATs of turf and dirt had never faced such an opponent, let alone defeated them!
"Margaret Nearl, you have completely exceeded my expectations."
"Inevitably, one of us will achieve mythical, legendary greatness."
"And that victor… will be me!"
From Sunday Silence to Secretariat, they both set their sights on that Radiant Knight standing proudly on the earth.
--+--
Meanwhile, beyond the finish line.
The Golden Maiden, having achieved that absolute overwhelming victory, still wore a calm, composed expression.
It was as if, for this Radiant Knight, victory in competitive races was simply commonplace.
After winning, Nearl chose with interest to check the system rewards.
In the next second, she selected 'Receive'.
[Race: Travers Stakes (Victory)]
[Reward: Maturation Progress +5%, Nearl Domain Visual Effects Unlocked]
The brief content didn't surprise Nearl.
After all, Platinum had already acquired effects beyond this, hunting opponents with bows and arrows. Getting visual effects now wasn't strange.
The Golden Maiden's shining orange eyes continued scanning down.
[Current Maturation Progress: 15%]
[Domain Visual Effects: Can activate "Don Armor", "Remove Armor"]
[Don Armor: White Robe Racing Outfit appears as Knight Armor Racing Outfit to public view]
[Remove Armor: Knight Armor Racing Outfit appears as White Robe Racing Outfit to public view]
Don Armor?
Remove Armor?
Which meant… during races, she could switch between different racing outfits, visible to the entire world?!
Suddenly charging forward in a gallop, donning armor mid-race?!
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
There should be... around 70+ advanced chapters?
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.