Through the telescope, he could clearly see Oguri Cap's delicate features.
Unlike her usual naive and simple expression, Oguri Cap now looked fully stirred with excitement. Even from a distance, the fighting spirit in her gray-blue eyes was unmistakable.
Not only that, as if trembling from some inner energy, her small head was moving and shaking in a strange rhythm.
"…A warrior's shiver…"
The phrase flashed instantly in Kitahara's mind.
At the same time, he recalled that before crossing over, when he was a ranch owner, he had once seen some information in documents and documentaries.
The trainer of Oguri Cap's real-world prototype had said that Oguri Cap's usual personality was gentle and friendly, and he was one of the very few racehorses who didn't look like a fighter at all.
Yet on the racetrack, Oguri Cap would enter a heightened state, becoming extremely spirited and aggressive.
Even the first time he went to a central race, he had trembled excessively just before entering the starting gate. Tens of thousands of spectators had witnessed that moment.
At first, everyone thought the "Cinderella" from the local tracks was just scared. But after Oguri Cap won by a massive three-length lead, everyone realized that the pre-race trembling was actually her inability to contain the fighting spirit inside him.
From then on, Oguri Cap's signature pre-race tremble was given a name by the audience: "warrior's shiver."
"So… that's how it is."
Kitahara suddenly shivered himself and muttered under his breath, "No wonder in the other world, Oguri Cap became famous as the 'battle-tested queen.' Besides the race schedule, she… was born for real racing, not for practice…"
His low voice was heard by Shibasaki and the others nearby. They didn't catch everything, so they instinctively asked:
"Huh? Kitahara, what did you say?"
"Are you talking about Oguri Cap? Something about 'battle…'? Hey, the one at the starting line should be Oguri Cap, right?"
"Should be. Among this year's Uma Musume, besides Fujimasa March, Oguri Cap is the only Silver Haired Uma Musume."
The one giving the affirmative answer was Shibasaki, who was most familiar with Fujimasa March. His gaze shifted to the starting line, and his sharp eyes changed quickly.
"Huh? What about Uma Musume next to Oguri Cap?"
Hearing this, Kawamura Hiyori and Gen Yui hurriedly looked over, and Kitahara quickly moved the telescope as well.
Before they could clearly see, a loud shout came from the starting point of the training track:
"Start!"
A figure like a gust of wind and the pounding sound of hooves came again from the gate. Almost instantly, Kitahara and the others' faces changed.
"Ah! Oguri Cap misstepped at the start!"
"What kind of mistake is that?! How could she stop and bend down?! What's she doing?!"
"…Kitahara, don't tell me you taught her some strange starting method?"
Shibasaki and the others were shocked and puzzled, but Kitahara ignored them, staring at Oguri Cap on the track with intense concern.
The other racehorses in training had already taken off, yet Oguri Cap was crouched on the ground, as if tying her shoelaces!
Or maybe it wasn't just Oguri Cap—another horse remained next to her: a cute-faced Belno Light, who had previously been the only one willing to approach Oguri Cap.
Through the telescope, Belno Light looked worriedly at Oguri Cap, speaking to her anxiously. Kitahara was certain that his own emotions and expressions far exceeded those of Belno Light.
"…What the heck is going on, Oguri Cap…"
Kitahara couldn't help but call out anxiously.
Now Shibasaki and the others heard him clearly. Shibasaki was the first to react, turning to look at Kitahara and hesitantly saying:
"Kitahara, your Uma Musume… might give you some trouble…"
Shibasaki hadn't finished, but Kawamura Hiyori, Gen Yui, and the racehorses and teachers on the track interrupted him with exclamations:
"Wow, so fast!!"
"What speed is that?!"
"No way?!"
Kitahara didn't respond to Shibasaki. His astonishment matched anyone else's on the track.
Still holding the telescope, the clear view it provided left him in disbelief. The silver-gray figure dashing across the track at lightning speed was the same Oguri Cap from a few days ago's practice.
It wasn't that Oguri Cap's practice times were slow—whether on grass or dirt, she could consistently run around 15 meters per second, as fast as a gust of wind.
But the current Oguri Cap made "gust of wind" seem far too weak a description.
One second she was crouched tying her shoelaces; the next, she had shot forward ten meters. The wind she created nearly knocked Belno Light over.
In a blink, she caught up with the front horses. In another blink, she had overtaken the last one!
…Ha ha…
Unconsciously, Kitahara let out a laugh, almost like panting, as thoughts swirled in his mind:
So this is… the Grey Haired monster…
Her knees were soft enough to allow a crouching start, completely defying the common knowledge that racehorses couldn't start from such a low position…
This allowed her to maintain an ultra-low, forward-leaning posture while sprinting…
Reducing wind resistance and using less energy while going faster…
Even starting several seconds late, she could overtake one… two… eventually all of the racehorses…
"First place…"
"Time: 51.1 seconds!"
The teacher at the finish line shouted the result of the mock race—Oguri Cap's result.
"51.1" was slightly slower than Fujimasa March's 50.8 seconds. Unlike the cheers for Fujimasa March, Shibasaki and the others watching silently, as did the teachers and Uma Musume.
Because they all saw that despite starting several seconds late, Oguri Cap still ran first, finishing in 51.1 seconds.
In other words, if she had started normally, Oguri Cap would have been faster than Fujimasa March by a noticeable margin!
Almost everyone thought so.
Kitahara exhaled deeply from his heart:
Got it. Completely got it. For Oguri Cap, when she runs alone in practice, she runs just because she enjoys it. She works hard, yes, but her real stage… is the racetrack!
Suddenly, a voice, somewhat enigmatic, interrupted his thoughts:
"You… are Oguri Cap's trainer?"
Instinctively lowering the telescope, Kitahara looked toward the voice and casually replied:
"Ah, yes. I'm Kitahara Jo. You are…"
In front of him was long, smooth silver-gray hair and a delicate, serious face almost dripping with emotion.
Clearly a Silver Gray Haired Uma Musume, but not Oguri Cap—it was Fujimasa March.
"Kitahara Jo, huh? Okay, I'll remember that."
With that, she turned and left.