"Nice Nature, right?"
Though it was phrased as a question, the tone was one of certainty.
Hearing the horse girl in front of her suddenly call out her name, Nice Nature was at a loss. She nervously fiddled with her already curly hair and said, "Oh, uh, yeah. Do you know me?"
At her question, the other horse girl suddenly smiled. "I've heard of you. You're a very 'nice' horse girl."
"Eh?! M-me? No, no, that's not true. I'm just an ordinary horse girl."
Suddenly praised, Nice Nature's cheeks flushed red. She couldn't stop twirling her fingers in her hair, her gaze darting about.
Unexpectedly, the other horse girl didn't let her off the hook, continuing, "Nice Nature. It's a name that suits you well."
Seeing Nice Nature's face, now so red it looked like steam might rise from it, she let out a light laugh, patted her shoulder, and walked towards the starting gate alone.
"Who just walks up to a stranger and praises them like that? I don't know if she's just dense or a little mean," Nice Nature muttered to herself, covering her face as she watched the conspicuous red ribbon disappear into the gray rain.
Celestial Weave, of course, didn't hear Nice Nature's muttering. She had only spoken her truest thoughts.
In the resets of the initial mission, this shy horse girl had managed to secure third place every single time. If that wasn't considered 'nice,' then Celestial Weave truly didn't know what was.
After returning to reality and seeing Nice Nature once again walking towards her, Celestial Weave couldn't help but offer a few words of encouragement to this horse girl who, despite her talent, was prone to self-deprecation.
To possess such strength, she must have trained hard. Celestial Weave admired people who worked hard. Such people deserved to be acknowledged.
Arriving at the starting gate, Celestial Weave glanced around and looked up at the gray sky.
This Tokyo Racecourse, this sky... it was time to put an end to it.
"All racers, to your gates!"
With the familiar, passionate call of the commentator in her ear, Celestial Weave entered the gate.
Meanwhile, in a VIP room at the Tokyo Racecourse, a tall horse girl with long chestnut hair and a white, crescent-moon-shaped bang similar to Tokai Teio's, dressed in a Tracen Academy uniform, was also watching the rain-soaked track.
"The esteemed student council president, skipping her work to watch a debut race?" a voice said, laced with displeasure.
Behind her stood another tall horse girl in a Tracen uniform, this one with medium-length black hair.
"I have high hopes for her," the one called the president replied without turning around, her eyes fixed on the track.
"A horse girl who can make the 'Emperor' skip work must be a once-in-a-generation genius." The displeasure in the black-haired girl's voice intensified as the president failed to even turn her head.
The president, Symboli Rudolf, finally turned with a wry smile. "She sees me as her idol, after all. She would be very disappointed if I weren't here for her one and only debut race."
"Besides, she might just be the one to grasp that brilliance."
"Let me witness this moment she steps onto the stage, Air Groove."
The black-haired horse girl, Tracen's student council vice president, Air Groove, could only sigh in response. "Who can stop the Emperor once she's made up her mind?"
She paused, her tone shifting from resigned to serious.
"And what you're hoping for isn't just to watch, is it? If Teio truly does grasp that brilliance—"
Air Groove pressed her lips together, her voice becoming strained.
Opposite her, Symboli Rudolf's face was momentarily obscured by a passing dark cloud, leaving only her purple eyes, which shone with a strange light, fixed on Air Groove.
"You'll drag her onto the battlefield. Right?"
Hearing Air Groove's words, Symboli Rudolf's expression shifted into a smile completely different from before.
"Of course."
"But she looks up to you as an idol. Isn't that too cruel to her—"
"Air Groove!" Rudolf cut her off, her voice as cold as steel. "Once she steps onto the stage, she is no longer an ordinary horse girl."
"If she can grasp that brilliance, she will awaken to that desire."
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning flashed, engulfing Rudolf's form in its light. In the white glare, the light from her purple eyes shone even brighter than the lightning itself.
"The desire for the track, the desire for rivals, the desire for a true, burning competition. This is something all horse girls who can win the Triple Crown must possess."
"When the fiery emotion known as competitiveness is thrown into this furnace that forges brilliance, the losers become fuel. Only the victor can bask in the glory."
"You understand this too, don't you, Air Groove?"
The light faded in an instant, and Rudolf returned to her former self, the divine light in her purple eyes gone as if it were an illusion.
"Besides, that's a matter for after she wins the Triple Crown. There are too many uncertainties in horse racing. Even she isn't guaranteed to grasp that brilliance."
At this, Rudolf chuckled softly. "Who knows? Maybe a horse girl even more talented than Teio will emerge in this debut race."
Seeing Rudolf return to her usual self, Air Groove's stiff posture relaxed. "Please stop telling those strange, deadpan jokes."
"There's no way Teio could lose her debut race."
Rudolf just smiled, walked over to Air Groove, and pulled her to the window. "Are they really that strange?"
"Do you really not realize, President? Those jokes aren't funny at all," Air Groove replied, exasperated. It was always like this. The president of Tracen Academy seemed completely unaware of how terrible her jokes were.
Rudolf stood beside Air Groove, her gaze returning to the track. She squinted and murmured, "But... for some reason, I sense a familiar aura from the track..."
"A power that only the strongest horse girls possess. A power that even the current Tokai Teio has yet to touch... the power of a Domain."
"Is it my imagination...?"
Beside her, Air Groove turned her head. "President, what are you saying?"
Rudolf's murmuring was interrupted. She just smiled and waved her hand. "It's nothing. Maybe the rain is just getting to me."
"The race is about to start. Let's watch."
Air Groove tilted her head in confusion. The VIP room was soundproofed; she shouldn't be able to hear the rain.
-------
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