The day had finally arrived.
The relay race field filled with excitement as teams lined up before their homeroom teacher, who stood proudly in front of them with her hands clasped.
"Good morning, my dear Umamusumes!" she declared brightly.
"Today is the day you'll show your glamour and teamwork with one another. Also, supporting those participating in the upcoming school race and bringing pride to our class!"
She raised her arms dramatically.
"Remember! You are not enemies today, but friends, rivals, and fuel to push each other forward!"
"And don't fear losing," she added warmly. "Treat it as a chance to learn, to grow, and to improve yourself for the near future!"
As the speech continued, Rush stood at the front of her team, her eyes drifting across the participants, just long enough to catch Murashi nearby.
Murashi noticed—and smirked, promising she would bring the same domination as before. She would crush her.
Rush's heart skipped.
She quickly turned her attention back to the teacher, clearing her distraction, forcing her nerves down before she lost it again.
Not long after the declaration, the teams broke off to huddle up to discuss and finalize their positions.
"I think our positions are already settled, as we did a week before," Rush said, gathering her team. "This should be simple."
"But just to be sure," she added, "let's do one more roll call."
"Meshi."
"H-Here…"
"Urara!"
"Let's do our best!"
"House!"
"Present."
"Glitter!"
Silence.
Rush blinked. "…Glitter?"
No response.
They glanced around—no sign of her.
"Did anyone see Glitter today?" Rush asked fidgetedly.
"I—I didn't," Meshi said nervously.
"I saw her this morning," House replied, arms crossed, "but not after that."
Rush clenched her fists, "We need to find her," she added, "Right now."
House let out a tired sigh, waving her hand dismissively. "Just forget about it. For someone like her, it's probably better we drop it."
Rush frowned. "W-What do you mean?"
"You know Glitter hates getting sweaty," House responded.
"She's probably cooped up somewhere to skip this whole thing."
Rush's breath hitched. "Then… our team will be disqualified. And we will be forbidden to race... We can't let that happen."
"To be honest, I don't really care," House shrugged. "I didn't train, and I'm not interested. One less race, one less problem."
Rush clenched her fists. All that time, all that effort—was this really how it ended?
But she mustn't let this end, especially like this...
It was genuinely terrible...
Just as the silence became unbearable—
"I found her!"
Urara burst onto the field, practically bouncing as she dragged another girl along.
Rush's ears perked instantly. "Urara! You found Glitter?!"
Then she froze.
"…Wait. That's not Glitter."
"Nope!" Urara replied cheerfully. "Urara found this other girl instead! She asked me if there's a spot for her!"
The unfamiliar Umamusume beside her panicked and bowed repeatedly. "N-N-Nice to meet you! I-I'm Bam—Bamboo Lidden!"
"W–Wait… what?!" Rush blurted out. "Why—what happened?!"
Lidden fidgeted, words tumbling out nervously. "W-Well… two of my teammates just… ran off and left us b-by ourselves. So we th-thought we'd see if there was a group h-having the same problem…"
"Lin!"
Another Umamusume rushed up from behind, bending forward to catch her breath.
"Y-Young-san!" Lidden turned instantly, her fist hovering near her chest.
"Lin, did you find a team—" Young lifted her head, then froze. "Oh! You found one already!"
"What about you?!" Linden protested. "We promised we'd run together!"
Young straightened up and laughed awkwardly, scratching her head. "It's okay... Looks like I'm out of luck."
"But… but we trained so much…" Lidden's voice faltered.
As House saw the scene unfold, wanting to open her mouth to speak and give Young her spot instead.
But before she could—
Young noticed House and shook her head rapidly, signaling to House 'please no'.
Then, she turned back to Lidden,
"It's fine, really. I'm not that into running anyway."
"Y-Young…" Lidden whispered.
"Just remember the technique I taught you," Young said, patting her shoulder. "You'll be fine."
"What if I f-forget…?" Lidden panicked.
"Oh, shut up," Young laughed. "You know your memory's better than mine."
"Go get it, tiger."
Lidden hesitated—then nodded, fists clenched with resolve.
"I will! I'll win this fair and square… for your name—and my cousin's!"
"That's the spirit," Young grinned.
After that, Young stepped back, leaving Lidden with Rush, Urara, and the rest of the team, who stood frozen in silence, exchanging looks with one another...
All except Urara.
"Welcome to the team, Lin-chan!" Urara immediately declared brightly.
"Y–ye–yes! I'm welcomed!" Lidden blurted out.
She froze, then panicked.
"I–I–I mean—" she fumbled, hands waving frantically.
"It's okay, Lidden," Rush cut in gently. "Just calm down. We're not exactly a powerhouse team. You don't need to be nervous."
"Y–yes!" Lidden replied, nodding far too hard.
Rush clapped her hands once, refocusing everyone. "Alright then, same as discussed."
"Meshi, you're first leg."
"Y–yes…" Meshi answered softly.
"House, second."
"On it," House replied flatly.
"Third, Lidden."
"Y–yes!" Lidden straightened instantly.
"Fourth, Urara."
"Reporting for duty!" Urara saluted with enthusiasm.
"And I'll take the last leg," Rush concluded.
She looked around at them. "So… are we ready?"
After a brief pause—
"Yes!""Yeah!""Let's do it!"
Urara immediately stretched her hand out into the center. "Team cheer time!"
Rush was surprised, but she joined without hesitation. House followed after a second. Meshi timidly added her hand. Lidden hesitated—then placed hers on top.
"On three!" Urara announced. "One! Two! Three!"
They raised their hands together, and Urara shouted,
"Let's fight on!"