With the announcer's declaration, the winner of this race was decided.
The stadium fell silent.
It wasn't that they had any objections to the outcome.
Quite the opposite.
The result of this race seemed preordained from the very beginning.
The moment that girl took her first strides, the instant the raindrops hung suspended in the air—
People already knew.
They stayed silent only because they didn't know what to say.
Cheering, applauding, shouting the victor's name?
Too crude.
Everything they could imagine felt far too crude.
Such gestures were utterly insufficient to express the awe this race had stirred in them.
Three thousand meters—two girls ran with a Great Escape, crossing the finish line without ever slowing down.
Since the establishment of the Twinkle Series, no one had ever achieved such a feat.
This was a contest that completely discarded tactics and strategy, relying purely on speed.
A contest that devoted life itself entirely to the run.
How noble.
How beautiful.
How sublime.
Clap—!
A crisp sound of applause broke out in the racecourse.
As if finding an outlet for their pent-up emotions, more and more hands joined in.
People set down their umbrellas, letting the rain pour over them.
They began to applaud.
Louder and louder, growing in strength…
Spectators rose from their seats, their gazes fixed on the two figures who had crossed the finish line.
They hadn't stopped—they were still running.
As if the race that belonged to them wasn't over yet.
If one were to ask which Uma Musume could symbolize this era,
Then without a doubt.
This era belonged to two shades of black.
The Ghost, and the Beast.
A pairing that seemed impossible, yet miraculously came together—and somehow felt as if it was always meant to be.
Wordless applause swelled within the curtain of rain.
Bathed in this solemn tribute, on the track, Narita Brian's body suddenly swayed.
'Oh no…'
Up in the observation deck, Symboli Rudolf's heart dropped.
She spun around and rushed for the door.
Maruzensky nearby noticed the problem too and followed Symboli Rudolf out.
"Medical team!"
Just outside, spotting several staff members in the hallway, Rudolf threw decorum aside and shouted, "Contact the medical team immediately! Someone on the track needs emergency aid!"
They hadn't received any notice of an accident on the track, but seeing it was Rudolf who came to them, the staff didn't dare delay and immediately alerted the medical department to send help to the course.
"Rudolf, try to calm down first—"
Maruzensky called from behind.
"They're on standby at the track—they're already on their way."
Hearing that, Rudolf paused for a moment.
"Sorry, Maruzen…"
She took a deep breath.
Just now, when Narita Brian's body swayed, her stride had abruptly changed rhythm.
Normally, it would be nothing noteworthy. But under these circumstances, it struck Rudolf with a sense of foreboding.
Her experience told her that something was wrong with Narita Brian's condition…
Truthfully, Rudolf had sensed it earlier.
No Uma Musume should have been able to run the [Kikuka-sho] with a Great Escape from start to finish.
Narita Brian's performance had broken the historical record of the race—she had surpassed the limits of what an Uma Musume was thought capable of.
But at what cost?
To break through limits, to transcend the known boundaries, to reach such a perfect state—
What price must their mortal flesh pay to obtain such power?
Rudolf couldn't bear to think about it.
Unleashing one's full potential consumes spirit energy; it places an extreme burden on the body. Repeating it multiple times could even cause physical harm.
And what Narita Brian had displayed went far beyond that known threshold.
Though there's no term among Uma Musume for something beyond that state, clearly, Narita Brian's ability was on an entirely different level from the ordinary.
That form—it was as if she was using her very flesh and life as fuel.
Burning without restraint…
Please be alright, Brian!
Rudolf clenched her fists and quickened her pace.
--+--
So tired.
Too tired to even open her eyes.
The hunting grounds had vanished.
Everything around her had turned gray once again.
Her body felt as if a huge chunk had been hollowed out, leaving only bones connecting skin and flesh, barely holding her form together.
Arms, legs, waist, ankles…
Her muscles seemed to have turned to cotton—weak, powerless, beyond her control.
As if they no longer belonged to her.
The pack of wolves surrounding her body let out long, mournful howls and slowly began to move.
They started walking away, out of the pack.
Where are you going?
Narita Brian asked.
No answer.
They seemed headed for somewhere very far away, gradually moving beyond her reach.
Then.
One wolf collapsed, its body dissolving into the gray world.
Soon, another fell.
One by one, as they left Narita Brian's side, the wolves lay down on the ground.
Their forms vanished into the hazy gray surroundings.
Hey, what's wrong with you?
Narita Brian opened her mouth, and a sudden, indescribable metallic taste flooded up from within.
Pain…
Twisting pain, splitting pain, burning pain, throbbing pain!
A tidal wave of agony surged from deep inside her.
Like a bomb detonating in her kidneys.
Every muscle, every inch of bone, was screaming.
Her brain felt filled with boiling glue—her thoughts muddled and scattered.
Only the word "pain" remained, stamped in bloody letters across her mind.
The intense suffering threw Narita Brian off balance; the world spun before her eyes.
Thud!
As the last wolf collapsed and dissolved into the air, Narita Brian fell too.
A distant, drawn-out voice reached her ears.
"Cool her down, now! Water—where's the water? Hurry—!"
"Her body can't take much more!"
"They're fetching the nearest water source!"
"Too slow—we need to cool her down fast—"
"There's alcohol here."
"Quick, bring it over!"
"Open it, spray it on her legs."
A soothing chill eased some of the unbearable pain.
But for Narita Brian, it was far from enough.
"Not enough—the alcohol's too slow…"
"Here, water!"
"Get her to the hospital—when's the ambulance arriving?"
"Five minutes at the earliest."
"Keep cooling her—!"
The voices grew blurry.
As if coming from somewhere far, far away.
Narita Brian forced her heavy eyelids open.
She saw a crowd of people gathered around her, holding something, spraying it over her body again and again.
Amidst the skull-splitting pain, a hint of coolness spread.
What's… happening to me?
Her thoughts were murky, her gaze unfocused.
Slowly, her eyes drifted over the blurred, unfamiliar faces.
"Narita Brian—are you awake? How do you feel?"
"Just hang on a little longer—the ambulance is almost here!"
Their voices sounded muffled, as if wrapped in thick cloth—devoid of any sense of reality.
Gradually, Narita Brian's gaze settled on a dark figure standing not far away in the curtain of rain.
She couldn't see clearly.
But she knew who it was.
"Ah…"
She tried to lift her hand but couldn't move even a finger.
She tried to speak, but no sound came out.
As if noticing Narita Brian's attempt to say something, the figure slowly approached.
In this blurred world, only her form remained sharp and clear.
A pale face, set against golden eyes.
Narita Brian stared at her.
"You—stay back!"
Frightened voices rose from those around.
The members of the medical team still remembered the eerie sight of her emerging from… wherever she had come from.
They didn't know what kind of being she was and instinctively moved to shield Narita Brian, shouting for her to stop.
But she paid them no mind, walking straight to Narita Brian's side.
The girl leaned down, meeting Narita Brian's gaze.
Her lips, pale and almost bloodless, trembled slightly, emitting a faint, choked sound.
She couldn't speak.
But the girl understood what she meant.
"Ah…"
She nodded.
"It was a good race," she said, straightening up.
"Narita Brian… are you satisfied?"
The girl asked.
Through the pain, the corner of Narita Brian's mouth twitched faintly upward.
She managed a stiff, strained smile.
Yes.
She was satisfied—more than she had ever been before.
The wail of an ambulance pierced the air as it rushed into the grounds. Medics carrying a stretcher jumped out.
Seeing the crowd encircling the two girls, the medical staff paused for a second.
"What are you waiting for?!"
The girl snapped.
"Take her away! Carefully, respectfully—take her away—!"
Those golden eyes, fierce as a primordial beast, fixed on them.
A chill ran down their spines; their bodies stiffened.
Moving with the utmost care, they lifted Narita Brian onto the stretcher.
The scorching heat of her skin made every face tighten with concern.
Once Narita Brian was loaded into the ambulance, the vehicle sped off, its siren fading into the distance. And with that, this unprecedented [Kikuka-sho] came to a complete close.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.