October arrived, the autumn breeze sweeping away the lingering summer heat as chrysanthemums bloomed across the fields.
At the Kyoto Racecourse, two young men sat in the very front row of the stands alongside two little Uma Musume, Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond.
Being so young, Kitasan Black's small feet couldn't quite reach the floor.
She swung them back and forth with unprecedented excitement. If she won this Kikuka-sho, Miss Teio would become an Undefeated Triple Crown Uma Musume!
Moreover, unlike the Satsuki-sho, the attendance for the Kikuka-sho was nearly at capacity, with only a scattering of empty seats left.
Countless racing fans had flocked here to witness the final leg of the Classic Triple Crown and to cheer for Tokai Teio and Nice Nature.
This made Kitasan Black incredibly happy. A look of irrepressible joy danced on her face, and she tilted her head with a hint of pride as she glanced at the two young men.
These were the same two who, back at the Satsuki-sho, had been discussing behind the girls how Miss Teio couldn't compare to the likes of Barbatos from the previous year.
Having run into them again at the Japan Derby, they had exchanged contact info and agreed to watch the Kikuka-sho together.
"Look, the stands are almost completely full!" Kitasan Black chirped.
She didn't say it outright, but the delight and triumph in her voice were impossible to hide.
The two young men knew exactly what she meant.
They remembered their own casual remark about how Barbatos's races always had packed houses, implying a gap between Tokai Teio and Barbatos. They hadn't expected the little girl to take it to heart.
Seeing the stands nearly overflowing was indeed proof that the public had finally acknowledged the sheer talent of Tokai Teio and Nice Nature.
However... they kept the thought to themselves that Barbatos's races were only "full" because the stands physically couldn't hold any more people.
Neither of them voiced this, though. After watching Tokai Teio's many performances and being swept up in Kitasan Black's infectious energy, they had grown fond of the spirited girl.
They wouldn't dream of withholding their support now.
If Tokai Teio had competed in the Triple Crown last year, her name would surely have been etched alongside the "Golden Generation." Besides, her Winner's Stage performances were a pure Masterclass in entertainment.
Furthermore, Mejiro McQueen—who had lost the Spring Tenno Sho—was certainly no slouch either.
Even though she had lost to Special Week, she still towered over the rest of the field. They both felt Team Spica had struck absolute gold.
In a team like Canopus, it was common to see a "two superstars, many strong, mostly average" dynamic.
Yet Spica and Rigil seemed to produce nothing but the elite.
The two youths began to wonder if the yet-to-debut members of Spica were all geniuses, or if their trainer, Okino, was actually some kind of coaching prodigy.
As they chatted, the race drew near.
The moment Tokai Teio, Nice Nature, and the others stepped into the starting gates, Kitasan Black leaped from her seat and scrambled up to the railing.
The two men behind her were long since used to this routine.
Clack! The gates swung open, and the Uma Musume lunged forward.
"What do you think the odds are of Tokai Teio taking the crown?" one youth whispered to his companion.
It was better not to let Kitasan Black overhear this.
They didn't think there was anything wrong with her unwavering faith in Teio, but her enthusiasm was so contagious it threatened to cloud their own professional judgment.
"The number of Uma Musume in history who have achieved the Triple Crown can be counted on one hand," the slightly plump youth in glasses replied, offering his characteristically sharp, clinical insight.
"Last year gave us Barbatos and Seiun Sky simultaneously, but that doesn't mean the Triple Crown is easy. Based on historical data, Teio's win probability is only 30%."
He had a deep, analytical understanding of the sport and planned to apply for a race commentator position after finishing his studies.
"Go, Miss Teio! Kick it into high gear!"
Clinging to the railing, Kitasan Black let out a roar like a tiny dragon. On the track, Tokai Teio happened to be galloping right past their section of the stands.
Swept up by her shouting and the thunderous roar of the crowd, the two young men—and Satono Diamond—stopped talking. All their focus shifted to the turf, their eyes locked onto the shifting tides of the race.
Nice Nature was currently at the front, setting a blistering pace as the front-runner.
Leading the pack wasn't Nice Nature's usual style, but it was the strategy she and Minamizaka had calculated as the best fit for the Kikuka-sho.
Having endured the crucible of last year's races, her understanding of the "Lead" position was as sharp as any runner who had debuted this year.
In last year's G1 circuit, mastering the lead was a survival skill; otherwise, you'd never even see the leader's shadow, let alone hope for a podium finish.
At the Japan Derby, Nice Nature had lost to Tokai Teio by a hair in a contest of closing speed.
Now, at the Kikuka-sho, she would dictate the pace. By the final straight, she hoped to use that margin to suppress Teio's explosive late kick.
Besides, Teio lacked experience in the Kikuka-sho's grueling distance; there was a real chance she could be baited into ruining her rhythm by following Nice Nature's lead.
Teio is truly strong, Nice Nature thought. Though it felt a bit self-important to say, in a way, Teio had become her true rival.
Feeling her stamina still surging, she gritted her teeth. I can do this!
They rounded the third bend and approached the fourth. Tokai Teio saw her opening and surged forward with her signature "Teio Step," her light frame seemingly ready to take flight.
"?"
A sudden pang of unease struck Teio's heart.
She felt it—her acceleration wasn't as powerful or as nimble as it had been during the Satsuki-sho or the Derby. It felt as though weights had been tied to her legs, making every stride feel sluggish.
The gap between her and Nice Nature wasn't closing.
Urgh...
The sound her body instinctively wanted to make was forced back down. Her thirst for victory, her longing to stand tall like Symboli Rudolf, her dream of the Undefeated Triple Crown...
None of it allowed her to lose speed here.
Yet the distance between her and Nice Nature looked like an uncrossable chasm. The short stretch of the final straight seemed to stretch into eternity.
Even though Okino had made her run long distances every day in training, the reality of a long-distance race was a different beast entirely.
The timing and stamina management were worlds apart from the middle-distance races she knew.
"I won't let it end like this!"
Tokai Teio bit her lip hard, forcing her legs to hold the line.
She still wanted to race against McQueen and Special Week at the Arima Kinen! She wanted to enter this year's Winter Dream Cup and show the President just how far she'd come!
Suddenly, crimson flames, like the plumage of a phoenix, erupted around her. In an instant, her pupils flared and shattered with intensity.
[Grand Entrance]
To Teio, the world seemed to grind to a halt. It was as if time itself had frozen.
She didn't look at the stands, and she didn't look at the other Uma Musume. In Tokai Teio's eyes, there was only the finish line.
In the stands, a deafening wave of applause broke out, cheering the birth of a new Triple Crown legend.
At the final moment, Tokai Teio had turned the impossible into a reality, snatching the crown with a miracle finish.
At the finish line, Teio gasped for air, feeling completely drained, yet soaking in the jubilant roars meant only for a victor.
"Teio, I'm winning next time," Nice Nature said, walking over gracefully after losing by a mere quarter-length.
"Hehe, Nature... I'm not planning on losing if I want to stay undefeated!"
Nice Nature smiled back and turned away, having expected that exact answer. Then, her voice softened. "Anyway... congratulations on the Triple Crown."
She had wanted to warn Teio that if she truly wanted to stay undefeated, she should skip the Arima Kinen.
But the words stayed in her throat.
She knew Teio wasn't the type to ever back down from a fight.
--+--
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.