"It's the Ohi Racecourse, with a light drizzle. The 11th race, the 2000-meter G1 on dirt, the Teio Sho, is about to begin. The track condition has been announced as 'heavy'."
"It's past 8 p.m., but many horse girl fans have flocked to the area outside the racecourse today. According to a URA announcement, nearly 300,000 people have gathered despite it being a weekday."
The fanfare echoes, and the live commentator and color commentator speak. A murmur spreads at the commentator's mention of 300,000 people.
It seems over 200,000 people have gathered, even excluding those who were able to enter the Ohi Racecourse. While it's nowhere near the number from the Takarazuka Kinen, it's a number that would usually gather for a turf G1 race.
The Ohi Racecourse is a flat dirt course. In the case of the 2000-meter Teio Sho, it's a right-handed course, and the starting position is near the exit of the fourth corner. From there, they will run one lap on the outer course and aim for the goal on the home stretch.
From the center of the stands, they will start from the course on the right and run to the goal on the left. There are no hills, so you could say it's similar to the course of the Takarazuka Kinen.
(The track condition is heavy...)
The rain that had been drizzling since morning has finally settled down to a light drizzle. I can see the rain from the lights of the night-race equipment, but at least there's little danger of the rain blocking their view or getting in their eyes.
However, Urara and the others waiting near the starting gate are already soaked from the rain to the point where their racing clothes are damp. I could see them preparing from the stands, stretching and lightly stomping their feet in place to keep their bodies from getting cold.
The temperature itself is quite high, and it's muggy. Still, being hit directly by the rain will cause their body temperature to drop, so they have to be careful.
Even in the paddock and now, as they wait by the gate, Urara and Smart Falcon haven't exchanged any words. It's as if words are no longer necessary...
(...Hmm?)
From a distance, I could see Urara repeating actions like taking a deep breath and tensing and relaxing her body. That's... oh, I see...
(Is that what I taught her a long time ago...?)
It's what I taught Urara when she couldn't stop trembling with fighting spirit from morning before the maiden race she won. Did she remember it even now...? No, she's done it a few times before.
She had an accident in her debut race and couldn't win a maiden race, but she kept moving forward and won for the first time. Now, she's wearing her racing clothes and is about to run a race in front of countless spectators.
"Gate 3, Stall 5, Sulayem. 3rd favorite."
The horse girls are entering the gate starting with odd numbers, and Sulayem enters the gate. Hearing her introduction, I watched Urara intently.
"Gate 5, Stall 9, Smart Falcon. 2nd favorite."
"Three-time G1 winner on dirt, 2nd place in the Saudi Cup. 'The Sand Falcon' Smart Falcon. She's the 2nd favorite this time. However, she's almost tied with the 1st favorite and is a very distant 2nd favorite from the 3rd favorite and below. We'll be watching to see if she can win this race and become the 'Emperor of the Sand'."
I glanced over and saw Smart Falcon waving stiffly to the crowd.
"Good luck, Smart Falcon!"
"Get 1st place again today!"
"Something's off with Smart Falcon, isn't it?"
"She's not her usual self..."
"Farl-kooooooooooooooo! Go, Farl-koooooooo!"
At Smart Falcon's reaction, the crowd's cheers and confused voices flew out.
"Gate 2, Stall 4, Haru Urara. 1st favorite."
"Perhaps influenced by her victory in the February Stakes, she's the 1st favorite, pushing Smart Falcon to second! Two-time G1 winner! The record breaker, Haru Urara! We'll be watching to see if she can win this race and tie Smart Falcon with three G1 wins!"
With that introduction, Urara, who had been repeatedly taking deep breaths to relax, smiled brightly. And as if to show her determination, she clenched her right fist and jumped in place, pushing it up into the air.
"She looked so mature in the paddock, but she's still Haru Urara, isn't she..."
"Go for it, Urara-chan!"
"Thank you for always giving us energyyyyyyy!"
I think I heard an auditory hallucination like "Go, Urara!" but the spectators were laughing, cheering, and showing various reactions at Urara's actions.
And the gate entry proceeded smoothly. When the last horse girl entered the gate, the sounds from the stands gradually faded, and only the sound of a light rain and the sea breeze began to echo through the Ohi Racecourse.
"All horse girls have entered the gate... And they've started!"
With the sound of the gates opening, the horse girls all charged out at once.
"They got a beautiful and clean start. The one who takes the lead first is... as expected, this horse girl, No. 9 Smart Falcon. She's followed by No. 2 Heart Caesar, No. 12 Sword Dramatic, and No. 16 Dragoon Spear."
"All the horse girls got a clean start, but Smart Falcon's start was the cleanest."
"Following the frontrunner are No. 3 Pristine Song, No. 7 Missing Knights, No. 8 Unison Flag, No. 13 Mini Daisy... and No. 4 Haru Urara, who's good at late pushes, is already in the leading group. They're followed by No. 11 Insight Catch and No. 14 Shorty Shot."
It's right after the start, so there's not a big gap. Still, the gap is gradually widening according to each of their running styles.
"Smart Falcon in the lead is accelerating. She's already pulling away from the other frontrunners by 2 to 3 lengths."
Smart Falcon, who got a clean start, is sprinting ahead like a true frontrunner.
She's running down the home stretch for about 500 meters to the 1st corner. She's running with a beautiful form, at a speed that seems to be pushing away the falling rain.
The heavy track, where the sand has hardened from the rain, makes it easier to pick up speed than a good track. With every kick of the dirt, Smart Falcon's body accelerates, and her form as she moves forward is just like Twin Turbo's.
"Smart Falcon, No. 9, is entering the 1st corner in the lead, pulling the rest of the field along. There's already a gap of nearly 10 lengths from the frontrunner to the back."
"When and how will they catch the running Smart Falcon...? It's easy to say, but her pace is so good that it would be hard to do it even if you tried."
"The rest of the field, No. 2 Heart Caesar, No. 12 Sword Dramatic, and No. 16 Dragoon Spear, are about 4 lengths behind, fighting for second place. The leading group is No. 3 Pristine Song, No. 7 Missing Knights, No. 8 Unison Flag, No. 13 Mini Daisy... and No. 4 Haru Urara, who's good at late pushes, has already moved into the leading group. They're followed by No. 11 Insight Catch and No. 14 Shorty Shot."
She's not as fast as Smart Falcon, who is still running away, but Urara is also increasing her speed from the beginning. Still, since there are many horse girls who specialize in leading or frontrunning, she's still in ninth place.
When your opponent is Smart Falcon, who never slows down until the end, you have to get to the front. Urara is judging the positions of the horse girls in front of her, and when a gap appears, she accelerates and expertly slips through it.
(...She couldn't do that in the past.)
Watching Urara's run, I couldn't help but think that.
She must have learned how to mark someone or get into a favorable position from Rice. If I had trained her alone, she might have remained clumsy, but having Rice, a perfect role model, by her side, helped her grow even more.
Of course, the other horse girls are also blocking her and limiting her path so she won't pass them. Still, Urara doesn't fall for their feints. Instead, she sees through them and moves forward... No, it's not that she's seeing through their feints; it might be her unique intuition. She goes for it when she feels she can and doesn't when she feels she can't.
"Smart Falcon, No. 9, in the lead, is passing the 2nd corner and heading onto the back stretch. The rest of the field is passing the corner about 5 lengths behind her."
"Smart Falcon is running a good pace, but the rest of the field is also accelerating... The gap that was widening at the start is now harder to increase."
They must have decided that Smart Falcon would run away with the race if they didn't do something. As the commentator said, the horse girls, including Urara, are increasing their pace.
"Smart Falcon, running on the back stretch, has passed the 1000-meter mark. The time is... 57.9 seconds?"
"That's... even if it's easier to get a good time on a heavy track than a good track, that's a fast time, even compared to a turf race..."
The commentator reads the 1000-meter time with a hint of confusion. Even though it's easier to get a good time on a heavy track, it's an incredible pace.
In the Japan Dirt Derby, Smart Falcon's time was 58.8 seconds on a good track. Back then, Urara couldn't keep up with that speed and was so flustered that it was obvious even during the race.
(That's right... that won't happen a second time, Urara.)
The distance is long, so it's hard to tell for sure, but Urara's face doesn't seem to show any panic. Compared to last year's Japan Dirt Derby, Urara has even more stamina now, and she knows just how amazing Smart Falcon's pace is.
Back then, there was a gap of over 10 lengths between Urara and Smart Falcon. But now... it's about 6 to 7 lengths by my guess.
"The one who's moving up in the middle of the race is... Haru Urara, No. 4, is now at the front of the leading group. She's right on the back of the frontrunner, Dragoon Spear, No. 16."
"That's... Haru Urara is aiming for it. And Sulayem, who was at the back, also seems to be gradually accelerating after the 1000-meter mark."
When your opponent is Smart Falcon, it's almost impossible to accelerate at the final straight and overtake her. Even if you want to beat Smart Falcon, who doesn't slow down and even accelerates at the end, a normal late push won't be enough to reach her.
It's naturally not just Urara who understands that.
(She's making a move...)
Seeing Sulayem, who had been at the back, start to accelerate, I leaned forward.
Like Urara, or even more so than Urara, Sulayem is a late bloomer. She kept competing even after Urara won her maiden race, finally won a maiden race herself, and then she ran in the G3 Unicorn Stakes.
Her passion and feelings for racing must be far beyond that of an average horse girl.
So, it might have been inevitable that this race would turn out this way.
"Now, Smart Falcon in the lead is entering the 3rd corner. And here comes Haru Urara! She's still a ways away from the 600-meter marker, but she's moving up! And from the back, Sulayem is also moving up with a long sprint!"
Both Urara and Sulayem are making their moves not at the final straight but at the stage of entering the 3rd corner from the back stretch.
If they let Smart Falcon run at her own pace until the final straight, they won't be able to reach her. That's why they have to make a long sprint—a simple move, but one that requires a difficult balance of stamina and timing. Without it, they won't reach Smart Falcon.
When you say "long sprint," you have to calculate how much stamina and distance you have left until the goal, who is running in front of you, how many there are, what kind of course they're taking, and what the gap is to the frontrunner.
They have to calculate all of that and adjust their pace so that their stamina lasts, they can maintain their top speed as much as possible, and ideally, their stamina runs out the moment they cross the finish line.
Can they coolly and accurately make their move while running at a speed of 60 to 70 kilometers per hour and judging the rapidly changing race? Or can they push through even if they make a mistake in timing, like Rice, who has an extraordinary amount of stamina?
Just because they make a late push over a long distance doesn't mean it's a successful long sprint. It's perfectly possible for their stamina to run out and for them to reverse course before they reach the goal.
Sulayem probably made her long sprint after a meticulous calculation. She made her move at the timing when her stamina would last just barely until the end and when she could get the most speed.
And Urara probably made her move not based on calculation but on intuition. She didn't calculate the timing to make her move based on her stamina and speed; she made her move the moment she felt she could win.
Even so, her intuition isn't a random guess. It's an intuition that she's honed by running alongside Rice for a year and a half and King for a year in training. There are differences between turf and dirt, but even against the superior Rice and King, Urara sometimes wins in training.
And this is just a guess, but Urara has a measuring stick that I don't. Just like when I asked her what horse girl we should be wary of in this year's Osaka Hai, she named Oishii Parfait.
That Urara made her move. She judged that this was the moment of truth and sprinted all at once.
"They're passing the 3rd corner and heading into the 4th! Smart Falcon is still running strong! But here she comes! Haru Urara is moving up! She's slowly closing the distance to the running Falcon! The gap is now 3 lengths!"
Little by little, the sound of the horse girls running on the dirt gets closer. The sound of their running, like an earthquake, comes in waves, not losing to the cheers of tens of thousands of spectators.
"They've passed the 4th corner and are finally in the final straight! The leader is still Smart Falcon! Can she hold on for the last 400 meters!? Or will the rest of the field catch her!? Haru Urara is closing in on her back! And even more! Sulayem is moving up! The closing horse girl is already accelerating at full throttle!"
In the final 400-meter straight, a late-push horse girl is closing in on the frontrunner, 2 lengths behind. Normally, this would be a situation where victory is strongly anticipated. But the one in the lead is Smart Falcon.
An average horse girl would never be able to win three G1s.
"Haru Urara, who's moved up, is passing Smart Falcon... no, she can't!? Smart Falcon is accelerating even more here!? She's pulling away from Haru Urara by just a little, little bit with her incredible pace!?"
"She should have used up her stamina by running so much... No, it's not that her stamina is amazing; it's that Smart Falcon is an amazing horse girl. Stamina, speed, power, guts... I never thought a horse girl like this would appear in a Japanese dirt race..."
The commentator screams excitedly, and the color commentator murmurs in admiration.
The moment it seemed like she would be in a close battle with Urara, Smart Falcon shows even more speed. The sight of it must be both surprising and despairing. Just when you think you've caught up to the frontrunner, she accelerates again and pulls away.
But I don't care about that. Urara accelerates as if to say, "If you pull away, I'll just catch you."
"The gap between Smart Falcon and Haru Urara is shrinking again! But what about this!? Can she reach her!? She's just passed the 200-meter marker! What about Sulayem who's flying in from the back!? Is it too hard for her!?"
Sulayem is a late-push and a finisher. And there's a difference in starting position when they make their long sprints, between Urara, who had closed the distance to Smart Falcon in the middle of the race, and Sulayem, who had been at the back.
Sulayem might be better at making a final push and overtaking from the back, but today's race has a full gate of 16. It seems that Sulayem's fatigue was greater from having to pass so many horse girls while accelerating.
"Smart Falcon and Haru Urara are side by side! Less than 100 meters to go! They're side by side now! Who will win!?"
Both Urara and Smart Falcon are running desperately. There's no smile or room to spare on their faces. They're trying their best to reach the goal even one step ahead, thinking only about beating the rival running next to them.
"URARAAAAAAA! GO, DON'T STOP!"
I leaned over the fence and screamed. Both Urara and Smart Falcon were so desperate and so focused that it was questionable if they could even hear the cheers of the crowd.
Seeing them running so hard, I took a breath, trying to scream again. Urara's body, which was running so hard that it was kicking up sand behind her, was just a little bit ahead of Smart Falcon's.
She was clenching her teeth, sweating, swinging both arms, and kicking the ground with both feet. She was moving forward, forward.
Urara was running as if to say, "I want to beat you, my rival." She was running, competing, and aiming for the goal in sight.
Smart Falcon also shows more speed—but Urara shows even more.
"With only a little left to the goal, Haru Urara has passed!? Has she passed her!? She's just barely passed her!? Haru Urara and Smart Falcon cross the finish line side by side!"
The moment they crossed the finish line, the sound disappeared from the Ohi Racecourse. And after a brief moment of silence, the cheers exploded.
There wasn't enough of a gap to confidently say who won, Urara or Smart Falcon, but...
Urara, who had crossed the finish line, put her hands on her knees and was desperately trying to catch her breath, as if she were choking. Smart Falcon didn't seem to be trying to catch her breath as desperately as Urara... or rather, what is she doing...?
"Third place, a little behind, is Sulayem! She's followed by Heart Caesar, about 3 lengths back. And coming in from the back is Musha Musha, who slips into 5th place."
Even as I listened to the commentator's voice, I watched Smart Falcon with confusion. Her chest was rising and falling as she tried to catch her breath, but she was looking up at the sky and not moving.
At the sight of Smart Falcon, the cheering crowd started to murmur. Did she get hurt, is she not able to move, what's wrong with her? I could hear these voices, but maybe...
(...Is she crying?)
Smart Falcon was looking up at the dark sky and shedding large tears that couldn't be hidden by the rain.
Tears fell, one after another, down her cheeks and off her chin onto the ground, as she sobbed. At the same time, she was desperately trying to make a smile with her face.
"The order has been confirmed. First place, No. 4, Haru Urara. The winning time is 2 minutes, 0.8 seconds... r-record! The record breaker, Haru Urara! She's achieved her fifth race record here! Her first G1 record!"
At the commentator's words, the amount of tears overflowing from Smart Falcon's eyes increased.
She no longer seemed to care about hiding it, or perhaps she no longer felt the need to, as large tears fell to the ground with the rain as she looked down.
It was the first time I had seen Smart Falcon like this. The spectators' voices changed from confusion to voices of understanding.
"Smart Falcon... she must have been so frustrated..."
"But she was also doing a street performance just three days before the race..."
"Did she think she could win with that?"
Most of the voices were praising the race and cheering. But if I listened closely, I could hear those other voices too.
And if I could hear them, a horse girl could hear them too.
But before Smart Falcon could react, Urara made her move.
Urara hugged Smart Falcon tightly from the front. And she gently patted her back with both arms she had wrapped around her.
I wonder what she thought when she saw Urara. I could see Sulayem, who came in third place, 2 lengths behind Smart Falcon, take a deep sigh while she was catching her breath. And she reached out to Smart Falcon and ruffled her head.
Urara and Sulayem are saying something to Smart Falcon. It's too loud with the cheers, so I can't hear anything, but from the atmosphere and their lip movements... did Urara say, "You did your best"?
I feel like her lip movements and the number of letters don't quite match, but she probably said something similar. Smart Falcon's movements stop for a moment, and she shakes and hugs Urara back.
Tears were still falling from Smart Falcon's eyes as she was hugged by Urara. As I watched this, I tilted my head.
(Did her expression change...?)
Maybe it's just my imagination, but I feel like Smart Falcon's expression has changed to that of a girl her age. Maybe it's just because she's crying, or maybe the tension that she had been holding on to has finally been released.
The mask that Smart Falcon had been wearing seemed to crumble away with her tears.
—That's how it looked.
--------------------------------------------
🚀 Want INSTANT Access & Bonus Content?
"Loving this story so far? You can read ALL chapters RIGHT NOW by joining my P4tr3on!
✨ Unlock instant access to the full completed novel
✨ No waiting for daily updates
✨ Support your favorite degenerate author (that's me!)
Only $5.99 for the full experience!
🔗 Check my profile for the Link!!