Chapter 15. Teio's Opponents; Oka Sho's in the Dream World
After entrusting Mejiro Ramonu's request to Assistant Grace, Shuta An returned home and continued researching the opponents Tokai Teio would face in the first Classic race of the Triple Crown season—the Satsuki Sho.
Although in the Dream World he had already competed against the dream archetypes of these Uma Musume, the real world was ultimately different from the Dream World. Because of that, Shuta An could not simply transplant his knowledge directly into reality.
If one were to ask whether he had done exactly that when writing the analysis articles for "Twinkle," then the answer would be yes—but those articles were intended for outsiders. The materials he personally prepared for the Uma Musume under his own care could never be held to the same standard.
Besides, for the ordinary readers of "Twinkle," subtle differences would never significantly affect their understanding. Looking back now, the articles Shuta An had written back then were still fundamentally accurate. At the very least, they certainly could not be called scams written solely for manuscript fees…
By the time Shuta An finished organizing the information on the four Uma Musume Tokai Teio needed to pay attention to for the Satsuki Sho, he looked up at the clock and realized it was already one in the morning.
"Even though it's only information on four opponents, this level of detailed analysis still took longer than I expected."
The young man could not help sighing softly.
"Forget it. I'll sleep for today. Starting tomorrow, I still need to analyze Dober's opponents for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes."
In Shuta An's mind, all of Mejiro Dober's pre-race preparations naturally remained top priority. There was no possibility of delaying those tasks until after he returned to Australia. In his view, that behavior was no different from someone who procrastinated their entire monthly workload until the final day, then desperately scrambled to barely finish everything in time.
—
In the Dream World, the two major stakes races this week were the Spring Stakes and the Mainichi Hai.
The former was a prep race for the Satsuki Sho, while the latter—although not officially designated as a prep race—still granted entry into the Satsuki Sho lineup if one finished within the top two and earned sufficient prize money.
However, because Shuta An needed to focus his attention on Tokai Teio, even though he had received riding requests for both races, he still instructed his agent to decline them all.
"I can't let them search for a replacement jockey again right before the main race."
That was the reason he gave publicly, although his agent clearly did not believe it.
Because of this decision, Shuta An only had six rides scheduled today at Hanshin Racecourse in the Dream World, and all of them were lower-level condition races—Maiden Races, One-Win Classes, and similar events.
Naturally, these races posed little difficulty for him.
By the end of the night, Shuta An had achieved a winning rate of over 85.7142% at Hanshin Racecourse, losing only a single Maiden Race.
Even then, it was obvious that the horse in question simply was not suited for the Dirt 1200-meter Maiden Race arranged by its Trainer.
"This horse should be running on turf."
Shuta An merely said that after the race, while the Trainer repeatedly bowed in apology for entering the wrong race and causing Shuta An's winning percentage to drop for no fault of his own.
Shuta An was not some kind of devil. He merely waved his hand, indicating that he did not care.
"It's just that tomorrow's payout will be 350,000 yen lower. A bit unfortunate, that's all."
The young man muttered to himself quietly.
Meanwhile, Yutaka Take had been riding a tremendous streak recently. Without Shuta An present, he had consecutively won stakes races over the past two weeks and was in exceptionally high spirits—even though half a month ago, he had still been thoroughly taught a lesson by Shuta An while riding Hokuto Vega.
—
The next morning, after arriving at Central Tracen Academy, Shuta An clocked into the office as usual and contacted Tokai Teio, reminding her to come to the activity room for her physical examination after finishing her morning exercise.
At the same time, he informed her that he had important news to discuss afterward.
"Important news…"
Tokai Teio immediately began thinking.
"It must be information about strong rivals for the Satsuki Sho, right?"
"Teio-senpai!?"
Walking behind her, Kurofune noticed Tokai Teio spacing out and hurriedly called her name in an attempt to pull her back to reality.
After calling several times without success, Rice Shower finally reached out and lightly tapped Tokai Teio on the head.
"Ahaha…"
Tokai Teio rubbed her forehead awkwardly.
"The Trainer contacted me. He's preparing to tell me about the strong rivals I'll face in the Satsuki Sho."
"I see."
The two Uma Musume immediately understood.
Rice Shower even revealed a somewhat envious expression.
"I wonder if I'll receive this kind of treatment next year—"
Kurofune, meanwhile, did not care too much. After all, she still had a long way to go before fully entering the spotlight.
The three Uma Musume continued toward the first training ground together, preparing for their morning workout.
—
After finishing her training, Tokai Teio immediately jogged toward the activity room, eager to learn which Uma Musume her Trainer considered serious threats.
"Trainer, I'm here!"
The moment she entered, Tokai Teio hurriedly sat down on the sofa and assumed an obedient posture.
"Teio's here."
Shuta An poured her a glass of honey water before sitting opposite her with several printed documents in hand.
"Then let's get straight to the point."
The young man spoke directly.
"This time, I selected four Uma Musume whom I believe are the strongest contenders in the Satsuki Sho. Naturally, this also means they are the opponents most capable of causing trouble for Teio."
"I'll memorize all their information properly and then defeat them in the Satsuki Sho!"
Tokai Teio declared confidently.
"I also believe Teio can do that."
Shuta An nodded calmly.
"But there's an old saying—know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. So first, let's properly understand these opponents."
Tokai Teio immediately resumed her obedient listening posture, ready to carefully absorb her Trainer's lecture.
"First, Shako Grade. Runner-up in the previous Wakaba Stakes."
"The Wakaba Stakes was only an open race, right? Then why focus on second place instead of the winner?"
Tokai Teio immediately asked.
"Because the winner of that race, Asakichi, mainly won due to pace advantage rather than raw strength."
Shuta An spread his hands.
"In terms of pure ability, Shako Grade is slightly stronger."
"I see."
Tokai Teio nodded.
"Please continue, Trainer."
"Shako Grade prefers a late-surger style. Although Nakayama Racecourse's turf 2000-meter layout somewhat disadvantages closers, she possesses extremely strong explosive power. In the previous Wakaba Stakes, her final 3F was 35.6 seconds."
"Since the Wakaba Stakes shares the same course structure as the Satsuki Sho, there's no doubt she can reproduce that explosive power again. Because Teio will definitely use a senko tactic, Shako Grade is naturally a threat that cannot be ignored."
Shuta An had prepared far more than verbal explanations alone.
He had also compiled detailed pace charts, sectional times, stride lengths, and stride frequencies from every race Shako Grade had previously participated in.
"It's obvious that, like Teio, she prefers a high-frequency stride style. However, Teio, you are clearly stronger than her. Therefore, in the Satsuki Sho, you absolutely cannot get dragged into an overly fast pace by the leaders. You must run your own race."
Shuta An used this opportunity to emphasize the point once again.
"I understand!"
Tokai Teio accepted the advice seriously.
"The second opponent is Iide Saison. Similar to Shako Grade, she also favors late-charging tactics. However, unlike the former, she already possesses a major-race victory in the Kyodo News Service Hai. That alone makes her much more dangerous."
"Teio, no matter what, you absolutely cannot allow Iide Saison to pressure you into disrupting your rhythm. Even if she closes in from behind, ignore her."
Shuta An's expression became particularly serious.
"If she wants to overtake you, then let her attempt it. As long as Teio preserves her leg strength, your advantage will become greater and greater."
"After all, Nakayama's final straight is only so long. By using a front-running tactic, Teio naturally holds the advantage. You absolutely cannot let her drag you out of rhythm."
Once again, Shuta An deliberately emphasized the final point.
Tokai Teio firmly memorized it.
"The third is Ibuki Maikagura—the Yayoi Sho winner, and one of the favorites."
"In previous years, Yayoi Sho winners have always performed very strongly in the Satsuki Sho. However, this year is slightly different."
"After all, Teio, you are the undefeated Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes champion Uma Musume. Your reputation has already spread both domestically and overseas. Naturally, public attention will be focused more heavily on you."
"In comparison, Ibuki Maikagura won't attract nearly as much attention."
"Ibuki Maikagura is also capable of both senko and late-charging tactics. However, in the Satsuki Sho, she will most likely choose to run from behind."
After listening quietly for a while, Tokai Teio finally asked another question.
"Why are you so certain she'll choose a late-charging tactic?"
"Because Teio publicly declared a senko strategy long ago."
Shuta An answered proudly.
"Trying to directly compete with you for leading position would not be a wise decision."
"Besides, there are already four predicted front-runners in this year's Satsuki Sho, meaning the pace will most likely become very fast."
"For Teio, winning the Satsuki Sho while using aggressive senko positioning is entirely manageable. But for Ibuki Maikagura and the others, trying to lead behind the front runner—those conditions becomes awkward instead."
"That is the difference in talent between you."
"I really can't simply project my own situation onto others…"
Tokai Teio quietly reminded herself inwardly.
"Although considering things from other perspectives is a good habit, partial information can still become misleading."
"The last one—Dance Dance Dance."
Shuta An sighed softly upon mentioning the name.
"The reason Teio needs to pay attention to her isn't because her strength or talent is especially monstrous. It's because she originally belonged on the Triple Tiara route, but after deciding Hanshin's 1600 meters didn't suit her, she directly switched to challenging the Satsuki Sho over Nakayama's turf 2000 meters instead."
"Then I definitely can't lose to anyone—especially not Dance Dance Dance."
Tokai Teio immediately quipped.
"It's best not to lose."
Shuta An flicked Tokai Teio lightly on the forehead.
"Don't always start by imagining failure."
"If your goal is truly to surpass Rudolf and even surpass Oguri, then you need to understand something clearly."
"Neither of them ever entered a race thinking about the possibility of defeat. Before every race began, they possessed absolute confidence in themselves."
"I know."
Tokai Teio stuck out her tongue playfully.
"This is only a brief overview for now. The important part is carefully studying their stride frequencies, stride lengths, and performance trends under different race conditions."
"All of these numbers were personally calculated by me last night after repeatedly reviewing their race footage. I can guarantee the accuracy, so feel free to use them directly for analysis."
Once Tokai Teio completely understood these four opponents, winning the Satsuki Sho should no longer pose much difficulty.
—
So for Shuta An, was there still something else requiring enormous amounts of energy, attention, organization, and verification?
Naturally, the answer was yes.
For example—the opponents Mejiro Dober would face at Randwick Racecourse in Australia.
After seeing Tokai Teio off, Shuta An slowly sat back down in his office chair.
His eyes settled upon the predicted entry list for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes displayed on the computer screen.
Finally, his gaze stopped on Mejiro Dober's name.
"After finishing Teio's pre-race training, I should return to Australia—and Dober even said she wanted to ask me something once I returned."
Now that Shuta An already understood what Mejiro Dober intended to ask, he had made up his mind.
Once he returned to Australia, he would stop avoiding the issue entirely and directly confirm their feelings for one another inside that suite.
Shuta An shook his head lightly, forcibly pushing the matter out of his mind for the moment.
"First, finish analyzing Mejiro Dober's potential opponents for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes."
"Love and romance can wait until after the race."
"If I can't win this race, I won't have the mood for romance anyway."
Thinking that, the young man immediately buried himself back into work once more.
—
April 10th, Sunday. Today was the race day for this year's first Classic Race, the Oka Sho. After watching the live broadcast of the Oka Sho in the club room together with the remaining Uma Musume of Team Sadalsuud at Central Tracen Academy, Shuta An would head to the airport with his suitcase and fly to Sydney, reuniting with Mejiro Dober, who had been looking forward to his return for an entire month.
The biggest difference between this Oka Sho and the development Shuta An remembered from the Dream World was Scarlet Bouquet's dramatic decline in performance after losing his saddle—though in the real world, public saddle performances were naturally impossible to carry out anyway.
However, the final result remained unchanged. Sister Tosho was crowned the Oka Queen, and the outcome only made Tokai Teio even more excited. She stared at SisterTosho on the television screen, and for a brief moment, it felt as though her own position had overlapped with the other girl's.
"Only by standing there myself can I truly understand how wonderful it feels to become a Classic Race champion, right?"
Although Tokai Teio had already won a G1, she still felt that the impact of watching from afar was nowhere near comparable to experiencing it personally next week.
As for Rice Shower, this was something she would only begin considering next year, so her attention remained more focused on Tokai Teio and her Trainer.
"Rice still has to secure a Classic Race entry first" Rice Shower quietly murmured to herself.
Kurofune, meanwhile, was still some distance away from officially entering the Twinkle Series stage.
—
The flight Shuta An booked this time was scheduled to depart at 6:25 PM and arrive in Sydney at 6:20 AM local time. In other words, the young man would be spending the night aboard the plane.
Fortunately, he had chosen business class. Although it lacked the fully flat comfort of first class, it was still far superior to economy class, and at the very least, he would not wake up with aching legs as though Oguri Cap and Silence Suzuka had dragged him through an all-night training session.
In tonight's Dream World, Shuta An would also participate in the Oka Sho. Unlike previous years, the Racehorse he would ride this time was the overwhelming favorite.
Although Vega had yet to win a graded race, her crushing performance in the Tulip Sho was already enough to convince nearly everyone that, barring an accident, Vega would undoubtedly become this year's Oka Sho winner. Because of that, her odds had fallen to an astonishing 1.9.
For a horse that had never won a major race before, such odds were already terrifying.
Ten days before the race, Shuta confirmed that he would ride Vega in the Oka Sho—though the official announcement was only made five days before the race, since earlier disclosure before the JRA announcement was impossible.
However, the moment Shuta finalized his decision, he immediately informed Trainer Nakano.
He did not want to deliberately maintain ambiguity just to "save face" for Hokuto Vega's camp, causing them to continue waiting for his answer, miss the opportunity to secure a suitable jockey, and ultimately affect Hokuto Vega's performance.
If such a situation occurred, it would be far too regrettable.
In the end, Trainer Nakano chose Yutaka Take as Hokuto Vega's replacement jockey. Yutaka Take himself was delighted by the arrangement, because it also meant he would likely have a mount for the Japanese Oaks.
After all, he found it difficult to imagine a scenario where Shuta rode Vega and still failed to secure an Oaks ticket.
There were only two possibilities for that outcome.
Either Vega suffered an injury.
Or Vega failed to finish within the top five of the Oka Sho.
In Yutaka Take's eyes, both scenarios were less likely than Shuta falling from his horse mid-race—especially considering Shuta had never once fallen during an official race since debuting as a local jockey.
"Ann-san's going to make another fortune today."
The very first thing Yutaka Take said after meeting Shuta in the jockey waiting room at Hanshin Racecourse made Shuta immediately roll his eyes.
"Speaking of which," Yutaka Take continued after finally restraining his grin, "I actually think Hokuto Vega might be more suited to dirt than turf."
"I think so too." Shuta shrugged. "But there aren't any suitable dirt races for her at this stage."
"America doesn't count?"
Yutaka Take clearly did not buy the excuse. With Shuta's ability, persuading a Horse Owner to attempt a Grade 1 dirt campaign in America should not have been difficult.
Shuta spread his hands helplessly.
"Take-san really doesn't watch American races, does he? Last year, a terrifying mare appeared over there—Sky Beauty. Aside from one race where she was demoted to third and her comeback race this year where she underperformed and finished second, she hasn't lost anything else."
"Her next race is the American Oaks at the start of next month, and she'll probably be the overwhelming favorite again. Hokuto Vega absolutely has dirt talent, but I don't think she can beat Sky Beauty right now. And if she goes to America at this stage, she'll definitely have to face her."
The young man paused briefly before adding:
"Overseas campaigns are expensive."
Yutaka Take froze for a moment, then immediately understood what Shuta truly meant.
For most Horse Owners, if an overseas expedition neither earned substantial prize money nor brought back honor, then such a decision would never be approved. Worse still, the person who proposed it would inevitably be viewed negatively afterward.
Shuta simply did not want to become that person.
"Yeah... now that you explain it like that, it really isn't the right time yet." Yutaka Take sighed softly.
"Still, it's a shame. Honestly, none of the dirt horses I've ridden recently seem more talented than Hokuto Vega."
"Then stop thinking about it." Shuta immediately shot him down. "I only came to you because of the clash with Vega's schedule. I already handed Take-san a main ride, so don't start coveting Hokuto Vega too."
"Of course not." Yutaka Take raised both hands in surrender with exaggerated innocence. "I'm not the type of scoundrel who steals a friend's resources."
In this race, Shuta and Vega would start from gate number eight.
With eighteen Racehorses participating in total, that draw could already be considered fairly central.
Before the race, the Mother Tosho camp—coming off two consecutive stakes victories with Norihiro Yokoyama aboard—had publicly declared that if they drew an inside gate, they would absolutely refuse to allow Vega to seize the lead.
And fate granted their wish.
Mother Tosho drew gate number six.
Although it was not an extremely inside position, it was still more favorable than Vega's gate, which meant virtually everyone understood that MotherTosho would attempt to control the pace of the race.
Therefore, after entering the starting gate, Shuta quietly glanced toward Norihiro Yokoyama and silently decided that after the start, he would closely mark MotherTosho's movements.