After claiming yet another overwhelming victory in a GIII event, Kitasan Black quickly became Japan's hottest rising star.
Her popularity skyrocketed at a terrifying pace, closing in on the active top-tier racers. And it only took two races for everyone to see what she was made of.
Her debut had been a 2000-meter middle-distance race, where she'd led from start to finish in a full breakaway without ever slowing down — proof that her stamina was monstrous. Then she'd followed it up with a dominant win in a 1200-meter sprint, proving her explosive power was just as extraordinary.
Only two races in, and Kitasan Black had shown strength across every dimension. If you mapped her abilities on a hexagonal stat chart, every single axis would be maxed out — a truly complete racer.
Media outlets flooded Tracen Academy with interview requests, all clamoring to land Kitasan Black's first exclusive. Based on what she'd shown so far, as long as her body held up, a run at the title of the strongest was practically guaranteed.
Shortly after Kitasan Black's second race, Duramente made her own debut — winning by an outside placing over second place.
Duramente had entered ZONE during her very first race.
While her debut performance didn't quite match Kitasan Black's, finishing as a closer and still winning by such a margin was impressive in its own right.
In the post-race interview, Duramente declared with absolute confidence that she would claim the title of the world's strongest.
When a reporter asked what she thought of her generational rival Kitasan Black, Duramente answered without hesitation: "Kitasan Black is strong, I'll give her that. But I'll be even stronger."
Anyone watching the broadcast could see Air Groove's expression shift the moment those words left Duramente's mouth.
And thanks to that interview, the internet was now ablaze with debate over Kitasan Black versus Duramente. Despite both of them being debut-level newcomers, their fame had already eclipsed plenty of established veterans. Practically all the online buzz revolved around these two.
That said, if you pressed the matter, a lot of people suspected Duramente was just riding Kitasan Black's coattails for clout. Sure, entering ZONE during your debut was a genuinely jaw-dropping display of talent — the kind of thing that would've made her the undisputed best of her generation in any other era. But unfortunately for her, this era had produced a Kitasan Black.
Kitasan Black didn't appear to have entered ZONE yet, but the gap between their race performances was painfully obvious. Duramente was strong, no question. But Kitasan Black didn't just feel strong — she felt borderline invincible.
At the very least, Duramente's current showings weren't enough for the fans to put her in the same conversation as the Tyrant and the other established champions. But Kitasan Black? Plenty of people were already saying she could beat even the Tyrant.
So while Duramente's interview generated massive buzz, it also attracted no small amount of criticism. Not that Duramente's personality would let her care about any of that. She'd said what she meant, and she genuinely believed she would become the world's strongest — that she would surpass Kitasan Black. Without that conviction, she never would've flung open the doors of ZONE after watching Kitasan Black's race in the first place.
As for Kitasan Black herself — not a single outlet had managed to get a story on her, because she'd rejected every last interview request.
Fans could only glean scraps of information from the occasional updates on her trainer's social media account. Plenty of voices were demanding that Flash Press, the URA's own media arm, hurry up and publish a feature on her. But Flash Press was just as helpless as everyone else. Did people think they didn't want to? They wanted it desperately! It just wasn't up to them — they couldn't exactly force a racer to sit for an interview.
The outlets publicly deflected fan demands while privately bombarding Tracen Academy with request after request.
As for why Kitasan Black refused interviews? The reasons were simple enough.
One: she didn't like talking in front of cameras.
Two: she still had Symboli Rudolf's name written in her little grudge book.
She hadn't suffered any real losses from that incident, but that didn't mean she'd just forgive Rudolf for provoking her. She could have accepted an interview and stirred up trouble that way, but despite looking like a demon on the track, Kitasan Black was actually a decent person at heart. Otherwise, she would've marched straight to that old hag Rudolf and issued a challenge the day she enrolled at Tracen.
So her interview boycott? That was purely to make the Student Council President's life harder.
As for the benefits of accepting interviews — did she really need them? With her ability, she needed publicity resources about as much as a fish needed a bicycle.
She didn't need any of it.
After all, what she wanted had never been fame or glory.
What she wanted had always been beautifully simple.
Money.
So compared to the perks of doing interviews, she'd much rather watch Symboli Rudolf suffer.
Seeing Rudolf come crawling back to her trainer again and again to plead her case? Kitasan Black couldn't be more delighted.
This is the price you pay for disrespecting me, you old hag.
And this was only the beginning. There was plenty more suffering to come.
...
Just when Symboli Rudolf thought that was the hardest task she'd face this season, the URA dropped a bombshell on her doorstep.
Inside the Student Council room.
Rudolf stared at the URA representative with an expression of pure disbelief.
"I'm sorry — what did you just say? You're telling me Kitasan Black has registered for next month's Mainichi Okan?"
"That's correct. And it's not just the Mainichi Okan. They've also registered for the Tenno Sho Autumn after that."
The staff member looked at Rudolf with a perfectly blank expression, as if to say: Well, Emperor-sama, what are we going to do about this?
Around the room, every Student Council member stopped what they were doing and turned to watch Rudolf with undisguised curiosity. They could already imagine what was going through her head.
Rudolf had been drowning in headaches over the media's interview requests. And now, without a word of warning, Kitasan Black had pulled this.
"Why didn't you reject her registration?!" Rudolf demanded.
"In point of fact, while this has never happened before in the history of the sport... President, the registration rules don't actually prohibit it."
The staff member's voice was flat, almost numb.
Did the Emperor think they hadn't wanted to reject it? They'd tried. But Kitasan Black's trainer had thrown their own rulebook right back at them, and the association had no choice but to approve the registration.
Because the existing rules had genuinely never stipulated that a debut-level racer couldn't enter senior-grade races. As long as you had enough popularity and could pay the entry fee, theoretically, registration should be approved.
And why had no such rule ever existed? Because no one had ever been crazy enough to try this.
It wasn't a loophole in the rules so much as Kitasan Black and her trainer having ideas that were simply... too creative.
The association had never imagined anyone would cook up such a bizarre race schedule. A newcomer insisting on running against veterans with years of experience? What made you so disrespectful of your own generation?
Oh — it's the Kitasan Black who won both her races by overwhelming margins?
...Never mind, then.
This one might actually be able to hold her own against the seniors.
Since the rules technically allowed it, the association was powerless. All they could do was come crying to Tracen Academy's leadership.
Chairwoman Akikawa, President Rudolf — this one's on you. Figure it out.
Whether or not someone wanted to rein in this rogue student, the association was out of options. There was absolutely no way they could reject the registration — they didn't have the authority. Even if everyone agreed it was a gap in the rules that needed closing, amending regulations wasn't something you could do on a whim. It required rigorous debate and review.
So they had no means whatsoever to stop Kitasan Black. And with her popularity soaring to absurd heights, not only couldn't they refuse her — they practically had to give her priority entry.
The only institution that could possibly manage Kitasan Black now was Tracen Academy itself. She was their student, after all.
Rudolf: "..."
Wait. Give me a moment.
Her head was spinning.
Kitasan Black going rogue was one thing — but how did that trainer have the nerve?!
Rudolf's expression had reverted to the most fearsome look of her younger years. A terrifying aura radiated from her in waves.
Nearly everyone in the room wore expressions of undisguised amusement. Only Air Groove, standing off to the side, couldn't help but sigh.
She strongly suspected that little brat Kitasan Black was doing this deliberately to torment Luna.
"I understand. We'll handle it on our end," Rudolf said, dismissing the URA representative.
As for a definitive answer? She honestly couldn't guarantee one. She hadn't even managed to convince Kitasan Black to accept a simple interview. This was going to be several orders of magnitude harder.
After seeing the staff member out, Rudolf considered her options and ultimately decided to approach this from the trainer's side.
After all, trainers held decision-making authority. In terms of status, a trainer was essentially half-guardian, half-mentor to their uma musume. If she could just get the trainer to back down, then no matter how willful Kitasan Black was, she'd have to comply.
But Rudolf hadn't counted on running headfirst into a brick wall.
"I-I'll go back and discuss it with Kita-chan... B-but for now, I can't give you an answer."
Rudolf fixed a long, hard stare on this woman who appeared timid on the surface but was utterly unyielding underneath.
Discuss? You just want to put me off!
"Does your mentor know about this reckless stunt you're pulling?"
"..."
Nothing but silence.
Sure, I'm just a low-ranking trainer. You're all right and I'm all wrong.
But in the end, she chose to believe in her charge.
Landing Kitasan Black might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She would never give that up — even if it meant going toe-to-toe with the school's leadership and her own mentor.
Rudolf's hands clenched into tight fists.
She truly hadn't expected some nobody trainer to have the audacity to refuse her.
Bold. Very bold.
But furious as she was, Rudolf knew she was out of moves. She couldn't fire the trainer over this, and she certainly couldn't force a contract termination between the trainer and Kitasan Black. Use the Academy's authority to intervene? That was off the table too. Just as the association had said — this whole thing was reckless, but it didn't actually violate any rules.
Authority could be exercised, but never abused.
So after pinning the trainer with an icy glare for a good long while, Rudolf finally let her go.
Afterward, she had no choice but to go speak with Kitasan Black directly. The result was exactly what she'd expected.
Kitasan Black coldly informed her that what she chose to do was none of the Student Council President's business. She even went so far as to threaten that if Rudolf tried to pull any strings, she wouldn't mind transferring abroad.
"Races at this level aren't as simple as you think!"
"Is that so? I appreciate the advice, senpai. But I'm afraid I don't think I'll lose to any of you veterans, either."
The exchange ended on spectacularly bad terms.
All Rudolf could do was watch this brat run wild, nursing a weary heart.
But the outcome had been within her expectations. After all, if she'd had this kind of talent in her younger days, she probably would've done the exact same thing.
The thought made Rudolf shake her head with a rueful smile.
Her feelings weren't entirely frustration, though. Deep down, there was something else — a spark of anticipation. Of excitement.
If she was being honest with herself, the reason she'd given up so easily might've been because, on some level, she too wanted to see this girl achieve something unprecedented.
"Heh. Fine then — show me just how far you can go, Kitasan Black."
Kitasan Black had no idea what Rudolf was thinking. Remembering the look on Rudolf's face during their exchange, she couldn't have been more pleased with herself.
And today, as always, Kitasan Black skipped class.
...
Before long, the news broke: Kitasan Black had registered to skip-grade into the Tenno Sho Autumn.
The announcement hit the racing world like an earthquake, setting off chain reactions across the entire community.
Sure, plenty of people had been comparing Kitasan Black to the Tyrant and other top racers — but none of them had seriously expected her to actually go and race against those veterans right now.
Yet here was the official announcement saying she intended to do exactly that.
Every conceivable opinion came flooding out.
Kitasan Black's fellow newcomers looked lost, each of them able to feel the implicit contempt in her decision.
And the senior racers? They wore the expression of an elderly person trying to figure out a smartphone.
What is this newcomer's deal? And this is actually allowed?!
More than a few veterans felt a jolt of anxiety. They could accept defeat, sure — but losing to someone who was still at the debut level? That absolutely could not happen!
...
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