Tokyo Racecourse.
The competitors' lounge.
Right now, Kitahara and Kouki were helping Oguri Cap with the last bits of preparation before she went out onto the track.
"Oguri, don't be nervous. I've already explained everything you need to watch out for on the Tokyo course during training," Kitahara said, doing his best to psych her up. "With your ability, you can easily make it through the full distance."
"So I only have one demand: stay calm. If you perform at your normal level, you won't lose to anyone!"
"I know," Oguri Cap replied, as brief as ever.
Compared to the race ahead, the gray-haired girl was more concerned about what she was wearing…
Her race outfit.
Only horse girls competing in top-tier races were allowed to wear it.
Usually, the horse girl herself—or her trainer—would provide ideas, and then a professional designer would create the final design.
Oguri Cap's race outfit had been designed through connections Suluo pulled.
The upper half was primarily white—honestly, it looked more like a stage costume than a racing outfit. The lower half was a red-and-white skirt that highlighted the girl's shapely figure. And the black stockings wrapped her long, powerful legs like a crisp chocolate shell.
By her ears, a small bow—red and yellow ribbon woven together—was tied neatly in place.
That was the race outfit Oguri Cap would wear for the Derby.
Don't ask whether it looked good or not—this getup cost Suluo a fortune.
He'd hired a top-of-the-line designer for the cut, and the materials were premium fabric chosen specifically to be both comfortable and suitable for running.
All in all, the full set ran him something like a million yen.
Living the good life in that department.
"Um… that designer's taste is kind of… unique," Kouki muttered, her expression extremely complicated as she looked Oguri up and down.
It wasn't that it looked bad…
But rather than a race outfit, Kouki thought it looked like something you'd wear to perform a Christmas dance on stage.
Just looking at the layered fabric, you could tell it was thick and heavy.
And it was still the first half of the year—the weather was warm.
Wouldn't Oguri be overheating in that?
"Oguri… maybe you should take the outer jacket off…"
"It's fine. I'm not hot," Oguri Cap said, shaking her head.
She lowered her gaze, then spun in place once, watching her skirt flare.
Her mood visibly improved.
Suluo will probably like me like this…
"Oguri, if you've got any issues, say it now," Kitahara reminded her. "Once you step onto the track, it'll be too late."
"No issues." Oguri Cap shook her head, opened her palm in front of her eyes, then clenched it into a fist.
Feeling the power surging inside her, she looked up and met Kitahara's gaze.
"Right now… I feel like I can win."
Seeing her confidence, Kitahara finally relaxed.
"Then everything's ready."
"Go show all of Japan what you can do!"
—
"The once-a-year Japan Derby is about to begin!"
"Who will claim the crown? Who will keep their dream alive?"
With the race about to start, the commentator began expertly whipping up the crowd's emotions.
And honestly, their patter was good—sitting in the stands, even Suluo felt his blood start to stir from those hyped-up words.
It made sense.
A race like the Derby—one a horse girl only gets one chance to enter—naturally carried more weight than any ordinary event.
And the Derby was a crucial part of the Classic Triple Crown. If the Satsuki Sho winner took this race too, she could be on the path to becoming a Triple Crown champion.
With that, the massive attention was only natural.
More than that, the Derby held a special place in the public's heart.
Usually, whoever won it would be treated as the strongest horse girl of her generation, gaining enormous spotlight.
Of course, that "strongest" title wasn't always completely deserved.
Some horse girls won the Derby and never achieved anything notable again.
Still, no matter how you sliced it, the Japan Derby was one of the most-watched races in the entire Japanese circuit. Its prestige was real.
"If only the prize money were a bit lower…" Suluo muttered under his breath as he stared at the track.
It wasn't like he thought Oguri Cap would definitely win—but even just placing in the Japan Derby meant an absurd payout.
First place: 200 million. Second: 80 million. Third: 50 million…
Even fourth and fifth still got 20 to 30 million!
The numbers were so huge they practically made Suluo's vision go dark.
All he could do was silently pray that the Central horse girls would be strong enough.
And while he was grumbling to himself, the horse girls who would be racing began to enter the field!
"The Satsuki Sho winner! One of today's top favorites for the Derby crown—Yaeno Muteki!"
Amid roaring cheers, Yaeno Muteki stepped out slowly, wearing a race outfit styled like a martial arts uniform.
Her gaze was steady, and the aura rolling off her made it obvious—she wasn't ordinary.
"Ohhh! She looks solid!" Suluo's mood lifted instantly when he saw her.
Nice. A real powerhouse!
"The heir to Mejiro bloodline! Elegance incarnate on the track—Mejiro Ardan!"
With a gentle smile on her face, Ardan entered after Yaeno Muteki.
"A young lady from a famous family, huh? Someone like that's definitely got to be a strong contender too!" Seeing Mejiro Ardan appear, the anxiety in Suluo's chest eased again.
"And in the name of Sakura! A debut-year horse girl who captured a GⅠ title! Looks like a child, but her strength is far beyond ordinary—Sakura Chiyono O!"
"W-What the heck?! Why is my introduction so unserious?!" Sakura Chiyono O marched onto the field in her pink race outfit, face bright red, furiously shaking her tiny fist at the commentary booth.
The crowd, seeing her "small animal trying to act scary" cuteness, couldn't help but smile warmly.
But the moment Suluo heard her results, he was genuinely stunned.
Holy crap—she won a GⅠ in her debut year?!
That was pure genius.
Who would've thought this little thing—looking all harmless—was actually that terrifyingly strong?
Come to think of it, Tamamo Cross looked small too, and she went and won the Spring Tenno Sho…
So what—does being shorter make you more likely to win?
If that's true, then calling them "little horse is badass" should be totally fair, right?
Little horse, you're badass!
Horsehead badass!
Now take Oguri down for me!
....
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