October 13, 2011.
Auspicious for: rituals, raising livestock, knotting nets.
Inauspicious for: anything else.
…
…
"I'm heading out!"
Fuka Shirayuki tightened the laces on [King of Kings, Boots-in-Boots], then looked back and called out.
Behind her, her little sister wore an apron.
Fuka Chiori smiled. "Have a safe trip, sis."
Chiori thought her sister was going out to work a part-time job.
She had no idea Shirayuki's real destination today was Central Tracen Academy.
Shirayuki needed the qualifications for her debut race. She didn't explain—because she'd have to waste time convincing her sister again.
Once she stood on the track, took first place, and basked in the roar of the crowd…
There would be no need for explanations.
Shirayuki shook her head and tossed those thoughts out of her mind.
Where she lived was way out in the sticks. To get to Central Tracen, she had to take a bus, then transfer to the subway. She closed her eyes, listened to music, and waited for her stop.
It didn't take too long.
About two hours.
Every time she thought of Tokyo's glittering prosperity, even a country bumpkin like Fuka Shirayuki would lift her chin proudly and say with shameless bravado, "Hah! You lousy United States—come to Tokyo to beg, did you?"
She tapped her card and exited the station.
Before long, she stood at the gates of Central Tracen Academy.
She looked into the campus.
The buildings were grand and spotless—white as fresh snow, not a speck of dust. When she tipped her head up, the massive complex made her feel tiny. And on a colossal illuminated screen stood a photo of Orfevre.
A tyrant up in the heavens, looking down on every horse girl with equal contempt.
Truth be told… that's just how life is.
Fuka Shirayuki didn't like Orfevre's eyes.
She calmly looked at the photo, then shifted her gaze away—only to catch the word "Emperor" in the corner of her vision.
"Is that… Symboli Rudolf?" she murmured.
In her school uniform, Symboli Rudolf hurried past from the far end of the street. As Japan's most famous horse girl, Shirayuki recognized her almost instantly. She looked like she was rushing to something urgent.
Shirayuki thought.
Could she get a letter of recommendation from Symboli Rudolf?
If the Emperor had time—if she could just watch my trial run…
With that thought, Shirayuki stopped hesitating. She strode up to Symboli Rudolf's side.
"Hello."
"…Hello." Symboli Rudolf slowed her pace slightly.
A young filly she didn't recognize had suddenly appeared beside her. An unfamiliar horse girl. The Emperor's mind flicked over the possibilities.
"You need something?" she asked bluntly.
Shirayuki replied, "Yes. My name is Fuka Shirayuki."
"You have three minutes. Explain." Symboli Rudolf answered.
As soon as she spoke, she glanced at the second hand.
Shirayuki's face stayed perfectly calm. Rudolf's curt tone didn't shake her at all.
"I want to enter a debut race."
"But I don't have a recommendation letter, and I'm not a Central Tracen student. The JRA wants me to go through an ability verification race, but… I don't have that kind of time either. I need a recommendation letter from a senior horse girl."
"That's why I came to Central Tracen."
Shirayuki stared straight into Rudolf's eyes. "Give me a chance. Watch my speed first, then decide."
Symboli Rudolf seemed to understand what she was asking.
She slowly stopped, pressing a hand to her brow.
"I'm willing to give you that chance…"
But—
Her tone turned. "But I don't have time right now."
Standing at the summit of horse girls as student council president, Symboli Rudolf knew how important an opportunity like that could be.
It was just that…
Yesterday she'd arranged Tokai Teio's sparring with that Lady, and now she was scrambling to coordinate with the JRA about Orfevre's Kikka-sho preparations. No matter how she tried, there was simply no time to spare.
Symboli Rudolf weighed it.
Considered how she could still give this bold little filly some kind of opening.
To be honest, she admired Shirayuki's temperament.
After a beat, she said, "This is my card." Symboli Rudolf drew out a gold-stamped business card and offered it to her. "If, after Orfevre's Kikka-sho, you still need that chance, contact me personally."
"I don't have time." Shirayuki looked down at the card.
Rudolf shook her head. "And I don't have time either. I'm busy."
Shirayuki didn't take it—
So Rudolf firmly stuffed the card into her palm. Then, leaving one last sentence behind, she hurried off.
"I hope I'll see you again. Until next time."
Card in hand—
Shirayuki calmly slipped it into her pocket, watched the Emperor's retreating back, then turned around.
"What were you talking to the student council president about?"
A stranger's voice rose beside her.
Shirayuki turned her head and saw a mature woman dressed head-to-toe in green.
Somehow… she looked familiar.
Hadn't she seen her at the gate?
Security? Staff?
Shirayuki didn't hesitate. Even after being turned down once, she still explained everything she'd just said to the Emperor—about the debut race and the recommendation letter.
The green-clad woman listened, stunned.
So she'd come to recommend herself?
If you really wanted to nitpick, neither of them was wrong.
They just… both lacked time.
And Shirayuki's situation suddenly reminded the woman of certain stories from the distant past. Her brows lifted as she studied Shirayuki with growing interest.
"My name is Tazuna Hayakawa," she said. "I'm staff at Tracen Academy."
An opportunity…
Some people really do lack only that—one single chance. And not everyone is lucky enough to find it.
"Fuka Shirayuki." Shirayuki introduced herself just as simply.
Tazuna asked again, "You're in a hurry? You're that desperate to enter the debut race?"
Shirayuki's eyes were calm as the sea.
Still when still—but once they moved, they surged like a storm. She raised her chin slightly.
"I can't wait to defeat someone."
"If you put me on the track," Shirayuki said, "I'll win."
Tazuna frowned in confusion. "Win against who?"
"Her." Shirayuki pointed from afar at Orfevre on the billboard.
Tazuna followed the line of her finger.
She froze.
Then the curve of amusement at her lips deepened.
What a fearless little filly—she really didn't know her place.
Defeat the horse girl known as 'Tyrant Orfevre'?
That was, without exaggeration, harder than climbing to heaven. The strongest of this era was unquestionably Orfevre. Even if you pushed the timeline forward—then back through multiple generations—Orfevre's dominance would still be absolute.
Tazuna couldn't help wondering where Shirayuki's confidence came from.
She examined the girl.
Should she give this kid a chance?
A frail physique… a soft, flimsy presence.
Other than that headlong confidence, she was practically all flaws and no strengths.
But—
At that moment, Tazuna's gaze snapped to the long boots Shirayuki was wearing.
Her pupils shrank sharply.
What… are those?
Her experience screamed at her instantly: this wasn't ordinary.
Could it be… a blessing from the Three Goddesses?
To be fair, Tazuna had seen plenty of "blessings" lately.
For example, the blessing of [Invincible in the Rain — Taiki Shuttle] was a revolver: whoever dared run faster than her, she'd shoot them dead. And as the "villain," Miho had been given a dagger—specifically for assassinating Triple Crown winners.
But…
Those were flashy, impractical trinkets.
And besides—
There was a prerequisite for receiving a Goddess-blessed item.
A "winning outfit."
Only those truly qualified for G1 races could stand before the Three Goddesses' statues, complete the ritual, receive the baptism—and only then would such a blessed item reveal itself.
And this girl—
She hadn't even run her debut race yet! So where the hell did she get it?!
Tazuna almost doubted her own common sense.
She realized at once that the Emperor hadn't noticed this detail. Otherwise… no matter how busy she was, she would have made time for Shirayuki. Maybe—just maybe—this girl was the next era-defining horse girl.
For a very simple reason:
Any horse girl who received a blessed item was never ordinary. You could tell just by looking at their results.
Tazuna immediately agreed. "Fine. I'll give you a chance."
"Prove your strength to me! There's an empty training track right now. If you can prove yourself, I'll give you verification and a recommendation letter!"
…
…
After the small talk ended, the two quickly arrived at an empty training course.
Fuka Shirayuki stepped onto the long-missed track.
Even her starting stance was clumsy, and the turf felt hard—almost like concrete.
Truthfully, Shirayuki wasn't even a proper horse girl. She could only follow the original owner's memories to imitate a rough, vague starting motion—thankfully, the body's muscle memory still remained.
Off to the side, Tazuna Hayakawa: "…"
She watched what was happening on the track.
And couldn't help thinking… Is this really the right decision?
But—
Tazuna also knew exactly how precious an "opportunity" was. No matter what, she at least had time to watch a single trial run. Back then, even the infamous Green Devil hadn't had a smooth road before her own debut.
No one believed in her.
But someone who could warm a cold bench… would never disappoint, even if given only one race to prove themselves.
Tazuna clicked her stopwatch and raised her voice.
"On your marks…!"
A focused, serious look spread across Shirayuki's face.
And a strange emotion rose up inside her—something she couldn't put into words. Bitterness, joy, hot-blooded excitement—all tangled together in her chest.
Like…
A reunion on a street corner, years later.
Shirayuki suddenly remembered the moment she'd just transmigrated into this world.
That newspaper—recording how the original owner had once sprinted to first place in an amateur race as a child—what had soaked it back then?
Water… or tears?
Fate's cruelest joke was…
Letting an ordinary person glimpse a dream that was forever out of reach.
So—
This must be excitement.
Returning to the track.
Returning to this long-lost homeland.
For an instant, Shirayuki's mind went blank.
…
[Detected: Host has stepped onto the track.]
[King of Kings, Boots-in-Boots: Auto-activating.]
[Mile aptitude increasing…]
[Upgrading from B-rank → S-rank]
[Unlocking next-stage mission.]
…
Hearing the system's chime—
Shirayuki lifted her head, looking down on everything before her, the grass stretching out to the very edge of the earth.
Truth be told, she didn't even know why she kept having it out for Orfevre.
Maybe she just hated that lofty, superior gaze.
Or maybe…
Orfevre stood in the way of Shirayuki's dream of becoming "the number one horse girl."
But right now—
None of that mattered anymore.
The only thing that mattered…
Was the track in front of her!!!
"Go!!!" Tazuna's voice dropped like a judge's gavel!
And Fuka Shirayuki shot forward like an arrow!
I need one chance…
I have to prove myself.
I'll enter the debut race. I'll defeat Orfevre. I'll become the number one horse girl.
All of it—every last bit—was carved into Fuka Shirayuki's heart!
Someday the dragon will raise its head—
And the Yangtze will flow backwards!!!!!!!
-------
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