Before the race even started, Maruzensky was already chatting with Symboli Rudolf, feeling somewhat disappointed to discover it was just a debut race.
"But Rudolf, you said you'd treat me to an exciting race. I thought this was a G1, but if you're talking about a debut race, I'm going home!"
"Mm, it is this debut race, but it's not an ordinary debut race." Symboli Rudolf's gaze remained fixed on the uma musume below.
"Oh? How is it different?" Marzensky looked at Symboli Rudolf, trying to read something from her expression.
"You should know we have four running styles: front-runner, pace-chaser, End-Closer, and Late-Surger. But there's one running style that hasn't been proven yet, and I think you have deep experience with it. That running style is dominating the entire race with a runaway."
"Hehehe." Maruzensky laughed out loud. "That should only appear when there's a crushing difference in ability, right? Does she have the same abilities as I?"
As a natural zone holder, Maruzensky had gone through life undefeated, winning every time by several body lengths, even more than ten body lengths.
Saying the great escape style was the same, she didn't quite agree. The people probably didn't even know what a great escape style was, and didn't need to know about it.
That phrase "same abilities as her" was something most people wouldn't dare claim.
"Perhaps zone isn't necessary."
"Don't need zone? Now that's quite interesting." Maruzensky smiled with curiosity.
CLANG!
The race began.
The gates opened, and nine uma musume burst out one after another.
While the two were still chatting, the race had already started.
The moment the gate opened, the Uma Musume exploded forward. Silence Suzuka took the lead at once, Shining Atrium right behind her in second.
Several seconds later, the uma musume began pushing toward the inside lane.
"Let's look at the competitors' positions. Currently in first place is Silence Suzuka, with Shining Atrium right on her heels in second!"
"Shining Atrium isn't backing down! She's pulling alongside Suzuka now!"
The two frontrunners were neck and neck, neither willing to yield even an inch. Shining Atrium's breathing grew heavier as she matched Suzuka's pace stride for stride, their hoofbeats falling almost in perfect sync.
"Got you!" Shining Atrium's eyes gleamed with triumph as she pushed forward, feeling the wind resistance shift as she claimed the lead position.
"Oh! Shining Atrium has edged ahead! She's taken first place!"
But the celebration came too early. Even as the announcer called her into first, Silence Suzuka's expression never changed. Without the slightest concern, she quietly increased her tempo
"Silence Suzuka has responded! She's accelerating and pulling back alongside Shining Atrium!"
"The two were trading the lead back and forth now, separated by barely half a length at most. Every time one pulled ahead, the other would surge forward to reclaim the position. It was an intense back-and-forth battle that neither seemed willing to lose."
Shining Atrium gritted her teeth. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. She'd expected to break away cleanly, but Suzuka kept matching her every move with frustrating ease.
"This is incredible! Both runners are refusing to give up the front position! The fight for first is absolutely fierce!"
Shining Atrium's speed far exceeded what the other competitors could manage, but Silence Suzuka wasn't just keeping up. She was doing it effortlessly, her breathing still controlled and steady even as Atrium's became more labored.
"Fine then. Let's see you handle this!" Shining Atrium's eyes flashed with determination.
Early Lead activated!
A faint glow surrounded Shining Atrium as her skill kicked in. Her stride lengthened, her speed increased, and she began pulling away from Suzuka with newfound power. The skill was designed specifically for this, for surging ahead in the early phase and claiming dominance.
After activating her skill, she finally started creating separation. One horse length, then two. The gap between them was growing, and Shining Atrium's lips curved into a confident smile.
"Silence Suzuka, let me show you what a real runaway looks like!"
The two had already broken away from the pack by five horse lengths, but now Atrium was extending her lead over Suzuka herself.
This is it! This was the moment she'd trained for!
But then something changed in Suzuka's eyes. That calm, almost distant expression shifted into something sharper, more focused. She wasn't worried. She wasn't even concerned.
She was just getting started.
Runner Straight activated!
Yellow light flashed around Silence Suzuka's form as her entire rhythm transformed. Her footwork became impossibly smooth, each stride more efficient than the last. When using this skill, even her breathing pattern changed, becoming slower and more controlled despite the increased pace.
In a matter of seconds, Suzuka wasn't just catching up. She was accelerating past Shining Atrium like she'd been holding back the entire time.
"What?" Shining Atrium's confident smile vanished instantly. "So fast!"
That figure was like a gust of wind, surging forward with terrifying ease. The gap that Shining Atrium had worked so hard to create disappeared in an instant, and then Suzuka was ahead. One length. Two lengths. Three lengths.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Shining Atrium pushed harder, trying to match that blistering pace, but her body was already screaming in protest. At this speed, she'd already reached her limit. To chase any further would mean burning through her stamina reserves completely.
"I won't... lose here!" She forced another burst of acceleration, her second surge of the race. Her muscles burned, her lungs felt like they were on fire, but she managed to close the gap slightly.
For one brief moment, it looked like she might actually catch up.
Then, Silence Suzuka increased her speed again.
Suzuka suddenly surged forward, her speed leaping as if she'd shifted into a higher gear that Shining Atrium didn't even know. In that second when Atrium had pushed everything she had into closing the gap, Suzuka had already pulled ten lengths ahead.
"How... how is that even possible?" The despair in Shining Atrium's eyes was complete as she watched that unreachable figure grow smaller in the distance. "Ten lengths..."
The fight was over. It had been decided in those crucial moments when Suzuka revealed she'd been holding back all along.
"Whoa! Silence Suzuka has opened up a runaway lead of ten lengths and is in first place! Can Shining Atrium still catch up?"