"The Uma Musume have now entered the track and are now doing their final warm-ups. After this, they will start entering the gates for the race to begin!"
At this moment, the commentator's voice did not catch the attention of the key personnel here. Hana Toujou, standing beside Wada, who was with Ikezoe, rarely stood with the two of them. She calmly said to Wada beside her:
"Speaking of which, I have to thank you. I didn't expect T.M. Opera O to actually stabilize after talking with you. During the last week, T.M. Opera O's condition has been completely cured. She no longer blushes for no reason, and she doesn't get distracted during training. She has truly returned to her original state."
As she spoke, Hana Toujou looked at Wada beside her with a puzzled expression and couldn't help but ask, "How did you do it? Although T.M. Opera O isn't the type to throw a massive fit, how did you manage to calm her down so quickly?"
"Or perhaps, you were lovers in a past life, and you two have a telepathic connection?"
"...Well, I'm not entirely sure about that, but when it comes to encouraging people, I'm actually quite experienced."
Wada also didn't know how to explain this. In fact, T.M. Opera O was quite restless when she first saw him. Not only did she frequently avoid his gaze, but she even stammered when speaking, as if Wada was some kind of scary monster.
However, fortunately, this problem was eventually resolved with Wada's persistent persuasion. Since that day, T.M. Opera O's condition has indeed recovered a lot, and now, T.M. Opera O looks no different from usual; acting flamboyantly and confidently without a single shred of shame.
"That being said, it seems like you really had nothing to do with it. It was just that T.M. Opera O was simply feeling a bit unwell for a few days..." Hana Toujou also realized she might have wronged Wada, but at that moment, she looked at T.M. Opera O and said,
"But since T.M. Opera O's condition has recovered, your chances of winning have actually decreased."
"How about we treat this Mainichi Hai as just a friendly match and we'll see each other at the Satsuki Sho after this?" Hana Toujou wanted to give Wada a way out. She was very clear about T.M. Opera O's strength. This GIII Race was not difficult for T.M. Opera O. Although Meisho Doto had worked very hard these two months and her progress was amazing, she couldn't possibly surpass T.M. Opera O.
Despite saying this, Hana Toujou actually suffered from a lack of information. She had been busy with her team members' Races and T.M. Opera O's training, and she hadn't watched the mock race, only learning about Doto's third-place finish from other team members.
If Doto had taken first place, perhaps Hana Toujou would have been surprised and then started to view Doto as a true opponent. But she didn't; so, Hana Toujou didn't actually consider Doto a threat and even thought T.M. Opera O would win very easily.
Hana Toujou's words also made Wada look slightly to the side—it sounded like the communication between T.M. Opera O and her Trainer hadn't been extensive during this period. For T.M. Opera O, she considered Doto a formidable opponent, and she dared not be careless, but Hana Toujou, her Trainer, was completely unaware of this... This also highlighted a problem that Wada was very concerned about: during this period, T.M. Opera O's condition didn't seem as good as he thought or saw.
"The Race hasn't even started yet, Miss Toujou. Perhaps Meisho Doto will give you a big surprise."
Wada also watched Doto and T.M. Opera O, who were slowly entering the gates on the Racecourse, fully prepared, but still felt a little uneasy in his heart... Whether this Race could develop as Wada expected would depend on this start... And Doto, who had now entered Gate No. 2, was also incredibly calm. Stepping onto the Racecourse, she was completely different from her usual timid image. Her eyes gradually became serious, staring fixedly at the track ahead.
In Gate No. 1, next to Doto, T.M. Opera O was equally solemn. She silently closed her eyes, recalling the words Hana Toujou had said to her before the Race.
"T.M. Opera O, although I know you like to run as a Pace Chaser, you've seen the results of the training from a while ago. Your Pace Chaser is not very mature yet. If we had more time, I would definitely have you train in the Pace Chaser running style, but the Mainichi Hai is imminent, and we need to win."
"Therefore, in this Race, you must use the Late Surger running style. As long as you run as a Late Surger, we will win this race."
"Late Surger, huh..."
However, T.M. Opera O now opened her eyes again, muttering the advice Hana Toujou had given her. Even T.M. Opera O had to admit that Hana Toujou was right. The Pace Chaser technique she had only learned through dreams was not yet sufficient. It would be extremely reckless to compete against a strong opponent like Doto, whom she might not even win against with her full strength right now, using a running style she was not even proficient in yet.
But what T.M. Opera O hadn't told Hana Toujou was that she felt that her Late Surger technique would no longer improve, while her Pace Chaser technique was, on the contrary, improving more and more than before.
And the reason for all this came from that period of overthinking. T.M. Opera O was not exactly lucid during that time, largely because after her contact with Wada that day, many fragments in her mind began to gradually become clearer.
Not only in her dreams, but even during regular training, T.M. Opera O's attention was constantly divided. Her Late Surger running style would always unconsciously transform into Pace Chaser, and whenever she used the Pace Chaser running style, which she was originally unfamiliar with, she would feel a different kind of confidence surge from her heart.
It was as if this was the royal running style that could make her heart beat with confidence and pride. It was as if she had already achieved countless victories with this running style, leading to a confident mindset—making T.M. Opera O feel that running as a Pace Chaser would definitely make her stronger!
And now on the Racecourse, this emotion became increasingly evident. T.M. Opera O simply couldn't control her inner yearning. Therefore, she decided to make a bold decision. A decision that, even if she won, might displease her Trainer and cause her to leave the team.
"I'm sorry, Trainer, but as the Overlord, I have my own thoughts."
"What the Overlord decides to do, no one can stop, just like the victory the Overlord wants to achieve—no one can lay a hand on it."
"Clang!" At this moment, the sound of the gates immediately came, and all the Uma Musume rushed out of the gates in unison!
"A perfect start! Not a single Uma Musume was late!" The commentator's voice also came immediately, and very quickly, the live broadcast personnel began to analyze and explain all the Racehorses on the field.
"In this 1,800-meter distance, quite a few Uma Musume have chosen to run as Front Runners! Are they all very confident in their stamina?"
"Currently leading is the third favorite Uma Musume, with the sixth and ninth favorites also closely following! And the one behind them is the second favorite Meisho Doto!"
"To be able to maintain almost the same speed as so many Front Running Uma Musume, if one doesn't observe carefully, they might even think Meisho Doto is also running as a Front Runner!"
"And after that—oh! This time, T.M. Opera O is surprisingly not running as a Late Surger, which allowed her to win her the Debut Race, but as a Pace Chaser running style that she used in the Yukinayanagi Sho! Is she going to have a showdown with Meisho Doto?!"
Indeed! And at this moment, Meisho Doto, who was tightly following the group of Nigashi Uma Musume ahead, subconsciously looked to her side after hearing the commentator's voice, at T.M. Opera O, whose figure could be seen in the corner of her eye.
At this time, Doto couldn't help but recall a week ago, when she and Wada were making their final efforts in special training. However, the content of the special training was no longer about developing Doto's speed and power, but about analyzing T.M. Opera O's tactics.
"Doto, you are different from T.M. Opera O. She can choose between two running styles, Late Surger and Pace Chaser, but I have only trained you on how to run as a Pace Chaser. Of course, this won't affect the situation, but what I want to tell you is, absolutely do not be influenced by T.M. Opera O."
"Trainer, you said to formulate tactics according to the situation, but I have no idea what running style T.M. Opera O will use," Doto asked worriedly at the time, and Wada pondered deeply over this. But in the end, with a slow tap on the table, Wada confirmed his judgment and said, word by word:
"I think T.M. Opera O will run as a Pace Chaser."
"T.M. Opera O has strong self-training capabilities; she will adjust her tactics according to different Race environments and courses—the 1,800-meter turf is not difficult to run for us, and probably the same for T.M. Opera O."
"Therefore, I don't think T.M. Opera O will use a running style which would lead to a close win like a Late Surger, even if she's more skilled at it. Instead, she will choose to run as a Pace Chaser, utilize her final spurt, and then win the race dominantly!"
"And Doto, all you need to do is to occupy a favorable position with all your might from the very start and then maintain a lead of about one length over T.M. Opera O. This shouldn't be a problem considering the strength that you've developed during this time would definitely surpass most Uma Musume in the Mainichi Hai."
"Then, block T.M. Opera O! Hold your position tightly! All the way until the last corner!"
..."As the Trainer predicted, T.M. Opera O chose the Pace Chaser running style!"
At this moment, Wada's successful prediction theory boosted Doto's confidence, and at this moment, she was indeed a bit ahead of T.M. Opera O—this was the result of continuous intense training in strength and speed during this period. She had been specifically training her strengths under Wada's guidance.
T.M. Opera O, on the other hand, received comprehensive training. Hana Toujou pursued perfection, which meant T.M. Opera O had no weaknesses in any aspect. (T/N: Toujou is a Guts maxer confirmed)
Thus, in this Race, a gap was created between the well-rounded T.M. Opera O and the strength-focused Meisho Doto! T.M. Opera O, despite a nearly perfect start, was completely suppressed by Meisho Doto, who also had an almost perfect start!
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If you're blocked, you're blocked.
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.