"By the way, what are the requirements? And why am I the one who meets them?" Sakura Baimu asked.
"No… Dad said that if I can win the match he prepared, You'll meet the requirement," Satono Diamond said.
This was originally a requirement that her father should have made for her, but Satono Diamond's father always believed that if Satono Diamond accepted Sakura Baimu's training but failed to meet the requirements, then the problem lay with the trainer.
"What competition?" Sakura Baimu immediately became alert. "It's not like you're going to have to beat McQueen, is it?"
Sakura Baimu remembered that in the mobile game from her previous life, Satono Diamond's father only recognized the player as Satono Diamond's trainer if Satono Diamond could beat the then-dominant Mejiro McQueen in a 2400-meter race.
If they had trained for two or three years, they might have had a chance, but back then, Satono Diamond was just like she is now—an undebuted Uma Musume.
If Satono Diamond's father here were to make the same request, Sakura Baimu would be speechless.
"Huh? How is that possible?! No, I have to win the debut race that my father has designated."
Satono Diamond was also taken aback when she heard Sakura Baimu's question.
She suddenly realized that no matter how demanding her father was, he couldn't seem to match Sakura Baimu's outrageousness.
"Oh, I was scared. It's alright then." Sakura Baimu breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Satono Diamond's words and patted Satono Diamond on the shoulder to reassure her.
"I'm sorry to have troubled you, Trainer-san..."
Although Sakura Baimu appeared relieved, Satono Diamond still felt that the impolite request was extremely rude. Her voice was full of apology.
"It's alright, it's alright. After all, I've only been a trainer for a few years. It's normal for your parents to be worried, Dia-chan." Sakura Baimu waved her hand, indicating that she didn't mind.
"Mmm!" Satono Diamond nodded, a sweet smile appearing on her cute little face.
"Trainer-san is really kind…" Satono Diamond thought to herself.
"I'm back~~~!"
At that moment, Kitasan Black also ran back carrying the finish line sign.
Sakura Baimu took the sign and placed it at the 200-meter mark behind the steep slope, then called out to the two Uma Musumes who were warming up.
"Go and get ready!"
Sakura Baimu also made a point of observing whether Rudolf Symboli and Maruzensky had come to watch today, and the answer was no.
Only then did she feel relieved and approach the two veteran team members who had made preparations, raising the small flag and then quickly throwing it down.
"Start!"
As soon as the words were spoken, Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen both rushed out.
Both players had excellent starts, and this time, Mejiro McQueen once again adopted a lead strategy to try to disrupt Tokai Teio's rhythm.
Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio soon arrived at the steep 1.4-meter slope. Mejiro McQueen, who was in the lead, slowed down noticeably, as did Tokai Teio, who was following behind her.
However, for these two experienced Uma Musumes, even if they lost some speed here, they were able to quickly regain their speed after passing the steep slope.
"That's it? I thought it would be much harder. It's not a problem at all. Trainer-san is really exaggerating." Mejiro McQueen realized that she had slowed down briefly after climbing the steep slope, but she didn't think it was a problem at all.
After all, Tokai Teio behind her should be in the same situation.
Just as Mejiro McQueen had thought, Tokai Teio's speed also dropped momentarily while running uphill, but this had no impact on her at all.
After crossing the steep slope, the two Uma Musumes began their normal competition.
Mejiro McQueen still started to accelerate on the final straight, while Tokai Teio started to accelerate on the final straight.
"Go for it, Miss Teiō!"
"Go, Miss McQueen!"
Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond were both cheering loudly for Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio, while Sakura Baimu stood to the side with her arms crossed, watching the two of them.
"This time, after Teiō's final burst of speed, she didn't close the gap with McQueen as quickly..."
The 2200-meter course is a medium-distance track that should be Tokai Teio's advantage, but Mejiro McQueen has also improved her skills and experience after two races against Zone Umamusumes.
In addition, Sakura Baimu uses the system to enhance their horseshoes before the match, so Mejiro McQueen's strength has been further improved after yesterday's Tennō Shō (Spring) match.
"Tokai Teio hasn't participated in a race since the last Arima Kinen, and she's an umamusume who won the classic Triple Crown in her year. Her opponents weren't particularly strong."
"Therefore, in terms of experience fighting against powerful umamusumes, Teiō is indeed far inferior to McQueen..."
As Sakura Baimu was thinking this, she saw Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen both arrive at a position less than 300 meters from the finish line.
The second steep slope.
Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen didn't experience any problems other than slowing down when going up the first steep hill, so neither of them paid much attention to this not-so-high hill.
But just as Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio stepped onto the uphill lawn one after the other, both Uma Musume felt an immense pressure on their hearts.
"What's going on with this feeling? I didn't feel anything the first time!" Mejiro McQueen was shocked.
"Ugh, this feels so bad~" Tokai Teio thought to herself, pursing her lips.
Of course, this pressure is only relative to regular races. For the two,l whose physical fitness already far surpasses that of other active Umamusumes, this pressure will not harm their bodies.
Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen experienced a second speed drop, and the gap between them did not narrow.
The finish line was 200 meters after the steep hill. Both of them accelerated at the same time and then crossed the finish line together.
"Crossed the finish line! The winner is Mejiro McQueen!"
Sakura Baimu waved her small flag and shouted at the two people panting heavily by the track.
This time, Mejiro McQueen maintained her lead from start to finish and defeated Tokai Teio by a narrow margin.
Mejiro McQueen, who was still clutching her chest and panting, smiled upon hearing the news.
She walked over to Tokai Teio, who was also panting and leaning on her knees, patted her on the shoulder, and said in a feigned calm tone, "Teiō, I beat you at your distance."
"Hmph, don't get too cocky, McQueen."
"Trainer-san, see? That steep slope has almost no impact on us." Mejiro McQueen listened to Tokai Teio's unconvinced voice, her face showing undisguised joy.
"Yeah?"
Sakura Baimu chuckled softly, took out two bottles of nutritional drinks, walked over to Tokai Teio, whose mood had slightly dipped, and held one of the bottles out to her.
"Teiō, this time you run the way I do."