Rice Shower's petite body collapsed a dozen or so meters behind the finish line.
The sight of Rice Shower's fall was far more terrifying than Silent Suzuka's tumble.
The atmosphere in the entire arena froze. Those spectators who had been about to mock Rice Shower's unexpected finish fell silent.
Mejiro McQueen, Tokai Teio, and even all the Umamusumes who had just crossed the finish line covered their mouths in horror, staring at the motionless Rice Shower lying there.
At the same time, Mihono Bourbon, witnessing this, leaped out of the stands and rushed to the fallen Rice Shower.
The three members of TCB, also covering their mouths in horror, saw Sakura Baimu beside them leap out of the stands and run toward the fallen Rice Shower.
Mihono Bourbon rushed to Rice Shower's side, her face contorted with intense emotion, a mixture of sadness and worry etched on her beautiful features.
"Rice! Rice! Are you alright? Rice, wake up!"
She shook Rice Shower, shouting at her, tears welling in her blue eyes.
"Don't shake her, put her down."
Hearing the voice, Mihono Bourbon glanced at Sakura Baimu and obediently stopped what she was doing.
Sakura Baimu went to Rice Shower's side. Looking at her pale, bloodless face, her eyes closed in unconsciousness, and seeing the gruesome wounds revealed through her torn black stockings and her visibly deformed and bent legs, she couldn't help but feel a chill.
Rice Shower's wounds were horrific; many Umamusumes who witnessed the scene quickly averted their eyes.
This was enough to give anyone nightmares.
The Umamusumes from the Central Tracen Academy all gathered around Rice Shower. Looking at her horrific state, almost all of them had tears welling up in their eyes.
Soon, the stadium's doctors arrived with a stretcher. After gently placing the unconscious Rice Shower on it, they prepared to lift her into the ambulance.
"Wait, you can't get on."
Mihono Bourbon wanted to accompany Rice Shower to take care of her but was stopped by the doctors.
Just as Mihono Bourbon was about to speak, she suddenly felt two pats on her back and then saw Sakura Baimu step forward and speak.
"I'm her trainer, let me come along."
The medical staff didn't suspect anything, nor did they think anyone would lie at this time, so they let Sakura Baimu get into the ambulance.
Just before the back door of the ambulance closed, Sakura Baimu called out to Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen:
"Teiō, McQueen, remember to meet up with the team after your Winning Live performance, then we'll contact each other."
Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen exchanged a glance.
The winner was already injured like this; was there any point in holding a Winning Live performance?
—
A few hours later, accompanied by Mihono Bourbon, Sakura Baimu met the doctor who had just finished surgery.
"Doctor, how is Rice?"
"Her life is saved, but…"
The doctor hesitated slightly before continuing. "A comminuted fracture and an open dislocation. You understand what that means, right?"
Mihono Bourbon's eyes widened slightly upon hearing this.
"Rice will never be able to run again?"
"Forget running, even walking will probably be a problem."
Seeing that Sakura Baimu didn't speak, the doctor left their side.
Sakura Baimu turned to look at Mihono Bourbon, only to see that the usually robotic Umamusume's face was now filled with panic and fear.
"Ms. Bourbon, don't give up hope."
Sakura Baimu patted Mihono Bourbon's shoulder. Then Rice Shower was wheeled out of the operating room.
After settling the hospitalization arrangements, only the stil unconsciousn Rice Shower, Sakura Baimu, and Mihono Bourbon remained in the intensive care unit.
Sakura Baimu didn't speak. She gently placed her hand on Rice Shower's leg, which was immobilized by various steel pins and plates.
A virtual data of Rice Shower's current condition immediately came to mind.
[Open dislocation]
[Comminuted fracture]
As the doctor had just said, Rice Shower suffered a truly devastating injury in this match, one that would be considered catastrophic for an Umamusume.
Even if the injury healed, she would likely be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life. Even if she could walk again, she probably wouldn't be able to return to her pre-match condition.
But Sakura Baimu was different. She had a system that could heal even the most severe injuries.
However, the healing wasn't like something easy thing to do, like dripping a medicine or meditating for a day.
Currently, even with the system's help, Rice Shower would need more than a week to fully recover.
After seeing the system's notification, Sakura Baimu breathed a long sigh of relief.
As long as there was hope, a little over a week was practically a medical miracle.
What more could she ask for?
Sakura Baimu relaxed, then looked up to find Mihono Bourbon staring at her with an expressionless face. Her blue eyes clearly showed confusion over Sakura Baimu's earlier relief.
"For Rice, not being able to run is probably more painful than killing her," Mihono Bourbon spoke softly. "I can't understand your relief just now."
"I'm relieved because Rice Shower's injury can be healed," Sakura Baimu said softly.
Mihono Bourbon reacted to this.
While her expression didn't change much, Sakura Baimu clearly saw the fleeting tremor in her eyes.
"The doctor just said it can heal, but there might not be a future…"
Mihono Bourbon was interrupted by Sakura Baimu before she could finish her sentence.
"When I said it could be cured, I meant returning to the state before the fracture."
"But the doctor just said…" Mihono Bourbon was clearly incredulous. "According to the records, none of the Umamusumes who suffered comminuted fractures have ever been able to recover to…"
"What would be the point of me lying to you?"
Sakura Baimu retorted, and Mihono Bourbon immediately fell silent.
Although, for the Cyborg Umamusume, Sakura Baimu's words had absolutely no basis.
Based on past records, what Sakura Baimu said should have been a lie.
Perhaps because Mihono Bourbon herself was unwilling to accept the fact that Rice Shower might not be able to continue running, she held onto a last glimmer of hope.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Ms. Sakura."