Chapter 17 - Step Into the Chaos
The gates clanged open, hooves pounding, dust rising, the roar of the crowd swelling around the track. I shot forward, calm, collected, taking my position next to Emperor Rudolph. Archer Skin Rudolph outfit, sleek and battle-ready, bow strapped across my back, aura sharp as a blade. And beside her, me, Tracen Academy Rudolph, poised, relaxed, aura steady, ready.
The first half of the race passed normally enough. I triggered small skills in sequence, Concentration to keep focus, Late Surger Straight to pick up extra speed on the long straight, Late Surger Corners to tighten each turn, Swing Mastro to maximize the curves.
To Emperor Rudolph and everyone else on the field, I looked like a natural, perfect form, almost as if someone had drawn the ideal horse girl and set her in motion. Every corner cut precise, every stride balanced, every acceleration fluid.
She blinked, then stared, confusion flickering in her sharp eyes. What is she doing? Her internal tension was clear. She could not read skills, could not see triggers. All she saw was Tracen Academy Rudolph moving impossibly smoothly, gaining ground with eerie precision.
This Uniformed Rodolph switched to Your Left, weaving past competitors in a subtle inside move. On The Line activated, letting me push slightly ahead of a pack cluster. One in Mind and Body synchronized my rhythm, swinging every stride to catch just the right timing on the corners.
Emperor Rudolph's jaw tightened. How… how can she! She clenched her fists. Every instinct screamed this was wrong. She was used to competing at the front, but she was now not even able to burst out like this uniformed version of her. She could not explain why.
Sora (the Tracen uniformed Rudolph) let Swing Mastro and Mountaineer layer together through the mid-straight, gaining a small gap, each stride smooth and deliberate. White skills flickered in the background, Straight Recovery keeping me light, Deep Breaths keeping focus steady, Updraft letting me adjust posture mid-stride. To everyone watching, it looked like effortless mastery, but inside, every trigger was intentional.
Then came the last straight.
Sora leaned forward, almost humming to myself. Behold The Emperor's Might.
Rainbow light flared from her, every color blending, glowing, stretching down the track like I had painted the air with speed itself. The stacking velocity kicked in, pushing me past every competitor I had touched on the way, the effect cumulative and unstoppable. Domain flared as well, a brief pulse, subtly bending the field for just a few seconds, boosting every stat, letting me glide past all interference.
Emperor Rudolph froze. Eyes wide, jaw slack. Her green victory suit blurred in my vision as I surged past her. She could see the glow, the colors, the impossible burst, but she could not understand it. She had techniques, experience, Domain of her own, but this, this was different.
What… how… what is she using? Her thoughts scrambled, awe and disbelief cutting through her competitive fire. She lunged forward, tried to push every instinct, every skill she knew, but it was not enough.
I felt the wind and dirt whip past, every stride tuned to perfection, every corner executed without waste, every small skill layering into the ultimate effect. The American Uma gasped around us, stumbling slightly as I overtook them. They could see the light, the motion, the surreal perfection, but they could not comprehend how it worked.
I crossed the finish line first. Rainbow light fading, Domain dissipating, my body finally slowing.
Emperor Rudolph skidded to a stop a few strides behind, sweat pouring, eyes wide, chest heaving. She stared at me, awe-struck, confusion battling pride. She had been Emperor her whole career, but in that moment, she understood something beyond technique, beyond Domain, beyond skill was in front of her.