On the training track, two figures were sprinting.
"Hmph, what terrifying talent." Narita Brian chewed on a blade of grass while leaning on the railing of the spectator stand, staring intently at the two on the track.
"Indeed. She was clearly still holding back just a moment ago." Mr. C.B. crossed her arms and nodded. "Is this what they call Maruzensky Senior? Maintaining this level of Domain Expansion while still being able to clash with Legend-chan, who has mastered Perfect Internal Harmony... No, Legend-chan is the one who's unusual. To reach this level in the Classic division..."
"Hmm..." A bead of sweat dripped from Maruzensky's forehead. "This is truly frightening. Such a high standard."
"You flatter me." Legend, who was struggling to keep up with Maruzensky, spoke with difficulty. "I'm still far from enough, aren't I?"
"Heh... I love that defiant look on you youngsters." Maruzensky flashed an excited smile. "Don't you dare underestimate me."
With that, accompanied by the roar of an engine, Maruzensky accelerated again.
"Hey, hey, hey, does Maruzensky Senior really need to go that far? Releasing her Domain to that extent?" Narita Brian stood up in surprise.
"This is truly... What is this? An old veteran refusing to lose?" Mr. C.B. shook her head helplessly.
"I don't think you have the right to say that."
You would probably be even more excited than Maruzensky Senior.
Narita Brian stared speechlessly at the posturing C.B.
"Well, well, but Legend can still accelerate? Does she have no limits?" C.B. chuckled dismissively, changing the subject.
"Uma Musume all have limits; it's just that the location of the limit varies from person to person. Look, she's running out of steam." Narita Brian rolled her eyes and turned to walk down from the spectator stand. "Let's go, get ready. Training isn't over yet."
"Look who's talking," Mr. C.B. muttered discontentedly, then suddenly noticed, "Hey, you haven't grabbed your stuff yet."
Narita Brian silently quickened her pace.
"...Damn it!" Mr. C.B. cursed, grabbed the things, and chased after her... "Ha, ha, ha..." On the track, Legend stopped, panting.
"Hmph, hmph, I really haven't lost my touch." On the other side, Maruzensky, though looking tired, was still relatively composed as she slowly walked over.
"Give me a break. If Legend were your age, you'd probably only be slightly better than the kids in her Classic division." Narita Brian, who quickly walked over, heard Maruzensky's bragging and rolled her eyes again. "Are you not ashamed, relying on years of accumulated Domain experience to bully a Classic division Uma Musume like Legend?"
"#" A hashtag appeared on Maruzensky's forehead. "Little Brian, some things shouldn't be said lightly..."
"Ah." Brian, realizing she had spoken out of turn, started sweating cold.
"You sneaky Brian! How dare you play such tricks on me after three days of separation!" Senior Chiaki, who had caught up carrying a small bag, immediately prepared to lash out at Brian.
"Senior Chiaki, you came just in time." Brian naturally took the bag, opened it, and pulled out two bottles, handing them to Legend and Maruzensky. "Here, replenish your fluids."
"?" Mr. C.B. tilted her head.
"Thank you, Sister Hakuren." Legend took the bottle and thanked her.
"Sister Hakuren..." Brian looked slightly moved.
"...What's wrong? Is it not okay?" Legend took a sip of water and asked, seeing Brian's reaction.
"No, this is good... Can you call me that again?" Brian looked at Legend with some anticipation.
"Uh, Sister Brian?"
"Mm-hmm!" Brian nodded expressionlessly, but judging from the arc of her wagging tail, she was very fond of the address.
"You've been called'sister,' that's great, Brian." Mr. C.B. said with a mischievous smile, placing a hand on Brian's shoulder.
"…" Brian ignored Mr. C.B..
"Speaking of which, even though it's the same liberation of the domain, why does Maruzensky-senpai's feel different from mine? I feel like there isn't that big of a gap between us." Legend took another sip of water, recalling their recent parallel run, and asked, puzzled.
"…" Maruzensky looked at Legend with dissatisfaction.
"…What's wrong?" Legend was confused.
"Little Brian is called'sister,' but I'm'senpai'?" Maruzensky pouted.
"...After all, you are a great senpai..."
"Hmm?!" Maruzensky's gaze sharpened, and her tone rose.
"...Sister Maruzensky." Legend succumbed.
"That's more like it!" Maruzensky immediately showed a 'teachable child' expression. "Regarding your question, Legend-chan, I can only say it's due to a difference in experience. You're already very good, Legend-chan."
"...?" Legend tilted her head, not understanding.
"Alright, stop speaking in riddles." Narita Brian spoke up. "It's better to explain it clearly."
"Oh dear, Little Brian is protecting her younger sister now." Maruzensky looked like a lonely old person. "So eager, why don't you explain it yourself?"
"…" Narita Brian rolled her eyes. If I could explain it clearly, why would I need you to say it?
"Alright, alright, enough joking."
At the crucial moment, Mr. C.B. stepped forward.
"Let me explain this. It's about time Legend understood these things."
"Legend, you still remember the concept of a domain, right?" Mr. C.B. asked Legend.
"Hmm? Ah, a special state that Uma Musume master after the sublimation of Mind-Body-Technique." As soon as she finished speaking, Legend keenly realized something. "A state?"
"Yes, just as you thought, although the awakening of a domain can bring various miraculous abilities to an Uma Musume, it is ultimately just a state." Mr. C.B. said casually.
"Wait, wait, this seems to conflict with what you said before?" Legend was a bit dizzy.
"It does sound like it, hmm... Let me put it another way." Mr. C.B. scratched his head, deciding to try a different teaching method.
"Let's compare an Uma Musume to a basic class in a game, and then divide them into levels."
Mr C.B pulled out a small blackboard from somewhere and began drawing and writing on it.
Legend's eye twitched as she looked at the shockingly crude artwork.
"As everyone knows, after a basic class reaches a certain level, it can advance or awaken. After advancing and awakening, the character gains more skills and cooler abilities." Mr. C.B. drew some more incomprehensible things. "As long as certain conditions and quests are met, the character can advance and awaken."
"You mean, the domain is the condition that needs to be met?" Legend pondered.
"For an Uma Musume, yes." Mr. C.B. nodded. "The domain is like a quest item needed for advancement and awakening. Although the abilities and bonuses gained after awakening vary due to individual reasons, this prerequisite is the same."
"I think I understand. Simply put, the domain is a prerequisite skill for awakening, but it's independent and has nothing to do with the skills and proficiencies gained after awakening?" Legend summarized.
"It's relatively independent. After all, it's the sublimation of Mind-Body-Technique, a summary of your entire being; it can't be completely separated! In short, setting aside the various miraculous abilities brought about by individual differences and the different bonuses caused by preferences, the essence of a domain is just a state." Mr C.B paused. "And this is the main content we're going to talk about: the application of a domain."
Legend pricked up her ears, listening attentively.
"A domain is a marvelous competitive state entered when one's mind is highly focused. For example, a domain is like an active buff skill with an on/off switch. When activated, you gain huge benefits, but its side effect is burning health (consuming stamina)." Qian Ming gave an easy-to-understand analogy.
"...That sounds like a lot of room for manipulation." As a gamer, Legend instantly grasped the key point.
"Not just that, you can also decide the speed of health burning. The faster it burns, the stronger the buff; the slower, the longer it lasts." Brian added. "And because each Uma Musume is different, there's a lot of room for manipulation there too."
"Hiss..." Legend understood.
"Overall, the use of a domain can be divided into three elements: intensity, sustainability, and control." Mr C.B continued. "Intensity, simply put, is how much of a bonus the domain activation gives you, and what are its upper and lower limits?"
"Sustainability is how long you can maintain the activated domain at that level."
"As for control, that depends on your proficiency and operation."
"So far, the most common application method for domains is to find the optimal ratio between your intensity and sustainability, and then use that as a standard to decide when to activate the domain. Of course, there are many exceptions. For example, if your proficiency is high enough, you can even activate the domain for a second to accelerate, then immediately deactivate it to conserve stamina. There are quite a few tricky maneuvers."
Mr. C.B. concluded.
"I see." Legend nodded. "So I'm an exception?"
"...You really are very perceptive." Mr. C.B. smiled and nodded. "Perfect Internal Harmony, a kind of, uh, realm? that maximizes the effect of the domain with minimal consumption. It can be said to be the ultimate of the domain."
That could no longer be called a technique.
"Uh, that state is called Perfect Internal Harmony?" Where did Sun Wukong come from?
"Wait, that's not right! If you say Perfect Internal Harmony is the ultimate of the domain, I shouldn't have been suppressed so thoroughly by Maruzensky... Sister." Legend found the key point and raised an objection.
"Because Perfect Internal Harmony is only the ultimate of the domain." Maruzensky said triumphantly. "And my domain is no longer just a [domain]."
"Uh, Masaka?"
"It is that Masaka!" Maruzensky shoved Mr. C.B. aside with her butt, seizing control of the blackboard. "Domains can grow!"
"Ah..." Is this a classic leveling system? Legend thought silently to herself.
"Legend-chan, do you know why a domain, as a state skill, is called a [domain] and not something else?" Maruzensky dodged Mr. C.B.'s attempt to reclaim control and asked with a grin.
"Uh, because after a domain is fully expanded, the Uma Musume gets a huge boost, and the surrounding world slows down significantly, as if entering their own world?" Legend expressed her feeling.
"Wow, Legend-chan, you can already fully expand it? Well, after opening the domain for the first time, with a few more familiarizations, you'll quickly be able to fully expand it. With your talent, mastering it is more than enough." Maruzensky said. "But what we're going to talk about goes deeper."
"Deeper? Deeper than full expansion?"
"Yes, when your mind and body are strong enough, the domain will overflow from within." Maruzensky's smile faded. "Over-limit expansion, that's what we call it."
"From self-improvement to interference with others, this is not comparable to the interference of an aura." Narita Brian added. "A domain is an extension of one's limbs. An over-limit expanded domain can exert a certain degree of control over other opponents covered by the domain. In a sense, unless an Uma Musume has mastered full expansion, they have no resistance against an Uma Musume with over-limit expansion. Even with full expansion, they can only resist. Only Uma Musume who have also mastered over-limit expansion can truly be opponents."
"…" Where did this fantasy worldview come from?
Gold Legend had a belly full of complaints she wanted to vent.
"We've strayed too far. In short, what I want to say is that you, Legend, are already very good at this stage. What you need next is accumulation." Mr C.B slapped Maruzensky's butt, reclaiming control. "At your age, you've already done your best. In my memory, there's no one better than you, so there's no need to rush."
"Uh, do I seem rushed?" Legend was surprised.
"You're already running with us every day, and you're not rushed?" Mr. C.B. was even more surprised than Legend. "Think about it, how long has it been since you trained with your teammates?"
"Uh, their progress and mine are..."
"Don't say such high-sounding words. You should cherish your companions! Going solo just because they can't keep up with your pace is not something to advocate." Maruzensky leaned in, her tone no longer lighthearted. "I don't want you to experience what I went through."
"I..."
"Alright, that's enough for today, let's go, let's go." Before Legend could say anything, Mr C.B hurriedly interrupted her, pulling Maruzensky and Brian away.
"…"
Legend stood rooted to the spot, somewhat dazed as she watched their retreating figures.
"Am I too solitary?"
The unconscious murmur dissipated in the wind.
No one responded.
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