That afternoon, when King Halo stepped onto the academy-assigned training grounds, she was full of excitement and confidence as she waited for her evaluation to begin.
The others taking the test alongside her were all promising standouts from the middle school division. Aside from one foreign exchange student and one "country bumpkin" from the regional circuit, she was familiar with all of them.
She was certain that none of those classmates she had measured herself against so many times before could outrun her. So she allowed herself to imagine the looks of astonishment and desire on the trainers' faces when she crossed the finish line first.
The night before, she had already made up her mind. She would use this performance to prove to that woman that she was no overpraised child playing at greatness. She was a true prodigy, one who earned results with real ability.
She wanted so badly to see surprise on that woman's face because of her. She wanted the woman whose authority had always kept her from speaking back to lower her head just once and acknowledge her just once.
She had once hated her own timidity and weakness. This, she believed, was her best chance.
She had adjusted herself to perfect condition. Her breathing and rhythm had reached their ideal tempo. Standing inside the gate, she fixed her eyes on the doors that would soon open. She was certain that the instant they did, she would be the first horse girl out—
Bang!
At the sudden explosive crack in her ears, King Halo lunged forward without hesitation. She immediately noticed that the local girl seemed to have frozen up and failed to break cleanly from the gate, which drew a small smile to her lips.
And then—
She saw a figure blaze past her at a speed she could not comprehend.
Wasn't she afraid of burning out?
That single thought filled King Halo's mind at the time. Then she watched that unknown horse girl maintain that impossible speed all the way through the finish line.
At that moment, King Halo had not even finished the turn yet. Her heart didn't even have time to fill with frustration or disappointment. She could only stare blankly at the finish line, where Toko Jo—the woman hailed as Japan's top trainer—was already speaking to that girl with open delight.
Compared to that nameless horse girl, the so-called prodigies and all the others behind them had made no difference at all. They were merely tools used to set off the winner's greatness.
She bit down hard. Countless eyes were on her. She knew many trainers were still watching and waiting—
In the end, she finished third. The country girl who had broken so badly at the start blew past her down the home stretch, and King Halo left the track in a daze.
She could not understand it. Why was it that she, who had been unbeatable in the middle school division, ended up like this in the very first "race" after moving up?
It seemed her body had inherited none of her mother's powerful running ability, and the contrast was all the crueler for being so obvious. She still remembered the anticipation in Toko Jo's eyes before the mock race began—and how, once it was over, the woman never looked her way again.
Perhaps that title of genius really had been nothing more than childish make-believe and empty praise.
When she returned home, her mother asked casually how it had gone, and King Halo answered in confusion.
What she received was neither comfort nor encouragement.
Instead, she heard that woman question her in a tone of utter disbelief and disgust, asking how she could possibly have produced such a result.
She had not even described the mock race in detail. She had not explained how thoroughly she had been beaten. Yet the moment she spoke her placing aloud, she was buried beneath the woman's relentless barrage.
That night, under a sky that should have felt gentle, the girl who had always been taught to focus on being first-rate learned, for the first time, how to hide the truth.
The next day, proud as ever, she did not give up. There would be more than one mock race. She would have more chances to prove herself.
Perhaps that first day had only been because she was out of form. Or perhaps her opponents had simply been in exceptional shape. King Halo insisted to herself that she had not been at fault. After all, the moment she saw that horse girl cross the finish line first, she had eased off slightly—and that was what had allowed the local girl to slip past her.
She stood on the same track once again.
This time, she was sure she was in top condition. She had spent the entire previous night thinking over everything, all so she could bring out her full strength in today's mock race.
She finished second.
The girl ahead of her was named Grass Wonder.
After that, she kept trying. But then there was the horse girl named Seiun Sky. Despite looking utterly unmotivated, she remained forever just out of reach. The half-length between them became the greatest standard by which every trainer present judged whom they would choose as a trainee.
When King Halo left the track—after refusing the offers of trainers whose names she had never even heard before—she heard the whispers behind her with perfect clarity.
"So she still thinks she's some kind of genius? She needs to face reality."
"She really can't compare to her mother at all. She's just a spoiled rich girl."
"Her personality and the way she races will destroy her. Aside from shouting about being first-rate, she doesn't have any talent at all."
At one point, King Halo had nearly wavered.
She remembered one of her races in middle school, when a mistake had cost her the victory. At the time, her mother had sternly told her that if she lacked the talent, then she should stop trying to imitate other horse girls' running styles.
From that day on, King Halo understood something: once you failed, no matter how firmly you continued to believe in yourself, criticism from others would always begin to breed.
And now, hearing those open and merciless insults, the girl clenched her fists, gritted her teeth, and walked away from the track.
She was no longer the genius who had once filled even herself with pride, the genius who had once made her believe in hope.
…
Drool slipped from the corner of her mouth. At last, King Halo's steps stopped.
That exhausted body, numb beyond feeling, swayed once—then crashed heavily to the ground.
Quite a few girls around her started in alarm, but the moment they saw that man walking toward her, they all held back and left it alone.
King Halo could no longer see any of it.
Her blurred vision had been swallowed by mud. It felt as though she had fallen into a pond, floating helplessly on its surface. Boundless exhaustion welled up inside her, and sleepiness rushed over her like a tide. With the last scraps of her will, King Halo forced herself not to close her eyes.
At the very least, she had to see that man.
She had to hear the conclusion from the man her instincts told her could change the course of her career.
She thought—after the hardest effort she had ever made, her failed career could not go on ending in failure forever.
She did not know how much time passed. It felt as long as a year.
At last, she heard footsteps.
They had to belong to him. The sound came closer, then stopped directly in front of her.
"Y… ah…"
The words that came out were incoherent nonsense. Shinji Teraizumi let out a small, helpless sigh as he crouched down.
The horse girl had utterly exhausted herself. She was no longer capable of conversation. Looking at those vacant eyes, Shinji pressed his lips together.
At last, she had set aside that excessive pride and come begging for the one chance she had left.
So he gently laid a hand on her shoulder, and her body gave a faint tremor.
"Welcome to the team, King Halo…"
"You pass."
The body beneath his hand went completely limp. Those vacant eyes finally shut.
Tazuna Hayakawa, who had come with him, hurried forward and gathered the girl into her arms. Her delicate face was so filthy it was hard to recognize, but asleep like that, she somehow looked peaceful.
Watching Tazuna hurry off with her, Shinji scratched his head and slowly stood up.
[Congratulations, Shinji. You've picked up another big gift package.]
Hearing the system's voice in his head, Shinji clicked his tongue lightly.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 132)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter140)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter95)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter165)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 145
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 135
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 95
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 155
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 125
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 105
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 62
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 80
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 66
Uma Musume: From Beginner 80
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 62
Uma Musume: I Want All 65
I Can Copy Unique Skills 53
Summoning an Evil God, but the 41
Supernatural Multiverse 45
My Harem Is Indescribable 35
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 46
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 26
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 36
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