After all the runners had shown themselves on stage, they returned to the waiting room to make their final preparations.
An hour later, the participating horse girls came out onto the track and, with the help of the staff, entered the starting gates one by one.
Urara was in stall six. Happy Meek was in stall seven. The two girls were right next to each other.
"Mii-chan Hello there" Urara cheerfully greeted Happy Meek in the gate to her right.
"Mm." Happy Meek nodded in response.
Urara then turned to the unfamiliar horse girl in the gate to her left and greeted her too. "Hi there I'm really happy we get to race together"
The unfamiliar girl froze for a second.
Weren't they supposed to be rivals? Shouldn't they be hostile toward each other? Why was this girl being so friendly and even greeting her?
Her trainer had told her that if another horse girl tried to engage with her before the race, she should put on a cold face and snap back at her. Never let herself lose momentum before the race even began.
But...
This little pink-haired girl was greeting her so sweetly...
Looking at Urara's healing smile, the other girl's heart melted.
"H-hello," she replied with a smile, immediately crossing Urara off her internal threat list.
And besides, Urara was so small—more than a head shorter than her—and looked so weak.
The unfamiliar girl quietly made up her mind.
Later in the race, she would look after this pink-haired girl a little and make sure she did not get bumped around by the others.
"All runners, please prepare yourselves. The race will begin shortly."
With the official reminder, all the horse girls lowered into their starting stances, eyes fixed on the gates ahead.
The instant the gates opened, the race would begin.
The audience also stared at the track, waiting for the moment the girls burst out.
The entire venue gradually fell silent, until the only sound left was the official's countdown.
"..."
Bang!
All the starting gates flew open at once.
"Go!"
The moment the gates opened, every runner lunged forward.
At first, they ran side by side for a short stretch, but after only a few seconds, the field began to separate.
Urara had chosen a midfield strategy. Since there were no true late-runners in this race, that made her look rather far back.
Happy Meek, meanwhile, had gone forward, already battling several other front-runners for position.
The race commentator began the live call.
"Into the first bend, the runner in front is Delicious Fresh! In second place is..."
"Happy Meek is in fourth..."
"Haru Urara is in eighth..."
"Into the second bend, Delicious Fresh remains in front, two lengths ahead of the main group!"
"Happy Meek is in fourth..."
"Urara is third from last..."
"There has not yet been any major change in the order."
"And now they're about to hit the third bend. How will each runner choose to move from here? Let's watch closely!"
As the finish line drew nearer, both the runners and the crowd began to tense up.
"Go, Urara!" Saintly Halo and the others shouted excitedly from the stands.
"Do your best... Urara..." Rice Shower clutched the lucky charm hanging on her chest and closed her eyes in prayer.
"Keep it up, Delicious Fresh!"
"Happy Meek! Charge!"
"Whoever wins, I'll be their dog!"
"Meek! Go!" Swept up in the tension, even the usually composed Aoi Kiryuin could not help shouting encouragement for Happy Meek.
Everyone in the stands was nervous.
Everyone except Tang Han.
Tang Han watched the race quietly, his expression utterly calm as he looked at Urara still running within the trailing pack.
Of course he wanted to pray for Urara to take first place.
But Lucky had already told him that prayer would not help. It would not actually create any miraculous stroke of luck.
Urara would receive no help from outside the race.
Everything depended on her.
Since worrying would not help, Tang Han chose not to worry.
The only thing he could do was trust in all the effort they had put in—and trust in Urara.
Soon, the pack reached the fourth bend.
The final straight was just ahead!
"They're all entering the fourth bend now! Delicious Fresh is still in front! Can she hold that lead all the way to the finish?!"
Just as most people were beginning to think Delicious Fresh might really win it, the race suddenly changed.
"Happy Meek!" the commentator shouted.
"Happy Meek is coming up!"
At that moment, Happy Meek abruptly accelerated, sweeping past several runners at once and bearing down on Delicious Fresh in front.
"Ugh...!"
The girls she passed had no way to stop her. They could only watch as she pulled farther and farther away, aiming straight for first place.
Delicious Fresh noticed Happy Meek closing in and frowned.
She knew her own stamina was running low. She could not accelerate a second time. If this continued, Happy Meek would catch her—and once she did, Delicious Fresh would never be able to pass her again.
What do I do?!
Was she really supposed to just watch her rival overtake her?
No... she did not want to lose.
She absolutely did not want to lose!
Her trainer had promised her that if she won first place, he would go on a date with her—take her to an amusement park, ride the Ferris wheel with her...
Was she really going to hand victory away and lose her chance to go on that date with him?
No!
She could never accept that!
She had to win!
"Then... I've got no choice!"
A sharp light flashed through Delicious Fresh's eyes.
She kicked hard at the ground, sending a spray of mud backward toward Happy Meek.
During a race, mud flying up from the ground was perfectly normal. Doing this would not count as a foul, and it could cause real trouble for the runner behind you. If it got in their eyes and forced them to slow down, even better.
"I'm going on that date no matter what!"
But what Delicious Fresh had not expected was that Happy Meek would shift her body in a flash and cleanly dodge the mud flying at her.
"What?!"
Delicious Fresh was shocked.
She had dodged that sudden attack?!
And in the instant Delicious Fresh froze, Happy Meek seized the opening, burst past her from the side, and overtook her.
Now it was time for Happy Meek to unleash her full sprint.
At her current speed, Delicious Fresh had no chance of catching her again.
Victory was practically already decided.
"Ngh..."
Despair spread across Delicious Fresh's face.
"Meek! Well done!" In the stands, Aoi Kiryuin was brimming with pride.
Happy Meek's excellent performance today owed everything to one person.
"Trainer Tang, I really have to thank you for this," she said, turning to Tang Han with a sincere smile.
"If you hadn't taught me how to guide Happy Meek before, she would never have gotten past the horse girl in front of her today. She would have lost."
...Although saying it like that somehow made it sound like she was taunting him.
Aoi Kiryuin immediately realized that too and hurried to explain.
"Ah—sorry... I wasn't trying to mock you, Trainer Tang. I just..."
She looked troubled, as though every attempt to explain only made it worse.
"It's fine. I understand what you mean." Tang Han waved a hand, signaling her not to be nervous.
He knew Aoi Kiryuin had meant no harm. She was only stating the truth.
"Thank you for understanding." She let out a relieved breath.
Trainer Tang really was both smart and gentle. Being around him was so easy.
"You don't need to thank me. This is all your own effort," Tang Han said.
Back then, he had only taught Aoi Kiryuin to try to understand her own horse girl's way of thinking. He had used the example of "dribbling past a defender" to demonstrate it once, and after that he had not helped them any further.
Afterward, it was Aoi Kiryuin who adapted the idea to their situation and took Happy Meek out to play basketball, using games to train her ability to break past others.
That was what had led to today—Happy Meek passing one horse girl after another, even dodging mud kicked at her head-on.
Tang Han had only provided direction. The ones who had truly made Happy Meek stronger were Happy Meek and Aoi Kiryuin themselves.
Did he regret teaching them?
Tang Han was not that petty.
And even if Happy Meek had grown stronger than expected, did that necessarily mean she would beat every other horse girl and take first?
Tang Han watched the race, still utterly calm.
"Wait! This one is—!" Suddenly the commentator noticed something and cried out in shock.
"Haru Urara! Haru Urara, who was in eighth, has started sprinting too!"
"Seventh! Sixth! Fifth! Fourth!"
"Haru Urara is breaking through the pack—she's charging up!"
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 147)
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 (Chapter185)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter105)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter215)
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 185
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/1
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 206
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 190
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/23
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 106
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 125
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 90
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 80
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 86
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 81
Still playing traditional Honk 65
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 65
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 57
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 45
Transmigrated as Sukuna 59
Checking In in Demon Slayer 59
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 73
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 45
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 36
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 40
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 60
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 30
Why did they assign me to Uma 35
MYGO Beauties 43
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 30
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 31
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