Question: When you wake up to find a strange woman lying on top of you through the quilt, what's a normal thought to have?
Anyway, Song's first reaction was to scream.
But then...
Just before she could, the golden-haired Uma Musume lying atop her suddenly raised a hand to cover her mouth.
As if she'd already predicted this would happen!
This unexpected turn left the pinned Uma Musume filled with shock. But after struggling fiercely to calm herself, her mind finally began to function properly.
The girl on top of her was incredibly cute—no, incredibly serious would be a better description. She was watching her closely, like studying a rare artwork, even her ears gently flicking with satisfaction.
The pinned Uma Musume tried hard to figure out just who this person might be. When the edge of her vision caught sight of the pale blue hidden within golden strands, a sense of familiarity flooded her heart.
Um, if her guess was right, wasn't this perhaps her roommate, Neo Universe-san?
Huh?! But we're just roommates, right? Would roommates really sleep in the same bed, and in this position?
Absolutely not! Roommates should remain just roommates—dorms aren't a place for things like this!
Perhaps tiredness or something else was to blame. Whatever it was, under Song's astonished gaze, Neo Universe removed her hand from Song's mouth, positioned her knees carefully between the quilt's raised parts, and leaned in abruptly, staring into her eyes.
"Good morning. I missed you, Gotham Song."
...
Having finally escaped the clutches of her strange roommate, Song stared intently at herself in the mirror.
Even though she'd spent quite a while back in Japan after returning from America, she still found it somewhat unsettling to look at herself now.
Her facial features didn't seem to have changed much, at least not noticeably. Her height was the same too. But the biggest change?
Her hair color.
Her originally white hair—back when she was still "Twilight Song"—had turned jet black, including the fluffy fur on her ears.
Well, honestly, being alive was already the best possible outcome. Ugh, life really was unpredictable...
Stupid system. You told me I only had one year left, but never mentioned a Revival Race.
That year spent struggling in the Afterlife was still vivid in her memory.
An utterly deranged lunatic wielding a katana like a maniac, little fillies bleeding everywhere as they ran, and other outrageous types she'd never encountered—truly, it had been a world-class Uma Musume freak show.
O Three Goddesses, look at them—they weren't even human!
But in the end, everything turned out well.
"You all can run your Afterlife Stakes—I won the Revival Race."
"Hehe."
But her new identity after winning the Revival Race was somewhat problematic.
Manhattan Cafe was an extremely popular Uma Musume from her previous life, and after the Revival Race, Song became her younger cousin who had just arrived from America.
As for her new name...
It was common knowledge that Manhattan was a district of New York, and as Cafe's cousin, her naming followed similar logic.
Hmm, well…
What other famous district was there in New York?
Gotham.
Although Gotham hadn't existed in her previous reality, in this world it really was a part of New York.
It had even become famous due to the current "Ruka Stakes."
Thus, her full name now was "Gotham Song."
...It felt like a joke of a name, filled with bad taste in multiple ways.
Tamamo help me, the Joker's still after me! Wait, in this world, the "King of Gotham" referred to her previous self—Twilight Song, who died on the track.
Meaning...
Tamamo help me, the Joker—the King of Gotham, Twilight Song—is still chasing me!
Eeek.
Every time Gotham Song thought about this, she felt chills run down her spine.
Too scary! Even scarier than Neo Universe standing behind her, staring at her back right now.
Wait—Neo Universe, staring behind me?
Song dared not turn around, staring straight into the mirror at Neo Universe's beautiful, sparkling eyes—eyes clearly spelling out two words:
Time Stop.
Huh?
Tamamo save me, where'd this come from?! Is this still the sparkling, heart-throbbing Uma Musume world?! You little filly, I'll fix you!
Song spun around fiercely, only to see Neo Universe suddenly lift a towel, gesturing her to lower her head.
Meeting those scarily intense eyes for just a second, Song felt she very gently chose obedience and lowered her head. Immediately afterward, a soft touch wiped the water droplets off her face.
"I missed you, Song."
What's with this strange atmosphere? Aren't we meeting for the first time?
Song had only arrived in Japan yesterday, flying from America to the Japan Central Tracen Academy dormitory. She wasn't actually here to race, just using the place as a temporary base.
She had originally planned to return to Mejiro Manor this afternoon, so she hadn't even minded that Neo Universe hadn't been in the dorm yesterday.
Meaning she'd had no interactions whatsoever with Neo Universe. So why was this girl suddenly saying she missed her? She couldn't remember having any relationship with her in her past life either!
Song twitched her ears, thoroughly puzzled.
Neo Universe…Neo Universe...what was her original character setting again? Ah, she remembered now:
An oddball Uma Musume said to be able to observe parallel universes…
Parallel universes? Seriously?
"Yep, exactly as you're thinking, Song."
Wait, did she just read my mind?
"Not mind-reading. I've just seen this scenario countless times already."
Neo Universe put down the towel, gently gripping Song's chin, looking down at her. Only at this moment did the black-haired Uma Musume realize something clearly:
Neo Universe seemed taller than her...and much stronger!
Neo Universe didn't care about the now-panicking Gotham Song—or rather, she knew exactly when to firmly tell her what she absolutely shouldn't do.
Because...
"The thing you hate most is a heavy track—you hate restrictions placed on your body, don't you?"
Song nodded repeatedly. Honestly, at this point, it seemed undeniable that Neo Universe knew about parallel worlds. Otherwise, how would she know things Song herself had never mentioned?
"So, you can't go back to Mejiro Manor this afternoon."
Huh? Why—wait, are you saying if I go back to Mejiro Manor or reveal myself, I'll be imprisoned?
No way! Ardan-nee wouldn't do something like that. Ramonu-nee, though…ah.
Wait...
Isn't this supposed to be a normal Tracen timeline?!
Neo Universe had evidently had this conversation many times. She directly grasped Twilight Song's thoughts.
"No. Mejiro Manor is already broken, as you'd say yourself."
"Tell the other 'me'—this isn't Tracen anymore. It's a Lostbelt—a Lostbelt!"