"Ah… if Sirius Symboli could hear you say that, Kitahara, she'd definitely be happy… or maybe even angrier."
Maruzensky teased lightly:
"She really doesn't like being pitied."
"That wasn't pity," Kitahara explained with a wry smile. "I was just stating the facts."
"In that case, since Sirius Symboli doesn't want to accept her award, would this year's 'Best Local Trainer' and 'Rookie Trainer of the Year,' Mr. Kitahara, be willing to attend the UAA on January 1st to receive your awards?"
Maruzensky smiled.
The titles "Best Local Trainer" and "Rookie Trainer of the Year" were already printed on the invitation. Kitahara wasn't particularly surprised.
In fact, he had already suspected something like this might happen.
The Federation Umamusume International Association (FUIA) had a "points" system to measure the performance level of trainers and umamusume.
The scoring system was standardized and used by all URA associations worldwide, with separate formulas for trainers and umamusume.
Based on the international formula, Kitahara could calculate his current score.
That score placed him in the local-tier rankings, but converted to central-tier equivalency, he was already on par with — no, ahead of — a new Central trainer.
Comparing past data, Kitahara felt confident he'd be near the top of local trainers this year. But UAA awards weren't decided solely by points, so he hadn't paid much attention to it.
After all, in his mind, raising Oguri Cap, Belno light, and Super Creek well mattered far more than any trophy.
Still, since Maruzensky had personally delivered the invitation, turning it down would be rude.
"Alright. I'll go."
He didn't plan to stay long, though. Oguri Cap had the "Golden Youth Cup" on January 10th, and that month he also had the second round of his Central Trainer qualification exams. He'd just go receive the award and come back — no need to linger in Tokyo.
"Phew, I'm really glad you agreed, Kitahara."
With a half-serious, half-playful sigh of relief, Maruzensky smiled.
"Well then, could I trouble you to keep showing me around the Kasamatsu campus?"
She really did want a campus tour?
Kitahara was a little surprised, but he didn't refuse, casually leading Maruzensky around the grounds.
But gradually, he noticed Maruzensky's questions felt… guided. She kept steering the conversation toward him, probing for more about his background and thoughts.
Is this URA or someone else investigating me?
A certain moon-shaped white fringe and chestnut-haired umamusume flashed through his mind. Kitahara thought quietly.
It must be that "Emperor"'s doing, huh? Oh well — in another month I'll be Central anyway. If they want to know about me, let them.
Naturally, the person he was thinking of was Symboli Rudolf — student council president.
Thanks to his own foresight, that Emperor president had not achieved the "Forcibly Snatching the Gray Filly" feat in this world; Oguri Cap had never been taken from his side.
Not only that, Kitahara had flipped the tables — he had even "stolen" Super Creek away from Central for so long, and later, even after moving to Central, he would "snatch" away Tamamo Cross and Inari One as a team.
These four umamusume had the highest natural talent and potential of their generation — especially Oguri Cap and Tamamo Cross, who were each "Horse Kings" of their respective eras. Their dominance in their prime was on the same level as Symboli Rudolf herself.
With a roster like that, if Kitahara wanted to slack off, he could train them half-heartedly like any average trainer and, within a year or two, still have a point total rivaling the top trainers in Japan.
That wasn't arrogance — Oguri Cap, Tamamo Cross, Inari One, and Super Creek were simply that strong.
But Kitahara knew clearly: his ambitions went far beyond that.
Komiyama, Yusuhara, and the others speculated that his ambition was to have Japanese umamusume conquer the world — and that was true, but not the end goal.
His ultimate dream was to make this already dreamlike umamusume world even happier — a world without injuries, without regrets, where they could keep running free, carefree, forever.
He didn't know how long it would take, or even if it could ever be achieved.
But he was willing to keep working for it.
Because they deserve it.
By chance, while thinking of the future and his dreams, Kitahara was a bit distracted responding to Maruzensky — until she brought up something that caught his full attention.
"By the way, this year they'll be announcing new Hall of Fame umamusume, won't they?"
Kitahara immediately became serious.
The highest honor an umamusume could achieve — "Hall of Fame" — was staggering in weight.
Even just by counting how many had ever received it, you could see its value.
In another world, as of 2020, over decades and tens of thousands of racehorses, only 34 had ever been enshrined.
In this umamusume world, because the timeline was earlier, there were even fewer — only 18 Hall of Fame umamusume so far.
Looking at the so-called "Hall of Fame gatekeepers" showed just how steep the requirements were.
Take the anime's first-season protagonist, Special Week — softened and simplified on-screen into a sweet but not overwhelmingly strong girl.
In reality, she fully deserved titles like "Leader of the Golden Generation" and "Japan's Supreme Commander."
In her career, aside from one Kyoto Daishoten 7th place, she never finished outside the top three.
She won the Japanese Derby not sharing it with El Condor Pasa — in fact, they didn't even face each other there — but by a crushing five-length margin, taking the brightest jewel of her generation.
One of only six umamusume ever to complete both the Spring and Autumn Tenno Sho victories back-to-back. A career in-the-money rate of 94%.
At the time, she held the highest career earnings — 1.09 billion yen.
Stats like that simply cannot be called weak.
And yet — she was one of the "Hall of Fame gatekeepers."
Even someone as powerful as Special Week hadn't entered the Hall.
The reasons were, of course, the sheer strength of her contemporaries.
El Condor Pasa: 11 races, 8 wins, 3 seconds. Overseas: 4 starts, 2 wins, 2 seconds. Never finished worse than second in her entire career. Two of those seconds were abroad, one of them in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe — and even that loss was by only by Half a length to Montjeu, in an unsuitable track condition. She had been this close to winning — and it was the first time a Japanese umamusume had ever placed in the Arc's top five, making the result historic.
Not only that, her St. Cloud Grand Prix victory carried massive weight — beating by two and a half lengths a former Arc champion, a dual Derby (French-Irish-German) winner, the European Horse of the Year, and Germany's top horse. That victory still stands as Japan's best mid-long-distance overseas result — something never reflected in the anime.
Narita Top Road: 12 races, 7 wins, 1 second. Won two of the Triple Crown. Apart from a Spring Tenno Sho 12th in her retirement race, she never finished worse than fifth.
Grass Wonder: 15 races, 9 wins, 1 second. Aside from a 9th in the Keio Cup, never finished outside the top six — and never once lost to Special Week, effectively her natural rival.
Seiun Sky's record was less sparkling — 27 races, 6 wins, 4 seconds — but no one would call her weak. Many of her 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place finishes were always with Special Week, Narita Top Road, or Grass Wonder cycling through the podium.
Even after those fierce rivals retired one by one, she had the misfortune of facing G1 six-time winner Admire Vega and G1 seven-time winner T.M. Opera O.
Yet even so, that 27-race career proved she had, in another sense, surpassed her four contemporaries — in endurance, in tenacity, in living through a brutal era.
In short — umamusume as outstanding as Special Week failed to enter the Hall. Narita Top Road, Grass Wonder, Seiun Sky — none of them did either. They were indeed slightly behind El Condor Pasa in overseas achievements, but the fact that an era needed that level of fierce competition just to reach the Hall showed how high the bar truly was.
In such a world, Kitahara couldn't help but care about any Hall of Fame news — because among his own umamusume, there was one who was destined.
Oguri Cap.
Hall of Fame title: Superstar.
(End of Chapter)