Chapter 29 The Final Contender
"Alright, the Hokkaido Select Sale this year, as always, relies on everyone's support."
Finally, the Select Sale seemed to be officially starting.
"However, before the first horse participating in the Select Sale, please allow me to introduce a racehorse from this year's Select Sale that has achieved excellent results."
It turned out to be a feint.
"Next year, they might even bring out Gastrique again as their main attraction."
Ogawa Masaru yawned, looking a bit bored. The last G1 horse from the Hokkaido Select Sale was Kinzuna in 2019.
"If you have mastitis, apply a hot towel. If that doesn't work, use a milk-releasing needle to drain the milk, then inject Double D intramuscularly, remembering to strictly control the dosage according to body weight."
"If cysts are a common occurrence, you can try laying buffer pads or mats on hard surfaces that certain herds can easily access."
Tapping on his phone screen, Kitano opened his unread messages one by one.
"...And I'd like to thank those who traveled from overseas, from America and Europe..."
Does such a thing really exist? He raised his head.
Well, it really did. Scattered figures with golden hair were indeed spotted in the venue.
"...There is a 4 to 5 second delay between the live broadcast and the actual event, so those participating online, please be aware of this."
Finally, all the Precautions had been announced.
"Now, thank you for your patience."
"Before the official start of today's Hokkaido Market yearling Select Sale, please welcome Hokkaido Market Director Furukawa for his opening remarks."
Bowing slightly, Market Director Furukawa took the microphone.
He was not tall, and his hair was somewhat graying, but his voice was very energetic.
"...As with last year, this year's Hokkaido Select Sale will also last for three days, with the auction of the first batch of selected foals, as last year, placed on the first day."
"We ask for the continued support of all participants in this year's Select Sale."
With that, Market Director Furukawa bowed slightly. Scattered applause broke out.
The commendation ceremony for outstanding Horse Owners and Trainers from last year's Select Sale quickly concluded in an awkward atmosphere.
Kitano couldn't help but pause slightly when he heard the phrase "main G3 victory."
Then he sincerely admired the emcee who continued to comment without changing his expression.
Both the Horse Owners and Trainers seemed to breathe a sigh of relief when the commendation ceremony ended.
Especially the Horse Owner gentleman holding a trophy, his face clearly showed that he was ready to retire from his Horse Owner career.
Five staff members sitting on the elevated platform marked "HOKKAIDO HORSE SALE" nodded to each other, and after confirming everything was ready, the female auctioneer in the middle announced: "The auction for the yearlings on the first day of the 2025 Hokkaido Select Sale will begin with Lot number one."
After another slightly long wait, until the professional smile on the female auctioneer's face became a bit stiff, the first horse reluctantly entered.
"Lot number one, Magny Cours 2024, male, dark bay, born February 20th. Sire: northern basalt. Dam: Magny Cours, with a long line of American dirt bloodlines."
"Alright, bidding starts at twenty million yen. Twenty million—"
"Oh, hey—"
A Horse Owner uncle directly behind Kitano raised his hand and shouted loudly.
By the way, was it really necessary to shout so loudly?
Moreover, the starting bid was already out of his acceptable range.
Kitano decisively buried his head in the brochure.
"Alright, twenty-one million—any higher bids? Twenty-one million—"
"Is there really no other bid for twenty-one million yen—twenty-two million!"
A subtle sense of déjà vu suddenly arose.
"Oh, hey!"
Not far to his left, another Horse Owner placed a bid.
"Twenty-three million—now twenty-three million! Twenty-three million yen—"
Although it was packaged more glamorously—
It was essentially no different from a livestock auction in the county.
Adjusting to a more comfortable sitting position, Kitano observed the bidding on the field as a spectator.
The first dark bay horse seemed to be of a difficult temperament. Not only did its entry go smoothly, but during the auction, it repeatedly showed restless signs of wanting to kick up its heels.
Although it was unclear whether this would specifically affect the dark bay horse's market value, the final transaction price only reached thirty million yen.
From the expressions on the staff's faces, it was evident that this was still some distance from their expected price.
However, for Kitano, this was also an unattainable figure. His ideal price was six million yen.
His target was those lower-ranked horses that fell between being passed in and selling at the reserve price.
Of course, if it didn't happen, it didn't matter.
He didn't attend the Select Sale with thoughts like "I must buy a horse to prove my eye" or "It would be a waste not to use the Detector."
Just let nature take its course.
"Is there really no other bid for thirty million yen—a northern basalt offspring inheriting dirt bloodlines from the dam, no objections to thirty million yen—"
The auctioneer was still making a final effort.
However, the bid was unlikely to go any higher.
It seemed even the Horse Owner uncle who had just shouted thirty million yen was already starting to regret it.
"Then, thirty million yen from this customer will be the final successful bid."
Upon hearing the clear tap of the gavel, the sweating staff finally breathed a sigh of relief and led the dark bay horse away.
Then came Lot number two, three, four... until after Lot number twenty, Kitano still showed no intention of bidding.
"Mr. Kitano is truly patient."
Ogawa Take admired Kitano's composure.
Among the first twenty lots at today's Select Sale, several yearlings with excellent prices and physiques appeared consecutively. Even he couldn't help but make a few unplanned bids.
Yet, Kitano, as a new Horse Owner who had only recently gotten into horse racing, remained silent until now.
"I just haven't found a suitable target yet." This was a rather polite way of putting it.
To put it more bluntly, the starting prices of the previous horses had already exceeded his budget.
"Then, Mr. Kitano, please continue to work hard!" It sounded entirely like words of comfort.
Even as the Select Sale was nearing its end for the day, Kitano had still not called out a bid.
Many Horse Owners planning to compete for the Tenno Sho (Autumn) offspring, which was the grand finale, had already secretly marked him as a strong rival.
"Next up is Lot number one hundred thirty-six, Ocean Fleet 2024, female, Kurige, born March 7th. Sire: Kobayashi Ricky. Dam: Ocean Fleet, with a 3x5 Raise a Native bloodline."
The female auctioneer calmly introduced the second-to-last yearling to appear today.
However, there was no sign of Ocean Fleet 2024 on the display walkway.
Even as the professional smile on the female auctioneer's face began to stiffen slightly, the first horse reluctantly entered the arena.