**Chapter 36: Night Mixed Race**
"It's really hot!"
"Yeah, I should have brought more clothes."
"My face, too, is completely covered in sweat, I can't see anything—"
Inside the preparation room, the Jockeys chatted while waiting for the next race to begin.
"After this, let's all go for yakiniku!"
Fujita, the youngest among the Jockeys, suggested.
"Hooray—"
Everyone cheered, and even Ochiai, who usually disliked lively gatherings, joined in.
"Alright! The next race is about to start, everyone get ready."
Finally, the most senior Jockey, Inoue, stood up and spoke.
Standing up from his seat, Ochiai began to stretch his wrists.
The sticky feeling all over his body made him very uncomfortable.
However, it wasn't enough to affect the race.
He looked up at the electronic screen on the wall of the preparation room, recalling the planned race strategy.
The next race was a 1000-meter two-year-old mixed race, a commission from Kitano Horse Owner.
Aside from the lameness, the dark bay mare named Mejiro Sakiya had an excellent physique.
However, how such a racehorse would perform in an official race remained unknown.
"If it really can't run, just pull it up."
Before the race, Kitano Horse Owner had given the instruction to prioritize safety.
This surprised him a little.
Logically speaking, even without dreaming of getting rich overnight, Horse Owners always hoped to get at least a return commensurate with their investment.
As far as he knew, Kitano Horse Owner had spent over a million yen just on Mejiro Sakiya's treatment fees.
And in return, the only goal requested was to "safely finish the race."
Completely—
Incomprehensible.
Donning his sweat-soaked helmet, he and his companions jogged towards the parade ring.
"Although he's still a bit relaxed mentally, his body feels great!"
After mounting the horse, he received this evaluation from Kobayashi.
"Assistant Yoshimoto has also been praising the horse's steady gait after its morning workout."
Feeling the horse's back, which was completely different from Mejiro Pegasus, Ochiai nodded slightly.
"I'm counting on you!"
Today, the Kitano Horse Owner still appeared very solemnly at the parade ring.
"Please leave it to me."
The two maintained the ancient etiquette between jockey and horse owner from the Showa era, like actors from a sword-fighting drama who had wandered onto the wrong set.
Because it was a night race, the floodlights were on in the arena.
Under the lights, the shadows of people and horses would be very prominent on the white sand track.
For racehorses that might be startled by their own shadows, this would undoubtedly be a nightmare.
However, Mejiro Sakiya was not that type.
Among the competitors wearing various equipment, the dark bay horse seemed a bit out of place.
Despite being its first race, it obediently entered the starting gate under Kobayashi's lead.
"This child is really well-behaved."
Walking aside, Kobayashi, who started chatting with his companions, couldn't help but say.
At this moment, the last racehorse was finally squeezed into the gate with the stableman's pushing and pulling.
"Number 10, Aachen Palace, has also entered the gate."
"Monbetsu Race 10, JRA Certified Two-Year-Old Maiden Race—"
The commentator's leisurely voice came through the broadcast.
Ochiai gripped the reins tightly.
The moment the gate opened, he noticed something unusual.
Mejiro Sakiya took a full beat longer than the other horses to start moving.
However, Ochiai remained calm.
Lame horses usually start slower than normal horses when accelerating from the gate.
Both Kitano Horse Owner, who was a veterinarian, and Tanaka had informed him of this before the race.
"And they're off!"
At this point, the commentator's voice, which had also been slow to start with Mejiro Sakiya, finally sounded.
"Number 1, Kazama Yukari, takes the lead smoothly. Number 3, Chisha Gukou, is close behind in a slightly trailing position. Number 9, Mejiro Sakiya, had a poor start and is now in the very last position."
Ochiai held the whip in reverse, striking Mejiro Sakiya's ear several times while increasing the pull on the reins.
Taking advantage of the other competitors vying for good positions, he moved to a slightly more forward position on the open outer track.
This was the original plan.
But in actual execution, the progress was not smooth.
Perhaps due to a sluggish temperament, or perhaps because it was their first official collaboration, his whipping did not have much effect on Mejiro Sakiya.
Although its position was slowly improving, it was much slower than expected.
The turn was just ahead.
Ochiai had to abandon the plan to continue accelerating and began to move slightly towards the inner track.
"The position is a bit far back."
In the stands, Kitano narrowed his eyes slightly.
However, he was not too worried about the direction of the race.
Rather, given the pre-race strategy and Mejiro Sakiya's start, its current position was within expectations.
"Perhaps, being able to understand this, I have already shed the identity of a beginner in horse racing and am moving towards a higher realm."
Kitano couldn't help but think so.
On the other side, Ochiai was facing a dilemma.
Whether or not to give Mejiro Sakiya the command to accelerate during the turn.
Based on previous training and its early performance, Mejiro Sakiya was undoubtedly the type that was not very sensitive to commands.
Moreover, it didn't seem to have the strong fighting spirit like Mejiro Pegasus, which shared the same stable name.
Riding such a racehorse was a great test of a Jockey's stamina and timing ability.
Something called "intuition" or "experience" was constantly reminding Ochiai.
Now was the time to move forward.
But it was too early.
In the early stages, a portion of its leg strength had already been wasted trying to move forward.
Moreover, the position was not ideal.
On Mejiro Sakiya's outside, Number 10, Aachen Palace, was subtly blocking its way.
As for the track directly ahead and on the inside, it was already occupied by the pack of horses.
If he wanted to accelerate, he would likely have to collide with Aachen Palace.
And this was what Ochiai was trying his best to avoid.
Besides being unsure about Mejiro Sakiya's identity as a mare, the more important reason was the pre-race instruction to "safely finish the race."
If an accident occurred during a collision, he had no idea how he would face Kitano Horse Owner to report it.
He chose to hold his ground.
In his line of sight, the fourth turn quickly came to an end.
Aachen Palace chose to go wide first.
"Now's the time."
Following closely behind, Ochiai manipulated the reins and moved to the outside.
During the process, the two racehorses inevitably collided.
Unexpectedly, Mejiro Sakiya easily pushed aside Aachen Palace, which was a stallion, and even slightly disrupted its acceleration momentum.
"Time to move forward."
Ochiai, who hadn't noticed this, held the reins with one hand and swung his whip.