Scorching breath seared her nostrils and lungs. Gravel flew like molten steel against her skin as she raced down the dusty track, yet Sumire Nanno's eyes were filled with nothing but confusion.
She had always known that Dream Weaver might be more talented—more gifted than the rest of them. Her own group hardly ever showed up for proper training. How could they possibly outrun someone like Dream Weaver, who practiced day in and day out?
Even before speaking to her, Nanno had braced herself for the gap. Twenty lengths, maybe thirty.
In a real race, that would be an unimaginably huge margin. But against a bunch of Uma Musume who barely trained? It seemed almost fitting.
After the race, she could've easily said with a careless tone:
"You left us in the dust—so what?"
"The only reason the gap's so big is because we're just that pathetic."
"Put you in a real race—even a debut race at the Central Circuit—and you'd fade into the crowd like anyone else."
But now… Nanno found she couldn't say any of that.
The gap between Dream Weaver and them wasn't just about discipline versus laziness. It wasn't even about excellence versus mediocrity. It was—
The difference between an Uma Musume and an ordinary person.
Even with a body naturally built for running, Nanno felt just like any other person—utterly ordinary in the face of Dream Weaver's speed.
How could a Uma Musume like this end up in a place like Kasamatsu Tracen?!
Nanno gritted her teeth, frustration boiling inside.
And yet, for some reason, this Uma Musume who had long given up on racing didn't quit—not even when her lungs burned and every step sent jolts of pain through her body. She kept running.
She had long lost sight of Dream Weaver, yet something pushed her forward—something she couldn't name.
It wasn't just her. The other three Uma Musume felt it too.
Their bodies screamed from neglect, yet their legs refused to stop. They pushed harder, teeth clenched, speeding up even through the agony.
It had been so long since they ran like this. After passing their faint hopes onto little Oguri Roman, it felt like their role was over—like they could just sit back and watch from the stands.
But the moment they stepped onto the track and witnessed Dream Weaver's blazing form, something in them stirred. An urge to chase, to follow—no matter how foolish, no matter how far behind.
The racetrack was a battlefield. Only one Uma Musume could win.
And yet here they were—these self-proclaimed failures who had given up even before the race began—pushing onward against all logic. A spark of passion, long buried, was flickering back to life. They couldn't win, but they could run with everything they had.
As Dream Weaver's rivals, as witnesses to her radiance, they refused to cross the finish line with the same defeated attitude they had carried for so long.
Time and distance stretched endlessly in their agony, but finally, they crossed the line. The one who had left them all behind was now waiting calmly at the end of the track, watching them.
"Hah—"
Nanno braced her hands on her knees, gasping desperately. Sweat stung her eyes, blurring her vision. If not for that stubborn, inexplicable sense of pride, she would've collapsed right there.
"Feels like it's been a while, hasn't it? Running like that."
Dream Weaver's figure slowly came into view. Her voice drifted down, and to Nanno, it sounded almost condescending.
"Mocking the losers… is the winner's privilege."
"I've… got nothing to say."
Nanno spoke between ragged breaths. It was strange—she thought she'd buried all her feelings about racing long ago. Yet now, her heart ached with every word.
This must be another kind of pain that racing brings, she thought reluctantly.
Just as she expected Dream Weaver to mock her shortsightedness even further, the other girl simply smiled.
"I thought you might not make it to the end."
"Didn't you say you'd given up running? So why push so hard?"
Nanno pressed her lips together. She didn't fully understand it herself. Her body had moved before her mind could catch up.
"I have a proud friend… who likes to call herself a king."
"She once told me that it's not just Uma Musume who can feel the radiance in running."
"...What are you trying to say?"
Nanno already had an idea where this was going, but she stubbornly refused to admit it.
"A true king," Dream Weaver continued, "must shine her light upon every spectator."
"Only when the audience too can bask in that brilliance can she truly be called a monarch."
"I used to chase victory without understanding what that meant. But after coming to Kasamatsu Tracen… I think I'm starting to get it."
"The brilliance on the track doesn't belong only to the Uma Musume."
"The rivals who run alongside, the spectators who watch—they can feel that light too."
Gradually catching her breath, Nanno straightened up. She met Dream Weaver's gaze, though her tone remained defensive.
"Are you saying I was… moved by it?"
Seeing that Nanno was still being stubborn, Dream Weaver smiled and extended her hand.
"Welcome back to the world of Uma Musume."
Nanno turned her head away as if annoyed, but still took the offered hand.
"I just… didn't want to lose."
It was meant as another deflection, but Dream Weaver burst out laughing.
"That's exactly what we need! That unwillingness to accept defeat!"
She spread her arms wide, taking in the entire Kasamatsu Racecourse. Every eye was on her.
"Who says we have to be okay with falling behind? It's that very frustration that drives us forward, isn't it?!"
"We all want to see Kasamatsu Tracen stand tall in the racing world again! We want to break into the Central Circuit! We study equipment every day! Every one of us carries some kind of regret!"
"So why give up?! So what if they're elite schools? Let's drag every one of them down here with us!"
Imitating the mannerisms of T.M. Opera O she remembered, Dream Weaver rallied everyone with passion. Her speech wasn't as polished as Opera O's, and she lacked that overwhelming, unshakable confidence.
But her words still struck a chord.
Like a spark landing on dry kindling, her passion ignited a blazing fire in their hearts.
"Pretty bold words," Nanno said, arms crossed, her gaze thoughtful. "There are only nine of us at Kasamatsu Tracen. You want to take on the entire racing world with just nine?"
Dream Weaver didn't turn around. She stared at the empty spectator seats, as if remembering something, and replied with unwavering conviction:
"Someday, I will make every seat here filled."
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T/N: TM and mc are truly meant for each other
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T/N: To the recommendation of one of my readers, I am somewhat pleased to announce that I have another Uma Musume fanfiction up!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.