Returning to the Northern family home, Dream Weaver first re-hung her mother's portrait, then tidied the room and her belongings before resuming her training as usual.
Yet, in the days since coming back, she had been far from satisfied with her training results. At first, she blamed the environment—after all, this place was far too crude compared to the professional training track at the Mejiro estate.
But she soon discovered the real reason for her decline.
Having just finished an endurance-speed session, Dream Weaver didn't wipe away the sweat stinging the corners of her eyes, letting it burn. That slight discomfort hardly mattered compared to the signals her legs were sending.
"Have my legs… really grown this heavy?"
Frowning, she stared down at her slender legs, where glistening beads of sweat traced paths down her skin.
Beneath the sun, those unbeaten legs still looked as flawless as normal, yet she keenly sensed a subtle, indefinable change taking hold.
Unlike Narita Brian's visible injuries, what haunted Dream Weaver's legs was something far more hidden and delicate—a shift that had been influencing her gradually, unnoticed, until today.
Testing her theory, she began applying force bit by bit. At first, everything felt normal. But as she pushed closer to her limits, a sharp pain shot through her legs.
"Has my tolerance lowered?"
Dream Weaver's brow furrowed deeply.
No… that's not it. The power I just exerted actually surpassed my old self. I can feel my limits haven't dropped—they've even improved slightly. But my body can no longer bear pushing beyond that.
Recalling the strange sensations during her recent endurance drills, she silently called up her status panel. At her mental command, the familiar translucent blue screen materialized before her.
--+--
[Uma Musume Training System — Scenario Panel]
Character: Northern Dreams
Speed: S [Crown Tier]
Endurance: S+ [Crown Tier] → S [Crown Tier] [Restricted]
Power: A+ [Legend Tier]
Guts: S+ [Crown Tier]
Wit: B [Elite Tier]
Surface: Turf A, Dirt C
Zone: [Cursed Blade/Murasame]
Skills: Intuition (Purple), Phoenix (Blue), Pilgrimage of Pain (Blue), Burning Embers (Purple), Blueblood (Purple)
--+--
Her eyes narrowed at the glaring "[Restricted]" label. As she focused, another screen popped up.
--+--
[Restricted]
[Description: Talent surging beyond its vessel has outpaced the body's limits. While base capabilities remain, accessing them has grown exceedingly difficult.
As innate talent continues to grow, the resulting power progressively erodes bodily function. To cope with the strain, the body instinctively lowers performance to a sustainable level. So long as this threshold isn't exceeded, normal activity remains possible.]
[Current Sustainable Tier: S]
--+--
Reading the text, Dream Weaver's fists clenched unconsciously.
In this scripted world, empowered by Blueblood, her talent had soared under its guidance, ascending toward the heights of her ancestors.
By the time of the Tenno Sho (Spring), her attributes had reached unprecedented peaks—Speed at S, Endurance and Guts at S+. That was how she could repeatedly deploy her Zone with a front-running strategy during that race.
Her Zone, Cursed Blade, lived up to its name—a weapon capable of multiple strikes. But before, her foundational stats couldn't handle the immense stamina cost; drawing it even once was often her limit.
It was during the Tenno Sho (Spring) that she finally made the Cursed Blade an extension of her will, fully mastering the bloodthirsty weapon.
But now, her peak had passed. The power granted by her bloodline had exceeded what her body could endure. Under such immense pressure, her body had imposed restrictions on the power she could wield.
She could still access S-tier strength for now—but what about later? Would this decline continue? There were still nearly six months until the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
If her body's usable power kept dropping during those months, how could she face Narita Brian, returned to her peak?
That Narita Brian would be even more terrifying than in the spring. Her golden slit pupils would fully transform into the bloodthirsty eyes of a wolf, her fierce Zone unshackled by injury.
Like a shadow-wolf breaking its chains, she would wreak havoc on the track, brutally shredding her rivals' defenses, tearing victory from them with fang and claw, forging her own crown.
And how could Dream Weaver, crushed by her bloodline's power, unable to even access her full strength, possibly stand against her then?
"The Northern family's curse…"
Dream Weaver murmured to herself, standing still as blinding sunlight pierced her eyelashes, obscuring her vision.
She had long been mentally prepared for this. With her grandmother and mother as precedents, she knew she would someday face this curse engraved in the Northern bloodline.
Now, it was only beginning to bare its fangs. The curse that had reduced the once-great Northern family to its current desolate state couldn't possibly end here.
Dream Weaver had to prepare for the possibility that her stats might drop to A-tier, or even B-tier, by the Tenno Sho (Autumn). Could she face a peak-condition Narita Brian with stats from her classic year—or even the first half of it?
The thought brought a wave of pressure as overwhelming as a tidal surge. That race would undoubtedly be the most difficult battle in this scripted world—perhaps even the hardest she would ever face.
Driven by this urgency, her gaze instinctively shifted to the system's inventory screen.
Staring at the Perfect Limiter, crafted at the Northern family's utter expense, she fell deep into thought.
If she used it now, her stats might stabilize at their current level. By the Tenno Sho (Autumn), she could still wield S-tier abilities.
In that case, she'd still be confident of defeating even a peak Narita Brian.
But the question remained—should she really use it now?
Or should she gamble on a possibility—bet that this Perfect Limiter could awaken her mother in the real world?
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! 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.