"The students in Group A unexpectedly brought us so many surprises, it's simply unbelievable. I wonder what kind of results Group B will achieve…"
Todo excitedly watched the ready-to-go Uma Musume. As the one responsible for timing, he was already prepared.
"However, if we're talking about it, the most noteworthy in this group should be the two highly anticipated newcomers from their enrollment period—Biwa Hayahide and Victory Ticket…"
"Putting these two in the same group is indeed something to look forward to. If I remember correctly, both of them ran astonishing times in the entrance exam, right?"
Undoubtedly, just the presence of these two had already attracted everyone's attention, while the small-statured Daijin was even more unnoticed at this moment, like a shadow unreached by the light of shining stars.
However, she had long grown accustomed to this feeling—
As Smart Falcon was pushed into the gate by the teacher, all the Uma Musume in Group B were now ready. After the teacher left the track, the signalman standing by the side raised his right hand.
"On your marks—get set—"
A brief pause, then the signal light turned on.
"Start!"
Click—
The gates instantly opened, and the crowd surged out like dozens of projectiles. The one who burst out first from the gate, standing out, was none other than Victory Ticket with her short, choppy hair.
At this moment, she was no longer the nervous person she was before. Instead, her eyes were wide, her lips tightly pressed, maintaining a high level of concentration, propelling her body forward like an arrow.
The first two hundred meters from the start was the opportunity for the leading group to seize the initiative. The lead Victory Ticket exploded with in that instant was only half a horse length.
Following closely behind her was Biwa Hayahide, with her beautiful pink, fluffy long hair among the contestants. In the initial sprint phase, the two, as everyone expected, immediately took the first and second positions.
The first two hundred meters was the most intense period of competition. To seize an advantageous lane, especially in the leading group's area, besides these two who successfully broke through and occupied the runaway zone in an instant, the rest of the crowd desperately pushed and squeezed forward. Although short-distance races are decided by sprint speed, they also test physical flexibility, dealing with high-intensity physical confrontations that arise on the track.
"First section time, 12.04s!!"
Todo shouted excitedly, as if wanting everyone present to hear.
They actually achieved a comparable result to the students in Group A—
It's getting more and more exciting.
...
And at this moment, the small figure, seemingly about to be swallowed by the crowd, was clearly in trouble.
Daijin had miscalculated. From the moment she left the gate, she had wrongly estimated the strength of the entire field.
"Guh—"
Damn it, how could this be!?
The strong wind whipped her cheeks. The initial burst of speed and this Kiai (Fighting Spirit) seemed to completely overwhelm her.
Daijin had intended to try accelerating to the very front from the start, because in a recent race, Tamamo Cross from Group A had used this method to avoid her physical disadvantages, relying on her own choices to leverage her strengths and mitigate her weaknesses, securing victory with a runaway style of running.
Daijin had witnessed all of this, and so she naturally adopted the same strategy.
This was clearly the optimal solution.
She only needed to replicate everything Tamamo Cross had just done.
But what she hadn't expected was that, just three seconds into her sprint, several people behind her instantly used "unreasonable" force to push her aside, and her chosen method was shattered by everyone's strength in an instant.
The smaller Daijin was in a leading position at the start, but this spot undoubtedly made her a target.
Everyone wanted to break free from the main group, and she seemed to become the breakthrough point; the small-statured Daijin was completely unable to withstand the pressure of being strongly pushed from behind.
Though she was the third favorite and wanted to seize the early advantage in a short-distance race to establish her dominance, she was instantly pushed back to seventh or eighth place by everyone.
"..."
Kazuo's hands clenched tightly around the railing for a moment. Somehow, his heart suddenly tightened.
He watched as the girl was scattered by the pack, the gap between her and the leading group slowly widening.
It was a short-distance race, but the gap between them was slowly increasing.
Damn it! Why, why is this happening!
She vigorously pumped her arms, her feet clearly accelerating, but, but—
She simply couldn't close the distance with the others.
Flawless. Everyone's positioning and awareness were so professional, and she could only watch helplessly as the gap between her and these people slowly widened.
"This is Tresen Academy!??"
A gathering place for elites and geniuses. What was she, after all?!
Her chest felt like it was about to explode, and her breathing rhythm had become erratic at some point.
"This is bad. The continuous collisions have passively consumed too much stamina. Each adjustment requires more energy and focus. And her own rhythm has clearly been disrupted by the leading Uma Musume..."
Yoshida immediately saw Daijin's problem. He slowly shook his head, saying that in his eyes, Daijin had clearly lost the qualification to be among the top three.
Although she was the Uma Musume Kazuo cared about, the feedback he received after paying special attention to her made him silently acknowledge the facts.
Other Trainers were still talking about the small Uma Musume from Group A who had taken first place earlier, so they had shown interest when Daijin was briefly in third place at the start.
However, after only two sections of the race, she was far behind everyone, only in tenth place.
In just over ten breaths, Victory Ticket and Biwa Hayahide, leading the pack, had already passed the number six flag, signifying that the race was halfway over.
From here began the final two bends and one straight stretch of the track.
It was also from here that the true moment of the final struggle began.
Without exception, everyone accelerated. Daijin looked at the others, her heart now in a complete mess, unable even to maintain a steady breathing rhythm.
But unwillingness and anger filled her heart.
She clearly loved running, but she was gradually being dominated by these emotions.
"...Here it comes again—"
Kazuo stood in the stands, staring at everything with a conflicted expression. That familiar feeling even made him feel sad.
"Yaaahhhhhh—"
She roared with all her might, leaning forward so much that it was almost as if she was going to run out of her own body.
"...Hmm!"
Yoshida, as well as Toujou Hana and Sasaki, quickly noticed this situation.
If one were to make a second sprint at this stage, unless they had absolute confidence in their abilities, they could only move forward by narrowing the gap between themselves and the leader.
But—
At this moment, Daijin was clearly neither.
Why, why, even like this, she can't catch up!!
Even after surpassing several people to reach seventh place, the two at the very front seemed like unattainable goals—
Her running posture even began to deform.
"Why can others do it, but I can't?"
Such thoughts filled her mind.
And just then, the fifth-place Uma Musume, who was only half a horse-length behind her, slowly hunched down.
This was an existence even smaller than her. The little girl with fluffy twin tails now stretched her body like a drawn bow, her body taut like a fully drawn bowstring.
Then—
She transformed into a streak of light.
This was Daijin's only thought as she witnessed it all up close.
"What!?"
"This—"
Toujou Hana couldn't even hide her surprise, clutching the railing, while Kazuo, standing on the distant viewing platform, widened his eyes even further.
Another tiny Uma Musume, who had been submerged in the crowd, now seemed to find an opportunity in the small space left by the others during her sprint, using this method to weave and dodge, instantly rendering the barriers set by the others useless. She appeared in third place at the end of the fourth section.
In less than two hundred meters, contestant number four, Inari One, had incredibly found a gap within the curve, utilizing the narrow spaces created by everyone's leaning posture, and in an instant, completed a magnificent comeback, charging from sixth to third place.
Daijin watched helplessly as this scene unfolded before her eyes. That figure, even smaller than herself, had accomplished something she couldn't.
How could it be—
If the equally 1.4-meter-tall Tamamo Cross maintained her advantage until the end through absolute personal speed,
Then contestant number four, Inari One, was another extreme, fully utilizing her small stature in the middle of the track, effortlessly weaving through the pack like a dragonfly skimming the water.
Without excellent physical flexibility and extremely strong athletic reflexes, this would have been absolutely impossible.
At this moment, Inari One, at the fifth stage, directly charged up from the outside lane from behind.
The entire process, from overtaking to breaking free to the final outside sprint, was only about three hundred meters, taking merely fifteen seconds.
It was clearly a showdown between two, but unexpectedly a dark horse emerged, appearing in third place with an incredibly strong showing, and at this moment, Inari One's Kiai (Fighting Spirit) was fully unleashed, her sprint now unstoppable.
The three figures raced abreast, and then, a small Uma Musume 'threaded' through the two, completely establishing her advantage in the final fifty meters.
She crossed the finish line successfully with a one-horse-length lead.
At this instant, almost everyone turned their gaze towards Todo, looking at the stopwatch in his hand.
"6, 68s11..."
Everyone was astonished.
In Group B, a small Uma Musume had once again taken the lead, and surprisingly, the difference in their times was less than a second.
If the two were to compete on the same stage, the difference between them might only be a nose-length… How incredibly unbelievable—
Inari One, competitor number four, was only one meter thirty-nine centimeters tall, making her one of the shortest among the newcomers… Yet she had surpassed the two most favored competitors in this group… "It's truly unbelievable. These two seem to be the only ones from their local schools to gain admission…"
Yoshida nodded in admiration, "They truly embody the hopes of their hometowns. Tamamo Cross, Inari One…"
But at this moment, Kazuo's eyes held none of these. His gaze was fixed solely on the other small Uma Musume on the track.
Daijin ultimately crossed the finish line in tenth place.
Throughout the entire race, she had expended too much energy. Even her final sprint, when viewed in the context of the whole race, seemed more like a futile outburst of rage.
She was hunched over, panting heavily with bent legs, her pointed ears drooped downwards, her face hidden within her soft hair.
She had failed, and failed completely, placing second to last in Group B… Her tightly clenched fists looked as if they might draw blood, leaving faint marks on her skin.
Unwillingness, defeat—
She suddenly lifted her head, then walked towards a less crowded area. Right now, she just wanted to hide in the shadows.
"...Narita… Daijin."
Kazuo gazed at the small figure, softly muttering her name.
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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 2 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]/TripleCrown
If you guys wanna check it out.