It was disgusting.
"Hmm? What are you reading, Mili-senpai?" Bright Rock asked, smiling sharply as she handed over the can of cold coffee she'd bought from the nearby vending machine.
"Nothing." Mili Wakaba whispered, concealing her scowl behind the newspaper.
The same old thing was being parroted in today's newspaper; Blossom Star's recent crushing victory at the [Spring Tenno Sho], shocked realizations on how much stronger she was on longer tracks, all sorts of comparisons between her and Oguri Cap—the same basic schtick people had been parroting for nearly two weeks by this point.
It wasn't all that different here in Tracen Central. She and Bright were at the cafeteria right now, and even here she could hear other students talking about the recent [Spring Tenno Sho], about how awe-inspiring and terrifying it was to see Star completely dominate a race that held so much prestige.
"How is it?" Bright asked as she popped open her own can of soda.
Mili took a quick sip of the coffee, and scowled. "Never buy this again." She said, before she promptly drank the entire can empty. Bright just stared at her for a good moment before she nodded, knowing that she'd likely be buying that same can of coffee for the next couple weeks.
The thing was, everyone was so glazing Blossom Star that everyone else fell to the wayside. Every piece of news talked about her victory, speculated about the upcoming [Takarazuka Kinen]—basically preparing to praise Oguri Cap and Blossom Star like they'd descended straight from the heavens.
No one talked about those that'd lost. No one spoke about how half of the participants had dropped out, and some even retired from racing outright after seeing the sheer gap in talent. No one spoke up about the anguish some of those umamusume felt—the way they were left as nothing but empty husks as Japan kept bathing those two monsters in silks and golds.
People like them, people like her—they were all forgotten, left as nothing more than footnotes of a Hero's journey.
Mili wanted nothing more than to smash something in whenever she thought of it.
"How about this?" Bright then offered her a bag of dried kombu. "This one's been a recent hit with everyone."
Mili glanced at the unopened bag and rolled her eyes. "Not hungry."
Bright nodded, though she then tore open the bag and offered a piece of dried kombu. Mili's eyes twitched, but she obediently opened her mouth and let Bright feed her.
But really, what was there for her to do?
Sure, she wanted nothing more than to enact some rightful revenge against them, for her friend and others like her—those whose spirits had been broken and overshadowed. But–
Blossom Star and Oguri Cap were Japan's golden geese—the dominating Heroes of this era. She wasn't conceited or stupid enough to realize that she could compare against them. Even the so-called Generation of Miracles were cheat characters in their own rights.
That wasn't even the worst of it. Most of Japan hadn't seemed to have picked up on it just yet, but she knew that Star and Oguri were being backed by Secretariat of all people. If America's Big Red believed in Oguri and Star so much that she'd brought them to America, that probably meant that she believed in those two's potential.
And that?
That was scary.
"More?" Bright asked, her smile growing as she offered another dried kombu.
"Fuck off." She said, and then proceeded to bite down on the offered snack.
…
Meanwhile, within a certain mansion in the state of Virginia,
Secretariat snorted as she finished reading the Japanese newspaper that'd finally made its way here to the States.「The midget sure took 'er sweet ass time.」She whispered as she relaxed into her couch, a wide grin growing across her lips.
And just like every other Japanese newspaper being printed these past few days, the news was dominated by her Apprentice's most recent victory at the [Spring Tenno Sho].
A staggering lead of 24 lengths! A dominating victory that left everyone in her shadows! The Japanese media was practically salivating like a dog whenever they talked about her. Unsurprising, considering this was probably the first time the country had seen such a dominating victory.
But her?
Secretariat's grin softened as she saw the attached image of her Apprentice, smiling softly during the final straight of the race「'Atta girl.」She whispered, feeling truly happy for the first time in a while.「Looks like she's finally found it.」
Sure, she'd felt pride when she first heard about Star's victory. Hah, the higher-ups were probably salivating when they realized that they had an 'up-coming 3rd Big Red' or whatever spiel they talked to her about back then. But she didn't really care about that. It wasn't that girl's strength that had cemented her choice to bring her here.
No. The reason was simple.
Blossom Star was hurting. Her soul was incomplete—her entry into this world troubled and fraught with complexities that had troubled even the Three Goddesses. It was a damn miracle that she was alive, much less conscious. And it was only through the sacrifice of another that she and her Other Half was given the chance to meet.
Blossom Star was young, and she needed someone to help her.
And was it not the duty of a Hero to pass on their wisdom to the next generation?
"Isn't that right?" Secretariat asked in accented Japanese, a small sad smile as she faced the figure now sat on the couch opposite of hers.
It was a thing shrouded in black, their body dripping and melting as if formed from boiling ink. Red gashes opened and closed all throughout the thing's body, forming into wide open mouths, bleeding with a substance far too bright to simply be blood. It was unclear whether that thing was a human or not, or whether it was even real.
"tHe BeaST aNd thE StaR." The phantom whispered, their voice breaking and twisting with every syllable. "ThE eARth, anD PoLAriS."
For a moment, even the usually jovial umamusume found herself closing her eyes, if only to hide the grief she felt. "Your body-, you don't even look like an umamusume anymore, senpai."
The phantom didn't respond. Maybe they could no longer offer one.
Secretariat gently opened her eyes. "How long, senpai?" She asked, fists clenched.
The phantom shuddered, the dozens of mouths twisting in what almost seemed like agony. "soOn." They said, their voice distorting. "dEsTinY apProachES. tHE sTakE agAInST heAvEn."
And then, just moments later, the world seemed to twist. A swirling redness overtook her vision, and she felt a chill creeping up her spine, as if dozens of boney hands were snaking up her back. But she'd felt this sensation many times before, and she found a twisted feeling of comfort in it.
Knowing what was coming, she closed her eyes.
Her ears twitched as she heard a demonic screech echoing around her, followed by a wet squelch. And when she next opened her eyes, the phantom was gone. The couch they'd been sitting on was untouched. The carpet below was entirely pristine.
Secretariat clicked her tongue. That was basically a nothing-burger. That was just how her senpai usually was, but she really wished they could be clearer at times.
Fine. It just meant she had to use her own channels to find out the answers she wanted.
[The Hero -Secretariat- no longer has access to the Umamusume Hero System]
「I'know, I'know.」She sighed as she stood up, frowning slightly as she tried to remember where the closest statue of the Three Goddesses was. She needed the genuine article—only a statue that'd been blessed by the Goddesses themselves could act as a channel to commune with the divine.
She eventually remembered one, and without explaining anything, she immediately ordered for her chauffeur to prepare a flight to New York.
The old man just looked at her for a good moment before he went off to prepare, already more than used to her Lady having all sorts of strange requests that she never bothered to explain.