"Don't question, just believe," Zhou Tai'an said, wagging a finger at the "arrogant" little gray-coated Horse Girl beside him.
"If Oguri Cap wins—" Tamamo Cross hesitated for a moment, then decided on her bet. "—then I'll treat you all to a meal!"
"Forget it. Oguri Cap eats quite a lot," Zhou Tai'an said, sizing up Tamamo Cross. He was sure she wasn't a Central Graded Race winner, so he wasn't going to take advantage of the information gap to fleece her. "Let's change the bet. If Oguri Cap wins, you tell me your name. How about that?"
"Is that even a bet?" Tamamo Cross became wary. "Let's just stick with me treating you!"
"Hmm..." Zhou Tai'an couldn't believe there was such a generous person who was so eager to empty their wallet. He reluctantly nodded, then proposed his own stake. "If I lose, then I'll—"
"Then you'll tell me where the best kishimen in Nagoya is!" Tamamo Cross interrupted him. This was very important to her.
"Alright," Zhou Tai'an shrugged. Although he didn't know which place objectively had the best kishimen, subjectively, he thought his own was the best.
Meanwhile, Brand New Shine, watching Oguri Cap sprinting on the track, was offering a silent "moment of silence" for the strange gray-coated Horse Girl. "Oguri is definitely going to win. This one is doomed to lose."
…
At the same time, Oguri Cap, who had gotten a late start, had already caught up to second place by the time she was about to enter the first turn.
"Good. Even though I got a late start, it wasn't too hard to catch up to my opponents on this straight," she thought, relieved.
Following behind the leader, Innocent Dino, Oguri Cap entered the first turn on the outside.
She had to squint here, because every step Innocent Dino took kicked up a cloud of sand behind her.
To avoid this, Oguri Cap wanted to imitate her debut race at Kasamatsu and drift one step to the outside. This would, one, prevent Innocent Dino from unintentionally drifting wide and blocking her path when they entered the backstretch, and two, reduce the impact of the kicked-up sand.
But on the turn, she could see the movements of her opponents behind her with just a slight glance.
"Memory Gemini, who's behind me right now, seems very eager to overtake me."
Noticing this, Oguri Cap decided to hold her position for a while longer. "If I drift wide, the gap I leave will definitely be filled by Memory Gemini immediately."
If that happened, Oguri Cap would be stuck on the outside. Then, while everyone else ran 1400 meters in this race, she would have to run 1450.
Enduring a bit of sand now was an easier choice than running an extra 50 meters.
"Speaking of which, Trainer didn't seem to give Oguri any advice before this Wakakoma Sho," Brand New Shine said, turning her head to look at Zhou Tai'an.
Zhou Tai'an nodded, glancing at Tamamo Cross, who was on the other side, openly listening to their conversation. "None of the opponents in this race can compare to Fujimasa March. There's no reason for Oguri Cap to lose."
"Aren't you afraid she'll fail at the longer distance?" Tamamo Cross couldn't help but ask. "I believe she's only ever run an 800-meter race, right?"
"Not afraid," Zhou Tai'an, who had seen Oguri Cap's stats, replied bluntly. "I have a knack for judging a Horse Girl's distance aptitude."
"Oh?" Tamamo Cross raised an eyebrow and leaned closer to Zhou Tai'an. "Then what do you think my distance aptitude is?"
Zhou Tai'an raised an eyebrow and opened his Stat Viewer. Unlike with Oguri Cap, this Horse Girl's stats, aside from a pitiful "B71-W52-H73," showed her track and distance aptitudes.
"You're a turf Horse Girl," Zhou Tai'an said, not surprised. There were a lot of turf Horse Girls at Central Tracen Academy. "Your best distances are medium and long."
Although his tone was calm, he was very surprised inwardly. "Three A-ranks, just like Oguri Cap. I wonder what her record at Central is. Maybe I can use it as a reference."
"Huh?!" But to Zhou Tai'an's surprise, the gray-coated Horse Girl in front of him didn't seem to agree with the Stat Viewer's conclusion.
"I'm a medium-long distance turf Horse Girl?!" Tamamo Cross pointed at herself, her eyes wide. "Are you kidding me?! I ran a 2000-meter turf race once and only got seventh place!"
"You weren't running from the front, were you?" Zhou Tai'an looked at the running style aptitude on the Horse Girl's stat viewer and his mouth twitched.
"Yeah, so what?" Tamamo Cross frowned. "I use a leading strategy in my races now."
"Have you considered changing your strategy, say, to 'Closer' (chasing from behind), and then trying turf again?" Zhou Tai'an suggested, looking at the "Closer A" on the gray-coated Horse Girl's stat panel.
"A country trainer, giving advice to a Central Horse Girl with such a confident attitude?" Tamamo Cross bit her lip. For some reason, she found herself trusting this strange country trainer.
"I'll discuss it with my trainer later," Tamamo Cross said, turning her head away, not meeting Zhou Tai'an's gaze.
"Suit yourself. In any case, my advice is very useful," Zhou Tai'an said, waving his hand, his gaze already back on Oguri Cap on the track. If she didn't take his advice, it was no loss to him.
On the backstretch, Oguri Cap frowned, having noticed a problem—
"Innocent Dino's pace has really slowed down on this straight." She bit her lip. "I feel like I have plenty of stamina. Should I consider starting my sprint early?"
At this thought, Oguri Cap couldn't help but look towards the stands.
"If only Trainer could give me an instruction right now," she thought, a sense of dependency welling up.
"She's become hesitant..." In the stands, Zhou Tai'an blurted out the change he had observed in Oguri Cap. "Did she notice something?"
He gripped the railing in front of him. "Please don't be an injury..."
Brand New Shine's heart was also in her throat. She stared nervously at Oguri Cap's figure. "Oguri should be fine, right?"
Tamamo Cross, who was nearby, rolled her eyes and muttered to herself, "It's obvious Oguri Cap is just troubled by the race plan she made for herself."
Zhou Tai'an's sharp ears caught Tamamo Cross's muttering. He stared intently at the gaits of Oguri Cap and Innocent Dino in front of her.
"I see..." He breathed a sigh of relief. "She's hesitating whether to accelerate and overtake early?"
Zhou Tai'an cleared his throat with his right hand, then shouted with all his might, "Oguri Cap! Overtake her! Now!"
-------
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