"What in the world was Super Creek doing at the very end?"
That thought flashed through Barbatos' mind as she led the charge out of the starting gate. That final burst of speed was just like Inari One in the first leg—it felt almost unreal!
Speed like that would be considered top-tier even in a G1 race.
And putting the raw speed aside, what was up with that overwhelming pressure she felt radiating from her during the sprint?
The Heisei Top Three…even after all these years since retirement, each of them was still a monster in their own right. If that was the case, just how strong was Oguri Cap, who was currently in her absolute prime?
Pushing those thoughts aside, Barbatos quickened her stride.
This wasn't the time to dwell on things like that. Right now, all that mattered was winning this race!
'My steps feel so light! I can do this!'
She had to build as much distance as possible between herself and Tamamo Cross.
Even if the other Uma Musume would eventually close the gap, she had to drag this out until the final stretch. Only then could she make her last desperate dash for the finish!
No other Uma Musume here could create an a defensive barrier—so her opponent wouldn't be able to start using skills to sprint from the midway point. That was the inherent weakness in her relay-long-distance running strategy.
But after all that training with weights lately, her base condition had improved significantly.
Even if the improvement was small due to her natural limits, when stacked with her passive movement speed bonuses, that progress became much more noticeable.
[Dead Man's Plate]'s passive was fully stacked. Red ribbons of energy materialized behind Barbatos, boosting her speed once more.
'By my estimate, Tamamo Cross and Obey Your Master should be starting their move around now.'
'Being the front-runner really is a different kind of pressure.'
'No way to tell where or when they'll start their chase.'
Glancing briefly over her shoulder, Barbatos took a deep breath and pressed onward. Only 1000 meters remained. She had to hold back until the final straight.
Until then, she had to rely on her passives and her own two legs.
"Barbatos is now leading by 13 lengths! Tamamo Cross and Obey Your Master are running almost neck and neck!"
"Will Tamamo Cross and Obey Your Master catch up to Barbatos, or will Barbatos maintain her lead all the way to the end?!"
--+--
"Sei-chan has created a 15 and a half length gap! This one's in the bag for B-chan!"
"She's about to hit her sprinting window any moment now."
Ikuno Dictus' glasses gleamed. She was quite familiar with Barbatos' usual race patterns from all her previous events, whether they were beginner races or G3 contests.
Around the 1000-meter mark, Barbatos would always launch her assault from behind, overtaking every other Uma Musume with her absolute speed!
Even though her role had changed now—from a deep closer to a front-running escape artist—the final result probably wouldn't change one bit.
A little girl standing beside Urara blew on the small horn hanging around her neck, cheering for Barbatos up on the big screen.
"I really hope she can pull off the win like this."
Just then, Minamizaka walked over.
"With a gap this big, is there any way B-chan could still lose?" Matikanetannhauser didn't quite understand what the trainer was implying.
Twin Turbo chimed in, "Yeah, exactly! There's no way B-chan would lose!"
"Haha, you're probably right."
Minamizaka chuckled and didn't press the issue.
But the pressure you feel leading from the front is entirely different from the pressure you feel chasing from the back. The hunter and the hunted—it's a completely different game.
Especially for a Uma Musume like Barbatos, who had never experienced being pursued by such powerful opponents before. The pressure she was about to face would be unprecedented.
And the opponents she had to face were none other than "The White Lightning" and "The Ambush."
--+--
"800 meters remaining!"
"Tamamo Cross and Obey Your Master are now running one after the other, still 10 lengths behind Barbatos!"
"Which of them will be the first to launch their acceleration?"
Sakura Bakushin O, for a moment, found the situation hard to read. She couldn't understand why Barbatos hadn't started her final sprint yet.
After all, to be a better commentator for this race, she had done her homework meticulously on all six participants. She'd watched countless recordings of the Heisei Top Three, plus Barbatos and the other two, over and over.
And yet, Barbatos still hadn't started her kick.
--+--
'Should I start my sprint now? No, I can't afford to get impatient.'
Feeling the pressure building from behind, Barbatos forced herself to stay calm.
'There's no one here to create a barrier for me this time. If I accelerate too early, I'll have nothing left to counter with later.'
'If I let my impatience get the better of me and kick too soon...'
'400 meters!'
'I just need to hold on until the 400-meter mark, then I can go all out!'
'Only 300-something meters to go. I can do this!'
--+--
'How careless.'
Her red headband fluttering in the wind, Tamamo Cross could clearly see Barbatos' position despite the 10-length gap.
To think she still wasn't preparing to accelerate at this stage—this wasn't what she'd expected based on her pre-race research. Was it because of that 15-length head start she'd gotten from the beginning?
'Is she taking it easy to conserve stamina because of her initial lead?'
'Planning to decide it all on the 400-meter straight after the final turn?'
'Too careless!'
'You're far too careless!!'
'Don't you get it? You're fighting me—Tamamo Cross!'
Her eyes seemed to blaze in that instant. Her speed surged several levels at once as she launched into an all-out sprint, closing in on Barbatos with terrifying intent.
"What... is this..."
Barbatos, still in the lead, felt her limbs go weak. A sudden, overwhelming pressure made her entire spine run cold. "This pressure is..."
"Incredible! Tamamo Cross is accelerating all at once!"
"That intensity! You can feel the sheer force of it even through the screen!"
"And what's that?!"
"It's Obey Your Master! She's sticking right with Tamamo Cross, following her lead and chasing them down!"
"What incredible speed! What overwhelming momentum!"
In the student council's seating area, Symboli Rudolf shot to her feet.
For a moment, she was too stunned to speak.
It wasn't surprising that Tamamo Cross could unleash her 'Zone—just like Super Creek and Inari One had done earlier.
The problem was, Super Creek and Inari One, having been retired for so long, could only manifest incomplete versions of their Zone. But the Zone Tamamo Cross was radiating now reminded Symboli Rudolf of the white hurricane in her absolute prime.
Even if her physical capabilities had declined with age, her Zone seemed to have remained at its peak. Was it because of Obey Your Master's influence?
"Barbatos, what you're about to face now is the former strongest Uma Musume in all of Japan!"
--+--
T/N: Tamamo Cross has too much aura
--+--
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]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.